×

Welcome & Thank You Video

Welcome & Thank You Video

We independently research, test, review, and recommend the best products—learn more about our process. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a commission.

It’s taken a lot of nerves for me to do it, but here it is… my first video blog post on Just Creative Design. In the video I give a short introduction to the blog & myself as well as give a warm welcome & thank you to all of my readers – it’s you guys (and gals) that really keep me going!

For those reading via email or RSS you may need to click through to my blog to view the video.

sponsored message

Adobe Creative Cloud Discount

I recorded the video with the Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 and made the opening & ending credits with the free Windows Movie Maker (yes I am a PC user) and then uploaded it to YouTube.

Thanks for watching and if you have any recommedations, tips or suggestions for future video posts, please do let me know. (I hope this one wasn’t too bad!)

Share This Post:

57 thoughts on “Welcome & Thank You Video”

  1. Good on ya mate! You’ve just given me an idea for my own blog. Rather than have a few paragraphs of crap in my bio, I’ll put a vid in there instead.

    I think it’s good that you’ve put yourself out there, thanks for sharing!

  2. Hi jacob, i’ve been following your blog for a time now, its really good, about the video, as a video editor and productor myself i can tell you about 2 or 3 things, first of all, dont worry, dont be nervous just think about talking to other people in real life (that’s kind of waht you’re doing so dont worry); black and white? i know it looks clasy and in synthony with the web, but when your working with video you gotta catch (didnt find a better word, my english is not so good sorry)attention usally colors do that esaly, and the background because its in b&w, get lost with your hair so you dont have full attention to yourself..its not bad, dont missunderstand me,im just trying to help…

    cheers dude!!

  3. Hey Jacob. I am looking forward to your posts mate, we completely understand the nervousness. When we started From the Couch it took huge courage and we were beyond nervous. So don’t stress about that too much, as you get more comfortable the videos will become more awesome.

    With regards to content, it will be cool to get more insight into logo designing!

    Good luck with it!

    David Perel

  4. Hi Jacob, good stuff on the vid. It kinda makes your blog a bit more “personal”, being able to see and hear you. Well done. I look forward to seeing some more online in the future. Cheers.

  5. Great work Jacob, great to put a voice to the face. Don’t worry about being nervous, we (the readers) all support you and your work. Would love to see maybe some tutorials on the video.
    I still can’t believe you have done so much and your only 21!

  6. Philanthropy,

    Of course not, I don’t think the video posts will be too regular of a thing, the other posts will still be coming 🙂 Is there a way to feed the video through RSS?

    Taz,

    Hope it goes well for your blog… ensure you have both a video and few paragraphs though – some people don’t like watching video.

    Mao,

    Yeah I think it should settle down, hopefully when I am talking about something more on topic. Alright, I will try the colours next time, however I thought it would be better to have it black and white first time around. Thanks for your feedback.

    David,

    I’ve seen a few episodes of from the couch, it seems that when you are further back from the camera, it’s not so intimidating? When you say insight into logo design, do you mean screen capture or some of the sketching and process behind the design?

    Anthony,

    Yeah, the video does make it more personal, you get to see and hear at the same time, rather than just read.

    Alex,

    Stay tuned for hopefully some over the coming months.

    R Shahin,

    Thanks for that… it would be an extremely hard task to have a blog for so long and not “really exist” but I suppose some do do it!

    Beky,

    Any tutorials you have in mind?

    Nicholas,

    Thanks for your feedback and for subscribing. All the best!

  7. @Jacob – I wouldn’t say distance from the cam, but time in front of it definitely helps! What we did to get comfortable was film ourselves as often as possible by just whipping out our cell phones.

    RE the content: It would be awesome if you could break down the phases of your logo design process and then film each of those steps and make each one an episode… that would be pretty cool.

  8. Don’t worry, you’re well understandable, just a litte nervous. I’ve heard people with a much stronger Australian accent. 😉
    If you have the time it would be great if you could produce a few screencasts or other short films to feed us into your working and creativity processes.

  9. Antonea,

    Well it is a big step for me anyway! I will check out Vimeo, it would be good for the videos to show up in RSS feeds. A lot less hassle for everyone.

    Luis,

    I saw David’s a few weeks back and it got me inspired to do this video… I had been meaning to do it for a while (bought a webcam about 5 months ago) but never got around to doing it. Thanks for watching and commenting.

    David,

    Yeah, I suppose I will warm up to it in time. It would be pretty hard to film each part of the process as different episodes as so much of it is in my head (or just experiments) but I will see what I can do / come up with.

    Mako10,
    When I did a test video, I realised I talked way to fast and mumbled too much… this video was the 8th take! Will see what I can do with the screencasts, do you know some good software for that (for PC)?

  10. Its good, u look handsome dude 😉
    anyway ur site is amazing i must say
    its very useful for my class of designer

    thanks

  11. I like the black and white. I think a pattern in the background can work – maybe try something with lower contrast. It is normal to be nervous and it is ok to acknowledge it. Don’t feel like you need to apologize. Nervous but confident can be very authentic and endearing.

    One minute for an intro void of content is perfectly acceptable and shows respect for the time of your readers. Kudos for keeping it short.

    Great job Jacob. It is inspiring to see a fearless, just put it out there attitude!

  12. @Jacob: Oh, I’m not a screen caster, but for PC the only programs you can really use are Camtasia Studio and BB Flashback but both are very expensive (ca. 200-300$). You could also try Jing, that’s by Techsmith as well (like Camtasia Studio) but in the normal version (not Pro) free of charge. With Jing you can record your screen and directly upload the video to share it with Screencast.com or other video platforms.
    Techsmith also has another product called Snagit which is much more inexpensive as Camtasia Studio is, but I haven’t tried that out yet.
    Of course, there are two Open Source tools als well (CamStudio and Wink) but both have not been developled further for years and have their bugs. CamStudio is just for recording short and unprofessional sequences and Wink for (text-)guided Tutorials, not really what you need.

    P.S. in my second comment there should be the XML tag “embed” after “…using the tag”, but your Blog swallowed it. 😉

  13. Hi Jacob! I tried to comment on YouTube… Don’t know if it is there yet!
    Good job on the video thing! One tip, from a guy that did 4 weeks local radio:
    -stop moving around!
    We understand you beeing nervous, but, that is just for the first times. A glass of what so that you don’t cough, and you are on!
    Man… One other thing… Just 21??? Damn… I am getting old!
    Ah! One last thing… Is it true that you are sending the Computer Arts? How do you do that? Have you some sort of agreement with them? Hope that it isn’t from your pocket if you are really sending them!
    No, after all it isn’t the last thing! Do tutorials, screen casts, have live stuff, well, record live stuff from your visitors, friends, teachers, whatever, online, with stuff from Adobe, like the ConnectNow, and interact… Then, if you have some spare money go for an Pro account (check the terms before, obviously) and then you can have like Live sessions with people, teaching and having informal classes and videos… Then, with that screen cast software you can upload those videos and have a bigger target audience…
    I really like to have a free room there at Adobe, but I can’t afford, yet, and still don’t need, a Pro room, but thats me…

    Cheers from Portugal!

    Have fun, and keep them coming!

    Márcio Guerra

    P.S.- If anyone wants to follow me at Twitter
    http://twitter.com/mguerra79
    http://TypeZine.wordpress.com – My type blog

  14. Awesome, looking forward to future VLOGS. By the way, I’m blown away that you’re 21. I’m 25 and am just starting this web design thing. You’re very inspiring, and your website is a golden resource to me. Thanks and keep it up!

    -Steve (San Jose, CA)

  15. Just don’t forget you non-video readers Jacob. Some of us love your blog but hate video. It’s a personal preference obviously; as long as you remember the rest of us too.

    And your video doesn’t feed through Google Reader (???) so serious RSS’ers can’t view it without visiting JCD website.

  16. Jacob, well done on you! Completely understand what you mean by nerves but glad to see/hear you overcame them. Really enjoyed seeing this new medium in your posts and looking forward to your future releases!

    Alex | @ZenElements

  17. Cool video mate! And it’s not bad at all! Good to see you in person, well, may be not in person, but something like this really inspires people by letting themselves know that you really exist and all. 🙂

  18. Callum,

    Yeah I did that for the first 4 or 5 takes and managed to slow myself down afterwards. Is the accent really that strong? It’s more of a Sydney accent than where I am living currently (Newcastle).

    Hakim,

    Thank you also Hakim!

    Michele,

    The background I put up instead of my messy noticeboard, it was bit of an effort but I will try do something different next time, it is quite contrasting in a black and white video. I think 1 to 3 minutes is an acceptable time for video, I wouldn’t want to watch anything over that unless it was really good.

    Manko10,

    Which is the easiest to pick and use straight away? Obviously I am only after the basics (but still professional) so something simple would be great… what would your recommendation be? I really appreciate your help. I was also wondering about the tag you left, seemed a bit weird.

    Steven,

    People often say that about my age however I don’t think age is a huge portion of what is a determining factor of “success”, if you put the effort in, it pays off. Good luck with your web design work!

  19. Excellent video Jacob!!! It is great to be able to see genuine work not only in your blog but also in your video. Your video here has truly made me a continued subscriber to your blog. Best wishes…

  20. Good on you Jacob! I’m sure many of your readers are super stoked that you have done a video post. As for the RSS feed deal, I subscribe to many blogs who use Vimeo (www.vimeo.com) and the videos show up in RSS readers. Vimeo is pretty awesome, so if your youtube account is new it may not be too late to consider doing future video posts through Vimeo opposed to youtube.

  21. Hi Jacob!
    You’re design blog is the first one i went to a few months ago when searching for designer’s blogs/portfolios, and i have followed it ever since! And I agree that it is very exciting to finally put an animated face (not just still photo) and a voice to all the print i read on your site! I really enjoy your logo’s of the day (i also follow you on facebook & twitter)…
    Don’t be nervous about the videos, the first one was great! and i look forward to more! You are an amazing inspiration being that we are the same age and you are so far ahead of me in the design world, (i’m a 3rd year graphics major at a 4 year college in PA, USA), anyways, thanks for the inspiration and keep up with all your good work!

  22. This is a new trend or what????
    You are the second designer I’ve seen doing this, David Airey some weeks before.
    Because I find it really cool to make a video post, not all the post, but one special, for things like say thanks to the readers or to show who is behind a blog, and obviously in this case its really cool to see and listen Jaccob Cass, a master in the blog/design area, who i’ve been following for some months but never had the oportunity to meet.
    Soo good to see you!!

    And as Atonea I recommend you to go with Vimeo, because the quality and the options are really better tha youtube.

  23. I’d never have the nerve to do that.. I’d mumble up all my words (which I do without being recorded) and it’d be terrible!

    I think the occasional video post would be good!

    I absolutely love your accent by the way, hopefully I’ll get one when I move out with my fiancée in a 2-3 years time! I’m 1/4 Aussie after all!

    Well done with the video!

  24. Jacob,

    I’m an avid reader on many of your sites and follow your Twitters. You’re an inspiration to the community and trying out new ways takes a lot of nerves. Congrats man but keep the articles coming!

  25. Oh sorry, it’s not the tag “embed”, that’s poorest HTML. I mean “enclose” of course (as shown at the link target). I do too much HTML and PHP. 🙂

    As already said before I haven’t tried out Snagit yet but the easiest application I know is Jing but Camtasia Studio and BB Flashback provide a lot more advanced features. If you plan to do a lot with screencasting in the future you should invest in one of those expensive programs. They are very costy but not that complex that you had to read the manual before using it, both are very intuitive to use.
    If you do just a few screencasts then you should try out Jing (maybe also its Pro version) or download the Trial of Snagit and decide afterwards.

  26. Aawww…you have such a cute smile!

    I think the b&w was a nice touch,speaks of the basics in film…also highlights your message. You even hanged some plants in the back!hehehe…10 points for neatness and effort!
    I’m sure thousands of people(*ahem, im one*) wonder who you are, what you sound like and how you do what you do…and this vid was a nice personal touch to your fans(yes you have them) out there!

    A thousand points for courage!!;D

    Once again, you continue to be an inspiration by stepping up another level!

    Thank you for doing what you do!

    yumi (cebu,phils.)

  27. Aly, Paul, Yumiko, Jenni, Ryan,

    Thanks for your feedback and kind words, will hopefully have another one soon.

    Manko10,

    Alright I guess I will have a look at them all to see what will work for what I need. Thanks again for your help!

  28. Jacob, I love how you’re always keeping busy and pushing your self. A real inspiration for designers around the globe. Keep up the great work!

  29. Good on you! That took a lot of guts and I can understand you being nervous 🙂

    Looking forward to the next oone 🙂

  30. I just realized that in my previous comment I say:

    «A glass of what so that you don’t cough, and you are on!»

    What I meant was:

    «A glass of water so that you don’t cough, and you are on!»

    Since I am not english native, sometimes, despite knowing how to write, words (even in Portuguese) mess around and I end up writing completely different things from what I think! Sorry!
    Still… Keep up the good work!
    Ah! And moving around was in relation with the mic, just that, so that the sound stays equal during the whole video… Bah… Nevermind! The video was pretty good for first time!
    Just one thing regarding your age. I do agree with you, if you put your mind into it, you will get it done, you will succeed, but the question by itself was not the amount of sucess you have, is the fact of having it and just beeing 21! That is a real deal, that is quite good!
    Well… Keep it up! Waiting for more!

    Márcio Guerra

  31. Hi Jacob!

    I agree with yumiko. Even though you are on the other side of the world from MI, it’s great to get to see you in action. I look forward to more posts!

    And thanks for all the great posts so far!

    @jennimurr

  32. Devlin, Mathstic, Mike,

    Thanks for the feedback 🙂

    Tashi,

    Good point, I don’t stuff up until I say that I am nervous.

    Edher,

    Yeah good point, I do seem a little drag.

    Márcio,

    I have to approve the comments on YouTube and have done so now. Thanks for the tips about moving around, didn’t notice that! Was the sound that noticeable about me moving around?

    Re Computer Arts, I have one free copy to send out, will be sending it out tomorrow (yet to pick a winner) and yeah it is from my pocket (well the postage), the mag they sent me two by mistake.

    Thanks for your tips.

  33. Nice to finally see you!
    You didn’t do so bad for your first video post.
    Looking forward to future editions.

  34. Aahhh… For a moment (well, since I read the post until now that you explained it [sorry!]) I thought that you were going to send ALL repliers a copy, thats why I said if you did any sort of deal with them… Since your blog/site is so good, well, they might had thought, with you, in some sort of promotion, giving one copy to the readers…
    Well, nevermind!
    About the sound, no, it isn’t noticeable. I just said that AFTER seeing you moving around. My right speaker is always on and off, loose wire, and don’t know for sure if the sound is affected. However, like you noticed now, you moved a bit, but that is just in the beggining! It will surelly go away, and if not… We don’t care! Design is the top issue here! Right?
    Cheers again from Portugal!
    Márcio Guerra

  35. Hey jacob,

    Not bad at all for a 1st video cast. Good going man…and also congrats for your melbourne museum showcase selection, really awesome…

    Keep em’ coming.. 😉

    Piyush

  36. Thank god, a designer with a PC. I get sick of all these MAC people who think they are some sort of Demi Gods for using MAC. My sister has some friends that really made me cringe. They got introduced to me as graphic designers, at which point one half of the couple piped up and with massive emphasis said “we use MACS” 100% SNOB factor. What makes the difference really???? The software is the same for both systems.

    I’ve now gone a step further to “The Dark Side” by going to ubuntu linux. Wait till I next meet them, they’ll probably reach for the phone to call the mental home.

  37. hey Jacob !
    it’s good to hear the voice behind Justcreativedesign 🙂 that was really awesome !!

    So David Airey inspired you 🙂 that’s good 🙂

    you seem a little bit drag, but it’s ok, as you said you were nervous cuz it’s your first video post, i’m sure next time you’ll be doing great !

    can’t wait your next video posts 🙂
    (i vote for a tutorial too ^^ )

    Keep it up !

  38. On JCD… PC rules!!! Hurray! I use both, my 2 PCs, my school’s room macs, my girlfriend’s mac… Man, they try the most to get the same feeling using the same app over both platforms! It is the same, really. Yet I must say, even Windows looks better on a mac, damn, ehehhehe!
    Petrik, just one thing, moving to Linux, what kind of apps do you use now? I would like to change to a more reliable OS, like Linux, but still affraid in Design… Any advice? Jacob, any opinion on this? Any post regarding this?
    Thanks again!

    Márcio Guerra

  39. Márcio Guerra

    If you’re real hard core you may not be able to get away with it.

    I use the Adobe suite on PC at work. Linux (ubuntu) at home.

    Linux software – Inkscape (vector), GIMP (raster), Scribus (layout), Blender for 3D work. All of these are also available for windows and some for MAC if you wanted to try them out. Oh and they’re free to use.

    It’s heading in the right direction and someday I think it could really be used mainstream. There are a few who are already using it in a production environment.

    Maybe one day Adobe will port to Linux.

  40. Petrik, thanks for your (so fast) words…
    I, in fact, would like to see Adobe porting to Linux, and I guess that then I would be a mover… I have heard of things that Linux users do, to their PCs, gosh… Quite amazing, saving power, optimizing the memory, RAM, ROM, etc… Really nice. That really got my attention!
    Thank you!

    Jacob… How about your opinion, mate?
    Thank you all!

    Márcio Guerra

  41. LOL! Love the accent!

    Good stuff Jacob, I’m looking forward to your next video posts.

    I’d really love to see bits and pieces of you working on a design project. You know, a sketch here, a sketch there; photoshoppingspree 😛

    Bye,

    Seph

  42. It’s good to try new things and a video makes you more approachable.

    Are you in any way linked to David Airey? Both blogs look like twins – he also just posted his first Thank you video days before you did, almost same words too. Just curious…

  43. Well done for summoning the courage, the nerves are quite obvious, loosen up, relax, try and get a bit more excitement in the voice! Best of luck for the next one!

  44. hi jacob,
    It was nice to see ya live.. More excited about your screencasts .. would like to listen about logos and trends. and how you started bloging..

    thanks ..

  45. Danielle, BenSky, Valentine,

    Thanks for your feedback and words!

    Petrik,

    I think it just comes down to preference re the PC n MAC debate but we will leave that discussion for the other article. I don’t the open source software will ever become mainstream, but it may pick up more in the future.

    Manau,

    Yeah David motivated me to do it… What type of tutorial would you have in mind?

    Márcio,

    The only post in regards to that is the Mac vs PC one that I link to in this article. I’ve never used Linux before so can’t offer much advice there but I do custom build my own PC’s.

    Seph,

    I’ve got a pretty tame Aussie accent in comparison to other Aussie’s but I don’t think there are many people that love the Australian accent, it’s very bogan like. Haha… and I’ll see what I can do re the next vblog post.

    V-Render,

    How I started blogging? How do you mean?

    Looneybox,
    David motivated me to finally get around to doing my first video post. I actually bought a webcam a few months ago but never got around to doing it. A few others have started doing blogs too such as Danny Outlaw, Chris Spooner, etc and I think it is a good thing… getting to see the people behind the blog.

  46. 21 eh? I guess it’s a good thing to know you’re my age. I thought you were ages older (ok maybe like 5 years older)

    And yes, I knew you were from Australia 😀 I actually have friends who live in Melbourne. Quite a distance from South Cali. Keep it up dude!

  47. Great video, not too long and to the point, gotta admit i couldn’t do it, i much prefer to be behind the screen.
    Kudos to you 🙂

Comments are closed.