What is the DIY Video Studio and what can I do there?
The DIY Video Studio is a small room on the first floor of the Inner City Library. It has everything you need to quickly and easily record your presentations. The room is available for all UM staff and students and can be booked free of charge.
The room features:
- a professional camera
- good lighting
- a microphone
- a green screen wall
- light-blocking curtains
- easy to use WebClip2Go software
Take a look at the DIY Video Studio in this video:
How to prepare for using the Studio?
The instructions below help you prepare for your session at the DIY Video Studio to make the most out of your booked time slot.
Prepare your PowerPoint
Make sure to have your PowerPoint ready to make the filming process run smoothly. If you need to make any last-minute changes, that can be done in the studio.
- Put your script in the notes of your PowerPoint. They will automatically be converted to text on the autocue, so you can read your text while presenting in the studio.
- Add animations or transitions to your slides, if you want to. The software will pick up on this.
- Save your PowerPoint to a USB-drive when you are done.
Choose your position
You can choose where you want to be visible during recording, separately for each slide if desired. There are three options:
- Slide only (see only the slide, hear your voice);
- Picture in Picture (PiP) left/right/big (you are visible next to your slide in the bottom corner);
- Presenter only (you are visible in front of your slide);
- Close-up (you are visible in front of your slide, more zoomed in than with presenter only).
While preparing, you can consider the placement of your text and images on the slides, and where you want to be visible in the recording.
Add additional media
If you choose to add videos or music to your presentation, make sure to download the music or video first (beware of copyright), then embed it onto your PowerPoint slide. Change the settings so that the music/video starts playing automatically; it does not work in the studio to start it by the click of a button.
Options and instructions
- The instruction manual is available in the studio. Please make sure to follow the steps in the manual.
- The studio is meant for recording only, editing needs to happen on your own computer.
- You can choose between the UM template (including the UM leader, title and outro) or the Basic template without the UM leader or title (recording only your presentation).
Tips
- Make sure not to wear green clothes when using the studio, as this will make you invisible in front of the green screen. For more tips on clothing, take a look at the filming tips & tricks.
- We recommend filming short recordings, max. 15-20 minutes per video. Longer videos are possible, but will take a lot longer to transfer to your USB-drive. Consider this when booking and book plenty of time.
- Make sure to have enough storage space on your USB-drive! For a normal presentation recording, you need about 100 MB per minute of film. Adding effects, video or movement will make the size of the video bigger. For big/long videos, consider taking an external hard drive with you.
- Make sure your USB-drive is formatted as ExFAT or NTFS. Other formatting (such as FAT32) will not work!
How to book the Studio?
You can book the DIY Video Studio through the UM Resource Booker. Go to Inner City Library: Special Facilities, and select the DIY Video Studio.
You can book the DIY Video Studio maximum three weeks in advance. At the start of your chosen time slot, pick up the key at the Library Information Desk. They will also explain where you need to go.
Please cancel your booking if you will not be using the facilities.
For staff/teachers only: if you want to book the DIY Video Studio more than three weeks in advance, you can send your request to reservations-ub@maastrichtuniversity.nl. Make sure to include the date, time you want to book the studio for, and your name.
For AVM students & staff: you cannot access the Resource Booker unfortunately, but you can book the studio by sending us a message with your requested date/time.
For MUMC+ staff members: you cannot access the Resource Booker unfortunately, but you can book the studio by sending us a message with your requested date/time.
Note: if you want to invite guests from outside the UM community to take part in your video, please request permission by sending us a message. This way, we can make sure to inform the reception desk of your guest’s arrival. A guest must always be accompanied by a member from the UM community (student or staff) with a UM card.
Manuals for video production
Inspiration
In October 2022, HistoBistro has recorded their videos in our DIY Video Studio.
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User testimonial by Erik Kikas, Study Advisor at the School of Business and Economics.
“The DIY video studio has been useful to consistently create relatively high-quality videos with minimal effort. Of course you still need to do some preparatory work (the slides and the script), but once that is done – it is a matter of clicking a button and reading from the teleprompter. Personally, I think such a facility reduces the perceived difficulty of recording videos and promotes use of videos in education and/or other areas. I find it crucial to be able to make this opportunity available and accessible to include people who are not so handy with technology. The DIY Video Studio is useful to swiftly create videos that look professional and appealing to share with a wider audience while minimizing other factors (weather, lightning, place, equipment).”
