Considering this is probably the most useful outlet to get a message across, I’ll post what’s been going on here, and it’ll save me having to make a long boring drawn out vlog that I don’t particularly want to edit and I’m sure not a lot of people particularly want to watch. So here goes:
In the last two years or so, I began winding down the amount of content I was posting on YouTube. Some reasons extended to simply the lack of time around university or an increased commitment to studies, and others extended to personal matters such as a lack of motivation at the time. I’m not going to sugar-coat things, and instead I’ll say it as blunt as possible. At times where I’ve had both the time and the general motivation to post videos, I’ve often opted out of it and done something else.
I want it to be noted, I do enjoy making videos and contributing to the site “YouTube”, but at the same time, given the technical issues and the fact I’d like to spend my time with friends and all, making YouTube vids isn’t exactly a high priority for me.
Technical issues is really just the amount of time it takes me to edit and upload a video. Filming is fine, and I can get footage up on my computer in reasonable time; however, the issues surrounding the amount of time it takes my computer to render, export and upload the video, makes what could take 1-2 hours max take 5-6 hours... and that’s for a standard skit or vlog at times. The fundamental cause of the technical issues is simply because my laptop is incredibly crappy, and not exactly the best build to be as quick as I need it to be to pump out a lot of material and be able to facilitate the kinds of editing software and effects I want to make vids with.
As for personal issues, they are exactly that, personal. If I have the option to either spend time with friends or do something else that I’ll enjoy, compared to the inescapable hours of waiting for the rendering processes to finish, I’d take the chance. I know it can be argued, “you should hang out with friends while waiting”, that’s all well and good, but when I make a video I like editing and posting it as soon as possible, while I have the ideas in my head. Simply right now, there’s little to no moments where I go, “let’s sit down and make a YouTube vid”, I’d much rather do something proactive that doesn’t require me to sit around for such a long time.
That’s the basic rundown for the last 2 years, roughly. Now to the present, the situation has changed somewhat and is still changing.
Firstly, I am now working in a proper job with a decent income (and have been for a while); it’s something I’ve yearned to have for a very long time compared to the fractured payments of doing videos for people, it’s the best. With work comes the obvious benefits of income, but also take more time away; thankfully though, the people I’m working with are awesome and are generally the same age as me, so it’s pretty good all round, haha.
Secondly, I have money aside to fix the “technical issues” that have plagued me in the past. In the coming months, at some point, I’ll be ditching the laptop and upgrading to a desktop. I’ve talked over the details with a close friend of mine who’s agreed to effectively build me the thing, and from what he tells me (and I trust the guys credentials, haha), it’ll be fast enough to make what usually takes me hours to render/export/upload, take a matter of minutes or even seconds. In short, it’s going to be a beast.
Thirdly, and lastly, the situation with university is drastically going to change. For at least a solid year and a half now I had been itching away the possibility of doing extra study and taking a chance to pursue a career in an industry I’m deadly passionate about. After a drinking with my brother one night in early February, 2010, pretty much I set in motion that I will be going for it. So, in a nutshell, when I finish my Bachelor of Business next semester (ending around June-July, 2011), I will be applying for (and hopefully starting in August) a Diploma for Screen and Media. Then, in about a years time there’s also the option of doing an Advanced Diploma of Screen and Media as well.
This diploma of “Screen and Media” is effectively like doing a Media Degree (which would've taken me three years alone), minus the journalism crap and a few other minor bits and pieces, and focuses on the production side of television, film and even radio. The advanced diploma goes that little bit more, and is more of the specialised major stream of film/television or radio production with a focus on the aspect of producing included. Whether I’ll go for the advanced diploma all comes down to how I find the first one; as fundamentally I’m going into this to 1. Get a technical skill useful for the industry, and 2. Make contacts in the industry (which thankfully will be the case given the lectures and tutors are all based in the industry).
It is a massive gamble, but one I feel is worthwhile to undertake. There’s no point kidding myself that I want to work a basic 9-5 office job in some random business, only to see everything I work towards only viewable in a few minor statistics on a piece of paper. If it doesn’t work out, I’d have at least tried; I’d find taking a pass on the whole thing as far worse.
So yeah, that’s most of it. Aside from the above presently, I’m taking up summer classes at the beginning of next year to get this degree done as soon as possible. I’m working effectively five to six days a week with an extremely flexible and decent paying roster, and what I’m learning in this job really opens the doors to other possible jobs I could undertake in the future (should I decide to leave. But mind you, the people where I work at are great, so that’s looking doubtful at this stage). I’ve still got plenty of money saved from my years without a proper job (most of which was saved to ensure I had funds in case I crashed my car or something, thankfully I’ve never had to spend a great deal of it), and now having a solid income it allows me to at least treat myself a bit and spend money on things such as a new computer, or possibly an overseas trip somewhere. Things are great generally all round, aside from a kind of screwed up body clock I’ve got going (it’s 3:46am right now as a type this), and generally things are looking up.
Delays will continue to plague the channel until a time in which I put up with editing something with the technical issues, or after I finally get a new desktop going. Either way, I’m still alive and kicking, and they’ll certainly be videos to come in the future. I haven’t completely forgotten the channel :P
So yeah. Saved me from making a long-ass boring video.
Hope to speak to you soon,
-DeLaNe
