Professional Shootings: Optimal Lenses for YouTube Videographers

Best Camera Lenses for YouTube

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

A DSLR is the ideal camera for some vlogs, and using a DSLR means you get to customize the look of your vlog by choosing the perfect lens. Choosing the best camera lens for your YouTube channel can be tricky because there are so many options. This article will walk you through some of them, and make two recommendations of great vlogging lenses. If you already have a good understanding of how camera lenses work then feel free to scroll down to the lens recs.

Part 1. Understanding Lenses: Zoom lens, Fixed lens, aperture, f-stop

There are two main categories of camera lenses: ‘zoom’ – lenses that allow you to zoom in and out – and ‘fixed’. If your lenses are tools then zoom lenses are Swiss army knives; they are very versatile. Fixed lenses, also called prime lenses, have more specific purposes. Do you need a tool that can do a lot of things, or a tool that is perfect for one specific job? Sometimes it is useful to have access to both.

We have explained the differences between Fixed lens and Zoom lens and advantages of using each lens, check this article: Zoom Lens vs. Fixed Lenses: Which one is best for YouTuber? for the detailed information.

Before we get into the recommendations here is a little background information on lenses in general:

Beginner’s Guide to Aperture and F-Stops

In order to be able to select the lens you’ll be using to record your YouTube videos, you first need to understand a few very basic concepts, such as aperture or f-stops.

1.What is a lens’s aperture?

The aperture of your lens is the hole through which light reaches your camera’s sensor, or the film if you are using a film camera. The wider your aperture is the more light you are letting into your camera. In low light it is better to have a wide aperture, and when you are working with a lot of light it is better to have a narrow aperture so your footage is not overexposed.

Aperture is simply an opening in the lens that lets the light through. If you want to increase the amount of the light that is reaching the camera’s sensor you need to open up the aperture blades that are located in the lens. The f-values like f/1.2 or f/1.8 indicate that the aperture is wide open and that the camera is receiving the maximum amount of light a lens you’re using can provide.

2.What is an ‘f-stop’?

Light passes through your lens’s aperture on its way to your camera’s sensor, and the f-stop of your lens relates to the amount of light it lets in. The lower your f-stop, the wider your aperture, and the more light you are letting into your camera. The more light you let into your camera the easier it is to achieve a blurred background. A lot of vloggers love blurring their backgrounds because it is a quick way to disguising the rooms they are shooting in.

F-stops are written like ‘f/1.8’ or ‘f/4’ on your lens. For more information on f-stops and blurring your background read “The Best Bokeh Lens - How to Get the Blurred Background for YouTube Videos” and watch Tasha’s video.

F-stops or f-numbers indicate how open the aperture is, so for example if your camera is displaying f/32 value it means that your camera is letting very little light to get through to the camera’s sensor. The f-number depends on a few other parameters such as shutter speed, exposure or ISO values. Large apertures provide a shallow depth of field which creates a smooth and artistic background blur, while a small aperture enables you to keep both the background and the foreground of your shot in focus.

Part 2: Types of Camera Lenses

The visual aspect of a video may not be the only thing you’ll have to dedicate special attention to while recording your YouTube video, but it is surely one of the most important factors of the video production process. A lens you are using will largely contribute to the aesthetics of the video. That’s why you need to know which type of lens will deliver the best results when shooting different types of scenes. Here are some of the most common types of lenses you’ll encounter.

Standard lenses

These lenses are featured in almost all camera kits, so the chances are that if you have a DSLR camera you already have a standard, mid-range lens. These lenses commonly have a fixed 50mm focal length, although zoom lenses with focal lengths in the range between 35mm and 75mm are also considered standard. You can use them to capture medium shots, single or multiple figure shots, and in some cases establishing shots, because they offer enough versatility to cover a multitude of different scenes. Standard lenses often have large apertures, which makes them quite useful if you often shoot videos under light conditions you can’t control.

Macro lenses

Details, product shots or any other subject that can be filmed from close proximity looks better if they are recorded with macro lenses. The high contrast and sharpness these lenses provide allow you to create stunning close-ups of all hosts, guests or actors in your YouTube videos. What’s more, if you are presenting a new product to your audience you can use the macro lens to make some captivating shots that will attract more audience. Zoom lenses can also be used for macro photography and video, although prime macro lenses produce better results.

Telephoto lenses

The subjects of your videos don’t always have to be in your immediate surroundings, because telephoto lenses let you capture scenes that are several miles away from you. Wildlife or sports videographers frequently use telephoto lenses because they don’t have another way of getting close to their subjects. However, telephoto lenses with 70-300mm focal length can also be used to take stunning portraits or close up shots. The biggest downside of telephoto lenses is their weight because the lenses with higher focal lengths can weigh up to 10lbs, which makes them a bit inconvenient to always carry with you.

Wide-angle lenses

Recording videos of vast open spaces, breathtaking vistas or beautiful city views is much easier if you have a wide-angle lens. The short focal length allows the lens to have a wider field of view which covers more space than standard or telephoto lenses. Wide-angle lenses also have lower apertures than lenses with longer focal lengths which results in images that have a shallow depth of field. Ultra-wide lenses like fisheye distort the view so the videos recorded with these lenses often suffer from the lack of realism.

Specialist lenses

YouTubers who are working on demanding projects can try to solve their troubles by using a specialist lens. Soft-focus lenses can help you take better portraits while tilt-shift lenses allow you to control the perspective. However, it is hard to imagine a scenario in which you’ll need a specialist lense if you are just starting out since even experienced videographers only use special lenses when they have absolutely no better way to record a scene.

Part 3: Recommended Best Camera Lenses for Shooting YouTube Videos

Here are a couple great lenses that might be good fits for you and your YouTube channel. The thing that makes them both ideal for vlogging is that they have low enough f-stops to blur out your background.

Camera Lens	Type	Price	Aperture	Focal Length
Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens	Wide angle	$279	f/4.5-5.6	10 -18mm
Rokinon 8mm f/3.5	Fisheye	$249	f/3.5	8mm
Canon 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens	Prime	$125	f/1.8	50mm
Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens	Telephoto	$999	f/2	135mm
Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8	Standard Zoom	$299	f/2.8	17 -50mm
Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro	Macro	$278	f/3.5	30mm

1.Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens

Canon released this lens in 2014 and shortly after it has gained the reputation of one of the most reliable wide to ultra-wide lenses for Canon cameras. Like most STM lenses, it offers incredibly fast autofocus technology that makes it a great choice for fast-paced action videos. The lens is equipped with an image stabilization system which guarantees that your videos are going to remain sharp even if the camera wasn’t perfectly still while you were recording. Somewhat smaller aperture range makes this lens poor choice for low light scenes, although you can get decent results if you manage to keep the camera still.

2. Rokinon 8mm Ultra Wide f/3.5 Fisheye Lens

Outdoor videos look much cooler when they are recorded with a wide-angle lens because the wider field of view enables you to capture more space in a shot. Fisheye lenses were made popular by GoPro cameras because they make the videos look more fun while producing high image quality. Rokinon 8mm lens allows you to adjust focus and aperture manually so you can fine-tune your shot before hitting the record button. To make things even better this model is compatible with a wide range of cameras including Pentax, Canon or Nikon DSLRs. It has a relatively fast aperture that enables it to deliver solid performances under low light conditions.

3.Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens

The EF 50mm is a fixed lens with an f-stop of 1.8, which means it is great for blurring your background and performs well even in poorer lighting conditions. This is a really great lens for an opinion or beauty vlog, where you do not need to move around. You can stay put right where the focus is sharpest and stand out by blurring everything behind you. If you tend to reuse the same sets then you do not really need a zoom feature. If your shooting conditions rarely change then it is just as easy to use a reliable fixed lens like the EF 50mm since you will not need to be rethinking your set up and adjusting.

If you are looking for an inexpensive prime lens that lets you create sharp videos with shallow depth of field, you should look no further. This model is one of three Canon’s 50mm prime lenses, although the 50mm f/1.4 USM and 50mm f/1.2 ‘L’ USM models are much more expensive. You can use it to record a lot of different types of YouTube videos, like product reviews or makeup tutorials. The 50 mm f/1.8 STM lens doesn’t have image stabilization technology so you should try to be as still as you can possibly be when shooting handheld videos in order to avoid recording footage that has a lot of camera shakes.

4.Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens

Recording moving objects from a distance requires you to have a lens that allows you to smoothly track their movements while keeping the subject in focus. The Canon EF 135mm f2/L USM lens is perhaps one of the best telephoto lenses on the market because it uses L glass that is widely accepted as the best in the industry. The Canon’s telephoto lens is compatible with ASP-C and Full Frame EF mount cameras. Keep in mind that this is also a prime lens and you can’t increase or decrease its focal length, but even so, it is a perfect choice for documentary-style videos.

5.Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF) Lens

The Tamron’s standard zoom lens offers good value at a very reasonable price. The maximum aperture is f/2.8, while the minimum aperture value this lens supports is f/32, which means that its users can easily experiment with different depths of field. The lens is compatible with most Canon cameras so if you have a camera from another manufacturer you may have to use the lens adapter in order to mount it onto your camera. Like most standard zoom lenses, Tamron SP AF model is highly versatile and you can use it to record a wide range of different scenes.

A lot of zoom lenses do not have wide enough apertures to create blurred backgrounds, but this Tamron lens is an exception at f/2.8. This low f-stop also means that it performs better in poor lighting conditions than a lot of other zoom lenses. If your shooting conditions change a lot – if you often change locations, for example – then it will be good to have a sturdy, well-built, zoom lens like the AF 17-mm that can be quickly adapted to new angles and distances.

6.Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro

All Sony’s APS-C format E mount cameras are compatible with this multi-purpose lens. When mounted the 30mm lens provides a 45mm focal length equivalent, which means that you can use it to take macro shots of products or to record medium or close-up shots. This is a prime lens, so changing the focal length isn’t really an option, but the 1:1 life-size magnification, as well as the 0.9-inch working distance, allow you to get close to the subjects in the video. The aperture range is between f/3.5 and f/22 which means that you can choose how shallow the depth of field in your shot should be.

If you are using a 4k camera to shoot your YouTube video, check out best camera lens for 4k professional production.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

A DSLR is the ideal camera for some vlogs, and using a DSLR means you get to customize the look of your vlog by choosing the perfect lens. Choosing the best camera lens for your YouTube channel can be tricky because there are so many options. This article will walk you through some of them, and make two recommendations of great vlogging lenses. If you already have a good understanding of how camera lenses work then feel free to scroll down to the lens recs.

Part 1. Understanding Lenses: Zoom lens, Fixed lens, aperture, f-stop

There are two main categories of camera lenses: ‘zoom’ – lenses that allow you to zoom in and out – and ‘fixed’. If your lenses are tools then zoom lenses are Swiss army knives; they are very versatile. Fixed lenses, also called prime lenses, have more specific purposes. Do you need a tool that can do a lot of things, or a tool that is perfect for one specific job? Sometimes it is useful to have access to both.

We have explained the differences between Fixed lens and Zoom lens and advantages of using each lens, check this article: Zoom Lens vs. Fixed Lenses: Which one is best for YouTuber? for the detailed information.

Before we get into the recommendations here is a little background information on lenses in general:

Beginner’s Guide to Aperture and F-Stops

In order to be able to select the lens you’ll be using to record your YouTube videos, you first need to understand a few very basic concepts, such as aperture or f-stops.

1.What is a lens’s aperture?

The aperture of your lens is the hole through which light reaches your camera’s sensor, or the film if you are using a film camera. The wider your aperture is the more light you are letting into your camera. In low light it is better to have a wide aperture, and when you are working with a lot of light it is better to have a narrow aperture so your footage is not overexposed.

Aperture is simply an opening in the lens that lets the light through. If you want to increase the amount of the light that is reaching the camera’s sensor you need to open up the aperture blades that are located in the lens. The f-values like f/1.2 or f/1.8 indicate that the aperture is wide open and that the camera is receiving the maximum amount of light a lens you’re using can provide.

2.What is an ‘f-stop’?

Light passes through your lens’s aperture on its way to your camera’s sensor, and the f-stop of your lens relates to the amount of light it lets in. The lower your f-stop, the wider your aperture, and the more light you are letting into your camera. The more light you let into your camera the easier it is to achieve a blurred background. A lot of vloggers love blurring their backgrounds because it is a quick way to disguising the rooms they are shooting in.

F-stops are written like ‘f/1.8’ or ‘f/4’ on your lens. For more information on f-stops and blurring your background read “The Best Bokeh Lens - How to Get the Blurred Background for YouTube Videos” and watch Tasha’s video.

F-stops or f-numbers indicate how open the aperture is, so for example if your camera is displaying f/32 value it means that your camera is letting very little light to get through to the camera’s sensor. The f-number depends on a few other parameters such as shutter speed, exposure or ISO values. Large apertures provide a shallow depth of field which creates a smooth and artistic background blur, while a small aperture enables you to keep both the background and the foreground of your shot in focus.

Part 2: Types of Camera Lenses

The visual aspect of a video may not be the only thing you’ll have to dedicate special attention to while recording your YouTube video, but it is surely one of the most important factors of the video production process. A lens you are using will largely contribute to the aesthetics of the video. That’s why you need to know which type of lens will deliver the best results when shooting different types of scenes. Here are some of the most common types of lenses you’ll encounter.

Standard lenses

These lenses are featured in almost all camera kits, so the chances are that if you have a DSLR camera you already have a standard, mid-range lens. These lenses commonly have a fixed 50mm focal length, although zoom lenses with focal lengths in the range between 35mm and 75mm are also considered standard. You can use them to capture medium shots, single or multiple figure shots, and in some cases establishing shots, because they offer enough versatility to cover a multitude of different scenes. Standard lenses often have large apertures, which makes them quite useful if you often shoot videos under light conditions you can’t control.

Macro lenses

Details, product shots or any other subject that can be filmed from close proximity looks better if they are recorded with macro lenses. The high contrast and sharpness these lenses provide allow you to create stunning close-ups of all hosts, guests or actors in your YouTube videos. What’s more, if you are presenting a new product to your audience you can use the macro lens to make some captivating shots that will attract more audience. Zoom lenses can also be used for macro photography and video, although prime macro lenses produce better results.

Telephoto lenses

The subjects of your videos don’t always have to be in your immediate surroundings, because telephoto lenses let you capture scenes that are several miles away from you. Wildlife or sports videographers frequently use telephoto lenses because they don’t have another way of getting close to their subjects. However, telephoto lenses with 70-300mm focal length can also be used to take stunning portraits or close up shots. The biggest downside of telephoto lenses is their weight because the lenses with higher focal lengths can weigh up to 10lbs, which makes them a bit inconvenient to always carry with you.

Wide-angle lenses

Recording videos of vast open spaces, breathtaking vistas or beautiful city views is much easier if you have a wide-angle lens. The short focal length allows the lens to have a wider field of view which covers more space than standard or telephoto lenses. Wide-angle lenses also have lower apertures than lenses with longer focal lengths which results in images that have a shallow depth of field. Ultra-wide lenses like fisheye distort the view so the videos recorded with these lenses often suffer from the lack of realism.

Specialist lenses

YouTubers who are working on demanding projects can try to solve their troubles by using a specialist lens. Soft-focus lenses can help you take better portraits while tilt-shift lenses allow you to control the perspective. However, it is hard to imagine a scenario in which you’ll need a specialist lense if you are just starting out since even experienced videographers only use special lenses when they have absolutely no better way to record a scene.

Part 3: Recommended Best Camera Lenses for Shooting YouTube Videos

Here are a couple great lenses that might be good fits for you and your YouTube channel. The thing that makes them both ideal for vlogging is that they have low enough f-stops to blur out your background.

Camera Lens	Type	Price	Aperture	Focal Length
Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens	Wide angle	$279	f/4.5-5.6	10 -18mm
Rokinon 8mm f/3.5	Fisheye	$249	f/3.5	8mm
Canon 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens	Prime	$125	f/1.8	50mm
Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens	Telephoto	$999	f/2	135mm
Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8	Standard Zoom	$299	f/2.8	17 -50mm
Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro	Macro	$278	f/3.5	30mm

1.Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens

Canon released this lens in 2014 and shortly after it has gained the reputation of one of the most reliable wide to ultra-wide lenses for Canon cameras. Like most STM lenses, it offers incredibly fast autofocus technology that makes it a great choice for fast-paced action videos. The lens is equipped with an image stabilization system which guarantees that your videos are going to remain sharp even if the camera wasn’t perfectly still while you were recording. Somewhat smaller aperture range makes this lens poor choice for low light scenes, although you can get decent results if you manage to keep the camera still.

2. Rokinon 8mm Ultra Wide f/3.5 Fisheye Lens

Outdoor videos look much cooler when they are recorded with a wide-angle lens because the wider field of view enables you to capture more space in a shot. Fisheye lenses were made popular by GoPro cameras because they make the videos look more fun while producing high image quality. Rokinon 8mm lens allows you to adjust focus and aperture manually so you can fine-tune your shot before hitting the record button. To make things even better this model is compatible with a wide range of cameras including Pentax, Canon or Nikon DSLRs. It has a relatively fast aperture that enables it to deliver solid performances under low light conditions.

3.Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens

The EF 50mm is a fixed lens with an f-stop of 1.8, which means it is great for blurring your background and performs well even in poorer lighting conditions. This is a really great lens for an opinion or beauty vlog, where you do not need to move around. You can stay put right where the focus is sharpest and stand out by blurring everything behind you. If you tend to reuse the same sets then you do not really need a zoom feature. If your shooting conditions rarely change then it is just as easy to use a reliable fixed lens like the EF 50mm since you will not need to be rethinking your set up and adjusting.

If you are looking for an inexpensive prime lens that lets you create sharp videos with shallow depth of field, you should look no further. This model is one of three Canon’s 50mm prime lenses, although the 50mm f/1.4 USM and 50mm f/1.2 ‘L’ USM models are much more expensive. You can use it to record a lot of different types of YouTube videos, like product reviews or makeup tutorials. The 50 mm f/1.8 STM lens doesn’t have image stabilization technology so you should try to be as still as you can possibly be when shooting handheld videos in order to avoid recording footage that has a lot of camera shakes.

4.Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens

Recording moving objects from a distance requires you to have a lens that allows you to smoothly track their movements while keeping the subject in focus. The Canon EF 135mm f2/L USM lens is perhaps one of the best telephoto lenses on the market because it uses L glass that is widely accepted as the best in the industry. The Canon’s telephoto lens is compatible with ASP-C and Full Frame EF mount cameras. Keep in mind that this is also a prime lens and you can’t increase or decrease its focal length, but even so, it is a perfect choice for documentary-style videos.

5.Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF) Lens

The Tamron’s standard zoom lens offers good value at a very reasonable price. The maximum aperture is f/2.8, while the minimum aperture value this lens supports is f/32, which means that its users can easily experiment with different depths of field. The lens is compatible with most Canon cameras so if you have a camera from another manufacturer you may have to use the lens adapter in order to mount it onto your camera. Like most standard zoom lenses, Tamron SP AF model is highly versatile and you can use it to record a wide range of different scenes.

A lot of zoom lenses do not have wide enough apertures to create blurred backgrounds, but this Tamron lens is an exception at f/2.8. This low f-stop also means that it performs better in poor lighting conditions than a lot of other zoom lenses. If your shooting conditions change a lot – if you often change locations, for example – then it will be good to have a sturdy, well-built, zoom lens like the AF 17-mm that can be quickly adapted to new angles and distances.

6.Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro

All Sony’s APS-C format E mount cameras are compatible with this multi-purpose lens. When mounted the 30mm lens provides a 45mm focal length equivalent, which means that you can use it to take macro shots of products or to record medium or close-up shots. This is a prime lens, so changing the focal length isn’t really an option, but the 1:1 life-size magnification, as well as the 0.9-inch working distance, allow you to get close to the subjects in the video. The aperture range is between f/3.5 and f/22 which means that you can choose how shallow the depth of field in your shot should be.

If you are using a 4k camera to shoot your YouTube video, check out best camera lens for 4k professional production.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

A DSLR is the ideal camera for some vlogs, and using a DSLR means you get to customize the look of your vlog by choosing the perfect lens. Choosing the best camera lens for your YouTube channel can be tricky because there are so many options. This article will walk you through some of them, and make two recommendations of great vlogging lenses. If you already have a good understanding of how camera lenses work then feel free to scroll down to the lens recs.

Part 1. Understanding Lenses: Zoom lens, Fixed lens, aperture, f-stop

There are two main categories of camera lenses: ‘zoom’ – lenses that allow you to zoom in and out – and ‘fixed’. If your lenses are tools then zoom lenses are Swiss army knives; they are very versatile. Fixed lenses, also called prime lenses, have more specific purposes. Do you need a tool that can do a lot of things, or a tool that is perfect for one specific job? Sometimes it is useful to have access to both.

We have explained the differences between Fixed lens and Zoom lens and advantages of using each lens, check this article: Zoom Lens vs. Fixed Lenses: Which one is best for YouTuber? for the detailed information.

Before we get into the recommendations here is a little background information on lenses in general:

Beginner’s Guide to Aperture and F-Stops

In order to be able to select the lens you’ll be using to record your YouTube videos, you first need to understand a few very basic concepts, such as aperture or f-stops.

1.What is a lens’s aperture?

The aperture of your lens is the hole through which light reaches your camera’s sensor, or the film if you are using a film camera. The wider your aperture is the more light you are letting into your camera. In low light it is better to have a wide aperture, and when you are working with a lot of light it is better to have a narrow aperture so your footage is not overexposed.

Aperture is simply an opening in the lens that lets the light through. If you want to increase the amount of the light that is reaching the camera’s sensor you need to open up the aperture blades that are located in the lens. The f-values like f/1.2 or f/1.8 indicate that the aperture is wide open and that the camera is receiving the maximum amount of light a lens you’re using can provide.

2.What is an ‘f-stop’?

Light passes through your lens’s aperture on its way to your camera’s sensor, and the f-stop of your lens relates to the amount of light it lets in. The lower your f-stop, the wider your aperture, and the more light you are letting into your camera. The more light you let into your camera the easier it is to achieve a blurred background. A lot of vloggers love blurring their backgrounds because it is a quick way to disguising the rooms they are shooting in.

F-stops are written like ‘f/1.8’ or ‘f/4’ on your lens. For more information on f-stops and blurring your background read “The Best Bokeh Lens - How to Get the Blurred Background for YouTube Videos” and watch Tasha’s video.

F-stops or f-numbers indicate how open the aperture is, so for example if your camera is displaying f/32 value it means that your camera is letting very little light to get through to the camera’s sensor. The f-number depends on a few other parameters such as shutter speed, exposure or ISO values. Large apertures provide a shallow depth of field which creates a smooth and artistic background blur, while a small aperture enables you to keep both the background and the foreground of your shot in focus.

Part 2: Types of Camera Lenses

The visual aspect of a video may not be the only thing you’ll have to dedicate special attention to while recording your YouTube video, but it is surely one of the most important factors of the video production process. A lens you are using will largely contribute to the aesthetics of the video. That’s why you need to know which type of lens will deliver the best results when shooting different types of scenes. Here are some of the most common types of lenses you’ll encounter.

Standard lenses

These lenses are featured in almost all camera kits, so the chances are that if you have a DSLR camera you already have a standard, mid-range lens. These lenses commonly have a fixed 50mm focal length, although zoom lenses with focal lengths in the range between 35mm and 75mm are also considered standard. You can use them to capture medium shots, single or multiple figure shots, and in some cases establishing shots, because they offer enough versatility to cover a multitude of different scenes. Standard lenses often have large apertures, which makes them quite useful if you often shoot videos under light conditions you can’t control.

Macro lenses

Details, product shots or any other subject that can be filmed from close proximity looks better if they are recorded with macro lenses. The high contrast and sharpness these lenses provide allow you to create stunning close-ups of all hosts, guests or actors in your YouTube videos. What’s more, if you are presenting a new product to your audience you can use the macro lens to make some captivating shots that will attract more audience. Zoom lenses can also be used for macro photography and video, although prime macro lenses produce better results.

Telephoto lenses

The subjects of your videos don’t always have to be in your immediate surroundings, because telephoto lenses let you capture scenes that are several miles away from you. Wildlife or sports videographers frequently use telephoto lenses because they don’t have another way of getting close to their subjects. However, telephoto lenses with 70-300mm focal length can also be used to take stunning portraits or close up shots. The biggest downside of telephoto lenses is their weight because the lenses with higher focal lengths can weigh up to 10lbs, which makes them a bit inconvenient to always carry with you.

Wide-angle lenses

Recording videos of vast open spaces, breathtaking vistas or beautiful city views is much easier if you have a wide-angle lens. The short focal length allows the lens to have a wider field of view which covers more space than standard or telephoto lenses. Wide-angle lenses also have lower apertures than lenses with longer focal lengths which results in images that have a shallow depth of field. Ultra-wide lenses like fisheye distort the view so the videos recorded with these lenses often suffer from the lack of realism.

Specialist lenses

YouTubers who are working on demanding projects can try to solve their troubles by using a specialist lens. Soft-focus lenses can help you take better portraits while tilt-shift lenses allow you to control the perspective. However, it is hard to imagine a scenario in which you’ll need a specialist lense if you are just starting out since even experienced videographers only use special lenses when they have absolutely no better way to record a scene.

Part 3: Recommended Best Camera Lenses for Shooting YouTube Videos

Here are a couple great lenses that might be good fits for you and your YouTube channel. The thing that makes them both ideal for vlogging is that they have low enough f-stops to blur out your background.

Camera Lens	Type	Price	Aperture	Focal Length
Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens	Wide angle	$279	f/4.5-5.6	10 -18mm
Rokinon 8mm f/3.5	Fisheye	$249	f/3.5	8mm
Canon 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens	Prime	$125	f/1.8	50mm
Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens	Telephoto	$999	f/2	135mm
Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8	Standard Zoom	$299	f/2.8	17 -50mm
Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro	Macro	$278	f/3.5	30mm

1.Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens

Canon released this lens in 2014 and shortly after it has gained the reputation of one of the most reliable wide to ultra-wide lenses for Canon cameras. Like most STM lenses, it offers incredibly fast autofocus technology that makes it a great choice for fast-paced action videos. The lens is equipped with an image stabilization system which guarantees that your videos are going to remain sharp even if the camera wasn’t perfectly still while you were recording. Somewhat smaller aperture range makes this lens poor choice for low light scenes, although you can get decent results if you manage to keep the camera still.

2. Rokinon 8mm Ultra Wide f/3.5 Fisheye Lens

Outdoor videos look much cooler when they are recorded with a wide-angle lens because the wider field of view enables you to capture more space in a shot. Fisheye lenses were made popular by GoPro cameras because they make the videos look more fun while producing high image quality. Rokinon 8mm lens allows you to adjust focus and aperture manually so you can fine-tune your shot before hitting the record button. To make things even better this model is compatible with a wide range of cameras including Pentax, Canon or Nikon DSLRs. It has a relatively fast aperture that enables it to deliver solid performances under low light conditions.

3.Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens

The EF 50mm is a fixed lens with an f-stop of 1.8, which means it is great for blurring your background and performs well even in poorer lighting conditions. This is a really great lens for an opinion or beauty vlog, where you do not need to move around. You can stay put right where the focus is sharpest and stand out by blurring everything behind you. If you tend to reuse the same sets then you do not really need a zoom feature. If your shooting conditions rarely change then it is just as easy to use a reliable fixed lens like the EF 50mm since you will not need to be rethinking your set up and adjusting.

If you are looking for an inexpensive prime lens that lets you create sharp videos with shallow depth of field, you should look no further. This model is one of three Canon’s 50mm prime lenses, although the 50mm f/1.4 USM and 50mm f/1.2 ‘L’ USM models are much more expensive. You can use it to record a lot of different types of YouTube videos, like product reviews or makeup tutorials. The 50 mm f/1.8 STM lens doesn’t have image stabilization technology so you should try to be as still as you can possibly be when shooting handheld videos in order to avoid recording footage that has a lot of camera shakes.

4.Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens

Recording moving objects from a distance requires you to have a lens that allows you to smoothly track their movements while keeping the subject in focus. The Canon EF 135mm f2/L USM lens is perhaps one of the best telephoto lenses on the market because it uses L glass that is widely accepted as the best in the industry. The Canon’s telephoto lens is compatible with ASP-C and Full Frame EF mount cameras. Keep in mind that this is also a prime lens and you can’t increase or decrease its focal length, but even so, it is a perfect choice for documentary-style videos.

5.Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF) Lens

The Tamron’s standard zoom lens offers good value at a very reasonable price. The maximum aperture is f/2.8, while the minimum aperture value this lens supports is f/32, which means that its users can easily experiment with different depths of field. The lens is compatible with most Canon cameras so if you have a camera from another manufacturer you may have to use the lens adapter in order to mount it onto your camera. Like most standard zoom lenses, Tamron SP AF model is highly versatile and you can use it to record a wide range of different scenes.

A lot of zoom lenses do not have wide enough apertures to create blurred backgrounds, but this Tamron lens is an exception at f/2.8. This low f-stop also means that it performs better in poor lighting conditions than a lot of other zoom lenses. If your shooting conditions change a lot – if you often change locations, for example – then it will be good to have a sturdy, well-built, zoom lens like the AF 17-mm that can be quickly adapted to new angles and distances.

6.Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro

All Sony’s APS-C format E mount cameras are compatible with this multi-purpose lens. When mounted the 30mm lens provides a 45mm focal length equivalent, which means that you can use it to take macro shots of products or to record medium or close-up shots. This is a prime lens, so changing the focal length isn’t really an option, but the 1:1 life-size magnification, as well as the 0.9-inch working distance, allow you to get close to the subjects in the video. The aperture range is between f/3.5 and f/22 which means that you can choose how shallow the depth of field in your shot should be.

If you are using a 4k camera to shoot your YouTube video, check out best camera lens for 4k professional production.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

A DSLR is the ideal camera for some vlogs, and using a DSLR means you get to customize the look of your vlog by choosing the perfect lens. Choosing the best camera lens for your YouTube channel can be tricky because there are so many options. This article will walk you through some of them, and make two recommendations of great vlogging lenses. If you already have a good understanding of how camera lenses work then feel free to scroll down to the lens recs.

Part 1. Understanding Lenses: Zoom lens, Fixed lens, aperture, f-stop

There are two main categories of camera lenses: ‘zoom’ – lenses that allow you to zoom in and out – and ‘fixed’. If your lenses are tools then zoom lenses are Swiss army knives; they are very versatile. Fixed lenses, also called prime lenses, have more specific purposes. Do you need a tool that can do a lot of things, or a tool that is perfect for one specific job? Sometimes it is useful to have access to both.

We have explained the differences between Fixed lens and Zoom lens and advantages of using each lens, check this article: Zoom Lens vs. Fixed Lenses: Which one is best for YouTuber? for the detailed information.

Before we get into the recommendations here is a little background information on lenses in general:

Beginner’s Guide to Aperture and F-Stops

In order to be able to select the lens you’ll be using to record your YouTube videos, you first need to understand a few very basic concepts, such as aperture or f-stops.

1.What is a lens’s aperture?

The aperture of your lens is the hole through which light reaches your camera’s sensor, or the film if you are using a film camera. The wider your aperture is the more light you are letting into your camera. In low light it is better to have a wide aperture, and when you are working with a lot of light it is better to have a narrow aperture so your footage is not overexposed.

Aperture is simply an opening in the lens that lets the light through. If you want to increase the amount of the light that is reaching the camera’s sensor you need to open up the aperture blades that are located in the lens. The f-values like f/1.2 or f/1.8 indicate that the aperture is wide open and that the camera is receiving the maximum amount of light a lens you’re using can provide.

2.What is an ‘f-stop’?

Light passes through your lens’s aperture on its way to your camera’s sensor, and the f-stop of your lens relates to the amount of light it lets in. The lower your f-stop, the wider your aperture, and the more light you are letting into your camera. The more light you let into your camera the easier it is to achieve a blurred background. A lot of vloggers love blurring their backgrounds because it is a quick way to disguising the rooms they are shooting in.

F-stops are written like ‘f/1.8’ or ‘f/4’ on your lens. For more information on f-stops and blurring your background read “The Best Bokeh Lens - How to Get the Blurred Background for YouTube Videos” and watch Tasha’s video.

F-stops or f-numbers indicate how open the aperture is, so for example if your camera is displaying f/32 value it means that your camera is letting very little light to get through to the camera’s sensor. The f-number depends on a few other parameters such as shutter speed, exposure or ISO values. Large apertures provide a shallow depth of field which creates a smooth and artistic background blur, while a small aperture enables you to keep both the background and the foreground of your shot in focus.

Part 2: Types of Camera Lenses

The visual aspect of a video may not be the only thing you’ll have to dedicate special attention to while recording your YouTube video, but it is surely one of the most important factors of the video production process. A lens you are using will largely contribute to the aesthetics of the video. That’s why you need to know which type of lens will deliver the best results when shooting different types of scenes. Here are some of the most common types of lenses you’ll encounter.

Standard lenses

These lenses are featured in almost all camera kits, so the chances are that if you have a DSLR camera you already have a standard, mid-range lens. These lenses commonly have a fixed 50mm focal length, although zoom lenses with focal lengths in the range between 35mm and 75mm are also considered standard. You can use them to capture medium shots, single or multiple figure shots, and in some cases establishing shots, because they offer enough versatility to cover a multitude of different scenes. Standard lenses often have large apertures, which makes them quite useful if you often shoot videos under light conditions you can’t control.

Macro lenses

Details, product shots or any other subject that can be filmed from close proximity looks better if they are recorded with macro lenses. The high contrast and sharpness these lenses provide allow you to create stunning close-ups of all hosts, guests or actors in your YouTube videos. What’s more, if you are presenting a new product to your audience you can use the macro lens to make some captivating shots that will attract more audience. Zoom lenses can also be used for macro photography and video, although prime macro lenses produce better results.

Telephoto lenses

The subjects of your videos don’t always have to be in your immediate surroundings, because telephoto lenses let you capture scenes that are several miles away from you. Wildlife or sports videographers frequently use telephoto lenses because they don’t have another way of getting close to their subjects. However, telephoto lenses with 70-300mm focal length can also be used to take stunning portraits or close up shots. The biggest downside of telephoto lenses is their weight because the lenses with higher focal lengths can weigh up to 10lbs, which makes them a bit inconvenient to always carry with you.

Wide-angle lenses

Recording videos of vast open spaces, breathtaking vistas or beautiful city views is much easier if you have a wide-angle lens. The short focal length allows the lens to have a wider field of view which covers more space than standard or telephoto lenses. Wide-angle lenses also have lower apertures than lenses with longer focal lengths which results in images that have a shallow depth of field. Ultra-wide lenses like fisheye distort the view so the videos recorded with these lenses often suffer from the lack of realism.

Specialist lenses

YouTubers who are working on demanding projects can try to solve their troubles by using a specialist lens. Soft-focus lenses can help you take better portraits while tilt-shift lenses allow you to control the perspective. However, it is hard to imagine a scenario in which you’ll need a specialist lense if you are just starting out since even experienced videographers only use special lenses when they have absolutely no better way to record a scene.

Part 3: Recommended Best Camera Lenses for Shooting YouTube Videos

Here are a couple great lenses that might be good fits for you and your YouTube channel. The thing that makes them both ideal for vlogging is that they have low enough f-stops to blur out your background.

Camera Lens	Type	Price	Aperture	Focal Length
Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens	Wide angle	$279	f/4.5-5.6	10 -18mm
Rokinon 8mm f/3.5	Fisheye	$249	f/3.5	8mm
Canon 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens	Prime	$125	f/1.8	50mm
Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens	Telephoto	$999	f/2	135mm
Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8	Standard Zoom	$299	f/2.8	17 -50mm
Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro	Macro	$278	f/3.5	30mm

1.Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens

Canon released this lens in 2014 and shortly after it has gained the reputation of one of the most reliable wide to ultra-wide lenses for Canon cameras. Like most STM lenses, it offers incredibly fast autofocus technology that makes it a great choice for fast-paced action videos. The lens is equipped with an image stabilization system which guarantees that your videos are going to remain sharp even if the camera wasn’t perfectly still while you were recording. Somewhat smaller aperture range makes this lens poor choice for low light scenes, although you can get decent results if you manage to keep the camera still.

2. Rokinon 8mm Ultra Wide f/3.5 Fisheye Lens

Outdoor videos look much cooler when they are recorded with a wide-angle lens because the wider field of view enables you to capture more space in a shot. Fisheye lenses were made popular by GoPro cameras because they make the videos look more fun while producing high image quality. Rokinon 8mm lens allows you to adjust focus and aperture manually so you can fine-tune your shot before hitting the record button. To make things even better this model is compatible with a wide range of cameras including Pentax, Canon or Nikon DSLRs. It has a relatively fast aperture that enables it to deliver solid performances under low light conditions.

3.Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens

The EF 50mm is a fixed lens with an f-stop of 1.8, which means it is great for blurring your background and performs well even in poorer lighting conditions. This is a really great lens for an opinion or beauty vlog, where you do not need to move around. You can stay put right where the focus is sharpest and stand out by blurring everything behind you. If you tend to reuse the same sets then you do not really need a zoom feature. If your shooting conditions rarely change then it is just as easy to use a reliable fixed lens like the EF 50mm since you will not need to be rethinking your set up and adjusting.

If you are looking for an inexpensive prime lens that lets you create sharp videos with shallow depth of field, you should look no further. This model is one of three Canon’s 50mm prime lenses, although the 50mm f/1.4 USM and 50mm f/1.2 ‘L’ USM models are much more expensive. You can use it to record a lot of different types of YouTube videos, like product reviews or makeup tutorials. The 50 mm f/1.8 STM lens doesn’t have image stabilization technology so you should try to be as still as you can possibly be when shooting handheld videos in order to avoid recording footage that has a lot of camera shakes.

4.Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM Lens

Recording moving objects from a distance requires you to have a lens that allows you to smoothly track their movements while keeping the subject in focus. The Canon EF 135mm f2/L USM lens is perhaps one of the best telephoto lenses on the market because it uses L glass that is widely accepted as the best in the industry. The Canon’s telephoto lens is compatible with ASP-C and Full Frame EF mount cameras. Keep in mind that this is also a prime lens and you can’t increase or decrease its focal length, but even so, it is a perfect choice for documentary-style videos.

5.Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF) Lens

The Tamron’s standard zoom lens offers good value at a very reasonable price. The maximum aperture is f/2.8, while the minimum aperture value this lens supports is f/32, which means that its users can easily experiment with different depths of field. The lens is compatible with most Canon cameras so if you have a camera from another manufacturer you may have to use the lens adapter in order to mount it onto your camera. Like most standard zoom lenses, Tamron SP AF model is highly versatile and you can use it to record a wide range of different scenes.

A lot of zoom lenses do not have wide enough apertures to create blurred backgrounds, but this Tamron lens is an exception at f/2.8. This low f-stop also means that it performs better in poor lighting conditions than a lot of other zoom lenses. If your shooting conditions change a lot – if you often change locations, for example – then it will be good to have a sturdy, well-built, zoom lens like the AF 17-mm that can be quickly adapted to new angles and distances.

6.Sony 30mm f/3.5 Macro

All Sony’s APS-C format E mount cameras are compatible with this multi-purpose lens. When mounted the 30mm lens provides a 45mm focal length equivalent, which means that you can use it to take macro shots of products or to record medium or close-up shots. This is a prime lens, so changing the focal length isn’t really an option, but the 1:1 life-size magnification, as well as the 0.9-inch working distance, allow you to get close to the subjects in the video. The aperture range is between f/3.5 and f/22 which means that you can choose how shallow the depth of field in your shot should be.

If you are using a 4k camera to shoot your YouTube video, check out best camera lens for 4k professional production.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Navigating the Path to YouTube Stardom with These Tactics

25 Smart & Proven Tactics to Get Your YouTube Channel Noticed

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

If you’re wondering how to get your YouTube channel noticed - how to finally start standing out - then you’ve come to the right place.

Here are 25 of the best, smartest, ways to get your YouTube channel noticed and start growing:

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently
2. Provide Value in Each Video
3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’
4. Spend time building your YouTube Community
5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them
6. Find a Niche for Your Videos
7. Build a Strong Personal Brand
8. Create Custom Channel Art
9. Practice Makes Perfect
10. Add a YouTube Intro Video
11. Use Video Effects and Transitions
12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails
13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags
14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time
15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media
16. Interact With Your Viewers
17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre
18. Do Collaboration Videos
19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video
20. Use Keywords that are Searchable
21. Make Your Thumbnails Consistent
22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos
23. Make Titles That Get Views
24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer
25. Give Each YouTube Video a Memorable Ending

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently

In order to consistently draw viewers back your page and get the most out of your content, you need to be able to keep posting constantly . Only posting sporadically when you feel like it – three times one month, then just once the next – will not encourage viewers to subscribe. If you develop a schedule and regularly post content each week (or every day if you’re really ambitious), your viewers can start to expect when a video will be released. Some of the best content creators will continue to release videos at least a few times a week in order to continuously draw an audience back to their channel.

2. Provide Value in Each Video

Before you turn your camera on and start making a new video, ask yourself what value you want your viewers to take away from it. Will they come away from your video with knowledge, a new skill, or a feeling of amusement? Be sure to have a clear objective in mind with every video.

3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’

Asking viewers to do anything (like, subscribe, etc.) is called a CTA, or ‘call to action ’. Asking for subscribers is a call to action that needs to be included in every video.

One of the objectives of every video you produce should be to try and appeal to brand-new viewers for your page. Something as simple as asking the viewer to subscribe if they liked your video can really help you grow faster. Sometimes people who really love your content still need to be reminded to subscribe. It is important to attract subscribers – not just viewers – in order to make sure that you have reliable, ongoing, support for your videos.

4. Spend Time Building your YouTube Community

YouTube is a large community and consistently interacting with other creators will help you to gain support for your videos . It helps a lot if the people in your genre know you. You can watch each other’s videos, give each other constructive feedback, and there may even be opportunities for collaboration.

Many video creators draw inspiration from each other’s videos and even spend time working with each other and promoting each other’s content. If you consistently comment on someone’s videos, without asking them to check out your channel (most people find this annoying), they will probably decide to go look at your videos too. Eventually, you might even find an opportunity to appear in one of their videos or have them appear in one of your videos so that you can each be exposed to new potential viewers.

5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them

Setting goals for yourself – i.e. reaching a certain number of subscribers – and letting your viewers know is a great way to meet your goals faster.

Sharing your goals helps your community feel more engaged and like they are a bigger part of your channel. This can be an excellent marketing tactic. When you share your goals, they become your follower’s goals too and they will help you reach them. Creating a payoff where your subscribers can help you reach 2000 subscribers or 1000 likes on a video can help you accomplish more goals to sustain the longevity of your channel. It also fosters a feeling of community by uniting everyone together and allowing them to share your feeling of accomplishment. This works especially well if you offer a reward – i.e. ‘I’ll do a special video when I reach 2000 subscribers’.

Contest now closed.

6. Find a Niche for Your Videos

Many creators on YouTube have found success by carving out very specific video types and niches for themselves. When you are hoping to grow your subscribers on YouTube you really need to find your niche. When you can start to create videos that have predictable subject matter (predictable in the sense of ‘reliable’, not boring), this will attract more regular viewers because people will know what they can expect from your content. Having a niche can also help you find brand deals because you’ll grow a very specific audience that might be interested in very specific products. A smaller, targeted, the audience can be more valuable to an advertiser than a larger, more general, audience.

Your niche will generally be a combination of your larger genre (i.e. gaming, comedy, beauty, food) and something else you are passionate about. For example, reviewing vintage video games or creating desserts based on movies are both potential niches.

7. Build a Strong Personal Brand

Building a brand on YouTube is one of the best ways to generate a devoted following. Building a brand is very important because it makes you more memorable and familiar to viewers. In order to successfully build a brand, you need to think about the image you are trying to create and the culture you want to create for your community. The values you express, the types of videos you do, the clothes you wear, and your channel art are all parts of your brand. The grand total of all of these elements will form your brand and the way you are perceived.

Having a strong, unique, the brand will make viewers feel more attached to you and make your content more recognizable.

8. Create Custom Channel Art

To differentiate yourself from your competition you’re going to need to have custom Channel Art that reflects the vibe of your content. Work at creating or sourcing some graphics for your cover photo, your profile photo, and all of your thumbnails. Having a set color scheme or even a branded style of artwork for your page will help you to look more professional. Differentiating your page from others will create a feeling of familiarity and support your brand.

9. Practice Makes Perfect

In order to start producing more professional content, you need to practice your filmmaking technique. Regardless of the type of video that you are producing, a little bit of practice goes a long way.

Rehearsing what you are going to say can make you feel much more confident. Playing with the video editing software that you’re working with willsave you time when you’re actually polishing a video . Practicing taking photos and videos with your camera outside of making YouTube videos will help you feel familiar with its features. As you start to get more dedicated and practice with your video creation, your videos will gain more viewers and you can grow more subscribers on YouTube.

Simply making more videos is a great way to get in more practice.

10. Add a YouTube Intro Video

A professional-looking intro clip (learn how to make one here ) supports your brand and makes your videos seem more polished. Intros capture attention and let viewers know the type of video that they are watching almost immediately. Building a 5-10 second introduction (no longer) with your name or the name of your channel will go a long way to improving the professionalism of your video.

Contest now closed.

11. Use Video Effects and Transitions

Adding transitions between clips or topics is a great way to keep viewers engaged with your videos.

Using simple color effects, like filters, can help each of your videos look much more professional.

It can take some time to add these kinds of effects to your videos , but it isn’t really very difficult (many editors, including Filmora, let you drag and drop these effects into your timeline) and it will help your videos hold viewers’ attention for longer. It can also garner much more engagement and many more subscriptions for your YouTube channel.

12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails

A thumbnail that grabs a viewer’s attention will get more clicks. Take a photo of yourself making an expression relevant to your video and edit the image in Photoshop or using a free service like Canva (or one of these other YouTube thumbnail makers ). Add graphics, like emojis, to give your thumbnail a pop of color and include large, simple, text if you feel like your thumbnail needs to be given context (i.e. ‘fall makeup look’, as opposed to just another makeup video).

13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags

Tags are essential to helping people actually find your videos on YouTube. Tags should include keywords/search terms people might be looking up in order to find videos like yours. Looking at the tags of some of your past videos and seeing how well they performed will give you an idea of what kinds of tags you should target in the future. Looking at the tags of some of your competitors will give you an idea of what tags you should be using for your own videos.

Services like the Google Keyword Planner can also help you with finding new keywords/tags. Making your tags with search engine optimization in mind will help ensure that people can find your video when searching for those specific keywords. YouTube has an algorithm very similar to the Google search engine for helping people locate videos they may be interested in.

14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time

Playlists are great for increasing your channel’s watch time , an essential metric for ranking in YouTube’s search results. If someone enjoys your video enough to watch to the end, and then a related video starts to play right after, it’s much more likely that the user is going to stick around and view the second video. When you start to link videos together you will start to see your views grow.

Playlists are also important because they help to organize your channel and make it easier for viewers to find content they are interested in.

15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media

Improving engagement as well as the notoriety of your brand often means branching out beyond YouTube. By creating accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, or Instagram for your channel you will gain more ways of engaging your followers. Often the promotion that you do through social media can equate to a large number of viewers and subscribers. The key to expanding into other social media platforms is to choose the sites your existing audience is already on. For example, Instagram is essential for a beauty YouTuber, but not for a gamer.

Contest now closed.

16. Interact with your Viewers

Spending time interacting with your viewers via comments and social media is important. Taking suggestions and paying attention to what your viewers like most about your videos will make your viewers feel more included in the process of creating your videos. This will make them much more loyal to your channel. A great way to interact with your viewers is by doing shout outs or Q&A videos.

17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre

Spending time examining your competition is very important. By looking at the popular channels in your genre you can learn what kinds of videos are popular and what types of video titles and tags you should be using.

18. Do Collaboration Videos

When you collaborate with other YouTube creators it leads to mutual success. You can cross-promote some of their content and they can promote some of your content in the process. It’s amazing how much your channel can grow when you’re exposed to other people’s audiences. Even if you might view another content creator is your competition, sometimes uniting together on a project can help you to mutually prosper.

Make sure your potential partner makes the kinds of videos your own audience would like. Then you’ll know that your videos are something your partner’s audience will like.

19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video

The description box is one of the most commonly underutilized tools on YouTube. Make sure that you use the space to write a full description of each video. In the first three lines of every video description, use the keywords most relevant to your content, provide links to your other social media accounts, and ask viewers to subscribe. Lower down in your description, under the ‘read more’ tab, write a detailed summary of your video. This will improve your SEO/search engine optimization.

20. Use Keywords That Are Searchable

In your titles, descriptions, and tags you need to use the words or phrases that viewers are most likely to type into YouTube’s search bar when looking for content like yours. Doing a bit of keyword research will help you gain more subscribers on YouTube and more viewers on almost every video.

For example, if you do a product review of a new smartphone, you will get a lot more views titling it ‘iPhone X Review and Unboxing’ than ‘You won’t BELIEVE this phone’ because iPhone X, review and unboxing are all keywords that people might search for.

Contest now closed.

21. Make your Thumbnails Consistent

The thumbnails that you choose for your videos can be an extension of your brand. By using similar layouts, colors, and fonts for every thumbnail you will create a familiar look and viewers will recognize your videos when they see them. If someone can instantly recognize your video thumbnails it will strengthen your brand and encourage repeat viewership.

22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos

If you can plan out a script or outline (whichever you’re comfortable with) for your video, or even plan out a series of videos that you could shoot over time, it can lead to far better content. Taking the time to create a plan for every single video will lead to much more polished results that will generate far better responses from your viewers. Planning takes time, but not as much time as trying to edit the content that had no clear plan.

23. Make Titles that Get Views

Writing great titles that are optimized for search engines is one of the best ways to see some huge improvements in your channel’s growth rate. Your titles need to be able to draw in an audience and get them interested in your content. They also have to set expectations for your videos and contain the right keywords to make them searchable. Big channels can get good results with titles that build suspense or ask questions, but while you’re small it’s better to avoid clickbait and make your titles as direct and literal as possible.

24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer

Your channel page on YouTube might be where a viewer makes the decision to subscribe, or not to subscribe. YouTube allows you to set a featured video that will autoplay in this space, and a lot of the most successful creators use this as an opportunity to post a channel trailer . Your channel trailer welcomes new viewers and tells them what to expect from your content.

You can create a trailer quickly by filming a quick introduction and combining it with clips from your previous videos.

25. Give Each of Your Videos a Memorable Ending

Ending every video on a high note – with some kind of joke or surprise – will leave viewers with a good feeling, which will make them more likely to keep watching more of your videos.

Be sure to share your own tips on how to get your YouTube channel noticed.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

If you’re wondering how to get your YouTube channel noticed - how to finally start standing out - then you’ve come to the right place.

Here are 25 of the best, smartest, ways to get your YouTube channel noticed and start growing:

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently
2. Provide Value in Each Video
3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’
4. Spend time building your YouTube Community
5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them
6. Find a Niche for Your Videos
7. Build a Strong Personal Brand
8. Create Custom Channel Art
9. Practice Makes Perfect
10. Add a YouTube Intro Video
11. Use Video Effects and Transitions
12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails
13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags
14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time
15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media
16. Interact With Your Viewers
17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre
18. Do Collaboration Videos
19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video
20. Use Keywords that are Searchable
21. Make Your Thumbnails Consistent
22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos
23. Make Titles That Get Views
24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer
25. Give Each YouTube Video a Memorable Ending

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently

In order to consistently draw viewers back your page and get the most out of your content, you need to be able to keep posting constantly . Only posting sporadically when you feel like it – three times one month, then just once the next – will not encourage viewers to subscribe. If you develop a schedule and regularly post content each week (or every day if you’re really ambitious), your viewers can start to expect when a video will be released. Some of the best content creators will continue to release videos at least a few times a week in order to continuously draw an audience back to their channel.

2. Provide Value in Each Video

Before you turn your camera on and start making a new video, ask yourself what value you want your viewers to take away from it. Will they come away from your video with knowledge, a new skill, or a feeling of amusement? Be sure to have a clear objective in mind with every video.

3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’

Asking viewers to do anything (like, subscribe, etc.) is called a CTA, or ‘call to action ’. Asking for subscribers is a call to action that needs to be included in every video.

One of the objectives of every video you produce should be to try and appeal to brand-new viewers for your page. Something as simple as asking the viewer to subscribe if they liked your video can really help you grow faster. Sometimes people who really love your content still need to be reminded to subscribe. It is important to attract subscribers – not just viewers – in order to make sure that you have reliable, ongoing, support for your videos.

4. Spend Time Building your YouTube Community

YouTube is a large community and consistently interacting with other creators will help you to gain support for your videos . It helps a lot if the people in your genre know you. You can watch each other’s videos, give each other constructive feedback, and there may even be opportunities for collaboration.

Many video creators draw inspiration from each other’s videos and even spend time working with each other and promoting each other’s content. If you consistently comment on someone’s videos, without asking them to check out your channel (most people find this annoying), they will probably decide to go look at your videos too. Eventually, you might even find an opportunity to appear in one of their videos or have them appear in one of your videos so that you can each be exposed to new potential viewers.

5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them

Setting goals for yourself – i.e. reaching a certain number of subscribers – and letting your viewers know is a great way to meet your goals faster.

Sharing your goals helps your community feel more engaged and like they are a bigger part of your channel. This can be an excellent marketing tactic. When you share your goals, they become your follower’s goals too and they will help you reach them. Creating a payoff where your subscribers can help you reach 2000 subscribers or 1000 likes on a video can help you accomplish more goals to sustain the longevity of your channel. It also fosters a feeling of community by uniting everyone together and allowing them to share your feeling of accomplishment. This works especially well if you offer a reward – i.e. ‘I’ll do a special video when I reach 2000 subscribers’.

Contest now closed.

6. Find a Niche for Your Videos

Many creators on YouTube have found success by carving out very specific video types and niches for themselves. When you are hoping to grow your subscribers on YouTube you really need to find your niche. When you can start to create videos that have predictable subject matter (predictable in the sense of ‘reliable’, not boring), this will attract more regular viewers because people will know what they can expect from your content. Having a niche can also help you find brand deals because you’ll grow a very specific audience that might be interested in very specific products. A smaller, targeted, the audience can be more valuable to an advertiser than a larger, more general, audience.

Your niche will generally be a combination of your larger genre (i.e. gaming, comedy, beauty, food) and something else you are passionate about. For example, reviewing vintage video games or creating desserts based on movies are both potential niches.

7. Build a Strong Personal Brand

Building a brand on YouTube is one of the best ways to generate a devoted following. Building a brand is very important because it makes you more memorable and familiar to viewers. In order to successfully build a brand, you need to think about the image you are trying to create and the culture you want to create for your community. The values you express, the types of videos you do, the clothes you wear, and your channel art are all parts of your brand. The grand total of all of these elements will form your brand and the way you are perceived.

Having a strong, unique, the brand will make viewers feel more attached to you and make your content more recognizable.

8. Create Custom Channel Art

To differentiate yourself from your competition you’re going to need to have custom Channel Art that reflects the vibe of your content. Work at creating or sourcing some graphics for your cover photo, your profile photo, and all of your thumbnails. Having a set color scheme or even a branded style of artwork for your page will help you to look more professional. Differentiating your page from others will create a feeling of familiarity and support your brand.

9. Practice Makes Perfect

In order to start producing more professional content, you need to practice your filmmaking technique. Regardless of the type of video that you are producing, a little bit of practice goes a long way.

Rehearsing what you are going to say can make you feel much more confident. Playing with the video editing software that you’re working with willsave you time when you’re actually polishing a video . Practicing taking photos and videos with your camera outside of making YouTube videos will help you feel familiar with its features. As you start to get more dedicated and practice with your video creation, your videos will gain more viewers and you can grow more subscribers on YouTube.

Simply making more videos is a great way to get in more practice.

10. Add a YouTube Intro Video

A professional-looking intro clip (learn how to make one here ) supports your brand and makes your videos seem more polished. Intros capture attention and let viewers know the type of video that they are watching almost immediately. Building a 5-10 second introduction (no longer) with your name or the name of your channel will go a long way to improving the professionalism of your video.

Contest now closed.

11. Use Video Effects and Transitions

Adding transitions between clips or topics is a great way to keep viewers engaged with your videos.

Using simple color effects, like filters, can help each of your videos look much more professional.

It can take some time to add these kinds of effects to your videos , but it isn’t really very difficult (many editors, including Filmora, let you drag and drop these effects into your timeline) and it will help your videos hold viewers’ attention for longer. It can also garner much more engagement and many more subscriptions for your YouTube channel.

12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails

A thumbnail that grabs a viewer’s attention will get more clicks. Take a photo of yourself making an expression relevant to your video and edit the image in Photoshop or using a free service like Canva (or one of these other YouTube thumbnail makers ). Add graphics, like emojis, to give your thumbnail a pop of color and include large, simple, text if you feel like your thumbnail needs to be given context (i.e. ‘fall makeup look’, as opposed to just another makeup video).

13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags

Tags are essential to helping people actually find your videos on YouTube. Tags should include keywords/search terms people might be looking up in order to find videos like yours. Looking at the tags of some of your past videos and seeing how well they performed will give you an idea of what kinds of tags you should target in the future. Looking at the tags of some of your competitors will give you an idea of what tags you should be using for your own videos.

Services like the Google Keyword Planner can also help you with finding new keywords/tags. Making your tags with search engine optimization in mind will help ensure that people can find your video when searching for those specific keywords. YouTube has an algorithm very similar to the Google search engine for helping people locate videos they may be interested in.

14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time

Playlists are great for increasing your channel’s watch time , an essential metric for ranking in YouTube’s search results. If someone enjoys your video enough to watch to the end, and then a related video starts to play right after, it’s much more likely that the user is going to stick around and view the second video. When you start to link videos together you will start to see your views grow.

Playlists are also important because they help to organize your channel and make it easier for viewers to find content they are interested in.

15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media

Improving engagement as well as the notoriety of your brand often means branching out beyond YouTube. By creating accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, or Instagram for your channel you will gain more ways of engaging your followers. Often the promotion that you do through social media can equate to a large number of viewers and subscribers. The key to expanding into other social media platforms is to choose the sites your existing audience is already on. For example, Instagram is essential for a beauty YouTuber, but not for a gamer.

Contest now closed.

16. Interact with your Viewers

Spending time interacting with your viewers via comments and social media is important. Taking suggestions and paying attention to what your viewers like most about your videos will make your viewers feel more included in the process of creating your videos. This will make them much more loyal to your channel. A great way to interact with your viewers is by doing shout outs or Q&A videos.

17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre

Spending time examining your competition is very important. By looking at the popular channels in your genre you can learn what kinds of videos are popular and what types of video titles and tags you should be using.

18. Do Collaboration Videos

When you collaborate with other YouTube creators it leads to mutual success. You can cross-promote some of their content and they can promote some of your content in the process. It’s amazing how much your channel can grow when you’re exposed to other people’s audiences. Even if you might view another content creator is your competition, sometimes uniting together on a project can help you to mutually prosper.

Make sure your potential partner makes the kinds of videos your own audience would like. Then you’ll know that your videos are something your partner’s audience will like.

19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video

The description box is one of the most commonly underutilized tools on YouTube. Make sure that you use the space to write a full description of each video. In the first three lines of every video description, use the keywords most relevant to your content, provide links to your other social media accounts, and ask viewers to subscribe. Lower down in your description, under the ‘read more’ tab, write a detailed summary of your video. This will improve your SEO/search engine optimization.

20. Use Keywords That Are Searchable

In your titles, descriptions, and tags you need to use the words or phrases that viewers are most likely to type into YouTube’s search bar when looking for content like yours. Doing a bit of keyword research will help you gain more subscribers on YouTube and more viewers on almost every video.

For example, if you do a product review of a new smartphone, you will get a lot more views titling it ‘iPhone X Review and Unboxing’ than ‘You won’t BELIEVE this phone’ because iPhone X, review and unboxing are all keywords that people might search for.

Contest now closed.

21. Make your Thumbnails Consistent

The thumbnails that you choose for your videos can be an extension of your brand. By using similar layouts, colors, and fonts for every thumbnail you will create a familiar look and viewers will recognize your videos when they see them. If someone can instantly recognize your video thumbnails it will strengthen your brand and encourage repeat viewership.

22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos

If you can plan out a script or outline (whichever you’re comfortable with) for your video, or even plan out a series of videos that you could shoot over time, it can lead to far better content. Taking the time to create a plan for every single video will lead to much more polished results that will generate far better responses from your viewers. Planning takes time, but not as much time as trying to edit the content that had no clear plan.

23. Make Titles that Get Views

Writing great titles that are optimized for search engines is one of the best ways to see some huge improvements in your channel’s growth rate. Your titles need to be able to draw in an audience and get them interested in your content. They also have to set expectations for your videos and contain the right keywords to make them searchable. Big channels can get good results with titles that build suspense or ask questions, but while you’re small it’s better to avoid clickbait and make your titles as direct and literal as possible.

24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer

Your channel page on YouTube might be where a viewer makes the decision to subscribe, or not to subscribe. YouTube allows you to set a featured video that will autoplay in this space, and a lot of the most successful creators use this as an opportunity to post a channel trailer . Your channel trailer welcomes new viewers and tells them what to expect from your content.

You can create a trailer quickly by filming a quick introduction and combining it with clips from your previous videos.

25. Give Each of Your Videos a Memorable Ending

Ending every video on a high note – with some kind of joke or surprise – will leave viewers with a good feeling, which will make them more likely to keep watching more of your videos.

Be sure to share your own tips on how to get your YouTube channel noticed.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

If you’re wondering how to get your YouTube channel noticed - how to finally start standing out - then you’ve come to the right place.

Here are 25 of the best, smartest, ways to get your YouTube channel noticed and start growing:

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently
2. Provide Value in Each Video
3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’
4. Spend time building your YouTube Community
5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them
6. Find a Niche for Your Videos
7. Build a Strong Personal Brand
8. Create Custom Channel Art
9. Practice Makes Perfect
10. Add a YouTube Intro Video
11. Use Video Effects and Transitions
12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails
13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags
14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time
15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media
16. Interact With Your Viewers
17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre
18. Do Collaboration Videos
19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video
20. Use Keywords that are Searchable
21. Make Your Thumbnails Consistent
22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos
23. Make Titles That Get Views
24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer
25. Give Each YouTube Video a Memorable Ending

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently

In order to consistently draw viewers back your page and get the most out of your content, you need to be able to keep posting constantly . Only posting sporadically when you feel like it – three times one month, then just once the next – will not encourage viewers to subscribe. If you develop a schedule and regularly post content each week (or every day if you’re really ambitious), your viewers can start to expect when a video will be released. Some of the best content creators will continue to release videos at least a few times a week in order to continuously draw an audience back to their channel.

2. Provide Value in Each Video

Before you turn your camera on and start making a new video, ask yourself what value you want your viewers to take away from it. Will they come away from your video with knowledge, a new skill, or a feeling of amusement? Be sure to have a clear objective in mind with every video.

3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’

Asking viewers to do anything (like, subscribe, etc.) is called a CTA, or ‘call to action ’. Asking for subscribers is a call to action that needs to be included in every video.

One of the objectives of every video you produce should be to try and appeal to brand-new viewers for your page. Something as simple as asking the viewer to subscribe if they liked your video can really help you grow faster. Sometimes people who really love your content still need to be reminded to subscribe. It is important to attract subscribers – not just viewers – in order to make sure that you have reliable, ongoing, support for your videos.

4. Spend Time Building your YouTube Community

YouTube is a large community and consistently interacting with other creators will help you to gain support for your videos . It helps a lot if the people in your genre know you. You can watch each other’s videos, give each other constructive feedback, and there may even be opportunities for collaboration.

Many video creators draw inspiration from each other’s videos and even spend time working with each other and promoting each other’s content. If you consistently comment on someone’s videos, without asking them to check out your channel (most people find this annoying), they will probably decide to go look at your videos too. Eventually, you might even find an opportunity to appear in one of their videos or have them appear in one of your videos so that you can each be exposed to new potential viewers.

5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them

Setting goals for yourself – i.e. reaching a certain number of subscribers – and letting your viewers know is a great way to meet your goals faster.

Sharing your goals helps your community feel more engaged and like they are a bigger part of your channel. This can be an excellent marketing tactic. When you share your goals, they become your follower’s goals too and they will help you reach them. Creating a payoff where your subscribers can help you reach 2000 subscribers or 1000 likes on a video can help you accomplish more goals to sustain the longevity of your channel. It also fosters a feeling of community by uniting everyone together and allowing them to share your feeling of accomplishment. This works especially well if you offer a reward – i.e. ‘I’ll do a special video when I reach 2000 subscribers’.

Contest now closed.

6. Find a Niche for Your Videos

Many creators on YouTube have found success by carving out very specific video types and niches for themselves. When you are hoping to grow your subscribers on YouTube you really need to find your niche. When you can start to create videos that have predictable subject matter (predictable in the sense of ‘reliable’, not boring), this will attract more regular viewers because people will know what they can expect from your content. Having a niche can also help you find brand deals because you’ll grow a very specific audience that might be interested in very specific products. A smaller, targeted, the audience can be more valuable to an advertiser than a larger, more general, audience.

Your niche will generally be a combination of your larger genre (i.e. gaming, comedy, beauty, food) and something else you are passionate about. For example, reviewing vintage video games or creating desserts based on movies are both potential niches.

7. Build a Strong Personal Brand

Building a brand on YouTube is one of the best ways to generate a devoted following. Building a brand is very important because it makes you more memorable and familiar to viewers. In order to successfully build a brand, you need to think about the image you are trying to create and the culture you want to create for your community. The values you express, the types of videos you do, the clothes you wear, and your channel art are all parts of your brand. The grand total of all of these elements will form your brand and the way you are perceived.

Having a strong, unique, the brand will make viewers feel more attached to you and make your content more recognizable.

8. Create Custom Channel Art

To differentiate yourself from your competition you’re going to need to have custom Channel Art that reflects the vibe of your content. Work at creating or sourcing some graphics for your cover photo, your profile photo, and all of your thumbnails. Having a set color scheme or even a branded style of artwork for your page will help you to look more professional. Differentiating your page from others will create a feeling of familiarity and support your brand.

9. Practice Makes Perfect

In order to start producing more professional content, you need to practice your filmmaking technique. Regardless of the type of video that you are producing, a little bit of practice goes a long way.

Rehearsing what you are going to say can make you feel much more confident. Playing with the video editing software that you’re working with willsave you time when you’re actually polishing a video . Practicing taking photos and videos with your camera outside of making YouTube videos will help you feel familiar with its features. As you start to get more dedicated and practice with your video creation, your videos will gain more viewers and you can grow more subscribers on YouTube.

Simply making more videos is a great way to get in more practice.

10. Add a YouTube Intro Video

A professional-looking intro clip (learn how to make one here ) supports your brand and makes your videos seem more polished. Intros capture attention and let viewers know the type of video that they are watching almost immediately. Building a 5-10 second introduction (no longer) with your name or the name of your channel will go a long way to improving the professionalism of your video.

Contest now closed.

11. Use Video Effects and Transitions

Adding transitions between clips or topics is a great way to keep viewers engaged with your videos.

Using simple color effects, like filters, can help each of your videos look much more professional.

It can take some time to add these kinds of effects to your videos , but it isn’t really very difficult (many editors, including Filmora, let you drag and drop these effects into your timeline) and it will help your videos hold viewers’ attention for longer. It can also garner much more engagement and many more subscriptions for your YouTube channel.

12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails

A thumbnail that grabs a viewer’s attention will get more clicks. Take a photo of yourself making an expression relevant to your video and edit the image in Photoshop or using a free service like Canva (or one of these other YouTube thumbnail makers ). Add graphics, like emojis, to give your thumbnail a pop of color and include large, simple, text if you feel like your thumbnail needs to be given context (i.e. ‘fall makeup look’, as opposed to just another makeup video).

13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags

Tags are essential to helping people actually find your videos on YouTube. Tags should include keywords/search terms people might be looking up in order to find videos like yours. Looking at the tags of some of your past videos and seeing how well they performed will give you an idea of what kinds of tags you should target in the future. Looking at the tags of some of your competitors will give you an idea of what tags you should be using for your own videos.

Services like the Google Keyword Planner can also help you with finding new keywords/tags. Making your tags with search engine optimization in mind will help ensure that people can find your video when searching for those specific keywords. YouTube has an algorithm very similar to the Google search engine for helping people locate videos they may be interested in.

14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time

Playlists are great for increasing your channel’s watch time , an essential metric for ranking in YouTube’s search results. If someone enjoys your video enough to watch to the end, and then a related video starts to play right after, it’s much more likely that the user is going to stick around and view the second video. When you start to link videos together you will start to see your views grow.

Playlists are also important because they help to organize your channel and make it easier for viewers to find content they are interested in.

15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media

Improving engagement as well as the notoriety of your brand often means branching out beyond YouTube. By creating accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, or Instagram for your channel you will gain more ways of engaging your followers. Often the promotion that you do through social media can equate to a large number of viewers and subscribers. The key to expanding into other social media platforms is to choose the sites your existing audience is already on. For example, Instagram is essential for a beauty YouTuber, but not for a gamer.

Contest now closed.

16. Interact with your Viewers

Spending time interacting with your viewers via comments and social media is important. Taking suggestions and paying attention to what your viewers like most about your videos will make your viewers feel more included in the process of creating your videos. This will make them much more loyal to your channel. A great way to interact with your viewers is by doing shout outs or Q&A videos.

17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre

Spending time examining your competition is very important. By looking at the popular channels in your genre you can learn what kinds of videos are popular and what types of video titles and tags you should be using.

18. Do Collaboration Videos

When you collaborate with other YouTube creators it leads to mutual success. You can cross-promote some of their content and they can promote some of your content in the process. It’s amazing how much your channel can grow when you’re exposed to other people’s audiences. Even if you might view another content creator is your competition, sometimes uniting together on a project can help you to mutually prosper.

Make sure your potential partner makes the kinds of videos your own audience would like. Then you’ll know that your videos are something your partner’s audience will like.

19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video

The description box is one of the most commonly underutilized tools on YouTube. Make sure that you use the space to write a full description of each video. In the first three lines of every video description, use the keywords most relevant to your content, provide links to your other social media accounts, and ask viewers to subscribe. Lower down in your description, under the ‘read more’ tab, write a detailed summary of your video. This will improve your SEO/search engine optimization.

20. Use Keywords That Are Searchable

In your titles, descriptions, and tags you need to use the words or phrases that viewers are most likely to type into YouTube’s search bar when looking for content like yours. Doing a bit of keyword research will help you gain more subscribers on YouTube and more viewers on almost every video.

For example, if you do a product review of a new smartphone, you will get a lot more views titling it ‘iPhone X Review and Unboxing’ than ‘You won’t BELIEVE this phone’ because iPhone X, review and unboxing are all keywords that people might search for.

Contest now closed.

21. Make your Thumbnails Consistent

The thumbnails that you choose for your videos can be an extension of your brand. By using similar layouts, colors, and fonts for every thumbnail you will create a familiar look and viewers will recognize your videos when they see them. If someone can instantly recognize your video thumbnails it will strengthen your brand and encourage repeat viewership.

22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos

If you can plan out a script or outline (whichever you’re comfortable with) for your video, or even plan out a series of videos that you could shoot over time, it can lead to far better content. Taking the time to create a plan for every single video will lead to much more polished results that will generate far better responses from your viewers. Planning takes time, but not as much time as trying to edit the content that had no clear plan.

23. Make Titles that Get Views

Writing great titles that are optimized for search engines is one of the best ways to see some huge improvements in your channel’s growth rate. Your titles need to be able to draw in an audience and get them interested in your content. They also have to set expectations for your videos and contain the right keywords to make them searchable. Big channels can get good results with titles that build suspense or ask questions, but while you’re small it’s better to avoid clickbait and make your titles as direct and literal as possible.

24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer

Your channel page on YouTube might be where a viewer makes the decision to subscribe, or not to subscribe. YouTube allows you to set a featured video that will autoplay in this space, and a lot of the most successful creators use this as an opportunity to post a channel trailer . Your channel trailer welcomes new viewers and tells them what to expect from your content.

You can create a trailer quickly by filming a quick introduction and combining it with clips from your previous videos.

25. Give Each of Your Videos a Memorable Ending

Ending every video on a high note – with some kind of joke or surprise – will leave viewers with a good feeling, which will make them more likely to keep watching more of your videos.

Be sure to share your own tips on how to get your YouTube channel noticed.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

If you’re wondering how to get your YouTube channel noticed - how to finally start standing out - then you’ve come to the right place.

Here are 25 of the best, smartest, ways to get your YouTube channel noticed and start growing:

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently
2. Provide Value in Each Video
3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’
4. Spend time building your YouTube Community
5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them
6. Find a Niche for Your Videos
7. Build a Strong Personal Brand
8. Create Custom Channel Art
9. Practice Makes Perfect
10. Add a YouTube Intro Video
11. Use Video Effects and Transitions
12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails
13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags
14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time
15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media
16. Interact With Your Viewers
17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre
18. Do Collaboration Videos
19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video
20. Use Keywords that are Searchable
21. Make Your Thumbnails Consistent
22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos
23. Make Titles That Get Views
24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer
25. Give Each YouTube Video a Memorable Ending

1. Post YouTube Videos Consistently

In order to consistently draw viewers back your page and get the most out of your content, you need to be able to keep posting constantly . Only posting sporadically when you feel like it – three times one month, then just once the next – will not encourage viewers to subscribe. If you develop a schedule and regularly post content each week (or every day if you’re really ambitious), your viewers can start to expect when a video will be released. Some of the best content creators will continue to release videos at least a few times a week in order to continuously draw an audience back to their channel.

2. Provide Value in Each Video

Before you turn your camera on and start making a new video, ask yourself what value you want your viewers to take away from it. Will they come away from your video with knowledge, a new skill, or a feeling of amusement? Be sure to have a clear objective in mind with every video.

3. Ask Viewers to Subscribe with a ‘CTA’

Asking viewers to do anything (like, subscribe, etc.) is called a CTA, or ‘call to action ’. Asking for subscribers is a call to action that needs to be included in every video.

One of the objectives of every video you produce should be to try and appeal to brand-new viewers for your page. Something as simple as asking the viewer to subscribe if they liked your video can really help you grow faster. Sometimes people who really love your content still need to be reminded to subscribe. It is important to attract subscribers – not just viewers – in order to make sure that you have reliable, ongoing, support for your videos.

4. Spend Time Building your YouTube Community

YouTube is a large community and consistently interacting with other creators will help you to gain support for your videos . It helps a lot if the people in your genre know you. You can watch each other’s videos, give each other constructive feedback, and there may even be opportunities for collaboration.

Many video creators draw inspiration from each other’s videos and even spend time working with each other and promoting each other’s content. If you consistently comment on someone’s videos, without asking them to check out your channel (most people find this annoying), they will probably decide to go look at your videos too. Eventually, you might even find an opportunity to appear in one of their videos or have them appear in one of your videos so that you can each be exposed to new potential viewers.

5. Set YouTube Goals and Announce Them

Setting goals for yourself – i.e. reaching a certain number of subscribers – and letting your viewers know is a great way to meet your goals faster.

Sharing your goals helps your community feel more engaged and like they are a bigger part of your channel. This can be an excellent marketing tactic. When you share your goals, they become your follower’s goals too and they will help you reach them. Creating a payoff where your subscribers can help you reach 2000 subscribers or 1000 likes on a video can help you accomplish more goals to sustain the longevity of your channel. It also fosters a feeling of community by uniting everyone together and allowing them to share your feeling of accomplishment. This works especially well if you offer a reward – i.e. ‘I’ll do a special video when I reach 2000 subscribers’.

Contest now closed.

6. Find a Niche for Your Videos

Many creators on YouTube have found success by carving out very specific video types and niches for themselves. When you are hoping to grow your subscribers on YouTube you really need to find your niche. When you can start to create videos that have predictable subject matter (predictable in the sense of ‘reliable’, not boring), this will attract more regular viewers because people will know what they can expect from your content. Having a niche can also help you find brand deals because you’ll grow a very specific audience that might be interested in very specific products. A smaller, targeted, the audience can be more valuable to an advertiser than a larger, more general, audience.

Your niche will generally be a combination of your larger genre (i.e. gaming, comedy, beauty, food) and something else you are passionate about. For example, reviewing vintage video games or creating desserts based on movies are both potential niches.

7. Build a Strong Personal Brand

Building a brand on YouTube is one of the best ways to generate a devoted following. Building a brand is very important because it makes you more memorable and familiar to viewers. In order to successfully build a brand, you need to think about the image you are trying to create and the culture you want to create for your community. The values you express, the types of videos you do, the clothes you wear, and your channel art are all parts of your brand. The grand total of all of these elements will form your brand and the way you are perceived.

Having a strong, unique, the brand will make viewers feel more attached to you and make your content more recognizable.

8. Create Custom Channel Art

To differentiate yourself from your competition you’re going to need to have custom Channel Art that reflects the vibe of your content. Work at creating or sourcing some graphics for your cover photo, your profile photo, and all of your thumbnails. Having a set color scheme or even a branded style of artwork for your page will help you to look more professional. Differentiating your page from others will create a feeling of familiarity and support your brand.

9. Practice Makes Perfect

In order to start producing more professional content, you need to practice your filmmaking technique. Regardless of the type of video that you are producing, a little bit of practice goes a long way.

Rehearsing what you are going to say can make you feel much more confident. Playing with the video editing software that you’re working with willsave you time when you’re actually polishing a video . Practicing taking photos and videos with your camera outside of making YouTube videos will help you feel familiar with its features. As you start to get more dedicated and practice with your video creation, your videos will gain more viewers and you can grow more subscribers on YouTube.

Simply making more videos is a great way to get in more practice.

10. Add a YouTube Intro Video

A professional-looking intro clip (learn how to make one here ) supports your brand and makes your videos seem more polished. Intros capture attention and let viewers know the type of video that they are watching almost immediately. Building a 5-10 second introduction (no longer) with your name or the name of your channel will go a long way to improving the professionalism of your video.

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11. Use Video Effects and Transitions

Adding transitions between clips or topics is a great way to keep viewers engaged with your videos.

Using simple color effects, like filters, can help each of your videos look much more professional.

It can take some time to add these kinds of effects to your videos , but it isn’t really very difficult (many editors, including Filmora, let you drag and drop these effects into your timeline) and it will help your videos hold viewers’ attention for longer. It can also garner much more engagement and many more subscriptions for your YouTube channel.

12. Make Eye-Catching Thumbnails

A thumbnail that grabs a viewer’s attention will get more clicks. Take a photo of yourself making an expression relevant to your video and edit the image in Photoshop or using a free service like Canva (or one of these other YouTube thumbnail makers ). Add graphics, like emojis, to give your thumbnail a pop of color and include large, simple, text if you feel like your thumbnail needs to be given context (i.e. ‘fall makeup look’, as opposed to just another makeup video).

13. Use Lots of YouTube Tags

Tags are essential to helping people actually find your videos on YouTube. Tags should include keywords/search terms people might be looking up in order to find videos like yours. Looking at the tags of some of your past videos and seeing how well they performed will give you an idea of what kinds of tags you should target in the future. Looking at the tags of some of your competitors will give you an idea of what tags you should be using for your own videos.

Services like the Google Keyword Planner can also help you with finding new keywords/tags. Making your tags with search engine optimization in mind will help ensure that people can find your video when searching for those specific keywords. YouTube has an algorithm very similar to the Google search engine for helping people locate videos they may be interested in.

14. Use YouTube Playlists to Increase Watch Time

Playlists are great for increasing your channel’s watch time , an essential metric for ranking in YouTube’s search results. If someone enjoys your video enough to watch to the end, and then a related video starts to play right after, it’s much more likely that the user is going to stick around and view the second video. When you start to link videos together you will start to see your views grow.

Playlists are also important because they help to organize your channel and make it easier for viewers to find content they are interested in.

15. Promote Your YouTube Channel on Social Media

Improving engagement as well as the notoriety of your brand often means branching out beyond YouTube. By creating accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, or Instagram for your channel you will gain more ways of engaging your followers. Often the promotion that you do through social media can equate to a large number of viewers and subscribers. The key to expanding into other social media platforms is to choose the sites your existing audience is already on. For example, Instagram is essential for a beauty YouTuber, but not for a gamer.

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16. Interact with your Viewers

Spending time interacting with your viewers via comments and social media is important. Taking suggestions and paying attention to what your viewers like most about your videos will make your viewers feel more included in the process of creating your videos. This will make them much more loyal to your channel. A great way to interact with your viewers is by doing shout outs or Q&A videos.

17. Check Out the Big Channels in Your Genre

Spending time examining your competition is very important. By looking at the popular channels in your genre you can learn what kinds of videos are popular and what types of video titles and tags you should be using.

18. Do Collaboration Videos

When you collaborate with other YouTube creators it leads to mutual success. You can cross-promote some of their content and they can promote some of your content in the process. It’s amazing how much your channel can grow when you’re exposed to other people’s audiences. Even if you might view another content creator is your competition, sometimes uniting together on a project can help you to mutually prosper.

Make sure your potential partner makes the kinds of videos your own audience would like. Then you’ll know that your videos are something your partner’s audience will like.

19. Write a Detailed Description for Every Video

The description box is one of the most commonly underutilized tools on YouTube. Make sure that you use the space to write a full description of each video. In the first three lines of every video description, use the keywords most relevant to your content, provide links to your other social media accounts, and ask viewers to subscribe. Lower down in your description, under the ‘read more’ tab, write a detailed summary of your video. This will improve your SEO/search engine optimization.

20. Use Keywords That Are Searchable

In your titles, descriptions, and tags you need to use the words or phrases that viewers are most likely to type into YouTube’s search bar when looking for content like yours. Doing a bit of keyword research will help you gain more subscribers on YouTube and more viewers on almost every video.

For example, if you do a product review of a new smartphone, you will get a lot more views titling it ‘iPhone X Review and Unboxing’ than ‘You won’t BELIEVE this phone’ because iPhone X, review and unboxing are all keywords that people might search for.

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21. Make your Thumbnails Consistent

The thumbnails that you choose for your videos can be an extension of your brand. By using similar layouts, colors, and fonts for every thumbnail you will create a familiar look and viewers will recognize your videos when they see them. If someone can instantly recognize your video thumbnails it will strengthen your brand and encourage repeat viewership.

22. Always Have a Plan for Your Videos

If you can plan out a script or outline (whichever you’re comfortable with) for your video, or even plan out a series of videos that you could shoot over time, it can lead to far better content. Taking the time to create a plan for every single video will lead to much more polished results that will generate far better responses from your viewers. Planning takes time, but not as much time as trying to edit the content that had no clear plan.

23. Make Titles that Get Views

Writing great titles that are optimized for search engines is one of the best ways to see some huge improvements in your channel’s growth rate. Your titles need to be able to draw in an audience and get them interested in your content. They also have to set expectations for your videos and contain the right keywords to make them searchable. Big channels can get good results with titles that build suspense or ask questions, but while you’re small it’s better to avoid clickbait and make your titles as direct and literal as possible.

24. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer

Your channel page on YouTube might be where a viewer makes the decision to subscribe, or not to subscribe. YouTube allows you to set a featured video that will autoplay in this space, and a lot of the most successful creators use this as an opportunity to post a channel trailer . Your channel trailer welcomes new viewers and tells them what to expect from your content.

You can create a trailer quickly by filming a quick introduction and combining it with clips from your previous videos.

25. Give Each of Your Videos a Memorable Ending

Ending every video on a high note – with some kind of joke or surprise – will leave viewers with a good feeling, which will make them more likely to keep watching more of your videos.

Be sure to share your own tips on how to get your YouTube channel noticed.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett