The Art of Flawless Audio Capture, Mic-Free

How to Record Good Audio Without a Microphone?

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

Audio quality is more important than video quality on YouTube. You’ve probably heard that before – viewers might forgive sub-par video quality if they’re interested in what you’re saying, but if it’s hard to understand what you’re saying they’ll click away.

Getting an external mic (even a $10 one-off Amazon ) is one of the best ways to improve your videos. That said, maybe your budget is $0. Or, maybe you just don’t happen to have a mic now and don’t want to wait to make videos. It could even be that you just don’t want to bother with an external mic.

Luckily, there are a lot of easy, free, things you can do to protect the quality of your audio recording even if you’re not using an external mic. Here are a few tips:

• 1. Keep Your Camera Close
• 2. Shoot Somewhere Quiet
• 3. Pick a Good Room
• 4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind
• 5. Use a Free Audio App
• 6. Do a Sound Check

1. Keep Your Camera Close (like, really close)

The biggest problem with the mic built into any camera or phone is just that, since it’s with the camera, it’s usually too far away from you. Built-in mics can record decent audio up close, but usually, your camera will be set up farther away from you than an external mic would be.

For example, your camera’s mic might be just as good as a clip-on LAV, but that LAV is right by your mouth and the camera is a couple of big steps away.

Moving your camera/smartphone physically closer to you will make it hard to include anything besides your head and shoulders in your shot, but it will get you significantly better audio.

2.Shoot Somewhere Quiet

The best way to limit the amount of background noise you pick up in your sound recording is to shoot somewhere where there’s no background noise. That probably seems really basic, but it’s something a lot of people just don’t do. It’s easy to default to recording in your home office, even though it’s right next to the kitchen where your family is bustling around, or in your bedroom even though there’s a busy street right outside your window.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for your audio is simply to scout out a quiet room in your house where the sound recording conditions are better. Speaking of recording conditions…

3. Pick a Good Room

There’s more that goes into picking a good room than how quiet it is. If you try to record in a room that’s too big your voice might sound to distant, and if you try to record in a room that’s too small your audio will be too echo-y. You need a room that’s just right.

You should also pay attention to what’s in the room you’re recording in. Avoid hard, reflective, surfaces like appliances and mirrors which your voice will bounce off of. The same conditions that make you sound great when you sing in the shower will – like recording in a small space -make your voiceover unpleasantly echo-y.

Look for a room that has a lot of soft things in it, like beds and sofas.

4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind

If you shoot outside, then the wind passing over your built-in mic will do terrible things to your audio. You can do a lot to counter-act this problem by physically blocking the wind.

There are a few ways to do this. If you’re doing hand-held shots you can partially cover your camera or phone’s mic with your finger. You don’t want to completely cover it/press down or your audio will be muffled. What you’re trying to do is create a barrier blocking out the wind.

On movie sets, they block out wind by covering the microphones with big fuzzy things called ‘dead cats’. You can also block out wind noise by attaching something fuzzy to your microphone. If your camera’s built-in mic is on front of it then you just need something big and fluffy you can loop around the lens. You can use a piece of a boa, a fuzzy novelty scrunchie – you can even murder a fuzzy stuffed animal! Do you have an old coat with a fuzz around the hood? That fuzz would do nicely.

The pompom used in this video cost $2, but you might already have something that would work!

If your built-in mic is on top of your camera you can get something called a ‘micromuff’. A micromuff is essentially a circular or rectangular piece of velcro with long strands of fluff on top. It’s open in the middle so it doesn’t actually cover your mic, but the surrounding fuzz blocks out the wind.

You use the adhesive backing to attach the base velcro to your camera. The other side of the velcro has your fluff attached to the back.

The only thing about a micromuff is that it costs about $30, and if you’re going to spend $30 on audio equipment then you could just buy yourself an inexpensive LAV mic. I only bring up the micromuff because it’s a very simple design you can probably DIY – you just need velcro with adhesive backing and any of the fluff-sources we just discussed.

5. Use a Free Audio App

If you’re recording on a smartphone, you can download a free app that will let you make adjustments to your audio as you record it. With the right app, you can adjust your gain (volume is how you control ‘output’ audio, and gain is for ‘input’ audio. By turning up your gain, you can make your mic more sensitive), tempo, and more. A lot of the time, your audio recording app will also let you edit your audio afterward.

Even if you’re not recording video from your smartphone, it might be a good idea to use your phone as your mic and record a separate audio file. You’ll be able to use an app to fine-tune your recording, and you can set your phone up closer to you the way you would an external mic while keeping your camera back a bit farther.

Free audio apps: Hi-Q MP3 Voice Recorder (Android), RecForge II (Android), Smart Voice Recorder (Android), Audio Memos (iOS), and Recorder Plus (iOS).

6. Do a Sound Check

Once you think you’ve got good audio set up – test it! You don’t want to do a whole video and find out when you play it back that your audio doesn’t sound good.

Do you have any of your own audio tips to pass on? Leave them in the comments!

This topic was suggested by RS Beauty over in the forums. Thanks for the idea!

Polish Your YouTube Videos with Filmora

As one of the most widely used video editing software in YouTube video editing, Filmora allows you to record voiceover and edit the recorded audio with mixer, equalizer and provides lots of templates and effects with an intuitive interface, which saves much time. Download the free trial version and get started now.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

Audio quality is more important than video quality on YouTube. You’ve probably heard that before – viewers might forgive sub-par video quality if they’re interested in what you’re saying, but if it’s hard to understand what you’re saying they’ll click away.

Getting an external mic (even a $10 one-off Amazon ) is one of the best ways to improve your videos. That said, maybe your budget is $0. Or, maybe you just don’t happen to have a mic now and don’t want to wait to make videos. It could even be that you just don’t want to bother with an external mic.

Luckily, there are a lot of easy, free, things you can do to protect the quality of your audio recording even if you’re not using an external mic. Here are a few tips:

• 1. Keep Your Camera Close
• 2. Shoot Somewhere Quiet
• 3. Pick a Good Room
• 4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind
• 5. Use a Free Audio App
• 6. Do a Sound Check

1. Keep Your Camera Close (like, really close)

The biggest problem with the mic built into any camera or phone is just that, since it’s with the camera, it’s usually too far away from you. Built-in mics can record decent audio up close, but usually, your camera will be set up farther away from you than an external mic would be.

For example, your camera’s mic might be just as good as a clip-on LAV, but that LAV is right by your mouth and the camera is a couple of big steps away.

Moving your camera/smartphone physically closer to you will make it hard to include anything besides your head and shoulders in your shot, but it will get you significantly better audio.

2.Shoot Somewhere Quiet

The best way to limit the amount of background noise you pick up in your sound recording is to shoot somewhere where there’s no background noise. That probably seems really basic, but it’s something a lot of people just don’t do. It’s easy to default to recording in your home office, even though it’s right next to the kitchen where your family is bustling around, or in your bedroom even though there’s a busy street right outside your window.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for your audio is simply to scout out a quiet room in your house where the sound recording conditions are better. Speaking of recording conditions…

3. Pick a Good Room

There’s more that goes into picking a good room than how quiet it is. If you try to record in a room that’s too big your voice might sound to distant, and if you try to record in a room that’s too small your audio will be too echo-y. You need a room that’s just right.

You should also pay attention to what’s in the room you’re recording in. Avoid hard, reflective, surfaces like appliances and mirrors which your voice will bounce off of. The same conditions that make you sound great when you sing in the shower will – like recording in a small space -make your voiceover unpleasantly echo-y.

Look for a room that has a lot of soft things in it, like beds and sofas.

4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind

If you shoot outside, then the wind passing over your built-in mic will do terrible things to your audio. You can do a lot to counter-act this problem by physically blocking the wind.

There are a few ways to do this. If you’re doing hand-held shots you can partially cover your camera or phone’s mic with your finger. You don’t want to completely cover it/press down or your audio will be muffled. What you’re trying to do is create a barrier blocking out the wind.

On movie sets, they block out wind by covering the microphones with big fuzzy things called ‘dead cats’. You can also block out wind noise by attaching something fuzzy to your microphone. If your camera’s built-in mic is on front of it then you just need something big and fluffy you can loop around the lens. You can use a piece of a boa, a fuzzy novelty scrunchie – you can even murder a fuzzy stuffed animal! Do you have an old coat with a fuzz around the hood? That fuzz would do nicely.

The pompom used in this video cost $2, but you might already have something that would work!

If your built-in mic is on top of your camera you can get something called a ‘micromuff’. A micromuff is essentially a circular or rectangular piece of velcro with long strands of fluff on top. It’s open in the middle so it doesn’t actually cover your mic, but the surrounding fuzz blocks out the wind.

You use the adhesive backing to attach the base velcro to your camera. The other side of the velcro has your fluff attached to the back.

The only thing about a micromuff is that it costs about $30, and if you’re going to spend $30 on audio equipment then you could just buy yourself an inexpensive LAV mic. I only bring up the micromuff because it’s a very simple design you can probably DIY – you just need velcro with adhesive backing and any of the fluff-sources we just discussed.

5. Use a Free Audio App

If you’re recording on a smartphone, you can download a free app that will let you make adjustments to your audio as you record it. With the right app, you can adjust your gain (volume is how you control ‘output’ audio, and gain is for ‘input’ audio. By turning up your gain, you can make your mic more sensitive), tempo, and more. A lot of the time, your audio recording app will also let you edit your audio afterward.

Even if you’re not recording video from your smartphone, it might be a good idea to use your phone as your mic and record a separate audio file. You’ll be able to use an app to fine-tune your recording, and you can set your phone up closer to you the way you would an external mic while keeping your camera back a bit farther.

Free audio apps: Hi-Q MP3 Voice Recorder (Android), RecForge II (Android), Smart Voice Recorder (Android), Audio Memos (iOS), and Recorder Plus (iOS).

6. Do a Sound Check

Once you think you’ve got good audio set up – test it! You don’t want to do a whole video and find out when you play it back that your audio doesn’t sound good.

Do you have any of your own audio tips to pass on? Leave them in the comments!

This topic was suggested by RS Beauty over in the forums. Thanks for the idea!

Polish Your YouTube Videos with Filmora

As one of the most widely used video editing software in YouTube video editing, Filmora allows you to record voiceover and edit the recorded audio with mixer, equalizer and provides lots of templates and effects with an intuitive interface, which saves much time. Download the free trial version and get started now.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

Audio quality is more important than video quality on YouTube. You’ve probably heard that before – viewers might forgive sub-par video quality if they’re interested in what you’re saying, but if it’s hard to understand what you’re saying they’ll click away.

Getting an external mic (even a $10 one-off Amazon ) is one of the best ways to improve your videos. That said, maybe your budget is $0. Or, maybe you just don’t happen to have a mic now and don’t want to wait to make videos. It could even be that you just don’t want to bother with an external mic.

Luckily, there are a lot of easy, free, things you can do to protect the quality of your audio recording even if you’re not using an external mic. Here are a few tips:

• 1. Keep Your Camera Close
• 2. Shoot Somewhere Quiet
• 3. Pick a Good Room
• 4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind
• 5. Use a Free Audio App
• 6. Do a Sound Check

1. Keep Your Camera Close (like, really close)

The biggest problem with the mic built into any camera or phone is just that, since it’s with the camera, it’s usually too far away from you. Built-in mics can record decent audio up close, but usually, your camera will be set up farther away from you than an external mic would be.

For example, your camera’s mic might be just as good as a clip-on LAV, but that LAV is right by your mouth and the camera is a couple of big steps away.

Moving your camera/smartphone physically closer to you will make it hard to include anything besides your head and shoulders in your shot, but it will get you significantly better audio.

2.Shoot Somewhere Quiet

The best way to limit the amount of background noise you pick up in your sound recording is to shoot somewhere where there’s no background noise. That probably seems really basic, but it’s something a lot of people just don’t do. It’s easy to default to recording in your home office, even though it’s right next to the kitchen where your family is bustling around, or in your bedroom even though there’s a busy street right outside your window.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for your audio is simply to scout out a quiet room in your house where the sound recording conditions are better. Speaking of recording conditions…

3. Pick a Good Room

There’s more that goes into picking a good room than how quiet it is. If you try to record in a room that’s too big your voice might sound to distant, and if you try to record in a room that’s too small your audio will be too echo-y. You need a room that’s just right.

You should also pay attention to what’s in the room you’re recording in. Avoid hard, reflective, surfaces like appliances and mirrors which your voice will bounce off of. The same conditions that make you sound great when you sing in the shower will – like recording in a small space -make your voiceover unpleasantly echo-y.

Look for a room that has a lot of soft things in it, like beds and sofas.

4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind

If you shoot outside, then the wind passing over your built-in mic will do terrible things to your audio. You can do a lot to counter-act this problem by physically blocking the wind.

There are a few ways to do this. If you’re doing hand-held shots you can partially cover your camera or phone’s mic with your finger. You don’t want to completely cover it/press down or your audio will be muffled. What you’re trying to do is create a barrier blocking out the wind.

On movie sets, they block out wind by covering the microphones with big fuzzy things called ‘dead cats’. You can also block out wind noise by attaching something fuzzy to your microphone. If your camera’s built-in mic is on front of it then you just need something big and fluffy you can loop around the lens. You can use a piece of a boa, a fuzzy novelty scrunchie – you can even murder a fuzzy stuffed animal! Do you have an old coat with a fuzz around the hood? That fuzz would do nicely.

The pompom used in this video cost $2, but you might already have something that would work!

If your built-in mic is on top of your camera you can get something called a ‘micromuff’. A micromuff is essentially a circular or rectangular piece of velcro with long strands of fluff on top. It’s open in the middle so it doesn’t actually cover your mic, but the surrounding fuzz blocks out the wind.

You use the adhesive backing to attach the base velcro to your camera. The other side of the velcro has your fluff attached to the back.

The only thing about a micromuff is that it costs about $30, and if you’re going to spend $30 on audio equipment then you could just buy yourself an inexpensive LAV mic. I only bring up the micromuff because it’s a very simple design you can probably DIY – you just need velcro with adhesive backing and any of the fluff-sources we just discussed.

5. Use a Free Audio App

If you’re recording on a smartphone, you can download a free app that will let you make adjustments to your audio as you record it. With the right app, you can adjust your gain (volume is how you control ‘output’ audio, and gain is for ‘input’ audio. By turning up your gain, you can make your mic more sensitive), tempo, and more. A lot of the time, your audio recording app will also let you edit your audio afterward.

Even if you’re not recording video from your smartphone, it might be a good idea to use your phone as your mic and record a separate audio file. You’ll be able to use an app to fine-tune your recording, and you can set your phone up closer to you the way you would an external mic while keeping your camera back a bit farther.

Free audio apps: Hi-Q MP3 Voice Recorder (Android), RecForge II (Android), Smart Voice Recorder (Android), Audio Memos (iOS), and Recorder Plus (iOS).

6. Do a Sound Check

Once you think you’ve got good audio set up – test it! You don’t want to do a whole video and find out when you play it back that your audio doesn’t sound good.

Do you have any of your own audio tips to pass on? Leave them in the comments!

This topic was suggested by RS Beauty over in the forums. Thanks for the idea!

Polish Your YouTube Videos with Filmora

As one of the most widely used video editing software in YouTube video editing, Filmora allows you to record voiceover and edit the recorded audio with mixer, equalizer and provides lots of templates and effects with an intuitive interface, which saves much time. Download the free trial version and get started now.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

Audio quality is more important than video quality on YouTube. You’ve probably heard that before – viewers might forgive sub-par video quality if they’re interested in what you’re saying, but if it’s hard to understand what you’re saying they’ll click away.

Getting an external mic (even a $10 one-off Amazon ) is one of the best ways to improve your videos. That said, maybe your budget is $0. Or, maybe you just don’t happen to have a mic now and don’t want to wait to make videos. It could even be that you just don’t want to bother with an external mic.

Luckily, there are a lot of easy, free, things you can do to protect the quality of your audio recording even if you’re not using an external mic. Here are a few tips:

• 1. Keep Your Camera Close
• 2. Shoot Somewhere Quiet
• 3. Pick a Good Room
• 4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind
• 5. Use a Free Audio App
• 6. Do a Sound Check

1. Keep Your Camera Close (like, really close)

The biggest problem with the mic built into any camera or phone is just that, since it’s with the camera, it’s usually too far away from you. Built-in mics can record decent audio up close, but usually, your camera will be set up farther away from you than an external mic would be.

For example, your camera’s mic might be just as good as a clip-on LAV, but that LAV is right by your mouth and the camera is a couple of big steps away.

Moving your camera/smartphone physically closer to you will make it hard to include anything besides your head and shoulders in your shot, but it will get you significantly better audio.

2.Shoot Somewhere Quiet

The best way to limit the amount of background noise you pick up in your sound recording is to shoot somewhere where there’s no background noise. That probably seems really basic, but it’s something a lot of people just don’t do. It’s easy to default to recording in your home office, even though it’s right next to the kitchen where your family is bustling around, or in your bedroom even though there’s a busy street right outside your window.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for your audio is simply to scout out a quiet room in your house where the sound recording conditions are better. Speaking of recording conditions…

3. Pick a Good Room

There’s more that goes into picking a good room than how quiet it is. If you try to record in a room that’s too big your voice might sound to distant, and if you try to record in a room that’s too small your audio will be too echo-y. You need a room that’s just right.

You should also pay attention to what’s in the room you’re recording in. Avoid hard, reflective, surfaces like appliances and mirrors which your voice will bounce off of. The same conditions that make you sound great when you sing in the shower will – like recording in a small space -make your voiceover unpleasantly echo-y.

Look for a room that has a lot of soft things in it, like beds and sofas.

4. Protect your Built-In Mic from Wind

If you shoot outside, then the wind passing over your built-in mic will do terrible things to your audio. You can do a lot to counter-act this problem by physically blocking the wind.

There are a few ways to do this. If you’re doing hand-held shots you can partially cover your camera or phone’s mic with your finger. You don’t want to completely cover it/press down or your audio will be muffled. What you’re trying to do is create a barrier blocking out the wind.

On movie sets, they block out wind by covering the microphones with big fuzzy things called ‘dead cats’. You can also block out wind noise by attaching something fuzzy to your microphone. If your camera’s built-in mic is on front of it then you just need something big and fluffy you can loop around the lens. You can use a piece of a boa, a fuzzy novelty scrunchie – you can even murder a fuzzy stuffed animal! Do you have an old coat with a fuzz around the hood? That fuzz would do nicely.

The pompom used in this video cost $2, but you might already have something that would work!

If your built-in mic is on top of your camera you can get something called a ‘micromuff’. A micromuff is essentially a circular or rectangular piece of velcro with long strands of fluff on top. It’s open in the middle so it doesn’t actually cover your mic, but the surrounding fuzz blocks out the wind.

You use the adhesive backing to attach the base velcro to your camera. The other side of the velcro has your fluff attached to the back.

The only thing about a micromuff is that it costs about $30, and if you’re going to spend $30 on audio equipment then you could just buy yourself an inexpensive LAV mic. I only bring up the micromuff because it’s a very simple design you can probably DIY – you just need velcro with adhesive backing and any of the fluff-sources we just discussed.

5. Use a Free Audio App

If you’re recording on a smartphone, you can download a free app that will let you make adjustments to your audio as you record it. With the right app, you can adjust your gain (volume is how you control ‘output’ audio, and gain is for ‘input’ audio. By turning up your gain, you can make your mic more sensitive), tempo, and more. A lot of the time, your audio recording app will also let you edit your audio afterward.

Even if you’re not recording video from your smartphone, it might be a good idea to use your phone as your mic and record a separate audio file. You’ll be able to use an app to fine-tune your recording, and you can set your phone up closer to you the way you would an external mic while keeping your camera back a bit farther.

Free audio apps: Hi-Q MP3 Voice Recorder (Android), RecForge II (Android), Smart Voice Recorder (Android), Audio Memos (iOS), and Recorder Plus (iOS).

6. Do a Sound Check

Once you think you’ve got good audio set up – test it! You don’t want to do a whole video and find out when you play it back that your audio doesn’t sound good.

Do you have any of your own audio tips to pass on? Leave them in the comments!

This topic was suggested by RS Beauty over in the forums. Thanks for the idea!

Polish Your YouTube Videos with Filmora

As one of the most widely used video editing software in YouTube video editing, Filmora allows you to record voiceover and edit the recorded audio with mixer, equalizer and provides lots of templates and effects with an intuitive interface, which saves much time. Download the free trial version and get started now.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Master Your YouTube Banner: Essential Guide for Creators

How To Make Good YouTube Banner - Dos and Don’ts

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

It’s important to learn how to make a good YouTube banner because, when you click into a channel, the first thing you usually see and pay attention to is the channel art.

Channel art gives viewers a first impression of who you are and allows viewers to know what your channel is all about. Channel art can be a great way to show creativity, and there are also ways you can design your banner to help your channel grow.

Here are the Dos and Don’ts of YouTube Channel Art.

• What Kind of Background Should I Use?
• Should I Use My Face?
• What Should I Write on Banner?
• How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Part 1: What Kind of Background Should I Use?

DO: High-Quality Photos

It’s easy to take pictures with our phones, but not all of these pictures will look great blown up for channel art.

When choosing great photos for your background, pick ones that are high quality and don’t become pixelated once they are blown up. There are tons of free stock photo websites out there to help you find a high-quality picture that’s perfect for your channel.

DON’T: Use Chaotic Patterns

Using patterns for the background of your channel banner can help your channel look super creative and stand out from others. However, if you use a pattern that is chaotic and hard on the eyes, you may not attract many subscribers. When using patterns, choose patterns that are not heavy in color and have too many lines or shapes. There should be an evenness to the shapes and negative space within the pattern itself. Try to stay away from patterns that are 3D which can conflict with the viewer’s eyesight and make them dizzy.

Part 2: Should I Use My Face?

Whether you should use your face on your channel banner depends on what your channel is about. If you have a channel focused on beauty, fashion, fitness, or family vlogs then it’s a good idea to include your face. It comes off personable and helps viewers relate to you. If you have a channel that is about something like gaming, tech reviews, or book reviews then it isn’t necessary to include your face because the focus of your content isn’t you as a personality.

If you do include pictures, here are some tips:

Don’t: Use Blurry Photos

If your photos are blurry, pixilated, or poor quality then don’t use them. Using blurry pictures comes off as unprofessional.

That doesn’t mean you have to hire a photographer to take pictures for your channel. The average smartphone takes really great pictures, so long as you have enough light. If you need a great picture, use a high-quality selfie or ask a friend to take a nice picture of you.

Don’t: Use Outdated Pictures

It is always best to use a current photo of yourself. Many times viewers will go and follow you on social media as well. If they see that you have current photos on your social media but not on your channel, they are become confused and perhaps lose interest.

Part 3: What Should I Write on My Banner?

Do: Include Your Channel Name

While including your channel name in your banner seems like a no brainer, it is often left out by aspiring YouTubers. Displaying your channel name in a large font allows it to be more visible for viewers - your channel name is already on the page, but it is underneath your channel art and doesn’t stand out.

Seeing your channel name included in your banner also helps viewers to know they are on the right page, if there are YouTubers out there with similar names to yours.

Do: Include Upload Days

Consistent upload days are highly important for gaining more views and subscribers. Including your exact upload days helps viewers know when they should expect new videos from you. I made the mistake of not including upload days when I first started my channel 3 years ago. I had drops in views because my subscribers didn’t know when I would upload videos.

If you find that you cannot stick to a certain upload day, try to include how often you will post instead. For example, you can say, “New Videos Posted Weekly.” Viewers will respect you more and even be more likely to subscribe when you tell them your upload days. They want a guarantee that you’re going to post again in the near future.

Do: Include Social Media

Social media accounts are important to include in your channel art because we live in a social media generation. People are on social media every second of the day. If you are looking to take your YouTube channel seriously, it is good practice to ask viewers to follow you on your social media.

Including social media icons in your channel art lets people know where they can find you. Another good reason to include your current social media in your banner is that sometimes you might join a new platform or quit an old one. You may be using Twitter for months and then decide that you like Facebook better. Your current social media handles keep subscribers from having to guess which one to follow you on.

Make sure everything important fits in the safe area!

Do: Include Brief Channel Description or Tag Line

Aside from your channel name, you should also include a brief channel description or tag line to tell your viewers what your channel is all about. If you’re an aspiring beauty guru, you may include something like Makeup Tutorials, Product Reviews, or Mommy Makeovers. Or, you may include a cool tag line that describes the goal of your channel, like “Empowering Mother’s Through Makeup.”

I’ve noticed that YouTubers that use 2-3 descriptive words in their channel art make many different types of videos on their channel but they all full under those categories.

YouTubers that use tag lines are using their channel as a platform to carry out a specific mission on giving help or educating others.

Whether you decide to use descriptive words or a tag line, they will help your channel tremendously by setting expectations for your viewers.

Part 4: How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Do: Create Consistent Branding

Since becoming a YouTuber myself, I’ve come to learn that paying attention to your branding is very important. Focus attention to what colors and fonts you use. The colors you use for your channel can influence your audience to feel a certain way. For example, using yellow can show that you’re happy and upbeat while using blue can show you’re more calm and relaxed. Whatever color you choose, make sure it’s a true representation of who you are.

Using the right font can also be important to your channel. There are many different fonts available now. When choosing a font, choose one that goes with your channel that is easy to read. You might choose a very pretty cursive font, but if your viewers can’t read it, it can be useless.

Don’t: Include Images That Have Nothing to Do with Your Channel

This simple mistake can cost you many subscribers. For example, if your channel is about Beauty videos, then your channel art shouldn’t include pictures of food or you eating a burger. Your channel art is the first thing that viewers see when clicking on your page. You want them to instantly know what your channel is all about without having to find it in the description box. If your channel is about a few different things, then include all of those images in the channel art so they still know what your channel about. Just don’t confuse your viewers as to what your channel is really about.

Don’t: Have Images and Text That Cut Off

YouTube helps YouTubers by giving them a free channel art template to use as a guide when creating channel art. The template includes 3 different perspectives on how your channel art will be viewed by people looking at mobile devices, computer screens, and TVs. Many people make the mistake of creating art on the TV perspective which then cuts off images and text for the mobile and computer views. To save you the trouble of having images that cut off, it’s best to create your channel in the mobile dimensions that way it will be seen in the computer and TV dimensions with no problem.

Joshelle is a YouTuber from Atlanta, GA. She has a YouTube channel called ElleToshea where she shows viewers how to improve their homes and spaces on an affordable budget through DIY home decor. ElleToshea features minimalist home decor styles based off popular stores such as Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters.

Now that you know how to make a good YouTube banner, what will you do next?

Touch Up YouTube Videos with Filmora

Wondershare Filmora features lots of utilities for both video and audio editing. You can change the video speed or change the aspect ratio easily. Besides, there are plentiful filters, elements, effects and overlays built, so you can use them without costing any extra fee.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

It’s important to learn how to make a good YouTube banner because, when you click into a channel, the first thing you usually see and pay attention to is the channel art.

Channel art gives viewers a first impression of who you are and allows viewers to know what your channel is all about. Channel art can be a great way to show creativity, and there are also ways you can design your banner to help your channel grow.

Here are the Dos and Don’ts of YouTube Channel Art.

• What Kind of Background Should I Use?
• Should I Use My Face?
• What Should I Write on Banner?
• How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Part 1: What Kind of Background Should I Use?

DO: High-Quality Photos

It’s easy to take pictures with our phones, but not all of these pictures will look great blown up for channel art.

When choosing great photos for your background, pick ones that are high quality and don’t become pixelated once they are blown up. There are tons of free stock photo websites out there to help you find a high-quality picture that’s perfect for your channel.

DON’T: Use Chaotic Patterns

Using patterns for the background of your channel banner can help your channel look super creative and stand out from others. However, if you use a pattern that is chaotic and hard on the eyes, you may not attract many subscribers. When using patterns, choose patterns that are not heavy in color and have too many lines or shapes. There should be an evenness to the shapes and negative space within the pattern itself. Try to stay away from patterns that are 3D which can conflict with the viewer’s eyesight and make them dizzy.

Part 2: Should I Use My Face?

Whether you should use your face on your channel banner depends on what your channel is about. If you have a channel focused on beauty, fashion, fitness, or family vlogs then it’s a good idea to include your face. It comes off personable and helps viewers relate to you. If you have a channel that is about something like gaming, tech reviews, or book reviews then it isn’t necessary to include your face because the focus of your content isn’t you as a personality.

If you do include pictures, here are some tips:

Don’t: Use Blurry Photos

If your photos are blurry, pixilated, or poor quality then don’t use them. Using blurry pictures comes off as unprofessional.

That doesn’t mean you have to hire a photographer to take pictures for your channel. The average smartphone takes really great pictures, so long as you have enough light. If you need a great picture, use a high-quality selfie or ask a friend to take a nice picture of you.

Don’t: Use Outdated Pictures

It is always best to use a current photo of yourself. Many times viewers will go and follow you on social media as well. If they see that you have current photos on your social media but not on your channel, they are become confused and perhaps lose interest.

Part 3: What Should I Write on My Banner?

Do: Include Your Channel Name

While including your channel name in your banner seems like a no brainer, it is often left out by aspiring YouTubers. Displaying your channel name in a large font allows it to be more visible for viewers - your channel name is already on the page, but it is underneath your channel art and doesn’t stand out.

Seeing your channel name included in your banner also helps viewers to know they are on the right page, if there are YouTubers out there with similar names to yours.

Do: Include Upload Days

Consistent upload days are highly important for gaining more views and subscribers. Including your exact upload days helps viewers know when they should expect new videos from you. I made the mistake of not including upload days when I first started my channel 3 years ago. I had drops in views because my subscribers didn’t know when I would upload videos.

If you find that you cannot stick to a certain upload day, try to include how often you will post instead. For example, you can say, “New Videos Posted Weekly.” Viewers will respect you more and even be more likely to subscribe when you tell them your upload days. They want a guarantee that you’re going to post again in the near future.

Do: Include Social Media

Social media accounts are important to include in your channel art because we live in a social media generation. People are on social media every second of the day. If you are looking to take your YouTube channel seriously, it is good practice to ask viewers to follow you on your social media.

Including social media icons in your channel art lets people know where they can find you. Another good reason to include your current social media in your banner is that sometimes you might join a new platform or quit an old one. You may be using Twitter for months and then decide that you like Facebook better. Your current social media handles keep subscribers from having to guess which one to follow you on.

Make sure everything important fits in the safe area!

Do: Include Brief Channel Description or Tag Line

Aside from your channel name, you should also include a brief channel description or tag line to tell your viewers what your channel is all about. If you’re an aspiring beauty guru, you may include something like Makeup Tutorials, Product Reviews, or Mommy Makeovers. Or, you may include a cool tag line that describes the goal of your channel, like “Empowering Mother’s Through Makeup.”

I’ve noticed that YouTubers that use 2-3 descriptive words in their channel art make many different types of videos on their channel but they all full under those categories.

YouTubers that use tag lines are using their channel as a platform to carry out a specific mission on giving help or educating others.

Whether you decide to use descriptive words or a tag line, they will help your channel tremendously by setting expectations for your viewers.

Part 4: How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Do: Create Consistent Branding

Since becoming a YouTuber myself, I’ve come to learn that paying attention to your branding is very important. Focus attention to what colors and fonts you use. The colors you use for your channel can influence your audience to feel a certain way. For example, using yellow can show that you’re happy and upbeat while using blue can show you’re more calm and relaxed. Whatever color you choose, make sure it’s a true representation of who you are.

Using the right font can also be important to your channel. There are many different fonts available now. When choosing a font, choose one that goes with your channel that is easy to read. You might choose a very pretty cursive font, but if your viewers can’t read it, it can be useless.

Don’t: Include Images That Have Nothing to Do with Your Channel

This simple mistake can cost you many subscribers. For example, if your channel is about Beauty videos, then your channel art shouldn’t include pictures of food or you eating a burger. Your channel art is the first thing that viewers see when clicking on your page. You want them to instantly know what your channel is all about without having to find it in the description box. If your channel is about a few different things, then include all of those images in the channel art so they still know what your channel about. Just don’t confuse your viewers as to what your channel is really about.

Don’t: Have Images and Text That Cut Off

YouTube helps YouTubers by giving them a free channel art template to use as a guide when creating channel art. The template includes 3 different perspectives on how your channel art will be viewed by people looking at mobile devices, computer screens, and TVs. Many people make the mistake of creating art on the TV perspective which then cuts off images and text for the mobile and computer views. To save you the trouble of having images that cut off, it’s best to create your channel in the mobile dimensions that way it will be seen in the computer and TV dimensions with no problem.

Joshelle is a YouTuber from Atlanta, GA. She has a YouTube channel called ElleToshea where she shows viewers how to improve their homes and spaces on an affordable budget through DIY home decor. ElleToshea features minimalist home decor styles based off popular stores such as Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters.

Now that you know how to make a good YouTube banner, what will you do next?

Touch Up YouTube Videos with Filmora

Wondershare Filmora features lots of utilities for both video and audio editing. You can change the video speed or change the aspect ratio easily. Besides, there are plentiful filters, elements, effects and overlays built, so you can use them without costing any extra fee.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

It’s important to learn how to make a good YouTube banner because, when you click into a channel, the first thing you usually see and pay attention to is the channel art.

Channel art gives viewers a first impression of who you are and allows viewers to know what your channel is all about. Channel art can be a great way to show creativity, and there are also ways you can design your banner to help your channel grow.

Here are the Dos and Don’ts of YouTube Channel Art.

• What Kind of Background Should I Use?
• Should I Use My Face?
• What Should I Write on Banner?
• How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Part 1: What Kind of Background Should I Use?

DO: High-Quality Photos

It’s easy to take pictures with our phones, but not all of these pictures will look great blown up for channel art.

When choosing great photos for your background, pick ones that are high quality and don’t become pixelated once they are blown up. There are tons of free stock photo websites out there to help you find a high-quality picture that’s perfect for your channel.

DON’T: Use Chaotic Patterns

Using patterns for the background of your channel banner can help your channel look super creative and stand out from others. However, if you use a pattern that is chaotic and hard on the eyes, you may not attract many subscribers. When using patterns, choose patterns that are not heavy in color and have too many lines or shapes. There should be an evenness to the shapes and negative space within the pattern itself. Try to stay away from patterns that are 3D which can conflict with the viewer’s eyesight and make them dizzy.

Part 2: Should I Use My Face?

Whether you should use your face on your channel banner depends on what your channel is about. If you have a channel focused on beauty, fashion, fitness, or family vlogs then it’s a good idea to include your face. It comes off personable and helps viewers relate to you. If you have a channel that is about something like gaming, tech reviews, or book reviews then it isn’t necessary to include your face because the focus of your content isn’t you as a personality.

If you do include pictures, here are some tips:

Don’t: Use Blurry Photos

If your photos are blurry, pixilated, or poor quality then don’t use them. Using blurry pictures comes off as unprofessional.

That doesn’t mean you have to hire a photographer to take pictures for your channel. The average smartphone takes really great pictures, so long as you have enough light. If you need a great picture, use a high-quality selfie or ask a friend to take a nice picture of you.

Don’t: Use Outdated Pictures

It is always best to use a current photo of yourself. Many times viewers will go and follow you on social media as well. If they see that you have current photos on your social media but not on your channel, they are become confused and perhaps lose interest.

Part 3: What Should I Write on My Banner?

Do: Include Your Channel Name

While including your channel name in your banner seems like a no brainer, it is often left out by aspiring YouTubers. Displaying your channel name in a large font allows it to be more visible for viewers - your channel name is already on the page, but it is underneath your channel art and doesn’t stand out.

Seeing your channel name included in your banner also helps viewers to know they are on the right page, if there are YouTubers out there with similar names to yours.

Do: Include Upload Days

Consistent upload days are highly important for gaining more views and subscribers. Including your exact upload days helps viewers know when they should expect new videos from you. I made the mistake of not including upload days when I first started my channel 3 years ago. I had drops in views because my subscribers didn’t know when I would upload videos.

If you find that you cannot stick to a certain upload day, try to include how often you will post instead. For example, you can say, “New Videos Posted Weekly.” Viewers will respect you more and even be more likely to subscribe when you tell them your upload days. They want a guarantee that you’re going to post again in the near future.

Do: Include Social Media

Social media accounts are important to include in your channel art because we live in a social media generation. People are on social media every second of the day. If you are looking to take your YouTube channel seriously, it is good practice to ask viewers to follow you on your social media.

Including social media icons in your channel art lets people know where they can find you. Another good reason to include your current social media in your banner is that sometimes you might join a new platform or quit an old one. You may be using Twitter for months and then decide that you like Facebook better. Your current social media handles keep subscribers from having to guess which one to follow you on.

Make sure everything important fits in the safe area!

Do: Include Brief Channel Description or Tag Line

Aside from your channel name, you should also include a brief channel description or tag line to tell your viewers what your channel is all about. If you’re an aspiring beauty guru, you may include something like Makeup Tutorials, Product Reviews, or Mommy Makeovers. Or, you may include a cool tag line that describes the goal of your channel, like “Empowering Mother’s Through Makeup.”

I’ve noticed that YouTubers that use 2-3 descriptive words in their channel art make many different types of videos on their channel but they all full under those categories.

YouTubers that use tag lines are using their channel as a platform to carry out a specific mission on giving help or educating others.

Whether you decide to use descriptive words or a tag line, they will help your channel tremendously by setting expectations for your viewers.

Part 4: How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Do: Create Consistent Branding

Since becoming a YouTuber myself, I’ve come to learn that paying attention to your branding is very important. Focus attention to what colors and fonts you use. The colors you use for your channel can influence your audience to feel a certain way. For example, using yellow can show that you’re happy and upbeat while using blue can show you’re more calm and relaxed. Whatever color you choose, make sure it’s a true representation of who you are.

Using the right font can also be important to your channel. There are many different fonts available now. When choosing a font, choose one that goes with your channel that is easy to read. You might choose a very pretty cursive font, but if your viewers can’t read it, it can be useless.

Don’t: Include Images That Have Nothing to Do with Your Channel

This simple mistake can cost you many subscribers. For example, if your channel is about Beauty videos, then your channel art shouldn’t include pictures of food or you eating a burger. Your channel art is the first thing that viewers see when clicking on your page. You want them to instantly know what your channel is all about without having to find it in the description box. If your channel is about a few different things, then include all of those images in the channel art so they still know what your channel about. Just don’t confuse your viewers as to what your channel is really about.

Don’t: Have Images and Text That Cut Off

YouTube helps YouTubers by giving them a free channel art template to use as a guide when creating channel art. The template includes 3 different perspectives on how your channel art will be viewed by people looking at mobile devices, computer screens, and TVs. Many people make the mistake of creating art on the TV perspective which then cuts off images and text for the mobile and computer views. To save you the trouble of having images that cut off, it’s best to create your channel in the mobile dimensions that way it will be seen in the computer and TV dimensions with no problem.

Joshelle is a YouTuber from Atlanta, GA. She has a YouTube channel called ElleToshea where she shows viewers how to improve their homes and spaces on an affordable budget through DIY home decor. ElleToshea features minimalist home decor styles based off popular stores such as Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters.

Now that you know how to make a good YouTube banner, what will you do next?

Touch Up YouTube Videos with Filmora

Wondershare Filmora features lots of utilities for both video and audio editing. You can change the video speed or change the aspect ratio easily. Besides, there are plentiful filters, elements, effects and overlays built, so you can use them without costing any extra fee.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

It’s important to learn how to make a good YouTube banner because, when you click into a channel, the first thing you usually see and pay attention to is the channel art.

Channel art gives viewers a first impression of who you are and allows viewers to know what your channel is all about. Channel art can be a great way to show creativity, and there are also ways you can design your banner to help your channel grow.

Here are the Dos and Don’ts of YouTube Channel Art.

• What Kind of Background Should I Use?
• Should I Use My Face?
• What Should I Write on Banner?
• How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Part 1: What Kind of Background Should I Use?

DO: High-Quality Photos

It’s easy to take pictures with our phones, but not all of these pictures will look great blown up for channel art.

When choosing great photos for your background, pick ones that are high quality and don’t become pixelated once they are blown up. There are tons of free stock photo websites out there to help you find a high-quality picture that’s perfect for your channel.

DON’T: Use Chaotic Patterns

Using patterns for the background of your channel banner can help your channel look super creative and stand out from others. However, if you use a pattern that is chaotic and hard on the eyes, you may not attract many subscribers. When using patterns, choose patterns that are not heavy in color and have too many lines or shapes. There should be an evenness to the shapes and negative space within the pattern itself. Try to stay away from patterns that are 3D which can conflict with the viewer’s eyesight and make them dizzy.

Part 2: Should I Use My Face?

Whether you should use your face on your channel banner depends on what your channel is about. If you have a channel focused on beauty, fashion, fitness, or family vlogs then it’s a good idea to include your face. It comes off personable and helps viewers relate to you. If you have a channel that is about something like gaming, tech reviews, or book reviews then it isn’t necessary to include your face because the focus of your content isn’t you as a personality.

If you do include pictures, here are some tips:

Don’t: Use Blurry Photos

If your photos are blurry, pixilated, or poor quality then don’t use them. Using blurry pictures comes off as unprofessional.

That doesn’t mean you have to hire a photographer to take pictures for your channel. The average smartphone takes really great pictures, so long as you have enough light. If you need a great picture, use a high-quality selfie or ask a friend to take a nice picture of you.

Don’t: Use Outdated Pictures

It is always best to use a current photo of yourself. Many times viewers will go and follow you on social media as well. If they see that you have current photos on your social media but not on your channel, they are become confused and perhaps lose interest.

Part 3: What Should I Write on My Banner?

Do: Include Your Channel Name

While including your channel name in your banner seems like a no brainer, it is often left out by aspiring YouTubers. Displaying your channel name in a large font allows it to be more visible for viewers - your channel name is already on the page, but it is underneath your channel art and doesn’t stand out.

Seeing your channel name included in your banner also helps viewers to know they are on the right page, if there are YouTubers out there with similar names to yours.

Do: Include Upload Days

Consistent upload days are highly important for gaining more views and subscribers. Including your exact upload days helps viewers know when they should expect new videos from you. I made the mistake of not including upload days when I first started my channel 3 years ago. I had drops in views because my subscribers didn’t know when I would upload videos.

If you find that you cannot stick to a certain upload day, try to include how often you will post instead. For example, you can say, “New Videos Posted Weekly.” Viewers will respect you more and even be more likely to subscribe when you tell them your upload days. They want a guarantee that you’re going to post again in the near future.

Do: Include Social Media

Social media accounts are important to include in your channel art because we live in a social media generation. People are on social media every second of the day. If you are looking to take your YouTube channel seriously, it is good practice to ask viewers to follow you on your social media.

Including social media icons in your channel art lets people know where they can find you. Another good reason to include your current social media in your banner is that sometimes you might join a new platform or quit an old one. You may be using Twitter for months and then decide that you like Facebook better. Your current social media handles keep subscribers from having to guess which one to follow you on.

Make sure everything important fits in the safe area!

Do: Include Brief Channel Description or Tag Line

Aside from your channel name, you should also include a brief channel description or tag line to tell your viewers what your channel is all about. If you’re an aspiring beauty guru, you may include something like Makeup Tutorials, Product Reviews, or Mommy Makeovers. Or, you may include a cool tag line that describes the goal of your channel, like “Empowering Mother’s Through Makeup.”

I’ve noticed that YouTubers that use 2-3 descriptive words in their channel art make many different types of videos on their channel but they all full under those categories.

YouTubers that use tag lines are using their channel as a platform to carry out a specific mission on giving help or educating others.

Whether you decide to use descriptive words or a tag line, they will help your channel tremendously by setting expectations for your viewers.

Part 4: How Can I Make My Channel Art Look Good?

Do: Create Consistent Branding

Since becoming a YouTuber myself, I’ve come to learn that paying attention to your branding is very important. Focus attention to what colors and fonts you use. The colors you use for your channel can influence your audience to feel a certain way. For example, using yellow can show that you’re happy and upbeat while using blue can show you’re more calm and relaxed. Whatever color you choose, make sure it’s a true representation of who you are.

Using the right font can also be important to your channel. There are many different fonts available now. When choosing a font, choose one that goes with your channel that is easy to read. You might choose a very pretty cursive font, but if your viewers can’t read it, it can be useless.

Don’t: Include Images That Have Nothing to Do with Your Channel

This simple mistake can cost you many subscribers. For example, if your channel is about Beauty videos, then your channel art shouldn’t include pictures of food or you eating a burger. Your channel art is the first thing that viewers see when clicking on your page. You want them to instantly know what your channel is all about without having to find it in the description box. If your channel is about a few different things, then include all of those images in the channel art so they still know what your channel about. Just don’t confuse your viewers as to what your channel is really about.

Don’t: Have Images and Text That Cut Off

YouTube helps YouTubers by giving them a free channel art template to use as a guide when creating channel art. The template includes 3 different perspectives on how your channel art will be viewed by people looking at mobile devices, computer screens, and TVs. Many people make the mistake of creating art on the TV perspective which then cuts off images and text for the mobile and computer views. To save you the trouble of having images that cut off, it’s best to create your channel in the mobile dimensions that way it will be seen in the computer and TV dimensions with no problem.

Joshelle is a YouTuber from Atlanta, GA. She has a YouTube channel called ElleToshea where she shows viewers how to improve their homes and spaces on an affordable budget through DIY home decor. ElleToshea features minimalist home decor styles based off popular stores such as Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters.

Now that you know how to make a good YouTube banner, what will you do next?

Touch Up YouTube Videos with Filmora

Wondershare Filmora features lots of utilities for both video and audio editing. You can change the video speed or change the aspect ratio easily. Besides, there are plentiful filters, elements, effects and overlays built, so you can use them without costing any extra fee.

Richard Bennett

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

Follow @Richard Bennett