The perfect pipe and tobacco vid

[antipodesman]

I have enjoyed many of the youtube presenters and found them extremely helpful in starting this new hobby. I have learned a lot about pipes and tobacco from these guys. The range of presenters in vast and some definitely stand out above the crowd.
Here are some of my recommendations as a non-professional reviewer who does not make videos but likes to watch them. These are things that enhance the viewing pleasure for me.

1. Pay close attention to video and audio quality. Spend a bit of time to ensure that extraneous noises or other distractions will affect your presentation. If you insist on mixing music with your video remember if I don't like your taste in music I am likely to move on to the next video even if you have a good message.

2. Show and tell. If you have a pipe or tobacco to show, I recommend photographing it in good light and good focus and adding that to your video. If you must hold something up don't push it right up to the camera covering your face. That seems a bit rude.

3. Walking rants outdoors. If you have a good rant, go for it especially if you can use humour but not sarcasm. There are many outdoor problems that presenters have struggled with, the biggest being wind noise. I know there are fabrics that can help if used to cover the mic. Just be aware that wind noise can ruin a good vid. Over exposure or shadows are another big problem with outdoor videos. Some of the best outdoor work has the audio over-dubbed so there are no problems with wind noise.

4. Silly hats. The ubiquitous wool flat hat is a must for pipe video presenters. All others should be forbidden.
So there you have it . . . my guide to the perfect pipe vid. I'm sure everyone will agree with my suggestions completely so I don't expect a lot of discussion on this. In a future post I will include my academy awards and runners up.

 

[antipodesman]

OK, I was just kidding about everyone agreeing with my perfect vid comments. (I guess my humour is too subtle sometimes.)
My first prize for pipe and tobacco videos goes to dubinthedam (AKA Pearse). Who else could it be. His first introductory video goes back almost 3 years ago and in that time has produced about 87 vids. As his ID suggests he is an Irishman living in Amsterdam. His video technique and presentation are outstanding. He has on-screen charisma and an abundant knowledge that he shares endlessly with viewers. He tours viewers around Amsterdam and particularly to tobacco shops. I recommend his video Bullseye on a Bike shot outdoors. It is quite arty. We also get to meet his pipe-smoking and charming wife on occasion. He is a source of inspiration for the pipe community. He tells us about pipes and tobacco from the European point of view and we learn about tobaccos that are not available in North America. He is the great grandfather pipe-smoker in the the sky. Keep up the good work dub.

 

[hfdpipe]

Nice avatar :D Yeah Dub is good stuff, last vid I saw of him was when he interviewing the guy from Petersons pipes. On youtube I would say Dub is the pbs/BBC of pipesmoking, the BOTS crew is like FX/HBO channel, NWsmoker is Discovery/OutdoorLife network, there's some other good ones that I stumble upon on occasion and subscribe to.

I really like searching youtube for blends that I'm thinking about getting and hearing what folks have to say, I know taste is all subjective but I find it interesting along with tobaccoreview and the forums. With 3 feet of snow outside and no football on TV, I have plenty of time to peruse youtube these days :lol: