Behind the Scenes: The Making of a Tabletop Review

[stressmaster5000]

Great video! Very informative and helpful.

[TacticoolGear]

yet another well made video and now we have a better idea of how!! lighting seems to be the key, must start looking for some lights.... thanks Stefan, great production and helpful, thank you :)

[Romanlegionnaire77]

Das is einfach KLASSE! Sie sind genial! Danke schon!

[WeaversofEternity]

Your videos have excellent production quality, thank you for sharing your tips and tricks, I highly appreciate it!

[hjphillips123456]

As always, excellent, very informative and superbly made !!!!

[chibicascade]

I would like to point out that your English is much better than my german.

I like seeing all the European knives, I have been looking into them since someone showed me an opinel

[edgeobserver]

Hi Stefan, thanks for sharing. It's interesting to see your process.

[BardofCornwall]

The care you put into your videos is well worth it, in my opinion. It is what distinguishes your channel from most on youtube. Please, keep the reviews coming.

[stschmalhaus]

@BardofCornwall Thank you for your kind words!

[TheUrbanPrepper]

This is a fantastic video that should be watched by all YouTubers who create videos! Very inspiring, meticulously executed and presented professionally! Liked/Favorited. It would be fun to watch an unscripted video with bloopers, now that we all know how much effort you put into making your high quality videos. :)

[stschmalhaus]

@TheUrbanPrepper Thank you, Cliff! - I would probably write a script (including bloopers) that sounds like as if the video was unscripted. ;-)

[TheUrbanPrepper]

@stschmalhaus LOL! Love it!

[eltenda]

cool tnxs my friend..



[ATF6281914]

Where can I get those soft boxes in the United States? :P

It's like watching a 'behind the scenes' of a film, just awesome! Thanks for sharing your secrets, Stefan.

I would like you to make a knife review without a script for once. Do you accept my challenge?

[stschmalhaus]

@ATF6281914 I would completely suck at doing an impromptu review. Unfortunately I have only rare opportunities to practice spoken English. My English skills are mostly based on written English.

[ATF6281914]

@stschmalhaus

It's OK, that's all part of the fun.

If you do one unscripted, I'll do one in German. OK?

[Lorbera]

Stefan you really are a perfectionist. I admire your effort you put in your videos.

[stschmalhaus]

@Lorbera Thank you!

[Dronston]

Like I said before: I admire your production level, now I understand why. Have a great 2012!

[1sharkync]

Stephen - you have a great way of presenting your material. The "you" part far outweighs (in my opinion) the level of professionalism; although I must say that your videos are most professionally done.

Keep up the good work,

Jack

[stschmalhaus]

@1sharkync Thank you for your kind words, Jack! Have a great 2012!

[darkchild57]

Great vid my friend:) We do videos in a similar way. Recently I've been using a script and chopping up my vids into sections so I don't have to get it all correct in one take. I need to get some light boxes though. Nice camcorder btw, I shoot with a Canon Vixia HF-S20. I love Canon products:) It looks like you got an extended battery for it.

[stschmalhaus]

@darkchild57 Thank you, my friend! Yes, the extended battery is very useful for filming outdoors. - Here in Europe Canon calls the Vixia series Legria. - Have a great 2012!

[sevenfootgeeko]

Thanks for the insight! I have always admired the organized fashion you cunduct your reviews in. Being a fellow German and thus no native speaker, I was always impressed with the special vocabulary you used in your reviews and wondered if you do look up certain words before shooting the actual viedeo. Now I know you do it in a "German" fashion: doing research, being prepared and planning the script in advance. Maybe that's why I enjoy watching your videos so much. Thank you!

[stschmalhaus]

@sevenfootgeeko Actually, the special vocabulary needed for knife and gear reviews is quite small.

[Izulabite]

Tag Post,

schone sache :) werd mir da ein paar sachen von rauspicken,danke!

Bis bald im Wald

Izulabite

[stschmalhaus]

@Izulabite "Tag Post"? - Welcher neue Trend der Jugendsprache ist da jetzt wieder an mir vorbeigegangen?

[rasierzeug]

@stschmalhaus soweit ich mich erinnere stammt das aus nem Werbespot der Deutschen Post der 90er... ist bei mir irgendwie auch hängengeblieben :)

[stschmalhaus]

@rasierzeug Echt? Manchmal ist Vergesslichkeit auch ein Segen.

[urhomie12]

happy 100th video!

[phagomir]

Du setzt deine persönlichen Anforderungen an die Reviews unglaublich gut um. Deine Film sind AWESOME ;-) Speziell danke ich dir aber für den Tip mit archive! :-) Ich nutze dieselbe Software. Selbst aus niedrigqualitativen Videoschnipseln kann man das wahnsinnig viel draus machen. Doesn´t sounds like an smartass! Danke das du dir so grosse Mühe für uns machst. Das ist nicht selbstverständlich. Wichtiger aber noch ist das du gut reinrutscht. Dir und Familie ein duftes Jahr 2012

[mrmonkeyman50]

Only the supremely secure man would show behind the scenes knowing that his personal talents will transcend the technicalities of the tips. Well done, Stefan! However, you glossed over one key talent: you have the ability to write "natural dialogue" in scripted form. This is a gift - most people will sound like they are reading text...and you are doing it in a foreign language. There is a reason for your popularity among the most demanding subscribers! Best in 2012!

[stschmalhaus]

@epicblade529 I'm not that altruistic, I entertain myself, too. ;-)

[ltbarber3]

I have wondered how you produce these videos. Thank you for sharing with us the details. I look forward to your future work on gear reviews.

[TonicLime1]

great video! i always wondered what kind of lighting you used. thats for sharing!

[StumpGreenwoodSC]

I knew that you put some effort into what you do here on youtube, but I had no clue how much. I wish to thank you for your time and work. I am always glad to see a new post from you no matter what the subject might be. Again thank you for all the work and level of professionalism you put into your work. From meatballs to fine knives you make it a joy to watch and learn.

[stschmalhaus]

@StumpGreenwoodSC Thank you very much for your very kind words! Have a great 2012!

[thenetwerx]

Great video! I appreciate the time you took to do this. A lot of people (myself included) are interested in making more videos and probably don't because we don't want to post something shoddy. So hopefully this will help a lot of people see that with a few tips like you pointed out, they too can make some great videos and share!

[stschmalhaus]

@thenetwerx I just learned something from you. I didn't know the word "shoddy". - Have a great 2012!

[tendollarword]

Great tutorial. The effort you put into your videos really shows.

[stschmalhaus]

@tendollarword Thank you!

[Studio213]

Great video! The time you take to prepare before shooting the video shows. Keep it up!

[stschmalhaus]

@Studio213 Thanks for watching!

[TheDeputydawg24]

Thanks for the tips! I need them!

[stschmalhaus]

@TheDeputydawg24 I'm glad I was able to help.

[rafoster2000]

You review.

[rafoster2000]

Thanks for sharing. You do I great job on the products that uh

[bikingshaun]

The attention to detail in your reviews and production value are obvious. I appreciate you taking time to put this together to help us newbies out. I use a similar lighting setup to your small setup, but I am still working out the kinks.

[stschmalhaus]

@bikingshaun I just watched your review on the Moki Kronos. You did a great job on this video!

[bikingshaun]

@stschmalhaus Thanks!  That means alot.

[mrfriz42]

Thanks for the insight of your setup. Does your PC have to be a rocket ship to edit HD footage. I have a 1080p camcorder but not used the footage for videos yet. Many thanks in advance.

[stschmalhaus]

@mrfriz42 My PC is four years old and it works. Sometimes I wish it would be faster. Any newer PC should be capable of working with HD video footage.

[freddiemjames]

Great video, i took away some good tips from this :)

[AussieMark909]

Terrific video Stefan, you have a very organised approach. I don't use a script as such (maybe I should lol), but I always have my talking points written up when doing reviews. That way I get the specs right and hopefully don't forget anything too important. Happy New Year to you my friend, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2012.

[stschmalhaus]

@AussieMark909 Thank you, my friend! Have a great 2012, too!

[903lew]

A very good video herr Doktor. I will take some of your points to heart and see what I can do about it (my filler sounds have to go). First step: fix my printer ^^

[stschmalhaus]

@903lew Do you know you are the only person who calls me "Herr Doktor"? LOL

[903lew]

@stschmalhaus

I blame my alma mater, my regiment was always a stickler for rank. That, and the fact that "Doktor Schmalhaus" sounds incredibly teutonic.

Most of all, I find it funny that so many germans, especially politicians are "herr/frau Doktor". We just don't get that in Scandinavia! Over here only MDs are "doktors", other PhDs are really just used when submitting articles or when giving a lecture.

[stschmalhaus]

@903lew Yeah, I know, it's ridiculous. But in Austria it's even worse, academic titles are a kind of fetish in my neighbour country. The Austrians already get an orgasm when they read the words "Magister" or "Doktor". LOL

[903lew]

@stschmalhaus

Aber was ist ein Österreicher? Ein Österreicher ist ein Deutsch wie lebt im 1870* ^^

*Pardon my Deutsch, Ich bin nur ein schlicht Feldwebel :)

[stschmalhaus]

@903lew Hahaha! I love your sense of humor! - If you were a woman the Austrians would say: "Küss die Hand, Frau Feldwebel!" LOL

[mrmonkeyman50]

@stschmalhaus I believe I have as well.  :o)

[stschmalhaus]

@mrmonkeyman50 Didn't you call me "Herr Professor"? LOL

[mrmonkeyman50]

@stschmalhaus No... because I had to remind myself to make sure "Doktor" was spelled correctly... I've known more than a few Herr Doktor's in my time... :o) not to be confused with Hair Professors like the local barber.

[stschmalhaus]

@mrmonkeyman50 LMAO - Have you heard of Karl Theodor zu Guttenberg? He was the former Minister of Defense of Germany. He lost his "Doktor" because of plagiarism and caused the biggest political scandal in 2011! After that he left Germany and was appointed "Distinguished Statesman" at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. - I wish we could send you more of our egocentric political impostors. LOL

[mrmonkeyman50]

@stschmalhaus LOL! Well, I guess you are just paying us back for our putting people like Paul Wolfowitz as President of the World Bank. (Wolfowitz was former Dept Secretary of Defense...so clearly there's something about that job....)

[903lew]

@stschmalhaus

Ah, Karl Theodor Maria Nikolaus Johann Jacob Philipp Franz Joseph Sylvester Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg! What a story that was. Strangely enough noone asked the question why every damned minister had to be a PhD. Surely a MSc or BA would work? Most of all, shouldn't "Freiherr" trump "Doktor" any day of the week?

[stschmalhaus]

@903lew OMG, you followed this story in Sweden? - A lot of German managers and politicians did their PhD only as a career booster. At least four or five cases of plagiarism were revealed this year among German politicians. - "Freiherr" is a title you inherit, but the so-called aristocrats want to show that they can also excel in other fields than just being, well, aristocrats.

[903lew]

@stschmalhaus A story about a German minister (and a Freiherr at that) having to resign in disgrace due to academic cheating? We were on that like white on rice (in all honesty it wasn't big but I have german friends). A couple of years ago we had a minister, Sven-Otto Littorin who had a fake PhD from one of those fake US "Universities". He didn't have to resign over that but had to go about a year later when it dawned he liked to pay for his women...

[903lew]

@stschmalhaus We have our own Freiherr minister - Friherre Nils Daniel Carl Bildt (no degree) who is currently our foreign minister. Sadly, his scandals have limited themselves to shady dealings with russian oil companies, accusations of human rights abuse in Ethiopia and Sudan and claims of incompetence while dealing with the Bosnian Civil War. Obviously nothing serious enough to resign over (it's not like he faked an essay or anything serious).

[stschmalhaus]

@903lew Shady dealings with Russian oil companies? Naa, that's not a serious issue. Our former chancellor Gehard Schröder did the same - and it became a career booster. He's now a top manager at Gazprom! LOL (I'm not joking, it's really true.)

[903lew]

@stschmalhaus Aye, well. The good Carl was prime minister - did an awful job and became UN negotiator - did an awful job and started working for Vostok Nafta (who are today part of Gazprom) and Lundin Oil. Today he is our foreign minister.

Why can't I have a career-developement like that?

[amosjsoma]

Your native language may not be English but except for your accent, your grammar and presentation, in English, is far superior to most reviewers of knives and other items. Very good work, keep it up.

[stschmalhaus]

@amosjsoma Thank you for your very kind words!

[bladesNstuff]

Great video

[JohnGrimsmo]

Wonderful video, thanks for sharing! What I'm lacking for most of my videos is proper lighting, I really appreciate you sharing your setup. Wonder if I can build a softbox...

[stschmalhaus]

@JohnGrimsmo If you manage to build your own softbox please post a video tutorial on this. 

[JohnGrimsmo]

@stschmalhaus I probably will!  I'm sure there are tons, I just searched on google for a while and found tons of great info, my favorite so far can be seen by searching google for: make film work compact fluorescent softbox, there are two blog entries to check out.

[DickPoleman]

interesting, organized and well done...your experience as a programmer does come across in your videos...as a subscriber who pays attention to background (re - potatoes), i like that you used the Maxpedition Falcon II...keep up the informative work and Happy New Year...oh, and your English is fine

[stschmalhaus]

@DickPoleman Thank you very much for your very kind words! Have a great 2012!

[troy5690]

Yeah. Im very guilty of filler sounds, its my nervous twitch. The tried and proven way to get veiws and subs is to have close-ups of the female anatomy as the video thumbnail.

[stschmalhaus]

@troy5690 I'm saving up for a trans gender surgery.

[stripymccatpuss]

@stschmalhaus I can chip in $15

[troy5690]

@stschmalhaus lol, at least you are keeping everything in house. No chance of getting flagged for using anyone elses images.

[BladeReviewscom]

Interesting! Some very nice tips in there. I did not know you used a script, it sounds very natural. I do my vids in a single take off the cuff but it usually requires A LOT of takes. Sometimes dozens. Sometimes I get it right in a couple takes however. Can't say I am a big fan of editing but I'd love to get into it more, it really makes your videos special. Thanks for sharing.

[UraganOtEnergiya]

That's what I call a... review on your reviews.... :D:D

[sabr686]

Thank you Stefan. That was great insight into your world of all the various steps of video production. For all the time I have been subscribed to your channel, I have always appreciated the crisp, exact, precise and very enjoyable nature of your work. I hope we see much more of your work next year and, God willing, for many more years to come .

[jeffreylane7]

Outstanding video, thank you. Happy New Year

[MrJimbofox]

Great job, Stefan. You've given me some great info on some ways that I can maybe improve the setup that I use for doing reviews and I appreciate you putting this video together.

[stschmalhaus]

@MrJimbofox Thank you, Jimbo! Have a great 2012!

[FuwaForestFilmsHD]

Gute Idee! Aus meiner Photozeit habe ich noch die Tageslichtscheinwerfer im Keller liegen, ich glaub die geh ich jetzt gleich mal holen! ;-)

[st34ll]

thank you for sharing your secrets

[zeltarstormrun]

Thanks for sharing your tips. Have great New Years!

[stschmalhaus]

@zeltarstormrun Have a great 2012 as well!

[aebbelwoy]

Thanks for having us take a look behind the scenes. To be honest, some things are pretty obvious if you care a little about photography or video making, but it sure doesn't hurt to mention them, even if one may sound like a smartass. Looking forward to your future high quality reviews.

Guten Rutsch ins Neue Jahr wünsche ich dir.

[stschmalhaus]

@aebbelwoy Danke! Auch Dir alles Gute für 2012!

[CaptainFur]

Thank you for sharing your technique and gear. You forgot skill and personality play a big part and which you have a lot of. :-)

[stschmalhaus]

@CaptainFur Thank you for your kind words!

[slinginLEAD10]

Great channel and reviews. Thanks for the editing tips. Keep the great videos coming!!

[sweetdaddyroses]

thank you, stefan! i always enjoy watching your videos. primarily because your voice has such a soothing effect upon me. lol. no, really!

i had commented sometime back on one of your videos--i forget which one--how i found the lack of "uh," "um" & "ah" to be particularly refreshing. you responded by revealing your use of a script. i envy your organizational skills.

thanks for giving us a glimpse behind the scenes! best wishes and happy new year!

cheers!

*sdr*

[zwencologne]

Wow Stefan, hätte nie gedacht welche Energie und Aufwand Du in Deine Videos steckst- Chapeau !Die ,Bildqualität, das Licht,der Schnitt und das storyboard haben mir schon immer sehr gut gefallen. Aber jetzt weiß ich auch, warum das fehlerfreie Englisch irgendwie nicht zum deutschen Akzent passt;) Ein Ablesen ist mir jedoch nie aufgefallen. Ganz großes Kino und besten Dank fürs Zeigen. Du bist mit Abstand der beste deutsche Messerreviewer.

[stschmalhaus]

@zwencologne Gottseidank sind die "native speakers" sehr tolerant, was meinen Akzent angeht. Inzwischen ist er eine Art Markenzeichen. LOL

[yobbos1]

Your time and effort a very much appreciated. Some of the best reviews on the net. I have seen your Mercator video alone about 5 times.

[stephan123321]

Teil 2

Für mich auch unermesslich wertvoll,ist die Tatsache,daß ich mein Englisch (welches wahrlich ausbaufähig ist) bei deinen und durch deine Videos ständig erweitern kann....ich liebe deine deutliche Aussprache! :-)

Meine Videos drehe ich immer an einem Stück und eine Videosoftware habe ich noch nie benutzt....naja...den Unterschied zwischen deinen und meinen Videos sieht man ja! *Lach*

Danke für den Blick hinter die "Kulissen"!

Komm gut ins neue Jahr!

PS:Feiner Snakeknot an der Fenix! :-)

[stschmalhaus]

@stephan123321 Nee, was das Englisch angeht, halt Dich lieber an die Muttersprachler hier auf YouTube.

[stephan123321]

@stschmalhaus

....die nuscheln mir zu oft! ;-)

[stephan123321]

Ich habe mich schon immer gefragt,wie du dein fantastisches Licht hinbekommst!

Nun bin ich schlauer! :-)

Das du enorme Rechere betreibst war klar (Fakten,Fakten,Fakten ;-D ich bin immer zu faul dazu)...in diesem Teilbereich sind deine Videos "on the top" !

Ein Skript zu schreiben macht wahrlich Sinn...ich bin mir aber sicher,das selbst sehr begabte "Sprecher" sich gut vorbereiten!

Und unermesslich wertvoll sind deine persönlichen Erfahrungen,welche du immer mit einfließen lässt!

Ende Teil 1

[Gunsfromholland]

Thank you for the behind the scenes video.

The lichts and softbox are a good idea!!

Greetings from Holland.

[TheStig000]

You're 100% correct about lighting. Even a $10,000 camera will produce a poor image if the lighting is bad.

[TheStig000]

I was actually quite curious about this. I'm thinking about getting into reviews - not sure if I'd be any good at it though!

[stschmalhaus]

@TheStig000 Give it a try and let your viewers judge you.

[TheStig000]

@stschmalhaus I guess that's the only way to know! Thanks for this video though, your videos are some of the best quality out there, so it's cool to see how you do it.

[MISUVENAMATIA]

Nice. Thanks Stefan :)