My friend wants a YouTube channel devoted to model trains...

[Knight Plug]

I said to him, that without knowledge of editing and being the king of what you do, nobody gets anywhere on YouTube if they are a novice.

I ought to know; I've talked openly and honestly about Resident Evil on there for years, and the only attention I ever seem to get is people being a fanny and trolling. So, I don't know what the point in trying is, really. Because it really did occur to me that unless your videos are super fancy-ish and look like they were made on a £1000 budget, no-one cares about your generic vlogs, or you just ranting in front of a camera. That's so 2005.

YouTube and often online services these days, overall, in 2022, feels pointless instead of being better. Like forums. It's hard to get people to join forums anymore. Whereas back in 2004, even InvisionFree forums had hundreds of active users. To me, I'm sorry to say it, but the golden age of the Internet is long gone. All pretty pixels aside, everything looks stunning, and that's probably why you lie to yourself and say it'll improve. But when you don't get noticed, it's a chore, and just not worth the hassle. Not to mention the people who shill, just to get noticed. That's lying to yourself, and I don't like people who are happy to keep stamping on others to get to the front of the line.

Google for example, they just had to be idiots and turn off broadcasting on mobiles for anybody under 500 subs. Before the recent change, it was 1000. But even so. Few people want to grow a large channel anyway, and using other apps to bypass that restriction is so frustrating, as they obviously suck and YouTube probably knows people can install Streamlabs and similar apps. And people may have a busy life and just do it as a hobby. But Google has just wrecked it for everyone by incorporating rules, and it's just annoying. About as annoying as moderators on Reddit rejecting posts.

I don't know. I feel people's pain. The Internet just ain't what it used to be.

Edited January 14, 2022 by Candy Stick
Foo ken tags!

[The Blackangel]

In total I have 3 YouTube channels. Two of them are nothing special as I never really post anything on them. The other is the gaming channel that I have mentioned before. @Rain Dew and I are working on getting videos uploaded and taking them live once we're happy with them, and have enough content to make the channel at least partially interesting. The only issue I'm having is that PS4 only allows clips up to 1 hour. I have a couple programs installed on my comp to allow me to record whatever is on the screen, but the PS is plugged into a different HDMI port, so I have to figure something out there.

As for your friend, he could just set up a video camera and record his videos, upload them to his computer, get a simple program to tinker with them, and he's good to go. If he's wanting to make a career out of YouTube, he needs to rethink his priorities. That's next to impossible. YouTube can be a great bit of extra income if you get a big enough following and your videos become monetized, but it should never be how you pay your bills.

If he's doing it for fun, like I do, then it's worth it. You don't need a following on your channel to enjoy doing it. When I started out, I just used Microsoft Video Maker. The cheap little program that came with Windows. Here's the first video I ever did.

 

[Shagger]

I think you could have been kinder to your friend. Doing YouTube to "get somewhere" or make it a career is the wrong reason to do it. The reason to do it is to share your passion for something. If it ends up becoming successful, then all the better, but nobody should be discouraged from trying just because the odds of success are so slim. I watch plenty of content of YouTube that isn't flash and made of a big budget. It can work so long as the content and the personality is there, and if your friend wants to share his passion for model trains and discuss them online, then I say more power to him.

Edited January 15, 2022 by Shagger

[The Blackangel]

@Shagger is absolutely right. You should encourage him. As already said, he will most likely never be able to make a living of any kind from YouTube, but sharing what he loves on a platform that big, would be great for him. He could meet a lot of people that share his passion, and possibly make a friend or two.

[Darth]

Whilst what you said in relation to video editing and making videos look good is important for YouTube, the niche that your friend wants to get into is not one where that matters too much. Most people that want to see model trains don't want fancy transitions or effects, they just want to see the trains.

[Justin11]

It's an interesting niche which the OP's friend wants to go into. But, it isn't easy as the saying goes. Being good in editing will help a long way for the YouTubing career of your friend via modern train. 

[Altair]

 

Quote

@Shagger is absolutely right. You should encourage him. As already said, he will most likely never be able to make a living of any kind from YouTube, but sharing what he loves on a platform that big, would be great for him. He could meet a lot of people that share his passion, and possibly make a friend or two.

This is a late reply. I agree. 
You should have been encouraging. The chances of making it big and earn a living from it are slim. 
Not everyone finds there passion and if he wants to a channel on trains power to him. He should do it. 

Editing is a great think to be able to do. There are a tons of tutorials out there that will help with that.  Also a lot of free editors to start out with. 

[Zesty]

Your friend should go for it and try it out. It might turn out to be successful or maybe it'll fail but if he doesn't try then he's never going to know right? A lot of people try and be popular / famous straight away rather than doing something for fun.

I know if you're not successful it can be hard to have motivation but if he's passionate about it, he should go all in!

[Justin11]

In life, I've always believed, no harm in trials. I've cherished to go Live on YouTube, but such will take some time to happen. I'll make a plan for it in the future. The OP's friend shouldn't feel shy away from going into YouTube, he/she might be successful if the contents shared is of high quality and well marketable. 

[egghead]

When you needed 10k views to pass monetization threshold, I was trying to build my youtube channel however, after the new rules of 1k subscribers and 4k hours watch time were introduced, I gave up my channel.

[Justin11]

I know it can take longer time to reach such monetization demands, but nothing is still impossible when it comes to reaching such height. Provided you know how to market your YouTube channel and it's video contents, gradually you'll get there. 

[Grungie]

Unless you want to make it big, you don’t really need fancy equipment or editing. A lot of it just involves catering to a specific niche and have passion and entertainment value. One YouTuber I follow has 200k subs, and gets between 100-200k views, and his channel is just his opinions on games. His video work is literally just him reading a script over spliced together b-roll footage of him playing a game.

Also if you’re just in it for fun, who really cares how many subs you’re getting?

[killamch89]

If your friend has a passion, you should encourage it, all they need is the basics such as camera to record their videos and an affordable video editor like Davinci. You can't tell how far his channel might reach if doesn't try. Furthermore, your friend is doing it for fun so he doesn't need any fancy equipment.