Starting this week Canada AM is introducing a new, regular feature where we will ask you to record and share videos on a particular topic. As this might lead many of you to share a video online for the very first time, our producers have asked me to help out by going over the basics and pointing out the easiest way to participate. 

We're asking you to upload your video to a trusted video-sharing community such as YouTube and then submit a link from your movie to us in an e-mail. This way your movie isn't being downloaded by anyone, our producers aren't having to download unknown and potentially dangerous files to their computers, and it makes it clear that your movie is meant for public consumption. We are, after all, a live, national television show. 

Pocket Camcorders

We recommend using a pocket-sized camcorder like the Flip. These inexpensive devices offer very simple controls for recording movies and a built-in USB connector makes it easy to transfer your movies to your computer. Included software offers basic editing and a feature to send your video directly to YouTube without having to find it on your computer first.

Tip – Make sure you have good lighting and plan what your movie is going to be about before you start shooting. Think about what is going to be recorded and what people will say to the camera.

iMovie And Windows Movie Maker

If you are using a regular-sized or older model camcorder and need a program to edit your video look no further than your own computer. If you have a Windows computer you’ll find “Windows Movie Maker” among your list of included programs and if you have an Apple computer you’ll find “iMovie” in your Applications folder.

Both programs offer a simple process for changing the length of your movie, joining clips together, and adding music or narration.

Tip – If your audio seems low remember you can adjust the volume during editing. iMovie users should try the “Normalize Clip Volume” feature listed under Audio Adjustments if it’s still hard to make out what people are saying.

YouTube.com

By far the most popular and the easiest video-sharing service online, YouTube is a free service where you can upload movies of ten minutes in length or less. You’ll need to register for an account and from there simply click on the big yellow “upload” button on the front page to transfer your movie online.

Tip - So we can have access to your movie, you’ll need to choose to make your video “public” instead of “private”.

Other popular and trusted video-sharing communities include http://video.google.com/, http://www.vimeo.com/, http://www.dailymotion.com, and http://revver.com/

Sending Your Clip To Us

Every online video has its own unique web address. Once you’ve uploaded your movie online you’ll need to find the web address for your clip and copy-and-paste it into an e-mail.

On YouTube there are two sections you can use to do this. The first appears directly underneath your video. Click on "Share" and a menu, like the one pictured below, will appear offering quick options to send your video out using social networks, a link you can copy and paste into an e-mail, or you can use YouTube itself to send an e-mail with the link attached. 

Finally, no matter which video-sharing service you use, you can also grab the web address from the address bar at the top of your web browser.