EasyStudio can also include a screen capture in place of, or in addition to a PowerPoint presentation. This is achieved by connecting your laptop to our studio setup and displaying a copy of what is shown on the screen within your video. As with PowerPoint presentations this can be included as inset content (i.e. next to the presenter) or set as full screen as required.

This option is perfect for demonstrating software or web applications, and due to the ease of production and low cost, is ideal for frequently updating or complex systems where multiple videos may be required. Videos can be scripted or ad-libbed and can include PowerPoint presentations in part of the video or even at same time.

Due to the additional complexity of performing a demonstration and presenting to camera, this is usually a two person job with the presenter working from a well rehearsed script and the software operator working from pre-prepared instructions. It is possible to do this with a single presenter but we would recommend ad-libbing rather than scripting in this scenario.

Five tips for making videos featuring screen capture

1. Rehearse the demonstration in advance to check timings

There is often a difference in how long it takes to do something and how long it takes to say something. This may mean that a pause or some additional script is needed to allow time for an action to be completed.

2. Prepare your configuration for demonstration

Sometimes clean demonstration areas need to be set-up so that irrelevant or confidential information is not exposed during your demonstration. Often configurations may need resetting before each take so check how quick this is to do.

3. Prepare and test relevant sample data

This can help the viewer understand what you are demonstrating especially if you use realistic examples rather than ‘amusing’ but irrelevant content. All data needs to be easily accessible and unless you are a very accurate typist consider using a multi clipboard tool (such as Ditto), for fast and accurate pasting of multiple data values into form fields.

4. Agree a consistent terminology

For ease of understanding check that your script uses pre-approved language throughout that is the helpful to the viewer rather than using internal lingo. Also consider how you will refer to things like ‘click’, ‘select’, ‘activate’ etc so that you are consistent throughout each video.

5. Practise mouse movements

Practise mouse movements to ensure that you don’t cause distraction by accidentally hovering over any tool tips or other pop ups that could confuse the viewer. The ideal movement are smooth curves with no detours or other unnecessary movement.

Video demonstrations

Frequently asked questions about screen capture

How fast is your internet connection as this is critical for a smooth demonstration?

We have Ethernet over FFTC with a guaranteed 20Mbs download (burstable to 80Mbs) and 20Mbs upload at a 1:1 contention ratio. This means that we are not sharing our connection with anyone else (unlike most fibre broadband services) which is ideal for quick loading websites and web applications.

Can PowerPoint be captured from my laptop instead of run from your system?

Yes, this is the best way to overcome the limitation of not being able to show in-slide animation (such as bullet points coming on one by one or playing embedded videos).

Can screen capture be used to include Keynote or Prezi presentations?

Yes it can. You can include anything on your screen allowing you to use alternatives to PowerPoint such as Keynote or Prezi.

How can we show the location of the mouse so that it is clear where we are clicking?

Windows has a very useful accessibility feature that shows animated rings around the mouse when  the Control button is pressed on the keyboard. This is a useful way to attract attention to the location of the mouse to make it clear what is being clicked. You can see instructions on how to enable this on the BLTT website.

Can I zoom up an area of the screen?

Currently this is not possible as there no option to easily select or move around the required area of the screen. If this was possible then the zoomed image would be pixelated which may not look professional.

Is it possible to use a PowerPoint as a prompt but show what is on the laptop in the video?

Yes this is an option if you prefer to have a list of points to ad-lib showing on the teleprompter.

Can I just show my laptop screen for some of my presentation?

Yes, you can either switch between a PowerPoint and your laptop, or just show the laptop screen when you need it.

Why can’t I use a script and do the demo myself?

You are welcome to try but we feel this may just be a bit too much for most people to do on their own!