Celebrating your screencasting journey

Congratulations! You've completed the entire process. From researching and setting up, to recording and editing—it's been quite the ride. Now comes the easy part: exporting your videos. It's time to get those screencasts off your hard drive and out into the world where they can work for you. Your videos might garner you money, followers, subscribers, job offers, podcast invites, or even new friendships.

Backup is essential

Before we dive into the exporting process, let's talk backups. Losing your videos because of a failed hard drive is a nightmare you don't want. Remember, an external hard drive isn't a backup system. Make sure you have two copies of your files somewhere. I personally recommend Backblaze.com, which continuously backs up to the cloud. This way, you don't have to remember to plug in anything. Whatever method you choose, please use something to back up your work.

Getting ready to export

Once your backups are safe, it's time to export your videos. In ScreenFlow, head to File -> Export. Although ScreenFlow offers direct publishing integrations to platforms like Vimeo, YouTube, and Google Drive, I prefer having a file on my computer that I can control.

Export settings for different platforms

Where you plan to upload your video determines the export settings. For platforms like LinkedIn, Blue Sky, or X (formerly Twitter), which compress the video quality, you can stick with automatic normal settings. If platforms don't support 4K resolution, you can reduce it to 1080p. Always turn off the letterbox content setting, as you want the aspect ratio to match exactly what you've set up originally.

For video platforms like Vimeo, YouTube, or dedicated course sites, export the highest quality possible. Platforms optimized for video will transcode your high-res video into various formats optimized for streaming, mobile, and different bandwidths. Start with the highest quality, as this sets a strong foundation for their transcoding.

Crafting the perfect export preset

To give video hosts the best starting point, a custom export setting is preferable. Here's how you can set it up:

1. Go to Manage -> Copy a setting and edit it.
2. Name your new preset, such as "Screencasting Course".
3. Customize the settings:
   • Set data rate to 30,000 kilobits per second.
   • Enable multi-pass encoding.
   • Set audio to 320 kbps, the highest available.

You can use this preset for YouTube or high-quality course exports.

Final notes and encouragement

By following these steps, you can ensure your videos are exported in the best possible quality. While it's tempting to get bogged down by details, sticking to these steps will give you a high-quality output you can be proud of. Remember, this is just one part of the journey. Trust your skills, and let your screencasts shine on the world stage.

Are you ready to let your creative work shine online? Go forth and illuminate the world with your videos!