Lumen 5 is a platform that provides the means so you can create up to 10x more engagement by converting a text article into a video with pictures, short video and music to tell your story.
Lumen 5 is an web based online platform that helps you to create a slideshow style video. By uploading an article from your website or blog, one chooses the blocks of text that appear on each scene in your video.
The video is built on each scene containing your text with a hand picked photo or short video sequence that AI uses to match picture/video with text. These scenes appear for a number of seconds and then transition to the next scene.
One you accompany music with your video production, Lumen 5 takes approx 10-60 minutes to create your multiple scenes into a final rendered video.
This final video can then be used on social media, your website or blog or on video content sites.
What are the benefits to using Lumen 5,
- 2a More engagement
By telling a story or with providing a well crafted and meaningful message, you will be providing an opportunity to receive more engagement to your message. This means more opportunity to receive more traffic on your website, blog, or social media sites.
- 2b Create more content
Being a newly created item of media, a video, you now can have your video viewed in addition to other content. You can simply add the video to a new blog post to enhance a detail on the post. You can even add your video to a course or as a digital ebook. Your video can be added in conjunction to any other content you create.
Setup For Using Lumen 5
Since Lumen 5 is web based, choose to use the program through a web browser, either through a laptop, desktop or tablet device. There is currently no app for the product at this time.
Setup an account and choose a username and password. Ensure you record this somewhere for future reference.
From the dashboard, chose the button,‘Create Video’
On the left of the screen, paste a pre saved URL link to one of your articles or blog posts into the Start With A Link cell.
Press the Go button.
Scroll through the Social Media preformat list. For this example, select the YouTube landscape format.
Scroll through and pick one of the preformatted themes. For this example choose the ‘every moment is a fresh beginning’ theme.
The Story
The next phase will auto populate your text in the ‘storyboard’ and produce each line of text into a single scene on the right of the screen. Lumen 5 will also auto-populate a still picture or short video for that scene. If you unhappy with any scenes that have text that does not support the ‘flow’ of the story, you can add or delete scenes, or modify text to help with the story of your video.
Here you can learn about the basics to start to modify your text, pictures or videos on each of your scenes for your video.
Select the first scene show tile on the right, at the top by clicking on it.
Press the preview button, this will play the ‘scene’ for the predefined amount of seconds (default 3 seconds)
Title -allows you to change your text, to plain text, to a quote, no text or as a larger font Title text
Text position -allows you to direct your text on the scene into one of 9 grid positions.
Highlight -select a specific amount of words in your text and the highlight button will change their colour. Use this to emphasise words on the scene
Timing – timing allows you to manually select second by second, the length of time to display the scene- from 1 to 60 seconds max.
– trim allows you to manually preselect a section of the scene video for your trimmed time frame.
You will also notice that the total time for the video on the right of the scene adjusts as you adjust scene playback time frames. If you have more than one scene with sub scenes, adjust your timing with adding more time as its shared over the main scene and its sub scenes. If your timing is short, viewers may feel rushed reading your video. Allow for approx 5 second per scene and 5 seconds per sub scene for up to 10-12 words. This will help with readability flow.
The Plus button under the scene allows you to select a new sub scene, where this will continue with a new sentence but use the same slide as above or select an entire new scene. In the sub scene, you cannot drag from the left for your pre text, simply highlight the words and type in your desired text. You can create more subscenes if you like.
You can also drag text from the story section and create a new scene into any scene position from first to last or anywhere in between.
Go through your preview video and watch your story for readability, timing, flow and if the media is right and correctly working for your individual scenes. If the text is not quite right, simply edit your text and retype what you need. Conversely, delete or add more scenes to help with the flow of your story. In the next section we show how to change up your scene media.
The Media
Here we have 4 sub sections
Library
GIFS
Getty (images, videos)
upload (your own created media)
First select library, a range of default images appear, but you can search by context or keyword. The filter button allows you to search with or without, editorial content, free videos or free photos. Editorial items come available with a paid plan.
In the library, search for ‘social media’ ( my example video I made for a demo here – is based on telling a story about using social media) as you type your search, you will see recommend search terms make an appearance as well as a category. If you click on one of those recommended searches all tags with that moniker will appear in the list below.
When you hover your mouse over a play button, you can see a quick video preview and how it will help you get a feel for playing in a specific scene in your story.
When you click on a video or picture, you can see more detail about it
The title description
What company its from (as a web link)
A description of the video or picture
And what tags (your search criteria) best fit
To make a change to a scene, simply click and hold the image and drag to your selected scene. Select preview next to your scene, to see how your text will flow with the new selected video or picture.
The same process works for GIFS or Getty images. But there are caveats for these two
Editorial content may be used for reporting news or facts or events but not for commercial reasons (if you want to make money from your video) you will see the letters ED just to the left of your scene that contains editorial content. Using Getty images is also editorial but are only available on a premium paid plan.
For a better understanding using Getty images and editorial content on Lumen 5, check out the explanation here
Premium content is content that you can use if you have enough credits when you are using the premium or business monthly plans of Lumen 5.
Uploads allows for you to upload and use, your own material photos and videos. Once your material is uploaded, you can use your assets in the exact same way as using Lumen 5 photos or videos.
Media can be moved or deleted, to move simply click and hold your media screen and move your mouse up or down to the desired position. COnversely, on the left of each media is a up or down button that when clicked, moves each media up or down one media segment. To delete, simply click on the small rubbish bin icon to the left of the media you wish to remove, click the x to confirm deletion.
The Music
Lumen 5 comes with thousands of royalty free tracks and you are welcome to also upload your own (on the business plan)
To find the most appropriate tracks for your story, simply use keywords to search for tracks or select the mood button on the right to narrow define a genre range of music tracks. Press the play button to preview tracks. Once you have selected a track you feel fits the story, run a preview to see if it fits. If not, choose another track until yo are happy.
The Preset
These are thematic presets that you can setup in advance to change the global settings of your videos.
Brand Preset – Setup a Watermark, outro slide and theme settings to apply to all your slide show story creations.
To set this up , give the preset a name, apply a brand watermark to the corner of each of your slides (business plan), and choose a different theme if you wish. Font, text colour, highlight colour and accent colours are available to change on the pro plan.
You also have the option to create an outro scene, which is the last scene to appear in your video and usually will have your logo and a short call to action (Like share this video!) To select a brand picture, click on the middle of the outro screen and select a picture with your logo. Once you are happy with all your settings, click the save button on the bottom right. Your first brand preset is saved!
The credits scene is the last screen and will show any attributes that are entitled on any of the scenes used in the video.
The Style
The format allows you to select the most appropriate playback format for the social media or video platform of your choice.
You also get to choose the HD format from 480p, 720p (on the pro plan) or 1080p (on the pro plan)
Simply select your video resolution to fit the format for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Youtube, Pinterest or custom (for demonstration purposes I selected the custom landscape 16:9 video profile)
The Finishing Touch
Once you are done with your creation, take it through a preview once more,
Ensure you are happy with the wording, the flow of the story, the right pictures or video slides and overall flow. Check that the music you selected fits the video and sets the correct tone to your story.
If you are happy to proceed, hit the big blue Finish button!
The final render of the video will take approximately 10-15 minutes, depending on how many slides in your story. Once complete an email will be sent to advise the completion of the video. Once rendered you are able to upload to your platform of choice for playback.
Post your completed video to Facebook, Instagram, Youtube or even back on your website or blog.
Have a look at an example Lumen 5 video I created to give you a visual example happy creating!
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