How to Set Up The Right Poster Frame in YouTube

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Ranked #536 in How-To, #5,349 overall

YouTube Thumbnail

Much has been said of YouTube selecting randomly the poster frame of your video, or using a complicated algorithm to pick up the main thumbnail. I was even told that YouTube hires specialized personnel who carefully select the still frame based on its marketing power.

Not so my friends.

As a matter of fact, it's a very basic system that does it.

But what if...you could pick the Poster Frame Shot?

Youtube System

So The Truth Is Out! 

Who Would Have Thought?

So how to set the poster frame, image or thumbnail in your YouTube videos? Actually it's very simple. Just watch the video below:

YouTube Video Optimization

A quick and simple experiment on how to optimize your YouTube Video with "the money shot"

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The Code Has Been Cracked! 

Renetto's Version

Check out Renetto's take here:

I cracked the YouTube Code!

PLEASE leave a comment. To be the first to see what's next... PLEASE SUBSCRIBE. Just click the orange button above this text... YOU JUST MADE MY DAY... Thank you:) It's "My Movie Poster Now"...... YouTubers unite! - Renetto Reviews

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YouTube Generate Three Thumbnails 

These are the 3 thumbnails of my video of Kris Holm,
the mountain unicyclist:


Youtube Thumbnails

Unicycling with Kris Holm

All terrain mountain unicycling!

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Can I Select Any of The 3 Thumbnails for My Video? 

Yes You Can!

1. Visit your account page.
2. Click the Uploaded Videos.
3. Select Video
4. Click on Edit
5. Click the thumbnail you want, and Update.

This might take few hours to update in the system.

Youtube Poster Frame

Now, Where Are My 3 Thumbnails Located? 

How To Calculate The Exact Placement

X = Video length (in sec.)
Y = X divided by 4 or X/4 (in sec.)

Y is the 1st thumbnail.
2 times Y or 2xY (in sec.) is the 2nd thumbnail (poster frame).
3 times Y or 3xY (in sec.) is the 3rd thumbnail.

Youtube Still Frame

YouTube Thumbnail Timer Video

The actual length of the video in Adobe After Effects is 31 sec & 28 frames running at 29.0 frames per second. The 1st thumbnail was at 8 seconds (240 frames) the middle thumbnail was at 16 sec (480 frames) and the last was at 24 sec (720 frames) Hope this helps!

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How Can I Grab My Video Thumbnails? 

Easy!

YouTube thumbnails are built like this:
http://img.youtube.com/vi/[video-id]/1.jpg

So if this is my YouTube video link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlWWGHQXi-w
then [video-id] is LlWWGHQXi-w

Voila, these are my 3 thumbnails!
http://img.youtube.com/vi/LlWWGHQXi-w/1.jpg
http://img.youtube.com/vi/LlWWGHQXi-w/2.jpg
http://img.youtube.com/vi/LlWWGHQXi-w/3.jpg

Is This Being Helpful to You Thus Far? 

If yes, then keep reading, there are more important tips to follow


Make a Lens


Banman wrote...

this is by far the best web page explaining how to set youtube thumbnails!
... rate this guy a 5 star. thanks!

ReplyPosted May 19, 2009

MerryM wrote...

wow, thanks for this. I had no idea that this was how they chose the frames.

ReplyPosted November 08, 2008

richgerman wrote...

im very impressed with your talents keep it up! 5 stars for you!

anyway do you believe in the law of attraction?

thanks

ReplyPosted July 01, 2008

 
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Setting Up The Poster Frame The Easy Way 

The Video Editing Software

So knowing that YouTube selects the poster frame from the middle of your video. Now, all you need to get is a video editing software, also called a non-linear editor (NLE). For Windows you can use Windows Video Maker and for Macs iMovie can do the trick. However, if you want a more sophisticated NLE, you can try: Sony Vegas, Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid or the Best of the Best: Final Cut Studio.

Once you have a video editing tool, you can add or take away clips, either at the beginning or the end of the timeline, so that it will allow you to set up the picture frame that you want in the center of your movie.

Voila!

The Best "Bang For The Buck" Editing Software Out There 

Video Editing and DVD Creation Software

Vegas Movie Studio 8

Amazon Price: (as of 07/05/2009)Buy Now
Used Price: $34.95

"Vegas Movie Studio software makes video editing easy and fun. Best of all, Vegas Movie Studio software is a real-time nondestructive video editor. No matter what changes you make to your video and photos in the software, your original files are never affected!"

 

How To Monetize Your YouTube Video, part 1 

Make a YouTube Video

I edited this video for my article: The Amazing Skateboarding Dogs.
First I created the story I wanted based of the footage available, then I try to match my best footage to one of the 3 possible thumbnails. Next I compressed the edited video using the techniques described in How to Make YouTube Videos Look Great.

Watch the video result and then the blog, and see how the thumbnail was really important to support the story told in the article. Also, notice I put my blog's URL in the first line of the YouTube's video description. So as you can see, the monetization works both ways.

Tillman - The Greatest American Dog

http://www.squidoo.com/skateboarding-dogs Tillman's quest to be The Greatest American Dog has come to an end, but we still think he's the greatest. This is a tribute to our fearless hero using the GAD's theme song.

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How to Monetize Your YouTube Video, part 2 

Embed The Video in Your Blog or Article

How To View All 3 Thumbnails 

Learn To Edit Videos 

Easy To Understand

Vegas 6 Essential Training

Amazon Price: $149.95 (as of 07/05/2009) Buy Now
Used Price:

Microsoft Windows Movie Maker 2 (Visual QuickStart Guide)

Amazon Price: $16.49 (as of 07/05/2009) Buy Now
Used Price: $12.48

Digital Video For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

Amazon Price: $16.49 (as of 07/05/2009) Buy Now
Used Price: $1.01

Bonus Section! 

Setting Up Your Profile Picture From "My Videos"

From your Edit Channel Info page, you have the choice to set your thumbnail to come from your most recently uploaded video or from one selected video. If you have a thumbnail image in mind that doesn't appear in any of your videos, one alternative is to create a short (5 seconds or so) video of the scene of your choice. Once you've uploaded it, set your profile icon to come from that video within "My Videos."

How To Upload a Picture to YouTube

You can't upload a picture directly to YouTube but you can create a video with one of you images and upload it to youtube

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Have Fun, Get Your YouTube Badge! 

Harper Reed wrote this cool FREE web application