Record

Recording equipment

The best equipment to use is whatever you already own or can access. High-end hardware is not necessary to create a professional-looking video assessment.

Even with relatively low-grade equipment you can increase your audiovisual quality with a bit of thought and planning.

Expand the topics below for tips and advice on how to get the best result using your existing equipment.

If your assessment only requires recordings of yourself and/or others without any slides or other visual content, you may find it easiest to use a video camera or mobile device, such as your phone. Use landscape (horizontal) orientation for a more professional video.
An inbuilt webcam may be the easiest option to both record you on camera and show your visual content. If you do not own a webcam, you can make your recording in Zoom so that you can use multiple devices simultaneously. For example, you could join on your phone to record a video of yourself, and also join on a laptop to share your screen. See below for instructions on how to record in Zoom.
To improve your video quality, you can:
- Check your lighting and make sure that you are not back-lit.
- Check the camera angle to make sure that you are in frame.
- Record in a location that does not have a cluttered background, so that your viewers can focus on you.
- Look directly at the camera for a more engaging delivery.
Always test your equipment before recording to check your audio quality. Good audio quality is essential to make it easy for your viewers to understand you clearly. If your assessors cannot clearly hear the audio, they will not be able to mark your work.
If possible, you should use an external microphone, as it can drastically improve audio quality.
Some things you can do to improve your audio quality include:
- Try to minimise background noise if possible.
- Conduct a short test recording using the software you will be using, and in the location and setup that you will be using to record your actual video.
- If the audio is not clear, try adjusting the settings in the software program, and on your device.
- Even an external microphone as simple as the in-built one on earbuds or headphones can make a big difference.

Recording software

If you are using your computer and/or a webcam to record your video, you will need to use computer software to capture the recording.

Below are three software alternatives that you have access to for free through Monash University which you can use to record your assessment.

Zoom

Zoom is a video conferencing software program which is used in a variety of online learning and teaching contexts at Monash. See our Zoom resource for advice on how to access and install Zoom.

You can start an instant meeting in the Zoom app to record an individual presentation on your own, or schedule a meeting with your co-presenters to record a teamwork presentation.

Basic instructions for recording in Zoom

Start recording
To start recording in Zoom, press the Record button on the controls menu, then select Record on this Computer, the recording will start immediately. Cloud recording is not as stable, so recording on your local device is recommended.
Pause/Resume recording
The Record button will then be replaced with the Pause/Stop Recording dual button.
You can Pause the recording at any time if needed. This can be very helpful to reduce the need for editing later on, if you need to start and stop sharing your screen, or for scene transitions (e.g., different virtual backgrounds), or simply to take a short break between recording each section of your presentation.
To restart a paused recording, click Resume.
Stop recording
When you have finished, click Stop Recording. The video file will be processed and saved to your computer after you End the Zoom meeting. The default location that your file will be saved to is in your Documents folder, within a Zoom subfolder for your meeting.

Recording while sharing your screen

During screenshare, you can access the Record, Pause/Resume, and Stop recording options by clicking on More from the screenshare menu options.

Zoom recording controls during screenshare.

Technical tips for recording in Zoom

If you use the Stop/Record button multiple times in the same session, each recording will be saved as a separate video file. Therefore, you should use the Pause/Resume button to keep your recording as one continuous video.
On the Recording tab of the Zoom app settings you can change various options including the location that the video file will be saved, as well as if/how your camera video will be displayed.
Zoom recording files are saved with high compression, so the file size is quite small, however if you open the file in an editing software program, the file size will increase substantially. Follow the tips on our editing page for advice on how to reduce the size of a large video file.

For more information on using Zoom to make recordings, see the Record group presentations using Zoom page of our Zoom resource, or visit the Zoom Help Center page Recording in Zoom Rooms.

Note

Zoom does not have any video editing features. For free access to basic editing tools, you can use an external application such as the video editing software that comes with your computer (e.g., Video editor on Windows, or Apple iMovie on Mac), or an online platform such as Panopto or YouTube.

PowerPoint is a powerful slide presentation software which has an in-built recorder that you can use to record yourself or capture screen recordings. The newest version of PowerPoint can also capture a webcam, which it will add to the bottom-right corner of your presentation.
As a Monash student, you have access to the full Microsoft Office suite of programs for free, which you can access in the MoVE portal, or view the full access and installation instructions on the Monash eSolutions page for Microsoft Office.
Basic instructions for recording in PowerPoint
1. Access the recording window
  To start recording in PowerPoint, select the Recording tab at the top of the screen, then click on Record Slide Show and select Record from Current Slide.
  This will bring up the recording window. If your webcam is connected to your computer, you will see a preview of your webcam in the bottom-right corner of the slide.
2. Start/Pause/Resume your recording
  To start your recording click RECORD in the top-left corner of the recording window. There will be a 3 second countdown before the recording starts.
  During recording, the RECORD button will be replaced with the PAUSE button. You can use this to temporarily pause the recording without having to stop and start. To resume a paused recording click RECORD again.
  Be aware that if you stop and start the recording using the STOP button, it will completely replace the recording for the slide you are viewing. Therefore, if you just want to take a moment to catch your breath or recollect your thoughts, it is better to use the PAUSE button instead.
3. Stopping your recording
  When you have finished recording click STOP or press the escape key on your keyboard to stop the recording. Your recording will be attached to each slide that you presented.
4. Editing your slides before exporting
  If needed, you can edit your slides after attaching the recording, before exporting your file as a video. The view of the slides is generated at the time of export, not while you are recording your narrations and camera. For example, if you notice a spelling error, you can correct it on the slide at this point, and it will be corrected in the final video.
  As part of this editing process, you can trim the start and end time for the video on a given slide if needed. At a minimum, you may find it helpful to trim the end of the video on the final slide if there is any awkward pause created by the time it takes to stop the recording.
  To trim a webcam recording, click on the webcam image in the slide, then click on the Playback tab, and select Trim Video.
5. Saving your video file
  Once you are happy with your recording, click on the File menu, then select Export and Create a Video to view the video export options.
  Using the first drop-down menu, you can change the file size and video quality before saving the video. The second drop-down menu should be set to use your recorded timings and narration.
  You will only need to worry about the setting for seconds spent on each slide if you have any slides which do not have a recording on them. If that is the case, consider whether the default (5 seconds) is an appropriate length of time based on the content of the slide.
  Click Create Video to save your presentation as a video file.
Technical tips for recording in PowerPoint
- Avoid putting content in the bottom-right corner of your slides to avoid it being hidden by your webcam feed.
- Before exporting your video, watch your recording the whole way through in PowerPoint to check that you are happy with the content.
- If you need to do a retake for just one slide, you can do that by clicking Record Slide Show > Record from current slide. Newly recorded content will replace the previous content, so do not progress the slide unless you want to replace the recording on multiple slides. Instead, click STOP to only record content for a single slide.
- If you record all of your slides in one attempt, the webcam video will playback seamlessly between slides. However, keep in mind that if you re-record the content for one slide, or trim the recording on each slide, the camera recording will appear as jump cuts between slides if you record them separately.
For more information and detailed instructions on how to use PowerPoint to record audio and video visit the official Microsoft support page Record a slide show with narration and slide timings.
Panopto is both a platform for hosting videos, as well as a software application that you can use to record video content. Because it is a Monash supported platform which is integrated with Moodle, it can be used to submit videos directly to Moodle. Panopto has basic video editing features, including the ability to trim or cut content, and upload captions.
Watch the video below for an overview of:
- downloading the Panopto software
- recording videos directly in Panopto
- uploading existing videos in Panopto
- moving your video into the Panopto assessments folder
- submitting video assessments on Moodle using Panopto.
- Instructions for PC users
- Instructions for MAC users
For more instructions and demonstrations on how to record in Panopto visit the following pages on the official Panopto support site: