If you’ve spent some time researching your family history, your discoveries probably include old documents like census records and death certificates – not exactly exciting stuff to your kids and grandkids. And yet they are the ones you hope to pass your family’s history on to.
The truth is that the non-genealogists in your family aren’t captivated by the same things you may be. But we’re going to change all that with a tech tool that will help you create fabulous captivating videos about your family history. For perhaps the first time, your kids and grandkids will want to watch and share your family history wrapped up in these quick and professional looking videos. (Disclosure: This article does contain affiliate links which means we will receive compensation if you make a purchase, and that helps support the free Genealogy Gems Podcast. Thank you!)
Software:
Folks often ask me about which video editing software I use. My desktop video editing software is Camtasia, which is made by Techsmith (the maker’s of SnagIt.) It’s excellent, does every thing I need, and I’ve been using it for years! Click here to get your own copy.
If you plan on making several videos now and in the future, Camtasia is well worth the investment. It will pay for itself in about two years compared to other subscription based services. It also has an extensive array of features allowing you the greatest creative flexibility.
The Easy Video Tools
If you’re not ready to plunge into a software program, then I recommend creating your family history videos with a web and app based tool. Currently, Smilebox offers a good collection of ready-made slideshow templates that add lot so of design with little effort. You can sign up for a free account here and start making free videos. Subscribing to the Premium plan gives you loads of additional options and tools that will really make your videos shine.
Animoto is fast, offers a free trial, and shockingly easy to use! No special skills required. Animoto is a tool I’ve used for several years. The company has gone through some changes, which includes doing away with many of the slideshow templates I demonstrate in the instructional videos below. However, they have moved to a new offering which is free forever with unlimited downloads and a small watermark. I expect we will see new templates being added. It’s still an excellent and very easy video creation tool! A paid subscription eliminates the water mark and provide a much wider range of tools and HD downloads.
Adobe Spark Video is a free app (with small watermark on the video) and also offers a subscription version. Downloads are sized for online sharing (720px) Watch my step-by-step tutorial on creating videos with Adobe Spark Video in episode 16 of Elevenses with Lisa.
We’re so pleased we just had to tell you our great news….The Genealogy Gems Podcast has been nominated for the first-ever Academy of Podcasters Awards!
Ten nominees were named in each category by The Academy of Podcasters in an event expected to become annual, according to the Academy website. We were chosen “by a combination of input from the Academy, the board, and from other podcast rating services.” The Genealogy Gems Podcast was nominated in the “Parenting, Family and Kids” category.
Podcaster and comedian Colt Cabana will host the actual awards show on July 31, 2015 at the Omni Fort Worth in Forth Worth, Texas. It’s not far from home and I hope to stop by to celebrate on my way home from speaking at the BYU Family History Conference!
In case you’re not already a listener….The FREE Genealogy Gems Podcast, our flagship “online radio show” with 1.75 million downloads, helps you make the most of your family history research time by providing quick and easy-to-use research techniques. As the producer and host, I do my darndest to bring you the best websites, best practices, and best resources available for genealogy!
Listening has never been easier because now you can easily stream podcasts on your smartphone or tablet in addition to listening online at our websiteor in iTunes. To listen on your mobile device, just get the Genealogy Gems app for iPhone or iPad and Android. To learn more about the show or read FAQ, click here.
The Genealogy Gems Premium Podcast, a monthly in-depth news and how-to show with MORE great interviews, tips and tricks. This is available as part of our annual subscription package, which also includes a year’s access to a full range of genealogy education videos.
Show Notes: Google Books is known for having millions of free digitized books. But did you know that it’s also packed with hidden old newspapers? Since newspapers don’t typically appear in your initial search results in Google Books, I’ll show you two ways to filter down to only newspapers. Plus I’ll also show you some of the most effective ways to quickly find the right ancestor and the right article.
Listen to the Podcast Episode
To Listen click the media player below (AUDIO ONLY):
Newspapers.com
Get 20% off a Publisher Extra subscription. Click here and use coupon code genealogygems
Visit For Wayne
Fort Wayne, Indiana is the home of the second largest free genealogy library in the country. Make your plans to visit today. Learn more at https://www.visitfortwayne.com
Genealogy Center at the Allen County Public Library
We’ve all got genealogy brick walls in our research: family mysteries we have so far found unsolvable. In the new issue of Family Tree Magazine (May/June 2014), Lisa’s got a great article packed with 14 strategies for SOLVING those perplexing questions.
The article is “Warming Up a Cold Case,” and it’s got a fun criminal investigator theme. I won’t give all 14 of her tips away, but some of my favorites include re-examining old evidence, finding new witnesses and going on a genealogical stakeout. And one that made me laugh out loud: “Post wanted posters.” And then I just had to put my ancestor’s face on a wanted poster (right).
How do you really create a wanted poster for your ancestor? Lisa shares these ideas in the article:
1. Post their names on genealogy online message boards (like at Ancestry.com). But fill in those “wanted” details. Instead of height, weight and hair color, add what you know about their births, marriages, deaths, family relationships and residences.
2. Post your family tree online at any number of sites for free. Sites organize their trees in one of two ways. Ancestry.com, MyHeritage.com and others can i buy medication without insurance offer the individual tree model. You upload (or build on the site) and maintain your own tree. FamilySearch.org, WikiTree, Geni.com and WeRelate.org are community tree sites. You may work from a view of your own tree, but the site is merging your tree with others behind the scenes to create a single world family tree (each does this a slightly different way).
3. Start your own family history blog. Write keyword-rich blog posts that make it easy for Google searchers to find your ancestors there. Check out Lisa’s free four-part series on how to create a genealogy blog at the Genealogy Gems YouTube Channel. This link will take you to the 4 part video playlist.
Find the entire article in the May/June issue Family Tree Magazine. Even better: Genealogy Gems Premium Members can also watch Lisa’s one hour video class Brick Walls: Cold Case Investigative Techniques. Not a Premium Member yet? You’re missing out on 24/7 access for a year to some of her most popular classes on Google, Google Earth, organization, Evernote, newspaper research and more. Learn more about Genealogy Gems Premium Membership here.
If you would love to take a genealogy travel adventure to your ancestral homeland, consider who might help you make it happen. Get inspired and ready with these tips!
“What I would really like to know is if you have any travel agent/agency that is great for Europe travel to do my own ‘Who Do You Think You Are.’ Any help or direction you can give would be much appreciated.”
I have just the thing for Joyce’s travel question! In the free Genealogy Gems Podcast episode 115, I interviewed Kathy Wurth, who specializes in family history tours of Europe. (You will find her contact information here on the show notes page for the episode.) Even if she doesn’t go to the locations you want to visit, I’m sure that she could help match you up with a travel consultant who does. Tell her “hi” for me!
Before you set off on your own genealogy travel adventure, get inspired and get ready! Here are some great resources for doing just that:
Get inspired! Listen to or read about these genealogists’ travel adventures to ancestral homelands that I’ve covered on Genealogy Gems in the past:
She Left Me the Gun: My Mother’s Life Before Meby Emma Brockes. An award-winning journalist tells the story of her discovery of her mother’s tragic childhood in South Africa. This is a genealogical journey, complete with trips to archives, poring over old court cases and dramatic reveals. This is the ultimate how-to book for exploring and sharing sensitive family stories because she shows you how it’s done. Listen to an excerpt of our interview with Emma Brockes on the Genealogy Gems podcast episode 174 and the full-length interview in Premium episode 118.
Three Slovak Women, Second Edition by Lisa Alzo. A popular genealogy expert’s story of three generations of Slovak women in the steel-producing town of Duquesne, Pennsylvania, and the love and sense of family binding them together. Click here to hear Lisa in the free Family History Made Easy podcast talk about her reasons for researching her family history and what she’s learned along the way, including in her travels in Eastern Europe.
If you want to take a genealogy travel adventure–or invite someone else to–please share this article with them! Just email a link or It’s easy, it’s free–and maybe you’ll pick up a travel companion! Happy travels!