THUMBNAIL TYPES?
- Thread starter Thundzy
- Start date
Radedo
Active Member
It really depends on the game you're playing and the type of video you make for it, but there are some things that always help:
Then I added a picture of me (another screenshot from my face cam) and the text on separate layers. I added a stroke and outer glow to both (you can add those to any layer you have, whether it has text or anything else in it) and used a gradient reminiscent of the game for the text (orange and blue).
I zoomed way out to make my thumbnail smaller and started fiddling with the stroke and glow colors. I started with the same color I put around my face, but that was making the test blurry and hard to read. So I switched to a darker purple, which made the text stand out more. Plus it's the same color as my car so it flows decently with the rest of the image.
After that I played around with brightness and contrast for both my face cam image and the in-game screenshot. I brightened both up a bit and increased the contrast as well. Bright things tend to stand out over dark ones, and adjusting those settings always helps make an image pop more.
Lastly, I selected the area near the edges and applied a radial blur filter to give it that zoomed in effect. Not only does that make the image look more dynamic because it implies movement, but it literally draws the eye in by creating some guide lines pointing to the center of the thumbnail (especially helpful when it's displayed in a bigger size).
Those are the basics, but play around with things and you might find something that works even better for you!
Hope this helps.
- Follow the rule of thirds: google it if you're not sure what it is, it's a simple concept but it can really improve thumbnails.
- If you use a face cam consider including your face in the thumbnails. In my opinion it adds a little something that makes the thumbnail "pop".
- If you don't use a face cam you may be wondering what else you can add to your thumbnails besides a game screenshot. Depends on the game. FPS games can always benefit from some random explosions here and there, or you could add something specific to the episode (a boss, an item you've found, a funny looking character). You can also just fill the rest with text, or even the official game logo. Just google [Game Name] Logo PNG and you'll most likely find a "transparent" image with just the logo that you can easily paste onto your thumbnail.
- Add text to it and make sure to add stroke, glow, and drop shadow (or a combination of these). If you use photoshop just select the layer where your text is, then click Layer>Layer Style and click on the options available, that will bring up a panel with a bunch of options that you can check or uncheck.
- I see most of your thumbnails are just screenshots from the games. Screenshots are fine to use as a background for the rest of your thumbnail. Also make sure the screenshot you use is appealing, the ones you have are pretty bland.
- When making a thumbnail, make sure you zoom out often. Thumbnails on youtube look very small and sometimes an image will look fine at full size but awful when scaled down (e.g. text becomes unreadable, images aren't clear enough, etc.), so you want to keep an eye on what your thumbnail looks when it's very small before you make too many changes.
- Think of what YOU like when it comes to thumbnails. Go check out some of your favorite channels and quickly scan their page. Any thumbnails that stand out more than others? Do you like them? What about them do you like? Make a note of that and try to use it in your thumbnails. Also look for recurring things across different channels (similar color combinations, compositions, fonts, etc.).
Then I added a picture of me (another screenshot from my face cam) and the text on separate layers. I added a stroke and outer glow to both (you can add those to any layer you have, whether it has text or anything else in it) and used a gradient reminiscent of the game for the text (orange and blue).
I zoomed way out to make my thumbnail smaller and started fiddling with the stroke and glow colors. I started with the same color I put around my face, but that was making the test blurry and hard to read. So I switched to a darker purple, which made the text stand out more. Plus it's the same color as my car so it flows decently with the rest of the image.
After that I played around with brightness and contrast for both my face cam image and the in-game screenshot. I brightened both up a bit and increased the contrast as well. Bright things tend to stand out over dark ones, and adjusting those settings always helps make an image pop more.
Lastly, I selected the area near the edges and applied a radial blur filter to give it that zoomed in effect. Not only does that make the image look more dynamic because it implies movement, but it literally draws the eye in by creating some guide lines pointing to the center of the thumbnail (especially helpful when it's displayed in a bigger size).
Those are the basics, but play around with things and you might find something that works even better for you!
Hope this helps.
Redford1900
I Love YTtalk
Hi Radedo. I just checked out your thumbnails and they are very cool. Putting your face with the different expressions makes me think right away that your videos would be fun. Thanks for writing such an informative post from which we can all learn.
Radedo
Active Member
You're welcome, glad you found it helpful
Aegislasher
Leader of the GoudaEmpire
your thumbnails are fine, dude.