Thumbnails for Cover Songs?

What type of thumbnail should I use for cover song videos? (more info in post on the options)

  • A screenshot from the video itself with the title added

    Votes: 1 50.0%
  • A template made from a static image and the title changed to fit the video

    Votes: 1 50.0%

  • Total voters
    2

Cassarilla

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So, I know that my thumbnails need some work. I've been posting every day lately so it's a lot of videos adding up. Five days a week I do singing/ukulele covers and I'm stuck between a couple of options for the thumbnails of those in particular.
  1. Doing what I'm have been which is just taking a screenshot from the video and putting the title over it although I want to change those older thumbnails to have text that stands out more.

  2. Making a template of a few different pictures of me and my ukulele, possibly with a background matching my banner, and just changing the text to be the title of the song.

I know a lot of bigger channels use the second strategy of just have different static pictures of themselves they put on the thumbnails with different text to fit each video. But, do you guys like that? Before I go in and update all of these thumbnails just kind of wanted some input. I keep going back and forth with it.
 

Courtney Candice

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I see a lot of bigger YouTubers I’m subscribed to us screenshots from their videos and use that as a thumbnail.
 

Conso1727

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If you can, you may do a bit of number 1 and a bit of number 2:
Take a screenshot from the video, crop yourself and put it into a background that fits (channel banner, or maybe even the cover of the album the song is from) and then the title over it. Otherwise, I'd go with Number 2, with a wise background choice and making sure you cycle through many images of you for different videos.