Helping families capture their loved one’s life stories can be bittersweet. Like this note I got from Liz a few weeks ago:
Five years ago, Liz recorded her grandmother’s stories – when she was turning 104! She came to me because she had great audio soundbites, but it wasn’t an organized story that someone could follow. She also had many great photos. Could we make it into a memorable legacy video to show at her 104th birthday party? Of course, we were happy to.
I’m always thrilled when anyone takes any steps to capture the story of a loved one.
In a few weeks, you will likely gather with relatives for Thanksgiving. Now could be the perfect time to think about whose stories still need to be captured and how you can do that. Below is a list of items that go along with the amazing tool that most of us have – a smartphone.
Lavaliere microphone – If you buy only one thing, buy this. The audio from your phone is not typically strong enough to cut through a noisy environment or a low talker. Having a separate microphone will make this tool invaluable to hear what’s being said.
Phone tripod – If you’re recording video, a phone tripod will make your life so much easier to get a great shot and not have to worry about holding your phone.
Storage – Pay attention to the amount of storage you have on your phone, and consider using a cloud service to store your files so you don’t run out of space. (Dropbox & Google Drive are both good options)
Questions – I recommend gathering a list of questions from your curiosity and other family members, but if you get stumped on what to ask, check out this list of questions from StoryCorps.
Whether you record on video – or just audio as Liz did – the lasting benefits for you and your whole family will be enormous.
Stuck on how to get started? Contact us today to help you make it happen.
One Response
So true. Do this now. We spoke often of videotaping our grandmother cooking and storytelling etc and of course we never did (pre iPhone but still). Good news is there’s always other relatives to honor and cherish! So record them now!