My YouTube journey and wanting to vlog more

I’ve created 141 vlogs on YouTube. I’ve let my channel die multiple times. It took one of my early inspirations returning to the platform and a weekend trip to see some cherry blossoms to rekindle my love and appreciation for vlogging.

It's cherry blossom season in the Pacific Northwest. I finally had the opportunity to see the stunning cherry blossoms at the University of Washington this year. It's a popular destination in Seattle in March, but I'd never made it there before. The thought of driving up to the city and finding parking always brought out anxiety and stress. Now, with UW being just a stop away on the Link light rail, I had no excuse.

The trees were absolutely beautiful. It was quite crowded, but honestly not as much as I had expected. I probably should have gone super early in the morning to beat the crowds. Why? Because I brought my camera along.

Photography and videography are great motivators to get out and explore. I've vlogged on and off over the past 10 years, but I stopped posting as often on YouTube in 2021, and I've tried to restart a few times. I miss the way creating videos pushed me to get out and explore while being creative.

In this blog post, I’d like to share my entire YouTube journey and how I’m planning to approach creating on the platform going forward.

Vlogging used to be popular

For a while, YouTube was all about vlogging. People followed creators because of the connection and storytelling. Now, everything is all about short-form content, viral trends, and doing whatever it takes to capture an audience’s attention in a few seconds.

I rarely consume short-form content. I know that makes me odd, especially as a Gen Zer. I’m perfectly content watching a 20-minute to 1-hour YouTube video about something that interests me. I used to watch vloggers almost exclusively from 2014 to 2020. I want to connect with the creator I’m watching, to learn from them, and to experience life through their camera.

Creators like Casey Neistat, Jesse and Jeana from what was then BF vs. GF, Sawyer Hartman, Andrew T. Kearns, Cody Wanner, Erik Van Conover, FunForLouis, and so many others inspired me to keep creating my own videos and document my life.

However, changing viewership ultimately led to the demise of the vlogging genre in favor of short-form videos, reaction videos, and more scripted content. 

I’ve longed for the return of vlogging to the mainstream. While it doesn’t seem to be occurring just yet, I believe the pendulum is swinging back to authenticity thanks to the rise of AI-generated content. People want to connect with others, and I think vlogging is a way to do so in our overproduced world.

My YouTube journey and how I started vlogging

I started my YouTube channel in 2015. Back then, it was called Freak Shack, and my brother and I planned to create short skits and mini-movies. We had tried to start a channel for years, but had never gotten around to posting a video. But we had filmed some stuff in 2013 and 2014, such as our Hunt for the Emo video.

We intended for Freak Shack to become a multi-channel media company of sorts, as we also started Freak Shack Gaming around the same time.

After watching many vlogs, I decided to start vlogging in early 2016 and posting videos on the Freak Shack channel. We started seeing some immediate success, getting dozens of views and subscribers right away. 

To create videos, I taught myself photography and video, including video editing. At the time, I used PowerDirector and my dad’s Nikon DSLR. I just tried things, seeing what worked and what didn’t work. At the same time, I was the online editor for my college newspaper, so I was also filming and editing videos there, which helped me learn very quickly.

Our videos had no story or themes. They were often very random, showing glimpses of our lives and our adventures. Those early videos were terrible.

By the end of 2016, my brother wasn’t as interested in the channel and making vlogs. So, I rebranded the channel under my name and started making whatever videos I wanted. I also upgraded to my own camera, a Canon 80D, and purchased an Adobe subscription with my student discount. I tried to vlog more and take inspiration from Casey Neistat, Jesse Wellens, and Sawyer Hartman, who were all daily vlogging around this time.

By the time 2017 started, I had 100 subscribers. I was regularly getting views on my videos, and I had a small group of loyal viewers. At the time, I really thought getting to 1,000 subscribers and beyond would be easy. I could build an audience like Casey. And so, that became my goal for much of 2017 and 2018: to create as much content as possible, get better at vlogging by practicing, and get lots of views while I was at it.

Of course, I never accomplished that level of success. Had I paid more attention to how Casey made his videos and focused on telling my own stories, maybe I would have done better. But I was nervous about creating videos and filming in public.

2017 also saw me start shifting toward narrative films and a movie-like storytelling rather than vlogging. I was heavily inspired by Giovanni Montalvo and the members of the short-lived Collective Iris. These videos were raw and emotional, and some of my favorites I’ve ever made. I considered pivoting to this type of content exclusively, but decided to keep vlogs as the channel’s primary format.

2018 saw me continue down the same path, though I’d lost much of my audience after moving to Utah making videos about living there. Seeing the decline in views on new videos, I tried to pivot to tutorials and content that I could drive search traffic to with SEO. It got me a ton of views very quickly, but at the expense of what I loved.

I started working full-time in 2019, which led me to create fewer videos. I briefly returned to regular content in 2020 after being laid off due to COVID-19, and my channel saw a resurgence in popularity, but after returning to work, I lost my momentum. 2021 is when my channel started to die. It never recovered despite attempts in 2022 and 2025.

I never gave up on YouTube or officially quit creating, but it stopped being my primary online outlet.

What I’ve learned from creating 141 vlogs

Looking back at my time on YouTube, I’ve learned a lot. Making videos has made me more confident on camera. It forced me to be creative and to get out and do something exciting. It helped me develop so many skills that I use professionally today.

But the thing I’ve realized lately, as I've started creating content again, is that the point of this channel originally was to get views. When my brother and I started it, it was, “Could we become popular on YouTube like we've seen so many other people do?” We had some good ideas. And I think that if we had committed back then, we probably would have been in a much better spot in terms of being popular on social media. 

I've tried for years to be relevant on social media, and it just doesn't seem to be for me. Creating is just an outlet. It's a way to be creative, try new things, learn new things, and be proud of what I'm creating. Regardless of how many people watch my videos, I want to start creating content that I'm proud of, that I'm learning from, and that’s pushing the envelope. And most of all, especially with the vlogging type stuff, it's like a diary. I can share my thoughts. I can share the places I'm exploring. And I do it while I'm doing photography most of the time. So, I'm creating and capturing the moment. It's like a time capsule. It's like a photo album where I can go back and watch my old videos. 

I used to think YouTube vlogging was about:

• Getting as many views as possible
• Becoming a popular creator
• Trying to become the best at the craft

Now, I believe vlogging is about:

• Documenting life
• Motivating myself to get out of my comfort zone and do something interesting
• Learning new skills
• Telling the stories that only I can tell

I want to improve my storytelling and video-making skills. So, I’m committing to restarting the vlog.

What’s next?

So, what’s next for me on YouTube? I want to tell stories that matter to me, and showcase parts of my life that are important. 

I want every video to mean something. I want videos to have a theme, whether that’s about personal identity, creativity, or lifestyle. This is a huge shift from the “here’s what I’m doing today” style of vlogging I’ve done in the past. The setting isn’t the story, yet that’s how I’ve approached videos in the past. 

I’d like to commit to weekly videos, but I’m not there yet. With the weather getting warmer, there are more opportunities to get outside, so I’m sure I’ll be motivated to create more than I have in the past. One big hurdle in years past was that I never lived somewhere where I could go out and make a quick, engaging video. This isn’t essential for a good vlog, but it’s how I’ve always wanted to approach them. Now, in Seattle, there are all sorts of activities, locations, and opportunities within walking distance.

I’m not just looking to document my life. I’m looking to turn my life and ideas into stories people see themselves in and can relate to. This mindset shift will make all the difference in wanting to create.

No AI tools or LLMs were used in the creation of this blog post. This blog post is 100% human generated.