presentation techniques

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We've looked at how to go about asking for permission to make an instructional origami video, how to prepare yourself for recording the raw material, and then what to watch out for while recording. In this next installment of my comprehensive guide to making origami video tutorials we'll bring it all together by editing the material to get the final video. As before, these are recommendations that I have come to work by through my experience of making origami videos. You may well prefer going about this differently in some aspects, or totally differently. One might imagine recording a video such that no further editing is necessary whatsoever. However, I believe this is extremely hard to accomplish while getting a final video of similar quality. So the advice given in this article should prove useful for both video creators and those interested in the process.

Programs Used

Up to this point not a lot of software was involved in the process of making a video. But for editing, some programs will be necessary. In the different steps I execute to finish my edited video, different programs will come into play, and I will mention them as we go along. To give you an overview, though here is a list of the programs I currently use.

MPEG streamclip (free, for Mac and Windows)

This is a video converter, which allows me to convert MPGs, the format in which my video camera records, to AVIs, which I can edit more easily. Similar other programs exist, but this free one has actually worked really well for me.

Final Cut Express (successor Final Cut Pro X priced at approx. 300 USD, Mac only)

This is the main program I use for editing the video material. The main features I need are being able to cut and remove parts of the video, as well as add text and imagery to the video. I used a couple of other programs before this, and must say that Final Cut Express is vastly superior to all of them. This program is actually the reason I bought a Mac and started working on MacOS for my videos.

Gimp (free, cross-platform)

For editing images, I use Gimp, a free, yet quite powerful image editor. Many other programs will have the features you probably want to use for adjusting your pictures. If you already have such a program, it's probably best to stick to what you know.

Inkscape (free, cross-platform)

Inkscape is a free, vector-graphics program. I use it to draw diagrams or to post-process diagrams others have created. Similar, commercial programs include Macromedia FreeHand (although this is not being updated anymore) and Adobe Illustrator.

I didn't start with this set of programs, but found them to be most useful as I developed and streamlined my editing process. So every time I changed a program, it helped me edit my videos faster and more easily. Hence the most recent list will probably also be most helpful to you.

Now, let's see how these programs come into play!

Step 1: File Formats Matter

A sample view of the settings I apply when converting my raw MPG videos to AVIs

Videos can be stored in different formats. These will have an effect on file size and image quality, and your choice might be affected by which formats your video editing program handles best. For example, my video camera records videos in MPG format, as do many other video cameras. However, my video editing program needs to pre-process that file format, which takes considerable time. Additionally, whenever I edit the video (e.g. cropping a part out), that pre-processing work has to be done again. This means editing the video can get very slow, and not enjoyable at all. Additionally, and far worse, audio playback doesn't work, either, as the audio is encoded in a way that my program doesn't seem to be able to read it. As we'll see later cutting at the right point not just in the video, but also in the audio track is very important, though.

However, I did find that my program does not need to pre-process AVI files. And when I convert my video from MPEG to AVI, I can also specify how the audio track shall be encoded. By storing it in an uncompressed way, with the help of MPEG Streamclip I get all my raw video material in a format that will allow me to quickly and conveniently edit it.

This does come at a cost. The resulting AVI file is considerably larger, and the image quality is slightly lower. For example, for the Crooked Witch video I recorded a 605MB MPG, which I then converted to a 5.98GB AVI. So the AVI file is ten times as large as the MPG file. It's a tradeoff I'm more than willing to make, as it eases my flow a lot. Additionally, when I render the final video, I further reduce the quality (for YouTube), which means that the initial loss of quality doesn't really make a difference at all.

I recommend anyone who wants to edit videos to explore the program they will be using and figure out which file formats it supports, and which ones are easiest to work with. Converting to those file formats can save you much time and pain in the next step: cutting the material.

Step 2: Cut Rigorously

Throughout the editing process I cut the video often.

I don't know about you, but when I record - and I've done quite a bit of it - I don't get everything right the first time round. Sometimes I mispronounce a word, need to cough, the church bells ring, or I simply take a break to think about how to express what to do next best. And I often draw in crease lines to make them more visible in the video.

The truth is that all of that material is unnecessary for the viewer. Even more, it's actually distracting and so it's best to get rid of all the evidence that you fumbled and stumbled here and there. Or that you don't actually have magic paper, but that it's just a matter of cutting smartly.

This means that when viewing your raw material consider which parts are acceptable to remove. My general rule of thumb here is: If something does not add value, remove it. Cut the video into three parts, where the middle part only includes material you want to remove. Then delete that middle part, and continue scrutinizing the rest of the video. I do this often. To give you a general sense, I record approximately twice as much material as the final video will have. This means I'll remove half the material via many cuts throughout the video.

But what material do I most commonly remove? Here are my top three:

Longer pauses

I don't script my videos, and usually don't plan ahead in detail how I will explain each step. This means that while recording the videos I regularly take a quick break and think about what the next step is and how to best demonstrate it.

I know I'll need these breaks, so while recording I'll try and make sure that editing out these breaks is as easy as possible. Mostly, this means I try to keep my hands and the model as still as possible. Once I remove the material, I don't really want it to be visible. Generally, a cut is not visible if the frame before the cut, and the frame after the cut look the same, or very similar.

Correspondingly, the cut will not be audible if the audio track before and after the cut are very similar. Usually the background noise will not change much throughout your recording, so this is easier to achieve than a smooth visual cut. But be aware that cutting while you speak is hard to get right, and if there's a temporary change in background noise, wait for it to pass. Common examples of a change in audio you'll want to completely cut out of your video are street noises, such as an ambulance driving by, church bells or a phone ringing, or simply people talking.

Magic paper

I'll reveal the secret. No, I don't have magic paper. The lines that appear on the paper when I crease it aren't the result of a cool pulp mix that results in paper perfect for educational purposes. Oh, how I wish that existed!

The truth of the matter is I make a crease, then unfold the step, draw in the crease line, refold the step, then unfold it again, and then continue with the next step. The trick is that I'll remove the part of the video in which I unfold the step, draw in the crease line, and refold the step. So as a result all you see is me folding a step, unfolding it, and showing a drawn in line exactly where I made the crease.

These kind of cuts are a bit harder to get right than removing pauses, because it's necessary to both move your hands and the model somewhat. But there are some tricks that do help to make even these cuts very smooth.

When there is lots of movement, two adjoining frames can differ more without it being perceived as a rough cut on playback.

Remember how I mentioned above that the smoothest cuts are achieved if the frames before and after the cut are almost the same? That was a simplified explanation. Not just those two frames matter. Basically, a cut will be smooth if removing a part of the video does not disrupt the flow of the sequence of frames before and after the cut. This means if you have lots of movement in the frames before and after a cut, then the tolerance for change at the cut is bigger. In other words, if the frames before the cut differed quite a bit, and the frames after the cut differ quite a bit, then having a bigger difference between the two frames before and after the cut won't be disruptive. But when do consecutive frames in a video differ a lot? When there's a lot of movement. So how does that help us with making smooth cuts? Basically, cut while there's a lot of movement. This obviously is exactly the opposite of what I said before. But actually, both are fine. Either cut when you can establish two very similar frames. Or cut when there's a lot of change happening in any case.

Now in my first example, it was easy to achieve two very similar looking frames. But because I need to move my hands to draw in a line, this is much harder. Sometimes it works, because I do try and place my hands in the same spot as before. But more often it's easier to cut where there's lots of movement. And the great thing is: there always is! Remember how I said I that the final result is me folding a step and then unfolding it to show the crease line? Well, unfolding a step is fast, and means a lot of movement. This is where I most often make my cuts. Now don't get me wrong. Having good placement of your hands, and not moving the model if at all possible is still important. But there's a bit more tolerance. And every little bit helps!

Mistakes

Finally, sometimes I simply don't get it right the first time round. The most common mistake I fix is actually right in the beginning of the video. When I start recording I usually need a minute or so to get into the zone, so to speak. In the beginning of the video I usually state the model of the name, the designer, what paper to use, and how large the resulting model will be. On average, I'll probably start three or four times until I actually feel like I started it sufficiently well, and proceed. So usually I'll chop off about a minute in the beginning, and after that I'm ok.

That's the easiest mistake to fix, because I haven't even added a crease to the paper yet. That's probably also why I'm totally ok with allowing myself those seconds of adjustment in the beginning. A bit harder to fix are mistakes where I show a step and find that I showed it badly. There are two ways to go here. Either unfold the step, and remove the material showing your first attempt. This has the disadvantage that placing your hands and the model in the same place again (for a smooth cut) is hard. And the paper will already have a crease that the viewer doesn't have in their model yet. Or live with the fact that you showed the step badly and simply show it again. This could be by unfolding the step and showing it again (without removing this material). Or you can show the step more nicely on a different part of the model. Thankfully, many steps need to be repeated on the other side!

Step 3: Adding Text and Imagery

A sample opening credit including the model name, designer, and diagrams source.

Once I'm done with cutting the video material as I deem appropriate, I start adding further content to the video. This usually includes a photo of a finished model, which I show in the beginning of the video, as well as text including the model of the name, the designer's name, and where applicable their website and a source for diagrams. Additionally, throughout the video I show the most basic information (model name, designer's name, my name) throughout the video in the top right corner.

Which kind of credits you show will probably also depend on what you agreed on with the designer of the model. Most designers will appreciate both being mentioned in the audio track, as well as having their name and model included as text in the video. This is also an advantage for the viewer. For example, it will make it easier for them to credit pictures correctly or search the web for further work by the same designer. After all, when you hear a name, you might not necessarily know how to spell it. This is especially true when the demonstrator mispronounces the name, which I'm sure I have done often enough.

But there's another reason why adding credits is important. The truth of the matter is, I don't know whether others will (without permission) copy my videos, edit them to their needs (e.g. replace the audio track), and reuse them. I cannot prevent it. If I come across a copy, I may be able to get it removed (and have done so in the past). But it's hard to keep track of where illegal copies might be offered online. So at least I can ensure that it's hard to hide who the real people to credit are. Namely, the designer of the model, and the person demonstrating it. This is important enough for me that I will give up some of the frame's space for credits throughout the video.

In the end of the video I usually show the picture of a finished model (as in the start) again. I believe that gives the video a nice story. It starts with what we want to produce, continue with how to proceed, and then ends with what we've actually produced and how it compares to the picture.

Finding the right placement in the timeline is important when adding diagrams.

On some more recent videos I've also started showing small diagrams in the top left corner. As the top right is already used by credits, the top left corner is usually unused. And I think showing diagrams can help clarify steps, and help viewers learn how to read diagrams.

Adding diagrams is a bit harder, because you have to first get the imagery of the diagrams, and then have to figure out where exactly to show them in the video. This means figuring out when the best time is to start showing a diagram step, and when to stop showing it again.

Another alternative I've seen is that people show the diagram in the full frame. This obviously makes a rough cut and interrupts the flow, but does have the advantage that you can show a bigger image of the step, rather than just a small one in the corner of the frame.

Either way, if you do decide to add diagrams, make sure to ask for permission for this, too. A designer may be comfortable with you showing how to fold their model, but not you also reusing diagrams they drew or others drew for them.

Step 4: Voice Overs and Background Music

You may be done now. Or have a big part of your work ahead of you.

In the previous sections I assumed that you are editing the audio track together with the video track. This is because I record the verbal instructions simultaneously with the video. I speak while I record.

But you may prefer recording the visual only, and then adding verbal instructions. If that's the case, at this point you'll want to add those verbal instructions. You'll have to experiment a bit with what you say to ensure that you have enough time to say it. This can be very challenging. I don't have a lot of practice with it, and have done a full voice-over for one video only. (Unfortunately, it's currently not available online.) But while it's a lot of work, I will say that it can result in very high-quality results. You can avoid any mispronunciations, grammatical mistakes, and strange sentence constructions. But it will be a lot of work. I've decided for myself that it's too much work, and there's a risk of the video getting less personal and relatable. However, there are other video creators that do go this path. For example, I believe Charles Santee (aka firstfold) often adds his audio tracks after recording.

Sometimes I add voiceovers, for example when I do multiple cuts within a small timeframe.

I sometimes do add voice-overs to small parts of a video. For example, I may have used a wrong word, edited in a way that cut through an inconvenient part in the audio track, or simply talked nonsense. In these cases I remove the audio track for a small part of the video, and record new audio for it. I haven't done this much, and have to admit that the audio is usually so different that you can easily detect I've added a voice-over. But the truth is, it's very hard to record an audio track that fits in - while using a different microphone and having a different level of background noise. Usually hours or a day will have passed since the initial recording when I add voice-overs.

Finally, you may not want to add verbal instructions at all. But you may want to add background music. I have to admit I'm not a big fan of this, because it doesn't add educational value, and music tastes differ greatly. But I know many people do like adding music, perhaps because it adds an emotional or relaxing atmosphere. In any case, if you want to add background music, this is also the time when you'll want to add it. Now that you know how long the video will be, it will probably also be easier to decide on which musical piece is most suitable. And of course asking for permission is in order again - or you use music that you are free to use for this purpose.

Step 5: Rendering the Video

We're almost there! Right now you probably have a file stored in the format of your video editing software. It probably consists of a couple of tracks - one for images, one for credits, one for video, one or two for audio. And each track probably has several chunks of material. For example, when continuously cutting the video to remove material, you created many shorter video snippets from the initial long one.

You will now want to convert these tracks and snippets of data into one video, which the viewer can view and listen to. And that's what's done when the program renders your video. Depending on the program you are using it might be called "render" or "export to" or perhaps even "save as". In either case, it's probably going to take a while for the program to complete this step. For me this is the time I usually desperately need sleep, so I'll start rendering and wake up to the program being done. Or almost done, at least. Rendering can take hours, depending on how much and what kind of editing you have done, how long the video is, what quality you want the video to be rendered in, etc.

Many programs will offer you a variety of settings to determine these factors. But because rendering an actual video project can take some time, I strongly advise you to explore the options on a short test project first. Once you have figured out a set of options that give you a final video you are happy with, use those same options on your actual project. There's nothing less frustrating than waiting six hours for your video to render to then realize that you simply aren't happy with the quality of the output. And once you know which options work, you can probably use them for all your projects!

Step 6: Sanity Checking

Don't forget to watch the final video and check whether further changes are necessary.

In the end of the previous section I actually already hinted at this one final step, which might not quite be the final one: doing a sanity check. Once the video has rendered, it's a good idea to watch the video and check that all is ok with it.

Are there any rough cuts in there that you need to fix? Are all images placed correctly? Did you perhaps forget to remove a part of the video, or worse, accidentally removed a part you did not want to remove? Or is there anything else you'd like to change before you share it with others?

If possible, it's also really valuable if someone else can watch the video at this point. By this I mean you don't make it available to your whole audience yet, but just to someone whose opinion you trust and appreciate. It's like asking a friend to proof-read something you wrote. You yourself may have become blind to some mistakes, but they see them right away.

I'll also be honest here, and say that with time my sanity checking has gotten more lazy in some ways, in others more thorough. How am I lazier than before? I don't always watch the full video anymore. Usually I look for hot spots - the beginning, areas where I added imagery, and the end. If those look ok, probably the rest is ok, too. And how have I gotten more thorough? I've started asking others to review the video. Often, this is my friend, Anna Kastlunger (thank you!), who also moderates one of the most frequented origami forums. And if the designer wants to, I offer them the option to view the video before I post it and suggest errors or improvements. Essentially, I give them a veto to say they do not want to have the video appear as is. Thankfully, this has never happened thus far, but I have changed some videos after I got feedback from my early viewers. This feedback is invaluable and I appreciate it a lot.

Of course, finding out that there's something you have to fix also means some extra work. It may be small changes, but it may also be a lot more work. For example, I have recorded parts of a video from scratch again, because I wasn't happy with how I'd presented it the first time round. And once I threw everything away and started anew completely. It's sometimes tough to make such a decision, because you'll have put considerable time into the video already. But it's good to remember that you do the work once (or twice), whereas the result will ideally be watched by many. And only a good video will be understandable and enjoyable for them. So if you have a hard decision to make with respect to whether to change something or not, consider not just what it means for you, but also for others. This includes, by the way, doing the designer's work justice.

Step 7: Now What?

With the video finished and done, two tasks remain to be done. The first concerns how including closed captions (aka subtitles) can add value to your video. And the second task is about how to make your video available to others, as well as announce it so they know of it. I'll give an example by outlining my procedure of uploading a video to YouTube and posting the news to the community. This will be featured in the next article.

My origami book shelf

There’s no doubt about it - I love origami books. The best way of exemplifying that is probably to mention that I own 95 origami books, plus some magazines and booklets. To put that into context, I’ve been into origami for 67 months now - which gives me an average of acquiring over one book a month.

I love origami books, because they can be so beautiful. For me it is about the diagrams, but also about supporting the creators, and having something to hold on to. At the same time I know that there are other media of sharing emerging. I must know. After all, I produce instructional videos myself, and have also posted some free diagrams online.

I do want designers to keep publishing books, though. Some might say the internet is the biggest risk, and that origami books might disappear because of it. I believe differently. Indeed, the internet can be a great place to promote your book and increase sales - rather than choking them. This article is all about some ideas on how you can promote origami books online. Most of the tips will be targeted at authors, but some of them can also be put into practice by origami enthusiasts who want to help with promoting their favorite creators.

Model Selection

A single fantastic model can already be a great selling point.

I don’t know about you, but I personally often buy a book because I am interested in one particular model. For example, in License To Fold it was all about the Eagle designed by Hung Cuong Nguyen. The book obviously also includes many other great models, but very often there’s that one model that makes me really want to buy the book. And when talking to other origami enthusiasts, I found out I’m not the only one for whom it’s like that.

But what is there to learn from this? If you are a designer and thinking of publishing a book, selecting the right models for the book is key. And the community can help you decide which models people are most excited about.

How to get that information? I’ll mention two ideas to get you started.

First of all, are you posting pictures online, e.g. on Flickr? If so, check which models get lots of complimentary comments, or are favorited often. These are great indicators that you should consider including the designs in your book. The same holds if you get queries for diagrams for a model. It’s probably the clearest signal for increased interest in a model - and thus it's a potential seller for your book.

Second, there’s no harm in asking the community directly for advice. For example, you could write an email to a mailing list, or post a question in a forum or on a social networking site. It’s been done before, too. For example, in an origami forum Nicolas Terry asked about models for his upcoming book around Vietnamese designers, and Brian Chan used Facebook.

Brian Chan publicly asking the community for favorites

It's also worth mentioning that by including the community while you are working on the book, you are getting them excited about it. Discussions start, and this in itself already promotes your book. So it's not just a tool for deciding which models to include, but also a great way of raising the community's pleasant anticipation of your upcoming work.

By the way, different people will probably have different models that really make them want to buy a book. And of course having several such models is a plus. Indeed, the more models I am really excited about, the likelier it is that I am going to recommend it to others. For example, if I'm asked about which origami book is my favorite - three books immediately pop into my mind: Origami Design Secrets by Robert J. Lang, because it exquisitely explains techniques and exemplifies them through models; Origami Essence by Roman Diaz, because I've fallen in love with so many models in the book; and Origami Tessellations by Eric Gjerde, because it got me started with tessellations.

Table of Contents

Some sites selling books allow you to have a sneak peek of the book. Left: origami-shop.com; Right: Amazon

Obviously the models included in a book are a big selling argument. Still, often it’s not clear what is actually in the book. So while it’s very basic, this is also a very important tip: inform others what to expect in the book.

Here are some ideas:

• Ensure that the sites that are selling your book online include a table of contents, or at the very least the number of models included. I am guessing that publishers will have a say in what the description used by book sellers will be. Thus you should be able to influence what they send. Some book selling sites also support the functionality of giving a sneak peek of the book, displaying some of its pages. Commonly these include the table of contents of the book. For example, origami-shop.com has this functionality, as well as more general sellers such as Amazon.

• 
  Table of Contents for "Works of Satoshi Kamiya 1995 - 2003" as presented by Origami House

  If you have a website yourself, do post the full table of contents, and, if at all possible, pictures of folded models. For example, Orgami House do a great job at this, including photos or drawings of all models included, as well as the designers’ names.

• 
  ODB entry for Origami Tessellations by Eric Gjerde

  You can also add your book to the Origami Database (ODB). By doing this, people searching for specific models may become more aware of your book.
• Finally, if you post a picture of a model included in a book, do add a reference to it. This can be as simple as adding the book’s title and author, or - if you want to be extra nice - a link to a site where you can also buy it.

By the way, with some of these tips every origami enthusiast can help. For example, you can add the table of contents and pictures of your folds to the Origami Database - I’ve done so for many books and models myself. And every time you post a picture of a new fold, do include the model name, the designer and where to find the diagrams.

Teasers

Truly, the table of contents aren’t always enough. For example, people may feel uncertain about whether their skill level is sufficient enough. Or if the diagramming style suits them. So adding extra information and reassuring a potential buyer can help lots.

My experience with complexity ratings has been that everyone has a slightly different sense of what’s simple, intermediate, or complex. So while these indicators are nice, having a real example is much more powerful.

One option is to specify which difficulty the models have, and give one example diagram. In this way, people can get to know your diagramming style, as well as a sense of what difficulty to expect in the book.

While I personally don’t worry too much about complexity, I do get contacted regularly with the question which book is suitable for someone's specific skill level. These queries are in some ways a cry for help in deciding which book to buy. And often when you are not certain about that, you'll simply not buy any book at all. Hence I do believe giving extra clarity helps a lot with selling books.

Reviews and Community Recommendations

Closely tied to the previous section, getting reviews for a book is also extremely valuable. In some ways, this is the online equivalent to word of mouth. And there are many flavors to it.

Start of Gilad Aharoni's review of "Origami Essence" by Roman Diaz

One of the best known people doing reviews is Gilad Aharoni, who has done many reviews. They usually include a short paragraph of the overall impression Gilad had, followed by a full table of contents for the book, and pictures where available. Also crucially important are the rankings he gives, e.g. which skill level it requires, whether the diagrams are clear, and what kind of diagramming style is used. He also gives some sources on where to buy the book.

Indeed, he does such a good job at this that before I buy I a book, I often first check whether he has reviewed it. I’d also thought about writing reviews myself, but lacking time I’ve decided to go the somewhat faster route of only linking to other sources. So on my website, I do have a list of books I own. And for each book I list the following:

• general data, such as ISBN, title, author, language, pages, models included,
• links to reviews, e.g. by Gilad Aharoni,
• links to table of contents, e.g. in the origami database,
• and links to shops where you can buy the book (surely often not a complete list)

I also link to images of models I folded from that book. And those images of course link back to the overview page of that book. While this is probably more than most of you origami enthusiasts might want to do, it is a somewhat more lightweight process than what Gilad is doing. And to reiterate, simply stating the model name, the designer, and the diagram source is already very valuable and a review in itself. If you add a comment on what you like about the model, just the better!

To give a third example, Ancella Simoes chose a route between what Gilad and myself are doing: She gives her overall impression of the book, as well as a source of where to buy that book. This is somewhat similar to what I did before I moved to the new format.

Some of the book reviews published with The Fold

And what better place to mention all the book reviews published with The Fold! Giving you all these examples is simply to show you that reviews can be done quite differently. But all of them have one great value: they give you an idea of what someone else thinks of the book.

Finally, there are many examples of where people mention which book a model is diagrammed in. Even though it may not be a full review, it is already a recommendation for the book. After all, you folded this beautiful model from the book mentioned! Now, if you are adding such data to your pictures already, great! You are helping to promote origami books, and ensure they will continue to be produced. If you’re not doing this so far, consider starting now. It’s a win-win for everyone, really. It’s little work for you, and helps you remember where to find the diagrams if you want to fold the model again. People who admire your picture will gain the sema benefit if they want to fold the model, too. And the designers will be happy about the extra sales you are encouraging.

Where to Buy

Did you notice how Gilad, Ancella and myself all mentioned in the reviews where to buy the book? It’s actually very important. One of the great things about the internet is that products get much more available throughout the world. While shipping costs may vary and sometimes can be quite restrictive, it is a great improvement over previously not being able to acquire some books at all in most countries.

Now if you want to promote the sales of a book, it’s good to help people out with where to buy that book. It’s one fewer web search they have to do, and thus removing one hurdle on the way to buying your book. So adding a link helps a lot. This is especially true if you are announcing your new book.

Book Announcements

Eric Gjerde showing off the first copy of his book "Origami Tessellations"

Of course, you will want to announce your new book, and to the right audience.

This already hints at the first way of announcing a book: sending an email to an origami mailing list. There are various lists out there, often one or more for each country with an active origami community. However, I believe one of the largest origami lists is the o-list, so if you don’t know which list to join, this might be a good starting point.

Of course, you can - or indeed should - also announce your book if you have your own website. Share it on a social networking site, if you like. Or make people aware of the book on pages where you post pictures of your folds. For example, Flickr is surely one of the more used photo sharing sites with a strong origami community. And authors are definitely announcing - or perhaps simply sharing their excitement about - their newly published books. For example, Eric Gjerde posted a picture of him holding the first copy of his book Origami Tessellations, and many others simply posted a picture of the cover (e.g. Anna Kastlunger, Juan S. Landeta, Joshua Goutam).

And consider this: it's not just the author that may want to announce a book. If you helped with a book, or have just acquired a copy of a recently published book, why not share that? For example, you could send a quick review to your favorite mailing list, post a picture of your first fold, or record a quick video on how excited you are about the book.

Videos

Of course, this article cannot miss a reference to origami videos. After all, as I am told, I am known as the video person. I’ll give you three examples of how videos can be used to publicize a book and promote its sales.

First, let’s start with what I do. I make instructional videos, introducing how to fold a model. If the diagrams are found in a book, I add a reference to it in the video. I've also started showing that book in the video. Showing the book is somewhat different than mentioning it, I believe. For one, it shows I actually have the book. :) And second, it’s nice to see the book, not just a name or picture of it. In some ways, seeing the book in a video can make it more real.

From 2:35 to 3:45 I give a quick glimpse of Meenakshi Mukerji's book "Origami Inspirations"

I will also mention that very often after I introduce a model from a book I will get queries to demonstrate further models from that book. This is a good sign. It means people are excited about the book, and they want to fold further models from it. At the same time I know I have a responsibility. I do not want to compete with book sales, but rather promote them. Therefore I very clearly communicate that I won’t be demonstrating further models from the book - at least not until the book has been out for a bit longer. I give this answer without asking the author or designer what they think; it’s simply what I feel is the right way to go forward. Surprisingly, I’ve never had anyone question my decision or comment negatively on that agenda I’ve set myself. I believe they see sense in this constraint I set, or perhaps they know how stubborn I can be!

Laurence King Publishing is featuring video snippets on their website for Paul Jackson's new book "Folding Techniques for Designers".

The second example I want to give was actually done by the publisher, and is the first example I’ve seen of such a promotion. For Paul Jackson’s new book “Folding Techniques for Designers" the publisher posted a series of short videos giving a teaser for the different chapters of the book. What better way to give a sense of what the book is about, and the high-quality content to expect in the book and adjoining DVD!

Finally, the third example is from Peter Engel, who shot a promotional video for his new book Origami Odyssey with the help of his son. Nowadays most of us have some device that can record videos, so grasping that opportunity for extra promotion is something I totally recommend. And as you can see with Peter Engel’s video, you can also have fun with it!

Peter Engel's promotional video for his book "Origami Odyssey"

Making It Happen

I am aware that some of the tips I gave do not only depend on the author or designer of a book. I also have to admit I’ve never published a book myself. But I do believe that authors and designers can help getting these things to happen - even if only by talking to people.

This may require talking to the publisher, to the origami community, or to other designers with experience in making books more successful. Sometimes, it may also help to engage key personalities.

I don’t want this to be taken the wrong way, but suggesting someone write a review can help lots. For example, when you publish a book, you will probably be asked whom to send some complimentary copies to. While you probably want to send some to people that you appreciate and that helped you complete the book, you may also want to include people that would write a review for you, or to people who post pictures of your folds regularly. Or, yes, I’ll say it, someone who might promote the book with a video. Indeed, I felt very honored when Peter Engel contacted me asking whether I wanted to demonstrate a model from his new book to promote it. I was all for it, and felt so enthusiastic that I simply had to write a post on it. I was very glad to see that Peter appreciated the value of how I try to contribute and promote origami and the work done by designers out there.

And I’ll feel bad if I don’t mention here that Eric Gjerde was the first to give me a complimentary copy of an origami book, and he did mention that my pictures and videos (see some examples here) boosted the sales of his book Origami Tessellations.

Final Words

My final words in this article do have to be a great thanks to all the designers and authors, who have published books, or are planning to. I do hope that this article will help you promote your existing and future books better. And I hope your devoted followers can also take a chunk out of it, so that they too can help promote the awesome work you are doing.

Copy paper is cheap, it's available almost everywhere, and yet few consider it a "real" origami paper. We decided to review it not because of any special origami related properties, but simply because it's there! As such, it can be used as a benchmark with which to compare the other reviews and values of properties.

On a personal note: I got Harbin's book "Origami 1" in 1976 and back then no other paper types were available in my home town, or indeed in all of Israel! I had never seen kami or any other origami paper. The only paper I had was printer paper, so my whole origami collection was white as snow. For me it was the only origami paper for years.

Paper production

One of the drums used in the paper making process in Hadera Paper Mill, Israel

The process of making this paper is fundamental in understanding some of its properties. The pulp is ground, diluted with water, spread over a felt belt, pressed to drain the water, and then spread on a net to be dried and rolled. A more detailed description of this process is also published with The Fold, see The Making of Printer Paper.

Copy paper is made for office and home use. The main goal is to enable printing at high quality. Faxes, homework, and monthly reports all require the ink to seep into the paper just far enough. The ink should not blot, but we all want the printed letters to have sharp borders. Colors should stay true when printing pictures. In the USA alone 85 million tons of paper are used every year for this purpose. But is it worth folding?

Properties

1. Thickness: The most common weight is 80gsm. However, you can find a range of weights, starting from 50gsm and going beyond 120gsm. For our test we used the most common printer paper at 80gsm. Just like Tant, it's a medium thickness, not thin, not heavy. The actual thickness of the paper is 105 microns.

   
   A comparison of A4, letter, and legal paper sizes, also see the original image, which includes A0 down to A8

2. Sizes: A whole array of sizes is available, but very few (if any) squares. In the US and Canada the most common sizes available are legal, quarto, and letter. These sizes are based on an old British system. There is also an ANSI standard used in the US, which is based on the ISO standard, but which uses letter as its foundations. However, the most common sizes of printer paper are defined by ISO 216, with three main categories: A, B, and C. All have the same proportion of 1 by square root of 2. This ratio has the unique property that when cut or folded in half lengthwise, the halves also have the same aspect ratio. The most common sizes are A4 (210×297mm), A3 and A5. See the Wikipedia article on ISO 216 for more details. There are also many "non-standard" sizes available, including rolls of plotter paper 36 inches wide, or 70mm memo-block squares.
3. Colors: The most common shades are white and cream. Pastel shades and high luminenance colors are also widely available. The paper always has the same color on both sides.
4. Paper Coloring or Colorability: This is a good paper for coloring. The paper is made for printing, which is a way of coloring it. However, washing the whole page with colour may result in stains on the other side if applied a bit too generously. Since coloring involves wetting the paper, it behaves accordingly. It doesn't expand uniformly, ripples are formed and when it dries, the paper is far from being flat. There are methods for avoiding this, but that is an entirely different topic.
5. Texture: Smooth and bright white. During the production of this paper chalk (or a similar material) is added to make the surface as flat as possible. The fibres are very short. When looking at the paper while holding it against a light source you can notice the unevenness of the diluted spreading of fibres, just like a stained glass covered with dust. The transparency is quite high, since the paper is white and of medium thickness.
6. Aging and Wear and Tear: it's all about the lignin, a natural ingredient from the wood. If the paper is acid free, it means all of the lignin was washed out. If some is still there, oxygenating will cause it to get brownish. You may have seen this effect on older newspapers. With high quality paper the discoloring will only become visible after a few years. For normal quality printer paper, aging is not a strong point. After a year or two, the paper tends to lose its dexterity and become stiff and its brightness is dimmed.
7. Memory: Good. You make a crease and it is immediately visible to eye and touch. Fold a valley fold and let the paper free, it will bounce back a bit, but will remember the new position. 7 out of 10.
8. Forgiveness: Reversing a fold is very easy, almost effortless. Folding a mountain fold weakens the paper so much, it hardly resists valley-folding it. The score here is 9 out of 10.
9. Tensile Strength: Tensile strength is the maximum stress the paper can undergo while being stretched or pulled. This is not a strong paper. It took 8 creases to get ripples and 31 to tear it. It's actually the weakest paper we have tested so far. While strengthening a crease with your finger nails, you can almost feel the paper perish. Having had free access to a Quality Assurance laboratory in a paper mill, I managed to measure the true strength of the paper - it takes 7 Kg to tear this paper along the fibers, and 2.9kg to tear it perpendicular to the fibers. In the process, the paper expands by 2%, and 4% respectively. A piece of 20cm was stretched by 3.67mm before being torn. In comparison, Elephant Hide tore at 15kg along the fibers, and at 7kg perpendicular to the fibers. In the process it expanded by 3% and 8% respectively. We rate the strength of printer paper at 4 out of 10.

10. 
    The bending resistance of printer paper is too weak.

    Bending Resistance: Bending resistance relates to the amount of force required to bend the paper. Although the PowerPuff unit curved surfaces seems smooth and strong, this paper is weak, and has little bending resistance. There is no real resistance to the touch and it is squashed too easily. 4 out of 10.
11. Photogenic: Taking a picture of a model made from white paper is a simple task. It's more about light and shadow, and you can always go to Black & White filter on Photoshop, which makes a wonderful effect. Make sure to do some light measuring on the model before photographing.
12. Where to buy: Everywhere! If you are looking for A4 or Letter, any office supply store will provide you with 500 sheet packs very cheaply.

Test results

Traditional use

Crane, 15×15cm

Simple paper works well with simple models.

The folding experience is good. The paper responds well; you get sharp points if you plan your steps in advance, making a bit of room while narrowing the tail and neck. Reversing the creases to make the petal fold for the wings requires little pressure, and the wings stand up.

Action model

Barking Dog, by Gadi Vishne, 15×15cm

This paper works well for simple action models, but it is too soft for complex ones. The dog works nicely, although after few pushes it won't go back all the way anymore.

Traditional Flapping Bird, 15×15cm

The Flapping Bird, which we test for the pull value of the paper, shows the weakness of the paper. It tears quite quickly, especially if given to a small child.

Traditional Jumping Frog, 15×15cm

The Frog jumps nicely and performs similar to the frog folded from Tant. For best results, do make sure the legs are folded against the grain (fiber direction).

Modular/Unit Origami

PowerPuff modular by Ilan Garibi. 30 units, 15×15cm

It is easy to fold many units - as long as you can find accurately precut squares.

Folding this model was easy. No real effort is needed, except for keeping the face of the unit clean from unwanted creases. The paper is simply too weak. During the folding the center of the paper got a crease line just by being pressed against the paper edge underneath it. The friction is good, and the connections hold firmly. The weight is relatively low, so the model easily keeps its shape under its own weight.

Icarus Cube by Dave Mitchell. 6 units, 10×10cm

The friction is high enough for units to hold together.

The paper remembers its creases quite well, but it is too soft. Its weak bending resistance makes it unsuitable for big units. On the bright side, the friction is high enough to hold this model together.

Tessellation

Pineapple tessellation by Ilan Garibi, 30×30cm

Folding the grid is easy - unlike collapsing the crease pattern!

Folding a grid is an easy task here, very little pressure is needed to crease and reverse the it. Collapsing is harder, since the paper is too soft and does not jump into place. This results in a lot of unnecessary crimps.

Mystery tessellation by Ilan Garibi, 30×30cm

Light penetrates the paper easily.

When folding this tessellation I have to change several folds to create the somewhat twisted looking connection between the pyramids. This requires a lot of forgiveness and flexibility from the paper. The flexibility of printer paper is high, but due to the weakness of the paper the surface is distorted. So the result not nearly as clean as folded from Elephant Hide, for example. When back-lighting the model, you can see an effect, of course, but with white shades only it's a bit dull.

Complex

Pegasus by Satoshi Kamiya, 25×25cm

Printer paper is not made for complex models!

Don't use this paper for complex models. It tears easily and can't hold any shaping of the object. The paper surface fades when you mess with it. And when folding complex models, you have to mess with the paper.

3D models

Rat by Joisel, 25×25cm

3D models don't work well with printer paper.

Joisel's Rat covers most of the paper disadvantages. It was awful to fold, but still the result looks good.

Fox Terrier by Francisco Javier Caboblanco, 20×20cm

Printer paper isn't made for wet folding.

Wet folding is NOT recommended with this paper. Although using an almost dry sponge, the paper sucked all the water and became too soggy, unmanageable and easily tore. When dry, the surface rippled and the edge of the paper showed tiny fibres sticking out. As it has its own flexibility and memory when dry, wet folding printer paper is an unnecessary and unsuccessful experience.

Final verdict

We have a saying in Israel: "In the desert, even a thistle may be considered a lovely flower."

For traditional and simple models printer paper is good. It's the right weight and for undemanding models it delivers. This applies less for action models, which requires a strength and mobility that printer paper doesn't have. For tessellations it is not recommended; it can be done, but the final model won't have great appeal. The model will have a lot of unwanted creases and will age and fade relatively quickly. For 3D models it's barely OK; there's no need to wet fold to achieve desired shaping or volume to the final model. For complex models it is too weak and definitely not recommended. If you find a memo pack that is cut to an accurate square (which is rare), it works well for modulars, but otherwise, cutting A4 to squares is too much work.

This paper is always available and usually cheap and this may be its best property. It being either as strong as some papers, nor as weak as others, it's an average paper.

Flickr Statistics

Searching for copy paper images on Flickr, I found around 700 images. The majority of these were modulars. About a quarter were tessellations, about 50 were 3D animals (mostly simple ones), and only one picture showed a complex model (a lion by Kamiya). Strangely, 95% used colored copy paper, rather than the ubiquitous white!

Bottom line: Draft paper.

Paper	Thickness (gsm)	Size	Color palette	Texture	Aging	Memory	Forgiveness	Tensile Strength	Bending Resistance	Final score
Elephant Hide	110	A4; 70cm×100cm	7 colors	smooth	Many years	10	7	10	10	9.5
Tant	78	7.5cm; 15cm; 30.5cm; 35cm; 110×80cm	100 colors	Mildly rough	Many years	9	8	6	5	8
Japanese Foil	50	various from 3cm up to 50cm squares	12 colors	smooth and shiny	Many years	10	4	5	6	7
Printer Paper	50-120 (80 tested)	A0-A7, B and C equivalents, ANSI. Many others	Mainly white, but many colors	smooth and dull	Few years	7	9	4	4	6

Please write your comments and feedback directly to us:
Ilan Garibi - garibiilan(at)gmail(dot)com
Gadi Vishne - gadi(at)vishne(dot)com