DIY Transcribe Your Audio and Video Files

 

You could be putting your family history at risk if you’ve never shared the recorded stories or videos that you have stored in binders, backup drives, or closets. It’s even risky having old projects stored on print-on-demand websites without ever having ordered copies or sharing your account information with someone.

It’s easy for the family historians among us to forget just how much work you’ve actually done.

In our previous post, we discussed the reasons why you should transcribe your audio and video files. One of the biggest reasons is that it gives you options for creating other exciting family history projects. You can storyboard videos, create blogs, capture favorite expressions, or outline a book. The ideas are endless.

There are two key reasons why I like to transcribe files myself: 1.) In the relaxing quiet of listening, I brainstorm follow-up questions, and 2.), in the process, I think about either research (i.e. track down information about xyz.) or writing ideas.

How does one transcribe an audio or video project? 

The following are some simple explanations for how to transcribe an audio or video project like a professional, but do it in a way that will save you time and money on future projects. You will want to know exactly when in a recording something particular was said.

First keep in mind that if you haven’t transcribed before, this will require time and patience as you develop a cadence of listening and typing. There are software programs available to help. I’m not a fan of programs that automatically dictate from audio. I’ve hired transcriptionists in the past ,who used some programs and the returned work was a mess, forcing me to redo the entire project. Also, many just can’t keep pace with my New Jersey accent and the speed with which I talk.

There are three types of transcriptions: simple text, as-broadcast scripts and continuity scripts. 

Simple Text

A simple text transcription is just that. It’s a typed Word document that lists who is speaking and what they said. At the top of the file, there should be some set up information about location, the speakers’ full names, interviewer, full date of original recording, media type, length of audio/video file, location of the recording, transcriptionist, and digitization. It’s simple and easy to read. There may be some time stamps included that direct the interview along. It’s not second by second.

Example: 

[0:01:02.0]

Interviewer: When you were a child, how far away was your elementary school and what was your day like?

Mary: (Audio) Walking the mile to school, Elizabeth Avenue School, in the winter started in our laundry room where I dug through a basket of old mittens, hats and scarves, trying to find something to keep me warm.

I walked the two blocks to the park, wandered up a path next to my friend Jeff’s house, across the basketball courts and up the grass, which usually got my feet wet. By this point the howling wind from the adjacent highway was freezing me. Another long block away and I raced through the underpass – usually being barked at my a grouchy old crossing guard – passed an office building and along the parking lot to my school.

Interviewer: How long did that take?

Mary: 20-25 minutes. I did that walk from first grade through sixth.

[0:02:45.7]

As-Broadcast Scripts

As-broadcast transcriptions illustrate the technicalities of what is going on in a recording. They list the scene description, speakers, time code of when each speaker began speaking and ended, and the conversation. It also lists  sound effects, scene changes, or adjustments in how the recording was compiled. There are many options for formatting this type of transcription.

You can create a simple Word document with a table such as this:

This would be a good format if you were transcribing a business event, a reunion, or multiple speakers.  

Here is another way I create the same format in a simple Word document:

Oral history project: How education played a role in your life

[Recorded in the library of Elizabeth Avenue School]

[0:01:02.0]

Interviewer: When you were a child, how far away was your elementary school and what was your day like?

Mary: (Audio. Leafing through a children’s book called Cooking Is Fun) Walking the mile to school, Elizabeth Avenue School, in the winter started in our laundry room where I dug through a basket of old mittens, hats and scarves, trying to find something to keep me warm.

I walked the two blocks to the park, wandered up a path next to my friend Jeff’s house, across the basketball courts and up the grass, which usually got my feet wet. By this point the howling wind from the adjacent highway was freezing me. Another long block away and I raced through the underpass – usually being barked at my a grouchy old crossing guard – passed an office building and along the parking lot to my school.

[0:02:05.6]

Interviewer: How long did that take?

[0:02:08.1]

In these formats I will also include in ( parenthesis ) follow-up questions or research ideas. Sometimes I mark them in red (in either method shown), so they stand out.

Example:

(To do: Research the distance from Marcy Street to the kindergarten entrance in 1969 at Elizabeth Avenue School. What other markers were along Mary’s walking path. How many students attended the school? Average class size?)

(Follow-up: Who did you typically walk with to school? Did your parents ever drive you?)

Combined Continuity Scripts

In a personal history project, a combined continuity script is most needed  when you are transcribing family videos or complicated audio projects (think multiple relatives all talking at once). It expands on the other styles of transcriptions; gives more scene setting (what’s going on around the speakers); descriptions of sounds and the locations; gives second-by-second time stamps, and creates a subtitle list.

If you ever think about hiring a video editor to create a new project from your older recordings, this transcription will save you a ton of time and money. 

Once you’ve transcribed your recordings, carefully edit them for grammar and clarity. Create a separate list of follow-up questions and research notes. Finalize the files by making a pdf copy and printing them. This will keep your family history alive.

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