Making technical subjects easier to learn.
Creating clear, approachable training content for complex software and technical audiences.
Role: Research · Instructional Design · Screen Capture · Motion Graphics · Editing · Sound Design
Written and presented by Terry Orchard
Intro to Node-RED
A three-part video series designed to help automation professionals get started with Node-RED.
Node-RED is a powerful visual programming tool, but it was unfamiliar to many Opto 22 customers. The goal of this series was to introduce the software in a way that felt approachable to people who were already comfortable with industrial automation, but new to Node-RED.
Part 1 — 774K+ views
Part 2 — 262K+ views
Part 3 — 197K+ views
1.2M+ views across the series
Teach.
The challenge was to take a powerful but unfamiliar software tool and make it approachable without oversimplifying it. Each lesson breaks the subject into manageable steps, using screen capture, visual examples, motion graphics, and straightforward language to guide the viewer through the process.
Rather than simply documenting how the software works, I focused on how someone actually learns it. I looked at what needed to be explained first, what can wait, and where a beginner is most likely to get stuck.
I researched the subject, developed the instructional approach, wrote the scripts, created the visual structure, recorded the software demonstrations, and edited the finished videos. (I even starred in it.)
Role: Research · Instructional Design · Screen Capture · Motion Graphics · Editing · Sound Design
Written and presented by Terry Orchard
Reach.
This series became one of Opto 22's most successful educational video projects. The goal was to make the material feel less like a technical manual and more like having someone knowledgeable walk you through the software.
A growing audience.
In April 2014, when I joined Opto 22, the channel had 295 subscribers and 59,904 lifetime views. By 2026, it had grown to 31.3K+ subscribers and 3.81M+ lifetime views. I produced the vast majority of the channel's video content during that period.
300+ videos · 31.3K+ subscribers · 3.81M+ views
(While serving as Director of Multimedia.)
paul@orangepantsstudio.com