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Top Tips for Shooting Video
Top Tips for Shooting Video The greatest obstacles to producing a watchable home movie are the quality of the videography, including lighting, sound, and camera placement and movement, and the quality of the editing. Reel Edits will take care of the editing. Now all you have to do is shoot well. To produce a home movie that actually draws viewers in, your goal should be to tell a visual story. For better home videos, try to adhere to the following principles:
1. Video and Sound Equipment:
Of course, the better your camera, the better your video will look. If you are shooting video with an older camera, consider upgrading to an HDV camcorder, which is surprisingly affordable. Keep in mind, however, that most consumer camcorders have built in microphones of very poor quality. External microphones can improve sound quality of any camcorder for very little cost (under $100).
2. Lighting:
All camcorders record better picture when subjects are well lit. The more light, the better the picture. Artistic considerations notwithstanding, a subject should generally be lit from its front, when possible.
3. Camera Operation:
Steady: An unstable image may give viewers motion sickness. The shaky camera work you see on popular television shows is achieved by experienced camera operators using sophisticated equipment. Don't try it at home! The more stable your image, the more watchable your home movie will be. A steady shot may take more concentration than you expect, but the effort is well worth it. Tilts and Pans: A tilt is a vertical camera movement (on a fixed axis) and a pan is a horizontal camera movement (on a fixed axis). Use tilts and pans to move the viewer’s attention from one object or action to another.
4. Coverage:
Remember that you want to tell a visual story. The so-called language of film is well developed and should be used to tell any visual story. In very basic terms, you should shoot to mimic how people experience life. For example, when people enter a new room, they first look around to get a general sense of the larger space, then they begin to focus on smaller areas of the space and finally on particular actions within that smaller space. In film theory terms, shots that mimic this instinctual interaction with the world around us are called "establishing shots" (or "wide shots"), "medium shots", and "close-ups". In addition, "cut aways" (close-up shots of various items or people not necessarily involved with the action that is the subject of a scene) are needed for smooth editing. For any action you may film, you should get at least one of each (the combination of all of these shots to record an action is called "coverage"). Coverage is a challenge. Shooting ample coverage is something that does not come naturally. It requires having a vision of what the final edited movie will look like as you shoot.
Buy this and read it:
How to Shoot a Movie and Video Story: The Technique of Pictorial Continuity (Paperback)
by Arthur L. Gaskill, David A. Englander
Next Article
Top Tips for Shooting Video
Top Tips for Shooting Video The greatest obstacles to producing a watchable home movie are the quality of the videography, including lighting, sound, and camera placement and movement, and the quality of the editing. Reel Edits will take care of the editing. Now all you have to do is shoot well. To produce a home movie that actually draws viewers in, your goal should be to tell a visual story. For better home videos, try to adhere to the following principles:
1. Video and Sound Equipment:
Of course, the better your camera, the better your video will look. If you are shooting video with an older camera, consider upgrading to an HDV camcorder, which is surprisingly affordable. Keep in mind, however, that most consumer camcorders have built in microphones of very poor quality. External microphones can improve sound quality of any camcorder for very little cost (under $100).
2. Lighting:
All camcorders record better picture when subjects are well lit. The more light, the better the picture. Artistic considerations notwithstanding, a subject should generally be lit from its front, when possible.
3. Camera Operation:
Steady: An unstable image may give viewers motion sickness. The shaky camera work you see on popular television shows is achieved by experienced camera operators using sophisticated equipment. Don't try it at home! The more stable your image, the more watchable your home movie will be. A steady shot may take more concentration than you expect, but the effort is well worth it. Tilts and Pans: A tilt is a vertical camera movement (on a fixed axis) and a pan is a horizontal camera movement (on a fixed axis). Use tilts and pans to move the viewer’s attention from one object or action to another.
4. Coverage:
Remember that you want to tell a visual story. The so-called language of film is well developed and should be used to tell any visual story. In very basic terms, you should shoot to mimic how people experience life. For example, when people enter a new room, they first look around to get a general sense of the larger space, then they begin to focus on smaller areas of the space and finally on particular actions within that smaller space. In film theory terms, shots that mimic this instinctual interaction with the world around us are called "establishing shots" (or "wide shots"), "medium shots", and "close-ups". In addition, "cut aways" (close-up shots of various items or people not necessarily involved with the action that is the subject of a scene) are needed for smooth editing. For any action you may film, you should get at least one of each (the combination of all of these shots to record an action is called "coverage"). Coverage is a challenge. Shooting ample coverage is something that does not come naturally. It requires having a vision of what the final edited movie will look like as you shoot.
Buy this and read it:
How to Shoot a Movie and Video Story: The Technique of Pictorial Continuity (Paperback)
by Arthur L. Gaskill, David A. Englander
Next Article
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