7 Secrets To Shoot Video Like A Pro

A lot of us get inspired by movies to want to shoot great video with our video cameras – unfortunately there is a difference between want and being able to. Like photography, good videography requires a level of competence and artistic know-how. After all, there’s more to shooting great footage than pressing the record button.

For good or bad, I learned the hard way how to shoot professionally. I’m not promising you’ll get an oscar for your efforts but you’ll avoid giving viewers that amateur-I-can’t-hold-a-camera-steady look.

1. Be A Good Student

Just like any craft you need to know your tools. For example, if your filming your son’s baseball game you need to increase the shutter speed to ensure your image is free of motion blur. If your shooting from a distance and you’ve zoomed to bring the subject closer you’ll need to pay attention to the camera’s focus and switch it to manual to avoid focus drift. It really comes down to reading the manual and learning the tools. At first it may seem daunting but if you tackle one concept at a time and apply yourself by shooting it will make sense and it will become second nature. To simplify things, I recommend keeping a cheat sheet handy if necessary.

2. Stay Prepared

Think of videography like camping, you always need a survival kit.

- Bring plenty of spare batteries – you never know when you’ll need them.

- Extra blank tapes. The more quality footage you have the easier the editing process.

- A lens-cleaning cloth. You don’t want to be stuck in a situation where you have a smudge and you have nothing safe to clean your glass with. This a situation where post-production will not help.

- Bring a tripod. Steady shots go along way in preventing motion sickness. You’ll be surpised how much better your shots will look.

- A battery charger/power supply. Having the ability charge your batteries ensures minimal downtime and more content.

- Extension cords for long cable runs. You want to be prepared for the worst scenario. Often on jobs, I’ll bust out the cables if a local receptacle is not available.

- Duct tape, for taping down the extension cord so people don’t trip over it. You don’t want a lawsuit on your hands.

- Lighting gear, lens filters, and microphones, and any other accessories you may need. These are your tools to quality videography. Unless your feeling lazy, don’t leave home without them.

3. Say YES to a tripod

The majority of home videos end up looking shaky, which is a drag to watch. Even with a small investment of $30 on a tripod, your footage look will look professional and steady. Also, you’ll have the ability to execute pans and zooms without trouble.

No tripod? Lean against a wall to minimize shakiness. OK, no wall you say? Putt your butt on the ground, bend your knees, and drop your elbows on them.

If your shooting an event where space is limited or you’re on the constant go I recommend a monopod. These are a real lifesaver. Not only can you get rock steady shots, you occupy less space and can relocate in a matter of seconds.

4. Give me light

It doesn’t matter how good your camera is. If you have crappy lighting, it will reflect (no pun intended) in your video. A quick solution to overcome lighting issues is to shoot outdoors preferably in the morning or late afternoon hours. Why? At these times of the day the light is less harsh and produces a more pleasant softer look on the video – no shadows over the eyes, squinting, or washed out skin tones.

If you must shoot indoors take notice of which way the light is directed in the room. Avoid shooting your foreground subjects close to bright windows behind them. You don’t want your camera to expose for the background leaving your foreground subject dark. Certainly let as much light into the room as possible and try to have the light coming from behind you towards your subject. If the light levels are low, its good practice to disable autofocus or you will encounter problems as the camera attempts to focus properly.

5. Hi-Fi Audio

Many people don’t notice good sound but they sure notice bad sound. Getting good sound does take some work but its do-able. The microphones built into most cameras are pretty basic and are not considered high-end. When your dealing with an uncontrollable environment it’s always best to get as close as possible to the source as possible to ensure the cleanest recording. You must monitor your audio with headphones to ensure the best results.

6. Composition

Proper composition is everything when setting up a good shot. Professional videographers obey the “rule of thirds” and you should do the same. Imagine a tic-tac-toed board over your viewfinder. The lines interact in four spots. Your goal should be to frame the action using one or more of those spots.

Of course, art is subjective and you can break this rule if your feeling creative. But exercise restraint: you don’t want to alienate your audience.

7. Shoot B-Roll

B-Roll is secondary footage that is used for cutaway shots to connect your primary shot. The cutaway of b-roll footage can also be used to hide unflattering shots or mistakes you may have made while shooting. If your filming a wedding, you might take shots of the church, the invitation, and the little bride and groom atop the cake. When its time to cut your movie, you mix in the footage to cover up mistakes and add variety.

There are no hard rules. Anything can become B-Roll. If you study television shows or news stories you’ll see a constant use of B-Roll. It’s basically the glue to connect and link scenes together. As you gain experience you will be able to visualize your edit and what shots you need before you even shoot. As the old saying goes, practice makes perfect.

Video Production Equipment: The Director’s Cut

The Video Craze – Affordable Video Production Equipment

New technologies in video production equipment combined with the emergence of video—particularly digital video—as an acceptable medium for film has made it possible for almost anyone to become a film director virtually overnight. While the cost of film and film equipment is financially prohibitive, video production equipment is relatively inexpensive and can be mastered quite quickly. While there is a great deal more to the art of film that just having the right equipment, the accessibility of video production equipment has encouraged many amateur filmmakers to give it their best shot. Understanding the basics of video production equipment is the first step to becoming the next Steven Spielberg.

Filming Video Production Equipment

As you prepare to make a video film, it’s a good idea to take stock of your video production equipment required for filming to make sure you have everything that you need. Some common video production equipment products needed for creating a professional looking film include:

* Professional video cameras – From ENG cameras that are slightly larger than your average camcorder to Studio cameras that are connected via cable to dock recorders that do that actual taping, there are many levels of professional grade digital video cameras.

* Stabilization Equipment – Including simple tripods, shoulder mounts, camera dollies and high tech camera cranes, stabilization equipment ensures that the video production is smooth and not shaky. Additionally, stabilization video production equipment can help determine the type of camera shot that is available for a production.

* Film Quality Lighting – Beyond just lights, film quality lighting banks include grip lighting, reflectors, crate grids for lighting effects and scrims to control different aspects of light diffusion.

* Microphone/Audio System – While many video cameras contain a microphone to capture sounds, creating a professional quality video requires separate audio equipment including shotgun mics, audio mixers and pole audio devices.

Editing Video Production Equipment

Once you have your film on video, additional video production equipment is required for editing and finalizing a video into a complete entity. Using professional quality editing equipment can give your video the polished quality that separates it from home video or amateur productions. Typical video editing tools include:

* Video Editing Software – Unlike film, which much be edited manually, video can be edited right on your computer. Using professional video editing software, you can add transitions, trim scenes and put the whole project together seamlessly. Selecting the right video production equipment for editing is critical to the final quality of your video.

* Sound Mixing Equipment – A professional video will use sound mixing equipment to balance volume levels, add ambient noise and include a soundtrack to the video. Additionally, sound mixing can transform the standard video mono-audio into a heightened stereo experience.

* Video Duplication Equipment – Once you film is complete, video duplication equipment will be required for copying and distributing your film. Professional video production equipment will enable copies that maintain the sound and video quality of your master video.

Multi-Media Technologies Changing Lives For The Better

Multi-media technologies, are a meld of audio, video, and imaging software, used to capture, edit, store, and search, retrieve, transfer, distribute, and access information through multiple means. Hence – the term multimedia.

As these technologies become more advanced and versatile, they’ve enabled content creators to  design and facilitate the presentation of information to  new levels.

What about the audience? Today’s audience  is highly sophisticated, with a bigger  appetite for media experiences where fast motion, brilliant color, energy, textures, powerful sounds, and richer content are the order of the day, engaging their senses, and piquing  their interest.

The good news is, the use of multi-media technology has gone mainstream. There are many websites which offer free and cheap downloads of multimedia programs to give anyone from the budding filmmaker, teacher, the lawyer, CEO, marketing whiz, and to the homemaker the  ability to communicate their ideas, in vivid details, from the big picture to the tiniest details.

Indeed, these technologies permeate our daily existence. And makes it a fair question to ask. “Is there value to be found in using multimedia technologies?” Yes, and here’s why.

In today’s world, information has become the new currency, with many countries  scrabbling to move heavily into an information-based society. Technologies such as multi-media software, give an added advantage to it’s’ users, providing them the tools to clearly convey ideas and thus, produce valuable content. That gives them premium importance.

Nevertheless, it may surprise you to know that not only has multimedia technologies revolutionized the way we live, work, create, but it has spawned new industries and killed old ones.

For instance, in the work place, these technologies provide office workers the means to communicate, and collaborate, with colleagues on the other side of the planet, from  different time zones, through desktop video conferencing, shared workspace, and multimedia messaging. Companies in fact,  purchase multi- media technologies, to provide the employees the ability to create, edit graphics audio and video files, and use these to create presentations, and other work related products.
For one’s entertainment needs, there’s a choice between movies or videos on demand, and pay-per-view, among others. In this instance, multi-media technologies give the consumer the freedom to select what she, or he wants to watch.
For audiophiles, there are many free and cheap software programs, which provide  the users the freedom to select the file format, how it will be recorded, and where it will be stored. All you’ll need is  a high bandwidth, and the pc equipment to record and capture the audio.
For serious gamer’s multi-media software have created stimulating new games, better quality special effects, richer playing environments, betting/gambling software, multiplayer games, and polling. These technological tools, have accelerated the growth of the video game industry, and  expanded research for better computer graphics, simulation, modeling, and artificial intelligence.

Even if you were not a serious gamer, you would greatly appreciate the ability to download interactive video  games, while you’re in your pajamas, in the privacy of your home.

Advertising has become intuitive, for as the differences between television and the internet continue to blur, advertisers have turned to interactive infomercials, to get consumers to buy. These tools allow advertisers to track the users’ preferences and create an infomercial especially suited to the users’ needs. Another nifty product is the virtual catalogue, where the customer can inspect the products before purchasing them, in the privacy of their home.

The use of multimedia technologies for home shopping, banking and financial transactions, telephony, medical advice, restaurant or hotel guides, is a commonplace  activity for consumers.

Even the way we learn and package information from books, magazines, atlases, and newspapers has improved. One brilliant example is the educational CD Rom. Think about the fact that an entire 32-volume Encyclopaedia Britannica book set can be compressed into two cds.

In retrospect, one can see the world has benefited immensely with the use of multi-media technologies. It has brought humanity closer by making distance a non-issue,   freedom of choice a reality and the conveyance of ideas, more precise.

American Film Schools

American film schools have a rich history dating back to the 1970s, when there was little chance to get film education. The only option to gain knowledge was to go to Hollywood at a young age and work along with people in the industry. By the 1970s, many major universities began to offer classes in film technology. Over the years, many film schools have opened with numerous educational programs that provide actual industry experience along with education.

American film schools are accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) and the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST). The schools are commonly departments of universities, divisions of colleges or separate schools. There are some privately owned film schools as well that are not connected to American universities. Most of the schools provide undergraduate and graduate degree programs and some have graduate programs only. Various techniques involved in movie making, including film production, film theory and screen writing are taught. Hands-on practical knowledge and intern programs are included as part of studies.

Some schools are considered top in the nation. New York Film Academy, Los Angeles Film School, USA Film School, San Francisco School of Digital Filmmaking, and FSU Film School are among them. These schools are located in prime areas of cities including New York and Los Angeles, and provide better education and have good infrastructure. But studying in these schools is quite expensive.

Founded in 1929, The University of Southern California’s School of Cinema-Television is the oldest film school in the nation. Some  other good schools are the American Film Institute (AFI), California Institute of the Arts, Columbia University School of the Arts, The North Carolina School of the Arts, and the schools at New York University (NYU), University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and University of Texas at Austin.

Film Schools

Film Schools are educational institutions that impart teaching that is necessary for entering the film industry. The schooling provided is sometimes referred to as ‘the artist’s MBA,’ as they encourage the creativity of the students and skillfully it. With its beginnings in the early 1970s, film schools have now grown to a great extent with an increasing number of schools as well as courses.

The schools provide bachelor, doctoral degree and certificate programs, along with hands-on practical knowledge. Professional film making and production techniques are included in the curriculum. The areas of specialization includes producing, directing, sound and production design, cinematography, screenwriting, editing, acting for film and filmmaking. These schools are the best options for those who wish to start a career in the film industry.

Traditionally, film schools are classified into three types — independent, industry and experimental. The independent schools provide better choices for those students who want to raise funds independent of the Hollywood system. Here, students are taught to focus on the fundamentals of filmmaking. In the industry type, training helps the students cope with the standards and structure of the Hollywood film industry. The final type concentrates on teaching the art of filmmaking, and goes on to encourage students to explore their individual creativity and experimental potential in order to produce unique representations.

Film schools vary from university departments to degree specific schools and online programs. Schools can either be private or public. The government does not usually offer any loans and grants for the students. As a result, studying cost is high in private institutions. Some of the prominent schools in the nation are American Film Institute (AFI), California Institute of the Arts, Columbia University School of the Arts, The North Carolina School of the Arts, and the schools at New York University (NYU), University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), University of Southern California (USC), and University of Texas at Austin.

What Digital Camera Terms Should I Know?

It helps when learning to use your new digital camera to also know what some of the more common terms mean.  Below you will find many of these common terms defined.

Automatic Mode — A setting that sets the focus, exposure and white-balance automatically.

Burst Mode or Continuous Capture Mode — a series of pictures taken one after another at quickly timed intervals with one press of the shutter button.

Compression — The process of compacting digital data, images and text by deleting selected information.

Digital Zoom — Cropping and magnifying the center part of an image.
JPEG — The predominant format used for image compression in digital cameras
Lag Time — The pause between the time the shutter button is pressed and when the camera actually captures the image

LCD — (Liquid-Crystal Display) is a small screen on a digital camera for viewing images.

Lens — A circular and transparent glass or plastic piece that has the function of collecting light and focusing it on the sensor to capture the image.

Megabyte — (MB) Measures 1024 Kilobytes, and refers to the amount of information in a file, or how much information can be contained on a Memory Card, Hard Drive or Disk.

Pixels — Tiny units of color that make up digital pictures. Pixels also measure digital resolution. One million pixels
adds up to one mega-pixel.

RGB — Refers to Red, Green, Blue colors used on computers to create all other colors.

Resolution — Camera resolution describes the number of pixels used to create the image, which determines the amount of detail a camera can capture. The more pixels a camera has, the more detail it can register and the larger the picture can be printed.

Storage Card — The removable storage device which holds images taken with the camera, comparable to film, but much smaller. Also called a digital camera memory card.

Viewfinder — The optical “window” to look through to compose the scene.
White Balance — White balancing adjusts the camera to compensate for the type of light (daylight, fluorescent, incandescent, etc.,) or lighting conditions in the scene so it will look normal to the human eye.