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Tips For Shooting Better-Looking Home Video
Want to take your home videos to the next level? Then just remember this simple piece of advice: the finished video is only as good as the original footage you shoot. If the quality of your raw footage is poor, then no amount of editing is going to make it look better. To help you capture more captivating and compelling footage, try keeping the following shooting tips in mind.
| 1. Eliminate shaky/jiggly footage. |
"Jiggly" may be good for jello, but it's bad for video. Avoid the annoying camera motion that gives home video a bad name by trying one or more of the following:
(a) Hold the camcorder with both hands and pan slowly. You can make your body into a human tripod by resting your elbows against your sides to lessen camera shake.
(b) Lean your camcorder against a tabletop, a car, or a railing while you shoot, letting that surface do what a tripod normally does.
(c) Invest in a simple tripod or monopod. Even if your camcorder has image-stabilization features, they can't compare to the physical stability of a tripod. back to top |
| 2. Shoot under good lighting whenever possible. |
| The better the lighting of your original footage, the better your video will look. Avoid "backlighting" or shooting into a light source - have the light source behind you instead. If you shoot people indoors against an open window, your camera will automatically compensate for the bright light outside. The result is that you get silhouettes instead of faces. Not good. back to top |
| 3. Compose your shots using the "Rule of Thirds". |
| Imagine a tic-tac-toe board overlaid on your viewfinder. The lines intersect in four spots. You should try to frame the action and position your subject using one or more of these spots. back to top |
| 4. Shoot from a variety of angles, perspectives, and points of view. |
| To capture more interesting footage, mix up your shots. Shoot from above, shoot from down low; move in for a close-up, get a wide angle from afar. Add the occasional pan or slow zoom (go easy on the zoom please). You're limited only by your imagination. Be creative. back to top |
| 5. Hold shots for at least 10 seconds. |
| Limit camera movement by letting the action you're shooting do the moving. Remember, you're not taking a snapshot. back to top |
| 6. Zoom with your feet. |
| When taking close-ups, stand closer to your subject. Or, if you can't get too close, zoom in so that their face or smile fills your camera's frame. (In most cases, zoom in close BEFORE you hit record, and you'll get better shots.) Keep your camera as still as possible when you're zoomed in, as any shakiness will become magnified and distractingly obvious. back to top |
| 7. Get "establishing" shots. |
| Make sure to take a couple of "establishing" or wide shots to tell people where they are, then move in closer for some medium shots and finally shoot close-up shots of people and action. Pick shots that will help tell the story visually. back to top |
| 8. Don't forget the "B-roll" footage. |
| "A-roll" is the primary action/main focus of your movie. "B-roll" is supplemental footage, the extra stuff you shoot to fill in gaps, transition a scene, or illustrate something that's being described in A-roll. When the time comes to edit, we can sprinkle these shots throughout the movie, giving it some visual diversity and making it much more interesting to watch. back to top |
| 9. Resist the urge to use built-in special effects. |
| Today's digital camcorders offer a veritable plethora of special effects, everything from sepia to slo-mo to letterboxing. These can be fun to play around with, but when the time comes to shoot your scene, don't use them. There's no way to undo them, and they'll only ruin your original footage. Got it? back to top |
| 10. Turn off the time/date stamp. |
| Enough said. back to top |
| 11. (Kids) When shooting video of kids, get down to their level. |
| Keep your camera eye-level with small children to avoid filming the tops of their heads. Another added benefit of getting down low is that you will also get their little voices better. back to top |
| 12. (Weddings) When shooting weddings, shoot lots. |
| Remember, this day will never come again. It's much easier to edit down your master tapes than to lengthen them. back to top |
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