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SOUTH ESSEX FILM MAKERS
Shoot it long and steady
When shooting video footage keep the shots nice and long. They can always be shortened during editing later. And hold the camera as steady as possible, moving it really s-m-o-o-t-h-l-y if you are following the action. If possible, use a tripod to keep the camera stead. This is especially necessary when using the ‘tele’ end of the zoom range.
Separate wanted sound from the background.
Background noise is always more obtrusive during playback because the ears and brain are more clever than your camera! Compensate for this by getting your microphone as close to the wanted sound as possible, If shooting a person ‘talking to camera’ when using the in-built microphone, shoot with the lens in wide-angle and get as close as possible. If there’s background noise tell the subject to ‘speak up’
Shoot to edit!
When using your camera, think about how you will edit the footage. Always begin and end the shot with the camera still, or a zoom completed and stopped. Avoid ‘crossing the line’. That means if you are shooting a moving object that’s going left to right in the first shot, keep it moving left to right in the next shot. When filming someone talking, always listen out suitable points at which to to end the shot, at the end of complete sentences for example.
The alps are not 60cm wide!
When shooting a movie remember that it will on most occasions be viewed on a relatively small screen. Break up the scene into a series of shots. An overview long shot, then a series of closer views of points of importance, to bring small detail up nice and close on a small screen. Not everyone has a 42-inch Plasma screen, and even on that the close-ups have the impact. To really see the thought and emotion behind the face it should fill the screen.
Sound: an embellishment and not an embarrassment!
Having shot a film, it’s often the sound which get’s the bodge job. Film-making is an audio-visual medium and the audio bit is important. Sound recorded in-camera can be excellent but is often left almost as an inconsequential background at the editing stage. Just like the pictures it must be worked on at the editing stage to get the best from the original material.
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When shooting video footage keep the shots nice and long. They can always be shortened during editing later. And hold the camera as steady as possible, moving it really s-m-o-o-t-h-l-y if you are following the action. If possible, use a tripod to keep the camera stead. This is especially necessary when using the ‘tele’ end of the zoom range.
Separate wanted sound from the background.
Background noise is always more obtrusive during playback because the ears and brain are more clever than your camera! Compensate for this by getting your microphone as close to the wanted sound as possible, If shooting a person ‘talking to camera’ when using the in-built microphone, shoot with the lens in wide-angle and get as close as possible. If there’s background noise tell the subject to ‘speak up’
Shoot to edit!
When using your camera, think about how you will edit the footage. Always begin and end the shot with the camera still, or a zoom completed and stopped. Avoid ‘crossing the line’. That means if you are shooting a moving object that’s going left to right in the first shot, keep it moving left to right in the next shot. When filming someone talking, always listen out suitable points at which to to end the shot, at the end of complete sentences for example.
The alps are not 60cm wide!
When shooting a movie remember that it will on most occasions be viewed on a relatively small screen. Break up the scene into a series of shots. An overview long shot, then a series of closer views of points of importance, to bring small detail up nice and close on a small screen. Not everyone has a 42-inch Plasma screen, and even on that the close-ups have the impact. To really see the thought and emotion behind the face it should fill the screen.
Sound: an embellishment and not an embarrassment!
Having shot a film, it’s often the sound which get’s the bodge job. Film-making is an audio-visual medium and the audio bit is important. Sound recorded in-camera can be excellent but is often left almost as an inconsequential background at the editing stage. Just like the pictures it must be worked on at the editing stage to get the best from the original material.
View the rest
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