How to Produce High-Quality Videos
Around ten years ago, businesses used to hire professional video production companies to shoot TrueView ads or YouTube videos. These professionals probably used a Sony NEX-VG10 that costs around $1,980 to shoot online videos and Adobe Premiere Pro to edit their masterpiece.
However, these days, many millennials in a marketing agency or department may easily create great videos for your Facebook page, newsletter, site, Twitter, or blog. All they require is an iPhone 6S Plus fitted with a 12-megapixel camera and 4K video ability. Even though video production costs have gone down, your business can still produce videos worth sharing with the help of the following great ideas:
- Work with a Clean Background
Be deliberate regarding the background your use for video shooting. Nothing will look less professional than a distracting or messy background. A simple way to have a professional look for your videos is to use the best solid-colored background. A wall or big sheet of backdrop paper are great options. Ensure your subjects stand a few feet away from the backdrop so as to prevent casting shadows on them.
It is also a great idea to produce videos in a more professional environment – a place where you could spend time. Though be keen no to create videos with a reflective surface in your shooting background. You may inadvertently catch the shooting camera in the reflection. A light source, such as windows behind your subject, might make everything look shadowy and dark.
photo/ StockSnap via pixabay
- Use Quality Equipment
Quality equipment doesn’t necessarily mean a professional camera – a good consumer-grade camcorder will do a great job. Rather than getting an analog camcorder, get a digital one so as to create quality videos.
You can also look for a camcorder, which works great under a low-light condition, allows you to connect external microphones, and has a quality lens with a good zoom factor.
- Plan the Shoot
If you intend to create a short film, commercial content, or music video, you will have the freedom to plan everything. Similar to video production companies, such as Spiel, you can also make your storyboard with an illustration of your scenes in sequence. This may help you to outline your desired shots and pre-visualize your final footage. A good storyboard can also act as a roadmap during video production and editing, plus it might help you evaluate a great time for shooting.
However, if you are covering an event, you will need to be as ready as possible. For example, when it comes to wedding videography, as a videographer, you need to know how and when to take videos of the party, bride, and groom.
- Practice to Create Widescreen Videos
With a smartphone camera’s prevalence, even a home video is trending towards a windscreen format, like a 16 by 9 ratio. Think of the way you might make this visual space work for you.
You may capture a lot of content with just a single shot, though bear in mind that windscreen videos don’t mean producing all wide shots. After all, television remains an intimate medium, and close-ups of faces may convey emotions than group shots of a crowd.
- Include a Grid
A worse thing than watching videos recorded in a portrait mode is to see content taken at wonky angles. Including a grid will allow you to use a shooting background as a reference point to make sure you have a straight recording.
Adding a grid can also help when it comes to video composition. If you are recording individuals, be sure to position their eyes in level with a top grid line. Picture enthusiasts understand this rule of thirds that can help you frame things even better.
photo/ ExplorerBob
- Consider Shooting a B-Roll
Capture an outstanding b-roll for cutaways. If you have a second camera, you might shoot hand-held videos on your talent side that provides a backup stage. You will also likely require establishing shots, such as wide building exteriors, or probably a few macro close-ups for detail on items.
Be sure to also capture everything you want so as to give your script context, ensuring the visuals and audio work together.
- Put Viewers into Consideration
Basically, viewers need to have as much control as possible so as to allow them to digest information at their own pace. You need to use every standard video control button, including replaying, starting, pausing, and stopping segments. Viewers need to also skip details they already understand, replay complex segments, and control volume.
Visual teaching supports, such as adding circles around objects on the screen, can make it easy for different users to connect spoken words and images. However, you don’t necessarily have to make your videos humorous; they might add more details your viewers didn’t expect. If you want to provide the details they need and establish a loyal audience, be yourself and take the production naturally and casually.
- Get the Right Individuals for the Task
Besides having great equipment and shots, having knowledgeable and passionate individuals on your production team can exponentially boost your videos’ quality. Directors should know the goals of your project and guide the whole team productively and constructively. Camera operators need to also understand their equipment so as to leverage the power of technology.
On the other hand, editors should be skilled and experienced to make the necessary edits you require for your videos. Typically, there are many moving parts in all video creation projects, and reliable teammates can make recording and production enjoyable, easy, and quick.
- Review Every Footage
Always critique and review your footage after every shoot. Be sure to countercheck everything from your sound and camera movements to exposure and lighting.
If you also need to go further, ensure you cut a short sequence of your clips in editing programs, such as Final Cut or iMovie. The more you review footage in editing programs, the better your cinematography will be.
Concluding Remarks!
Most businesses wish to ramp up their video marketing, though to say the process is challenging might be an understatement. With many things to think about, from optimizing audio and lighting a shot to editing software and camera equipment, the entry barrier might be high.
Luckily, the costs of post-production software and decent gear have significantly dropped in the last ten years, making today a great time to start creating your videos.
Author: Digital Solutions
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