When it get along to making movies that hoi polloi will actually need to watch , getting a good video photographic camera is only part of the battle . You also demand to know how to use your camera . Shaky picture , muffled audio recording , and dotty television camera campaign can destroy your movie — and exasperate your viewers . For video you’re able to be proud of , follow these ten simple rules :
Rule 1: Know your camera
A crimper - coaster is n’t the good space to learn how to use your fresh camcorder — and neither is your daughter ’s wedding . Before you set out on a trip-up or show up at a handsome event , become intimate with how the camcorder works . Practice changing magnetic tape and accessing important functions , and experiment with different shot modes . The more comfortable you are with your photographic camera , the better your probability are of getting the guessing when it really weigh .
Rule 2: Use a tripod
Few thing are more irritating to viewers — or more exemplary of amateurish filmmaking — than foolish video recording make by the cameraperson ’s shaky workforce . To see an immediate improvement in your telecasting ’s quality , use a tripod or monopod whenever possible .
If you do n’t have a tripod ready to hand , stabilize yourself against a wall for lend support . Hold the camcorder with both hands , keep your elbow nigh to your body , and use the viewfinder to frame the guessing : you ’ll have an easy time keep the camcorder unwavering if you harbor it against your cheek .
Rule 3: Zoom and pan slowly
agile camera movements can be very disorienting . To ensure that your relatives do n’t become ill while watching your vacation photographic film , slow up down when zooming or panning .
ZoomingYou should take at least 30 seconds to nail a full zoom ( moving from the photographic camera ’s wide slant to the end of its optical zoom ) . And be careful to keep the camera unfaltering throughout . By rent your clip , you ’ll also help keep the television in focus : nimble zooms can confuse the autofocus feature , lead in a blurry passel as the camcorder tries to catch up .
PanningCamera movements should also be dim and unruffled . It ’s difficult to appreciate the beauty of a long tropical beach in three seconds , so take your time when panning . If you ’re worried about pacing , take the shot again at a different speed . When you edit , you could opt the clip you like best .
If you ’re following the bm of a fast objective ( such as a sports car or a football game participant ) , the panning motion should derive from the hips , not from the hands . As your upper eubstance follows the military action , keep your elbows locked to your side and watch the scene through the viewfinder , not the LCD . This will serve keep the action smooth . To prevent jerking camera movement at the rootage of the shot , start tear apart before you press the record button . As you pan , seek to keep the case in the center of the frame .
Most importantly , never zoom and pan at the same meter — that ’s guarantee to nauseate viewers .
Rule 4: Skip the special effects
Most camcorder give you the option of apply effect — such as slice , black - and - white , and Venetian red tone — while inject . Do n’t use them if you be after on editing your motion picture later . You ’ll have a wider range of options and get much better results by apply force in a picture editor such as iMovie . Plus , you could undo the burden if you later adjudicate you do n’t wish it ; when you utilize a special effect while pip , you ’re stuck with it .
Rule 5: Get a decent microphone
Although fair to middling for general use , most camcorders ’ built - in microphones do n’t do a very good chore of picking out a voice from a crowd or enter someone talking from a length . To get strait that you may be proud of , invest in an external microphone .
One alternative is to get a rapid growth mike , such as the $ 70 Sony ECM - HGZ1 Shotgun Microphone , which clips onto the tv camera body and synchronizes with the rapid growth to better isolate the sounds made by the matter you ’re zooming in on . This can make a bountiful difference , particularly in situations such as concerts and lectures .
Another choice is to invest in a wireless lapel mike , which curtail onto the subject ’s shirt and transmits audio to the camera . These can be expensive ( anywhere from $ 80 to several hundred dollars ) , but they do a much good job of recording articulation .
Rule 6: Silence the wind
Although it may not sound like much to you , confidential information can wreak mayhem on an unprotected microphone , leave you with a video recording in which the only audible strait is rushing air . Some camcorders admit awind cutfeature that attempts to filter out this noise . But it ca n’t work miracles — vocalization will still be drowned out . Whenever potential , strain to screen the mike from malarky by freeze it with your dead body or by covering it with a thin piece of cloth , such as a T - shirt .
Rule 7: Add light
Although most camcorder make out with built - in lights , they ’re fairly weak . If you ’re frivol away in a poorly illume elbow room , take getting a disjoined light that mounts onto the camcorder ’s hot - brake shoe ( such as the $ 40 Sony HLV - HL1 ) . Another choice is to grease one’s palms a duo of tripod body of work lights from a plate - supply store to fall the aspect . For example , Wel - Bilt makes a 500 - watt model that sell for around $ 40 . For more ignition advice , check out Bill Holshevnikoff’sThe Power of Lighting for Film and VideoDVD series , which explainshow video professionals light their scenes($35 each ) .
Rule 8: Avoid backlighting
Camcorders ca n’t pick up the range of tones that the human eye can . So if you position someone against a bright background ( such as a cheery sky ) , the camera will expose for the bright light — turning the someone in the foreground into a silhouette . If potential , fend off pointing the camera directly at a light source . Instead , move around so the light is to your right hand or leave behind . ( Do n’t germinate with your back to the light , as your topic will then have to squinch to see you . ) If you ca n’t move , see whether your camcorder offers a backlight control , which transfer the vulnerability to compensate for backlighting . You ’ll commonly access this feature via the LCD menu or , in some cases , by labor a backlight - compensation button on the outside of the camcorder .
Rule 9: Use multiple tapes
MiniDV tapeline are comparatively inexpensive , but memories are priceless . Rather than trying to squeeze an entire vacation onto one videotape , use a fresh tape every day . At the end of a full day of shot , flip over on the tape ’s write - protect switch and lay in the tape somewhere dependable . This way , if your camcorder is steal , you wo n’t also misplace several years of TV .
Rule 10: Keep shooting
It ’s always honorable to shoot more telecasting than you think you need . If you ’re confab a picturesque locating , take TV from several unlike angle , letting each shot run for at least 30 seconds . citizenry in the business organisation call these set up shots : they give the looker a sense of place .
[ Richard Baguley has reviewed digital camcorders and cameras forMacworldandPC World . ]
