Avoiding Common Mistakes In Video Production

            Sometimes when making a video we think too much about the idea or the story that we want to tell that we don’t catch those little mistakes until we are in the editing process of the video. When making a video, we want it to be awesome and have the best shots we could ever take, but sometimes we forget about some details in our production. Some examples are; talents or objects out of focus when we needed them to be focused, poor lighting techniques, color does not look like what it was in reality, and other people or objects that we didn’t want in our background. To avoid these mistakes here are some tips you can use for your next video production.

1. Focusing your shot. Before you press the record button on your camera, make sure that your talent or object in the picture is completely in focus. This will create a more “eye appealing” look to the audience. If you are shooting a talent or actor, make sure to zoom in all the way, on the talent’s/actor’s face looking for the eyes and make focusing on the eye to have the most detail possible in the shot. This will make your talent or actor stand out in the picture. Do the same thing if it is an object that you are shooting, like a product for a commercial for example. Sometimes, we see out of focus shots, but that is a technique depending on how you want to tell a story.

2. Lighting techniques. Your light is one of your best friends when shooting video. The lighting in your video will set the mood for the audience. If you are making a happy movie make sure your shot is bright enough to show that emotion. If your shot is dark, it could create confusion on the audience and make the movie, or video less attractive. Use your light in your favor. Here are some charts provided by tubetape.com on how you can light your subject with different light set-ups:

3. White balance your shots. Every place has different types of lights. That is why it is very important that your camera is set with the right white balance. Some cameras have two white balance functions that can help when you are shooting a scene that starts indoors and ends outdoors. The camera usually shows an A and B switch. You can white balance indoors on A, then step outside, switch the button to B and white balance outdoors, that way when you move from inside to o utside you can just move the switch from A to B and you are ready to go. Keep in mind that every camera is different, therefore make sure where your white balance settings are and where the button is located. To white balance properly you can always buy a white balance card or you can always use a plane white sheet of paper, that works good as well.

                 

4. Look at the entire picture in your camera. I have seen a lot of shots where there are undesired people or objects for a specific shot. I have also made those mistakes when I started making videos. Sometimes we are so excited that we are getting the shot we want but we don’t pay close attention to what the background is. This can affect or completely destroy that great shot we had. Make sure that you are constantly looking all over the place in your viewfinder for those undesired objects in your shots. You don’t want to go to your post-production software and find out that your shot was ruined by a light stand that you were using to light your subject. If you are using a boom mic, make sure that is not in the picture as well, unless you are making a parody or want to create something funny then do it. Otherwise make sure you are not showing any of your equipment in the picture.

Now you are set and ready for your next video. Keep in mind before you are starting a video, that you are well prepared, have a check list for everything you need before jumping in the car to go shoot your video and just as your camera focuses make sure you are always focus on your project, that way you will not run into any of these common mistakes.