The Art Of Video Production

The True Art of Quality Video Production

There are many reasons, personally and professionally, to make videos. Especially in the Youtube era we now live in, videos of a wide variety of lengths, content, and style are always in demand. So the first aspect of the art of video production to consider when you set out to create a video is your specific purpose for making this video. Chances are many people have already made a video on the topic you’re working on that other people have already watched on Youtube. This doesn’t mean you can’t or shouldn’t make another one, but it does mean that you need a unique point of view. The specific intention for your video must be something that people will want to watch, so part of determining your plan is identifying your audience. As you identify who you want to watch the video, then you better know what they are looking for, what they want to watch, and how to create an end product that will accomplish what you want it to accomplish for your viewers.

Once you have an outline regarding the direction you want your video to go, the next consideration to make is your budget. You have a vision by this time, but your budget may dictate how realistic some elements of that vision are. Instead of being seen as a hindrance, budget constraints at this stage in planning can actually be helpful to clarify the direction of your video, eliminating ideas that may be superfluous or too difficult to carry out. By this stage, you should already have the basic equipment necessary for any type of video production (camera, microphone, etc.), but if your plans require a specific type of equipment that you do not already have available, this will be the most important early factor as you plan your video.

This initial remark about equipment brings us to the all-important decision regarding what kind of a camera to use. Most Youtube videos are made on smartphones, and these devices are good for making good quality videos for many purposes. Smartphone specific tripods are also inexpensive for cameras that are compatible with your smartphone; these are helpful to film content for a vlog. Although smartphones are good for their video quality, they tend to be very limited in their audio recording. This means that if you choose to make a video on your smartphone, it will be best to record the audio on a different device with clear audio input. Then after both the video and the audio have been recorded, you will need to synchronize the audio into the video recording.

The second possibility for the type of camera that is applicable to most types of video is a camcorder. Portable and capable of producing high-quality video, the process and end result is very similar to what you get from filming off of a smartphone. You can also find camcorders that record in HD, making the video quality even higher, and these cameras are usually not extremely expensive. So, even though it may not be quite as convenient as simply using your smartphone and may cost some extra money if you don’t already have a camcorder, there are different options regarding the type of video quality you can make with one, therefore allowing for the potential——depending on the type——of better quality than what you can make with your smartphone.

The last choice of cameras that can be appropriate for a wide array of videos is the digital single-lens reflect camera (or DSLR). DSLR cameras usually provide the highest video quality, but they also vary greatly with regards to how they function and for what purposes they function. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct thorough research regarding which DSLR cameras on the market suit your purposes and if the extra cost is worth it for you to fulfill your plans.

If you use one of the latter two choices, there are still audio concerns like those with smartphones. However, the problems are much easier to compensate for with these cameras than they are with smartphones. You will want to have a dedicated microphone, which will cost more, but it will ensure your ability to record quality video and audio simultaneously.

Do you plan on shooting footage outdoors? If so, it is important to remember that the sun can be either your friend or your enemy. To make sure that the sun stays your friend, aim for backlighting where the subject you are filming is always between you and the sun, and do your filming when the sun reaches a 45-degree angle.

These are a few foundational tips to start the process of planning to shoot a video. We hope that these tips help at your current stage of development in the art of video production. We would like to thank Morrisey Video Productions for supplying us with a lot of this information.