As IH Concepts continues to strive to help local Madison businesses with graphic design and branding services, we are picking up from our blog last month as we discussed 4 important tips for planning a promotional video. Having your own video shoot is a great small business marketing idea. Planning is key, but nothing is more important than capturing the footage you need on the day (or days) of your video shoot. We want you to create the best videos possible, so we’ll share a few more tips; here are 5 things you need to keep in mind during a video shoot.
1. Timing is Everything
A critical step in planning is choosing the time of year and time of day that you’ll film; this will impact the lighting and the backdrop of your entire video. For example, if you’re filming outside in the middle of the day, the sun could give you too much lighting, cast a glare, or create shadows that ruin an otherwise perfect shot. Scheduling your project for early morning or about 1.5 hours before sunset tends to work well; it’s a perfect time when the light is lower and there’ll be less glare to interfere with your footage. Unless your promotional video needs to feature winter weather, we recommend filming during the spring or summer; this tends to generate clearer video footage and has less weather factors to face.
2. Choose the Right Setting
Be sure to choose the right setting that sets the tone you want and stays true to your brand. When we work with our clients, choosing the right setting during a video shoot is an essential part of our branding services in Madison WI. If your setting is in the city, be aware of people walking in the background and potential noise from vehicles during heavy traffic times; you can plan around this and film the footage you need at times when traffic and noise levels are down and your lighting is optimal. Filming indoors can limit outside factors and give you the most controlled environment possible, so if it works for your video be sure to consider it.
3. Create a Shot List & Take Test Shots
While planning for your video shoot, you should create a shot list noting all of the footage that you need. There is nothing worse than realizing you forgot to record a crucial part of footage – it can delay the whole project and release deadlines. It can also be helpful to sketch out ideas of how you visualize some of your shots; having a plan will make the process move smoothly the day of filming. We also recommend going to the location you’re going to film a few days early, at the exact time you plan to film, for test shots. This will let you know where the sun will be positioned at that time of day.
4. Have Proper Lighting
Whether you’re filming indoors or outdoors, you’ll need to be prepared to bring glare stoppers or set up additional lights to get the best footage. When you’re filming as opposed to taking photos, it’s a lot harder to control the lighting coming into the camera, so it’s important to prepare for this in advance; that’s why an important aspect of the test shots we mentioned before is seeing what the lighting will be like during the time of your photoshoot. Our graphic design services in Madison WI stress the importance of knowing how lighting reflects off of the trees, buildings, and surroundings of your environment. These test shots can help you decide if you need ND Filters (Neural Density Filters) for your camera, which can help block excessive light from the footage without changing the color or tone of the subject.
5. Make Sure Your Mics are Ready!
Before you get ready to film, you need to make sure you have microphones that are set up to capture the clearest audio where you’re filming, and that you’ve tested them. If you have someone talking on camera that has a clip-on mic,, be sure to run the wiring as discreetly as you can and position the microphone in a hidden spot. Messy wires hanging off of your main subject can be distracting to the viewer and give an unprofessional appearance.
Putting it All Together
This might seem like a lot of information to create a video, but once it all comes together and you see the finished product, you’ll be proud to release it to your audience. Keep an eye out for our next newsletter, where we’ll be discussing more tips on branding and graphic design in Madison WI!
Related IH Concepts Articles:
“Planning Your Promotional Video: 4 Important Tips”
“5 Things to Consider When Planning a Photoshoot”
“Conducting a Photoshoot in a Pandemic: How to Safely Visually Market Yourself”
