7 tips for beginners to create videos like a professional videographer.
1. First, think it through.
2. Write a script.
3. Use a High-Quality Camera. ...
4. Make sure you have enough lighting.
5. Upgrade the Audio Quality. ...
6. Use Powerful Video Editing Software.
7. Make sure your footage is smooth and without shakes.
Planning
Anyone can pick up a camera and start shooting. Think of it this way; your video will only stand out when few others can create what you have done! It must be special in every aspect. You can only achieve that goal by creating a video like it has been done by a (video production company) with a clear mind and a set vision. That’s when the planning comes in. Think of it this way: if you don't know what you are doing, how is your audience supposed to follow your vision? This is a very simple question every video maker should ask his/herself before picking up the camera. Before you start making your video, you need to know why you're making one in the first place. Understanding the objective of your video will assist you in planning, shooting, editing, and promoting your video in a more organized fashion, saving you a great deal of time and resources.
It will make your video more valuable in attaining the needed outcomes. Below are some examples of questions to ask when setting a goal for your video:
What are you looking to accomplish with your video?
Are you trying to make people laugh?
Are you trying to get them to visit your website?
Are you promoting your product?
Teaching your audience something new?
You can use the following smart goals guidelines to create a video like a professional videographer:
Smart Goals
· S Specific.
· M Measurable.
· A Attainable.
· R Relevant.
· T Timely.
Write a script!
A professionally made video always needs a script. A script is like a road map. It shows you the way throughout the filming process. Once you have completed the topic and the kind of video you will create, it's time to work on its content. This is best accomplished by writing a video script that sets out your story.
You can either write a word-by-word script for the video or just the general topics you intend to film in the video.
Either way, the point is to have a reference document so you don't accidentally forget to cover an important topic when filming the video.
Otherwise, you can also create a storyboard for your video. A storyboard is a visual description of a story. It is made up of a chronological sequence of images and graphic images that helps creators visualize their videos and creative projects.
Don't forget to take your storyboard or otherwise often called a treatment (for music videos mainly) to the location on the day of the shoot.
Use a high-quality camera.
Another important tip to increase your video quality is to use the right camera. Contrary to popular belief, you don't need an expensive or professional camera to make good-quality videos.
There are two main camera options: your built-in mobile phone camera or a professional camera. Let's look at each option in more detail:
Mobile camera.
Almost all top mobile phone brands have seen considerable improvement in the past few years.
So, there’s a high chance that the mobile phone you currently have in your pocket can produce 4K videos at 60 FPS — enough to match the quality of any competitor you may have.
Of course, always remember that there must be a difference between a $25000 cinema camera and a $1200 mobile camera. That is just common sense. However, when you are taking on paid jobs and are about to take on projects for your first client, you cannot just show up with your phone and expect everything to be fine!
Professional camera.
To create professional-looking videos, a phone camera is not enough. You'll undoubtedly have to invest in a professional camera. This will give you much more control over the quality of the video you're producing.
In addition, you'll get features that a phone might not be able to offer, such as built-in image stabilization and the ability to swap lenses. Also, a professional camera's superior color science will significantly improve your videos' production quality.
Therefore, if you're looking to invest in your camera gear, we suggest you pick a camera packed with features you'll need for your type of video.
For example, if you're going to make in-house videos, purchasing a DSLR may be a good option. But if you create vlogs, a mirrorless camera may be more suited to you, as carrying a bulky DSLR may be too much weight to carry for long hours. Suppose you are going to film at sites or times of day where sufficient lighting may not be possible. In that case, you might need a camera that performs well in low light and would allow you to increase your iso to perhaps 12800 and still have clean footagehit, like Sony cinema cameras or Alpha Series.
Make sure you have enough lighting.
Lighting is another important part of any professional video production. If your video is too dark or too bright, it clearly won’t look good, and you'll run the risk of people not watching your content.
There are two primary light sources available to any video creator:
Natural lighting.
For beginners, natural light is an excellent choice. It doesn’t cost anything and is fully capable of making the subject of your video look great.
To use natural lighting to your advantage, remember to shoot outdoors on a cloudy day or during golden hour. At these times, natural light is super soft and cinematic — it won’t make your subject squint, and no harsh light will be hitting their face. Your video will then look like has been produced by a video production company.
Studio lighting.
As you improve your production capability, you’ll perhaps want to invest in lighting equipment to better the quality of your videos.
Here is some lighting equipment you may want to add to your production gear:
Key light
Rim light
Triggers and flashes
Softbox or shapers
Reflectors
Upgrade the Audio Quality
The audio of your video can make or break your content, and there are a few simple things that you can do to save the integrity of your video’s audio quality.
The best way to capture audio from your subject is to use any microphone other than your camera's built-in mic. Because no matter how good your camera’s built-in mic is, it's still not enough to replace a dedicated external audio recorder.
There are generally three types of microphones you can use:
Condenser microphones
Dynamic microphones
Lavalier microphones
Each is perfect for different uses, so invest in one that gets your work done.
Before filming, always test the sound to ensure you’ve got all the above set up correctly. For someone with no audio experience, that’s usually the only way to ensure you’re getting it right.
Use Powerful Video Editing Software
Using video editing software is an important part of the production process.
This will enable you to add transitions to your videos, color grade them, add titles, subtitles, intros, and outros, and stitch them in a way that’s easy to understand for the audience.
There are several video editing software to choose from, both free and paid. Here’s a list of some of the most popular ones:
Adobe Premiere Pro
Apple Final Cut Pro
DaVinci Resolve
Adobe Premiere Elements
Pro Tip: Adobe Premiere Pro and Final Cut Pro have several free and paid plugins which will cut your editing time in half.
Make sure your footage is smooth and without shakes.
Stabilized footage is vital for the success of any top video. Since shaky footage not only looks unprofessional, it also aggravates the eyes of your audience.
We suggest you either get a hold of a camera with built-in image stabilization or purchase a tripod to fix this. Tripods usually work when the subject is still, but that may not be true for all video types.
For example, if you're creating vlogs, you may need to walk around the city, and a tripod might not do you much good. In that scenario, consider investing in an external stabilizer.
Many video editing software also has a built-in feature to stabilize shaky footage, but the results may not be perfect each time. The best way to have buttery smooth footage is first to shoot at 60 or 120 fps and convert it to 24 fps in post; then you can use your software’s stabilization feature to polish it out. However, the best way to get amazing results is always to shoot right. Try to get the perfect footage rather than hoping to fix things in post. That may not always be possible.