Useful Hints for shooting & editing video

Taping:

When you are filming your video it can be fun, stressful, neutral or a nightmare. It's a thin line between each of these outcomes. When you are planning your shoot make sure to plan ahead. One rule of thumb: it will always take longer than you thought. Give yourself good amounts of time and don't plan to do much on one day. If you do end up finishing ahead of schedule then you can probably film something scheduled for a different day or something from a previous

day that you weren't happy with or didn't finish.

Another thing, make sure all of the people involved are definitely coming. Make sure they know the date and time and that they are aware of how important it is that they come when they said they would-the last thing you want is for someone to call at the last minute and say they can't come. If you plan on filming during the summer make sure to get your actors and technical crew early. A lot of families go on vacation and that can smear your plans if you don't get to them first and get them committed.

Don't schedule over too many days. Your actors and tech crew will want to attend to their personal lives and will get sick of what can be a very tiring situation. At the same time however, you must make sure that there are not too many days in between each shoot. If you are filming during the school year try to get what you need done in a weekend (if this is a realistic goal). The longer your lapses are, the more the continuity of your video will suffer. Energy levels, clothes, even haircuts could change during the break and your video will have differences between each cut.

CLOTHING:

Because cameras are electronically quirky and are not as discerning as the human eye and brain, here are some simple rules to follow so you can be confident of looking good on camera.

WHAT TO WEAR:

I. Wear something comfortable.

2. Wear coats or jackets in solid colors: brown, blue, tan, green, or grey.

3. Pastel shirts with button fronts.

4. Subdued stripes, checks or plaids are acceptable, but see below.

WHAT NOT TO WEAR:

I. A void wearing lots of black, navy blue, or other very dark colors. They look too dark on television.

2. A void wearing white or very light colored shirts (yellow, pink). They look too bright.

3. Avoid wearing lots of bright red. On some TV's you will look like an inflamed kidney.

4. Fabrics with fine checks or stripes may cause a rainbow flutter or more effect on television sets. Check ahead of time if you are not sure how a particular article of clothing will look on television.

5. Avoid wearing a pullover sweater, T -shirt, or jersey: clipping the microphone to it is difficult.

6. Avoid jewelry that might rattle against the microphone. Otherwise, don't worry about clothing.

CREATE A SHOOTING PLAN:

It is not always necessary to have a shooting plan, but it can be very helpful for large video projects. A shooting plan can be as simple or as complex as you like. Starting with a simple list of the planned scenes, the possibilities include detailed camera directions and scripted dialog, or even a full-fledged script in which every single camera angle is described in detail along with duration, lighting, text, and props.

Editing

Using varying perspectives An important event should always be shot from varying perspectives and camera positions. Later, during editing, you can select and/or combine the best camera angles. Make a conscious effort to tape events from more than one camera angle (first the clown in the circus ring, but then also the laughing spectator from the clown's point of view). Interesting events can also take place behind the protagonists or the protagonists may be seen in a reverse angle. This can be

helpful later when trying to establish a sense of balance in the movie.

Close-ups

Don't be stingy with close-ups of important things or persons. Close-ups usually look better and more interesting than long shots do on a television screen, and they work well in post-production effects.

Long shots / Semi-Iong shots

Long shots provide the viewer with an overview and establish the scene of the action. However, these scenes can also be used to tighten longer scenes. When you cut from a close-up to a long shot, the viewer no longer sees the details and it is thus easier to make a chronological jump. Showing a spectator in a semi-long shot can also distract briefly from the specific action.

Complete actions

Always shoot complete actions with a beginning and an end. This makes editing easier .

Transitions

Cinematic timing requires some practice. It is not always possible to film long events in their entirety, and in movies they often have to be represented in severely abbreviated form. Nonetheless, the plot should remain logical and cuts should almost never call attention to themselves. This is where transitions come into play. Transitions divert the viewer's attention from the action, enabling filmmakers to make chronological jumps, for example, without the viewer being conscious of them.

A differentiation is made between plot-related transitions (e.g., a close-up of an end product, the creation of which will now be shown in the film) and neutral transitions (e.g., close-up of a motif that is only indirectly related to the film; for example, showing an interested audience member during a podium discussion. Since the actual speaker is heard but not seen, it will be easy to cut to a point later in the speaker's presentation).