Voice overs or narration are often used in video production. Most TV news stories use voice over, as well as live or ‘sync’ sound from an interviewee or on-camera host. But when and where do you record these? There are two options: On location at the time of the shoot, or As part of the […]
Framing is one of the key skills to learn if you’re planning on shooting video. Whether it’s on your Smartphone or the latest high-end production camera, it’s important to get framing correct. Here’s a quick tutorial video which will help. Check it out. Check out my previous video on recording good sound on your Smartphone.
Smartphones have revolutionised how we take still and moving images. However the biggest drawback of Smartphones is their sound quality. To be specific, it’s more the location of the microphone which is the problem. Check out this video for some tips and suggestions on how to overcome this problem. Check out my other video on […]
Lighting is one of the key skills for any cameraman. Directors of Photography in the world of feature films, earn the big bucks because they know how to light. In features, lighting is crucial to the story. Happy scenes need to look happy and tragic scenes need to look tragic. Lighting goes a long way […]
After the shooting stops … (the cutting begins) This is a wonderful book by Ralph Rosenblum, who edited six Woody Allen films. He also edited The Pawnbroker, The Producers, and Goodbye, Columbus. The book is a great insight into the world of feature film editing. It’s unlikely you’ll be editing a feature film, but once you’ve […]
Working with your clients One of the most important relationships you have when you’re shooting corporate video is the one you have with your client. After all, they’re the one who has contracted you to produce the video, so you need to get along with them and ideally involve them in the process. Now that […]
How much do I charge? Working out how much to charge for your services is not always easy. Whilst you may want to keep your prices low, so businesses will contract you to shoot their video, low prices can put some potential clients off. “If it’s that low, then it can’t be any good,” can […]
Marketing Starting your business is easy, it just costs money. Getting ‘business’ is the hard part and there is no right way to go about this. If you have taken the leap and decided this is the business you want to be in, then odds on you already have one or two (or even more) […]
So, what do you need to run your own video business? Like any business you need the tools of the trade. Here’s my start-up list: Tools of the trade Mid-range video camera and good quality tripod. You may already own a camera, but it needs to be able to shoot the sort of projects you […]
This is the first in a series of blogs about starting your own video production business, based on my experiences over the past 11 years. My hope is that you’ll find these posts helpful and that they’ll get you on your way to running your own successful and fulfilling business. So – where to start? […]