6 easy steps to make your smartphone videos shine.
You can achieve great quality smartphone videos by only applying a few simple techniques that all professional filmmakers use.
Bottom Line: Guide Attention & Remove Distraction
The entire process of telling stories with video is to guide attention and remove distraction. Each of these steps will help you with this.
This video was part of a workshop series we produced in April to help families produce their first mini-film for our Mini-Film Festival. I thought I’d share it with you to help you make great smartphone video content.
One: Pick a Clear Subject
When you pick up your camera, before you hit record, pick your subject.
Your goal is to drive attention to that subject
Two: Use The Rule of Thirds
Turn on the grid on your phone
Put your subject on one of the intersecting lines
Centring your subject also works well
Three: Control & Lock Your Exposure
Tap and hold on your subject, this will set the exposure and focus on your subject.
Drag up and down to adjust the exposure
This will work on recent models of both Android and iPhone
Four: Use Camera Motion Intentionally
Keep the camera stationary to communicate a sense of control or peaceful feelings
Move the camera to guide attention to the feeling or activity your subject is acting out
Five: Shoot Wide, Medium, & Close Up Shots
Wide shots are great for establishing a location
Medium shots are good for showing two people interacting, or to show a person performing a task and you want the viewer to see what they’re doing
Close-ups are great for showing important details or capturing emotion
Six: Avoid Background Noise
Get close to your subject when recording dialogue
If there’s background noise that doesn’t reinforce your story, try to remove it
Be wary of echoes. Echo in audio can ruin an otherwise great video clip.
The best way to improve your video content is to shoot more video! Ask for honest feedback and apply what you learned to your next video.
Feel free to reach out if you have any questions about producing smartphone video content for your company or organization.