Documentation:DIY Media Old Toolkits/Video basics/Film

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CHECKLIST:
  • Obtained signed consent forms from anyone you record.
  • Set up lighting and test for sound.
  • Consider a pre-interview (if interview is your plan).
  • Record your video.
  • Source any additional content that you will be editing in (b-roll).
  • Familiarize yourself with copyright resources and guidelines.

You will have tested your equipment and planned your shoot or screencast with a storyboard before you begin filming.

Location

  • Reduce echoes by filming in a room with soft surfaces such as your living room. Reduce or eliminate electrical sounds such as computer fans and other appliances.
  • Avoid rooms with echoes or fans (even imperceptible fan sounds may be picked up by an external mic).
  • Test your sound for quality in your location with equipment. Improving the audio even marginally will far improve the perceived quality.
  • Ensure that you have permission to film in the space.

Audio

  • Use a noise-reducing microphone and keep the mic close to your voice.

Lighting

  • Prepare your lighting if you will be using your webcam.
  • Create basic three-point lighting so that your focal point (person) is not flat (2D instead of 3D) with lighting fixtures.
  • Utilize natural light appropriately when videoshooting outside such as having your lighting being lighting up the front of what you're filming and usually to one side and above rather than head on (so not mid-day but preferrably sunrise and sunset). Also best shooting happens on overcast days. Here are 3 quicktips for shooting outside.
  • Lighting arrangement for recording yourself or someone else - DIY for web capture or more advanced DIY greenscreens.
  • Mixig together different light sources is a bad idea as studio lighting is generally reddish-orange compared to daylight and normal flourescent lighting can be quite greenish.

Recording

  • Record in small chunks so that you can edit them more easily later.
  • Record the same height of your subject and get more than just your object i.e. surroundings in the shot.
  • Take more than one footage of the same scene and from more than one angle (follow storyboard as well).
  • Control your lighting and use lighting as best you can or adjust what you're filming when you can't.
  • Use a tripod to ensure a steady shot but don't lock the tripod position so you can follow moving subjects.
  • Ensure filming device is on auto-focus and experiment with camerawork.

Production Resources

Software
Techniques and Approaches
B-roll Content
Copyright

Do you need to find copyright safe sound or images for your project? The following resources can help:

Image Sources: UBC's Copyright resource provides an excellent list of various "copyright safe" image databases and also includes some discipline specific ones as well.
Creative Commons Guide: UBC's Copyright Guide provides lists of databases for free and "copyright safe" sounds, music and video for your digital media projects. It also helps you understand Creative Commons licenses and how and why you may want to apply one to your work.
Public domain resources: this page provides an overview of what public domain is, how material in the public domain can be used, and much more, including quick tips to check if something is or is not considered public domain in Canada, as well as links to public domain sources.

Students and Copyright

Why should I care about copyright?: this student-centered guide, put together by the UBC Learning Commons team, answers questions on the subject of copyright and addresses a number of myths and misconceptions surrounding copyright.
Forms
  • You will require a release from any subjects involved in your production. UBC's Consent Form.
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TIPS:
  • Add media to enhance interest - This is referred to as b-roll content and can include examples, still images, videoclips or freely available content licensed for re-use or in the public domain.
  • Make sure to focus on audio quality - high quality audio is the single most important thing that will elevate the professionalism of your video.
  • When recording, start with the end in mind, and aim for that in your production.
  • Make sure you video footage is of good quality (resolution and audio quality) as there is only so much magic you can do in editing.
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