Food films: the good, the very good
Top tips
for making
basic video
Steve Keenan
travelperspective.co.uk
2. Buy an external microphone, like a Sennheiser directional mike - much
better sound (£80). Check whether your camera has an external jack. If not,
make sure you are in a VERY quiet place when recording
3. WHAT'S THE STORY? Do not film hundreds of random clips: maximum 20 minutes. Write notes: who, what, where. Get lots of GVs (general views) which locate where you are (road names, signs) to edit it into the film
4. It is usually best just to have one interview with the most interesting person..
5. Try not to zoom or pan. The shots very rarely work. If someone gestures to a spot while filming, do not swing the camera around to follow the hand. Film it separately later
9. Avoid mentioning dates – it will date the film rapidly and you want this to have a long and prosperous shelf life.
10. Retro film - look in your archive. And make use of your history - nobody else has that film
Five things you will ask about video
5. Best thing to do? Buy basic kit, let staff play, bring back decent film and let a professional edit - £300 a day.
4. Who watches these films? As of June 2011, 26m of us have watched 2.3bn videos online. Amount spent on producing videos doubled in past year to £45m.
3. Haven't got the time to learn - how much for a professional? Around £3,000 for a three-minute film.
2. How much for equipment? £100 entry camera, £600 HD video camera. £100 microphone. £200 editing software (Final Cut Pro)
1. How long for video? One to two minutes maximum.
How do food destinations
become well known?
800 million active users
3rd biggest country
Flavours of the Silk Road
7 September 2012
Mark Frary, Travel Perspective
@socialtrav, travelperspective.co.uk
55,455,712
340 million people view more than 2.5 billion pages
A MONTH
7. Compose the frame. Don’t put the subject dead centre – position them left or right of centre, with some interesting background related to the subject
Email us on silkroad@travelperspective.co.uk with your content
for the blog
6. Check the light. Don’t film into the sun - you wouldn’t
with a normal camera. But don’t make the subject squint directly into light either – film side-on, or at an angle with the subject lit well. No hats or sunglasses either
1. Buy a tripod. A Joby
Gorilla is small and
flexible, £30. Virtually
all video cams have a
thread in the base to
screw in a tripod. If not, stand the camera on a table/book – anything
10. Have a bit of fun. Prize-winning documentaries are welcome, but viewers normally settle for an entertaining/thoughtful/provoking film about your subject...
- Silk Road Challenge
- Blogger meetings
- Flavours of the Silk Road blog
8. Think about music when
editing: there are royalty-free
sites like premiumbeat.com