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How can we capture more video footage in a day?

  1. be well prepared BEFORE the shoot, and

  2. be very focused DURING the shoot so we can capture as much footage as possible.



But the truth is, we can’t succeed without you. We need your help to make the shoot and your video a success. With that in mind, here are:

7 Ways You Can Help Us Capture More Video Footage In A Day

  1. Help us with the right locations

  2. Help us plan ahead

  3. Help us schedule

  4. Help us minimize travel

  5. Help us communicate

  6. Help us verify

  7. Help us confirm last minute details

Now before you panic, most of these ways, we’re actually already doing for you. But I share them here because it simplifies them, and helps you to understand your role in making them a reality. That role is all about planning and communication.

The Key

The reality is, we can create the perfect schedule, but if you’re not on-board, our perfect schedule will be like a New Years resolution that never makes is past new years day. It takes a partnership between you and us to make your shoot successful. We can’t do it alone. So that’s how, together, we can capture more video footage in a day.

Questions?

Do you have a question about capturing more footage in a day? Or do you have questions in general about video production? If so, send us an email to answers info@zappl.in and ask away.


 
 
 

How important is the quality of my video?


Good, great, incredible, and amazing are just a few of the adjectives used to describe quality. If there’s one thing I can tell you about quality in video production, it’s that everyone wants it. The problem is, we can’t always agree on what “it” is.

The problem with quality is we can’t always agree on what “it” is.

Recently I was meeting with a new client. We were chatting about our families and he was telling me about a video his daughter made, on her iPhone. “The quality,” he said, “was amazing.” When we started talking about his business and video strategy, I shared a sample of our work. He watched, looked at me and said, “That’s the kind of quality I want.” Which really illustrates the enigma of quality. The quality of his daughter’s iPhone video was “great,” until he saw a different kind of quality. So how do you, as a professional, decide the kind of quality you want? I’ve learned that real quality, like a diamond, is multifaceted. Real quality has 7 traits. Let’s take a look. The 7 Traits of Quality

  1. Connection – real quality always connects and engages your audience

  2. Preparation – real quality is never an accident

  3. Experience – real quality learns through mistakes

  4. Constancy – real quality is present throughout the entire spectrum

  5. More – real quality is always more than technology or creativity

  6. Structure – real quality is never disorganized

  7. Time – real quality is never last minute

Quality is the nexus of these 7 traits and serves as a reminder that real quality is always an investment. Real quality is always an investment A Practical Suggestion Because quality is subjective, let me suggest a practical way you can get the right quality out of your next video.

Define the kind of quality you want to see by showing us examples of the quality you like. It could be from your favorite movie, a new commercial, or a YouTube video. Whatever it is, if it inspires you, share it with us so we can better understand what quality is to you. When it comes to defining quality, use these 7 traits:

  1. Connection.

  2. Preparation.

  3. Experience.

  4. Constancy.

  5. More.

  6. Structure.

  7. Time.

These are the traits that will help you decide how important quality is for your video. Questions? Do you questions about video production, send me an email to answers info@zappl.in and ask away.

 
 
 

Can we save money by shooting outside?



Can we save money by shooting outside?” In the first part, we focused primarily on the lighting challenges of shooting outside. Today we’re focusing our attention on the audio challenges of shooting outside


I shared the 3 characteristics of natural lighting: brightness, angles and color. I shared how it’s those same characteristics that make shooting narrative outside difficult. For this episode though, we’re going to explore the audio challenges of shooting outside.


The Audio Challenges of Filming Outside

Sound, unlike lighting, is clueless when it comes to brightness, angles and color. But like lighting,


capturing live sound outside can have it’s own challenges.

Why? Because natural sound is constantly changing. And just like lighting, those changes can be distracting, and lead your audience to notice more of the random changes in lighting and sound, rather than the actual content of your video.


The 2 Types of Outdoor Sounds

If you stop to think about it, there are really just 2 types of outdoor sounds: natural and man-made.


Natural sounds include:

  • insects

  • animals

  • birds

  • wind

  • water

Man-made sounds include:

  • vehicles

  • airplanes

  • lawnmowers

  • blowers

  • weed-eaters

  • chainsaws

From many years of experience, and some definite trial and error, I have learned that…

Setting up a camera outside is like flipping a switch for crickets, barking dogs, airplanes, lawnmowers and chainsaws to do their thing.

What had been totally silent a few minutes before, quickly becomes a cacophony of sound and distraction. But even if these outdoor sounds are only sporadic, they are still problematic. Why is that?


Imagine for a moment that we’re shooting. We film all the wide shots for a scene, then the medium or close-up shots. But if we’ve got crickets on the wide shot and wind on the close-up, then when those shots are edited together you’ll instantly hear those abrupt changes. This is very distracting and gets your audience thinking more about what’s wrong, and not the story.

Good News

If the sounds are not major, we can use room tone to minimize them.


Bad News

If the sounds are major, we can re-record and replace the dialogue in post, but that requires more planning, more crew, more equipment, more time, and more money.



So, over these last 2 blogs we’ve learned the following:

When it comes to shooting outside, the beauty of outdoor lighting and sound can become a beast.

Which brings us back to the short answer, that “no,” you usually can’t save money by shooting outside.


Questions?

If you have questions about shooting your video outside, send me an email to info@zappl.in.


If you found this episode helpful, please hit the like button below or share it with a friend, someone you know who can use a little video help.

 
 
 
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