The 15 Commandments of Video

Jeff Sharon Full Sail University

@Jeff_Sharon

About Me• Graduated from UCF (’05)

and Syracuse (’06)

• Sports Reporter & Anchor for WNEG-TV (now WUGA) from ’06-‘08

• Host and Coordinator of Broadcast Productions for UCF Athletics from ’08-’10

• Course Director at Full Sail since 2011

• UCF Insider for SportsTalkFlorida.com

Want to get noticed? !

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Video is where it’s at.

Why? !

More and more people are watching online video.

Source: Pew Research

But if you’re going to do it, do it right.

!

This ain’t home movies.

What you need

• Camera (or phone)

• Tripod or Monopod

• Lavaliere Mic

• Headphones

• Bag

What about editing?Don’t freak out. Editing software does not have to be as complex or expensive as you think.

Use whatever platform you’re comfortable with.

iMovie is the easiest for beginners.

No program will make you a better editor. The video is the thing.

The Video Production Process

1. Shoot.

2. Write.

3. Edit.

4. Share.

Shoot Your Video• Do your research

• Set up your interviews

• Go out and shoot!

• Shoot interviews first

• Then shoot your B-roll footage/cutaways

• NO VERTICAL VIDEO!

Write Your Story

• Import your video.

• Select your sound bites.

• Then plan which shots you will use as cutaways and where you will place them.

• Write your narration.

What a TV script looks like

Everything you see goes on this side

Everything you hear goes on this side{ }

Edit Your Video

• Assemble narration and sound bites first

• Then add cutaway video

• Add graphics last

• Export and upload!

Post Your Video

• Export at the right settings (Check for YouTube-optimized)

• Upload to ONE site (not many)

• Embed on your blog

• Share on your Social Media

The 15 Commandments of Shooting and Editing

Great Video

Rule #1 Double-check

your gear.

Double-check your gear

Before you go on a shoot, make sure:

• Your battery is fully charged

• You have your tripod

• Your microphones work

• You have your headphones

• You have your SD card (with room on it)

Rule #2: Always use a tripod.

Always use a tripod

And I mean ALWAYS.

The tripod is your friend.

Adjust it for height.

Use the little green level bubble on the tripod’s head to make sure it’s perfectly level before you shoot.

A perfectly balanced tripod has the little bubble right in the middle of the

red circle.

Rule #3 If it’s moving, move with it.

If it’s not moving, don’t move.

If your subject is moving

If the subject of your shot is moving, move with it - SMOOTHLY.

EXAMPLE: A football player running past you.

And remember to give the subject lead room - More space ahead of their direction of travel.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Lead Room

If your subject is stationary

• If the subject of your shot is stationary, stay stationary.

EXAMPLE: The outside of a building.

Remember the Rule of Thirds and keep your hands off the camera while recording.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Shoot video the same way you shoot still photos

•AVOID PANS (side-to-side), TILTS (up and down) AND ZOOMS, unless you absolutely have to move.

• Pretend you’re taking still photos, except they’re moving pictures.

• Let the action happen in the frame.

•Use the Z-axis to your advantage

Let the action come to you. Don’t chase it.

Rule #4 Shoot and move.

Shoot and move

Don’t just stand there and “spray” the scene.

If something is far away, don’t rely on the zoom - get closer to it.

Get up and move your camera after every shot.

When you’re done recording, get up and move somewhere else.

This guy had better shoot and move.

Rule #5 Shoot with the light

behind you.

Shoot with enough light behind you.

• When outdoors, use the Sun as your primary source of light.

• Yes, your interview subject might be looking into the sun. Too bad. They’re on TV.

• When indoors, use a bright light or lamp as a primary light source.

• NEVER shoot your interview subject in front of a window. Epic interview fail.

Rule #6 Visual Diversity: Vary your shots.

For every object, person or scene you shoot, use this modified variation of the

Five Shot Method.

Five Shot MethodWith every object, person, or action you shoot, get five shots to ensure visual diversity:

TightMedium

Wide

Tight

Tight

Five Shot Method

For your close-ups, pick the three most important things in the wide shot.

Tight

Tight

Tight

Remember: Wide, medium, tight, tight, tight.

Rule #7 If you hear it, shoot it.

If you hear it, shoot it.

When you get to a place where a story is happening, stop and listen to the natural sound.

Whatever you hear, make sure you get video of it.

If you’re at the beach, you’d better get a few shots of the waves.

TIP: Pick your best natural sound shot.

Use that as your establishing (first) shot.

Rule #8 Shoot in 10-second

bursts.

Shoot in 10-second bursts.

Here’s how to actually shoot:

• Set up your shot.

• Check your framing.

• Hit record and then don’t touch the camera.

• Count to 10.

• Stop recording.

• Repeat.

Give yourself enough time to let action happen in the frame.

Rule #9 Don’t be afraid. Get up close.

Don’t be afraid. Get up close.

• Always get lots of close-ups.

• Move the camera and the tripod up close to what you want to shoot.

• If necessary, take the camera off the tripod and set it on something steady.

• This will help out your natural sound.

Even video of mundane things looks more interesting when shot close-up.

Rule #10 ALWAYS follow the

Rule of Thirds

Always follow the Rule of Thirds

•Divide the screen into a tic-tac-toe board.

•The focal point of each shot should be at one of the intersections.

Rule of Thirds FTW!

Good Framing

Bad Framing

Bad Framing

Bad Framing

Bad Framing

Rule #11: Edit your audio first.

Edit your audio first

Edit your soundbites and narration first (A-Roll).

Then edit in your cutaway video (B-Roll) over it.

Your video will make much more sense and take less time to edit.

• KEY TIP:

Cut on each pause in your narration. This will help your video’s pace.

Got this guy narrating your video? Put his voice in first.

Why audio first?Sound bites are fixed elements - In other words, they cannot be changed in post (at least, not ethically).

Narration can always be changed.

Also: This will save you TONS of time in the editing process.

Rule #12: NEVER use the same

shot twice.

Never use the same shot twice

If you already used a shot in your video, DON’T use it again.

Every shot must be different from the last one.

EXCEPTION: It’s something so incredible that you simply can’t avoid it. Meh. Don’t use

this again.Okay, I’ll allow it

this time.

Rule #13: NO JUMP CUTS.

NO JUMP CUTS.Jump cuts break continuity in time and produce a startling effect in the viewer.

This happens when you put two sound bites back-to-back with nothing in between.

Any moving objects in the shot will appear to instantly jump to a new position.

AVOID THEM.

Use cutaways to prevent jump cuts.

End frame of one shot

Beginning frame of next shot

Notice President Obama’s head is in a different place from one SOT to the next.

That’s a jump cut.

Two Ways to Avoid Jump Cuts

Get a cutawayor

Change two of the following:

Subject Focal LengthAngle

My tip to avoid jump cuts:

Everything in the shot should be completely different from

the last one.

Rule #14: NEVER use crazy effects

DON’T use crazy effectsKEEP IT SIMPLE!

Use only cuts or dissolves for transitions.

NOTE: Dissolves should only be used to show the passage of time, or if the video is moving at a leisurely pace.

Don’t use effects on video. This isn’t Instagram.

Use fonts that are easily readable. No cursive or other craziness.

No fancy wipes or transitions. EVER.

Unemployment in America

Say what? No crazy fonts!

Stop that! No weird effects!

Rule #15: Share like you care

Share like you care

• Pick one site (YouTube or Vimeo) to upload to.

• Fill out the title, description, and tags. Mind the details!

• Embed - Don’t link - Your video on your site.

• Share on your social media accounts.

• BE CONSISTENT!YouTube has the largest number of

users among video sites.

Recommended Viewing

• 60 Minutes

• CBS Sunday Morning

• PBS Frontline

• Reality TV

• Anything else where the Kardashians might show up

Rule #16

Once you have mastered the rules, only then can

you break them.*

*Just because you just learned the rules doesn’t mean you can break them now.

All non-original photos from flickr and Wikimedia Commons

Thanks.jsharon@fullsail.com

@Jeff_Sharon