Improving the Conversation

Today I am going to be working on the film I shot last lesson, focussing on how I can re-shoot it to make it even better. I know that when I shoot today, I need to remember several things which should make my video look more professional:

• Do not zoom in or out whilst filming as the results aren't smooth enough
• Hold the camera still and film many shorter clips rather than longer clips as this will make editing easier. The edited version will then be a lot more consistent and the shots will vary a lot more making the video more interesting. Jumping from a clip to a similar frame or shot is not an effective method.
• Film more than I need!
• Consider the rule of thirds when shooting the footage to ensure that the subjects are framed correctly.
• Use a wider variety of shots from different angles such as:
• Over the shoulder shots - for each person in the film, with the shoulder only using a third of the space, leaving the rest for whoever else is present in the frame
• Establishing shots and mid-shots to show the subjects in their environment
• Close-ups to show reaction - but not too many!
• Shot-reverse-shot techniques to follow the conversation between the two people
• Also use a variety of different angles and to 'mix up' the sequencing of clips in the editing process so that no two frames next to each other look similar.