15 Things I learned

SEP 24, 2018-1 MIN

SEP 24, 2018-1 MIN

15 things I learned about being a video production professional:

The first thing that I learned about being in the video production field is shooting no matter what. With anything practice makes perfect and this is no different with video production. It takes years and years to master a craft like this therefore it takes years and years of shooting video to find your style. Like the BuffNerd said in his YouTube video How to Make Video Production your Fulltime Job? “shoot no matter what… “I learned the most going out and doing free shoots… “this industry is about getting your name as a director.”

Casey Neistat the biggest video producer on YouTube made a video titled, Guide to Filmmaking. In this video Casey covers the essentials to filmmaking. He prefaces the video saying you don’t need to go to film school you can just watch this video over and over again. Regardless he starts with the fist tip and that is, gear doesn’t matter. This to me seemed shocking from a guy with endless money to put into gear. Casey says, “if all it took to be good was the equipment, only the people with money could be good” but contrary to popular belief this isn’t the case. Casey argues that if a movie with a 150 million dollar budget could still tank in the box offices. It isn’t the camera it is the person behind the camera. Being able to tell a story effectively will always out way the equipment.

The next thing I learned was not as much of a spoken tip but one that seems to be underlying in all of the videos I have watch so far. This is hard work and determination. In the video The Secret to Becoming a Travel Filmmaker Travel Feels talks about starting and wanting all of the big glorious things that comes with filmmaking but to get there it takes time and effort. Starting off you need to be the biggest go getter, every opportunity that comes your way you need to take in filmmaking. Someone is seeing everything you do whether it is a big movie executive or a camp that needs a videographer. Each step along the way is building blocks to your future.

The next thing I learned was in regards to creating content as a video professional, outline your goal. What are you looking to achieve? Are you trying to get visitors to a site or tell a story?
Identify your target audience; your audience will determine how you write your story, shoot, and edit your story.
Use the power of emotions. Emotions are what drive viewers to your call to action.
Film in small segments. Shooting in short takes allows for multiple angles and also shows the audience more in the scene.
Follow composition rules unless you decide to take artistic liberties. This doesn’t mean intentionally break the rule but doing it sometimes can make for a nice shot.
Always shoot to upload. Putting your videos out in the world can only help when it comes to exposure and critiques.

Choose the right software. Software is like a car they all do the same thing it just depends how much money you want to spend. Being proficient in a few of them is key because you never know what software the job you are applying for has.

This next tip is in regards to shooting corporate video. A lot of jobs are shooting video packages for companies. When doing this you need to make sure you have a clean and approved of script by your higher ups. This is key to getting your point across as easily as possible.
The next tip is for location of where you are shooting. Shooting in public is great but also dangerous. You need to make sure you have a spotter to watch your back as well as making sure where you are is ok to shoot video.

Intern and volunteer. When you intern or volunteer at places that have you shoot film you aren’t just getting experience but you also now have access to these cameras and can shoot whatever you think is interesting in your free time.
Tip 14 builds off of tip 13 in the sense that now that you have all of this footage it is time to make a portfolio. Portfolios are key to getting a job.
Lastly say yes to everything. No matter the experience it is always a positive one.