Video Production Tips - # 3 White Balance

I was asked by a viewer what white balancing is. White balancing is a feature that you'll find on pro-sumer and professional camcorders. Basically, it gives the camera operator the ability to tell the camera what should be white. The camera then bases all of the other colors off of what it thinks white is.  White balancing is achieved by holding up a piece of white paper or a white object in front of the camera, zooming in so the whole screen is white, and then pushing the white balance button.

You'll notice that once you do this, the piece of paper will appear white and all the other colors in the room will seem more natural and accurate. You can experiment with different colors. If you have a blue piece of paper and use that to white balance then everything will adjust to the blue and the scene will look more orange or red. Vise-versa if you balanced with an orange piece of paper the scene would appear bluish.

Here are some common mistakes when white balancing:

1. White balance every time you move to a new location. Just because you white balanced in the beginning of the day doesn't mean it will last all day. Every time you go from indoors to outdoors or room to room you should re-balance.
2. Make sure you have all of your lights setup (if used) before you balance and make sure the paper your using is being lit by your lights when you balance. Anytime lighting conditions change you need to re-balance.
3. Make sure the object your using is really white, unless your going for a certain effect. Don't use peoples teeth or walls unless your sure its pure white. I find a thick piece of paper works nicely.

Most editing softwares have a white balance feature. If you forget to do it in the camera you'll at least have that option. Balancing in the camera is better though.

Hopefully this will give you a better understanding of this vital feature for quality video.

- Chimera Productions

Video Production Tips - # 2 Keep It Steady Stupid!

Theres nothing more disappointing than having family over to watch a home video, you press play and grandma starts coughing up chewed peas because of nauseating, shaky camera movements. This is a tell-tale sign of amateur video. Here are some tips to help smooth things out a little.

1. If you camera has image stabilization for god sakes turn it on. This technology is getting better and better as years go by and it will help remove jitters and bumps while your shooting. If your looking to buy a camera I recommend getting one with this feature.
2. Be as steady as you can. Turn your body into a tripod. Use both hands, cradle the camera. Lean against a wall or a tree. Hold the camera close to your body. The more solid you can make your stance, the smoother your shot will be.
3. Relax! If your fidgety and hyper it will reflect in your camera work, believe me. So breathe easy and calm down.
4. Sit the camera on a tripod, if you don't have a tripod you can use a table or banister.
5. If your trying to do a pan of all the people at your party, start at one side of the room, start with a still shot for a few seconds, then slowly ease into the pan. Try to consistently pan at the same speed all the way to the other side of the room, then end on a still shot for a few seconds.

Try some of these techniques out and watch your video improve dramatically.

Stay tuned for more tips.

- Chimera Productions

Video Production Tips - #1 Composing Shots

Most people can tell a good photograph from a bad one, but who really knows why. What makes a photograph or video interesting? An important element of every photograph or video is composition.

Take a look at these examples:

The image on the left is plain and boring.










The image on the right has something interesting about it.

But what makes the photographer choose that particular angle?







The answer is somewhat scientific.
Naturally our minds like balance.
In order to balance an image you need to be familiar with the rule of thirds.
The Rule of Thirds is basically dividing the image into three columns and three rows.


Rule of Thirds Example:

The goal here is to move the camera to make the dominant objects fall on or around the intersecting points.





Notice that the image to the left is not really balanced

While the image to the right is much more symmetrical according to the grid. The dominant objects fall on the intersecting points.


When filming people, always try to keep the eyes of the subject on the top line. This rule applies to closeups and wide shots.

Homework:
Watch TV and notice that in almost every shot the persons eyes will fall on that top line.

Try this tip out and watch your videos become more interesting. These images were taken using and iPhone 3GS.
Stay tuned as this is the first of many tips.

- Chimera Productions

About Chimera Productions

Chimera Productions is a full-service video production company located in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Being a small company allows us to deliver a high quality product while keeping project costs low. We pride ourselves on the high standards, attention to detail and creativity we put into every project.


This blog will provide tips and training for videographers, editors and people who want to make there home movies look more professional. These tips will be coming soon so stay tuned.


- Chimera Productions