Cinematography 101: The ultimate guide to becoming a cinematographer

Defined as the art of making motion pictures, cinematography is all about using visual tools to tell a story.
In this course we’ll cover: how to get started with your camera and its settings, how different types of camera shots and movements can impact your story, how to shoot high-quality videos with a smartphone or camera, composition techniques, and how to use them, how to you get started creating awesome engaging content.

Rolling camera and action.

Good cinematography is the result of countless factors coming together. Lighting, color, composition, and camera movement just to name a few. But even with the most beautiful lighting setup, meticulous composition, and flawless camera motion, without a basic knowledge of camera settings, you can quickly be left with an image that simply doesn’t do your hard work justice.

So, let’s start small. Images are made up of tiny little colored squares called pixels, and resolution refers to the number of pixels that make up a given image. It’s defined as a measure of width by height. This video was shot in a resolution of 4K, so it has a width of 3,840 pixels and a height of 2,160 pixels. Full HD footage has a width of 1,920 pixels and a height of 1,080 pixels. More resolution indicates more pixels and hence, a clearer, more detailed image. Aspect ratio refers to how wide an image is in relation to its height. This video has an aspect ratio of 16:9, but other common aspect ratios include 4:5, 1:1, 4:3, 18:9, and 2.35:1.

Videos are made up of still images played in rapid succession to create the illusion of continuous motion. Frames per second, or FPS for short, is the number of photos that your camera takes each second to create a video. You might also hear it referred to as frame rate. A higher frame rate or FPS will yield a smoother, more clinical motion. The most common frame rates are 24FPS, 25FPS, and 30FPS. 24 and 25 are essentially interchangeable and just vary based on the region you’re shooting in. 24 is the North American standard and 25 is the European standard and which one you use just depends on which country you’re shooting in. So, do a quick Google search to decide.

If you use the wrong one then you might end up with some flicker in your footage because lights manufactured in different countries flicker at a different frequency but nothing worse than that. I’m currently shooting in North America so I’ll be using 24FPS. 24 is considered the cinematic standard. It’s the frame rate most movies are shot in, so shooting in 24 can help to give your footage that cinematic quality. And you might also come across a frame rate of 23.976FPS which is essentially interchangeable with 24.

30FPS has become popular more recently and is associated more with television or internet videos. And higher frame rates like 48 or 60FPS are used occasionally but are much less common. But here’s where it gets fun. If you shoot in a higher frame rate than you play your footage back in, the result is slow-motion footage. Let’s say you shoot in 60 frames a second then edit in 24. Those 60 frames will be stretched out so that 24 play back each second. 24 is 40% of 60, so the footage will play back at 40% of its original speed.

This technique can be extreme, like footage shot in 240 and edited in 24 will play back at 10% of its original speed, dramatically slower than real-time. But it can also be subtle. Footage shot in 30FPS and played back in 24 will play back at 80% of its original speed which gives it a barely noticeable kind of dreamy vibe. To capture each frame, the camera briefly exposes its sensor allowing light to enter the camera and create the image. The amount of time the sensor is exposed for each frame is referred to as shutter speed.

The slower the shutter speed is, the more motion blur will be visible in the shot. For a natural amount of motion blur that mimics what our eyes see, you’ll want to use a shutter speed of double your frame rate. When shooting in 24FPS, use a shutter speed of about 1/50 of a second. A faster or slower shutter speed can also be used for stylistic effect. Here, a slow shutter speed is used to emphasize motion blur, and here a fast shutter speed is used to create a choppy motion.

Aperture is the size of the opening in the lens through which light enters the camera. A larger aperture will let more light in, resulting in a brighter image and a shallower depth of field, or a “blurrier background.” Aperture is also referred to as f/stop and is written as F over a number with a larger number indicating a smaller diameter. An aperture of f/1.4 indicates a lot of light and a very shallow depth of field, whereas an aperture of f/11 indicates much less light and a very deep depth of field. While aperture refers to a lens’ sensitivity to light, ISO refers to the camera’s sensitivity to light, and using a higher ISO will result in a brighter image.

Each camera also has a native ISO, which is the ISO at which it will produce the cleanest possible image. As you stray away from that native ISO, the image begins to fall apart and become noisy. Next, let’s cover white balance. By setting your white balance you tell the camera what kind of light it’s currently shooting in. Different light sources have different color temperatures. Indoor tungsten lighting is quite warm, sunlight is cooler and cloudy or shaded light is very cool, and other types of light fall at other points on the spectrum. Your eye won’t really notice the difference between these types of light but your camera will, and selecting a white balance that’s inconsistent with the light you’re currently shooting in will result in inaccurate color temperature.

When shooting in automatic mode, your camera will select the shutter speed, aperture, ISO, and white balance for you. Shooting in manual mode will allow you to adjust these settings yourself, giving you more control over the image and preventing these settings from changing throughout the shot. Finally, let’s discuss file format. Which file format you choose will affect the quality of your image as well as how much space the files take up. A MOV file is a higher quality image than an MP4 file but will also take up a bit more space. Different cameras can shoot in different file formats so it’s worth doing some research about your camera’s specific options to choose which is best for you.

Regardless of which camera you’re using, you’ll find some variation of these settings, and understanding how to use them is the first step to taking control of your footage and creating the best visuals possible. So that’s it for me, I hope you learned something new, and I’ll see you in the next class.

When choosing a lens, there are dozens of features to consider, but there are two that will have the most noticeable impact on your footage: focal length and aperture.

Focal length refers to how wide or tight the shot is. A wide focal length will show a lot of the scene, while a tight focal length will show less, allowing you to focus on individual parts of the scene. A wide focal length like 16mm might be useful for shooting a concert to emphasize the scale of the crowd, venue, and theatrics. A tight focal length like 200mm could be useful when shooting a soccer game to keep a distance from the action while still having it fill the frame and being able to focus on individual players. A focal length somewhere in the middle like 50mm could be useful when shooting a conversation scene in a short film to frame people comfortably and naturally.

Depending on the shot, focal length can affect the viewer’s perception of distance and motion. If the camera is moving forward or backward, or if an object is moving towards or away from the camera, then using a wide-angle lens will emphasize that motion, making it appear faster by stretching the distance between those layers. If the camera is tracking or panning left to right, then shooting at a tighter focal length will emphasize that motion by making it fill more of the frame.

A good example of both wide and tight focal lengths being used can be found in Formula-1 racing. When the cars move towards or away from the camera, wide lenses are used, but when they move parallel to the camera, tight lenses are used. In both cases, the choice of lens emphasizes the speed of the cars.

Here’s another rule of thumb for using focal length in relation to distance. When shooting in a small space, a wide focal length will make it appear larger by stretching the distance between layers, whereas when shooting in a large, expansive space, a tighter focal length will emphasize its scale by compressing the distance between layers.

Aperture is the size of the opening in the lens through which light enters the camera. A larger aperture will let more light in, resulting in a brighter image and a shallower depth of field or a blurrier background. Aperture is also referred to as f/stop and is written as f over a number, with a larger number indicating a smaller diameter. An aperture of f/1.4 indicates a lot of light, whereas an aperture of f/11 indicates much less light. Because they’re capable of letting in more light, lenses with larger apertures are ideal for shooting in low light. If you’re shooting a scene at night, then an aperture of f/1.4 will probably give you a usable image, whereas an aperture of f/5.6 will probably require you to boost your ISO up quite a bit, resulting in a very noisy image.

When shooting at a larger aperture, you might have to compensate for that extra light by increasing your shutter speed, lowering your ISO, or ideally using a neutral density or ND filter to darken the image without adjusting your shutter speed. A larger aperture will also result in a shallower depth of field. Depth of field refers to how much of the image is in focus. Shooting at f/11 indicates a very deep depth of field, so almost everything will be in focus, whereas shooting at f/1.4 indicates a very shallow depth of field, so only a slice of the image will be in focus and everything else gets blurred out. Depth of field can be used stylistically to hide details in the background of the scene, isolate a subject, or create a kind of dreamy, surreal look.

Another factor is the difference between prime and zoom lenses. Prime lenses cover only a single focal length, like 24 or 50mm, whereas zoom lenses cover a range like 24 to 70mm or 70 to 200mm. Prime lenses often yield a sharper image and reach a wider aperture, allowing for a more shallow depth of field. You might want to use them when you want the best possible image and have a bit more time to fine-tune each shot, like when shooting a narrative short film.

Zoom lenses offer the convenience of accessing multiple focal lengths on a single lens, rather than switching between multiple primes. So they’re ideal for more volatile filming environments, like documentary filmmaking or live event videography. Focal length and aperture will have the most noticeable impact on your image, but other factors worth considering when choosing a lens include autofocus, image stabilization, form factor, and any imperfections that could arise. Imperfections can include chromatic aberration, a distortion around the brightest parts of the image. Vignetting, a darkening of the edges of the frame. Barrel distortion, a subtle fisheye-like warping around the edges of the frame, particularly on wider lenses. And lens breathing, a subtle change in the focal length when changing focus.

There are thousands of different lenses out there, all of which will give your footage a different look. Macro lenses allow you to focus very close to the lens and shoot small objects up close. Tilt-shift lenses move the lens independently from the camera, creating stylistic blurring in the image. Snorkel lenses are long and skinny, allowing you to capture bizarre macro camera motions. The list goes on, so take your time exploring the different options available and choosing which are best for your project. That’s all for me, I hope you learned something new, and I’ll see you in the next class.

If you take a look at social media, you’ll notice a wide variety of cameras being used. Everything from a cell phone to a high-end cinema camera is capable of creating videos worth watching. But which one is right for you? Well, let’s weigh the pros and cons of some of the most prominent options.

Your phone is small and you probably already have it with you so it’s the most convenient option, but phone cameras tend to offer less control over camera settings and yield a lower-quality image. There are third-party apps that you can use to control some settings, but the options will still be more limited than with other types of cameras. Phones tend to have a tiny sensor, meaning you’ll need more light to get a usable image and you can forget about having that creamy, shallow depth of field. There’s also less flexibility with focal length. Most phones only have a few basic focal lengths built in. Because you already have it with you, a phone might be best suited for beginners or for documentary-style content where the best image isn’t a necessity.

Point-and-shoot cameras are still quite small and convenient to carry, but they offer more control over camera settings and tend to have a larger sensor. Point-and-shoots also usually have a pretty decent zoom lens built in, which gives you more flexibility in terms of focal length. A point-and-shoot may be ideal for someone who’s already practiced with a phone and is ready for the next step or for more experienced creators for whom convenience is a necessity, like vloggers.

DSLR and mirrorless cameras are the next step up. DSLR stands for digital single lens reflex. The camera shoots through a single lens and uses a mirror to reflect the image from that lens into both the sensor and the viewfinder. A mirrorless camera is like a DSLR but without the mirror. Instead, the camera uses a small screen in the viewfinder to display the image from the sensor. Because the viewfinder is electronic, the image you see in it is exactly the same as the final output, whereas, on a DSLR, the image seen in the viewfinder is different from the final output and acts only as a reference. Mirrorless cameras also tend to be a bit smaller and lighter in form factor than DSLRs. Both DSLR and mirrorless cameras tend to include a larger sensor, yield a higher quality image and offer even more control over camera settings than either a point-and-shoot or a phone. The biggest difference is that you can change lenses, allowing for a much wider range of options, but with the larger form factor and the need to carry separate lenses, DSLR and mirrorless cameras are definitely more of a pain to carry around and take more time to use.

Finally, cinema cameras. While DSLR and mirrorless cameras were originally designed for photography, cinema cameras were made specifically to shoot video. They tend to offer an even higher quality image, even more control over camera settings, and might even have additional features, like a top handle, built-in filters, and a larger screen. But, you guessed it, they’re even larger and require even more setup. Cinema cameras typically require a whole host of accessories to even be operational, including external power, a lot of storage, and a rigging system to connect everything.

You’ll notice that as these cameras offer more quality and control, they tend to offer less convenience. The builds become larger, the accessories needed to use them become more expensive, more steps are required in order to operate the camera, and more power and storage is required to shoot with them. Which camera is best for you depends not just on the result you hope to achieve but also on the environment you’ll be shooting in.

If you create casual daily videos for TikTok, then the quality provided by your phone could be more than enough and its convenience could easily make it the best option. On the other end of the scale, if you’re creating a short film for a prominent film festival, it’s probably worth renting out a cinema camera.

Personally, I use a mirrorless camera. Most of my shoots are outdoors and require a lot of hiking so a mirrorless setup allows me to capture high-quality footage with complete control over the image while still keeping the setup small and quick to operate. That’s all for me, I hope you learned something new, and I’ll see you in the next class.

There are dozens of types of camera rigs. Sliders, dollies, cranes, shoulder rigs, and gimbals to name a few. Let’s go through and talk about what any of that even means. A tripod is ideal for when you want the camera completely locked off.

Tripod shots can be used stylistically, usually to imply that a scene is at rest without much significant change happening in the story yet. And in the absence of camera motion, the movement of objects within the shot tends to become more noticeable. Some tripod models include a fluid head which allows you to pan and tilt smoothly, and a tripod is an obvious go-to when shooting by yourself. Not every shot needs camera motion, and a static shot is just a good default, that’s why you’ll see everyone from amateurs to Hollywood cinematographers using tripods.

Shooting handheld is simply holding the camera with no additional rigging. A subtle handheld motion can make a scene appear casual or candid, while a more extreme handheld motion can imply tension or action. That’s why handheld shooting is found everywhere from vlogs to Hollywood films. But shooting handheld might offer a limited range of motion. Moving too far or too quickly with the camera can introduce a lot of shake, and in some cases even make the image unusable.

To move the camera freely without shaky results, a steadicam could be used. This is a very intricate camera rig that stabilizes the camera’s motion while it’s attached to an operator, allowing that operator to move freely throughout the scene achieving a smooth but still very organic camera motion. Because of their size, cost and setup, steadicams are typically only used for larger scale productions. While we’re at it, let’s talk about a few other larger camera rigs.

First, a dolly. The camera sits on a platform which then rolls along a track on the ground to create the illusion of the camera seamlessly floating through the scene. A slider is a scaled-down version. The camera sits on a small platform which is mounted such that it can slide along a set of rails. While a slider and a dolly achieve the same kind of camera motion, sliders are typically shorter so they won’t allow the same range of motion that you could get with a full-size dolly. The most basic shots you can achieve using a dolly or a slider are a simple push in, pull out, or a tracking shot to the left or to the right. But why use a dolly or a slider for any of those motions when you could simply zoom in, zoom out, or pan the camera left and right? Well, because the camera is actually moving through the scene, a dolly or a slider will create a parallax effect, where the different layers of depth in the shot appear to move at different rates. This makes the scene feel more three-dimensional and makes camera motion more dynamic.

Another large camera rig is a jib or crane. The camera is fixed to the end of a long arm which an operator can move up or down to create a very dynamic motion where the camera moves vertically through the scene. If you’re working on a smaller scale production, then steadicams, dollies and cranes might be too large, too costly, or require too much setup. In this case, a gimbal might be the best option. A gimbal is a device that stabilizes the camera’s motion while still allowing it to move freely. It’s similar to a steadicam but much smaller and easier to set up and operate. And if you’re creative, a gimbal could be used to mimic the results of a slider, dolly, or crane. It’s a versatile and practical tool, particularly for mid-level productions.

Finally, drones. This one is pretty self-explanatory. A drone has the obvious advantage of being a flying camera and can facilitate a whole host of unique angles and movements that you couldn’t get using any other camera rig. There are dozens of drones on the market, everything from compact consumer drones, to massive drones capable of carrying a large camera setup and everything in between. You’ll probably find yourself using drone shots rarely if ever, but when you do need one they can create some incredible footage. Which camera rig you use will vary from project to project and even from shot to shot, so it’s worth learning and experimenting a bit with each one to find out which is best for you. That’s all for me, I hope you learned something new, and I’ll see you in the next class.

Camera motion is incredibly complex and there’s really no limit to the number of ways you can move the camera. So let’s start with the basics. The camera can pan left or right, tilt up or down, push or pull forward or backward, track left or right, or crane up or down. Multiple camera motions can be combined to create a more complex movement. Tracking to the right while panning to the left will result in a camera movement where the camera orbits around the subject. Let’s go back through some of those basic camera motions and talk about how they might make the audience feel.

A pan could be used to follow a moving subject or to establish the scene, showing the viewer around the location. This could be a slow pan used to build suspense or allow the audience to take in all of the details of the scene, or it could be a very fast whip pan used to indicate excitement or chaos as if the viewer is very quickly switching their attention between different parts of the scene.

A tilt is often used to emphasize vertical scale, making a subject appear taller by slowly showing its height. This could cause a character to appear more foreboding or a building to appear more impressive. A push or zoom-in is typically used to emphasize a subject, indicating its importance. Both movements have a similar effect but a push is going to be more three-dimensional because the camera is actually moving through the scene. A pull or zoom-out is typically used to reveal information, beginning on a subject before showing the scene around them. It can also imply distance between the audience and the subject, causing the subject to appear insignificant or indicating the close of a scene. Again, the movements will have a similar effect but a pull-out will feel more three-dimensional because the camera is actually moving through the scene. A push or pull will cause the audience to feel immersed in the scene whereas a zoom will cause them to feel disconnected from it.

A tracking shot is typically used to follow a moving subject Because the subject and the camera are moving in unison, the audience will likely feel as though they’re walking alongside that subject and observing their actions. Similarly to a tracking shot, a crane shot could be used to follow the subject as they move vertically through the scene. It could be used to reveal information, similar to a pull or zoom-out. Or it could be used to emphasize vertical scale, similar to a tilt. That’s an important point to keep in mind. Depending on how they’re used, different camera motions can take on an endless variety of meanings for your story.

So let’s walk through a few of the reasons that you might want to move the camera. Perhaps the most simple use of camera motion is to follow the subject, such as tracking alongside a character as they walk. In most cases, if the subject is moving, you probably want the camera to keep up. Any type of camera motion could be used to do this, not just a tracking shot. It could be a steadicam shot following through the scene. A crane up to follow a character up a flight of stairs. A pan to follow them as they walk past the camera or any other type of motion.

Camera motion can also be used to place emphasis on a subject, like a slow push-in. In this case, the camera motion cues the audience to focus closely on the subject. Again, this doesn’t have to be a slow push-in. It could be a slow tilt to emphasize the height of a mountain or building or a fast zoom to emphasize the expression on a character’s face.

Beyond just following or emphasizing a single subject, camera motion can be used to shift focus from one subject to another. For example, using a pull-out to shift focus from a character to the landscape around them. Or using a pan to shift focus from a character to what they’re looking at. On a more stylistic level, camera motion can create tone. Quickly orbiting around a subject can imply that they’re lost or overwhelmed by their surroundings. A steadicam shot following alongside a subject can imply casual observation, as though we’re walking alongside them. Handheld camera motion can add grit and urgency to a scene. How you move the camera has a massive impact on how an audience feels watching your film. It can make them feel worried, help the them appreciate the scale of a location, and immerse them in the story. It’s worth devoting time and studying camera motion to find out how you can best use it in your films. That’s all for me, I hope you learned something new, and I’ll see you in the next class.

On the surface, composition seems incredibly simple. It’s nothing more than where the camera’s placed and where it’s pointing, but it’s deceptively complex. There’s an endless variety of different ways to compose each shot, and poor composition can break the viewer’s immersion in your video. It’s crucial to think critically about how you compose each shot, so let’s go over some basic techniques to keep in mind when doing so.

A wide shot shows the entire scene. This could be used to place a subject in the context of its environment, perhaps to emphasize the scale or tranquility of the landscape around it. And a wide shot can also act as an establishing shot, typically the first shot of a sequence, introducing the audience to the location. A medium shot frames a subject from the torso up. It’s the most common shot in film and the default for framing human subjects because it feels comfortable and conversational. A close-up shows a subject from the shoulders up or allows a single object to dominate the frame. This could be used to draw attention to facial expressions, or a single object in the scene, and could also be used to reveal details that would otherwise go unnoticed in a wide or medium shot. Wide, medium, and close-up shots are the most important to understand, but there are also other framings that fall a little bit in between, such as a master shot which shows all of the characters in a scene in a single shot. Or a medium close-up, which is between a medium shot and a close-up, drifting away from the conversationality of the medium shot without fully embracing the intimacy of a close-up. And finally, an extreme close-up, which, as the name implies, is just a closer more extreme version of a close-up.

Next, let’s discuss camera angles. When shooting at a low angle, the camera looks up at the subject, implying a position of power or respect. You’ll typically see this used to reveal characters both to make a hero appear more heroic, or to make a villain appear more foreboding. When shooting at a high angle, the camera looks down at the subject implying a position of weakness or belittlement. You’ll usually see these used when a character has reached a point of defeat making them appear smaller than the world around them.

High and low angles are often used to indicate the power dynamic in a conversational scene. In this scene from “Whiplash” for example, Andrew, the drummer is shot from a high angle, and Fletcher, the band director is shot from a low angle. This indicates Fletcher’s power in the scene and Andrew’s lack thereof. You’ll notice the same use of subtle high and low angles used constantly throughout this movie to indicate the power dynamic between Fletcher and the band.

Other camera angles can be used for more dramatic stylistic effect, such as a Dutch angle where the camera is tilted on its side. This creates a sense of unease and suspense, so you’ll see it frequently used in horror and thriller films. Another dramatic camera angle is the overhead shot where the camera looks straight down. You’ll typically see this used to show the intricate details of a scene from above or to imply an omniscient point of view.

The rule of thirds is a guideline, both literal and figurative, that’s frequently used to compose shots. It states that if you were to draw lines dividing the frame into thirds, both horizontally and vertically, then the subject of the shot should be placed either dead center or on the intersection of two lines. This allows for a comfortable balance between the subject and the rest of the frame. If the subject is just a little off center, or a little too close to the edge of the frame, then the shot feels off. The rule of thirds is also useful for horizon lines which are typically best placed along one of the horizontal lines.

Leading lines are lines that guide the eye through the frame. The most noticeable example is several lines converging on the shot subject, think of a hallway or a train track. But they can also be used more subtly. They’re typically used to emphasize the subject of a shot, but they can also be used to create distance between the audience and the subject.

Subframing is the technique of placing the subject in a smaller frame within the shot, such as a window or a door frame. It can create a feeling of isolation or entrapment, visually separating the subject from the scene around them. If the subframing happens close to the camera, it can imply the subject is being watched, as the camera takes on the perspective of a hidden onlooker almost peering from behind something.

Mise en scene is the arrangement of elements within the frame. It falls between set design and composition. It’s important for the set designer to arrange the scene appropriately in the first place. But it’s also important to compose the shot, such that the frame feels balanced and distracting elements are hidden. If a distracting object leads the eye to the edge of the frame, consider moving that object or the camera to eliminate it from the composition.

Arrangement of objects in the frame can also be used for stylistic effect. Placing one object higher or allowing it to occupy more space in the composition can indicate greater power or importance. It’s important that I clarify that, just like any other part of cinematography, composition rules can be broken.

It’s important to understand these fundamental techniques but don’t be afraid to get creative with your composition. That’s all for me. I hope you’ve learned something new from this. Best of luck with your cinematography.And I hope to see you soon.

In this video, I’m going to share with you some tips and techniques to help you get the most out of your camera phone. I’ll also be showing you some accessories and apps that will help supercharge this little camera that fits in your pocket. We’re constantly bombarded with new camera announcements and new technology that will supposedly improve your footage. And whilst the gear does matter, not having it shouldn’t hold you back from making a start because you don’t have to spend a fortune on camera equipment anymore to share your story or provide value to people’s lives.

One of my personal favorite quotes from Gary Vee is, ‘Nelson Mandela’s speech wasn’t filmed in 4K!’ It’s so true. He gave one of the most famous speeches in the world, and nobody cared what it was filmed on. He still got his message across. So hopefully this video will remove any of those mental blocks that stand in the way of you starting and get you on the way to sharing your message with the world.

So our phones come with everything we need to get started making videos. The features built into most phones will allow you to set the frame rate to enable you to film in normal speed or slow motion. You’ll be able to change the focus area of your image, zoom in and out, and most of them will have auto exposure, so you don’t even have to think about your exposure.

They’ll also have image stabilization to stabilize your footage for smoother moving shots and also overlay the rule of thirds grid to help you frame up your shots. Now, all phones will be slightly different, but they’ll usually include these features as a standard, so it shouldn’t take long to find any of these options that I’ve just spoken about.

But if you did want to have a little bit more control over your settings, you can install third-party apps on your phone, which will give you similar options to, like a mirrorless camera, for example. Now there are loads of apps out there, some more expensive than others. You just have to pick one within your budget that also includes the features that you will use the most.

I would personally look for ones that allow you to change the resolution, the frame rate, the shutter speed, the ISO, the white balance, have separate control over the focus and exposure, and allow you to monitor your exposure with a histogram or some sort of waveform, and also monitor your audio levels and adjust them. That would be a bonus.

Now, some of these camera functions and settings will be explained in detail in another video, but basically having control over these settings will allow you more creativity over the way the video looks.

You don’t even need to have a computer to edit your content on anymore because there are so many video editing apps, even just on your phone. Adobe Rush is completely free and includes some of the best features from Adobe Premiere, my favorite editing program. You can now film, edit and upload straight to social media just using your phone. It’s insane. Imagine back in the day when you would have to film something on film, send it away somewhere, wait for it to get shipped there, they would chop it up, physically chop it up and edit it, stick it back together, then they’d have to send it back, make multiple copies of it… It’s just mind-blowing. Now we can do it all on the phone instantly. Literally within seconds. And we still moan that things aren’t quick enough. Well, I do anyway… I don’t know about you… probably got a bit more patience than me.

Now, if you’re like me and you struggle speaking to a camera, it might be worth downloading a teleprompter app, and that means you can prepare a script in advance. Display the text on your phone right next to the camera, so it still looks like you’re looking into the lens and connecting with your audience. And teleprompters are great because they’ll save you heaps of time whilst you’re filming and editing as well. Because there’ll be less outtakes. You’ve just got to be mindful, though, that you’re good at writing.

You’ve got to be able to write how you would speak and also be good at reading in an expressive way. It’s so difficult. I’m actually using one now, so hopefully, you can’t tell. If you’re doing a talking head shot much like this where you just want the camera to be stationary, then you need some sort of tripod, either a mini tripod or a regular-sized tripod. But because it’s a phone, it doesn’t weigh much. You won’t need a heavy-duty one. But what you will need is a phone clip so you can mount your phone instead of your camera, for example. Some tripods come with these now, but if not, they’re really easy to find and they’re super affordable.

If you want a handheld type shot, you could just use your phone as it is. But because of the shape, it can be quite tricky to hold, which means you might get a little bit of wobble or shake. So investing in some sort of camera cage will allow you to grip the phone with two hands for a more comfortable and natural hold, and cages also allow you to mount accessories to them, such as microphones and lights.

Although phones have pretty good stabilization built in, nothing compares to when you’re using a gimbal or a stabilizer, for example. There may be times where you need to get a super smooth movement for a particular shot. And that’s where a 2-axis or 3-axis gimbal will be great. 2-axis gimbals stabilize the pan and the tilt axes, whereas a 3-axis gimbal smooths out the roll axis as well, so you can make it really smooth.

Now, if you really want to get creative, there are a wide range of lenses, including anamorphic lenses that you can just clip onto your existing lens or phone case, and that’ll convert it into a different focal length or style lens.

Now, this will let you create a variety of different-looking shots on a budget compared to lenses for a mirrorless camera, for example, which cost a fortune. Super wide angle lenses are great for sports, whereas a tighter focal length is great for interviews or details like bird photography or videography, for example, where you want to capture something a little bit further away.

Now we all know that how your image looks is important, but your audio needs to sound good too because people can get distracted by bad sound in videos and your phone will be picking up sound from all directions and might result in some unwanted noise. So plugging in a microphone will give you a more direct signal, and it will be clearer. And you can easily mount the microphone to either a small clip mount on your camera case or a camera cage.

So hopefully you can see now that you don’t have to break the bank, and nothing should stand in the way of getting started on your content creation journey. Don’t forget to check the other videos in this series for more tips on content creation. I hope this video has helped! Thanks for watching, and I’ll see you in another one.

Hey everybody, and welcome back to our channel. Today, we’re going to talk about vertical videos from A to Z: How to crop your videos, how to purposely shoot vertically, expert settings, and much more.

So if you haven’t noticed by now, vertical video is everywhere. It’s in our Facebook feeds, it’s in the Instagram Stories, and even on YouTube. And there’s a good reason for that. Vertical videos take a lot of real estate on our phone screens, with almost 60% of video content being consumed with our phones, it only makes sense to create video content created for mobile phones, which is vertical videos. That’s why brands, influencers, and marketers use this method when creating video content.

When creating a vertical video, there are two ways to go with. The first way is to shoot normally and then crop your videos in post-production. This is the common way to do it usually. And the second way is to actually flip your camera when shooting and shoot vertically. Of course, there’s pros and cons to each method. So let’s dive deep into that.

So let’s first talk about the common thing to do, which is shooting normally on a wide aspect ratio and cropping it in post-production. The benefit of doing that is you get more versions of your video. You get the wide version, which you can upload into YouTube or screen it on a TV screen and you get the vertical video that you can utilize on social media and the different platforms like Instagram or Facebook. Sounds great, right? Well, the problem with that is that your vertical video will suffer a major quality loss in framing, composition, camera movement, and overall storytelling. Just think about it. If you originally shot your video for a widescreen TV experience, taking that width away from your composition can really hurt your final product.

For example, if my idea was to take a long shot to introduce the environment and the location to the audience. Now, taking that shot and cropping it in post-production takes away a lot of the details that help to do that and thus hurts my storytelling. Or let’s look at this close-up shot. If I try to force it into a vertical frame, we’re now getting an extreme close-up and a not-so-pleasing frame.

Now it is possible to take your wide videos and crop them successfully in post-production. All you need is a bit of a mind shift. You have to start thinking vertically at the very beginning of your video project. First, you need to figure out on which social media platform your video is going to be published. Then, according to that, you’ll know which aspect ratio you’ll need to take into consideration when shooting your video. For example, it can be 1 by 1 or 9 by 16. If you want to know all the details regarding the pixels for each aspect ratio, we have a dedicated blog article which is linked in the description below.

The next thing you want to do is create guidelines on your monitor so you can actually see the vertical frame while shooting and take out all that guesswork. You can do this by turning on your guide in your camera if you have that option, or you can do it physically by cutting out a cardboard and putting it on your monitor or taking two pieces of gaffer and sticking in on your display. Now you could focus on storytelling instead of focusing on whether or not this frame works for vertical.

And here are some more useful tips while shooting your video and in post-production. Try to shoot everything wider than you usually do. Like we’ve said before, a close-up can turn out into an extreme close-up, and a long shot can lose a lot of details when cropping it. Shoot in the highest resolution possible for that extra flexibility and post-production. Try to avoid shaky footage and fast camera movements. These will be very enhanced in the vertical versions of your video, and you’ll find it very difficult keeping your subject in the center of the frame.

Get creative with split screens. These are very trendy these days and can really spice up your edit and make good use of the vertical format. Another common trick you can do is this – simply duplicate your video blur it out and use it as a background layer to your scaled-down video. This way, you get to keep more details, but you still utilize the vertical screen real estate. And, our last pro tip. Use positioning keyframes to keep your subject in frame or just use the new Premier Pro auto reframe tool.

Now, you know everything you need to create a vertical version out of your already existing wide video. But what if you want to shoot the whole video vertically in camera? How would you go about doing that? And more importantly, why would you even want to? On one of our recent campaigns, we decided to shoot a video dedicated to Instagram Stories and Facebook, therefore shooting it vertically in camera, which gave us the full control when deciding on framing, frame blocking, and composition. Because we had a heavy-duty camera, we had to build a special rig. If you have a smaller camera like a DSLR or mirrorless camera, there are easier ways to rig it vertically. With a tripod, all you need to do is take your camera and mount it sideways. Then tilt your tripod head and you have a vertical shot. If you have a camera cage, all you need to do is take a quick release plate and mount it on the side of the cage or just go handheld. You can figure it out with the gear you have at home.

Here are some more tips when actually going out and shooting your vertical video. Because the vertical frame is so narrow, you’ll have to be very precise with your camera moves to keep an ideal framing. Try to go for smaller or more controlled movements. Try to be as stable as you can. Use a tripod, a dolly, or a gimbal if possible. Shakiness is very noticeable in a vertical frame. All the usual rules regarding composition still apply. Don’t discard them just because you’re going vertical. Using leading lines, for example, can have an even greater effect when used in a vertical composition. Have your subject move towards or away from the camera instead of moving horizontally across the frame. When using a wide lens, try lifting the camera and tilting it down. This usually helps to creating depth and an overall more compelling shot.

So whether you like it or not, vertical video is here to stay. We hope this video inspired you, and now you can go out and film beautiful vertical videos and get all the benefits that comes with it. Till then, stay creative.

Hey everybody, welcome back with a new video, I hope all of you are doing well. My name is Jamie. And today we’re going to take a look at time lapses and how to do them right. Let’s get this out of the way first. Time lapses are neat, but they can be a bit scary to create. See, a time-lapse is not a sped-up video, but rather a series of photographs stitched together to create a video. But don’t worry, I’ll break down how to do it so you too can make amazing time lapses starting with pre-production.

It is important to know what your shot will look like. How is the camera positioned? Are using a slider or gimbal to add motion? How long do you want your time-lapse to last? Let’s start with planning the shot. I want a time-lapse of a highway with cars moving by. I think it’s nice to add a bit of motion to the shots, so I’ll use a Ronin-S gimbal to move the camera during shooting. Of course, this is completely optional and you can create some amazing time lapses on a tripod.

Now it’s time to think about the sun. Big lighting shifts during the shooting of your time-lapse can impact the final result. You might also not want the sun to shine directly into the lens, as that can create unwanted lens flares. There are tools to help you plan your camera placement, though. The free website suncalc.org shows you how the sun will move on a given date and location, allowing you to plan accordingly. iOS also has the paid Apple Lumi, which has a ton of information regarding the position of the sun and the weather. I now know which way to face so that the sun doesn’t ruin my shot.

I know that I want to shoot next to a highway, which means that I can already start thinking about my interval. For quick-moving objects like thunderstorms, you generally want one, two, or three seconds between photos. For slower objects like a sunset, five to eight seconds is fine. Cars are moving by quickly, so I’ll choose an interval of three seconds.

Now, let’s get into a bit of math. I want my time lapse to last ten seconds at 24 frames per second. That means 240 photos total. That comes down to twelve minutes of shooting time at three seconds between photos. There is a great online calculator to help you with this. It can calculate your shooting interval, your clip length, or the duration of the event you’re shooting. Super helpful.

All right. Highway. I want to convey a sense of speed, so I’ll take a longer shutter speed to add blur to the cars. 1/10th of a second should do the trick just fine. However, a longer shutter speed also means more light hitting the sensor, resulting in a brighter image. I could choose a smaller aperture so that less light enters the camera. However, that also results in a deeper depth of field. If I want my depth of field to stay the same, I’ll need to find another way to limit the amount of light coming in. This can be done with an ND filter, allowing me to take photos at longer shutter speeds without ruining the exposure. Cool. That is the pre-production done. Let’s go.

All right. I’m here on location, ready to shoot. What I currently have set up here is the Canon 60 on a Ronin-S for movement. The way you can record time lapses depends on your setup and is something you need to research for your specific use case. With the Ronin, I can control the camera from the app, which makes setting up a time-lapse very simple. Many camera manufacturers have a built-in time-lapse mode on their cameras, which is something you need to look up. In my case, I can simply go into the DJI Ronin app, select create, and then choose motion lapse since I’m going to add movement to it. The app does the math for me, so I simply input the three-second interval, the ten-second content duration, and the 24 frames per second frame rate. By selecting keyframes and then pressing the joystick icon, I can set the position of the first and last points of the time-lapse.

On cameras that do not have such a mode, you can often use an external intervalometer which presses the shutter button for you. Now it is time to check if all settings are correct. Make sure your camera is set to manual mode so that your aperture doesn’t suddenly change halfway. Set your focus to manual too and check that it is correct. Also, check the shutter speed. I settled for 1/10th of a second. When using the Ronin, turn off stabilization on the lens, as that can cause some problems when making a time-lapse. Everything is how I want it to be. I can start recording my time-lapse.

For a bit of extra spice, you can also try your hand at a hyperlapse. This is where you create a time-lapse with a lot of movement. You can do this by turning on time-lapse mode and moving the camera between shots, but you can also move the camera and take a photo manually. Repeat this a lot of times, and you can create a pretty darn cool result. To make a great hyperlapse. there are some things you can calculate to make your life during shooting easier. I want to move a total of 750 feet, and I want my hyperlapse to be four seconds long at 24 frames per second. That gives me 96 photos. Divide the distance by the amount of photos and you know how far to move between them. In my case, about eight feet, I’d like a nice moving sky, so I’ll use an interval of three seconds. Hmm. Eight feet in three seconds.

While technically possible, they’d like a bit more time to set up the camera correctly. See, this is why you do calculations beforehand. Math. I’ll make my hyperlapse six seconds long instead, meaning 750 feet divided by 144 photos. This leaves me with about five feet between photos. A lot better. Now I can start shooting. As always, experimenting is key in finding the right method for you. Don’t be discouraged if your first time lapse doesn’t come out as well. Try again and find ways to improve, but most of all, have fun. I hope that this tutorial will help you further on your time-lapse journey, and we’ll see you next time with a new video. Cheers.