This year I plan on diving deep in to the world of videography – not for weddings or photography clients, but more for sharing my content across social media and here on my website. Creating great-looking content is quickly becoming an essential skill in the 21st century, and with better quality cameras hitting the market every few months, it’s an easily attainable goal. 

Ways to Improve the Quality of Your Videos

However, things can be quite confusing with so many hardware and software options available nowadays. This article should narrow down the choices available to you and help you focus on the key components to achieve the optimal look for your videos.

What Kind of Video Are you Creating?

Consider the effects you want in your videos. Minimal shadows create a more open feel that might work better for marketing or promotional content. Mood lighting with soft shadows and dramatic looking scenes create an artistic and eye-catching aesthetic; they work better for certain content rather than business-centric videos.

Lighting Is Key 

Choosing the proper lighting for your video makes a tremendous difference; it greatly affects its quality. Properly place your light sources and bouncers to make the video look professional. As the photography experts at Photography-Lighting.com explain, there are lots of examples of different lighting setups that you can use depending on your budget and the kind of video you want to create. The best light source available is also the cheapest one; the sun. When using natural light, the best time to get great footage is early in the morning or at sunset when the light is soft; those times are nicknamed the golden hour. 

Mid-day light comes straight overhead; it casts jarring shadows on your subjects, unlike the golden hour light, which bathes your subjects in soft and complimentary shadows. When filming indoors, avoid overhead lighting since it acts like natural midday light. Using large lamps to mimic natural light is a good workaround.

Choose the Right Software

There is a plethora of video and post-processing software options available. Choosing the right one to suit your needs is essential. With options like Lightroom, Photoshop, After effects, and Final Cut, to name a few, it can get confusing. Most of the high-end professional ones offer a free trial version to familiarize yourself with their features. They also offer tutorials and detailed videos to get the best out of them. There are several courses to take that will increase your skills and make you an editing and special effects wizard! Once you figure out the type of content you intend to produce, it’s time to research the best software for that particular field.

Use a Clean, Simple Background

A clean background looks professional, a messy one with clutter everywhere can be quite distracting and gives the impression that you are an amateur. Solid-colored backgrounds give your video a sleek and professional look. A solid-colored clean wall, a bedsheet, or backdrop paper provide excellent choices. Having your subject placed several feet away from your backdrop will ensure the subject is not casting harsh shadows. It is imperative to avoid shooting with reflective surfaces in your background surfaces like mirrors or windows since the camera might be visible in the shot. Not to mention the windows behind your subject will cause sharp contrast in the shot, causing the subject to appear dark and shadowy.

If you do decide to have a less simple background, be sure that your area of focus is specifically on the subject. This can be done by shooting with a wider aperture (sounds backward, but I promise it isn’t!), so that your backdrop is in bokeh.

Practice Practice Practice 

In any profession, the best way to get better is to keep practicing – an athlete will never win that gold medal without hours and hours of practice. Do not be afraid of making mistakes; they will often teach you valuable lessons on improving your skills. 

The process of trial and error is a time-honored one in video production. The best content creators are those who never shy away from making mistakes; they are constantly creating new content as well as trying to hone their crafts. Make sure to film something new every chance you get. Keep trying new shooting techniques and subjects.

Invest in Good Microphones

The quality of your audio is actually more important than video quality. A lot of people do not mind watching a standard definition video; it could even be a bit grainy, just as long as everything else is good quality. However, unclear and bad audio is often enough to make most people stop watching your content immediately. Decent quality microphones should be among the first things you invest in. Having the mic as close to your subject as possible should ensure that you get high-quality audio. Be on the lookout for background noise that could get picked up accidentally through your mic.

Hopefully, this article has helped outline some of the most important elements you will need to keep in mind to create quality content. Now you can enjoy your journey of improving your existing skills or learning a few new ones.

Ashley Durham is a mompreneur and network marketer who loves to help other moms grow their businesses online, offering virtual assistance and mentoring. If you have specific questions about blogging services, please send me an email!