Home Audio & Video Recording Tips
Little things that can take your home video & audio performance from good to great !
AUDIO
Silence: Microphones of modern mobile phones, ipads are very sensitive and pick up a variety of sounds that you may not notice. You have to be more aware of the subtle sounds that drone on in your background like humming from machines with fans, buzzing from lights, jingling from your pet’s collar or a TV in the other room.
Airplane Mode: It may be quite obvious to turn your phone’s ring tone off when you’re recording, it may not be as obvious to put your phone in airplane mode. When phones receive calls or perform searches as part of their background processes, they emit signals that can get picked up by your recording system. Avoid ruining good takes with unwanted sounds of phone signals by putting your phones in airplane mode.
Minimize echo: If you are recording yourself talk or sing, make sure to set up your recording space in a way where the sound projected from your voice bounces minimally off the walls and back to your microphone. Bare walls and hardwood floors will cause a lot of bouncing. Make use of materials that will absorb your sound rather than bounce it, like a thick carpet.
Avoid the pops: Block wind from reaching your microphone. Although it might not sound so loud and distracting to the naked ear, wind sounds terribly loud through a microphone recording and can cause your audio to clip this includes the “wind” that comes out of your mouth when you
pronounce words starting with the letter “p.” Maintain an optimum
distance to avoid pop in absence of pop-screens.
Optimum Performance from your device: Phones and tablets are very powerful devices and this the reason sometimes we overload them with various apps. While recording video or audio, it is advisable to close other applications (just like you would do on a computer) to make sure there is no lag or break in the sound.
Warm up: Take time to warm up your voice as it can be the difference between a good performance and a great one. Though there are a lot of tools available that can improve a sub-par vocal recording, you’ll save yourself time and hassle by capturing the best raw performance possible.
Nothing like Raw: Whilst, it can be tempting to colour your vocals with reverb and other effects while recording your performance, but you should always record your vocals with no effects added. Recording this way will open up options when it comes to mix your vocal track later on.
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Lighting: If you are recording outside, e.g. in your garden, please avoid harsh & direct sunlight. A diffused light works best. For indoor recordings, avoid having a bright light source (like a powerful lamp or window) behind you as this may make your face darker. Also avoid facing a light source directly. A diffused light (or window) from slightly side angle works best. Any ordinary lamp can be diffused by adding a paper or putting a thin white cloth on top.
Composition: Always assume the camera to be a person at the other end. Look directly at it, smile at it and show the same facial expressions as you would while talking to someone in person. This engages your viewers and makes your presentation lively. If you are reading from a script, please make sure that it is placed as close to the camera as possible.
Too far: If your recording involves showing your whole body and/or the backdrop, as in a dance or instrumental performance, make sure you are not too far away from the camera as it may pick up distracting background elements. Frame tight, but do not take it to the edges, keep some breathing space.
Too close: Even in videos there is such a thing called too close. Avoid being right on your viewer’s face, unless there is a specific reason (e.g. makeup videos). Avoid cutting part of your top part of your head or chin.
Position: For front-on video compositions, the best position is to keep the camera at your eye level. Looking down at the camera is a no-no & stretching your neck is not visually appealing. If needed, raise your phone, ipad or laptop by keeping books under it.
Format: Always record in horizontal (landscape) mode. TVs, computer screens are all horizontal and a mobile or ipad is normally rotated by habit for a horizontal view. Shooting in Portrait mode will leave black spaces on both sides when viewed in a horizontal format.
Background: A clean and simple background that does not have distractions works best. Remove extra papers, tissues, clutter and other items that may look unprofessional. If you are pitching your product or business, objects that
compliments your pitch will help-in conveying your message. Always film in front of your logo and keep the logo to one side, top-right corner, preferably.
Video Quality: Nowadays Full-HD (1920 X 1080p) is the norm, though you should record at the highest resolution supported by your device. Keep your camera still and don’t rely on your hands to shoot a steady video. Get an inexpensive tripod for your iPhone or iPad or rest it somewhere stable.
Re-shoot: Practice makes perfect. Always do few takes of a video & check all the elements above and decide the best one. Shooting great looking videos is a process of trial and error.
Leading & Trailing Space: Do not abruptly start or end your video or audio recording. Before starting to speak look directly into the camera for few seconds & then start. Similarly after finishing look into the camera freezing the feeling /
emotion for few seconds and then end.
Sharing your Files: Please use a dedicated file sharing service (G-Drive, Dropbox etc.) rather than sharing files through some instant messaging or emails platforms reduces the quality or video or audio slightly for transmission.
HAVE FUN: The more relaxed a person is in front of the camera, the better the video. Enjoy talking to your pretend audience and your energy and enthusiasm will come through.