Equipping You With What’s Needed to Create a Successful Video | Video Toolkit – Ep.3

Paul Broadie

Welcome to Episode 3 of our Video Tool Kit series where Matt, our Creative Director, talks you through some important key points to keep to a budget when producing video. From tips on lighting, sounds and camera, these can all make your videos feel more premium.

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We made Manto’s Video Series to give our professional guidance on what works best when working on a low to no budget setup and the different considerations when creating content for your business if you are new to video.

So whether you’re a marketing professional, brand manager or solo content creator looking to invest more time into video, look no further. 

When it comes to filming great video, you can achieve amazing results with little to no budget at all.

Before even considering buying any extras, it’s worth noting that you likely have a great camera in your pocket. Most smartphones will record full HD and, in the right lighting and sound conditions, can give you amazing results off the bat.

Before we get started, consider how light the space is that you are in. Dark rooms will provide grainy and uninspiring results. We advise you to angle yourself close to a window and have all that natural light brightening up your face. Immediately, you’ll see better results. The other consideration is office lights. Typically, these are a different colour to natural light, and unlike our eyes, your camera will struggle to adapt to the various light sources. Turn them off where possible.

Before we move on, it’s worth showing you how we’ve lit me for this video. As you can see, the window is providing our main light source, while these other lights are filling in and adding interest to the shot.

The other main thing to consider is sound, as your phone may also be your microphone. Make sure you hold it not too far away, otherwise it might sound like this. Close the windows and stop any colleagues from nattering away behind you. Sounds will bounce around the room with hard surfaces, so if possible, record in a room with rugs or carpet.

Finally, you are ready to record. Well, not quite! Before you do, consider how things look on screen. My iPhone has a grid function that you can turn on in the settings that breaks the image up into thirds. These are useful for directing a viewer’s eye to the right part of the frame. This is good practice when shooting a piece to the camera like this one or interviews.

Finally, I suggest taking your time and doing a couple of takes if possible. It’s nice having a choice, and you might find the first take doesn’t quite work. You might find that the first take isn’t the best.

If you’d like to learn more about video, watch Manto’s Video Series playlist on YouTube.

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