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A good tripod will last forever and soon repay your investment in good quality footage. Also consider a small portable tripod. I bought this one 25 years ago when still a poor Uni student and couldn't afford a real tripod. It folds up to only 15cm long, lives in my camera bag and is still very useful. The block that holds the camera to the tripod is one of these small
items that likes to be lost by students. When packing up, leave
it attached to the camera - it only needs to be removed when changing
tapes.
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Very useful for framing shots but it does use up valuable battery power. If you are shooting outdoors try to use the standard viewfinder as much as possible. Carrying a spare battery is also a good idea. When in a crowded area tilt the LCD screen and raise the camera above your head to get a better shot. Flip the LCD screen 180º and you can view the framed shot from
in font of the camera. Very useful if you need to be in the shot
or for taking footage over your shoulder.
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Unless it is for a very specific purpose forget about the still shot feature on your video camera. In 2 seconds of video you have actually taken 48 still shots. Load the video into iMovie and you have 48 photos from which to find that perfect shot. You can use it as a still in a movie or export it through Save Frame in the File menu to use in another application. The quality will not be as good as an image from a still camera but shrinking the image size will enhance the quality. Almost all the images on my Filming Tips site were created this way. This is particularly useful if you are trying to capture an elusive
moment, such as a group of children all smiling at the same time.
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Always keep the original footage on tape until the project is completed. Over editing can ruin a clip so it is essential to be able to go back to the original. Periodically export your project back to tape as a backup. Just in case technical problems arise. Give each group of students their own tape to ensure there are
no problems with overwriting another group's footage.
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For the type of camera schools use, the best weather condition
for outdoor footage is an overcast day with no sun because the light
quality is consistent. The problem with sunny days is the uneven
light variations between full sun and full shade and everything
in between. This results in under / over exposure of sections of
the shot. Also, students facing the sun will be squinting or if
they are wearing hats their faces will be shaded.
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There is no substitute for good quality original footage. Using the correct camera angle makes an enormous difference to the effectiveness of the shot. Consult the camera angles section of my Filming Tips site for more detailed information. Allowing a couple of seconds of footage before and after the action
will be very beneficial at the editing stage.
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An audience will forgive poor quality video far more than poor quality sound. To ensure the best sound keep the camera on a wide angle so it can be placed as close to the action as possible. Otherwise use an external microphone with a long lead. It is best to hang the microphone in the air otherwise it will pick up too much ground noise. An effective boom mic can be constructed simply and cheaply by using a painter's extention pole and roller. Wind makes an awful sound through the inbuilt microphone. If you
are going to do a lot of outdoor shooting consider a microphone
designed for those conditions.
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Invest
in a good tripod and always use it - makes an enormous difference
to the quality of your footage. I purchased a cheap $40 tripod simply
because it was cheap - a big mistake. It was very flimsy and the
holding clips broke within two weeks. I then went to the opposite
end of the scale and bought a Monfrotto - it was worth every cent.
