Tips on Filming your Next Outdoor Adventure

[Andy Loos1432404924]

Here are a few basic tips when filming your outdoor adventure.

*When shooting video, try not to film into the sun. This makes for a bad picture.

*Wind plays a huge role on how your audio will sound, so in all cases when you have a strong wind use your back as a shield from the wind. You can buy wind screens that will reduce the wind coming into the mic though.

*Only use Zoom if you have too. Zoom will only make your picture more shaky. A tripod will help you but not as much in a boat.

*Have your camera guy wear a set of headphones to hear the quality of the audio. Maybe you can be farther away or maybe you need to be closer to get good audio.

*Get different camera angles. This will add a lot to your video.

*If you can afford a wireless mic, it is a great investment. Prices have come down a lot, and you can pick up a decent wireless mic for $100. This will really cut down on wind noise and will focus on your voice and what you have to say.

*Try to film birds flying or other boats driving or fishing; these are great clips to add to your adventure.

*Have a game plan on what you will talk about on camera: fishing tips, weather, time of year, depth, water temperature, baits to use. People want to know these things.

*Make sure to check your lenses for dust and dirt regularly. You are filming outside, not inside. No one wants to look at water spots or a piece of dirt on the lens.

Equipment and Software

*When choosing a camcorder, you want at least a MiniDV, or else some of the new flip cameras work very well. The more you pay the better quality picture and audio you will get.

*You want to make sure that the camera either comes with a usb or firewire cord to download the footage to your computer.

*Choosing a editing program. There are many programs out there, but some of the easiest programs to use are: Windows Movie Maker, Pinnacle Movie Maker or even Sony Vegas.

*Editing video can be difficult, so the best I can tell you is start playing around with the program. The more you use it, the better you will get.

These are just a few basic tips on filming and producing your outdoor adventures. Nothing too fancy or high tech in this article, just some ideas I wanted to pass on to you. We all look forward to watching your videos here in the Video Forum. If you have any questions, you are welcome to email me or ask questions here in the forum.

[Shack]

Some very good tips HFT!

Thanks for sharing!

Pinnacle Movie Maker Studio Ultimate version 12 and learn something new every time I use it. It is not the easiest software to learn, but once you get an idea of how to work it, the options are endless. Plus if you register the product and register at Pinnacle, they have some great on-line help and send you free "plug-ins" and updates every so often.

[DTro]

Great tips Andy! I look forward to adding to my YouTube collection this summer.