1st March 2019
There is a temptation when an organisation decides to do video to spend money on kit. Students on my courses often say that before the training they were considering spending sometimes thousands of pounds on cameras.
The trouble is most of us who start shooting at work already have a full-time job that doesn’t include filming. The question you have to ask is just how often you’re going to want to lug a heavy bag of kit with you while you attempt to complete your other duties. Your filming should enhance your work, not undermine it. A smartphone can do that because you never break a sweat carrying it.
This much-quoted photographic cliché really sums this up. The point being that you might technically have the best camera in the world – but if it stays on your desk most of the time, it is also the worst camera in the world.
So for most of us – the best camera we have is our smartphone, because it never leaves our side.
I think ultimately you will want to buy some accessories, but start small and consider each purchase carefully. Balance how new gear will improve your shooting vs. how likely it is to put you off the idea altogether.
Just one more cliché before we move on, but this is key. To get better at filming you have to practice. You have a camera with you – don’t forget to use it.
Get into the filming habit. Waiting at a bus stop, boiling the kettle, eating your lunch in the park are all perfect places to knock off a couple of shots. Practicing getting your shots in focus and properly exposed when it doesn’t matter will mean that when it does matter you’ll be ready.