jared 0 Posted July 13, 2005 Share Posted July 13, 2005 Im hoping there is an expert lurking around here that can give me some advice about shooting better video... What I have already figured out: Dont use zoom unless you have a tripod, its too shaky otherwise. If you do use zoom and want to zoom in or out do it very slowly. (or very quickly and cut the change out later) "A" footage is almost always shot on a sunny day - even if the snow is not that great. Dont film warm up runs/jumps, its a waste of time, effort, tape and batteries. If its cold outside and you take your camera inside when you are getting lunch or a coffie your camera will fog up inside and be unusable for the next few hours - leave it outside if you have to go inside. (I missed countless afternoons filming cos of this) thats all I can think of for now - please add to the list. Link to post Share on other sites
sava 0 Posted July 13, 2005 Share Posted July 13, 2005 I think you got most of the main points zoom/lighting are the most important I reckon. Link to post Share on other sites
jared 0 Posted July 13, 2005 Author Share Posted July 13, 2005 p.s I make no claims that I have followed my own advice in the past - but I will try from now on. Link to post Share on other sites
sava 0 Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 Good. Otherwise we would have to hunt you down. Link to post Share on other sites
Thunderpants 0 Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 calibrate your white balance. (and i should find a new home for my avatar) Link to post Share on other sites
marnix 0 Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 Always instruct the skier/boarder to keep going (some tend to ski towards you and stop in front of you or 1 turn below you. I am 1 of those that keep forgetting this) Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 Quote: please add to the list. [/QB] Don't carry a camera on the snow all day and put up with crap in the morning like: "why do you use a digicam? Are you going to watch lame home movies later on?" Just to have the same deadshit snowboarder later demand that you film him do a (piss weak) jump with the earlier derided camera...... just to have him hurl sneering ridicule at you for taking too long, being in the wrong place for a good shot, taking to long and... (sneeringly) why did you take so long to put the camera away??!! Then on showing the footage don't let the deadshit glance at it with the arrogant assumption that the footage will be crap anyway... and then they make a "pffff, whatever comment" after looking at it for 10 seconds, walking away and not saying anything that sounds even close to thankyou. (A former member of this forum, he knows who he is, and still has a kick up the arse coming his way). On a serious note, don't wrap your digicam in a 7-11 bag and put it in your pocket thinking that it will be waterproof. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted July 14, 2005 Share Posted July 14, 2005 Quote: Originally posted by sava: Good. Otherwise we would have to hunt you down. Yes, that's right. And as sava and I both know, the rules for sniperscopes have a lot in common with the rules for video cameras. Link to post Share on other sites
spenshal-Mechanic-triplet 0 Posted July 16, 2005 Share Posted July 16, 2005 Quote: Dont film warm up runs/jumps I dunno I have some of my best stuff from that. Less pressure and more comical moments as well. Then again, batteries isn't such an issue as we don't really take that much. It's always ends up seeming like too much hassle. Link to post Share on other sites
Plucky 0 Posted July 17, 2005 Share Posted July 17, 2005 I'm no expert by any means, but here are some comments on your comments: Quote: Dont use zoom unless you have a tripod, its too shaky otherwise. There is a reason that I don't have any good footage of myself skiing - my friends suck at filming! After just a little practice, I got to know my camera well. I never used a tripod to film, but used my zoom a lot. Most people tend to film with one hand, I always used 2 and kept the camera close to my core (arms tucked in tight) to help with stability. Not saying it's perfect, but a little practice and you can keep things fairly stable. Quote: If you do use zoom and want to zoom in or out do it very slowly. (or very quickly and cut the change out later) Sounds good. Quote: "A" footage is almost always shot on a sunny day - even if the snow is not that great. I disagree with this. One thing I dislike about ski and surf movies is that all they ever show are blue bird/perfect offshore weather and condtions. That's not the reality (they still are fun to watch though). I enjoy watching skiers/boarders in extreme conditions - even though it sucks to film in it! If you are a weekend skier like I was in Japan, getting perfect conditions to film in is tough. I guess I'm just saying that I personally don't think 'A' footage has to be in perfect conditions. Quote: Dont film warm up runs/jumps, its a waste of time, effort, tape and batteries. agree completely with sMt on this. You never know what will happen. Some of the crazier/funnier stuff happens when you least expect it! Oh, get a bigger battery or buy a couple extras. Quote: .....your camera will fog up inside and be unusable for the next few hours - leave it outside if you have to go inside....... I never had this happen. I bought a little case for my DigiCam and kept that in my backpack. It was a pain getting out on the slopes, but it kept it dry and safe. Even if I took it out in the 'lodge' (does such a thing exist in Japan?) it never fogged. I have a little JVC GR-DVM75. It's about 4 or 5 years old now. Only had to have it fixed once (fell on it when I fractured my collarbone - doh!). It probably differs from model to model. What are you using? I haven't filmed anything since last December. I travelled back to Oregon to watch my Alma Mater's big rivalry college football game then went surfing with my best friend for 3 days on the OR coast. In Alaska, however, I've just been taking tons and tons of pictures. I haven't busted the vid cam out once. I still have a bunch of footage from Japan to edit, but I just don't have a desire to do it now. Too many other things here to see and do! Link to post Share on other sites
BagOfCrisps 24 Posted July 19, 2005 Share Posted July 19, 2005 2pints is shite at filming as well. He'll deny it of course. Generally though, zooming only seems to be a problem when you zoom right in up close. I'm thinking of buying a new camera before Japan this coming season. Link to post Share on other sites
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