Preparing for a Video Shoot
Congratulations! You’ve made a sound investment by choosing to create a video to tell your organization’s story. Now that you have gathered thoughts on messaging and vision for the video, it’s time to plan for the video shoot. It might seem as easy as having the crew arrive and start capturing footage and interviews – but there are steps you should take to ensure the best video possible.
The first step is to find the right space. It’s important to choose a space that will best represent your organization and the feel you are going for. If you’re unsure, our team is always happy to swing by for a site visit to scout locations before the shoot. Fireside Production strives to be low impact, but we do bring with us lights, cameras and tripods, which do require some space for set-up and storing. Once it’s all set up for interviews, a room can feel VERY small! So be sure to select a space for the interviews that’s on the bigger side and that your team will feel comfortable being captured in.
Keys to Selecting the Best Shoot Space
Visual Appeal
While the main focus will be the interviewee, the background definitely matters. Think about how you want to be represented… is a board room a good fit or do you prefer something more casual? Are the colors in the room warm and inviting or is it a bright white space? Can you move a few items into the background to make the shot more visually appealing? Books, flowers, lamps… props like these can take a dry background and give it lots of pop!
Control the Lighting
Natural light can provide challenges during a video shoot (more to come in a future post!). Your video crew should bring lights, so it’s best to pick a room for interviews that offers the crew the option to control the natural light. That means, if there are lots of windows – be sure there are blinds or shades the crew can close if the sun is proving challenging.
Steer Clear of High-Traffic Areas
If the room is a high-traffic area, it can cause interruptions and distractions during an interview. Is there a restroom door or elevator nearby that will be opening and closing often? These noises can be distracting in the finished video, so we’ll often start and stop the interview to recapture the sound if the videographer is hearing distracting sounds. If the room is right next to a busy road, that outside traffic noise will often bleed into the room and doesn’t sound good in the final piece. Finally, a stream of people walking by can be distracting to the person being interviewed. So, a quiet and private room is often ideal.
That said, if the subject of the video is relevant – sometimes, it’s nice to capture an interview with a busy work environment as the background. Again, your video team can help weigh in on the best locations for your shoot.
What’s Next?
Whether you have decided on a conference room, open space, personal office or someone’s home, take a look around and see if there is anything you can do to take the space to the next level!
Personal items
A jacket hanging over a chair or clutter on a desk – in our day-to-day routines, these items are normal to have around but during the shoot, you want to present your space in the best possible light. Tidy up. Move the trash out of the room and put the tissue box away. These little touches can really make a difference! If you have any family photos on your desk, you may want to take them down for the shoot if you’re not comfortable with photos of your children being in the finished video.
Water Bottles, Coffee Cups & Snacks
This is a another easy way to get your space video ready! Put away any food or drink items and give your desks a nice wipe down. Most people also don’t want to be captured while eating or drinking… and it’s a good way to avoid other brands popping up in your video. Hey, speaking of brand… why not pull your company logo or website up on your computer for the video shoot? That’s always a nice touch!
While we are aiming to capture the most authentic video possible, we also want to capture your organization at its best! The Fireside team is trained to look for these details and help to make sure everything is looking phenomenal. These little steps can help set you up for success and ensure we have an efficient and enjoyable shoot! Now that your space is ready – here’s how to prep for the interview itself.
