As our entire world faces down the COVID-19 crisis, we’re all taking a crash course on the importance of adaptation, both as individuals and as businesses. Thankfully, we have the technological capability to remain impactful in the ways we communicate via smartphone video.
If you’re a business leader, it’s important to stay visible, even while stuck in your home. Most smartphones provide all the functionality you need to broadcast your message. So, if you’re looking to record a video or even a still image to share, here are easy-to-execute tips that will improve your results:
The Basics
- For video, always record in horizontal/landscape style. Holding your phone vertically is great for quick videos shared via smartphone only, but for use as video that’ll be shared online, on websites, on television, etc., record horizontally. This allows you to use the full screen, eliminating the black bars that show when recording vertically.
- Using some type of tripod is highly recommended, allowing you to avoid unsteadiness and maintain exactly the environment you want in your frame. If you don’t have one, create a makeshift one by propping your phone up on something.
- Plan to keep your phone 4-5 feet away from you when recording your video. This will create a fairly tight shot, but is necessary to allow for usable audio. Look to have only the top half of your torso in the shot.
- Having someone else help you will make recording a video much easier. Seek out an assistant, the more digitally savvy the better.
Even a single swivel of my office chair drastically improved the still image above, taken with an old iPhone. Instead of showing the window light behind me, which darkened myself, I used that light to brighten my face. I also replaced an ironing board with framed school degrees as a background, and remembered to darken the computer monitor behind me. Being mindful of your environment in simple ways like this is what you’re aiming for.
The Lens
- Clean it. Use a soft cloth to make sure the glass protecting the camera isn’t smudged.
- Your smartphone likely has cameras both on its front (facing you like a selfie) and back. The camera on the back is likely to be the one that is of better quality, so use that camera when recording your video.
- Go into your settings (for iPhone: Settings>Camera>Record Video) and choose a resolution of at least 1080P. Many smartphones now offer 4K resolution, though this creates a much bigger file, which may be difficult to store and transfer. It may also mention fps (frames per second). The higher the fps, the higher the quality.
The Lighting
- Lighting is everything. Your best course of action to find good light is to turn on your camera as though you were about to take a selfie, and then walk around until you find light that makes you look best. Keep in mind that natural light is usually most flattering, so recording in a well-lit room during the day is best.
- If possible, you want all available light hitting your face and not behind you. If a window is behind you, the camera will recognize that brightness and lower how much light it takes in, making you look darker. So remember, walls behind you, windows in front of you or to the side.
The Audio
- Silence is golden. Be aware of your surroundings. Is there a TV on in a different room, or a lawn being mowed outside? Even your air conditioning/heating system will make noise. Do your best to eliminate as much audio distraction as possible.
The Surroundings
- You may be limited by needing to be near a window, but the best course of action is to keep your background from being a distraction.
- Your surroundings also include the clothes you’re wearing. Try to avoid busy patterns that may be distracting and not transmit well on screen.
Remember, the worthiness of publishing an image of any quality, be it a still or a video, is directly relational to how important the message is. These are uncertain times, and your communication is very important, so do what you can to get the best quality from whatever technology you have. Best of luck, and stay safe and healthy.
“The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.” – Albert Einstein