Reshooting Sorted Videos

Last time, we have been shooting the new tutorial videos. After editing, we found the videos are a little bit shaky. It was likely due to unstable stand, and touches on the equipments. To fix the problem, we are now reshooting the videos with enhanced equipments.

Stronger Stand

The main problem was the shooting object, iPhone, appearing shaky in the final videos. As we couldn’t find a remote control for the camcorder (BlackMagic does not make their own remote control either), we go with a strong stand approach.

There are two stands holding the camcorder, with more fixed ball heads. As Leo mentioned, unless the building is shaking, the camcorder won’t be shaky at all.

Big 4K Monitor

We didn’t notice the shaking problems last time, because the screen of the camcorder is so small. It is hard to notice the shake. The direct solution is to have bigger screens.

Not this one, this is just a Small HD. It helps mainly on positioning. It has the grid that help us to make sure it is standing straight.

The 4K monitor below is what I actually refer to. With such a big screen, it is so easy to notice minor shaking situations.

More Stands for lights

Needless to say, we use a lot of lights to create the suitable shooting environment. We got two more C-Stands here. It is so heavy that anyone can barely carry other things in addition to two of these. I feel lucky that we have the storage just the next building.

Video Shoot Checklist

To make sure we did not miss anything, the best way is to print it out and stick it in front of every one. The list is a simple, yet important one.

Pre-shoot:

• Set time
• Set sample data (reminders)
• Level camera
• Turn off auto brightness adjustment on phone
• Turn sync off
• Turn wifi off

Pre Take:

• Clean screen
• Hand covers clamp and stand

During Take:

• Ensure key elements are not covered
• Ensure movements are obvious
• Shake + moiré check

Some more iPhone filming tips

Other than the equipments, we also found some improvement to the touch interactions.

• Show the nail, so that the finger is flatter on top of the phone
• Show the finger, so that it minimizes the blocking to the phone screen
• Give it a little rest before showing the gesture
• Give breaks between several actions

Over to you…

We would love to share your setup in making Onboarding and Tutorial videos in your app. If you want to know more details on our equipments, feel free to contact us at Sorted or Twitter @Stay_Sorted