As an online video producer, I am always on the lookout for a good photo opportunity.
A good photo op would be anywhere I am going to get great shots effortlessly- or nearly effortlessly. Things are set up for me, all I have to do is point my camera here, there, and everywhere and glorious video is mine.
Perhaps you’ve heard the term photo op to describe a situation where political leaders stage something so the news media will bring their cameras and get video.
When you see world leaders shaking hands, smiling and making nicey-nice, that is the classic photo opportunity. (Even if in reality they want to shove a nuke up each others…well, never mind.)
Photo ops can be a lot more fun that that!
A perfect example of a photo opportunity is the Walk through Bethlehem, held yearly at Christmas at the Woodmont Christian Church in Nashville, TN, where I live. I do not belong to the church but I am aware of the Walk thru Bethlehem because it is so big and popular and I’ve been several times just for fun.
The Walk thru Bethlehem is a huge historical recreation of the marketplace in the city of Bethlehem at the time of Christ’s birth. About 400 church members volunteer to appear in historic character, wearing authentic-looking costumes and using recreated props from two thousand years ago.
What a perfect photo op!
I spent about 3 hours videotaping then another 3-4 editing together this special Christmas video. Obviously, my job as a video producer was made extremely easy by the fine church folks who do all the hard, expensive work!
Without spending one dime, sewing one stitch, or transporting one cantankerous mule myself, this marvelously exquisite scene was laid at my feet, ripe for videotaping.
I got enough quality raw video to edit two versions of the story. See which one you like best. One uses music, key frame animated graphics and natural sound. The other version is more like a news story and has narration and natural sound.
Photo opportunities make the video producer’s life much easier, so be on the lookout for a photo opportunity near you!
Make sure and call a person in charge of the event before showing up with your video camera. I called the church about one month prior to the Walk Thru, explained what I wished to do and made arrangements. I had the manager sign a legal release, granting formal permission.
As incentive for them to cooperate, I emphasized that my video would be extremely positive and provide them much welcomed publicity. Approached professionally, most organizations will be glad to let you highlight their event in a video but remember there is always a trust factor.
To sweeten the pot further, I gave the church a DVD with the edited stories and some of the raw video for them to use in any way they wished. To hire a professional videographer to tape and edit like I did would have cost the church about $1,000. So see, I was really dong them a big favor, not the other way around!
Enjoy the Christmas video and pass it around.
Merry Christmas. May the New Year bring quality photo ops, gracing your life with easy-to-get video!
Thanks for reading Video Production Tips
Lorraine Grula
Internet Video Gal
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