Basic Videotaping Techniques-Getting a Variety of Shots
By Internet Video Gal in Video Production Tips
The video above is some footage I took, then sped up and narrated, in order to demonstrate the basic process of videotaping an object and getting a huge variety of shots for later editing.
To edit a fast-pace, visually spectacular video you need A LOT of shots to work with. So you have to get creative. In this case, I was making promotional videos for an author and the visual possibilities were slim. I had a book and a website. Talk about milking it for all it’s worth…I took nearly forty shots of just the book!
That kind of video variety usually surprises video novices, but it’s standard technique in the professional world. Take a look at just about any show on TV. If you want to be able to switch shots every 5-10 seconds like that you need as much variety as you can possibly get.
By watching the video I sped up, plus watching the two versions of the final video (which are below), you can better understand how the technique works.
No matter what I am shooting, I always use this technique to one degree or another. When the subject matter is a book, I have to carry it to extremes or I simply won’t be able to edit a video of the caliber I want.
If you want to learn to be a videographer, learn to see in individual shots: tiny segments of the world that have meaning and help tell a story. When you really look at the book cover for Webs of Power, you can easily see the multitude of possibilities I was able to capture. I could have gotten another twenty shots but I didn’t need THAT many. 
Look around your environment right now and see if you can duplicate the practice. Isolate at least ten different shots– close, medium or wide– of the room you are in. That’s videomaking in a nutshell!
Thanks for reading Video Production Tips
Lorraine Grula
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2 Comment(s)
By Real Estate Appraiser Tips on | Reply
Wow Lorraine! That was so interesting how you took those 39 clips plus multiple other shots and put it all together for that masterful creation. You certainly have a voice for video. You’ve taught me to take lots of photos of products I want to sell online and piece them together like you did. Thank you so much for these tips! Bill Cobb
By Internet Video Gal on | Reply
Thanks Bill! You are more than welcome. I always love to help people learn to make video. Beginners usually have no idea how to milk all the video possibilities out of whatever they are taping. That is why the book is such a good example. 39 shots of one book? Good grief! That’s video making in a nutshell!
Thanks for being such a loyal reader Bill!
Lorraine