Tricks and Tips
Here is some useful advice on how to record great video to honor Del’s memory. You should send videos to DelVideos@NSScouts.org to share with other people who are remembering Del.
Some guidelines:
- Copyright: Please be respectful of copyright for images, video, text, and other intellectual property in your video.
- Generally, avoid music unless it is key to your message.
- Recording: Most video is fine, but watch out for low resolution, or choppy video, muffled sound, and background noise.
- Landscape 16:9: Record in landscape (wider than tall) in 16:9 format, at 1080 pixels or more wide.
- Focus: Check the focus, especially if you are showing us an object, or you are moving during the presentation.
- Tripod or helper: For a steady shot, enlist another person’s help to handle the camera, or put it on a tripod.
- Video: Most anything goes, but our target is 1080p to be shown on YouTube.
- Digital Camera: select 1080p or better if possible.
- Phone Camera: generally the back camera provides better resolution.
- Webcam: host a meeting and record it, or use recording software.
- Watch: Make a sample recording and watch it.
- Audio:
- Background Noise: minimize background noise. Close doors and windows where appropriate. Let others know you are recording.
- Your voice: Please use your own voice to tell the story, or get a friend to tell it to us.
- Without music: please help us avoid copyright issues, unless you the performer and the music is an important part of your memory.
- Listen: Make a sample recording and listen to it.
- Transfer: We will be happy to accept your video via a file sharing service like OneDrive, DropBox, Google Drive, iCloud, we can provide a place to drop the file, or you may share to us.
- Tips:
- Script: Most people will find writing a script helpful, even if they don’t read it word for word.
- Practice: Record yourself. Watch the recording.
- Lighting: Best is to use three lights
- Two in front to either side, they cancel out each other’s shadows.
- One from behind – above or below what the camera sees. This makes you stand out from the background.
- Background: Look at what is in your background, is it more interesting than you? Does it tell the right story?
- Watch for sharp shadows they are usually distracting, and make swapping in a background harder.
- If you are using lights and the background is too close it may make strong shadows.
- If you want us to replace your background with something else, that is a possibility.
- Record yourself in front of a solid color object, far enough away that you don’t cast shadows.
- If you use a cloth watch out for wrinkles.
- We would probably put you in front of a scene from the T’kope Kwiskwis longhouse unless you express another idea or provide a picture or video.
- Watch for sharp shadows they are usually distracting, and make swapping in a background harder.
