How to record professional videos with your smartphone.

Nowadays, special equipment is no longer required to professionally record a corporate video. Almost everyone carries a 4K camera in their pocket. Nevertheless, there is often uncertainty about how to record a video that meets the quality requirements of a corporate video. But even this does not require any special knowledge or training in the area of video production. It is enough to follow a few simple guidelines. It should now be about these guidelines.

The right lighting conditions

The old rule applies here: “Avoid backlighting and use natural light sources.” Ideally, you should shoot near a large window, which completely illuminates the person in front of the camera. On cloudy days, care must be taken that the exposure does not change over the various shots. If artificial lighting is used, shadows must be avoided on the faces of people in front of the camera.‍

The illumination‍

The filming location should be illuminated with uniform and natural light.‍

The right sound quality

Most smartphones not only have a good camera, but also a microphone. For good sound quality, rule number one is: “Don't cover the microphone with your hands.” There is a big echo in some rooms. This is where an external microphone can help. If none is available, it helps to stand near bookshelves or similar large objects that absorb the sound.

The sound recording

The echo in large rooms can be reduced by using props. There should be no background noise.

The right image setting

To avoid a blurry image, the camera should be fixed. If there is no stand at hand, a cofenster tip is: “Secure the camera to the window with adhesive tape.”

When composing the image, care should be taken that the object on which the focus should be placed is in a prominent position in the image. It is important not to cut off any parts of the speakers through the edge of the image and to prevent them from being focused by the camera. Most smartphone cameras have an autofocus lock. As soon as this is activated, only the subject that you have selected is focused.

For more information about which image settings should be used for what, see over here‍

The image focus

When the speaker addresses the audience, filming should be done at eye level.

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The appearance in front of the camera

Very few people are proficient in speaking freely in front of a camera. They often get frustrated quickly when they promise themselves too often or notice that their gestures don't work as planned. There are various techniques to achieve a confident appearance in front of the camera.

The first thing to consider is what is being said. It sounds obvious, but it's harder than you think. It is often quickly clear what the aim of the video is. How the message is to be conveyed is then more difficult. Here, the balance must be found between the sound of the video and a phrase that is pleasant for the person speaking. Reading entire texts should be avoided. This often looks wooden and is not effective. It makes more sense to write down bullet points and say the planned sentences aloud to check whether they are easy to formulate in front of the camera.

When the camera is running, don't be discouraged by small slip-ups. It is best to leave the camera running and cut together the appropriate parts of the recording at the end. For longer videos, you should get into the habit of taking breaks between individual content sections or even recording several videos and only recording the best material in the video at the end. This prevents you from missing something in the middle of a longer recording and having to start all over again.

As a final note, it helps to breathe deeply and calmly several times before recording and to think about which sentence needs to be said first. As with almost everything in life, practice makes perfect. If the first recording is still bumpy, the following ones will get better and better.

The presentation

It is useful to take notes before recording, but no texts should be read.

Post-production help

It is not only possible to record videos today without professional equipment. Planning, editing, compiling videos and designing can also be greatly simplified. With software such as Cofenster, a complete corporate video from planning to post-production can be produced in a very short time.

Storyboards can be easily created from templates and shared with everyone involved via to-do links. Corporate designs and music can be added at the end with a mouse click.

This allows anyone in the company to produce videos without previous knowledge.