10 tips for shooting better video on Android

 

 With 4K video capabilities starting to appear in more and more Android phones like the Sony Xperia Z2,Samsung Galaxy S5 and LG G3, shooting video rather than just photos on your smartphone has started looking more attractive.
What's even more attractive is videos that are shot well.
Today we'll share ten simple tips for shooting better quality video on Android.


1. Clean the lens
It sounds ridiculous, but you'd
never take photos on your
DSLR with the amount of dirt
and fat found on the average
smartphone camera lens. If
you don't have a lens or
glasses cleaning cloth handy,
just use your shirt.

2. Don't cover the
microphone
Again, know your
smartphone like you know
your video camera. Pay
attention to where the
microphone is and make sure
you're not covering it up
when you shoot video.
There's nothing worse than
getting that great video of an
alien landing only to muffle
their intergalactic greeting
with your chubby paws.

3. Use both hands
Two hands are better than
one in many parts of life, and
shooting nice smooth and
stable video with your
smartphone is one of them.
Nothing makes a video look
worse than awkward jerks
and jumps that could have
easily been avoided if you
simply got grabby with your
camera.

4. Keep it horizontal
For starters, never shoot
vertical video. Once you're in
landscape orientation try to
find a horizontal line and
keep it level in the frame.
Use the horizon or the line of
a building as a reference (if
you're facing it front on), or
otherwise try to maintain a
level angle. There's nothing
worse than making people
seasick when you show them
your festival videos.

5. Watch out for high
contrast areas
Be careful when you have
areas of super bright sunlight
or artificial illumination and
dark shadowy areas. Your
smartphone will have issues
balancing out these areas
and you'll be left with blown
out lights and inky blacks
with no definition. Try to
position yourself somewhere
it won't be so contrasty.

6. Charge your battery
Shooting video, especially 4K
video, consumes a lot of
battery life, so before you
set out to capture some
unforgettable moments
make sure you have enough
battery power to actually
record them. If you have a
removable battery take that
with you or a external
battery pack.

7. Clear up some
memory
4K video also fills up memory
extremely quickly. If you
have a microSD card slot in
your phone make sure you're
recording your video to it,
and if you don't then try to
free up as much internal
memory as possible before
you start shooting. Running
out of storage at the critical
moment is not an option!

8. Avoid moving from
dark to light areas
Like the contrast issue above,
if you're tracking a subject
from a dark to a light area
you'll get some crazy white
balance when the subject
crosses from shadows to
light. The same goes if you're
moving from light areas to
dark or vice versa.

9. Don't use digital
zoom
Digital zoom sucks, we all
know it. So instead of
messing up your beautifully
framed shot, use your feet to
zoom instead. Just keep your
phone as still as possible and
slowly approach your subject.
This may take a little while
to perfect but it sure beats
crappy digital zooming.

10. Be fluid with your
movements
Try to find a nice rhythm to
your movements so you
maintain a constant speed
when panning. Try not to
jerkily tilt up or down and
avoid changing the speed of
your movements. This is
jarring in the final video. Try
to find a slow, fluid and
constant motion. Your videos
will look heaps better if you
do.

Do you shoot video on your
smartphone? What tips can
you share for better
shooting?