How & why to film high-quality videos on your phone for your business

Video!

It’s such a buzz word these days isn’t it? Well there's good reasons behind that! Just check out some of the stats below, and as you do start thinking about how some of these could impact your business:

Now I could have added another 30 stats about how video can impact your business but that would take up the rest of this article so instead let's get into some of the practical stuff.

Chances are you've probably thought about using it, maybe even tried to film videos yourself. But there's probably one of a few things that’s stopped you from having success.

• The tech: if you’re not naturally tech-savvy trying to figure out the right way to use you gear (phone or other camera), and social platforms, can seem a daunting task
• The cost: you might think you need to buy lots of gear to make your videos great, or hire a professional
• The time: you may have tried creating videos and it’s taken you days or maybe longer

All of these ‘reasons’ may seem like dealbreakers to you but it’s not the case.

Gone are the days when you and your business HAS TO go out and buy expensive gear, or even hire a production crew to make videos. You can easily create high-quality videos entirely on your phone, all you need to know is how!

In fact, I've found that creating a video entirely on your phone is the fastest way!

Don't believe me? Check out this iPhone vs a DSLR and computer showdown I filmed to prove it. For just a 30-second video, the phone was almost 15 minutes faster overall.

While anyone can create videos, it's not as simple as picking up your phone and pressing record. There are few things you need to know in order to get the best quality footage for your video.

So now I want to get you started with five tips to creating better videos on your phone:

USE THE RIGHT SETTINGS

You should always shoot in the highest quality your phone has available. If you have a 4K option use it, otherwise you should choose 1080P HD. This is a setting you should only need to set up once, so do that now.

On iPhone: Settings > Scroll to Camera > Check ‘Record Video’

On Android: Open camera app > settings wheel > video size 

LANDSCAPE OR PORTRAIT

Generally you’re going to film in landscape (turning your phone sideways), but there may be occasions you film in portrait (depending on the content and where you will post the video).

Make this decision before you record because you don’t want to try and edit footage together that’s half landscape and half portrait - that is going to take you a long time to edit!

​ Now that we’ve got that out the way, you'll want to make the whole experience of watching a video as easy on your audience as possible. This will help retain their attention on the content of your video and not nit pick something that’s going wrong, or close out of your video altogether.

Here are some tips to get you started:

1. STEADY YOUR PHONE

Your audience wants to enjoy your video, not feel like their own a boat in rough seas.

So make sure to keep your camera as steady as possible - even if you are doing a video while you walk. And no, this doesn't always mean you have to spend money on a tripod! Here's a free option for you:

Yep that's a coffee cup!

2. GOOD LIGHTING

Smartphones need a lot of light to make sure your video isn't grainy (even if your eye thinks there is enough light, chances are it’s not the case for your phone).

You can buy lights which means you can pretty much film anywhere at anytime, but otherwise you can rely on that free source of light - the sun! Just film in front of a window or somewhere outside (weather dependent).

3. CLEAR AUDIO

It's no good having a great-looking video if your audience can't hear what your saying clearly.

If you’re using the microphone built into your phone you’ll need to make sure you’re close to whatever you’re filming to get good audio.

READY TO TAKE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL?

To learn how to film professional videos using just your phone check out one of the following guides:

iPhone - 10 Steps to Creating Professional VideosAndroid - 10 Steps to Creating Professional Videos