Recording a piece to camera – video tips and guidance

At times staff members may be required to send video footage of themselves for different promotional and educational activities.

If you are required to record a piece to camera please follow the below steps and guidance.

Devices

You can use a smartphone, tablet or laptop for recording – see notes below on positioning, lighting and audio
Check your video settings to ensure they are as high quality as possible
If you are using a phone or tablet, the camera lens on the back of the phone is normally far higher in quality than the front facing camera. This is tricky as you can’t see yourself in the display, but if someone can help you, the quality will be better using the back camera.

Orient your device in a horizontal (landscape) position.
Always try and keep the camera lens at eye level – you may need to place your device on a box/pile of books to reach the best height
When talking to the smartphone look directly into the lens – not yourself on screen

Holding your device will add motion and shakes to the video which is very distracting to the viewer.
If you are using a phone or tablet, try to use a tripod to stabilise the device
If you do not have a tripod, try and prop the device up using a pile of books, stand or solid surface

Keep the device as close to you as possible - you want your head and shoulders filling as much of the space as you can.
This will also help with the audio quality as the microphone built into the phone needs to be as close to you the subject as possible.

Try and find an area with good natural light for filming. Let the light from the window fall on your face
Don’t have the window behind you as this will act as a backlight and silhouette you.
If you don’t have natural light, try and ensure you are well lit by a desk lamp rather than overhead light.

To help as much as possible with the audio quality, record in a room that is padded with lots of soft objects ie a sofa, carpet and any soft furniture as this absorbs and pads your voice.
Places like kitchens, conservatories and bathrooms have lots of hard surfaces and the audio will sound very hollow and echoey.

If possible use the headphones or earbuds that came with your phone as this will keep the built in mic close to your mouth helping with the quality of the audio in the recording.

If you are not expecting any important call or a message, always record with your device on airplane mode while using your smartphone. It will not only save you some battery life but blocks all the calls and notifications that might interrupt your vlog.
If you are on your laptop, turn off any programme that has audible alerts like email notifications

Make sure that you always have some free memory space on your smartphone. Don’t forget when you will be finished filming your vlog to transfer video files to your computer.

Always pre-record 5-10 seconds of the footage to see if you are happy with the angles, lighting, and audio. You don’t want to get frustrated when you think you’ve captured your piece to camera and then find you are not happy with the footage that you’ve taken.

When you are happy with your recording, please use https://www.idrop.sgul.ac.uk/ to send the file(s) to Craig Rennie, Henry Rummins and ERCM Director.

If you need any further support or advice, please message Craig Rennie .