3 Tips for Creating Your Own Professional Looking Videos
MARCH 28TH, 2023
Getting Started
For most of us, we understand what it takes to record some quick clips and post them on the internet for our followers, but what needs to be considered is are we posting content that our followers even want to watch?
For some, i.e. influencers and celebrities, it doesn’t really matter if their video quality is perfect, they’ll still attract viewers.
For small business owners though, these things matter. Imagine scrolling through your Facebook feed to see a dimly lit, poor sounding video of the CEO from a marketing company… yeah we’re going to keep swiping.
Improving the quality of what we produce is extremely important for the consistency of our videos, and that will drive more viewership. Let’s dive into why using video is important before getting into the meat and potatoes.
Why Video Content is Important in 2023
Video isn’t slowing down. It’s no secret that video rules the internet these days. Whether it’s TikTok, Instagram or a series on YouTube, we’re constantly consuming video on a daily basis.
Let’s Look at some Statistics..
As of 2020, over 83% of internet users in the US accessed digital video content on their devices. (Statista)
73% of consumers want to see ‘entertaining’ social media videos. (HubSpot)
ONE MILLION minutes of of video cross the internet every second. (Cisco)
93% of marketers who use video consider it an important part of their strategy, a number that continues to increase. (Wyzowl)
87% of video marketers report a positive ROI, a number that also continues to increase. (Wyzowl)
I think you get the point, videos rules the internet and is taking over how we approach digital marketing. For small business owners, there’s no reason to not hop on the train and scale your video production.
Making Our Videos Better
There seems to be a misunderstanding between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ videos. Content is king, we all know that, but that doesn’t mean just because your content is gold that people will want to watch. There are many factors that play into what a video should consist of.
Audio
We’ve touched on this previously in our Audio Quality Matters post, where we explain the importance of audio. Audio is the biggest factor in an instant jump in your video quality. No one wants to sit through a video that has poor audio quality. There are some easy solutions for audio and it should be the first thing on your checklist when building up your new personal ‘production’ house.
Check out Audio Quality Matters to learn everything you need know about how to step up your audio game.
Composition
We’ve also covered this in our previous post, Composition and Making Your Video Look Great!, we suggest you give that a read for learning more. Having proper composition is a small, but important part of creating your image. You want your frame to be aesthetically pleasing to look at, that means following the rules of proper composition and understanding how they can effect your image.
Lighting
Finally, we want to consider proper lighting. Just like audio, lighting is one of the major keys when we look at improving our video content. Dark, grainy videos are gross, and people don’t want to watch them. We’re not saying you need to spend thousands of dollars – but investing in some quality lights will go a long way. Let’s break down some different types of lighting.
Key Light
Having a key light is always the first step. This is the main source that will light the subject. In theory, the rest of your frame can be black, as long as your subject is exposed properly, that’s what matters. Depending on your composition, that will determine your lighting set up. If the subject is framed left, we want the key source to come from the right, allowing for contrast to fall nicely over the face. The same applies for the opposite. If your subject is centered in the frame, then the key can come from whichever side feels more motivated. If there isn’t any motivation, light your good side. ;)
Fill Light
We don’t want our videos for advertising to be too dramatic, so we’ll want to add a fill light for this. The fill light is designed to lift the dark area of the face caused by the intensity of your key light. There are two ways to approach the fill light. For an even lit face, match the key light intensity. For a more creative and contrasty look, bring the light intensity down a bit to just lift that portion of the face a little bit. Fill lights can also be used to splash some light into your background to help with dark areas in your frame.
Practical Light
Practical lighting is the lighting all around us. The lamp on your desk, the big window in your kitchen, a computer screen – a light source that is around us in everyday scenarios that we use to our advantage. If you don’t have time or budget for key and fill lights right now, use that window next to your desk or turn your computer screen brightness up a little. Start to experiment and see what works, but remember, harsh light is not flattering, so find a nice soft light source.
Practicals are really meant to help pull your image together and make it feel more full and complete, but in a pinch can be used in many different ways.
Final Takeaways..
There are simple techniques that can be implemented so that we can begin to produce better videos on our own. Sometimes a full on production team may be needed for larger projects, but if you can master these 3 key areas of producing a video, you’re already doing more than most of your competitors and it’s going to show! Keep practicing, keep experimenting, and find your own style. Most YouTube channels and series have a specific look and brand. If you can dial this into your videos, it will only help further progress your content and what you can get out of it in the long run!
