THE WORLD OF VIDEO

Using Your Camera and Phone for Video

Is your modern camera/phone capable of making a decent video? The answer is a resounding "YES".

Are you capable of making a decent video? The answer is a resounding "YES - WITH PRACTICE AND SOME GUIDANCE".

CAMERA ESSENTIALS

- A competent camera

- A tripod and/or

- A gimbal

WHAT YOU - THE VIDEO PHOTOGRAPHER - NEED

- Imagination and vision

- An eye for composition

- A great deal of patience

You also need: GOOD VIDEO PROCESSING SOFTWARE

and how about a drone?

Digital Single Lens Reflex cameras

The SLR world is dominated by Canon and Nikon, with the stand out cameras for video being the Canon EOS R5 and the Nikon Z6II.

Let's exclude phone cameras for the moment.

The first group of cameras you could consider are:

Hybrid still and video cameras.

These fall into three groups: bridge cameras, mirrorless cameras, and digital single lens reflex cameras.

Bridge cameras:

These cameras have a built-in lens with a considerable zoom range that might go from a focal length of 28mm to 400mm.

The best of these in terms of video recording are:

Sony RX10 IV, Panasonic FZ82, Panasonic Lumix S5 II, and the Nikon P1000.

Mirrorless cameras:

Two manufacturers have a reputation for mirrorless cameras with great video capabilities, these are Panasonic and Sony. In recent years they have been joined by Fuji.

The models with the best/growing reputations are:

Sony A7RIV, Panasonic Lumix S1H and Fujifilm X-H2

BEST CAMERAS FOR VIDEO

IN 2024

Video cameras - Camcorders

The best camcorders come from the same stables as the best of the mirrorless cameras, namely, Canon, Sony and Panasonic.

Your choice will be led by your purposes and your budget.

The prices range from over £4000 (GBP) to under £500 (GBP) with models from Panasonic, Ordro and the Peawolcy.

The one that is a bit different - and may be all that you need:

An excellent pocket sized action camera which comes with a number of upgrades over the extremely popular previous model. The built-in gimbal is the secret to success as it provides 3-axis stabilisation helping content creators to capture smooth and sharp high resolution images and 4K/60fps videos.

Features at a glance:

1/1.7-Inch sensor
Single Shot images 16MP / 64MP
4K Ultra HD 3840×2160 at 60p
3-Axis stabilised camera
ActiveTrack 3.0
Glamour effects
High-Definition panoramas and timelapse
DJI Matrix Stereo sound
AI Editor

It is here.

Or, may be you would like one of the models in the GoPro range.

They are EXCELLENT value for money, and my choice would be the GoPro Hero 11

VIDEO EDITING

Never under-estimate the amount of time that you will need to spend in editing your videos.

To do this you will need appropriate software. Again you can spend well into the hundreds of pounds/dollars/euros etc. or you can download free software. In my mind it is a no-brainer because most of what you will want to do can be done with some of the excellent free software that is available for PCs and MACs.

GETTING STARTED

Mac Owners

Check if your Mac comes with iMovie as free software.

This is an excellent entry for those who are new to video editing. It will remain as a good video editor for a long time before you feel that you are ready to move on to something more advanced.

PC Owners

PowerDirector may be the choice for you. You can get a long way with the free version.

FREE SOFTWARE FOR EITHER PC OR MAC

It is not unusual for the providers of video editing software to provide a "free" version of their main "all bells and whistles" product. However, such "free" versions are only enough to give you a taste of the real thing. They tend not to be enough to meet your needs.

An example is PowerDirector365 from Cyberlink. The concept of the main software is really attractive to any of you who are wanting videos for use on the social media channels, or just to create some fun. There are video effects, access to free background music, a library of sound effects and so on. This is in addition to being able to edit both sound and pictures (e.g for colour).

However, with the free version many of the editing features are missing and access to supplementary files, such as the music library, are restricted.

So, my tendency is to start with the free version to see if I like the way the interfaces work and to see if I really need the extras that are 'missing'. If I really think that the full software package is going to help me to be more productive then I will jump in and subscribe to the full version.

If you really like the idea of a modern social-media orientated video editing software then I would not hesitate to recommend PowerDirector365. Download the free version and see what you think. You can get it here.

TAKING VIDEO EDITING FURTHER

Once you have mastered the basics of video editing you will want to move up to a more advanced level. One possibility is to move to DaVinci Resolve. (Be warned you will need a high-end PC if Windows is your platform.)

This software is very different from PowerDirector365. DaVinci Resolve is designed for heavy editing of both sound and vision. It does not have a social media vibe, though you can upload the editied file to social media sites.

The free version of DaVinci Resolve retains many of the powerful features of the paid for version. Both versions, however, will require a significant investment of your time in order to get the best out of them.

This is fine for those for a deep committment to video editing, it may be a step too far for those of you who just want to get your videos edited, given some zassss and put out there for the public (or just your friends) to see.

A happier choice could well be Corel Video Studio.

This is an extremely well designed and functional video editing software. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

ACCESSORIES FOR VIDEO

SOUND

Your camera microphone and internal sound storage may not/probably will njot be good enough for the quality sound thatyou want for your videos.

One answer is the new Joby Wavo Pro.

The JOBY Wavo PRO, is probably the most advanced On-Camera shotgun microphone on the market.

Feature-packed so that no shooting challenge is too great for Wavo PRO.

For example, bumps in sound from walking or camera movement are cleaned up internally.

You are left with a clean recording to back-up your in-camera sound recording.

GIMBALS

Gimbals are an immensely useful tool for video recording.

They provide smooth shots where hand-held just is not good enough.

Some have camera controls built-in so that you can control elements of the taking process, such as exposure, from the stem of the gimbal.

Make your choice from the wide range available through this link: here

In the USA Amazon is always a good first call.

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Want one?

Go to WEX Photo Video.

Want a model that is more at the entry level then choose the:

DJI Mini SE Fly More Combo