Filming Yourself On Your Smartphone

Today we’re all filmmakers, even if it’s only videos of our cats, babies or holidays. Every new smartphone boasts a video camera that will detect faces, film in low light and shoot slow motion. So filming your own content should be simple, right? Not always! There are still many common mistakes that people make when filming their own content.?

Let’s assume that you’ve been asked to produce a video clip using your smartphone that someone else is going to edit - perhaps as part of a longer film. In this blog, I’m going to look at what you can do to produce the best possible videos when you’ve got to be the person controlling the smartphone camera.

1. Camera settings

Smartphones usually provide a range of video settings, particularly relating to image quality. You’ll typically be offered a number of options for video resolutions. Change your settings so that you’re filming in at least high definition - often labelled as ‘Full HD’ or ‘1920x1080’ (the number of pixels in the width and height). If you use a smaller resolution, your image is going to look grainy and pixelated in comparison to other HD videos. You might have a phone that offers resolutions over and above HD, like 4K. While these will produce higher quality images, they will also result in much bigger file sizes. Think carefully about using them, particularly if you’re planning on doing a lot of filming.

2. Sound

Good audio is like oxygen - we generally don’t give it much thought...until it’s not there. A shaky image can be acceptable with decent audio, but as soon as sound quality degrades, your audience won’t be happy. In order to ensure the best possible sound quality:

• Find a quiet location to film in, free from background noises. The automatic microphone on your smartphone won’t differentiate between your voice and background sound - it will record everything at the same volume.
• Avoid indoor locations with hard surfaces - they create echo.
• Stand or sit no more than two meters from the microphone. Ideally you will be as close as possible. This will help make you louder and background noises quieter.
• If a noise interrupts you (e.g. a door slamming; an engine starting), repeat the filming. It will be noticeable in the edit!
• Avoid windy locations - wind blowing across your microphone is likely to badly distort your audio. If you can’t avoid the wind, try to shelter your microphone, e.g. by using an umbrella.?

You’re likely to look at your video before you consider it completed. Have a listen to it as well. Use headphones to review what you’ve recorded. If you’re struggling to hear parts of it, you probably need to re-record.

There are now many inexpensive microphones for smartphones that connect via your headphone socket or your data port. If you’re going to be doing a lot of filming using your smartphone, it might be worth investing in one of these, as they can hugely improve your audio quality.

3. Lighting

Position yourself so that you’re facing a window or other natural light source. You generally want to get as much light as possible on your face (without making yourself squint). If the light is behind you, your face is likely to appear in silhouette.?

If you’re filming at night, or there’s little natural light, you can use a desk lamp to the same effect. You may need to experiment with the position of the lamp - try moving it away from you a little so that you don’t look like you’re in a police interrogation. If possible, avoid mixing natural and artificial light - to cameras, daylight looks blue and ‘cold’ while artificial light generally looks orange and ‘warm’ in comparison. Many smartphone cameras will struggle to balance this mix of colours.?

4. Framing

Turn your camera sideways! It may be easier to hold your smartphone as you would a phone, but this produces a long, thin video image. This doesn’t match well with the short, wide ‘aspect ratio’ of most videos (see the camera settings section above). Instead, turn your phone 90° so you appear in ‘widescreen’. The video editor will thank you as your image will now naturally fill the screen. If you’re struggling to hold your phone and record at the same time, try propping your phone on an object to free up your hands. Make sure that your camera lens is level with your face - too high and it will make you look small; too low and you’re likely to be focusing on your chin.

5. Enjoy yourself

If you feel relaxed, you’re less likely to make mistakes, and you’ll look your best on camera. Take several deep breaths before you begin and remember to smile, even if you don’t feel like it! You’re the one in control, so if you make a mistake, just start again. You can do this as many times as you need to in order to get a recording that you feel happy with.

What’s been your experience of filming yourself for video projects? What other advice would you give to people doing this? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.