Online Training Resources
How to use a digital video camera
Basics of Video Journalism
reviewed by MIKI AMBROZY based on the BBC’s Online Academy for Broadcast and New MediaThe BBC’s Good Shooting Guide gives you the very basics of digital video in a nutshell. We recommend this online resource because it’s interactive. The focus of the BBC’s training material is to shoot for television. You should keep in mind when planning your content that there’s much more to the language of video and cinema than public broadcast television, although it’s an excellent starting point.
The following is a selection from the complete guide.
1 Understanding how the camera works
A HOW DOES FOCUS WORK?
Here’s an interactive guide to the mechanics of focus. Focus is when you center your attention on one detail out of many others. In this case: with the camera you can draw the attention of the audience to a point in the picture. Here is how it works:
| “Focus is essential to get right. Here you can sharpen your understanding of focus, so it can work for you, not against you.” |
Get interactive! |
B WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES THE LENS ANGLE MAKE?
Here’s an interactive guide to the effective use of lenses. By using different camera angles (tight angle, wide angle, extra wide angle) you can create dramatic effects. Here is how it works:
| “Understanding lens angles and perspective will help you use the camera to tell your story visually… “ |
Get interactive! |
C HOW TO MAKE THE IMAGE LOOK “REAL”?
The key word here is exposure. Technically, it means how much light enters the lense. Here is how it works in practice:
| “Exposure is about how much light you let into the camera lens. In most cases you want a setting which produces a natural-looking picture.” |
Get interactive! |
D HOW TO MAKE A PERSON LOOK NATURAL?
The key word here is white balance. White balance will help the video come close to what the audience expects as natural looking.
| “Our eyes perceive ambient light as white. But to a camera, daylight looks blue, most artificial light looks yellow, and fluorescent looks green.” |
Get interactive! |
2 Understanding picture composition
Here’s a video for the very basics of picture composition. By using camera movements and different distance between camera and subject, we create the “text” of the video. Here is how it works:
| “Visual grammar is the technique of telling a story with moving pictures…” |
Watch this video! |
3 How to film movement
There is no universal answer. If you’re a beginner, do everything like a tiger: firm, smooth and without a doubt. Here are two options for staying steady:
The professional solution:
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The low-budget solution: be steady |
4 How to guide your audience?
By keeping the direction on the screen consistent. If you’re a beginner, do everything according to the rule of 180 degrees, or the crossing the line principle. Here is a wonderful illustration:
| Crossing the line is vital to understand when shooting something like an interview, where two people should appear to look at each other. |
Get interactive! |
5 How to use light?
Whether outside or inside, find the key light source and use it to your advantage. Also keep in mind that different light sources make different effects: white, yellow, green. Here is the theory of 3-point-lighting:
| “Why do you need light? Firstly, it is vital for the picture’s exposure. Secondly, it gives shape and depth to the image.” |
Get interactive! |
