It’s easy to get around small spaces
When your video relies on a top-quality interview, it’s easy to freak out when the room you’re shooting in is the size of a toilet – especially when your corporate video or company video relies on it.
One of the biggest strengths of a great video production is the ability to set up a perfect-looking interview wherever you happen to be. Sometimes it’s simple. Other times there’s a lot of to-ing and fro-ing trying to squeeze everything you need including equipment into a corner that you definitely can’t swing a cat in.
If you find that your next interview needs to be shot in a very small space, give these tips a try-out.
Depth of field
There aren’t many things that are more boring that a talking head in front of a white wall. If you don’t have much option, try to position your interview in the corner instead. The more depth of field you can create behind your subject, the less the space will look like you’ve just crammed sardines into a small room and the more interesting the shot will be.
Add some personality to the shot
Now that you’ve been able to ‘fake the space’ so to speak, it’s time to make the shot look a bit more interesting. Put a plant in the back of shot or hang something classy on the wall. Whatever you use to dress your shot should be at least vaguely relevant to the subject of your video, so if you’re interviewing someone about something financial, a poster of a flash car probably isn’t appropriate.
Be cut-throat
If you’re already struggling to fit two humans a camera and a tripod into your space, you might need to compromise on the lighting. While the traditional three-point lighting setup might be your go-to, you’re better off using fewer lights and making them look awesome than trying to cram in too much equipment and doing a mediocre job in the process. An overhead room light can be a great substitute, and a window could double as a fill light.
Focus on the things you can change
If you can’t do any of the above tips and you think your shot looks terrible, don’t panic. There are plenty of other things you can focus on instead. Good audio is more important than a good shot, so make this audio the best you’ve ever recorded. If you ask the right questions and have great talent on the other side of the camera, your final outcome will instantly look and feel better. And using b-roll shots as overlay that match what your talent is talking about will minimise the impact of lower-quality framing.
Still need a hand with your video production? Contact the team at Onepost Video Production now based in Auckland and get started on your next corporate video, company video or explainer video.
