Tips for taking video of your first animated setup

[cliftonneff]

This if my first year doing an animated light display and wondered if anyone had tips on getting the best video footage of the display for the friends and family to see that can't make it out to the display. Any recommendations?

Potential Topics:

GoPro vs. iPhone vs. . . ..

Live music or edit the track onto the video?

Thanks in advance

[Jaynee]

I taped a quick 1 minute clip of my display using my phone and then edited the track over it using Movie Maker.  Really easy to do.

[k6ccc]

Dub the sound back in after the fact.

 

Whatever camera you use, make sure you can defeat the auto iris and auto focus controls.  Most cameras will chase both focus and iris if in an automatic mode.

 

DO NOT USE THE CAMERA HANDHELD!!!!  Use a tripod!  I don't care how steady you think you can hold it, it's not steady enough - unless you have a Steadicam rig (and I don't mean the $89 handle with a weight under it).

[Little_b]

+1 on movie maker.  It's simple and works for what I need it to do.  I dub the music over the video recording.  I film it with the music close by so I can hear it when I go to dub the original track over it. Makes it easier to get the timing just right.  I usually go out around 3 in the morning to film it so there are no cars with headlights going through. ( As simple as that sounds, I'm not on a main road and there are more people out at that time then you would think.)  I usually film with my phone (Samsung S5) and set it on a stool.  I agree with Jim, don't hold it in your hand.

[mpageler]

Another past video taking thread.

 

http://forums.lightorama.com/index.php?/topic/37710-record-a-video-with-sound/?hl=video

[kiplorenzo]

and the camera can also make a difference. Gopro's are great as are cell Phones, but a camera that you can control the lens and Aperature and F Stop can make a big difference.

[jamills706]

My iPhone did WAY better than my GoPro at handling the variations in light from dark to bright without getting confused/blurred.

[EmmienLightFan]

Iphones are not very good, but are probably better than a GoPro as there are apps and more manual controls.

 

 

My point and shoot camera does an OK job. I add the original MP3 in in Adobe Premiere Pro. It is really good but is quite expensive. Sony Vegas is a cheaper program. The previous version can be brought for under $20.

 

When I am looking at videos, I normally click away from the ones with the sound from their car or a stereo system. It is always too quiet, no bass, or too loud and really distorted.

 

Here is mine:

[EmmienLightFan]

Also don't use default titles and transitions in Movie Maker. It looks bad.

[Army Lights]

Can anyone recommend good software to use on a Mac? Also, I have a DSLR, but am a total novice with it. Would you mind recommending some good settings? I'm assuming a good DSLR would look better than an iPhone. I'm going to try to go out and record my show tonight. 

 

Thanks!

[Sully]

Out of 6 devices I tried my iPhone made the best video. I tried a GoPro 4, Sony HD camcorder, Sony action cam, Galaxy s6, Sony z2 tablet. The tablet did ok on party and fireworks settings but the android phone looked terrible on same settings.

Final Cut Pro on MAC works great for editing but isn't cheap. It also can clean things up some. The biggest issue I found was with the auto focus on every device. The flashing lights cause it to go bonkers.

Edited December 15, 2015 by Sully

[EmmienLightFan]

Out of 6 devices I tried my iPhone made the best video. I tried a GoPro 4, Sony HD camcorder, Sony action cam, Galaxy s6, Sony z2 tablet. The tablet did ok on party and fireworks settings but the android phone looked terrible on same settings.

Final Cut Pro on MAC works great for editing but isn't cheap. It also can clean things up some. The biggest issue I found was with the auto focus on every device. The flashing lights cause it to go bonkers.

The camcorder should have produced the best video, if the settings were done correctly. I thought iPhones would do badly because of their awful cameras (They have high resolution cameras but it is very grainy unless in good light), but it turns out they are OK. There are apps for both Android and iOS that allow manual control of the camera to disable focus, iris and manual white balance.

 

I use Adobe Premiere Pro and record with a Panasonic Lumix camera. It does OK.

 

[Archer]

I use a Sony Handycam and do my editing with Power Director. I also use Vimeo that I link through my website kevinkolak.com

[cliftonneff]

Thanks for all of the suggestions.  Ended up getting the best footage from my GoPro Hero 3.  Chopped it up and dubbed music with iMovie.

 

[Donl1150]

I taped a quick 1 minute clip of my display using my phone and then edited the track over it using Movie Maker.  Really easy to do.

 

Is there a good site to learn the basics of how to edit the imported sound track to match up with the video?  I can't seem to get the audio even close to matching the video.

[cliftonneff]

Is there a good site to learn the basics of how to edit the imported sound track to match up with the video?  I can't seem to get the audio even close to matching the video.

 

Zoom in on the time line so that dragging the track back and forth makes a small change.  Then trial and error.  If your recorded video has a sound track you can look for matching up peaks in the equalizer.

Edited December 21, 2015 by cliftonneff

[EmmienLightFan]

Is there a good site to learn the basics of how to edit the imported sound track to match up with the video?  I can't seem to get the audio even close to matching the video.

What software are you using?

[Donl1150]

Thanks!  As it turns out, I was working with iMovie when I made the original post.  When I then realized Movie Maker was what I wanted to use, I still took your advise and was able to match up the audio with the video pretty darn close.  Thanks again.