Youtube and online courses have spawned a whole new group of video and multimedia presenters. But often the question comes up whether expensive equipment is necessary to get quality video. With a few smart techniques, vloggers can greatly improve their video quality.

Perhaps, one of the most common gadget every student probably has would be an iPhone. Although an iPhone generally has a good video camera, there are tips and tricks that can result to better and more stunning videos. Here are ways to maximize iPhone’s video camera capabilities.

1. Lighting is everything.

Sufficient lighting is mostly what sets a good video from a lousy one. Having the right lighting can be quite difficult to achieve when shooting a video. When shooting a video with an iPhone, use ambient light as much as you can. Record the video near a window or outside so you get a natural ambience. If recording at night is unavoidable, make sure to take the video in a well-lit area.

2. Stabilize your iPhone as much as you can.

Since you can’t help but shoot with a handheld device, keep your iPhone close to your body as possible. One way to stabilize your hands would be to rest your elbows on a stable object. Also, use your body to absorb shakes and bounces. However, if you have a monopod or a tripod, it would be best to use one to ensure that the footage is certainly steady.

3. Film your video in landscape mode.


In order to get the best resolution for your video, always film in landscape mode (see 3:46 in the video). Once you film it in landscape, it would be easier to set the video to HD quality. Have you seen how it looks like when filming in portrait? The entire screen could not be maximized. Your video would be sandwiched between two black useless boxes.

4. When it comes to audio, get closer.

When you do not have the budget for an external microphone, the best way to take a decent audio is to get closer to the subject. If you film a subject from across the room, there would be many distracting noises such as the wind blowing, other people talking, animal noises, car sounds, echos and many more. Besides, getting closer to your subject would eliminate the need to use the digital zoom feature.

Here’s a neat trick, borrow another device and record the audio using it. Take advantage of the iPhone’s voice memo. Make sure to state the scene that you are shooting for easy identification. It would also be good to clap your hands before the start of the recording so you will have a reference point once you sync the audio with the video on iMovie.

5. Lock the exposure.


At approximately, 1:20 of the video, you’ll see how it looks once you fail to lock the exposure focus lock. At around 1:28, you’ll see how to manually lock the exposure focus lock to prevent your video from looking jittery.

6. Use the iPhone’s optical zoom (for iPhone 7 Plus only) instead of the digital zoom.

For those who own an iPhone 7 plus, you have the option to use either the optical zoom or the digital zoom. The latter, when used, often compromises the quality of the image or video. Using the digital zoom means, the image is only enlarged, thus, resulting to an awful pixelation.

7. Take advantage of iPhone’s time lapse or slow motion feature.

Time lapses are simply awesome. They are not just good to take outdoor and nature scenes, they are also a good way to show parts of the process or procedure that are not really essential. It is also good to showcase the hustles and bustles of everyday work, home or school life. However, you need to have a tripod and ample time to capture the whole thing.

Shooting a video is easier if you have more iOS device. You can take scenes on different angles – eye level, low angle, high angle, bird’s eye or slanted. Plus, it would be easier to edit the videos later on on iMovie. You can edit the texts, transitions, use themes, the soundtrack and the audio as well. Make use of third party apps as well. Some of those that are worth mentioning include Almost DSLR, FiLMiC Pro, Video Filters and Splice.

With these steps in mind, you can now post your videos for free in our online school. Sign up and sell your courses for free. Did we mention it is free?