[ Plan your shoot ]
Take control of your shooting schedule by compiling a kit list
With any creative project, planning is essential. That goes double for shooting, when you’re likely to be constrained by time, money and location. Turn up without enough batteries and your whole day could be ruined. You’ll want to have a good idea of exactly what you’re going to need to capture before you arrive to avoid getting caught out. Write a shot list if it helps, at least as a guide. A fundamental thing to consider is how many cameras you’re going to need. If you’re sure it’s just one, that’s great. For any kind of interview footage it’s common practice to shoot two angles of the subject and then cut between them in the edit to keep things interesting. If the interviewer is to be in shot as well, a third camera may be needed.
When choosing your cameras, it’s important to use models that will output footage of similar quality. If your A and B camera footage looks very different, it’s going to create an uneven end product. If you need to shoot using a DSLR as your main camera and an iPhone as your secondary camera for budgetary reasons, factor this in to the way you shoot, perhaps saving the iPhone footage for cutaways or B-roll. Make a list of everything you need to take – even boring stuff like tripods, lights, power equipment and batteries – and get it all ready the night before. This way you’re less likely to forget something vital.