Tips for filming with a phone

As a professional videographer in London I spend most of my time filming with professional camera gear. However, I do get asked by clients, from time to time, for help with filming on phones. In this article I’ll give my top tips for filming with a phone when working with a professional videographer isn’t a possibility.

Why film on a phone

The video quality from a phone won’t beat the superb image from a cinema camera with fantastic lenses. Nevertheless it isn’t always possible to hire a professional videographer along with their professional camera gear. Maybe the budget doesn’t allow or maybe a phone suffices for the project in question. People are becoming more accepting of video content filmed on phones for certain situations so it has a place. When this situation does arise and you can’t hire in a professional videographer, then of course you would like to make the video you’re filming on your phone as good as possible.

How to film get video content on your phone

When filming on a phone, there are several things you need to consider before recording any content. These include aspect ratio, lighting, frame rate, stability and sound. Lets break each of these aspects down so you can understand how to make the best quality video with your phone.

Aspect ratio

What on earth is aspect ratio? If you’re not a professional videographer, it’s likely you’ve never heard of this term. It essentially means the orientation of the video you’re recording. If you’re recording a video that will go into an existing project or alongside other peoples phone footage then you need to make sure your aspect ratios match. If the project is going to be in portrait, also known as 9x16, then you need to match this by filming with your phone up right. If it’s going to be landscape, also know as 16x9, then you need to film with your phone horizontally. This ensures, the editor receiving the footage will have a cohesive set of phone videos.

Lighting

Good lighting goes a long long way. As a professional videographer, I spend a lot of time getting soft, radiant and beautiful lighting. If you don’t have all the knowledge and lighting kit a videographer carries then this section will help you. The number one best way to get consistent and soft lighting is to film in front of a window. Ensure you’re not in direct sunlight. This should give you nice even lighting for free! To elevate it to the next level also look for an interesting background.

Frame rate

Frame rate is another term you may have never heard of. Frame rate relates to how many frames the camera captures per second. The standard in the UK is 25 frames per second. However, in places such as the USA it can be 30 frames per second. Phones are every often set to 30 frames per second by default. The reason the frame rate is important to check is because if you’re putting your phone recording into a larger project with other phone recordings, then they all need to match. If they don’t and you mix 30 frames per second with 25 frames per second, the video editor will run into trouble. With that in mind, check your frame rate and ensure everyone’s phones are set to the same frame rate.

Stability

Nothing looks more amateur than shaky phone footage. Professional videographers use all kinds of tools stabilise the cameras they use. With a phone, it’s a lot more simple. You just need to use a tripod made for phones. You can get smaller ones that fit on desks or full size tripods that have an adapter for phones. Either way, a tripod is essential for stabile footage.

Sound

Sound can be a hugely overlooked aspect when filming phone videos. If you can afford it, I would always recommend a mobile phone compatible clip on microphone. The leap in quality compared to what your phone can do is huge. If you do need to use your phones internal microphone then make sure you speak loudly and clearly and film in a quiet space. This will ensure the best quality sound recording.

I hope this article for filming with a phone has been useful. Good luck with your project for filming video on your phone!