Why hire a professional videographer? Cont…
The process of video production
Video production, or the process of shooting the video is something best left in the hands of a professional videographer because there are so many things that can go wrong — or more positively put, so much needs to be attended to. Some of these things include proper lighting, audio, making sure that the background of the shot is right, directing talent, making sure that the actors faces aren’t oily, etc. Little details like those can avert the focus of the viewer to places you don’t want them to even think about. For instance, a dedicated audio person is supposed to make sure that lines are said correctly and articulately. They also check for background noise caused from airplanes, car alarms and other sources.
The point is that the production portion of your video, the actual footage of what people will see and hear, needs to be of professional quality, because if it isn’t, it doesn’t matter how good your editor is, you can’t fix poorly shot video.
On the hand, if you want to try your hand at editing, as long as you don’t erase the footage you can’t do any real damage – even if the edit is horrible. You can always toss the edit and start over or hire a professional videographer because it’s digital, non-linear and changeable. Things to consider when editing are not to use every wild special effect and transition in your toolkit. Cuts and dissolves are just fine the vast majority of the time.
Motion graphics
Motion graphics are something that will definitely enhance your edited video. Done in the editing or post production portion of production, motion graphics are used to emphasize points, keep viewers attention and help explain difficult concepts. Like everything else with your production, motion graphics needs to be done right. ‘Right’ means that they need to look professional, be appropriate, blend in with the style of the overall video and otherwise enhance the viewing experience.
Conclusions
So there you have it. You can try your hand at pre and post production activities, but make sure that your script is right before spending a penny on production or editing. If the script is good and you hire someone who knows what they are doing to shoot your video, then you can give editing a try and see how it goes. Just remember to lock your SD card before connecting it to the adapter that goes to the computer. I say this because particularly on the Mac, the card can get corrupted and to some extent overridden. Locking your digital cards after production is over is a good idea no matter what system you’re using.