Using the rule of thirds to frame video interviewsPosted by Cody Kitaura on June 18th, 2010

Video and audio journalism guru Bill Mecca has a great, brief video on using the rule of thirds to set up video interviews. This is a topic that’s likely very familiar to photographers and experienced video journos, but may be very foreign to others. When I first started shooting video, I’d taken a photo class at a community college, but hadn’t really received any formal training on how to use this technique (Click here for the Wikipedia page on the rule of thirds … and here’s an alternate perspective on the rule). I’ve definitely been guilty of just plopping a talking head right in the middle of my frame when shooting video, but I’ve tried to improve.

[BillMecca.com via News Videographer]

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Avoiding three common mistakes newspapers make in sports videosPosted by Cody Kitaura on June 8th, 2010

My video setup at a basketball game in Elk Grove last year.Video makes everything better. Just throw a camera at a reporter, crack the whip and you’ll be golden. Right?

As newspapers everywhere are faced with the challenge of being everything at once and covering everything in completely new ways, reporters with little (or perhaps no) training are being handed a video camera and are sent on their way with little more than an encouraging pat on the back. I’m by no means a sports reporter (or a full-time videographer), but I’ve filmed football, basketball, baseball, softball and boxing for our newspaper. Along the way, I’ve made plenty of mistakes. Here are three common pitfalls to avoid when shooting video for a news organization.

1. Showing viewers the most boring part of the game

Unless they’re game-winning shots, nobody cares about free throws. Or extra points. The general consensus with web videos is that the shorter the video, the more people will actually watch it. Usually that means keeping your videos between three and five minutes long. If you film an entire game, you’ll have footage that you want to use, but don’t have time for.

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