The task was to film an interviewee talking for thirty minutes but looking away from the camera.
How do you get the interviewee to speak without looking into the camera? …knowing that he is not a professional actor …AND that I am also the person asking the questions.
As an Independent Videographer, here’s how I shoot a corporate video interview with a camera and listen to the headphones at the same time… all while asking the questions and making sure the interviewee look away from the camera.
1. LOCK DOWN THE CAMERA AT A FIXED POSITION
Compose your shot with the camera on tripod. Manually lock white balance, focus and exposure.
2. POSITION YOURSELF AN ARM’S LENGTH BESIDE THE CAMERA
This ensures the interviewee look at you and not at the camera, while you are still able to reach the camera.
3. MONITOR FRAMING AND SOUND QUALITY
Look into the eyes of the interviewee but grab a chance to glance into the camera screen while wearing your headphones all the time.
You can only do this when you have headphones with a cable that is about 1 to 2 meters long.
I use an old light-weight Sony headphones. You can get a similar one at amazon…
http://astore.amazon.com/videolcom-20/detail/B004RKQMCY
Adrian Lee
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