REMOTE RECORD TIPS

Lighting can make or break your at-home or home office video recording as much as poor audio can (check out tip #5 for audio). You want to always have the light in front of you but try not to sit directly in front of a window as it’ll blow you out and overexpose you. It’s best to have lights you can adjust so that if your lighting changes from any natural light spilling in through windows you can fix and offset the lighting change. There are many inexpensive LED light options out there that provide a lot of flexibility in color temperature, brightness and more. We recommend this inexpensive pair from Amazon, but in a pinch you can also use an external monitor with an all white background to light yourself. 

Be aware of your surroundings, especially your background. Get that waste basket out of there and remove the shirt hanging over your chair. Cleaning up the background presents a well thought out environment for a successful shoot. We also like the pop-up green screen approach when working with a video production agency, but the natural setting in your home office can look just as good if it’s clean and ready for your recording. If you decide to go the pop-up green screen route, be sure to grab a chair to lean it against or go for the Emart Portable Backdrop stand.

Don’t put too much space above you – leave just an inch or two above the top of your head when framing your shot. General rule of thumb is to sit just beyond an arm’s length away from the screen to show enough of you to the audience while also giving you the freedom to lean in when you want to make an important statement or sit back when you want something to sink in during your presentation.

If sound is an issue during your remote recording, AirPods or an equivalent (like the Anker Soundcore Earbuds for $40 from Amazon) can be a great way to solve for it. As an added bonus for those with longer hair, you can hide the AirPod in your ear so your audience doesn’t have to know about it. Be sure to test the quality of the sound first as sometimes wireless microphones and earbuds can cause bitrate issues. If wireless headphones aren’t your thing, that’s ok! We’ve also had folks use wired earbuds and tuck the headphones under the shirt while still using the built in microphone. Finally, if you have a lot of reverb and/or echo when filming, consider adding a few pillows around your desk directly in front of you to absorb the noise. If you have the ability to hang a blanket behind your computer out of view, even better!