Hi all!
Okay, I don't really want to be a TikTok star, I do want to record some content though. I'm an author (who isn't?), and I read a lot. I'm also interested in teaching creative writing, talking about story theory, structure, psychology of writers and readers, and a whole bunch of other things. I realise I could do a podcast, but why deny the world my handsome face...
Really, if I make the videos, I can go back the other way and make podcasts from the videos and, hopefully, capture a wider audience.
This is all dull stuff though. What I need your help with, dear, beautiful AppleVissers, is how to go about recording independently without getting a flattering image of my chin filling the view, elbow, big toe… Half head... There are so many ways this could muck up.
I'll be using my iPhone 15 Pro as it's the best camera I've got. I'll probably have to get some sort of lapel mic, I guess, and work out lighting with someone who is sighted, but in terms of lining up the shot, any thoughts? I know there is something on the latest phones, centre stage? that moves the individual into the middle of the shot, which sounds ideal, but I'm not sure if that is something good for this application.
I'm really vague about any of this, so please fill me in with any thoughts you have on this.
Thank you in advance.
Comments
Be My AI
Hi Oliver,
I have been streaming my live musical performance's, off and on, for a few years now, so I might be able to provide a tip or two. For lining up your camera, I like the AI mode of Be My eyes; it's available on Windows, IOS, and I assume Mac. I use a Windows PC for, nearly all aspects of my stream, but I do use my iPhone as a web cam for the computer, utilizing an app called Camo. On top of the iPhone having a better camera, I find using the phone in a stand easier to line up shots consistently.
Apart from hardware, the other two key pieces of tech in my setup are Reaper and OBS. Feel free to ask any follow-up questions, and I will do my best to respond.
Good luck,
Oliver
Just dance alluringly in front of a full-length mirror while using your iPhone to record. You will be infamous in no time. `😇
Re: Brian
Already do that on my OnlyFans.
A Studio
So are you going to be standing or sitting or both?
I set up an area for pictures of stupid costumes in front of a grayish tan curtain/backdrop. I had help, by way of posting pictures to friends, in working out where to place the camera on a tripod. The lighting was from several LED shop lights behind the tripod, some reflecting off the white ceiling and the curtains to give a little back lighting. The phone does a lot to adjust for the lighting too. I placed a small rug in the spot to stand and mark the sides of where I could move, side to side, in the middle third of the frame. It actually worked fairly well.
Later I worked out a spot between the rug and the tripod, which was adjusted to about waist-high, to place a chair to do Facetime calls. It also works for upper body and head pictures.
The hooks to hang the lights are already in the ceiling and it takes about five minutes to set it all up... after I move all the stuff out of the way because I don't have the room to have empty space sitting around my house.
Oliver
Would not that be much better in Youtube?
Youtube
Yeah, I'll post on youtube too. At the moment it's just getting the raw video.
Thank you everyone for your ideas. I like OldBear's idea about a mat or rug to define the limit of movement. I wil be sitting and simply talking to the camera, like some sort of hostage of literacy, so I'm hoping when it's locked in, it's all good.
I am playing with the centre stage camera on my mac which works in Quicktime, allows me to set up a background too. I'm going to try some test videos and send them to friends. Fortunately for anyone watching and my pride, the actual image and visual content is of no consequence. It's simply me doing a breakdown of books in a way that, I hope, is interesting and stimulates some original thought. Of course, there is a minimum viable product here.
I'm going to continue to play with centre stage and continuity camera if I can get that working. It's something that, when it was announced, I did think it might be a useful tool for us. There is something maddening about not knowing we look a bit daft on a facetime or zoom call. I know a lot of people do, but without a feedback loop and being able to adjust for it, how we are perceived is affected. The fear, of course, is not being taken seriously.
It's what comes out of my mouth that should do that, not how I appear on screen, the difference being, I'm in control of what I say, but not how I appear.