Technical Guidelines

Shoot Video at Home

This will make it easier, less costly and keep you more relaxed. Not to mention the need to practice and re-record if need be. But make sure you tend to the background

Plan Your Wardrobe

Plan your outfits out in advance so you don’t scramble at the last minute. It will help take the stress off.

Get Good Light

Check your lighting in advance. Consider buying a Lume light or some other inexpensive lighting system to help with shadows. Here is a video that demonstrates the impact of adding different lighting options. You don’t necessarily need to hire a videographer, but it may be helpful to hire someone who can set up your lighting if you aren’t feeling technical enough.

Maintain Eye Contact 

The #1 complaint I get from users is how distracting it is for a presenter to not look straight into the camera. Be aware of your eye level on screen. Avoid angling the camera too far up or down your face. If you are going to use a teleprompter – consider using a selfie stick propped up behind the lens of your camera to keep you looking up vs. to the side of your camera lens. Coach Stacey Ruth does a great job of demonstrating eye contact during her session.

Get Support for Children or Animals

Call in support for your children or animals and let your family and friends know that you need quiet time without any distractions.

Look out for your background

Look at your background from the audience perspective. Remove or cover overly distracting objects. Good feng shui practices would suggest removing any clutter from your desk as well as in the background. If the background is dark, make sure you have adequate lighting.

Practice Makes Perfect

Give yourself the gift of time to practice, record and re-record. When I first recorded the sessions for Blissometer, I must have done 10 – 15 different takes of the same video. Each time, my script got tighter, and I felt more comfortable going off-script when I got nervous. Many of our course creators are also working on their second version of recording. Consider recording a first version with just the slides and you off camera, then add yourself on camera. This is also where using a video editing tool like Vimeo or Canva can help you stitch together your perfect session from different takes if necessary.

Teleprompting isn't just for politicians

Write out your script and use a teleprompter or bullet points to guide you. Some options for teleprompting include: Vodium, PromptSmart, BIGVU, and Ecamm