Traveling can be a lot of fun. It is one of life’s greatest experiences and what better way to capture it than by filming the journey? With a bit of creativity and planning, you can save your amazing travel memories for years to come. However, filming a video while on the go can be tricky. If done incorrectly, your video footage could quickly become unusable. So to ease the burden and help you make better travel videos, we’ve put together a variety of tips for making a great travel video.
Effective tips for making great travel videos
Making travel videos involves a lot of hard work, but it can be rewarding. With the right equipment, video editing software, and understanding of what works visually, you can’t go wrong. Below, we have listed the best tips for making a great travel video to get you started.
Tip 1: Get inspired!
Watch a lot of other travel videos before you start shooting yours. Watching other content will give you an idea of what makes for a good travel video, along with what doesn’t work. Don’t be afraid to browse through channels with millions of views – there may be something that strikes you. Furthermore, it’s a good idea to plan your shoot thoroughly before starting so that nothing goes wrong when you’re shooting footage.
Tip 2: Shoot smart and clip the video length
One of the biggest mistakes many people make is recording excessively and then editing it down to what they feel are the best shots. This is time-consuming and tedious. Instead, it would be best if you had an idea of what you want to film, then plan your shots ahead of time so that you don’t waste time filming unnecessary scenes.
Tip 3: Pay attention to the opening shot
Although there are no hard-and-fast rules about starting your travel video, many people like to use a panoramic view or a landscape shot of the location they are visiting. For instance, you can also use video content when walking along a beach or sitting by a pool.
Tip 4: Don’t forget audio elements!
If you’re planning any type of video recording on the go with your smartphone or camcorder, chances are you may need to have a portable microphone to get the right audio quality. For travel vloggers and filmmakers alike, it pays to have an external microphone that captures sound clearly without anything else interfering with it. Dynamic microphones are perfect for outdoor vlogging because they are compact and lightweight, so you won’t have to worry about them weighing down your gear bag.
Tip 5: Use a high-quality camera
While a phone camera may be fine for taking snapshots, a separate dedicated video camera will give you better results. Use a high-quality camera like GoPro (or higher) since these cameras have unique stabilization features that make capturing high-quality, smooth videos easy. Not only that, but they shoot at 1080p 60fps (can be switched to 30fps). These features greatly benefit shooting fast-moving scenes like snorkeling, surfing or skydiving.
Tip 6: Practice shooting
The key to making a good video is preparation. The more you practice shooting when you are not on vacation, the more confident you will be when visiting the country or city you want to film. Some of the best videographers do not practice but rather wing it. Impromptu shoots work for some people, but if you are serious about making videos, proper practice is necessary no matter what your experience level is.
Tip 7: Use an online video editor to edit your travel videos
Before uploading your travel videos on YouTube or Instagram, you may want to edit them so that they look better and are easier to watch. Many digital online video-editing tools allow you to trim your video clips, add special effects and music, splice several clips together, and more. Using an online video editor would make your travel videos look more cohesive, put-together, and fun to watch.
Tip 8: Show the full story in an organized way
Don’t only show scenic shots; extend the feeling of being there. Include locals and how they live their lives in that particular destination. People love to see how regular people live in other countries. Furthermore, be organized with your shots, so that everything flows well – don’t just have a bunch of random footage clipped together.
Tip 9: Highlight the culture
Show how unique the culture of a place is and how it differs from what people see in their everyday lives back home. If you’re visiting a place for vacation, make sure that you capture all the fun and exciting experiences that are part of your trip! Also, do not forget to take close-up shots of locals. These can add a relatable element to your travel video by giving it a more raw and authentic touch.
Tip 10: Make it interesting
Make your travel video enjoyable by adding fun elements like music and slow-motion shots! Music can transform the ordinary into the extraordinary and help create a relaxing atmosphere for your audience while watching your videos. Furthermore, adding the right audio can make your travel videos even more immersive and engaging. In addition to this, add captions, maps, text, and other relevant information that will help viewers understand the video better.
Wrapping up
Travel videos are one of the most interesting ways to showcase any travel destination. The best thing about travel videos is that they allow a glimpse of a destination people may consider or look into. Furthermore, today travel videos have become a global phenomenon. People are looking for travel videos and travel vloggers all the time. Indeed, there is a lot of money to be made with travel videos.
All in all, today anyone can make their travel videos with their smartphones and upload them on social media platforms such as YouTube and Instagram. However, the key to making a good video is having the right tips in mind before you start filming your travel experiences. These ten tips for making great travel videos will guide you along the way.
