Cheap/Easy DIY Video Lighting

Photography lighting kits, as a rule, tend to be on the expensive side, but if you are planning to do any sort of decent indor video shooting, good light is pretty much essential. I have seen a number of lighting tutorial videos hailing from the USA which suggest using, as a cheap lighting solution, a clamp light which is common and inexpensive over there. Over here in the UK however, those lamps are difficult to find and not that cheap either.

I had been using a simple bulb in a bulb-holder and attached to a bit of flex & a plug as a light source. It did indeed provide light, but was non-directable, difficult to mount and fragile. I decided that it was time to do something about it, and after a bit of thinking, I came up with a solution.

The solution was a lamp that was cheap, easy to make, directable, robust and easy to mount virtually anywhere. The basic Idea is easy to scale up and can be used for making much more powerful lights simply by using a bigger container and more lamps. Very little skill is needed to make them and I'm sure that these lamps would have their uses for straight photography lighting as well, so if you are looking for some cheap camera lighting, why not try them out for yourself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you like this sort of stuff, then why not subscribe to Meejah's Youtube channel - It's free!

SUBSCRIBE

How to get FREE licence-Free music and Sound effects from Youtube

I get an awful lot of messages from people asking about where they can get hold of copyright free music and sound effects for use in their video productions. Which is understandable because appropriate sound effects and music can add a whole new dimension to a video.

The reason they need licence-free music is because they know that the use of unauthorised music in their videos could lead to their video being pulled by Youtube for copyright infringement. What's more, they could be laying themselves open to a legal challenge from the music's owners.

It seems that it is not generally known that Youtube have a library of copyright-free music and sound effects that are available for free download by anyone with a Youtube account. These downloads are all absolutely safe to use in all Youtube videos (and indeed, any other videos for that matter).

So this video shows you exacly how to go about accessing these great freebies - Courtesy of Youtube. Check it out. You'll be glad you did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you like this sort of stuff, then why not subscribe to Meejah's Youtube channel - It's free!

SUBSCRIBE

Zero budget DIY Camera Slider - Easy and Instant!

How we all love those sexy slow slider camera shots that we see on the movies and TV. 

The way that the camera seems to effortlessly and smoothly float past the array of ingredients on your favourite cookery program, the smooth segue of the camera as it displays the dazzling flowers on those gardening programs and the slow considered change of point of view on those sumptuous period dramas.

Of course the equipment to carry out this feat of cinematographic splendour - a camera slider - are not cheap bits of kit. 

But despair not people, you can produce similar sexy smoothness with very little in the way of equipment. In fact you may already have everything you need to do this

So check out the video below, This incredibly quick and simple DIY hack will allow you to take those sexy smooth slider shots that you've seen on the movies and TV with virtually nothing in the way of equipment and cost. 

For something so quick and easy, the results of this DIY slider are remarkably good. Try it yourself.

Inventive video makers

As you look around the Internet for information on amateur film making, you realise what an inventive lot amateur film makers are. Often they are working with the minimum of equipment, and a zero budget. These inconvenient facts however, don't seem to get in the way of their productions.

Often, the professional film moguls produce a certain effect, look or style in their movies that is coveted by the independent film maker. When they try to emulate the technique, they often find that it involves a piece of equipment with a price tag that runs into tens of thousands, but does that put them off? No sir!

These hardy souls are quite capable of finding out everything they can about the equipment they need, and back engineering it in a low-cost and low-tech way, that will nevertheless produce the required outcome.

You need only witness the plethora of plans and tutorials on line that can show you how to produce your own stedi-cam or dolly-and-track system for just a few pounds. But the best innovations of all are those that take a piece of equipment that you already own, and with a few tweaks, convert it for a completely different purpose.

Meejahs latest video offering is an example of this inventiveness. It shows how, by using your standard tripod in a slightly different way, you can achieve a similar effect to the smooth gliding shots produced by a camera dolly system.

Check it out: