HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT ROOM OR BACKGROUND FOR FILMING

One of the first steps, and for some one of the hardest, is picking the room or background that you will film in. One of the things easily overlooked, yet is so important, is the power of choosing the right background to film Thought Leader content in. Remember, the audience consuming your content only knows, sees and hears what the camera shows them. Here are a few key questions you should consider when trying to find the best background:

1. Is the room you want to film in quiet? Nothing is worse than having noisy audio in the background! Anything that takes your audience’s attention away from you and what you’re saying should be prevented as much as possible. We don’t want them distracted by kids yelling, dogs barking, noisy traffic, phones ringing, etc. 

2. Is the room you want to film in have adequate lighting? All cameras and smartphones share the same technology when it comes to filming, and that is they all have internal sensors. If you’re using a smartphone or a webcam your sensor is really tiny, and vice versa if you’re using a DSLR or cinema camera, your sensor is large. Tiny sensors need ALOT of light and large sensors don’t need as much. Where you choose to film should have a lot of natural lighting or you need a large light source (like a softbox) to help make up for the lack of room light. Little to no light is like kryptonite for your camera and overall image quality.

3. Does the background relate to the content you’re delivering? We want your audience to get to know you better every time we connect with them! Once you select the right background and have your camera setup, then have fun finding things in the background that reflect you. For you avid readers, showcase your bookcases or study. For you advisors, you could showcase your computer monitors, screens or board rooms that reflect how good you are with numbers and data! For you working from home-rs, consider bringing some things from your office like degrees, artwork, plants, etc. 

-Drew Kaiser: Content Creator, The Wisdom Link

CHOOSE YOUR BACKGROUND USING THIS SIMPLE TOOL

Don’t get stuck in the rut of feeling overwhelmed in picking the perfect background. Here is a quick tool to experiment with in helping you choose the right background. Take your camera and place it in the middle of the room. Then stand in front of it, hit record for 20-30 secs, and position yourself in all 4 corners.

Let me show you an example from my buddy Omar over at Think Media. The far left image is him sitting at his computer desk (we’ll call that the middle of the room for this example). You can see how the corresponding other 4 images feature one “corner” of the room. The overall look, feel, and vibe changes with every corner because of the different background elements shown . Using this simple tool may help you discover even more possibilities in the room you choose to film in.

BONUS INSIGHT FROM JON

“You're a thought leader, which means you are explaining, you're not sharing your personal narrative. You are explaining something so others can understand it and take action. When we talk to people that are startups they don't have a philosophical platform yet. They might have a hint of it, but most of them are going to be sort of like, "I don't really know yet." They haven't done that kind of strategic thinking. They just went into the tactical level. But you get somebody who's been doing what they've been doing for 20 years and fighting in a commoditized industry, it's the philosophy that differentiates them. Their worldview is actually how they compete because their products are not unique or distinct. So the why behind the how is where all the juice lives. That's where all the wisdom is.”

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