I found myself amidst some #bird #photography and #videography in NewFoundland #NewJersey and thought this to be a great opportunity to talk about #wildlife video settings.
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Category Archives: DSR Video Tips
Wildlife Filming Tips
Video: Fall Beekeeping at Denville Community Gardens
When my friend and fellow POWWW board member Mike Leone (actually POWWW’s VP) asked for my help in producing a short beekeeping video I took little hesitation in saying yes. We created this short info video on behalf on Denville Community Gardens. The purpose of the film is to explain the great benefits of pollinators while discussing some trials and tribulations that may stump beginning beekeepers.
Initial filming took place at the Denville Community Gardens which is located on Diamond Spring Road just outside of Downtown Denville. I chose to film with my Canon SL2 DSLR which is a great compact and simple camera for clean 1080p video. For filming optics, I chose my Tamron 16-300mm F3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD Macro Lens for the ability to film both broad scenes as well as close-up shots of the honeybees. Voice Over audio was recorded after-the-fact by wiring my R0DE VideoMic GO directly into my SL2.
Camera information aside, I was very pleased to help web-publish the invaluable information about the ecological important of honeybees. More pollinators = more fresh local food = less processed food with preservatives and refined sugar. Many green and sustainable practices do require a time investment, however the health benefits and feelings of self-gratification make for any easy offset. I also greatly enjoy creating outdoor education content as I can use my multimedia background while both teaching and learning.
If you have any beekeeping questions or video production questions please leave them in the comments and I will route them to the appropriate individual.
Purchasing any of the equipment below through my Amazon Affiliate Links will help support my blog.
Tamron 16-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD MACRO Lens for Canon Cameras
Tamron 16-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD MACRO Lens for Nikon Cameras
Canon EOS Rebel SL2 Digital SLR Camera Body – WiFi Enabled
Rode VideoMic GO Lightweight On-Camera Mic
DSLR Nature Cinematography: Snowy Egret
I recently shot a few very short HD DSLR Video clips of one of the more common and easily recognizable wading birds in New Jersey, a Snowy Egret. My personal goal for wildlife still photography had as been 2 archival quality captures of any subject that I found interesting. Archival quality captures to me means focus is spot-on, exposure will not require significant post-processing, and the composition is pleasing to my eyes. I also try to avoid repetition in my photos. I’ve “upped the ante” on my nature shooting goals, and will now also try to film 1 or 2 quick sequences when I am in the outdoors.
Back to the point, I had been shooting all of my recent photos with a ballhead on my tripod. Having no experience with fluid tripod heads, but realizing their importance in the video industry I started doing some research. I already have Manfrotto RC2 quick release plates attached to most of my cameras and lenses so I wanted a fluid head that was designed for the RC2 plate. I wound up purchasing a Manfrotto 128RC Micro Fluid Head and it has remained atop my 055x ProB tripod ever since. This allows me to perform the steady panning motions needed for dynamic video work.
The above video was filmed using the Tamron SP 150-600mm VC Lens and the Canon EOS 7D. Manual video mode settings include: ISO 100 F/14 and the Shutter Speed set to 1/80th. I muted original audio from the clips in post-processing because of the loud hissing of the wind. Guitar playing is me strumming my Washburn D10 Guitar, and I ended up recording this with my Samsung cellular phone. Audio post-processing involved noise reduction, addition of a Phaser Effect, and overall Volume Reduction. Video post-processing included trimming video segments, cross-fade transitions between shots, contrast enhancements, and split-tone color processing.
Dave Blinder Nature Photography 