The home or office studio

You don't have to invest thousands of pounds building an effective office studio, you can create a good working studio space with very little budget.

When choosing your space be aware of both your limitations and the environment.  I often shoot video pieces to camera in my home office.  The problem with shooting in this location is that I do not have the space so the studio is taken down when not in use.  This can become frustrating especially if I feel the inspiration to do a quick piece to camera but do not have the energy to set up the studio.  Space can be an issue especially when working with low budgets.  The great thing about working with a larger space is you can leave the studio set up and use it as and when required.  Having to set up a studio space can be time consuming especially if you are working with portable equipment so factor this in when choosing a location for your studio.

Be aware of the environment you are setting up the studio in.  Think about the sound and lighting issues.  My home office is directly opposite a busy ambulance station and when the ambulances exit the station they have the sirens screeching.  This has affected many of my shoots however I work around this by recording shorter pieces to camera or if I am in the middle of a live webinar I make a comment about the siren in the background noise so my viewers are aware of what it is.

Be aware of noise from your neighbours too.  Often we become immune to the sounds of our local environment which can impact in our videos.  A friend of mine recently produced a short video however when she played it back she noticed the noise of children playing in the background.  Her office was next to a school and she had become immune to the noise of children.  If noise is going to be an issue pick times that are the quietest to record your video piece.  I once hired a great location in west London to create a studio only to find that the roof was metallic so when it rained it sounded like stones being dropped above me.

Another factor to think about is the lighting.  Sometimes space limitations mean that you have to set up your studio near a window.  Be aware that shooting subjects against a bright window can cause a silhouette of the subject.  Try to position the subject so they are facing the window but not sitting in direct sunlight or harsh shadows.

Often room lighting can affect the quality of the video, sometimes the hum from lights (particularly fluorescent strip lighting) cannot be heard by human ears but can be heard on video.  It is always a good idea to do a technical rehearsal and play back on a device with good speakers to ensure that everything is perfect.

Think carefully about the background in your office space that you are filming against.  If you are using the backdrop of a busy office ensure that nothing inappropriate is in the cameras view and that no distractions will be happening behind you when you press record!  I once witnessed a live webinar taking place with a busy office scene in the background.  Halfway through the important presentation an office clerk (in the background) tripped and dropped a handful of files.  This was at a crucial part of the live webinar and was distracting for viewers.

A good idea is to purchase a backdrop from a reputable supplier.  This gives you a solid colour to shoot your subject against.  If you are limited with space you could purchase a pop-up background that stretches the coloured fabric background across it, this is ideal if you don't want creases showing behind the subject.