7 Rookie Mistakes That Will Make Your Videos Look Unprofessional

Introduction

New to video production? That’s great! There are a lot of little rookie mistakes that you can make that will significantly decrease the overall quality of your videos. But the best part is, these mistakes are easily correctable once you know what they are. So, with that in mind, today we’re going to talk about the top 7 rookie mistakes that will make your videos look unprofessional and how to correct them.

1. Insufficient Lighting

    This is probably the biggest mistake. If you are filming with bad lighting, it will make your video look grainy, washed out, and overall unprofessional regardless of how good your camera is. So here’s the fix: When possible, try to use as much natural light as you can, and make sure you are facing a light source, not the light source facing you.

    2. Shaky Camera

      This is an easy way to give away your amateur status. So here’s the fix: Whenever possible, hold the camera with both hands, move slowly, and if possible use a tripod or even a cheap gimbal.

      3. Bad Audio

        People are more likely to overlook bad video than they are bad audio. So here’s the fix: Film in a quiet location whenever possible and invest in an external microphone, even if it’s a really cheap one.

        4. Lack of Focus

          If the viewer doesn’t know what to look at, it will make your video seem unfocused and unprofessional. So here’s the fix: Always decide what you want your viewer to look at and make sure to keep your subject in focus and the background clean.

          5. Too Many Transitions and Effects

            There’s nothing that screams, “I’m an amateur,” like a ton of cheesy transitions and effects. So here’s the fix: Stick to simple cuts and transitions and let your footage do the talking.

            6. Bad Framing

              Cutting peoples heads off, too much headroom, or bad angles can make a shot look really bad. So here’s the fix: Use the rule of thirds and always try to keep your subject centered.

              7. No Story or Message

                A bunch of random clips strung together with no story or message is not a video. So here’s the fix: Think in sequences: a beginning, middle, and an end. Even the simplest idea can be made into a decent video if it has a story.

                Conclusion

                Everyone makes these mistakes when they first start out, and that’s okay. But what will separate the good video producers from the bad ones is that they learn from their mistakes, correct them, and their videos continually get better and better. So if you just pay attention to these small details, your overall video quality will dramatically improve over time.