Too scared to show face? I've been there before. Pre-pandemic and lockdown Hannah would never believe it if I time-travelled and told her I've been showing face in videos now for over 3 years on social media, in fact, she'd sooner believe I'd figured out time travel than dare show face.
Was it a simple journey? No, I spent many a day cringing over some of the videos I made in those early days, both on my personal TikTok and for my employers at the time, but did they get engagement? You bet they did and I've been chasing that high ever since.
You guys know I'm not a glory hog so today I'm here to share some tips for facing your fears and getting over the hurdle that is your first-ever face-to-face video for social media.
Plan it out While some can be quite comfortable diving in head first to social video content, I know that's not everyone. Take time to do some research and plan it out. Have a scroll through the 'for you feed' to discover which audios are trending with your audience. Do you want to add text afterwards? Will you be speaking to the camera with some background music? Are you planning on putting in cuts and transitions? The more you can plan, the easier filming is ultimately going to be.
Dress to impress This one is such an underrated tip that I never see content creators talking about but I'm fairly sure it's integral to gaining that all-important confidence in putting your face in a video. They say the better you're dressed, the more confident you'll feel, but this doesn't mean dressing to the nines and styling yourself for a night on the town. It means dressing in what makes you feel most comfortable, like yourself and if you're filming content for a business helps communicate who you are as a brand. Another wee tip is to brush your hair, you've no idea how many pieces of content I've filmed for BookTok where I look back and my hair is...questionable.
Figure out your lighting, angles and your background Give yourself a good amount of space and if possible position yourself in front of a window to take advantage of natural daylight, it's the most flattering and you'll need to do less editing. Play around with your camera and take some test footage to determine how you feel you look best to stand, position your hands and angle your face. Please, please for the love of all that is sacred, do not film yourself in front of an open bathroom door or in front of a messy bed with your pants and pjs on it, unless of course, it's relevant to your brand!
Write yourself a script If you're filming a speaking-to-camera video download a teleprompter app and type in your script to help you read from your screen. There is nothing worse than having to constantly look down at a piece of paper or glance off to the side to view your notes, you'll break focus, it'll feel clunky and it will also look clunky.
Film several takes, practice makes perfect Don't be afraid to shoot, reshoot and reshoot some more you've got as many takes as it takes to get it right and to a place where you are happy with what you've produced. If you're filming a reel or TikTok video with a transition, take your time, watch some tutorials and produce something fun!
This time in a few months you can join me in that time machine and go back to tell your past self how much you're nailing your video content production on Instagram and TikTok!
Hannah, Heyday Digital Agency.
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