How To Choose The Right Stock Footage?

By Author: Erik Jonason
Total Articles: 34
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Stock footage will not only prove money saver for your video project, but it will reduce the completion time also. The increasing popularity of stock footage has made the competition stiffer. So, what are the things you should include in the must-check list before buying a stock footage?

Budget and time restrictions are two major problems documentary makers face at the time of production. When you are working on a subject really close to your heart, you will not settle for anything less than a perfect shot.

It is easy to get footage for generic scenes but making a nature or wildlife documentary could be daunting task. Getting substantial natural shots isn't in your hand. So, what is the simple way of getting desired footage, while sticking to the budget and deadline?

Documentary and film makers are using stock footage in the video production. It is usually a short clipping of different genres like landscapes, food, business, animals, background, natural calamity, 3D animation, sports, time lapse and visual effects.

You might be investing anything from weeks to years to get unpredictable and natural ...
... shots of volcanic eruptions, animals, landscapes, weather. Appropriate stock footage effects can reduce the production time drastically. All you have to do is insert these shots at the right place.

Picking up the Right Footage

You have spent time and money in choosing a stock footage, but the results haven’t come up great after mixing it in the video. So, here are the tips for picking the most-suited footage:

Composition is the way a visual subject is constructed and places in the frame. There could be different ways of composing a shot. For example, subject is in the centre of the frame in a standard composition while it could be placed on the edge of the frame for a more dramatized composition. A stock footage with standard composition will look flat if the documentary has a more stylised approach.

Camera movement will lead to capturing of a beautiful shot. A still stock footage is equivalent to a picture; therefore, it is important that the element of motion is present in the shot. Movement of subject as well as the camera will add more drama.

Bad lighting will spoil everything. No matter how wonderfully you have edited the video, inappropriate or bad lighting will majorly harm the aesthetics of the movie, even if it is present in just one or two shots. It is not easy to have perfect lighting conditions in stock footage, but an intelligently shot video will have lesser lighting issues.

Realism and naturalness of the shot are the two things you are paying for. Ensure that all the elements in the stock footage appear real to your audience, else it is of no use.

Going to the technical aspects of the video, ask about its compression codecs. You will find stock footage providers using different video codecs, especially when you are buying these shots online. Codec and compression type of the video will help you in ensuring highest quality for the documentary.

You can shoot a video in different resolutions like 720p, 1080p, HD, Full HD etc. However, ensure the final resolution of the project before choosing the stock footage. Talk to your video editor as well as technical team to get better understanding about the requirement.

These are a few essentials of choosing the right stock footage. There are however other things such as credibility of the shots provider, location, art direction, which should be kept in mind when inserting a stock footage.

Author of this article is associated with MrFootage, reputable library for stock footage. It offers footage of sports, wildlife, celebrities, war & disaster, marine, aerials, and more to professionals.