Authors and artists were well-valued by the public when they gave us written imaginary actions and squeezed action drawings inform of novels and comic books. Now, fast forwarding to this modern era, videographers came into the spotlight when they began recording moving visual images using their electronic digital video cameras and modifying the video later. Most people will always think that the job description of a videographer ends in just operating video cameras, recording live broadcasts, commercials or movies and editing them after without knowing that there is more to it than they think. Let us know ‘Videographer Job Titles’.
Videographer Job Titles
Talking about a videographer’s job titles, firstly, we all have to understand the job descriptions of a freelance videographer in different production stages in a movie production before that of a corporate videographer in a studio.
In making a movie, there are three stages involved being the pre-production, the production, and the post-production stages.
Pre-Production stages:
Assisting other production crew like the location manager, the director or the producer is the main expected set of responsibilities of a videographer during the pre-creation stage. When it comes to assisting the location manager, he will have a say about the proposed location if the place is suitable for the movie to be shot at in terms of a location with manageable sunlight and little sound impedance. To the director, he will assist during auditions to help pick performers whom he believes can naturally act before cameras and have an acceptable conforming voice for the sounds. Once more, he can help the director by aiding him in visualizing more efficient approach that can be used in the film during storyboarding and scene planning time to make the movie more entertaining. For the producer, he can help by assisting him in disposing financial plans relating to his work.
Production Stage:
During this stage, the major job title of the videographer is to operate the camera or direct other camera operators during recording. Ensuring that all pieces of equipment are in proper working shape is another detail he needs to look into before transporting and erecting the equipments in the set location. If a piece of his equipment breaks down or malfunctions during this stage, it is still up to him to know how to diagnose and troubleshoot or repair the equipment soonest while taking into consideration on how to conclude production on due date but if the piece of his equipment that broke down was unable to be repaired on time, he will still be responsible for acquiring another machine quickly so that the production can continue. During this stage, he instructs the lighting experts and sound experts so he can get the best visuals and sound. Here again, He is responsible for assisting the director by suggesting other ways a scene should play out for better entertainment.
Post Production Stage:
The videographer is again responsible for dismantling the equipment and taking inventory to ensure that all equipments either his own or leased that was brought to the set is complete and in proper working shape before transporting it home or back to the owner if the equipment was rented. Following this, he begins to edit the video by fine-tuning the sound interference and the effects of the sunlight rays affecting the brightness, ensuring that the scenes are in cohesion with the storyline and adding graphics and special effects to the video for more excitement and entertainment. After the edit is complete, he double-checks the footage and enlists the help of the other crew to cross check it too, if corrections were made, he goes back and corrects them. If the revision passes, he is assigned to synchronize the video into devices like cassettes, compact discs, or flash drives and duplicating them for the market. Finally, he can help the marketing team by liaising with video marketing vendors and agencies for distribution and selling.
Furthermore, in the studio environment where most corporate videographers work, especially during live broadcasts, the videographer skills should match their job titles descriptions because little sloppiness on his part may cause losses for the studio. Obtaining licenses to broadcast live shows is sometimes the responsibility of a videographer who should always be in liaison with the national or private telecommunication agencies that confer these licenses and he should be up-to-date on how to procure them. Setting up his equipments early and being timely organized and effective is the major job description of a studio videographer because every program to be broadcasted is done with time and broadcasting effectively with time is paramount. His equipments should be kept up to date at all times because technological changes inform of software or device may influence the audience’s taste in terms of video quality or otherwise. He should be able to multitask during live broadcast by controlling cameras and directing other camera operators from different angles because the broadcast’s success depends on him just like in football matches were where the ball goes is the main focus, he needs to keep focusing on the ball and when his view is weak, he will call on the camera operator with the best view to follow up immediately. A videographer aids in the promotion of the company’s brand by placing tech-savvy and up-to-date advertisements to attract people to be interested in watching the broadcast channel.
Finally, the videographer has to accept that he should actively participate in all stages of production by assisting the other production crew in planning during the pre-production stage, operating or directing other camera operators, sound and lighting technicians during the production stage and the post-production stage sees him modifying the video by altering the lights and sound and adding graphics and special effects before synchronizing the video onto tapes and discs and duplicating them for the market. For a corporate videographer working with a broadcasting studio, matching their skills with their job description is paramount because in this environment, there should be no room for errors. With constant growth predicted for videographers in the coming years, videographers who want to stay on top of their technology must prepare themselves by acquiring more knowledge about videography and improving with the progressing industry.
