Creating and improving video
Regardless of the type of source material you are using—live music, prerecorded film, or a home video—the quality of the content you stream cannot be any better than the quality of the source. This section provides information about manipulating background, lighting, and your subject's clothing to improve the quality of your video.
- Background. If possible, use a low-motion background when recording video. If you need to record against a moving background, try reducing the depth of field to help reduce the amount of detail in the background. Reducing the depth of field or shortening the area in focus softens the background and helps reduce the amount of data that changes from frame to frame. To reduce the depth of field and make the background go out of focus, use a lower level of light and move the subject closer to the lens or move the subject farther away from the lens and use a telephoto lens to zoom in.
- Lighting. Provide adequate lighting; use soft light, diffuse light, and consistent light levels. A certain amount of contrast is necessary for lighting a subject, but avoid direct, high-contrast lighting. For example, when recording a face lit by strong sunlight from the side, the facial features in the shadow can be lost on video.
- Clothing. Use clothing colors that complement your subject's skin tone and that are sufficiently different from the background and other overlapping objects. Avoid bright colors, which tend to bleed or spread outside an object. Also avoid stripes, which might cause moiré patterns, especially when the subject is moving slowly.
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