How to Shoot Family Interviews on Video
Every time you sit down with your
parents or grandparents, it's possible they will share a
story about something they experienced in their past or
something about another family member that you didn't
know. These highlights of your personal history
are important to preserve on video and
share with
friends and family. Your family ties you to
your past and capturing your past on video is important.
Here are some general tips and guidelines to setting up
and recording a family interview that you will be proud
of. The Setting for your Video Interview
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- a d v e r t i s e m e n t -
| Perhaps the single most important factor for your
video interview is the setting. You don't want the
lighting to be distracting, or the sound quality to be
poor. You want to make sure that there are no
distractions in the setting so that the future viewer
can focus on the interview’s questions and answers.
- Choose a space that is easy to work. You also
do not want any background sounds to conflict with the
interview
- An indoor interview usually works better
than an outdoor interview because the
surroundings are controlled
- Stay away from extremely
bright walls as a backdrop during the interview.
Choose a backdrop that complements
the video interview setting
- Move extra furniture away to create a more intimate setting by
around the family member being interviewed
Getting Ready for
the Interview
Where and how a person sits during an interview
creates a feel as well as the way the person
tells their story. This and other factors play
into the way a person is composed during the
interview. Here are some ideas on how to
position the person so the flow of the interview
goes smoothly.
- Create depth of field by
placing the interview chair in the middle of the
room, preferably 6’ from any wall. This is
will help prevent the background from overwhelming
your interview subject.
- Use a wooden kitchen chair with a low back
and a hard seat. This will restrict the
interviewee from slumping in too-comfortable of
a chair.
- Consider having another family member run
the camcorder for you, and make sure it is
mounted on a tripod. This will allow you to concentrate
on every word the subject says, and give you
more freedom to improvise the interview as you
would with a normal conversation.
Quality
Sound for the Family Interview
When you watch these videos years from now, you
will want to be able to clearly understand what your
family member had to say, instead of straining to
hear and understand them. Before beginning the
interview, review these tips to help you with sound during the
interview:
- Although camcorders have built in
microphones, they really are not good enough for
interviews. If possible, use a separate microphone such as a
lapel
microphone, to achieve higher
audio quality that gives the subject’s voice a full
sound
- Place the microphone close to the subject’s
mouth and don't hide it under any clothing,
where it may cause sound problems
- Close the gap between the microphone’s
professional connection (usually an XLR-Audio
connection) and the camera’s
consumer connection (usually a composite
audio connection) with an adapter from
Radio Shack or other personal electronics store
- Try to monitor the audio levels through a set
of headphones plugged into your camcorder
Interview
Preparationn
videotaping
interviews, there are some common rules to
follow during the question and answer process.
Here are some points to take note of before you
begin:
- A couple of days prior to the interview, it
might be wise to prepare by asking your family
member for any
diaries or journals they might have kept from
their past experiences.
- Ask your family member some questions before
the interview to let them know you are interested in
their story. This will also lay
the groundwork for good questions
- Make a list of interview questions you are going to
ask in a notebook for easy reference.
- Look through childhood photographs as part of
the background research. To truly understand
where the person is coming from, it’s important
to get good anecdotes.
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How to Shoot Good Home Video Tips
Understanding Digital Video
Getting to know your New Digital Camcorder
Shooting a Family Video Interview
Shooting a Family Reunion
Shoot Video with your Digital Camera
Recording Video in LP vs. SP Mode
Storing your Video Tapes
Storing your 8mm and 16mm film
How to White Balance Your Camcorder
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