Shooting Video on Your Phone

NBC News photojournalist David Necochea explains principles of photography and videography and how to meld all these skills to shoot video on your phone.

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Necochea covers essential visual skills like framing, the “rule of thirds,” lighting and using your phone’s flash and camera movement.

The rule of thirds

The rule of thirds helps us compose a visually pleasing image. Picture your camera’s viewfinder split into nine equal-size boxes – with two lines from top to bottom and two lines going from left to right, evenly spaced out. You want whatever you’re taking a picture of or shooting on your phone to be on one of these lines – or even better, have a focal point be at the intersection of a horizontal and vertical line.

This can create a more visually interesting image than centering your subject directly in the middle when you shoot video on your phone.