It's not enough just to be technically competent with your video cam and even with your edition software. You need to know the basics of filmmaking to tell your story whether you are behind the studio's movie camera or holding your FlipVideo.



Barry Braverman gives you the basics of filmmaking in this book geared to amateurs. All the "geeky" details are here, and this book gives you a greater respect for the craft when you see how many technical aspects are involved in creating something that tells your story effectively and beautifully.



Everything from your camera to lighting, audio, exposure control, frame rate, microphones, equipment, composition and framing, color correction and balance and much more. There is a chapter on DVD burning (something I've had issues with when making my own) so if you are producing videos internally at your firm for training or other purposes, this is especially valuable.



This is a very accessible technical manual that can answer the question "Why didn't I get the video I saw in my head?" Naturally, you won't be able to digest this entire book at one sitting or even ten sittings. Little by little, taking this one topic at a time, you literally will be teaching yourself video making technique. Short of taking a workshop or course in filmmaking, this book can provide a huge amount of technical know-how that will improve your videos from fuzzy, jittery home movies to professional-looking productions that will make you proud as an artist. A must for anyone remotely serious about their videocam. A huge resource.