Whether you’re a car enthusiast, a car dealership, or a professional auto videographer, this blog will help you learn about automotive videography. Explore how to capture the best automotive videos, the required camera settings, and how Spyne car merchandising can help you improve your video results. Get ready to take your automotive visuals to the next level! Discover how to plan a shoot with all camera movements for shooting still and moving cars. We have also mentioned dozens of insights to make your videos cool and with the best editing tricks and tips.
What is Automotive Videography?
Automotive videography is not limited to filming car videos; it’s much more than that. It is about creating an effect or a big picture that has to feature a car as the subject and glorify it. It is the art of making a captivating visual story centered around automobiles. Videography from different cameras, including drones and GoPros, captures the essence of a vehicle and its unique features and specifications. Capturing high-quality, engaging, and eye-catching visuals is essential in promoting auto brands and attracting potential customers to the automotive dealership.
What is the Importance of Videography in the Auto Industry?
Car videos can be essential in marketing at each stage of the Automotive Sales Funnel as they help dealers improve their search performance, VDP views, leads, store visits, and overall sales. Spreading brand awareness to generate interest by building action and desire means converting your prospects into paying clients. High-quality videography can be used for video marketing to help car dealerships. Therefore, it focuses on three advantages: showcasing cars, building trust and credibility, and improving search engine rankings. Check out below how videography is crucial for the auto industry and what its importance is.
1) Engaging Storytelling: Creative videos engage a broader audience and showcase the brand’s identity, values, and heritage through visually exciting stories.
2) Immersive Experience: Automotive videos create an immersive experience through dynamic shots. They allow the viewers to feel like they are physically testing the vehicles.
3) Highlighting Performance: Vehicle videos solve the problem of showcasing vehicles’ performance capabilities. Car videographers can capture the vehicle’s handling, speed, and agility.
4) Increased Sales: Potential customers are more attracted and are likely to purchase after watching a video. A high-quality video showcasing a car’s features and benefits will increase sales.
5) Increased Engagement and Lead Generation: A HubSpot statistic shows that 83% of marketers believe combining videos has increased the average time visitors spend on a webpage. Moreover, 84% of marketers agree that videos generate more leads than other content marketing formats, such as blogs and whitepapers, making them quintessential for automotive marketing.
6) Building Credibility: A video-based marketing tactic helps you build credibility and trust by offering customers a behind-the-scenes look at your dealerships. Showcasing your facilities team and maintaining transparency creates a personal connection with your customers.
What are the Best Settings for Car Videography?
According to Google, 92% of shoppers research cars on YouTube. This proves that videos are a go-to source for potential customers. And to attract them, we don’t just need to post but also focus on quality. These are what bring conversions in the long run.
Further, the key to making good car videos is focusing on car videography. Which can often be confusing. Because every shot has different setting requirements. To help with that, we’ve mentioned the best settings for auto videographers below:
- Frame Rate: For a cinematic look commonly used for movies, stick to 24fps. As for standard videos, 30fps works best. While 60 fps is better for fast action or slow-motion effects.
- Shutter Speed: You should always follow a 180-degree rule for shutter speeds. It says that the shutter speed must be double the frame rate. For instance, 1/60 seconds for 30 fps.
- Aperture: There are two ways to use aperture – wide and narrow. If you want to create a shallow depth of field to isolate the car, go for wide. However, for more background focus, stick to a narrower aperture.
- ISO: A rule of thumb is to keep the ISO as low as possible at all times. This helps minimize noise while maintaining image quality. Only increase ISO during low light situations.
- White Balance: For beginners, auto mode is a good starting point. But if you are intermediate to advanced, try out manual mode. It gives more precise color control and works best for mixed lighting.
- Stabilization: Having a stable shot can be a game-changer when it comes to videography. To ensure this, invest in a gimbal or tripod. Built-in camera stabilization and driving smoothly also help.
- Composition: One rule that most popular photographers follow here is the “Rule of Thirds”. For this, you must always place the automobile along the intersecting lines or at points of intersection.
- Sound: Using an external device like a microphone helps capture clear audio. At the same time, also use a windshield to minimize wind disturbance.
- Additional Tips: For starters, you can maximize video editing freedom by shooting in RAW format. And if the lighting is too bright, invest in ND filters.
If you do not want to move the shutter speed, set the exposure value, fiddle with the aperture, and set the ISO as low as possible. Do not expose it, so set the ISO to auto + turn on the s-log for your camera.
Best 6 Tips on How to Film Automotives Like a Pro
To capture the best files of your cars, one must plan their shoots, varying focal lengths for dynamic composition, and use a mix of handheld and stable shots. Videographers can also include drone shots to capture vehicles from unique angles. Further, shooting at a high frame rate will result in a smoother action. We have mentioned the pro-car videography tips, so one should consider filming your vehicle.
1) Shoot Different Areas of the Car
Videographers must inspect and 360 automotive walkaround the car before beginning their shoot. They can note the interesting things they want to include in the shoot. These include a brake kit, emblems, brake calipers, interior details, a turbo under the hood, etc. Including each detail of the vehicle will elevate the final results of your video.
2) Vary Your Shot Types
When doing automotive videography, it is essential to mix focal lengths. You can start with a wide shot to establish the location and then transition to a close-up or medium shot that delivers bait to viewers. This will help keep car cinematics interesting, dynamic, and engaging. One can also include drone shots to keep audiences hooked and to an extraordinary angle. You can film drone shots on DJI Mavic Pro or DJI Inspire.
3) Record Audio of the Car
Videographers must include the engine’s thunderous roar, the turbo’s blow-off valve, and the supercharge whine in their videos. These exciting sounds will take the videos to the next level. Additionally, including these sounds in the shoot will help to create interesting edits. To capture the exterior audie of a car, one can rig Xoom H4N Pro in the car turn and then run a lav mic to gaff the car bumper.
4) Don’t Always Rely on a Gimbal
Gimbal shots add a great feel to car films with smooth movement. However, overusing gimbal shots won’t make your video unique. Getting the vehicle’s handheld camera movements is essential to adding interest to the shots. Therefore, the natural camera shake will make it feel cinematic. Using a tripod can also help you get some amazing shots. Remember, not every shot requires a camera movement. Videographers can set their camera on a tripod and give gimbal movements at the right time to make the shots special and amaze their audience.
5) Plan Your Shoots
Creating a mood board will help develop the film’s feel and look the videographer wants to make. One can collect their previous shots and the screenshots of the work they admire and load them in Adobe InDesign to create a grid of different shots. You can also consider Adobe Photoshoot to make a storyboard. Further, deciding on the type of shot and car photography studio will also enhance the outcome.
6) Location Matching the Car
One must scout different locations and decide on the perfect one to conduct the shoot. Videographers must inspect traffic, unsightly debris, and trespassing warnings before deciding the shoot location. It is essential to understand that you are describing a story, not just a car video. Ensure that the perfect location is as per the vehicle’s character. Examples of videography: a sports car should be shot on a racetrack, and an SUV on an offroad.
7) Not Relying on Expensive Equipment
Videography is more than just having footage from an expensive camera and other equipment. It is just a mere factor. What makes a difference is your skills and how focused you are in the field. What is your clarity on the details of the shots? How well do you research your prototype, which will be the main character of your shoot? One might think of investing in expensive equipment, but if that is not possible, you can easily cover that factor with your skills.
8) Music Additions
A video with no sound is bland. This will impact your video, regardless of how good the shots are. Therefore, add music that complements the car. For vintage vehicles, go with classical music or instrumentals; for sports cars, choose something like rock and modern-day music.
9) Post Editing Skills
Why is Editing necessary ever wondered? You have to take a lot of shots before getting that perfect one, and more importantly, you need to use different angles and zooms; all of these need to be edited after the shoots. One might think of outsourcing them, but what if the other person doesn’t relate to what you want to do and your ideas? You won’t get the maximum results. Editing your film right after you’ve shot is a super important process. It’s not always possible for me if I’m going straight from making one film to another, but doing it as soon as you can after shooting something is the best time to do it. It’s easier to remember all the shots you’ve created when it’s still fresh in your brain.
10) Storyline and Cast
Spend time developing a creative concept beforehand, making it much easier to stand out afterward. If you haven’t prepared properly, you probably aren’t going to push things as much. It doesn’t have to be precise. A rough idea will do, as sometimes things can turn out differently from what you were expecting due to the location, the driver’s capability, and even the weather. Always keep a space open to allow yourself to be accessible for those last-minute ideas that pop up in your head. Use as many casts and people as possible; maybe you might start by seeing someone walking to the car for the first few seconds before getting into it. Then, people know that an actual human is being driven. It makes it relatable, and people will connect with it more.
11) Style and Cinematography
Generally, a videographer tries to work on a particular template or take inspiration from someone’s work. However, in this field, distinction and uniqueness matter. So, blend in with creativity and experiment with lights, angles, and shots. Make it action-packed to create a feeling of movement and richness.
5 Tips for Taking Great Videos of Cars on Your Lot
By now, you already know the best ways to shoot automobile videos. But as technology is growing, everyone is always posting videos. How can you as a dealer stand out among them and leave a mark? It’s simply putting in a little more work and producing great videos.
Let’s look at 5 quick tips to easily achieve that:
Invest in Gimbal and Tripod
Nothing ruins the customer experience like shaky videos. Imagine if you were watching one, wouldn’t it be so annoying? You can’t see the car or the background clearly because of the shakiness. By the end of it, you’ve gathered no such information and just feel like time got wasted.
By using a gimbal or tripod, this can be avoided. These devices reduce swivelling providing smooth and steady shots. They are also relatively affordable and bring in major ROI.
Keep the Set Quiet
Even the slightest noise in video can act as a distraction and drive away clients. Which is why you need to keep the set quiet when filming. Because you never know which background audio draws the viewer’s attention.
Thus, choose a location away from the city’s hustle and bustle. It can be in the form of an aloof landscape. Or a studio with noise-cancellation technology. Furthermore, a microphone must be used for filming or voiceovers.
‘When’ Matters
In the case of outdoor photography, the time of the day is a major element. You must always aim for golden hours for the most beautiful shots. These occur around sunrise and sunset. The soft glow in the period adds a warm feel to the video and reduces any harsh shadows or overexposure.
Slow and Steady Wins the Race
There are times when a videographer has too much on their hands. So they try to get as many projects done in a day as possible. And while this does get the job done. It can also reduce the overall quality of work and client satisfaction.
To avoid this, it is crucial to take time during filming. Be sure to pan carefully to resist blur. If your car has special features, don’t forget to highlight them by pausing. For interior shots, include safety features and driver assistance tips. This aids customers by providing them with every necessary detail.
Post-Processing Magic
No matter how good your shots are, editing will only make them better. This is why you should never miss out on it. But at the same time, don’t go overboard and lose the realism.
One easy way to do this is incorporating transitions to improve video flow. Also, cut out redundant or low-value shots so the viewers don’t get bored.
Techniques We Use for Producing High-Quality Automotive Videos
Videos can capture customers’ attention and impact their views about a brand. So much so that people retain 95% of video messages and only 10% of written text. But that is only possible when the video is catchy and not boring.
This means that the higher the quality of the video, the more will people remember you. And the most efficient way to create high-quality automotive videos is:
Fundamental Angles
Classic and Dynamic car shots are an all-time viewer favorite. Thus, you need to make the most of them to drive sales. Try out low-angle, high-angle, profile, and three-quarter shots for instance. Each adds a different vibe to the video and enhances the experience.
On the other hand, dynamic options like tracking, dutch angles, or panorama shots are also preferred. They capture the car’s motion, highlighting its speed and agility. In turn, evoking excitement.
Experimental Angles
Drone, undercar, close-ups, and interior shots offer unique perspectives, connecting a surprise element. They also emphasize specific details that provide information to users and add value. Especially under-car shots are quite underused. But they showcase important elements like suspension and ground clearance.
Location and Storytelling
Every location speaks its own tale. For instance, a rugged SUV on an offroad location adds an adventurous tone. While a luxurious sedan in an urban setting shows elegance. Whatever your story, pick a character-driven narrative to take it to the next level. This is what adds emotional resonance, and visual appeal.
Showcasing the Vehicle
Every vehicle has its own key features like performance, interior design, or technology. And showcasing these through elaborate videos can not only attract but also boost sales. But always remember to demonstrate functionality. This is done by filming the off-road prowess, handling, and acceleration.
Detailed Shots
As we already know, most viewers check out car videos to learn about the automobile. To fulfill this need, highlighting the details is important. You can do so by taking close-ups, slow motion, and macro shots. For interiors, these work wonders and emphasize textures or materials. While for action shots, only slow motions capture the true beauty.
How to Shoot with a Drone?
Drone shots are unlike any other. They capture wider dimensions resulting in cinematic videos. However, to make the most of it, choosing a cool location is a must. For instance, go for riverbeds to chase and fly along the vehicle. This boosts the overall engagement and excitement of the video.
But you might be wondering, how to shoot with a drone. The key remains in finding viewpoints and angles from the sky that are impossible to shoot from the ground. Additionally, installing a low foreground gives a swift car view.
Now, there are many more techniques of drone videography, here are some of them:
- The Bird’s Eye View Shot: A wide-angled lens is recommended to create a panorama of the entire landscape.
- Slow Reveal: It requires a gimbal to effectively show landscape areas in drone direction as it moves forward behind a vehicle.
- Shooting From The Side: It allows you to have a side profile of the car and makes it move fast. You can also pull back, zoom in, and across to capture details.
- Fly-across Shot: This technique includes a simple movement like employing a story for a pickup truck, as approaching a car can be complex for a drone.
- Zoom Shot: This technique captures a zoom-in or close-up shot of the driver’s emotion against the landscape or setting.
- Raise and Tilt: Start by ascending the drone and simultaneously tilt the camera upwards. This looks grand and reveals the background dramatically. While also emphasizing the car’s height and dominance.
- Landscape orbit: In this, the drone revolves around the car at a constant altitude. In turn, capturing the vehicle from every angle. It also showcases the car’s relationship with the landscape, highlighting its design.
- Focus track: This type of shot adds a more intriguing and mysterious vibe. However, the technique is pretty simple. You just need to follow a specific path maintaining a constant distance between the car and camera. It should be done such that the drone focuses on particular elements like grille or headlights.
- Drone in one direction, car in another: As the title suggests, in this, the drone moves in one direction while the car goes in another. This creates a dynamic and striking composition. While also emphasizing speed and agility.
- Dolly Zoom: Also known as the vertigo effect. For this, you need to zoom the camera in while moving the drone simultaneously. Thus, emphasizing the car’s size and on-frame presence.
How to Capture a Shade Shot?
Shade Shots are a game changer for automotive videographers. They showcase the chase and overtake. Thus, adding a dynamic and exciting vibe. That gets the motor running and makes the audience thrilled.
Here is the technique for capturing shade shots:
- Select a secure location or track where no other cars drive. This helps avoid accidents and showcase creativity.
- Two cars are needed for this, one to be shot and one with a sliding back window.
- The key is to go at a moderate speed with a little camera. Doing so can whip out fast action scenes with minimal danger.
- A shutter speed of 24 frames per second works best. But avoid shooting in slow motion.
- Bring your camera lower to the ground to capture a fast-moving vehicle.
- To shoot a wide sidecar profile, go on the wheels, tighten the lens, and get detailed wide-angle shots.
- Another idea is shooting a car approaching you and whipping past the vehicle quickly.
- Additionally, a suction cup mount to the vehicle’s back adds an innovative uniqueness to your shoot. But be sure to attach a GoPro with your smartphone when doing your shoot remotely.
How to Shoot Car Interior?
To shoot the vehicle interior, pick up detailed shots of logos, gears, and dashboards. It is advised to shoot from the back seat in case the car is moving.
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- Logos: You can shoot the logo on the steering wheel and another logo inside the car.
- Technology: Ensure the capture of all types of technology in the car, such as stellar seats, an infotainment system, a virtual cockpit, dash cam installation, and the type of gear on the dashboard.
Mounting a Camera to The Vehicle
You can use the GoPro Rig to get suction cups and review all the vehicles. When your GoPro is mounted to the car’s front, take the hood shot while driving and flip the camera around to allow people to see inside the car. To get a spinning wheel shot, you can also put the suction cup at the side of a vehicle, right down the wheel. Additionally, use a suction cup to get a shot of the logo or any other part around the car.
Tight Shots & Detailed Macro
Getting a cleaning kit with yourself is essential, as shooting a whole day will make the car dirty, and you won’t be able to get clean shots. Further, burst out your slider and place it inside the car to get the details across the dash of different batches of various technologies and equipment.
Lifestyle in Automotive Videography
To shoot an automobile for a car commercial, choose a perfect location and showcase a lifestyle. You can create an engaging storyline that suits your vehicle model, like a family storyline for a Mini-van that represents it as a family car.
What is the Future of Car Videography?
The future of Car Photography or videography looks promising. Automotive dealerships are likely to integrate engaging videos in their VDP. Therefore, the demand for professional automotive videographers is likely to increase. Additionally, videographers might exploit the automotive business to help them with personalized videos. However, dealerships can integrate video merchandising into their business to enhance their visuals. Software providers like Spyne.ai collect 360 walkarounds from the dealerships or pull from their VDPs and convert them into the best engaging video visuals.
Why Automotive Videography with Spyne?
Automotive Videography with Spyne offers a significant advantage, considering Spyne is a leading software plus services provider for automotive dealerships. Spyne is a platform that utilizes AI and computer vision to automate and enhance the production of images and videos.
1) Automotive Videography vs. Video Production Expertise: Spyne helps dealerships create a professional VDP (Vehicle Display Page). It also gives them high-resolution footage, smooth transitions, and engaging visual effects.
2) Efficiency and Scale: Integrating your VDP with Spyne.ai will allow you to increase your inventory display with engaging videos and consistent quality.
Why Automotive Videography with Spyne?
Automotive Videography with Spyne offers a significant advantage, considering Spyne is a leading software plus services provider for automotive dealerships. Spyne is a platform that utilizes AI and computer vision to automate and enhance the production of images and videos.
1) Automotive Videography vs. Video Production Expertise: Spyne helps dealerships create a professional VDP (Vehicle Display Page). It also gives them high-resolution footage, smooth transitions, and engaging visual effects.
2) Efficiency and Scale: Integrating your VDP with Spyne.ai will allow you to increase your inventory display with engaging videos and consistent quality.
3) Analytics and Optimization: Dealerships can increase their viewer engagement, click-through rate, and conversion rate with Spyne’s car merchandising. It will help them optimize their marketing efforts and increase their ROI.
4) Customizable: With Spyne, you can customize your videos by integrating your branding, preferred backgrounds, and various aesthetic adjustments suited to individual business needs.
5) Improved Marketing and Engagement: These enhanced videos are compelling for digital and social media marketing. They are eye-pleasing and have high retention rates, eventually leading to more leads and increased conversion rates.
Conclusion
Automotive videography allowed the auto industry to shit from a static visual to a highly engaging visual. Videographers can use drones, gimbals, and tripods to capture detailed shots of the automobiles. Additionally, one can also improve their camera settings and capture eye-catching videos. You can create automotive videos that inform, entertain, and inspire with the right approach and creativity. So, grab your camera, hit the road, and start filming!
