<p>I've been taking photos for several years now, moving up from a point-and-shoot to a Sony NEX-5R and an iPhone 5s. I would like to branch out into making videos, but my photography skills exceed my videography skills.</p>

<p>I know only some basics of videography such as trying to tell a story by making a video that has a defined beginning, middle and end. Or to pan very slowly, especially at higher resolutions such as 1080p. Or to not take vertical videos, in most cases.</p>

<p>I'd like some tips on how to improve my videography. I'm looking for both creative and technical advice.</p>

<ul>
<li><p>Creative advice such as: what makes a good subject, composition, pacing, how videography is different from photography, etc.</p></li>
<li><p>Technical advice such as: whether 720p at 120FPS results in better looking videos than 1080p at 30FPS.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>Please keep in mind that I'll be using an iPhone 5s. I'm looking for tips that are specific to this camera, and also for tips that apply no matter what camera you're using.</p>

<p>Footnotes:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Note that I won't be carrying extra gear, such as a tripod, lighting and audio gear, and so on. I'll be using my iPhone and nothing else.</p></li>
<li><p>I also have a Sony NEX-5R, but in the interest of keeping this question focused, let's confine ourselves to the iPhone 5s. After all, the iPhone is the camera I have with me all the time.</p></li>
<li><p>I'm interested only in capturing video on the iPhone, not editing it. I'll edit it on a PC. This post is only about capturing video, not about editing it.</p></li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-06T04:35:29.667Z
An iPhone is basically a small iPad, so all the answers for the iPad are the same for iPhone, or really just about any smartphone or tablet for that matter.
AJ Henderson
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-06T05:23:07.920Z
Then the answer is that you can't.  Shaky video is crappy video and shaky video is all you get without stabilization.  Without lighting, stabilization and good audio, there is no such thing as good video.
AJ Henderson
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-06T05:25:39.790Z
No, there really isn't.  There are apps that attempt to stabilize video, but they are basically ineffective cropping tools that result in lots of perspective artifacts.  They don't make good quality video, they make slightly less crappy video.  Either way, this question is also too broad as stated and significant parts of it are not mobile phone video dependent.
AJ Henderson
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-06T05:38:05.807Z
I created a chat: http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/16970/room-for-kartick-vaddadi-and-aj-henderson
Kartick Vaddadi
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-06T15:44:35.930Z
Your edits don't give the question more aspects that aren't covered by the answer provided in the question about iPad videos.
If you don't want extra gear there is nothing you can do, the hardware does what it does, there is no magical software trick. If you want to know if 720p60 trumps 1080p30 in certain situation that is a different question than you asked here.
timonsku
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-09-07T02:06:09.293Z
Yes, thanks, AJ and I had a chat and decided that posting more specific questions is the way to go.
Kartick Vaddadi
<iphone><composing>
What are some tips on taking great videos with the iPhone 5s?
Kartick Vaddadi
# What are some tips on taking great videos with the iPhone 5s?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-09-06)

I've been taking photos for several years now, moving up from a point-and-shoot to a Sony NEX-5R and an iPhone 5s. I would like to branch out into making videos, but my photography skills exceed my videography skills.

I know only some basics of videography such as trying to tell a story by making a video that has a defined beginning, middle and end. Or to pan very slowly, especially at higher resolutions such as 1080p. Or to not take vertical videos, in most cases.

I'd like some tips on how to improve my videography. I'm looking for both creative and technical advice.

* Creative advice such as: what makes a good subject, composition, pacing, how videography is different from photography, etc.
* Technical advice such as: whether 720p at 120FPS results in better looking videos than 1080p at 30FPS.

Please keep in mind that I'll be using an iPhone 5s. I'm looking for tips that are specific to this camera, and also for tips that apply no matter what camera you're using.

Footnotes:

1. Note that I won't be carrying extra gear, such as a tripod, lighting and audio gear, and so on. I'll be using my iPhone and nothing else.
2. I also have a Sony NEX-5R, but in the interest of keeping this question focused, let's confine ourselves to the iPhone 5s. After all, the iPhone is the camera I have with me all the time.
3. I'm interested only in capturing video on the iPhone, not editing it. I'll edit it on a PC. This post is only about capturing video, not about editing it.

**Tags:** iphone, composing

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: An iPhone is basically a small iPad, so all the answers for the iPad are the same for iPhone, or really just about any smartphone or tablet for that matter.  
> **username_1**: Then the answer is that you can't.  Shaky video is crappy video and shaky video is all you get without stabilization.  Without lighting, stabilization and good audio, there is no such thing as good video.  
> **username_1**: No, there really isn't.  There are apps that attempt to stabilize video, but they are basically ineffective cropping tools that result in lots of perspective artifacts.  They don't make good quality video, they make slightly less crappy video.  Either way, this question is also too broad as stated and significant parts of it are not mobile phone video dependent.  
> **username_0**: I created a chat: http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/16970/room-for-kartick-vaddadi-and-aj-henderson  
> **username_2**: Your edits don't give the question more aspects that aren't covered by the answer provided in the question about iPad videos. If you don't want extra gear there is nothing you can do, the hardware does what it does, there is no magical software trick. If you want to know if 720p60 trumps 1080p30 in certain situation that is a different question than you asked here.  
> **username_0**: Yes, thanks, AJ and I had a chat and decided that posting more specific questions is the way to go.  

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## 0 answers

