How to Supercharge Your Digital Content Creation
Reading Time: ~4 Mins | Written By: Travis Jeffers & Mackenzie Bergman
Any piece of marketing advice you read these days will tell you that content is a key pillar of your business's social media and outreach strategy. But how can you actually achieve this “quality content” everyone is talking about?
In this blog, we’ll highlight a few ways you can streamline the content creation process and how to get the most out of that content!
Let us get this out of the way first; content creation takes time. Although you may feel the need to produce tons of content to compete with others in your space, it is recommended to focus on quality vs. quantity, especially in the earlier stages of a content strategy. There are a few key rules to follow that ensure the content you’re creating elevates your brand. Regardless of whether you’re capturing photos or videos with a phone or a professional camera, always keep the following in mind:
Exposure
Content that is well exposed is essential to making sure that it accurately portrays your product or service. Here are some step-by-step points to help you achieve this on an iPhone:
Tap on the screen and drag up and down to control the exposure of your image manually (on a professional camera you can adjust aperture, shutter speed or ISO).
Ensure that you maintain the shadows and highlights in the image so that you aren’t losing important details in the scene.
For high-contrast environments, like in front of a window or a sunset, we recommend shooting a little darker to preserve the highlights in your image.
It is generally easier to brighten up an image in the editing stages than to darken down an image that is too bright. Once you lose the highlights in your content there is usually no way to recover them.
White Balance
Different light sources have different colour temperatures. For example, sunlight is quite blue compared to standard light bulbs, which can be more orange, or fluorescent lighting which can be quite green. The best way to accurately portray a product or person is to try and light your subject with a single colour temperature. So, if you are shooting by the window, turn off the interior lights or block the lights from hitting your subject. This will ensure your image looks its best and is not a messy mix of blue and orange. It’s also essential when photographing food, as multiple colour temperatures can make food look much less appetizing.
Composition
The first step in choosing your composition is determining how you intend to use your content. The choice between vertical and horizontal content has become more difficult than ever as both have their benefits. Always tailor your content to its intended audience. If you’re shooting videos to be used in Instagram Reels, you’ll want to capture content vertically. If you’re creating a website banner video, you’ll likely want it to be horizontal.
Framing
Choosing the correct framing ensures your subject is framed correctly to reduce distractions and draw the viewer's eye to the most important parts. Using the rule of thirds can be a great starting point and including props or a background that helps to tell a story can also help elevate your content.
Tools you can utilize
If you are looking to step up your content even further there are some great tools out there to make your life easier:
Invest in a reflector/bounce. These come in many shapes and sizes but are generally a great tool to fill in the shadows on a subject or soften direct sunlight.
When filming a video two of the biggest considerations are stability and audio. Using a gimbal for your phone or camera can make a huge difference in your production process and can make your content feel more professional and more exciting.
Investing in a microphone is also a game changer if you are recording content like interviews or voice-overs.
There are also several great editing tools out there allowing you to choose a definitive and recognizable style for your brand. Some are built into our devices, but there are also many free apps including apps from Adobe that allow for editing on the go.
Removing any hurdles in the content creation process and getting results you are excited about is the best way to stay motivated to create content regularly. By taking steps to capture the best possible content you will elevate your brand and add one more reason for people to want to follow and check back frequently!
