How to Film The Perfect Lifestyle Video
When you’re creating a lifestyle video for your brand, it’s important to understand some key lessons for filmmakers. You don’t have to be a highly trained professional or use lots of expensive equipment.
What is a Lifestyle Video?
A lifestyle video refers to a style that can apply to several different video genres not just those that are considered personal or family films. Businesses use this type of video marketing to evoke a certain feeling - a connection - to their customers all the time.
Lifestyle videos are not direct advertisements, they emphasize on telling a story. There is a narrative and a plot design to draw the consumer in and connect them to the main character. You often hear this style refer to as content marketing. Rather than focusing on a specific product for customers to go out and buy, Brands give people something interesting to watch and heighten awareness of their name and credibility at the same time.
Real videos about real everyday moments and the people in them without giving sand ulterior motives is the idea that most want to capture with a lifestyle video.
Lifestyle videos generally range anywhere between 30 seconds and 2 minutes featuring locations that best highlight your product’s strongest and best features. Lifestyle videos focus on the product and action and do not rely on actors, animated videos, or interviews to tell us a story.
A lifestyle video refers to a style that can apply to several different video genres not just those that are considered personal or family films. Businesses use this type of video marketing to evoke a certain feeling - a connection - to their customers all the time.
Lifestyle videos are not direct advertisements, they emphasize on telling a story. There is a narrative and a plot design to draw the consumer in and connect them to the main character. You often hear this style refer to as content marketing. Rather than focusing on a specific product for customers to go out and buy, Brands give people something interesting to watch and heighten awareness of their name and credibility at the same time.
Real videos about real everyday moments and the people in them without giving sand ulterior motives is the idea that most want to capture with a lifestyle video.
Lifestyle videos generally range anywhere between 30 seconds and 2 minutes featuring locations that best highlight your product’s strongest and best features. Lifestyle videos focus on the product and action and do not rely on actors, animated videos, or interviews to tell us a story.
When You Should Use a Lifestyle Video
If your company is new to the video marketing world, you may not be aware of the different styles of videos you can use to promote your business. The different styles have a number of strengths that make them better for different purposes.
The lifestyle video’s objective is to appeal to a certain culture, subculture, or demographic. Using the lifestyle video format your catering to a specific style or look. You're defining both yourself and your customers and inspiring them to take action.
Lifestyle videos are the best option for attracting new customers and engaging with prospective customers once they've visited your website. A deeper dive into your company like the kind a mini-documentary (mini-doc) offers could be a better fit for nurturing potential customers once they are already invested in your brand and are looking to buy. Lifestyle videos are perfect for giving a stylish and brief overview of your product or service for those who are looking at what your brand has to offer.
If you're in the business of improving the way things look. A before-and-after video can be one of the best ways to promote your business and show off your work to your prospective client. When you're focusing solely on photos and videos of the final product, you're only telling one side of the story. Taking time to show what something looks like before and then showing what you've accomplished makes the results more impressive.
If your company is new to the video marketing world, you may not be aware of the different styles of videos you can use to promote your business. The different styles have a number of strengths that make them better for different purposes.
The lifestyle video’s objective is to appeal to a certain culture, subculture, or demographic. Using the lifestyle video format your catering to a specific style or look. You're defining both yourself and your customers and inspiring them to take action.
Lifestyle videos are the best option for attracting new customers and engaging with prospective customers once they've visited your website. A deeper dive into your company like the kind a mini-documentary (mini-doc) offers could be a better fit for nurturing potential customers once they are already invested in your brand and are looking to buy. Lifestyle videos are perfect for giving a stylish and brief overview of your product or service for those who are looking at what your brand has to offer.
If you're in the business of improving the way things look. A before-and-after video can be one of the best ways to promote your business and show off your work to your prospective client. When you're focusing solely on photos and videos of the final product, you're only telling one side of the story. Taking time to show what something looks like before and then showing what you've accomplished makes the results more impressive.
Phase One: Pre-Production
Pre-production is the planning stage. Here, you brainstorm and storyboard setting up all of the details for the production stage. Here, you would make a list of product features and the type of people they would benefit.
In this stage, you also script out the video, writing down visual ideas and product features or dialogue that goes with it. This helps your video team and map out what they'll be shooting, What actors or extras they may require in any locations that need to be set up or acquired ahead of time. It's also a good idea to plan your shots along with the script, especially since you are going for a certain look. Create a storyboard to plan your aesthetic.
You'll wrap up this phase by gathering any talent you need such as actors, voice actors, extras, and locations you need to film. Some lifestyle videos work in a generic setting like your company's office or a street corner while others may require a specialty location.
Pre-production is the planning stage. Here, you brainstorm and storyboard setting up all of the details for the production stage. Here, you would make a list of product features and the type of people they would benefit.
In this stage, you also script out the video, writing down visual ideas and product features or dialogue that goes with it. This helps your video team and map out what they'll be shooting, What actors or extras they may require in any locations that need to be set up or acquired ahead of time. It's also a good idea to plan your shots along with the script, especially since you are going for a certain look. Create a storyboard to plan your aesthetic.
You'll wrap up this phase by gathering any talent you need such as actors, voice actors, extras, and locations you need to film. Some lifestyle videos work in a generic setting like your company's office or a street corner while others may require a specialty location.
Phase Two: Production
Once your lifestyle video is all planned out, it's time to film it. The average lifestyle video may require a full 8-hour day of shooting, but if you have multiple locations it can require two or more shooting days depending on the demands of the script.
Because your lifestyle video is meant to capture a certain way of life and attraction to a certain type of person, you do not need to cut corners when it comes to quality. Give everyone more than enough time to get the required footage. The better the quality of the footage, the more appealing your final product will be.
In the case of a before-and-after film, you'll need to take lots of photos and videos before the transformation begins. It may take hours, weeks, months or even years for you to get to the after point depending on the product or service.
In the production phase, you'll want to remember the Rule of Thirds by imagining your shot is divided into 9 equal sections by two horizontal and two vertical lines. The primary subject in the image needs to be positioned where two of the Four Points known as anchor points intersect. This draws the eye toward the main points of interest in the shot.
When filming, consider lighting and make sure to avoid conflicts between natural and artificial light because you don't want to end up with a video that is either too light or too dark. You can correct image brightness and contrast in post-production to some extent, but it's much better to get the lighting right to begin with rather than worrying about fixing it in post-production.
Once your lifestyle video is all planned out, it's time to film it. The average lifestyle video may require a full 8-hour day of shooting, but if you have multiple locations it can require two or more shooting days depending on the demands of the script.
Because your lifestyle video is meant to capture a certain way of life and attraction to a certain type of person, you do not need to cut corners when it comes to quality. Give everyone more than enough time to get the required footage. The better the quality of the footage, the more appealing your final product will be.
In the case of a before-and-after film, you'll need to take lots of photos and videos before the transformation begins. It may take hours, weeks, months or even years for you to get to the after point depending on the product or service.
In the production phase, you'll want to remember the Rule of Thirds by imagining your shot is divided into 9 equal sections by two horizontal and two vertical lines. The primary subject in the image needs to be positioned where two of the Four Points known as anchor points intersect. This draws the eye toward the main points of interest in the shot.
When filming, consider lighting and make sure to avoid conflicts between natural and artificial light because you don't want to end up with a video that is either too light or too dark. You can correct image brightness and contrast in post-production to some extent, but it's much better to get the lighting right to begin with rather than worrying about fixing it in post-production.
Phase Three: Post-Production
In this stage, you take the footage that has been collected and put it together with music or voice over, depending on what your script called for. Generally speaking, the best lifestyle videos use a soundtrack that fits your brand style.
Your ultimate goal here is to put the visuals together in a compelling way, promoting the product or service that you're offering, while also appealing to the ideologies and lifestyles of the customers you're trying to engage with.
After you've cut the film together, added music and any other necessary motion graphics and effects, you can color correct your images. From there, you should have a complete lifestyle video that showcases your services and products in a cool and visually engaging way.
In this stage, you take the footage that has been collected and put it together with music or voice over, depending on what your script called for. Generally speaking, the best lifestyle videos use a soundtrack that fits your brand style.
Your ultimate goal here is to put the visuals together in a compelling way, promoting the product or service that you're offering, while also appealing to the ideologies and lifestyles of the customers you're trying to engage with.
After you've cut the film together, added music and any other necessary motion graphics and effects, you can color correct your images. From there, you should have a complete lifestyle video that showcases your services and products in a cool and visually engaging way.
Ra Moon
Atlas of Wonders is looking for wonderful Filming Locations all around the world. We are constantly updating and improving our posts with new details and images. Follow us here:
All comments are reviewed prior to publication