There are times when you need a gorgeous shot of a landmark location. Or a dynamic shot of a jet plane on the runway. Or maybe a high tech office location shot. You can rent tons of lenses, lights and airline tickets and go shoot it yourself, or you can turn to stock footage. But how do we make stock footage look exciting?
For some people the idea of using stock footage makes them cringe. They are probably thinking about old, scratchy film reels used in high school presentations about industry and business. Yeech.
While you can buy old footage, stock footage libraries on the web are full of beautiful, crisp images and videos, even available in 4k. Also, remember one important thing. That once you buy it, it’s YOURS to use in your productions. And you should treat it just like it came off your own camera. Which means, don’t just slap some stock video on your timeline and call it a day. It should go under the same process and workflow as all your raw footage. So color matching, grading and enhancements still apply.
Now, what if you are tasked with using ONLY stock footage to create a video for a client? This comes up with our clients sometimes. One client in particular had us create an opening video for a keynote presentation. We had to create a 4 minute video using voice over talent , a few After Effects shots and ninety-five percent stock footage.
Frank worked with the client to come up with the script for the voice over talent, then we pulled together all the stock footage we needed.
Now, how do you make stock video more visually interesting than just slapping it on the timeline and pressing play? Here are some ideas for you:
Color Matching / Grading
Like I mentioned before, just because the video wasn’t shot by you, don’t just assume that it will work with the story you are trying to tell. Match the stock video to either your shots, or to other stock video if you don’t need to shoot anything. And then do some color grading or add a LUT to make it all feel cohesive.
Synch cuts to music
If your video has a music bed, try synching the stock to the music, just like you would for your own footage. Make it interesting too, don’t just match to the downbeats. Try cutting to different instruments, like the kick, the snare or the marimba.
Alter Speeds
Try manipulating time in the footage to make boring shots more exciting. If you have a shot of a person walking from one location to another, try ramping up the speed of their walk and then back to normal when they reach their destination. It’s a great way to keep the pace up. You can also do the opposite and ramp the speed down. Many stock footage libraries offer their footage shot in at least 60 frames per second to allow you to speed up and slow down and keep the video smooth.
Jump Cut
The first time I really noticed the jump cut technique it was back in 2005 watching episodes of Ask A Ninja. Since then, jump cutting to the exact same shot became the norm with most every vlogger on YouTube using the technique to speed up the pace of their videos. I would call it “MTV” style, but then again I’m older. Anyway, there’s no reason that you shouldn’t use the same technique with stock footage. If we take that same shot of the woman walking from one place to another and perform a series of jump cuts to it, it makes the scene more dynamic. Another great way of keeping the pace up and the viewer interested.
Multi-shot compositions (a.k.a. The Brady Bunch Effect)
I know there is a name for this one, but I choose to name it “The Brady Bunch Effect”, once again, because, old.
Take similar footage and composite it in your editor to make visually interesting collages. It’s a great way to convey a busy office environment, or yummy food or whatever. Usually you can do this right in your editor with no need to go into After Effects or similar programs.
Digital Push / Pulls
Sometimes, a static shot, say of the Statue of Liberty, can work well. But try doing a digital push or pull with that same shot to see if it works a little better. Granted, a digital move is not the same as a practical move since the digital move is only a 2d image and we lose all parallax movement. But, used in moderation it can look quite nice.
Match moves
Keep moves across different videos consistent. This means, if you have some footage that pans left to right, try continuing that movement with the next shot. If you have two moving shots that go in opposite directions, try flipping one of them, provided that it doesn’t have any words or distinguishing marks that will give it away.
These techniques work with making boring stock footage more vibrant and exciting. And guess what? They all apply to your own footage. The main idea is to think of the video you buy as your own, just like you went out with your Red camera, flew to Italy mounted it to a drone and shot a fly-through of the Grand Canal.
Stock Footage sites
Pond5
https://pond5.com
Dissolve
https://Dissolve.com
iStock
https://Istockphoto.com
Shutterstock
https://Shutterstock.com
VideoBlocks
https://Videoblocks.com
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