Sometimes building a plane takes a lot of time, concentration, and energy. What takes even more time, concentration, and energy is when you decide to film the process from beginning to end. Here is some helpful advice for filming time-lapses and montages that I have discovered whilst attempting this little project.
Tips for Your Own Build Videos
Firstly, you need to make sure that you film all the steps of your build. Admittedly, I missed out a few major sections of my FT-Scout being assembled, such as the wings. In hindsight, I wish I had bothered to get the camera set up for this as it would have added a sense of completion to the end result.
Secondly, good lighting and framing is essential. Making sure that you nail basic filmmaking principles like this really is important when it comes to how your video will look and feel. Yes - it is some extra effort when you're also trying to build a plane, however, paying attention to this will result in a far better-looking film!
Thirdly, make it quick: attention spans on the internet are not the longest, so making the final video quick to watch is a good way to ensure that your audience won't click away. I found that I probably should have increased the playback speed for the time-lapses so that the aeroplane appears to come together quicker. As it would be more satisfying to watch, I feel this would have improved the overall quality of the video. At least I'll know for next time!
Examples in Action
Here is a very satisfying video of a plastic kit coming together that I found on YouTube recently. The creator of this uses the filmmaking art of 'stop-motion' animation (a highly impressive yet time-consuming process) to show his aeroplane being built. This is next level dedication!
Upcoming Projects
Although I could well have been building an FT-Scout for no other reason than to thrash it around the sky like you saw in the video, I have bigger plans for this plane and other Mighty-Mini warbirds.
You may well have seen my FPV warbird project (video here) where I put a camera in the cockpit.
Well, that's what I'll be doing with the scout and some other similar planes. This one of the micro cameras that I will be using - https://www.brchobbies.co.uk/brc_en/fpv-aerial-photography/cameras/hyperion-600tvl-minicam-25-with-built-in-5-8ghz-25mw-vtx.html
In essence, I want to do a ton of exciting new challenges for you to watch - just for fun. These will include waypoint missions, search and rescue, and bomb drop challenges. It's something I would watch, and I think you would too!
If you enjoyed this article, learned something from it, or simply thought it was jolly good - please consider giving it a rating (and maybe even a comment if you're feeling inclined).
Aside from that, my YouTube Channel Project Air has many other videos that you may wish to check out at your own leisure (subscribing would be a great way to support me).
Many thanks for reading - James.
Log In to reply
Log In to reply