iPhones are one of the best mobiles for making videos . Or at least that’s what some professionals say who see the Apple smartphone as a great ally with which to achieve great results without the need for professional camera equipment. Obviously it is still behind a multitude of cameras, but it has great strengths with an enviable image stabilization that adds to its quality and software treatment. If you want to make better videos with your iPhone , whether you are a professional or not, keep reading because we will give you several keys with which to achieve it.
Does the iPhone model you choose matter?
It is clear that the best iPhone, both for recording videos and for anything else, will always be the most recent and cutting-edge (currently iPhone 12 Pro Max). And, why deny it, also the most expensive. If you think that the investment is worth it both to record good videos and to obtain other technologies, we see no harm in recommending that you get the most cutting-edge device of the moment and even renew it annually if your needs require it. Now, it would be absurd to say that only with that type of iPhone you get great results.
With any iPhone you can get great results at the video level. The qualities of the recording, as well as elements such as stabilization or the supported video formats will decrease as you jump generations backwards. But the truth is that with the keys that we will give in this article, you would have no problem to obtain results that could even be useful in professional environments.
Adding accessories to the iPhone is always good
There is a list of accessories compatible with the iPhone, some at very popular prices, that can give your videos a higher quality. Are they necessary? Well, obviously not, but everything helps and having elements like the ones we highlight below will give a very important plus to the final result.
Tripod and / or stabilizer
Recording videos freehand, despite the good stabilization of iPhones, is not always the best idea. No matter how good pulse we have, there can always be some shaking in the image that, in addition to reducing the quality of the result, can cause it to be very annoying to see. If we also add the possibility of recording in unfavorable terrain such as a rocky path or some instability, the need for a tripod becomes more evident.
The most basic thing that we can find are tripods . We can find them at really low prices and although their qualities are not the same as those of the most expensive, they can be more than enough to have full stability and add that aforementioned extra to the final result. There are also some gimbal , known in Spanish as stabilizers, that provide a lot of additional functions for recording when making changes of planes, zooming in or out, as well as panning with a professional movement. They are more expensive, yes, but if you think it is necessary to invest in it, you can get a lot out of it.
Lenses with which to obtain different views
The iPhone increasingly introduce more types of lenses in their rear cameras. In addition to the classic wide angle, we can also see telephoto lenses and ultra wide angle lenses. Obviously you will not be able to modify them and neither acquire a lens that provides a quality equal to that if they were integrated natively, but you can resort to external elements that provide another type of image.
There are some packs of lenses that, we insist that they will not provide a superior quality as if they were integrated, but that can give interesting and even fun points of view. From getting a greater ultra-wide-angle feel, to fisheye or peephole formats. They can be purchased for little money and the way to install them on the iPhone is extremely simple, always having a clip or hook that is placed on the rear camera module and is well attached.
Don’t neglect the audio
A video is an image, yes, as we have seen with the previous accessories. But it is also audio and unless you delete this part in the editing you do and add music or other effects, it will be very useful to have a good microphone that captures the sound of the video in an optimal way. The iPhone is not bad, but we can not say that it is the most successful if you want to obtain a high quality video.
As in everything, we can find different prices. Depending on the type of videos you want to make, one or the other will work for you. If it is for a person speaking, you can use a lavalier microphone that you can even connect to the iPhone itself. Although you can also use a desktop one if you are going to record indoors or in a fixed position. How much you want to invest will determine to obtain a higher or worse quality, but it is advisable to make even a minimal investment in it.
Cleaning accessory, also essential
It may seem the most dispensable of everything that we have been commenting on and although it does not have a direct relationship with providing greater quality to the video, in the end it is relevant. Carrying the recording equipment in poor condition, the iPhone in this case, can worsen the results. The lenses may become foggy or dirty from a speck of dust. In the worst case, the remains of dirt can even sneak into the interior of these, having the walk through the technical support as the only solution. Even being extremely careful, dirt or dust will inevitably creep in.
For this reason, it will always be good to carry a pack of wipes or dry cloths with you that you can use to clean both the lenses and the rest of the device, screen included. It is important that they do not shed lint or use abrasive liquids, as they could damage the device. Our recommendation in this case, although there are many and very valid options, is to use the same cleaning product that Apple uses , which can be found for little money and contains a non-abrasive liquid that has been tested in the cleaning task.
If you shoot outdoors, use a good backpack
If you use the iPhone to record videos outdoors, you will not have to carry as many items as when recording with professional cameras. But if you have done with any of the accessories that we mentioned above, especially the tripods, you will need something to transport them comfortably and without danger of being damaged.
There are some backpacks known as tech that precisely help to safely transport all these elements, with padded interiors, enough space to even carry the laptop, as well as pockets to store cables and chargers. Again we find a multitude of options and depending on your needs and what you carry with you, one or the other may serve you. Here below you will find our recommendations regarding value for money.
Phone settings you should check
Beyond the previously mentioned accessories, there are certain readjustments and aspects to take into account to record better videos and that are directly related to the iPhone itself. In the following sections we will tell you the most important.
Keep your iPhone always updated
The iOS operating system is updated every so often with features that are interesting to a greater or lesser extent. Performance improvements, bug fixes, security patches, visual and functional novelties … It is always considered relevant to have the iPhone updated to the latest version available for all this, but also to record better videos.
Although it is not something common in each version, there are times when Apple implements new functions or improvements via software in video recording. Therefore, if you want to be sure that you always have the latest available for your iPhone in this regard, it would be better to keep it updated. Remember that you can check if there is a pending update in Settings> General> Software update.
Check the video settings
If you go to Settings> Camera you will find various options with which to configure the iPhone camera interface. Below we detail which ones we consider you should review to record better quality videos:
- Record video: within this settings panel you will find the possibility to change the resolution of the videos you record. The higher the number of frames per second (fps) and the higher the resolution, the better the videos will be. Remember that, in order from best to worst, we are 4K, 1080p and 720p.
- HDR video: if your iPhone has this option, you will find it in the previous “Record video” panel, this being a format that improves the 10-bit dynamic range and allows recording in Dolby Vision.
- Record stereo sound: if you do not have a microphone like the ones we recommended above, it is advisable to activate this option to be able to capture the audio of the videos with higher quality in a format such as stereo, which is much more realistic than ‘mono’.
- Grid: activating this option, a grid will appear in the camera interface that will be very useful to adjust the planes that you are going to record, and can also serve as a guide so that you are not recording with the iPhone tilted.
It should be noted that since the videos you record will be of higher quality, they will also take up more space. For this reason, it is recommended that you have enough free storage space on the iPhone or that, failing that, you have contracted an iCloud rate.
Look for specialized apps beyond the native
We have already talked to you on some other occasion about camera applications for the iPhone. And, as you may have already imagined, you can download other tools with which to take photos or videos on the iPhone apart from the Camera application that is already installed as standard. Many of these offer added advantages such as being able to create a series of presets and modifications from the camera itself and that allow you to squeeze more of the lens hardware than Apple allows. Our recommendation is that you take a look at the article that we link to have more information, but if you want us to tell you which are the three best in our opinion, they are these:
Take into account where you are going to present the results
We do not know what type of videos you want to make or what your purpose is with them. If you are going to publish them on social networks, use them professionally for your work or if you simply want to keep them to share them with your loved ones. Be that as it may, we recommend that you always take into account the destination of that video, since you will not have to record the same, where the image formats are completely different and that makes the perspective of the video change.
It is also important that you keep in mind that good video editing can work miracles many times. There are numerous applications for this, from the simplest free native iMovie on iPhone to the professional Final Cut Pro available for Mac upon payment. Therefore, the advice at the end is that you plan your video idea well , imagining from the beginning how you want the final result to be.
