No.
I wish all questions about shooting video were this easy!
Well, okay. There are some circumstances where ‘auto’ is the best mode for the job. If you don’t have enough time to prep the shot then that could be the best option. One of the key phrases we repeat during our training workshops is “The Shot is King”. It’s better to get the shot at all, rather than miss it with all the best settings on your camera.
If you really don’t have the confidence to set the camera to shoot video, then auto is again the best bet, but hopefully this post will give you more confidence to set your camera up right!
What mode should I use then?
When it comes to video shooting, this is a much simpler answer than photography. You should shoot in Shutter priority (if you do not know how to shoot in manual that is).
This is usually labeled as ’Tv’ (sometimes ’S’ but that could also be your camera’s Sports mode!)
By taking control of the shutter speed, you can determine the aesthetic blur of the footage, making it look nice and smooth; making it look more cinematic.
The rule to follow is this:
Your shutter speed should be twice the frames per second (FPS)
So if you’re in Europe, and shooting 25fps (30fps in the US), then your shutter speed should be set at 1/50 (1/60 in the US). This is what we call a 180º shutter. It makes it look great!
If you’re shooting in 50fps, then your shutter speed should be 1/100 etc.
If you are shooting in shutter priority then this will allow you to fix the shutter speed to a 180º shutter, depending on your frame rate.
By not having a 180º shutter, you will find your footage having a jittery/jerky quality that can be off-putting for a viewer.
Having your camera in full automatic, or even aperture priority (Av) could result in this effect, so look out! Some camera manufacturers have really thought about this for us filmmakers, and they allow you to actually set the shutter angle, rather than shutter speed. This means you can set the shutter angle at 180º and then not worry about the other settings! (Thank you Panasonic).
I hope you’ve found his useful. If you have any questions let us know in the comments