How to create exceptional content, all while keeping it simple.
What you’ll need
Practice in the app
Introduction
Forget fancy equipment, you have everything you need to create engaging video content with the smartphone in your pocket. In this course, producer, photographer, and DJ Matt Francisco teaches us to elevate short form and social video content while working with the materials and tools available to you.
How to come up with good ideas
Coming up with a good idea is the first step in the creative process– you have to know what you’re going to make before you make it! How you get the inspiration for an idea doesn’t really matter, but Matt recommends getting offline. To spark inspiration, away from a screen you can:
Go for a walk
Listen to music
Watch a movie
Try something new!
Another route is going through your existing content to see what you already have on hand. Take a few minutes (or ten or fifteen) and scroll through your camera roll. Keep in mind who your audience is as well as what kind of content you think will resonate or be useful to them.
Still stuck on what to make? Here are some content formats to think about, see if one of them sparks inspiration:
Voiceover tutorial
Visual concept
Comedy sketch
Narrative story
Entertainment
Depending on the direction you choose, you might write a script, an outline, or you might even wing it! Matt says the best ideas happen when you align your visual style to your personality and start from a place of excitement.
Shooting an interesting video in under 10 seconds
Creating within a set of limitations can help focus a creative project, especially if you consider the limitation a point of inspiration. Take this as permission to keep it short!
An easy way to extend the experience of your content is looping a clip. Also consider how you can use movement and directionality to create dynamic and dramatic clips, even if the subject matter seems simple (like a clip of you driving or walking across a lawn.)
Making something cool out of a single photo
Short form video can also be created entirely with still photos, if you think outside of the box! A quick cut slideshow with animations added to photos in Adobe Express is an effective way to liven up your feed.
Making an interesting animation from scratch
We were just talking about the animation tools in Adobe Express, and they now allow independent animation on each layer. Play around with “show layer timing” to manipulate when each piece moves individually.
Conclusion
Remember:
You don’t need special equipment to make elevated video content in Adobe Express
Inspiration abounds offline
Beginning from a place of excitement fuels the creative process
Consider the content that will resonate or be useful to your audience
Use format or content type as inspiration
Adobe Express enables you to create exciting short form content with limited resources (try the new video features or animation tools!)
What you’ll need
Practice in the app
February 26, 2024
Try these tutorials with Adobe Express
Create web pages, social media graphics, and videos.
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