Advanced Tips for An Amazing 1 Second A Day Video Diary

Do you want to take your 1 second a day video diary to the next level of awesome? Then read my 16 advanced tips!

If you haven’t already, be sure to read my basic tips, along with my process and a list of video content ideas in this post – How To Make A “Year Of Memories” Video Project (1 Second A Day)

16 Advanced Tips To Take Your Video Diary to the Next Level

1. Always include motion, whether it’s the subject, the background, or the camera moving
   • Helps give the video energy
   • Doesn’t look like a still photo
2. When trimming your clips to 1 second (or 1.5 seconds), the start frame and end frame of your video clips should be in focus, with no motion blur or focus blur if possible
3. Keep lighting in mind for visual appeal
   • I love to include sunshine, especially sun flares which give a magical and memory-like feel to the clip
   • Always avoid dark videos which are grainy and hard to see the details
   • Outdoor light is usually best, but indoors should be well lit on your subject (not necessarily the whole background needs to be bright)
   • Embrace different light sources such as candlelight or twinkle lights, campfire etc
4. Keep framing in mind for visual appeal
   • Don’t have your subject in the center of your frame for every clip, having your subject slightly to one side or the other in the frame looks better and adds variety
   • Use close ups to highlight details
   • Use wide shots to give a sense of place and environment
   • Don’t cut off heads at the neck or feet at the ankles, either move in closer or back wider
   • Remove or avoid background elements that just add visual clutter
   • Include background and foreground elements that add to the story, the memory, or provide a sense of place
5. Decide the scope of your video content (ex. All clips include family members, etc)
   • This gives your annual video consistency, unity and purpose
6. Get a variety of content for your clips
7. Change up your camera angles and distances
8. Use variety in your locations
9. Shoot some similar content through each season
   • Gives a repetition which reflects your everyday life or shows a regular pastime
   • Highlights change and growth between these similar clips
     • Example a child taking skating lessons may become a better skater each video, grow bigger, etc
10. Include nature and seasonal elements
    • For a sense of time lapse
    • Helps give reference to the season and time of year
11. Include holidays, special events, big life events and milestones
12. Don’t forget the everyday tasks and moments, these are just as important as the big ones!
13. Focus on things you want to remember, write a reminder or list for yourself
14. Edit all clips the same length (1 second or 1.5 second)
15. Compile clips for each month at the end of the month, save and backup the monthly videos
16. Use video editing software to put together monthly videos and add music, remove app logo card, add video title if desired

Apps for Your 1 Second A Day Video

Remember for this project you’ll want to use a video diary app, I use 1 Second Everyday. For creating your final video of the year, you may want to use a video editing program such as iMovie, Adobe Premier Pro etc.