How to Make a Travel Video: Equipment, Tips, and Ideas for Aspiring Creators

Traveling offers a chance to dive into different cultures, witness breathtaking sights, and gain new experiences. Why not share such emotions with the world through video content? Moreover, working on travel footage is a great path to becoming a blogger and enhancing your video portfolio.

On the flip side, filming and editing videos can be challenging because you should understand technical nuances like standard aspect ratios, light tuning, and sound processing. Read this article to grasp the basics and find interesting ideas for your creative footage materials.

Equipment you need to make a travel video

The quality and appeal of video content directly depend on the equipment used. The image should be clear, well-lit, and stable, with discernible audio. Let’s figure out what is needed for this.

Camera

Until trip video-taking has become your main activity, it’s best to invest in lightweight and affordable cameras. Eventually, you will want to relax and savor the moments. This can be difficult with heavy and expensive equipment, so it’s recommended to go for options like the Canon EOS M or Nikon D3500. When choosing a camera, pay attention to the quality of the video recording. For most purposes, Full HD will be sufficient.

The lenses of these cameras are usually wide-angle and capture most of the world around you without focusing on details. Besides, this equipment can be attached to clothing or helmets, which is great for extreme activities. A great choice would be cameras from GoPro or more budget-friendly options like the DJI Osmo Action. They can also be used to shoot impressive underwater videos.

Phone cameras also deliver good results. For example, numerous Samsung and iPhone models are equipped with high-quality built-in 4K video sensors, which are excellent for creating high-definition videos while traveling.

Lenses

There are several types of lenses you might require when filming your adventures:

Wide-angle. They allow for fitting a large portion of a scene into the frame and are ideal for filming landscapes, cities, and architecture.
Standard. These lenses provide a versatile perspective and are often used for capturing everyday scenes, street portraits, and general filming purposes.
Telephoto. These lenses make objects larger in the frame by bringing them closer. They are suitable for shooting wildlife, birds, and objects at a considerable distance.

Tripod

When shooting video, a tripod stabilizes your camera and eliminates shaking. The device also helps avoid blurring when there is insufficient light indoors or outdoors. Additionally, it’s convenient for filming oneself against various backgrounds.

Microphone

External microphones can improve overall sound quality, making extraneous noises such as wind less noticeable. You can also use Lavalier equipment to make your speech on videos clearer.

Portable lighting

Compact LED panels or ring lamps provide sufficiently bright light even at night or in rooms with poor lighting. They are quite lightweight, so it is convenient to take them to any location.

As an additional piece of tech, you can use a drone to offer a unique perspective and add a dynamic element to your travel videos. Drone clips give viewers a sense of scale and context, enhancing the overall visual experience. Moreover, studies indicate that aerial footage, especially from a bird’s-eye perspective, is highly sought after for vlogs, travel videos, and events.

FAQ: How do you make a travel video?

To create interesting and memorable travel videos, plan your storylines. First, think about what you are going to show or tell. Perhaps it will be popular places, a mini-excursion, or a travel tips video. This is essential to understand what kind of footage you need to shoot. For example, if focusing on local cuisine, shoot scenes in different markets or cafes around the country or a specific location. Be sure to organize the footage on your device so you don’t get lost in it later. For example, you can sort your videos by date and location. Once everything is filmed, you can edit all the footage into a single montage.

5 tips to make a travel video

After buying equipment, the next step is to capture your trip in a way that makes the viewing experience engaging. Here are some helpful tips on how to film the best moments and create compelling videos.

Ensure proper aspect ratio. Make a habit of shooting horizontally. This way, the image doesn’t look distorted or stretched out too much on a widescreen. Use a format that conforms to standard video aspect ratios, such as 16:9.
Show different aspects of your travel destination in one video. Considering that more than 80% of travel planning is done online, you can easily plan your route and find interesting places to shoot in advance. Catch scenic views, unusual sights, random passers-by, and the atmosphere of local life in general.
Create stories. Show where to eat national dishes, what is forbidden and allowed in a country, how a festival is held, etc. If you are enthusiastic enough, you can even organize a small interview with a local. Tell an interesting story about what happened to you on your trip and how you found your way out. It’s much more interesting than just showing popular places.
Pay attention to the audio. Add a soundtrack to make your video even more enjoyable to watch. Sound will enhance the atmosphere, making it more lively and realistic. Use licensed, royalty-free music tracks so you don’t violate copyright laws. For example, you can find over two million audio files on Depositphotos and choose the most fitting tracks and sound effects for your creative project.
Make creative transitions. This can help avoid monotony and capture the viewer’s attention. Shots can seamlessly transition or dynamically switch from one to another. For example, use match cuts to connect similar shapes or movements between clips or employ whip pans to swiftly change scenes while maintaining momentum and energy.