Can anyone drop some advice my way?

[KAZ]

If you think back to when you first started with your digital video, what are two things that you would really have made things different if you had known them?

...pointers that would really have helped :arrow:

[purejammy]

For me the single biggest lesson was one of disk management. If I had had a second dedidcated hard disk at the beginning I wouldn't have wasted so mych time in throwing away 'choppy' films. Even with a second hard disk it is always important to keep both system and video disk defragged.

These days I am working toward the lesson, 'Concentrate on the Story' rather than the technology.

[Marc Peters]

Making sure you've got enough juice - the standard 1 hour battery simply doesn't cut the mustard.

Making sure your subjects can be heard. Plug in a pair of headphones and you'll hear what's (or more to the point not) being recorded.

Throw away the firewire lead that comes with free with your camcorder: chances are it's cheap, nasty and will fry your DV connection on your camcorder.

Clean the lense regularly. Nothing worse than a big smudge on your video. Yep, I've made that mistake!

Avoid transitions unless you really think they add value. Once you've finished the video, leave it a few days and watch it again. You'll probably take out those transitions.

Shoot cutaways - video you can insert between scenes.

Even if you're just filming a holiday video, make sure you have an idea of what the final video will look like. Don't just shoot everything - chances are you'll discard it anyway. Plan what you'll shoot and how you're going to arrange the footage.

Only zoom for a good reason.

Get a tripod, and practice keeping a steady hand (support one are with the other).

And most importantly, don't forget that no matter how good or funny your video is to your friends, chances are it'll be so-so to just about anyone else you ever show it to!