Does camera gear really matter?

Hendrik Kapp

Hendrik Kapp

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Whatsup community! :D

I was wondering this for quite a while now.

Will you click away from a video if the quality is bad but the content is good?
 
I think the audio and lighting are far more important than the video quality, so I think there are different levels of "video quality." I think HD isn't yet expected from viewers, although we're quickly moving to a point where it will be expected. Most smartphones record in HD, and I'd argue that they record with "good enough" quality. ^_^

I think it's best to use what you can, where you can (and put a focus on making the audio and lighting nice, if possible) - the actual content is the most important! If the content is good, people will put up with the quality.
 
KatyAdelson said:
I think the audio and lighting are far more important than the video quality, so I think there are different levels of "video quality." I think HD isn't yet expected from viewers, although we're quickly moving to a point where it will be expected. Most smartphones record in HD, and I'd argue that they record with "good enough" quality. ^_^

I think it's best to use what you can, where you can (and put a focus on making the audio and lighting nice, if possible) - the actual content is the most important! If the content is good, people will put up with the quality.
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Agreed, I think the most important factor would certainly be audio and lighting when shooting videos. I was just wondering because I sometimes feel my video quality can improve a lot.
 
Every smartphone is recording in HD nowadays, so you should have at least a solid video quality. The sound depends on what you are doing, if you are using music for the video, ... If you are talking and I can barely understand a word because of strong winds for example, I would quit watching the video in the most cases.
 
It has to be really, really bad for me to click away if the video is about something I want to see..
For me it's more about properly using the equipment, than having the best equipment. The majority of our videos are shot with nothing more than an iPhone and many/most look better than similar videos created with $2k+ DSLR cameras.
So, it's not about the gear, it's about using it right.
 
It depends on how poor the quality is. For the first two years of making regular videos, I filmed exclusively on my phone, but I paid attention to lighting and making sure I was always within a proper distance for catching sound well, and nobody ever knew I didn't have an at least halfway-decent camera. In fact, a number of people used to ask me every few videos what camera I used.

I think you can make just about anything of decent quality work for you, if you make up for its shortcomings with other things that help it look better. Lighting, sound quality, and editing well can hide a multitude of less-expensive equipment!
 
I honestly feel like with all the YouTubers and videos out there to watch, getting great video quality will help your channel/videos get attention more effectively.
 
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