Tips On How to Shoot a Video Behind Green Screen

25 Tips on Shooting with a Green Screen

A common dilemma for those looking to produce an exciting and engaging video is that they don’t have the required budgets, equipment or time to shoot at a range of different locations. Videos need to be enticing to encourage viewers to continue watching, and filming everything in the same environment is not going to cut it. Fortunately, there is an easy and cost-effective solution for those looking to shake up their videos with new locations, and that is to use a green screen.

Green screens can create realistic backgrounds and environments without being anywhere near the location. They can also be used to create amazing effects and add a unique edge to your video content. Shooting with a green screen is not always simple, and when done badly it can make for an awful experience for your audience. We’ve come up with our top tips to follow when shooting with a green screen:

1. Storyboard

Before you even begin to shoot your video with a green screen, make sure you have properly planned a storyboard for the video. This will let you know exactly what it is that you need to film with the green screen and imagine how the finished video will look with the new locations and backgrounds added. Trying to fit these effects and backgrounds in after shooting, when you didn’t first consider the end product, will cause you a lot of problems and result in a fake looking green screen video.

2. Consider Camera Angles

One of the most important things to think about at the storyboarding stage is the camera angles that you need. A lot of people make the mistake of shooting everything head-on with a green screen, because there is no background content there to guide them. However, once the background is added, if everything is head on and not in the relevant angles that relate to the environment it will look very generic and unrealistic.

3. Remember Lighting

This is again something that should be considered whilst storyboarding. Think about the kind of lighting you will need to blend well with the environment that is being added in post-production. If you are planning on adding a dark evening backdrop, you don’t want to shoot your subject in full daylight.

4. Use Props

Just because your footage is being shot using a green screen, doesn’t mean props and sets should be dismissed completely. Props can easily be used to enhance the effect of the green screen and the background you are using. Partnering props and sets with a green screen can produce some really realistic shots with minimal effort.

5. Invest in a Waveform Display

This will obviously depend on the budget you have available for your green screen project, but it can be really beneficial to invest in a waveform display monitor. It will allow you to ensure that the green screen levels are correct at all times, giving your finished video a more professional finish.

6. Choose a Make Up Artist with Green Screen Experience

Again, budget restrictions might make this one impossible for your project, but if you are hiring a make-up artist for the shoot, make sure they have green screen experience. They will know what kind of male-up needs to be applied and when to look effective on the finished video.

7. Don’t Wear Green

This one might seem a bit obvious, but it is something that many people still manage to get wrong. Be sure to reinforce this rule to everyone involved before the shoot, you don’t want your main actor turning up in a green jumper. Dealing with wardrobe malfunctions mid-shot will delay your schedule and take up precious time.

8. Train Your Team

Whilst you might be fully aware of how a green screen works and how to use one, your actors, actresses and other team members might not be as familiar on shooting with a green screen. Be sure they know where the green screen ends so they know the area to stay in when doing their bit.

9. Shoot in High Resolution

Make sure to shoot your green screen footage in high resolution, anything over 720p is recommended. You should also be careful to check what format your green screen software can import when saving your videos.

10. Use A Tripod

When shooting with a green screen it is very important to keep the camera completely still and the best way to do this is to use a tripod at all times. Be sure to get the shot in the centre of the green screen so that no edges or other parts of the room can be seen on camera.

11. Iron your Green Screen

When shooting with a green screen, it is essential to make sure the screen itself is wrinkle free and as flat as possible. Wrinkles can cause shadows which will distort the image quality, so if you fold away your green screen for storage, be sure to carefully iron it out before use.

12. Use High Shutter Speeds

This is really important if you are shooting a high action scene on a green screen. Using a low shutter speed will cause motion blur, which can run the realism of the green screen effects. It may be necessary to buy or rent a camera that can shoot in very high shutter speeds to avoid motion blue when shooting with a green screen.

13. Use a Blue Screen Where Necessary

Whilst shooting with a green screen works perfectly for most situations, sometimes a blue screen can come in very useful. If you are shooting someone with blonde hair a blue screen often works better as the green can blend with light hair colours. Also, if you want to get a shot with plants and foliage in, a blue screen is essential.

14. Avoid Reflections

Although using props is recommended to bring your scene to like when shooting with a green screen, be very careful to not use any shiny or reflective props. High shine surfaces will reflect the green from the screen and cause major issues in post-production.

15. Use Even Lighting

Similar to making sure you iron your green screen before use, you should also ensure it is properly lit to avoid shadows or hot spots. These differences in shade can cause problems when adding the necessary environment to the green screen.

16. Give Your Subject Space

Make sure your actors and actresses are standing between 6 to 10 feet away from the green screen at all times. This is to avoid them causing shadows on the screen that will make post-production tricky.

17. Light Your Screen and Subject Separately

We have already mentioned the importance of even lighting;however, it is also essential to light the green screen and foreground individually. Light the background first with two or three different lights to avoid hot spots, and the light the subject, usually with a back light and a key light.

18. Use Contrast

When shooting with a green screen, it is best practice to make the subject stand out from the green screen by making the contrast as high as possible. The bigger different in contrast between the background and subject, the better the finished effect.

19. Paint A Wall in Studio

If using a green screen on a location, it is necessary to have something you can easily take down and transport, however if you do a lot of green screen shooting in a studio, a painted wall works wonders. By painting a wall, and sometimes also the floor surrounding, it will not only save time but give you a completely wrinkle-free green screen.

20. Be Careful with Movements

It is essential when shooting with a green screen that your actors stay in the centre of the green screen and no part of their body ever goes off the screen. If part of the subject goes off screen, it cannot be fixed in post-production. Do a couple of test runs before filming to make sure they are always in the right place.

21. Use A Magenta Gel

Sometimes blonde hair or fly away hairs can cause problems with green screens in post-production, the best way to avoid this is to use a magenta gel on the backlight on your subject. As magenta is the opposite of the colour wheel, it will counteract the green from the screen.

22. Choose Your Software

There is a lot of video editing software that can be used to green screen, be sure to properly research all the features and benefits of them all before committing to one. Most offer free trials so try out a few before parting with your money.

23. Know Your Virtual Environment

You need your actors and actresses to interact with the surroundings to make them feel real and believable. Whilst actually shooting with a green screen, the environment won’t be there, so make sure to show them beforehand how it will look and get them to know how they should be acting within it.

24. Use Green Sections

Sometimes it is possible to use green screen technology without using an entire green screen. You can use the technology to edit windows into walls and many other things. Simply hang a small green screen on the wall and edit in the window later. When you start to think about things this way, the possibilities are endless, and you can really get creative.

25. Plan Everything

When shooting with a green screen, it is essential to plan every little detail before you start. As well as storyboarding the shoot, plan all the light sources, angles and backgrounds before you start. Give your actors as much information as possible, plan where they will be in every scene and even where their eyelines will be. The more you plan, the better the final result will be.

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in september 2016 and has been completely revamped and updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.