10 Tips for Parents Filming Their Kid’s Basketball Highlights

One of our primary goals at FBC Oregon is to help our players reach their big goals.

While our program Director will go deeper into this topic on group calls, I wanted to help our parents get a jump start on one of the big ways they can help their kids get noticed by recruiters... video highlights on social media.

With this in mind, I did a little research and combined with some of my own experience with recording video and audio, I came up with 10 tips that I think basketball parents will find helpful.

1. Use your phone camera
   Most phone cameras are amazing these days, but you will want to avoid using the native camera app. There are many free or low-cost apps that will better maximize a phone’s camera capabilities. I recommend the BlackMagic Camera app.
2. Position yourself in the right spot 
   Find a seat near mid-court for the best view, or if you want to capture offensive or defensive highlights specifically, pick the corresponding baseline in the corner.
3. Record vertical video
   It just works better on social media.
4. Don’t zoom in too close to your player
   Zoom out enough so you and future recruiters can follow the play. You can always zoom in later in an editing app if you want to.
5. Learn the best settings to maximize your phone’s capabilities
   Here’s a great video that covers BlackMagic Camera app settings for the iPhone and Android: https://youtu.be/6MWjlxYu6VE 
6. Use a tripod, or even better, get a gimbal 
   To avoid shaky videos I suggesting getting a gimbal for stabilization and way better results. PCMag’s Editors Choices include the DJI Osmo Mobile 7P and the Insta360 Flow. Both are around $150, but look for them on sale. Consider getting a gimble with tracking capabilities. I haven't personally tested using the tracking for an individual player, but some gimbles do advertise this feature.
7. Keep the clips short
   Yes, you want to show enough of the action so the viewer can see how the play developed, but keep your clips as short as possible. Attention spans are short these days.  
8. Provide relevant information about your player
   Make sure all of the player's info is in your bio or the body of the post, including player name, graduation year, position(s) and contact info if you want. You can also add a text graphic at the beginning of your video with all of this information. 
9. Music is optional
   Adding (clean) music can make your videos more fun to watch, but it isn't a requirement. Often the sounds of the gym can make your videos just as compelling. 
10. Bonus Tip
    It isn't necessary, but If you want to go to another level and capture audio like our friend @woogs_world does, get a wireless Lavalier Mic. I like DJI because it easily connects to your phone.

These tips will get you started with capturing great video highlights. There's a lot more information on the internet about recording sports video, so if you want to go deeper do a quick Google or YouTube search.