It is often more difficult than it seems to ask for feedback on an early video. “It looks good!” means you don’t really have any guidance as to what to fix. “Something is off about it!” means you’re not sure what it is or how to go about fixing it. Good feedback doesn’t mean collecting opinions or advice; it means asking for observations that are pointed towards a specific area to help you improve your next video. And if you’re new to videography, this can really help you move ahead. Because you can often learn a lot about how well a video is coming together by hearing the comments made about a rough cut, an incomplete scene, or a particular take.
Asking for specific feedback on one aspect of your video is an excellent way to receive useful observations. Rather than asking, “What do you think of this video?”, you may want to ask, “Was the camera movement smooth?”, or, “Did the framing keep my attention on the subject?”, or, “Was the lighting sufficient to make it easy to distinguish my subject?”. Asking one direct question along with a short clip (for example, a 30-second scene) is a much more effective way to gain useful feedback than asking for observations about a longer, more complete video. In this way, it also makes it easier to compare any feedback with the intention of your video itself. For instance, if the intention was to create a calm-feeling shot and you receive the observation, “this feels restless because the camera is moving around”, you will have a clearer idea of how far off the final product is from your intention.
Often, people wait too long before asking for feedback. By then, the person has gotten so attached to the video and has spent so much time working on it that they may feel frustrated about anything less than “It’s perfect!”. Or they will ask, “What do you think of the scene?”, and then they will receive observations that aren’t useful because everything from framing to pacing to sound to lighting is up for discussion, and no specific part gets a meaningful response. It’s better to ask for feedback on one aspect at a time. If you’re concentrating on composition for this video, ask for feedback on the composition. If you’re concentrating on camera movement, ask for feedback about the camera movement. You don’t want to hear about five or six things at once, because you won’t have time to learn anything about any of those.
Asking for feedback on just one aspect of a clip that you record for practice purposes is very easy. For instance, spend five minutes recording a short scene (a hand picking up a cup, a slow reveal of an object near a window, etc.). Spend five minutes reviewing that clip and identifying which area feels worst. Spend five minutes sending the clip to someone with a focused question. When they reply, don’t immediately record a new clip. Try re-recording the same scene using their feedback as specifically as possible. This process of recording, getting feedback, re-recording with feedback is the process that turns feedback into an actionable tool. You’re not simply getting observations, you’re getting observations about the same scene so that you can practice implementing them in the same context.
It’s also helpful to know what feedback to take seriously, and what feedback to simply dismiss. Not everyone will have the same tastes. One person may like fast-paced scenes, and another person may like long, static shots. That is okay. It means you don’t necessarily have to take their opinions about the pacing of your scenes very seriously if your interest is in improving your videography. You don’t need feedback that is opinionated, such as: “I like this more”, “I think the other one was better.” You can only benefit from feedback that is specific and factual in some way. For instance: “This shot made it seem like my attention was wandering, not the subject.”, “The camera movement was jerky in this scene.”, “I had to look at several shots to get an idea of where the subject was located.”, “This shot went on too long at the beginning and then too short at the end.” If you can’t get the feedback in those terms, at least try to figure out what actionable change in the next take would make it so. “It looks more cinematic here” is not a useful observation. “Hold the frame longer before moving the camera here” is. Again, you want the observations to translate immediately to something that you can try.
So asking for feedback is as important as asking a question that you intend to get an answer to. Asking for a specific response on a specific aspect of a short video clip is an excellent way to receive actionable observations. The more often you do it, the faster you’ll learn to hear the feedback before you record it. You’ll notice when a horizon is crooked, when the camera pans to a pointlessly still object, or when a corner of the frame is distracting you from the scene at hand. You’ll notice when a shot has to be cut away from too quickly for it to be interesting, so that you can learn how to lengthen that shot. You’ll find yourself watching your footage with more and more interest, as you learn to see it more clearly. And your video will improve faster and faster because you’ll be learning to see it more clearly.