I’m sure I’ve said this here before but if you’re looking for tutorials, tips and information about low budget, DIY filmmaking, the best place to go on the web is IndyMogul.com.  Oh but wait, I guess that’s sort of no longer true. It looks like Indy Mogul’s website isn’t really being updated any more.  I’m guessing the IM team has turned their attention to and youtube.  Fortunately, Indy Mogul’s is still being updated a few times a week and it’s full of invaluable info.

Anyways, today I saw an IM video that was so good I had to post it.  It’s a tutorial about how you can use doly shots and other methods of camera movement to make your footage feel more cinematic.  Rather than blab on for 300 words about how a dolly can add production value to your low budget videos and how they can make your work look more commercial, I’m going to just assume you know all that and get right to the video.

The tutorial is great because it explains how and when you might want to use one of these things.  But the best part of the video comes at the end.  A homemade dolly just isn’t going to be as smooth as a professionally made one.  So the director explains how you can use After Effects to totally even out your dolly shots.  The method is so freaking effective that you can basically just shoot something hand held and then stabilize the footage so that it looks like it was shot with a dolly.  Watch and learn!
 

 
Here’s the that explains how to build the dolly that’s featured in this video. But I’m not actually crazy about that design. I think it’s overkill. That dolly includes a seat for the camera operator and I think having a heavy, living. moving person on a cheap, home made dolly isn’t a great idea. If you plan to use After Effects to stabilize your footage, you can get away with using something pretty simple. For instance, for a incredibly easy, $15 dollar dolly. It won’t support a big ass professional camera but it would be perfect for your little DSLR.