Oh the Weather Outside Is Frightful, Which Makes Shooting B-Roll Delightful.

Just when you thought that the crappy weather gave you leave to hang out in a nice warm pub and drink yourself silly until the sun shines again, you’re wrong. You should be out shooting B-Roll. A b-roll library is an invaluable tool for any filmmaker because the vignettes can be used for establishing shots in any of your productions. If you have an interior scene that calls for dreadful weather outside, you can reinforce the scene with a library shot of rain and wind before cutting to the interior action.

A few things to keep in mind when shooting b-roll;

1. Keep things generic. Effective b-roll can be anyone in any town. Cop cars with flashing lights in the rain, storm clouds over the ocean, you get the picture.

2. Be cognizant of the time constraints of what your shooting. For example a downtown scene will have todays fashion and todays cars in it. That piece of film will only be useful as a contemporary shot for about eighteen months before in looks dated when compared to current trends. A way to get more longevity out of a b-roll piece is to get creative with angle. For example a high angle shot from an office balcony looking down on a bunch of umbrellas on the street can be useful almost forever.

3. You’re already traveling for family events, make the most of it and bring your DSLR. If you’re going to your grandparent’s house who live in some rural splendor, you can avoid awkward holiday conversation by taking a day to go out and shoot long roads and vast fields under winter skies. The Golden Gate Bridge looks fabulous in the fog, having in a film library of it will give you a lot of creative room for future productions.

The holiday season brings obligatory travel and bad weather everywhere you go. It also brings a work slow down for most in this industry. So take advantage of the free time and bad weather and start building your b-roll library. You’ll be glad you did.

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