Creative Brief: Point of View (POV)

Keyword Code: POVP5BRIEF

Use your camera lens as the eyes of your protagonist, the subjective view of your main character. A POV shot implies that what the camera is capturing is what the character is seeing. The shot is usually captured at that person’s eye height, whether they’re sitting, sprawled on the ground, or standing up. More than ever, we’ve be seeing a high volume of requests for a wide variety of POV footage, for both unscripted and scripted productions.

Shot-List Thought-Starters

• Beginning of the day: Waking up, getting out of bed – feet on floor, making coffee
• Social scenes: Toasting drinks, serving food, etc.
• Performing tasks: Putting gas in a car, cooking, mowing the lawn, moving through a grocery store with shopping cart
• Sports themes: Mountain biking, surfing, skateboarding, skiing, horseback riding
• Animal POVs: Rig your pet with a go-pro and record the action

Suggested Keywords: Point of View, POV, Viewpoint, First-Person

Typical Users: Food and Beverage Commercials, Travel Companies, Retail Chains, Electronic Companies, Tech Companies, Entertainment

PoV Extreme Mountain Biking on Dirt Trail by ActiveStock

Pro-Tip: Make your camera moves as smooth as possible, unless you’re engaged in an activity that requires erratic movement. It’s natural to blend pans and tilts within your shot if your intent is to offer the viewer more insight into the character(s) and their surroundings. If you don’t possess a camera stabilizer, we recommend finding an inexpensive handheld rig as a solution. If you have a few dollars to spare, we highly recommend EVO.

Casting Considerations: Authenticity with talent and imagery. Accept the challenge to subtract artificiality from your setups. In other words, keep it REAL. These things will play an important role in the success of your shoot. Read more in our post on authenticity and why it matters.

Location Diversity: Urban, Suburban, and Rural

Before You Shoot:
• Please check what content already exists in the Pond5 marketplace
• Think about a visual approach that will result in new and fresh footage

Submission Checklist:
• Remember to tag your clips with the keyword code: POVP5BRIEF
• Have all property and model releases filled out and submitted
• No logos or brands may be visible in any of the clips
• Don’t forget to add any applicable conceptual keywords

Top image: Friends Toasting And Drinking In Nightclub by blendimages

Creative Brief: Milestones, Part 1

Keyword Code: MILFEB17

Milestones are the significant events that occur in one’s lifetime, and Pond5 needs images that demonstrate firsts, which signify change and progression. These images are enormously popular in commercial advertising and may take on a greater importance given recent world events — which translates to an increase in requests to convey closeness, security, love, and other concepts related to a softer tone and spirit.

Shot-List Thought-Starters

• Pregnancy: Scenes showing a couple expecting a child, tender moments demonstrating hope and anticipation, setting up a nursery

• Childbirth: Checking into a maternity ward, being handed a newborn for the first time, looking at a baby through nursery window, babies in incubators

• First Steps: A baby being guided by parents, falling into parents’ arm, or attempting to walk and falling on their backside.

• Breastfeeding

• Babies being comforted or consoled

• Safety: Baby being secured into a car seat

Suggested Keywords: Love, Pride, Compassion, Happiness, Security, Innocence, New Beginning, Milestones, Tenderness, Care

Typical Users: Healthcare, Insurance, Banking and Finance, Credit Cards, Telecommunication, Utilities

Little Feet of a Newborn Baby by fedorov

Pro-Tip: Consider using more graphic shots to illustrate your concept, such as an inked baby foot or baby’s hand wrapped around an adult’s finger. In addition, tight close-up shots on babies’ expressions are always needed.

Casting Considerations: Authenticity with talent and imagery. Accept the challenge to subtract artificiality from your setups. In other words, keep it REAL. These things will play an important role in the success of your shoot. Read more in our post on authenticity and why it matters.

Location Diversity: Urban, Suburban, and Rural

Before You Shoot:
• Please check what content already exists in the Pond5 marketplace
• Think about a visual approach that will result in new and fresh footage

Submission Checklist:
• Remember to tag your clips with the keyword code: MILFEB17
• Have all property and model releases filled out and submitted
• No logos or brands may be visible in any of the clips
• Don’t forget to add any applicable conceptual keywords

Download this brief in PDF format here.

Top image: Close Up Portrait of Baby Boy Smiling at Camera by ImageSource

Creative Brief: Establishing Shots

Keyword Code: ESTSHOTP5BRIEF

Establishing shots are critical for creating a geographic location for your action. An establishing shot is usually the first shot of a new scene, designed to show the audience where the action is taking place. It’s usually a very wide or extreme wide shot, and is especially significant, being that it usually sets the time of day for action being filmed on a studio set far from the apparent location, because of budget, permits, or time limitations.

Shot-List Thought-Starters

• Real-time and matching day and night lockdowns, pans, tilts
• Suburban Neighborhood
• Mansions
• Apartment Buildings
• Town or Row houses
• House at night when lights are switched off, magic hour where lights are turned on
• Impoverished neighborhoods and run-down buildings, housing estates, dark and empty streets
• Fire or Police Station
• Court House, Prison
• Office Building
• Hospital
• Schools

Suggested Keywords (depending on location): Home, Security, Safety, Family, Wealth, Poverty, Protection, Danger, Community, Education

Typical Users: Unscripted drama and reality TV programming, feature and documentary films

Suburban House White and Tan Establishing Shot with Mailbox by JaimeByrd

Pro-Tip: Attempt to avoid anything that may give the viewer a clue about where your location actually is, such as palm trees or signage (strive to shoot generic buildings for more potential usage). Other than impoverished neighborhoods, all properties need to be well-kept, attractive, and iconic. Other types of camera moves are recommended, but a lockdown is our most preferred — extra points if you can capture day and night matching shots.

Location Diversity: Urban, Suburban, and Rural

Before You Shoot:
• Please check what content already exists in the Pond5 marketplace
• Think about a visual approach that will result in new and fresh footage

Submission Checklist:
• Remember to tag your clips with the keyword code: ESTSHOTP5BRIEF
• Have all property releases filled out and submitted
• No logos or brands may be visible in any of the clips
• Don’t forget to add any applicable conceptual keywords

Top image: Large House with Lights by ImageSource