JOURNALIST WYSTE VELLINGA IS A MASTER OF MOJO GEAR. BUT HE’S KEEN TO POINT OUT THAT EQUIPMENT ISN’T EVERYTHING.
But a great story could happen anytime, anywhere, and it can move across multiple locations. As a journalist and storyteller, you’ve got to be able to follow it. So, if the story can’t come to the studio, the reporter has to come to the story. And that’s why we’ve seen the rapid rise of mobile journalism over the last 10 years.
“A mobile journalist has to be a very creative person,” explains Wyste Vellinga, a journalist who has created mojo stories for broadcasters across Europe. “They use the tools they happen to have with them to tell the story, and find solutions for any technical issues.”
Vellinga has covered everything from conferences to the climate crisis, using only his phone camera, a tripod and a microphone.
“The external microphone is essential for me,” he says. “Phones have become a lot better regarding video quality, but internal microphones are still not up to scratch. I always cary a Shure MV88+ microphone wherever I go.”
There are a lot of great editing programs he recommends: FiLMiCPro, Ferrite, LumaFusion and Adobe Rush are professional tools every journalist should have on their phone. They’ll give you the ability to provide a complete story from the scene no matter where you are. However, as co-author of the book Mobile Storytelling: A Journalist’s Guide to the Smartphone, he’s keen to point out that gear isn’t everything.
“You don’t need to focus too much on the technical side. As long as your shots are composed professionally, that is enough,” Vellinga says. “Instead, experiment, and make mistakes! A mobile journalist should be able to find his or her own workflow, because the way you work best is very personal. And the only way to find that perfect workflow is to try different things.”
TWITTER: @WytseVellinga