Hands. So useful and unobtrusive in the real world, they can suddenly take on monstrous proportions as soon as they’re put in front of a camera. Using your hands effectively on-air is one of the hardest things to get right. Use them too much and it’s distracting. Use them too little and you can end up looking too stiff. So here are a few tips.
Find a natural way to interact with your viewer
It’s not terribly natural to just stand there, square on to camera and talk – that’s not how we interact with people. No wonder your hands think ‘what should I do here?’ – so they overcompensate. The trick is to film your PTCs to make them feel like a natural interaction with a friend. Always begin with the question – what do I want the viewer to get out of this sequence? That should help you decide how to choreograph the PTC rather than go for the default mid shot.
Don’t overthink your hands
Try not to think about your hands at all. Just do whatever comes naturally. Think instead about what you’re saying, the tone and emotion behind the words and use your face and eyes to get that across rather than relying on your hands for expression.
Use them to demonstrate
Another strategy is to work out if you can use your hands to demonstrate something that’s relevant to what you’re saying. Can you point something out? Is there one key word or phrase you want to stand out? Are you talking about a story with a contrast, or comparison or two sides that you can reinforce with hand movement? Are you asking a question that needs a shrug and open hand gesture? Is something enormous/high (raise your hands up) or is it small/minute (pinch your hands together)? You get my point.
Use a prop
Holding a prop is the best way to occupy your hands. What can you touch that’s around you? Is there something you can pick up or show me? Can you use your own body as a prop? Give your hands a purpose.
The Lean
If you’re on location, try leaning against a wall, a gate, leaning forward over a desk or chair or sideways against a door frame (but think first, is it relevant to my story or programme?). Somehow, when another part of our body is called into action to do something (i.e. to lean) our hands will more naturally fall into place.
Those are my first five tips. Handy, huh? More coming in my next post.
