Taking quality video when you practice is incredibly important. Whether you are sending it to me for analysis in online lessons or using it to monitor your own practice, knowing how to video your swing is key if you want quality feedback.
What makes a video good vs bad? There are a few key things that must happen if you want to record a video you can use and monitor. First, the camera needs to be set up in the same place every time. If the angle you record from changes from one practice session to the next, there is no way to compare them. Second is your distance from the camera. If the camera is too close you cannot see the club face and shaft through the entire swing. Here is a short video on how and why to set up a video station.
Having your camera in a different position from one practice session to the next can lead to miss-diagnosing changes in your swing. In the picture below can you spot the differences in the club in the backswing and the downswing?
In the swing on the left it would appear that the club is working more under the shaft plane on the backswing, but much more on shaft plane on the down swing compared to the swing on the right. If you were to look at those two swings independently, it would appear they are different swings and each one might look at different changes. I've attached the full video below so you can see the differences.
As much as I love Trackman and all the other tech we have. I still believe students tend to pick up more from the visual aspect of video. Being able to compare swings and monitor changes is a great tool, but make sure if you are going to do it with video, the video is accurate in the comparison.
It would appear that I'm going to have more free time than expected for this time of year. Since I have the time I'm going to make an effort to produce more email and blog posts. If you have any requests on areas of interest reach out and let me know. If you are interested in online lessons and how they work, contact me and I will give you more details on how to get started. I hope everyone is safe and healthy, I know it's a challenging time, hopefully we can make the unexpected free time to good use. Be well.