Resources · Shooting guide
Shooting tips that change the reel
Garbage in, garbage out. The AI does heroic work — but the easiest way to lift every reel is to hand it better raw footage. The 4 rules that matter most live at the top; the full breakdown by category sits below.
The 4 rules that matter most
Rule 1
Hold the phone horizontal
Landscape (16:9) captures the whole field. Vertical phone footage cuts off 60%+ of the action on the sides — coaches and AI both lose context.
Rule 2
Stay still — both hands or a tripod
Jittery footage makes the AI miss plays. A $15 phone tripod or both hands held steady at chest height is plenty.
Rule 3
Don't zoom in
Phone digital zoom destroys quality. Frame the whole play wide — we auto-zoom the highlights for you when the reel is produced.
Rule 4
Record long clips, not snippets
10 seconds BEFORE and AFTER each play gives the AI the context it needs. Don't stop-start between plays — just keep rolling.
Phone settings
Camera app config to set BEFORE you start recording.
Use 1080p or 4K at 30fps
Open your camera Settings → Video. 1080p is the minimum; 4K gives the AI more detail to crop into for highlights. 60fps only if you want slow-motion replays.
Tap to lock focus on the field
Phones love to refocus when something walks past the lens. Long-press the field in your camera app to lock focus + exposure before kickoff.
Where to stand
Get the angle that makes our AI's job easier.
Stand higher than the field
Top of the bleachers or a hill behind the bench gives the AI the cleanest angle. Sideline level is the worst spot — you mostly see backs of players.
Stand at midfield, not behind the goal
Midfield sees both directions of play. Behind the goal / endzone misses half the game.
Keep the sun behind you
Shooting INTO the sun darkens jerseys, blows out highlights, and confuses the AI's scene classifier. Stand with the sun at your back.
During the game
What to do while the play is unfolding.
Frame the whole play, not just your athlete
We track your athlete across the frame and auto-zoom the highlight in post. A wide frame gives us room to work — a tight follow-cam misses too much context.
Don't narrate over big plays
Our AI listens to crowd noise + commentary to detect when the moment matters. Your voice over impact throws off the audio-excitement score.
After the game
Upload + label workflow that turns clips into recruiting-grade reels.
Add the opponent + game date when you upload
Game context (opponent, score, date) feeds the AI scorer AND ends up in your reel's caption + recruiting share. Two seconds at upload time, big payoff downstream.
Upload multiple games — let the AI pick the best
A 6-game season reel beats a single-game reel for recruiting every time. Upload everything; combine the best moments later.