Shooting “Open Gate” is a game changer for corporate video production, but what is it?

The term “Open Gate” originates from shooting on film, and refers to the “Gate” of a cine camera, where the film is held whilst the image is captured.

In a cine camera this can be changed to match the desired aspect ratio of the final film.

So if the production is 16:9, the film gate aspect ratio will match that and crop part of the frame.

Video cameras do this by not recording data from part of the sensor, cropping to the intended aspect ratio.

An “Open Gate” has no crop, and the entire frame is captured as it passes through the camera.

A 26mp digital camera shoots UHD 4k video using 3840 x 2160 pixels, but with an “Open Gate”, it shoots all of the 6240 x 4160 pixels.

Instead of cropping and binning, we record the entire 26MP sensor.

A better description is Full Sensor Recording.

This video we recently produced for Bupa, was shot open gate to produce both 16:9..…

The effect is you can produce almost any aspect ratio, without having to shoot specifically for that.

With open gate you shoot once and can output 16:9, letterbox, square and most importantly vertical.

Plus you have a better ability to recompose in post, not just due to the increase in resolution, but also the change in aspect ratio.

These factors combined mean you massively increase the flexibility of your corporate video production, and as a consequence its productivity and value.

Instead of having to shoot specifically for vertical, you can now get vertical content straight from the original shoot.

“Open Gate” means no longer picking an aspect ratio in advance, or shooting multiple takes to embrace different aspect ratios.

And that’s a game changer, cutting costs and time, future proofing output and enabling you to use your footage across almost any platform.

With Linkedin, Reels and TikTok now increasingly offering marketing opportunities for even B2B corporate videos, shooting open gate is a no brainer.

If you want to talk about how we could help you with your next open gate production, Contact Us!

For more top video production tips, keep an eye on our insights!