You can be messy in your day-to-day life, but when it comes to your production equipment, safety and cleanliness are essential for preserving your gear. Keep your camera safe from bumps and scratches by storing it in a carrying case, and make sure to periodically remove dust/dirt with airjets, blowerbrushes, etc. Above all, protect your lens with a UV filter. It’s a cheap add-on that will really lengthen the life of your camera -- especially if you're fond of shooting outdoors.

Put simply, the microphone on your camera sucks. You won’t get good sound from it. Even if you shoot in an acoustically perfect recording studio, the built-in mic on your camera will pick up the grinding of the camera motors. If and when you decide to step up to the plate, get a separate mic. Ideally get a shotgun mic because it’s great for recording voices without picking up background noise, but any mic will be better than your standard on-camera microphone.

You spent good money on your camera, now learn to use it! That slab of paper that came with it isn’t a doorstop – it’s your key to getting the most out of what you paid for. Read it. Study it. Hug it before you go to sleep. Whatever you need to do, just make sure that by the time you go to shoot your film, you know everything you need to know and more. Most people spend extra dough on camera features they never end up using. Don't be lazy like them.

As if there weren’t enough disadvantages to being bald, yet another is that bald heads are difficult to light. Bald heads tend to appear shiny and over-exposed when lit too harshly. If possible, reduce the shine by applying some makeup or soften the light with a diffusion gel.

Once you have your footage and you get down to editing, don’t expect to bang out a completed video on the first run – even if you consider yourself to be a pro. Editing, like almost any other creative process, evolves over stages and can’t be rushed. For the best results, create a rough cut first (like a first draft) and show it to someone not directly involved in the production. This person should know something about video or video editing, but should be removed enough from your work so that he can remain objective. If it’s a longer film, you may want to create another draft, but shorter videos will probably only need the one rough cut. The constructive criticism you receive should help you create something more appealing to your audience.