Creating Our First ‘Bus Ride’ or ‘Ride On’ Video for the YouTube Channel

Some people love ‘Ride On’  or ‘Bus Ride’ videos and make lots of them.  We’ve always concentrated on shots of the outside of vehicles until now that is.  Easter weekend saw the Kirkby Stephen – Brough Commercial Vehicle Rally with lots of classic buses operating an event service between the two sites.  Time for some ride on footage!

Like most people, we tend to park at one site and then use the buses to get about.  The ones running the service vary, even including some coaches, and you can ride them for a donation.  To be honest I don’t think anyone would kick up a real fuss if you didn’t donate but given how much these old beauties cost to maintain and run why wouldn’t you?

From a filming point of view, this type of video is fraught with problems.  First, you need to get an appropriate seat on the bus.  Not as easy as it sounds unless you want to film lots of heads for the duration of the journey, personally I’d prefer the scenery and something of the bus if possible.  Seeing some of the other classics on the road is an added bonus.

Riding on an AEC Regent
Riding on an AEC Regent

Then there is the aspect of keeping your camera reasonably stable.  Setting up a tripod isn’t really an option so you need to hold the camera by hand, which is a bit scary since these old girls tend to shudder and judder a bit.

The last big issue I found was condensation.  All those people, many of whom are wet from the rain, cause condensation inside the windows, obscuring the view.  Again not great for getting good footage.

All that said, it was great fun.  On one trip the gentleman I sat next to was mesmerised by the tiny image on the back of the camera, just like me  We could have easily looked up to see what was going on but that footage on the back of the camera held our attention more strongly.  In fact, when we got to the end of the ride the driver even said he was mesmerised by the camera which he could see through his mirrors!

I find it fascinating how in our modern society we can be so transfixed by a camera or screen when the real thing is right in front of us.  I’m not going to complain though as I got off the bus each time with a big grin on my face.  In total, I shot 4 ‘ride on’ videos over the two days of the rally, all of which will be making their way onto the YouTube Channel along with the other videos of the weekend.  As for me, I’m just looking forward to my next ride on a classic.

– Mara