How much footage do reality shows shoot?

How much footage do reality shows shoot?

Richard Hall (Reality TV Producer) gives expert video advice on: How are 'reaction shots' used in reality TV editing?; What is a 'story arc'? and more...

Reality shows shoot ridiculous amounts of footage. There was a time in documentary non-fiction where, if you were shooting ten hours to one hour on the air, that was very efficient. Fifteen to twenty was what the norm was. I think with reality shows, it's probably a hundred and fifty hours to one. It's sort of gone with inflation, like with everything else. Because digitally you can store more video than ever before - unlimited amounts, really - you shoot more. You fill up the space that you're given. So they shoot a lot of tape on reality shows.