On Wednesday 18th July, I took part in a professional music video shoot along with the rest of my media class. Everyone was given a different role for the day, and mine was 'Lighting Designer'. This role consisted on me working with Iesha, the 'Lighting Technician' so that every shot that was filmed had the correct lighting going on. These roles required us to be located in the control room for the majority of the shoot, where we had the ability to control the main lights that were being used in the lecture theatre downstairs. A high amount of communication between us and the director/camera operator downstairs was necessary, to guarantee that the right type of lighting was correct for each specific shot.
Before the day we didn't really know how to use the controls for the lights, and had a very quick tutorial that morning which showed us how to do the basics with the lights. We managed to pick this up quickly and soon knew where and how most of them worked.
Also, towards the end of the day, it was decided that extra people were needed for some particular shots, therefore I was needed downstairs to act as an extra in the crowd. The lights were then taken over by somebody else so that I could take part where I was needed.
Overall, I believe the day was a huge success, and that everyone worked extremely well together. I think the final version of our music video will be brilliant. I really enjoyed the day.
Monday, 25 June 2012
Boot Camp Task 4 - Analysis of Music Video: Performance
The next video I am going to analyse is a performance video. It is called Before The Worst by The Script.
Firstly, the reason that this is a performance music video is because throughout the whole thing the artists in the band are synching with their voices and instruments, 'giving a performance'. It doesn't tell a story and it also lets the audience know that the soundtrack is very important as well as the visuals, as not much else is going on apart from them playing their song. This draws attention to the singing and the instruments.
The relationship between music and visuals in a performance video is extremely important as it is just the band that can be seen, meaning to create this connection it must be noticeable. When the track starts there is a birds eye view shot of the whole arena/space where the band are playing, showing that it must be upbeat and loud for the sound to fill the whole place. As soon as the drum beat kicks in there is a close up of the main singer playing the keyboard, which then pans up to his face proving that he is the main singer and maybe the most important one of the artists. This close up then lasts for 5 seconds as he begins to lip synch, again dominating the band and the song.
As the chorus starts there is a wide shot of the arena, reinforcing the fact that the sound is in fact traveling around the whole room and that the song is upbeat enough to do this. The second verse begins again with a close up of the main singer, creating a feeling for the audience that he is the most important.
There are definitely a lot of close ups throughout this video, which creates an emphasis of each member of the band, proving that they all have a role, however there are more close ups out of them all of the main singer in the band, as he has the most lines to sing and could be classed as the main performer. The close ups in this video makes the audience feel as if they are actually there with them in the arena watching them perform, creating this connection between them and the band. Especially as there are a few shots where the artists look straight into the camera.
Firstly, the reason that this is a performance music video is because throughout the whole thing the artists in the band are synching with their voices and instruments, 'giving a performance'. It doesn't tell a story and it also lets the audience know that the soundtrack is very important as well as the visuals, as not much else is going on apart from them playing their song. This draws attention to the singing and the instruments.
The relationship between music and visuals in a performance video is extremely important as it is just the band that can be seen, meaning to create this connection it must be noticeable. When the track starts there is a birds eye view shot of the whole arena/space where the band are playing, showing that it must be upbeat and loud for the sound to fill the whole place. As soon as the drum beat kicks in there is a close up of the main singer playing the keyboard, which then pans up to his face proving that he is the main singer and maybe the most important one of the artists. This close up then lasts for 5 seconds as he begins to lip synch, again dominating the band and the song.
As the chorus starts there is a wide shot of the arena, reinforcing the fact that the sound is in fact traveling around the whole room and that the song is upbeat enough to do this. The second verse begins again with a close up of the main singer, creating a feeling for the audience that he is the most important.
There are definitely a lot of close ups throughout this video, which creates an emphasis of each member of the band, proving that they all have a role, however there are more close ups out of them all of the main singer in the band, as he has the most lines to sing and could be classed as the main performer. The close ups in this video makes the audience feel as if they are actually there with them in the arena watching them perform, creating this connection between them and the band. Especially as there are a few shots where the artists look straight into the camera.
Boot Camp Task 4 - Analysis of Music Video: Conceptual
The next video I am going to analyse is a conceptual video. It is called One (Your Name) by Swedish House Mafia.
This is a conceptual music video, however it could possibly be conceived as a performance, as it has a small element of a keyboard being played at the beginning, however you are unable to see who is actually playing it, an you don't find put whether it is actually the artist or not. In this music video, the images and visuals are structured according to the sounds. There is no lip synching at all, taking away the idea that it is a performance, however the keyboard shot proves it may have that element.
When the beat begins the visuals show buttons being turned on and wires being plugged in, as if the song cannot start without this happening. When the song starts there is a close up shot of someone's hands pressing the keys on the keyboard in time to the beat, immediately forming a relationship between the music and the visuals. As the singing begins, an extreme close up of an eye opens, and there are digital words and images going on inside it. Also, the eye blinks in time with the beat of the song, again proving this connection. As the song brings in another backing tune the shot changes, letting the audience know that both of the music and the visuals have changed. Another very clear shot for the audience is when you see a pair of hands clap, and you also hear it on the soundtrack.
The track slows down and speeds up again, when there is then some fast paced close ups of people (characters) dancing randomly in time to the song.
As there are a lot of digitalised images and text in this video, it creates a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals, as they actually come up on the screen to be read.
The majority of the shots in this music video are in fact close ups, of each object which becomes visible, it creates emphasis that all of these are important, and play a big part in the video.
Boot Camp Task 4 - Analysis of Music Video: Narrative
The first video I am going to analyse is a narrative music video. It is called Teenage Dream by Katy Perry.
Firstly, the reason that this is a narrative video is because it tells a story of a couple going on a trip together and sticks to this throughout. It shows a typical love story. The girl in this relationship is in fact the artist Katy Perry, showing that aswell as this she is taking the part of this character. However, as she is lip synching the majority of the words throughout, this portrays some elements of performance.
The relationship between music and visuals is first noticed when the beat of the song kicks in, and the shot is a close up of the artist's face, headlining that she is the most important, as well as being the first person to appear in the video. This close up lasts for 12 seconds as they drive along in the car, whilst she lip synchs the first part of the song and looks into the camera, as if she is trying to connect with the audience. As the chorus starts there is a shot of the other character with his foot on the pedal speeding up, reinforcing the fact that the song is also going to get more up beat, loud and and interesting.
Also, when Katy Perry starts singing the second verse, there is a shot of her and a lot of other characters at the beach, which demonstrates the lyrics 'We drove to Cali, and got drunk on the beach'. This comprehends with the visuals in the video, creating a relationship between the lyrics and visuals. The second time the chorus starts there is a shot of a group of young people jumping off a rock, as if to fit in with the music becoming again upbeat, and forming that relationship.
The majority of the shots in this music video are in fact close ups of the Katy Perry, especially whilst she is smiling, implying that she is the artist as well as the main character but as she also looks in to the camera it can create a feeling for the audience as if they can understand and relate to her more. Also as the song is upbeat these constant shots fit in with the rhythm.
Firstly, the reason that this is a narrative video is because it tells a story of a couple going on a trip together and sticks to this throughout. It shows a typical love story. The girl in this relationship is in fact the artist Katy Perry, showing that aswell as this she is taking the part of this character. However, as she is lip synching the majority of the words throughout, this portrays some elements of performance.
The relationship between music and visuals is first noticed when the beat of the song kicks in, and the shot is a close up of the artist's face, headlining that she is the most important, as well as being the first person to appear in the video. This close up lasts for 12 seconds as they drive along in the car, whilst she lip synchs the first part of the song and looks into the camera, as if she is trying to connect with the audience. As the chorus starts there is a shot of the other character with his foot on the pedal speeding up, reinforcing the fact that the song is also going to get more up beat, loud and and interesting.
Also, when Katy Perry starts singing the second verse, there is a shot of her and a lot of other characters at the beach, which demonstrates the lyrics 'We drove to Cali, and got drunk on the beach'. This comprehends with the visuals in the video, creating a relationship between the lyrics and visuals. The second time the chorus starts there is a shot of a group of young people jumping off a rock, as if to fit in with the music becoming again upbeat, and forming that relationship.
The majority of the shots in this music video are in fact close ups of the Katy Perry, especially whilst she is smiling, implying that she is the artist as well as the main character but as she also looks in to the camera it can create a feeling for the audience as if they can understand and relate to her more. Also as the song is upbeat these constant shots fit in with the rhythm.
Boot Camp Task 3 - Shoot Lip Synching
For this task, I got into a pair with Adam and we used a camera and a tripod to shoot ourselves lip singing the song LMFAO - Part Rock Anthem to then lip synch in Final Cut Pro with the real song.
We captured 5 different shots whilst filming ourselves doing this:
1. 2 Shot Mid Shot
2. 2 Way Mid Close Up
3. Low Angle Mid Long Shot
4. High Angle Long Shot
5. Close Up (Of 2 Step)
After doing this I then uploaded the footage, downloaded the song and imported these files into Final Cut. As we had only lip sung the chorus I needed to find this part of the song to lip synch the video to. I did these for each clip and soon my video was finished.
Here are some screen captures of what I did:
I then uploaded it to Youtube, here it is:
We captured 5 different shots whilst filming ourselves doing this:
1. 2 Shot Mid Shot
2. 2 Way Mid Close Up
3. Low Angle Mid Long Shot
4. High Angle Long Shot
5. Close Up (Of 2 Step)
After doing this I then uploaded the footage, downloaded the song and imported these files into Final Cut. As we had only lip sung the chorus I needed to find this part of the song to lip synch the video to. I did these for each clip and soon my video was finished.
Here are some screen captures of what I did:
I then uploaded it to Youtube, here it is:
Boot Camp Task 2 - Re-edit a Music Video
This is my re-edit of a student's work of The Fray - Absolute.
To do this task I had to go through each clip on Final Cut Pro, and then watch the video to match them up with the correct time in the song that they go. After a while I got the hang of it and all of the clips were fitting together well.
After matching up all of the clips I had then finished and watched it through to double check they were all in the right places. Once I had done this I then exported the video and uploaded it to Youtube, here it is:
To do this task I had to go through each clip on Final Cut Pro, and then watch the video to match them up with the correct time in the song that they go. After a while I got the hang of it and all of the clips were fitting together well.
After matching up all of the clips I had then finished and watched it through to double check they were all in the right places. Once I had done this I then exported the video and uploaded it to Youtube, here it is:
Boot Camp Task 1 - Photoshoot and Photoshop
Firstly, Beckie and I had a photoshoot, where we had lots of photos taken of us to then choose the best ones to use for this digipak task. We had many photos taken from all different angles with different lights and props such as a flower, a guitar and a microphone. This gave us more of a variety for when we created or digipak on Photoshop. We both chose a certain genre, mine was hipster, I took the image of the girl and 'Parade' to give me more of an idea of what to wear which turned out to be a floral playsuit, a denim jacket, heeled military boots, and some bracelets.
These are the photos which I chose to possibly use for my digipak:
This is my final front cover:
This is my final back cover:
Using Photoshop to create these 2 digipak covers, first of all I inserted the photo I wanted, and then used the Magic Eraser Tool to remove the background around me in the photo. Unfortunately it wasn't all removed automatically therefore I had to also use the Eraser Tool to finish it off so I just had an image of me with no background at all. I then found 2 floral patterned images from the internet and inserted them in a new layer. By dragging the layer including the image of me on top of the layer with the background in it, the photo of me was now on a background. I positioned the photo where I thought appropriate and then added text to make it look even more professional.
Sunday, 24 June 2012
Welcome!
Welcome to my A2 Media Studies blog, I hope you enjoy looking at it!
This year I will be working with Beckie Gordon as my partner to create our music video.
This year I will be working with Beckie Gordon as my partner to create our music video.
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