how do you make a music video

  • Thread starter theserenationstation
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theserenationstation

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i am confused on making a music video any hints
 
I guess start with a camera, a tripod always gives a pro look but also cost pro-$. I've done some filming at school, and there are guidelines to shooting footage, different angles and shots and such that you can probably find great tutorials of with a google search.

But i guess if I where to film a standard industry music video of just the artists I would find interesting locations and film them lipsyncing, (only if there are vocal on your song of course) if not I guess instrument-syncing? lol. Then time it to the audio track on your editting software and cut the different shots and scenes to your liking.

Then again, Im no videographer and i've never done it before so i coulda missed the mark by a mile. good luck

Peace -Jolt
 
this is like saying i want to learn to cook any hints. there are a million ways to go about it and tons of things to learn in this type of "general" question. I would say take a notebook and hit up your local book store and grab some coffee and start reading mags and taking notes and maybe grab a basic book on video production and editing. if your brand new the "dummies" books are actually not bad.
 
I say just jump in man. just start making videos and you will learn what you and other people like. I hate windows movie maker. I use Sony Vegas. You can just get the trial version from them.
 
I saw some good videos on youtube you can try what they suggest and see if it really works...
practice techniques in general before doing a full production video.. that's my plan
 
I think the best advice for someone just starting in video production is to just go for it. Try and do the best you possibly can with the materials that you have available to you and learn from there. Shooting video, just like playing guitar, takes practice to learn what to do and what not to do and there's no substitute for putting in the time it takes to figure those things out.

If you're looking for more practical advice than that, I would suggest just a few things:

1) If you are completely new to video, consider going to your local college and asking a professor in the media design department if there are any video students looking for a project. Most of the time, you'll find that they're stoked to be able to offer that opportunity to their students and you'll get a video done by someone who at least has a little bit of experience.

2) If you are filming it yourself, make sure that your shots are well lit. Good lighting is key and it's really hard to recover from bad lighting in post.

3) Color correct your video in post. There are a million videos on color correction in different programs (just ask Google), but essentially, if you bring the saturation up, the whites up, and the blacks down, you will get a richer looking image. This is obviously an oversimplification, but if you try it, I think that you'll notice that your footage looks noticeably better.

(You can check out a sample of my video work on YouTube: /watch?v=XIud6FskTiE)

Hope this helps.

Cheers.

Dana
 
I second what dana shockin said. Lighting is key but not necessary as long as your camera is fairly good. If your lookin to get a pro look on your videos use colour correction and filters.

best video editing for pc would be adobe premiere, after effects (for animations/effects) sony vegas

an as everyone said just get into it, its more about experience in this industry, obviously you have to now how to edit the video and compile effcts (if needed)
 
KineticBeats said:
I second what dana shockin said. Lighting is key but not necessary as long as your camera is fairly good. If your lookin to get a pro look on your videos use colour correction and filters.

best video editing for pc would be adobe premiere, after effects (for animations/effects) sony vegas

an as everyone said just get into it, its more about experience in this industry, obviously you have to now how to edit the video and compile effcts (if needed)
Click to expand...

Hmmm to get that pro look Lighting is KEY, you can still get a cool video using ambient light (downtown city lights) looks awesome but if ur looking for that pro look lighting is key.

www.mediapeeps.com Demo reel
 
Thanks [F_or_DEAF]. Appreciate the love.

And L-Trackz makes a good point. Use natural light if you don't have access to a light kit. It's free and it tends to look awesome on video. Particularly if you shoot near sunset (or sunrise, but who the hell wants to get up that early?).

Dana
 
Since I have not got the skill for editing videos, any tips on making your video professional looking even if you shot it wholly or straight thru (don't know the right term), without ever editing it.
 
bongski said:
Since I have not got the skill for editing videos, any tips on making your video professional looking even if you shot it wholly or straight thru (don't know the right term), without ever editing it.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "straight through without any editing." You're probably going to have to put the footage in some kind of editing program at some point (at the very least to put a good quality version of the song behind the footage you shot).

This might not be the answer that you're hoping for, but I'm going to be honest: It's going to be difficult (though not impossible) to get a good video if you don't do any editing at all. It's possible to make one long shot work, but you really need to have a solid concept down. Here's an example from a group called One Block Radius (although, they obviously did some editing to the shot in post):

metacafe.com /watch/782312/loud_and_clear_by_one_block_radius/ (remove the space, obviously)

Consider asking around at your local college. See if any media arts professors could use a project for one of their students (in general, teachers are just as happy to have the project to offer as you are to get a video done for free).

If that doesn't work and you don't know anyone who has ever done any video editing at all, there are plenty of tutorials on the basics of video editing (just ask Google) that should give you enough info to make a simple video in whatever program you are using.

Other than that, the most important thing is that you just go for it. Any music video is better than no music video and at the very least, you'll get valuable experience for next time.

If you have a concept for the video and don't mind sharing it, that would make it easier to offer practical advice on how to make your specific project work.

Hope this helps.

Dana
 
if this is your first video project then you need to put your best foot forward. every cat with a DSLR or iphone4 is a camera operator now... you need to make your first project COUNT as you are judged by this down stream.

it does not have to be dramatic and over the top but it does need to be photographed WELL.

contrary to what some others have stated, lighting is KEY (no pun intended). talent needs to be lit well.

TIP: look at your favorite videos and turn off the sound. dont have nay music in the background either.. just quiet. now LOOK at the video with no sound. pay attention to the lighting. now it could be dark in some videos for dramatic effect and you should be able to point this out. however overall the video will be lit..

dont shoot in high noon or when the sun is direct above unless you have sufficient diffusion to knock the shadows out.

use HMI light wherever possible (may have to rent this) or flicker free florescent's.

but my man above me is right, get a concept first and storyboard it as this will dictate your lightning and shooting style.

these days there is really no right or wrong way to shoot a video but there are some rules that should not be broken or else you will be perceived as a amateur...
 
sure its subjective. however if you are using celluloid, the lighting scheme is going to be much different than if you are using video.

Film emulsion has more latitude than video and you can push film a little more in the highlights whereas video will just go belly up around the knee of its latitude.

and within various film emulsions you have faster speed film and slower speed film and those have different lighting characteristics.

but in the end you MUST see the talent! the talent MUST look as beautiful as he or she can to sell the gag (the music video).

a music video is nothing more than a commercial for the record label..period. talent has already been given an advance and its up to the talent to make sure they do their best to sell their wares (music, their clothing line, etc.. whatever they have contracted with the label). simply going outside with a iphone or a sub prosumer camera and just using "available light" is not going to cut it unless your only intent is to show it to your friends or on youtube. music videos are a big business with lots of them costing in the millions of dollars.

as for what rules to be or not to be broken, that sir/ma'am depends on many factors before that question can be answered.

are you shooting on video? film?

if film what speed? what lenses? are the lenses fast or slow? different light is required for different lenses and even still if using different film emulsion.

if video, what color space? 4:4:4 ? 4:2:2?

are you shooting progressive? interlaced?

what frame rate? undercrank? overcrank?

exterior shoot? interior? different light is required for each setup.

those questions need to be tackled before you roll one frame...
 
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crank this and crank that .... I have no idea what you're talking about I have alot of research to do lol...off to the local library
 
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