There are several artists out there that make great music but when it comes to their music videos, the videos are not as great. Jackfroot believes that the quality of music videos should be just as important as the quality of the song.
Would you rather watch a low quality video that looks home made or a higher quality music video? Remember that this is filmmaking and the video should be able to express the song visually and artistically. Your viewers will thank you in the end.
5 Video Tips For Better Music Videos
1. Lighting – One of the most important things in video is proper lighting. Lighting is everything and can take a lot of time to learn and research, but Google is there to help you. There are certain fundamentals and guidelines to follow when it comes to lighting. After you learn the basics, feel free to be creative and play with the position and placement of lights.
One of the biggest flaws independent artists have are dark videos. Heck, you don’t even need expensive lighting equipment to do the job. Some simple lighting from your neighborhood Home Depot should do the trick. Better lighting = Better quality.
2. Setting – Choosing a setting that looks nice and also makes sense to the song is key. Don’t use your typical parking lot or home neighborhood as the simple background that everyone out there uses. If you’re going to shoot a music video, be different and go the extra mile to find nice places or backgrounds that would make the video simply look more appealing to viewers.
3. Editing – A great video also needs great editing. Does the cuts in the video make sense? Some music videos we’ve seen are cut too fast or not enough. Use your best judgement when it comes to editing a video. Also, learn how to do color correction and applying certain effects and filters. These do wonders and create an overall picture that fits the mood of the song properly.
4. Storyboard – A lot of artists out there simply just turn on a camera, point and shoot. This is great and everything, but we believe that music video are 10 times better with a story or some sort of meaning or concept behind it.
If you’re lost, write or draw up a storyboard or script on how you envision the music video. This will help you better organize your thoughts and will lead to a great music video.
5. Better shots – A shaky handheld music video is something we’ve seen coming from a lot of independent artists out there on YouTube. Remember that this looks very amateur and home made looking. To get better shots, a tripod will do the trick for most things.
You’re able to pan the camera left and right, up and down, and get basic still shots. If you want to take it up a notch, there are stabilizers, jibs, cranes, and several other types of camera equipment you can invest in to produce better shots.
Overall, be different and stand out! Focus on improving your video production as you begin working on new ones. Keep these 5 basic tips in mind and you’ll be on your way to better quality and production values in your videos. If you don’t have the time to learn more about filmmaking and video production, you can always click up with a great video producer and editor.
Find someone who knows what they’re doing when it comes to directing and editing. Keep in mind that if a photo is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a million words or more!
