1st music video - newbie videographer

I'm pretty new to DSLR video - I picked up a T3i a few years back to start shooting video's for my business (I teach), but haven't actually gotten around to actually shooting for my company yet (hah!)

I have been experimenting with different lenses etc. and here is my first attempt at a video:



I used a few lenses - canon 50mm 1.4, Sigma 30mm 1.4 and a Tamron 17 - 50 2.8. The canon and sigma were used for every shot aside from the one with Tenille against the blue garage.

The focus on that particular shot (blue garage) is soft - primarily because it was so bright that day and I couldn't properly see the viewfinder to pull focus.

It was also my first shot at editing in FCPX. It was very easy! And I used the Ken Burns effect on the slider-type shots.

Opinions?

Ok, Sybersport, I’ll play along. First off, I liked it. As the piece progresses you won me over, mostly because the track grows on you, as does your star. A lot of songs are instantly forgettable, but this one has a certain something.

For your first time out shooting a music video, I’d say that’s pretty impressive. Coincidentally, I recently bought the same camera, but have had little or no time to play with it yet.

Your song is really two songs in one, or two styles; the BGirl hip hop & the emotional crooner. Not many can pull that off, but I think Tenille manages (even without the captain). It might be nice if we had two slightly more distinct video styles to differentiate those sections. She’s a classy lady as well as a streetwise girl who’s growing up. The costume changes add to this idea, but visually video-graphicaly, I wouldn’t mind a bit more help in post. You could experiment with various techniques for the hip-hop sections, maybe desaturated (even try B&W) or more camera movement. Speaking of which, the pace & flow of the editing & visuals is a touch slow for me on most of it. Now, I like that slower visual pace when she’s on the porch, with your lovely depth of field, but the long lingering shots against that garage door, do little if anything for me. Sure it’s an interesting texture, but she’s too close to it, so there’s no DOP (depth of field). I’d prefer if you shot that scene diagonally so we see that beautiful peeling paint fading off into a blur away from her. She needs to be a few feet away from the door & shoot it at about a 20 degree angle from the right of the door, so the foreground paint peel is in focus, but the background’s not. From this position, when she gets emotional & starts waving her arms, we could see what it looks like with her left hand reaching out to the peeled door to steady herself or smack it with deep feeling. Yes, some of these things might not work, but try more so you have more to work with in the editing room. The umpteenth time we return to the same garage door shot, we’re longing for more. The song deserves more.

The whole piece could use some color grading, again you might try changing that on the two sections. Variety adds interest which ups value. Of course added in balance, too much is… well, too much. But you could do with a bit more here.

Maybe try reversing the current grading, she’s a bit washed out in the exterior shots, the skin tone is bland, while you’re more saturated & vivid on the interiors. I wouldn’t mind a bit more richness outside when she has her more natural look, desaturate a bit on the interior shots, or at least the red. The overexposure on the exterior is screaming for added contrast, crushing the blacks while upping your greens & or blues just a touch could give you more of a cine look.

For me that bright red color on her lips is a bit much, she really is beautiful in the natural light on the porch, I’d tone the red color down a bit in those bright lipstick scenes. The cap left on the bed is cool, we feel she’s leaving New York. The giant swinging earrings in the early shot where she’s belly down on the bed, are a bit distracting at that distance, though they might work in a closeup. You might also think about insert shots or cutaways. She’s reading the letter, how about a closeup on some text. A closeup of a teardrop hitting the ink in slowmotion might work. Maybe she’s trying to write back, scrumples it & throws it at the bin. There’s nothing left to say, it’s over. How about while reading the letter, she crumples the pages as we see an iPhone lighting up on the bed, he’s trying to reach her, she’s not answering. Currently the letter has no postage, or return address, was it hand delivered? Is she sending it to him? A bit more exploration of these concepts thru insert shots adds emotional content. Or if he’s sending for her, she’s going to be with him, how about a plane or train ticket on the dresser? All these tiny components are emotional anchors which add depth to the scene, giving it more gravitas.

The Ken Burns you’ve added to the porch scenes, I’d prefer we were always moving in on those shots. At least one of them has us moving away. The song’s emotional, we need to be drawn in. Also you’ve timed it so it comes to a halt during the clip. I’d prefer not only are we always moving in on her (starting from around the same distance is ok), but we also always transition to another shot before the camera movement stops. This imparts to the viewer a continual approach, we’re perpetually being drawn to her emotionally, closer, deeper. Perhaps think about using this technique in concert with her lyrics, as she’s singing “You’ve got my heart…” that’s when we should be facing her head on moving in, not the side profile shot. Actually, I kind of like the idea of moving in slightly on almost all those exterior shots, whenever she’s crooning, we’re approaching. Even if we’re just zooming 5% over a 5 second clip, the subconscious picks up on the almost imperceptible move in. Not sure if you’re currently using the keyframed Ken Burns effect for your zooms in FCPX, but I would recommend Alex4D’s effect plugin for it as the control is excellent.

The Ken Burns zooms & pans are all stopping before the end of the shots, we should transition to the next shot while the movement is still happening. Keep us moving, flowing, not stopping & starting. Sure you have some static shots, but on the moving shots, keep us moving. Even some of your static shots, we could still add a slight zoom for our emotions. She’s reading a magazine, is that a wedding dress? We’re moving in, feeling what she’s thinking, next scene. How about we’re always moving in while she’s singing, but we’re panning while she’s rapping? That added with tweaked color shift or grading might make some nice contrasting styles for the 2 sections. Also during act 3 in one of her choruses you slip in a shot of her in hip-hop mode camera tilted down to her with cap, I’d lose that shot from the sequence there, it breaks our delineation.

This will probably draw the ire of some here, but I wouldn’t mind some light leaks, thru the windows inside, on the porch outside. Thru the trees during her walk, which I also feel goes a bit long, I’d prefer it shorter with you slowing the speed a bit more. Similarly in this train of thought, when she’s holding sustained notes in the singing sections, I’d prefer slightly more gentle crossfade transitions, with the harder cut edits going to our hip-hop section.

All in all, a fine piece, showcasing a very listenable track.
Thanks for sharing.









J. Matthew
Global•Watch•Media•Consulting
www.GWM2.com

Twitter - @GlobalWatchM3