Shooting Schedule (13th-22nd February)

Since I only got enough footage filmed to put together half of my music video, I am planning on filming more footage during the half term holiday in February (13th - 22nd). I could be filming earlier, however this is the only time Jess will be able to make it here for a length of time where I can get enough footage filmed. I am also planning to film in various other locations therefore, prior to filming, I will be looking over my existing storyboard and planning anywhere where I should change/add footage.

Possible Places My Video Will Feature/Be Advertised

My music video will feature on YouTube as this is the site that most people use to music videos on, especially my target audience who are late teens/young adults. YouTube is also the most accessible online video viewing tool for my audience as it is free to use. While YouTube does restrict certain videos to be viewed, depending on the viewers age, my video does not contain any explicit language or imagery, therefore it is a suitable video to be posted on the site. The site is also interactive as viewers can like the video, share it to various other social media platforms (facebook, twitter,tumblr, pinterest etc) and comment. Therefore this would be the most suitable site my music video could feature on because my music video could go on to reach further audiences in other countries, thus promoting my artist.

Through sharing my music video on YouTube, it will then be advertised across various other social media sites, such as those I previously mentioned. These sites are also commonly used by the artist themselves who post about the upcoming release of albums or songs (through text posts to  behind the scenes images). Social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram would therefore be the most appropriate for my music video to be advertised to a wide mainstream audience. Tumblr could be used to reach a more niche audience, therefore advertising my music video to people who associate themselves more closely to the genre.

First Draft of Music Video

This is my first draft of my video. I am very pleased with the way it looks as it is how I imagined it to be. I have only produced half of the video for my first draft because, while I did have more footage to use, I felt it would be too repetitive and the video would get boring. Therefore I am going to draw up a plan of what else I can include in the video and hopefully have it filmed in February. There a few things I could alter such as the editing at 0:58- the edit from Jess holding to taking the note is not smooth and needs to be re-edited. I am also not entirely sure whether the colour correction of the video is good. While it worked for the first two rough edits I did, I feel it is too much for a whole- this is something I will look more into.

Tutorials I Have Looked at While Editing- Compiled List

 In order to get practice in editing, and using the software, I downloaded the 30 day free trail on my laptop at home. After making my first draft edit, I found this video explaining how to export the edit and the different types of formats the video could be exported into. This was just a simple video to help me understand the different aspects of video.


I used this tutorial to help me create a sepia effect. Watching this video helped me understand each effect I had to use, how you apply it to the sequence and change different aspects of it.

This is just another effects tutorial, explaining additional effects I could add to the video to enhance the old film look. While I haven't followed this as much as the other, it has helped me understand the types and uses of different tools on Premier Pro.


This tutorial came in handy when I was finalizing my first draft. It simply shows how to make a title fade in and out. I found it useful because, although I knew how to add a title, I did not know how to accomplish simple effects like this.

Editing

Now that I have the basic knowledge of using Premier Pro, I feel confident and comfortable to begin editing my music video together. I plan on using my media lessons and any spare frees/lunchtimes to edit and have my first draft completed by the 12th December.

Questionnaire for Rough Edit 2

Again, the results of this were great and has given me confidence in editing my first draft together as I know that what I want to do is going to work and look good.

Rough Edit 2

I have put together another couple of shots to practice syncing the audio of the footage to the music. By doing this I now have more confidence when it comes to editing my final video as I know I can accurately sync the audio. Again, I will be conducting a small questionnaire/tally to see what my target audience think of it and if there is anything I can improve upon.

Questionnaire for Rough Edit 1

The outcome for my first rough edit is really good. Now that I know that people think it has been edited well, I feel comfortable continuing to do another rough edit before I put together my final first draft.

Rough Edit 1

This is my first edit using Premier Pro. I have only edited together the first few shots of my video to compare it to my storyboard and figure out if I have the timings correct. I think this rough edit is successful as the outcome is what I wanted and I will now have no problem editing the rest together. Doing this has given a bit of practice use the editing software and I am now more comfortable and confident with the rest of the process of editing. I am going to produce a small survey in order to get other's feedback of the edit, allowing me to make any changes early in the process. Having other people's opinions will also hopefully give me constructive criticism which will help me improve my final edit- it may also be that there is nothing I should change. I am also planning on producing another rough edit which will give me practice in syncing the audio and video together.

Creating and Adding a Title

Using the tutorial, shown at the bottom of this, I have added a title to the beginning shot I want to use for my music video. I will be conducting a small tally on whether people think the colour and font I have chosen suit the genre of the video and looks good. Below is a step-by-step of how I did this.

I used this simple and easy to understand tutorial to help me discover the effect of making a title fade in and out. Before watching this tutorial I had no idea to accomplish this.

Editing A Sepia Effect Onto A Video Clip

Firstly, I searched 'RGB' in the effects search box and dragged and drop 'RGB Colour Corrector onto the video clip, on the timeline, of the first shot of the video. I then change the Gamma to 1.6, Pedestal to 0.2 and Gain to 0.8. This changed the overall brightness and levels of darkness of the image.

Gamma: Affects the slope in the colour curve to lighten or darken the image overall, with minimal effect on the bright and dark areas already present in the image.

Pedestal: Affects the low-end cut off value of the curve. Increasing the Pedestal value pushes pixels towards the lighter end of the curve. The Pedestal value is added to the colour value of each pixel.

Gain: Affects the high-end cut off value of the curve. Increasing the Gain value lightens the image uniformly.

Next, I searched 'Tint' and dragged and drop this onto the video clip. I selected the colour picker box next to 'Map Black To' and chose a muddy brown colour (as told and shown in the tutorial). I did the same with 'Map White To' but chose a brighter colour. With the HTML code of each colour, I can copy and paste it when adding the effect to other clips instead of trying to match the colour. I then made sure to change the Amount to Tint percentage so it didn't look like a block colour had just been put over the video. I changed this to 40%- also suggested by the tutorial. Finally, I rendered the footage. by pressing enter, in order for the video to play smoothly.


This is the tutorial I used to help alter the colour of the video. While the colour of my video isn't the same as that in the video, I think it still effective.

Introduction to Editing

Video 101: Editing Basics from Vimeo Video School on Vimeo.

Since I have never used any form of editing software before, I have no idea where to start. I found this video which is a simple introduction to the basics of editing. I will also be looking at downloading a 30 day free trial of Premier Pro in the next week or so to get some basic practice, while I continue to research editing techniques, before I use an editing suite in college.

Title Fonts

Since I want to edit a title onto the beginning shot of my music video, I have looked into the different fonts I could use, how this can be done and some people who commonly use this technique.

Here are examples of a few directors whose videos always have text at the beginning of the music videos.
Alexander Brown-http://brownboy.co.uk/music-videos/

I particularly like this use of title as the fonts used are usually quite subtle. In some videos, the use of a title introduces it as a short-film or just allows the audience to understand that there is a narrative. For example, in Carl Barat's 'Run With The Boys' the video begins with 'Carl Barat' 'Presents' 'Run With The Boys' in three separate shots that then slowly introduce the beginning of the narrative.
Since my own video is going to have a narrative, it may therefore be useful if I add a title.

http://fontsinuse.com/in/1/industries/43/music
This is a great site to look through because the site shows the names of the fonts used on different artists' albums. While they are for music videos, it may help me when looking at fonts for my digipak.

This is YouTube video I found giving a quick tutorial on how to add text to a video on Premiere Pro.


https://www.video2brain.com/en/lessons/add-a-simple-title-some-fades-and-music
This is another tutorial I found which goes further and shows how to add to make the text fade in and out. This would be useful to do on my video as it begins quite slow, therefore I should make the title appear slowly to give a sense of flow.

Filming Day 5 - The Old Town

Going back to film in the Old Town on Friday benefited us as, at the time we arrived, the weather was in fact better than expected. Although we didn't film in the original street, the new location was more beneficial as there was brighter lighting and the street was wider which allowed me set up the tripod more efficiently, to get more various shots, and natural effects were created against the camera (flares/reflections).

 It was also more representative of my genre as more of the street could be seen and the lighting made the whole street look a bit more old. The only problem with filming was the interruption of cars and people walking in front of the camera. However, this was still better than filming in the original street as I could easily change the type of shot and place any one out of shot. It also made sense to have people in the background of some shots because I was filming Jess busking, therefore she needed some sort of an audience.

Filming Day 4 - Planet Coffee

Filming in Planet Coffee was very successful as we were able to film the shots we needed without any disturbance. Since we filmed in the upstairs room, not many people got in our way and the room was generally quiet enough for us to work in. Some shots, however, did have to be changed (for example the angle of the camera) in order to respect the decision of some people to not be filmed. A waitress was also kind enough to feature in the video by serving Jess her tea. I do not, however, have a photo to add her to the cast list as she did not want to be identified. Over all, filming today went to plan meaning that we won't have to go back to Planet Coffee.

Update

Since sending a message to Planet Coffee, they asked me to quickly phone them to let them know when it is that I want to film and what type of filming I will be doing. All has been agreed on and confirmed I will film on Friday. I also told them I may briefly pop in to film some test shots and, again, all was agreed on.

Filming Day 3-River Bank/Queens Gardens

This morning's filming on the river bank went as planned as the weather turned out as predicted, although it was fairly windy. However, we were still able to completely film everything in that location for the video.

Footage in Queens Gardens was also completed, although the weather went dull again but this didn't overly affect the filming. Our schedule is still pushed back because, although we returned to film, not all the footage was completed because it started to get dark and my camera battery began to run low again. Therefore we are going to go back on Friday to finish.

Filming Day 2- The Old Town

Filming in the Old Town didn't go to plan as I had stupidly forgotten to charge my camera the previous night. A few shots were filmed but it does mean the schedule has been pushed back again and we will have to return to town to finish filming. This also meant that the filming in Queens Gardens couldn't be done. Instead of not filming in the Old Town and wasting a day, I decided we should go and film some test shots in Planet Coffee in order to be more prepared for the following filming day. This would then mean that we won't have to bother the owners again by having to go back and film more footage.

Test Shots in Planet Coffee:

I did this test shot as a way of practising pulling focus and, using my both story board drafts as guides, looking at different angles I can use for a particular shot in which pulling focus may be more effective.
As shown, doing this test shot showed me a simple mistake I could have made when filming on the actual day.

Filming Day 1-Sunday 26th

Today, our plan was to just film a few test shots to be able to get an idea of and plan exactly what to film during the following week on our scheduled filming day for the ending scene. Our schedule has been pushed forward as we decided to film the footage, for the actual video, while we were in the area to save us having to travel back. This benefited us because everything was set up and we had all the props needed. The weather was also fair which meant we wouldn't have to travel back on a day that had worse weather.

Test Shot Filmed:

Test shots

Here are number of test shots I have taken in order to help me decide the different types of shots I want to incorporate into my video. Doing these test shots has also helped me understand the cinematography of music videos better and the filming technique of each shot. The ways in which I can improve when it comes to filming the video have also been pointed out by doing this.

Tracking:

This first test shot was to test and practice the tracking equipment. Backwards tracking is a conventional type of camera movement in many music videos and is something I am considering to include in my music video. With a bit more practice using the equipment, I should be able to get clean shots without any disturbance.

Pulling Focus:
Since I am using my own camera to film the music video, I am able to use another cinematography technique in relation to depth of field. Pulling focus is changing the focus of the camera while filming. I did this by turning the focus ring on the lens of my camera and changed the focus of the camera from the foreground to the background. Using this technique in my video will allow me to make the viewers focus on a certain aspect of the shot which will hopefully develop their understanding of the narrative.

Through doing these test shots, I now know that I definitely want to include pulling focus. I may change the type of shot when it comes to filming but I will use test shots 2 and 8 for reference. I have decided I will not be using the tracker as the test shot was not successful and the locations where I want to film will not be suitable for the equipment to be used in.

Weather Forecast/Production Plan

The best time to film on Monday will be from 12pm to 4pm. Although it may change in the course of the few hours, I will still be able to get footage with good lighting as it id forecast to be sunny.

I need to be efficient with filming on Tuesday to ensure most of it is done before the weather changes. The morning is the best time to film and I should be able to get some good footage with good lighting. Fortunately, this morning weather will allow me to follow conventions as there may be sun reflections and  the sepia effect will work better.

The weather won't affect the filming because I have been given permission to film in Planet Coffee at half past 11 and there will only be a small part outside. I will still make sure, however, to keep an eye on the weather to know the best time to film.

Production Plan:

Sunday 26th - Gathering Props (+for Following Dates), Test Shots for ending scene

Monday 27th - The Old Town, Queen's Gardens, 1pm-4pm

Tuesday 28th - River Bank/Sutton Bridge, 9am-12:30pm

Wednesday 29th - Planet Coffee/Newland Avenue, 11am-1pm

Friday 31st - Rockford Grove-Ending Scene

More filming may need to be done on Friday and Saturday.

Camera Rigs

Do More With Your DSLR II: Building a Rig from Vimeo Video School on Vimeo.

This is a simple video I found while looking at Vimeo Video School's page, showing various types of rigs. While I don't think I will end up needing a rig to shoot my music video, I still found this interesting and can use it for future reference. It has also given me an incite into ways in which videos can be filmed.

Permission To Film

I have contacted the people who run the Planet Coffee page on Facebook, asking if it will be okay to film in the coffee shop. This s to make sure that, if all goes ahead, they will be expecting us and at a time of their convenience. The owner of Planet Coffee is also related to one of my friends, therefore giving me an advantage as I will be more likely to be given permission.

Equipment Needed For Filming

I have decided to use my own DSLR Camera (Pentax K-500) as I will be able to use it at any time when I need it and will not have to worry about not been able to borrow one from college. The camera also shoots in HD and has a lot more features (18-55mm focal length, manual focus, focus ring) which I can use for more varied ways to film my music video. I will also feel more comfortable using my own camera as I know how to use it and the filming process won't be held up.

I will also be using my own Hama 32GB SDHC Card which will make it easier for me to transfer the footage and edit it on the editing suite. 

I will also need a tripod to support the camera for steady shots. I will, however, have to borrow this from college.

Props List

Health and Safety Risk Assessment

I have looked over my story board and picked out potential hazards that may occur when filming. As shown, they aren't likely to occur but in doing this I have become more aware of hazards that could happen and potentially be fatal. I will now also know I should deal with a situation that arises and ways in which I can prevent them from happening.

Story Board Animatic

Story Board 2

This is my second draft of my storyboard. I have changed most things from my original storyboard because of the reasons mentioned in my previous post. I feel this develops the narrative a lot better and more shots means it is more in time wih the song. It is, however, unfinished as I think it will be more beneficial to put together only half of the video for my first draft because I can then easily change things without having to re-film the whole thing.

Problems With First Story Board

After going out to begin filming test shots, I realised that many shots in the story board would be very difficult to film. The first test shot Jess and I tried to film was Shot 4.

 
Here I wanted the camera to follow Jess walking past the note, attached to a lamp post, following her eye line to look at the note. This proved very difficult, as shown in
the video, because I am obviously smaller than her and so it was difficult for me to be able to track
what was actually happening on the screen. The movement of the camera was also very unstable and not smooth enough and when turning to focus on the note, it went out of focus. This means I won't be able to include this in my music video and will need to alter the existing story board.
Another problem with the story board is health and safety risks.

Shot 22 shows the camera (and me) placed in tree to show a low angle of Jess taking the note attached to a branch. This would be a safety risk as there is a possibly I might fall, possibly breaking myself and my camera. I will not be able to film this as I think it would be too dangerous and I'm not the best at climbing trees. Another problem with this shot is that there aren't enough trees suited to climb in the location I want to film at. Filming at the bus stop down Newland Avenue will also pose a problem because it is a busy street and trying to film a long shot will be very difficult- if I am to film it from across the street cars driving past will block it, there will be too many people walking past and some people may not want to be filmed.
A final problem with the story board is that it does not swap between locations enough. For example, from Shot 10 to 17 the only location shown is the Old Town. I feel this doesn't allow the narrative to develop and showing the same location for more than 5 shots will make it boring and uninteresting.

Story Board- Draft 1

This is my first story board for my music video. I will, however need to change parts and add more shots because it didn't match the timings of the song exactly and there is still extra time after the story board finishes.

Genre Theory

Chosen Costume

This is another quick tally I created which I passed around my media class, in order to get some feedback on the costume the artist should wear in the music video. Below is another photo of the most tallied costume and examples of where else similar items of clothing have been used, supporting why I should incorporate the chosen costume in my music video.

Narrative Change

My new chosen narrative will be based on a mysterious love story. The artist will not only be part of the narrative but will perform as well in the main location, the Old Town where she will be seen to be busking. The story will follow the artist through her day, as she finds notes along the way- since the notes will show parts of the lyrics, they will show what this mysterious person is trying to say to the artist, almost like confessing his love for her. However, the audience will not be shown who the person, sending the notes, is and will not be revealed- there will be some shots which will let the audience know there is a person behind the notes but the only thing they will be able to deduce from them is his gender which I will portray through the use of mise-en-scene.
My aim for creating this narrative is to make it mysterious yet develop a romance between two people who may or may not have already met, therefore keeping the audience engaged and thinking. The ending will be closed as the artist will go home to where the notes have led her to. However, it can also be open as it will allow the audience to wonder and decide for themselves who the mysterious person is.
Some people watching the music video may have a different view of the narrative as they may think the mysterious person is stalking the artist in a way. If my music video has this effect on people's interpretations, it will support Stuart Hall's audience theory that there is not one way in which a media text can be read, since different people experience different things throughout their lives which will affect the way they read a media text.

Costume Ideas

Based on my initial mood boards of costumes, I have put together a few costumes which I think portray the genre. I have taken into account Jess' comfort zone regarding the type of clothing she's wears, therefore I have not made her look extremely girly like some female artists in the music industry. I have also kept make-up in each one minimal.
The outfit I intend to use is the second one because I feel it is the outfit which portrays the old, farm-like style the best. In addition to the indie/folk style, the Dr. Martens represent a more rock-like style.

I will be conducting a tally in order to get my target audience's opinion on which one I should use and not be biased towards the decision. This will make me feel confident using the chosen outfit as I will know it will be the one the viewers would expect to see in an indie/folk rock music video.

Conventional Costumes

Male:

Female:

Here I have put together typical outfits of artists in the Folk Rock genre for both males and females. Although I my music won't feature a man as the main cast, I think it is still in important to look at a man's conventional costume in order to create more of an idea of how the outfits portray the genre. These costumes show me that the style of genre is very simple. While most female artists can be girly, some tend to take a more masculine look by wearing jeans and chequered shirts. Little make up is worn, again keeping it simple. Both genders give an old, farm like look and tend to be more sophisticated than the style of the Indie genre. For my music video, I will follow a similar style of the female outfit.

Audience Research/Results of Questionnaires

This emaze presentation shows the the outcome of the questionnaires I conducted to produce an overall collection of data showing the general target audience and their requirements. I have produced this data in various ways, such as; pie chart, bar graphs and listing percentages. I conducted these questionnaires to be ab;e to understand what my audience are expecting from my products.

Cast List

 

Jess Jones

I decided to ask my best friend to feature in my music video as the artist and she agreed to take part. I think Jess would be perfect for the role as she is a musician herself, therefore there will be no problems when filming in terms of how it looks when she plays which will then help me when it comes to editing. The fact that she know what she's doing when it comes to performing will make the process of filming quicker and create a more convincing performance as it will be similar to that of a famous artist.

However, there is a problem with her been in the video. Filming may be difficult as she lives across the country. If I can plan in time, we should be able to film during a half term holiday. This will just mean I will have to make sure my storyboard and planning is absolutely determined and I don't make any changes.

Waitress- A waitress will also be needed for a small shot in the video. However, it may be best to ask on the day if anyone would be willing to help as we cannot guarantee they will be working on the day we film. Therefore I cannot provide a name or photo and the person who does help will not be identified as they will be more willing to take part.

Location Shots

I have taken photos of the locations I have chosen to shoot my music video in. All of these, I believe, convey the folk/rock genre well as they are all located outside and either have an old feel to them or are in open spaces which is a conventional location for music videos of the genre.

Old Town:

Cobble Street

Problem with location: the 'To Let Signs'

This would be a more suited street to shoot the video in as there aren't any unwanted objects and things I cannot move. The street is still cobbled and you can see the old buildings to the left, reflecting the old-like style of the genre.

Queens Gardens:

In Queen's Gardens, there is a lot more open, green, space. I chose this location because open space is conventional in a music video of the indie genre but I didn't want a location that looked derelict. The greenary of Queen's Gardens makes it look a lot more appealing to use.

River Bank-Sutton Bridge:

Again, using a river bank as a location shows conventions through the open space and greenery and looks appealing in the correct weather. While it is empty, it doesn't appear eerie or a place where you would feel uneasy but a more welcoming, attractive environment.

Planet Coffee-Newland Avenue:

Planet Coffee is a small coffee shop on Newland Avenue. I have decided to use this as a filming location because it attract many university students and people aged between 17-25 (although other ages do visit as well)- similar to the age range of my target audience. Therefore it may be more appealing to the viewers as it is somewhere where they may associate with.

Narrative Theory: Applied To An Existing Music Video