Conventions of a music video

Cinematography 

For cinematography (camerawork), the main shots used in a music promo are close up shots and mid shots. This is so that not just the musician, but the musicians instrument can be included in the shot as well because it shows the audience that the performer is actually performing in the music video.

The close up shots are normally used of the vocalist, to give the viewer a 1 on 1 viewing with the vocalist and to make the viewer feel like the vocalist is telling them the lyrics.

Close up shots can also be used on the instruments to plug the make/brand of the instrument of any other content in the video, and also to show off that the guitarist may have a $99999 guitar, showing the audience that they’re in a way better than you, something that is regularly done in the pop promo.

Editing

Editing for a music video all depends on what type of music it is as the pace normally is linked with the tempo of the song.

For example in a metal song, the tempo will be 170+, resulting in a music video with lots of fast editing.

The editing also depends on the section of the song. The verse may have less camera cuts as the video may focus on the vocalist more, meaning the cuts are slower. However the chorus – breakdown may be on the guitarists, bassist and the drummer, meaning the editing has to be quick to give all of the musicians an equal time on camera.

Mise En Scene

Location

The location for the music video all depends again on the story behind the music video and what genre the music video is. It may also depend on the content of the story as well.

For example a pop promo is normally done in a studio and is caught by many different cameras. Whereas a metal video may be caught on one camera in a dark wood because it links in with the music video.

Lighting

Lighting in a music video is very important. Too much lighting, not just the performers are blinded but the camera will be burnt out, meaning there may be patches that look too bright when in fact it’s because the light has affected the lens.

Too little lighting and colour correction will be needed which result in too much noise being in the video.

Props

The props, like location, all depend on the lyrics of the song and the genre of the song.

For example, for a hip hop song, normally a car is involved and a lot of jewelry on both the women and the man is worn to show ‘bling’. This is done so that the ‘hip hop’ singers fit the stereotype of someone who is ‘hip hop’.

Narrative/Performance

It is very common in a music video to have either a narrative, a performance or both.

A narrative is introduced to give a story line to the audience and to engage them and make them want to watch the video to the end.

A performance is included to remind the viewer that they are musicians and they can play their instruments. It is also used to give the viewers a taste of what they are like live and to encourage them to come tao a gig.