Music Video Tips Needed :)

C

codenameent

Member
Hey everyone! I'm going to be shooting a music video for a buddy of mine who is a hip hop artist. Most of it will be a club scene. Any advice or suggestions as far as filming or editing? Tip or tricks?

Thanks in advance!

Brian
 
Are you lighting the club scene, or is this more of a live performance piece where the artist is performing at a club? There are big differences between the two.

Best advice, get a signed contract and deposit before filming (especially for a friend).

What kind of crew will you have? If is is more of a one man show, you may want to forget the Letus.


Jason
 
Thanks for the response! This is actually a free gig I'm doing as a favor to him so i won't have to worry about a contract this time around. He's trying to achieve this with a low low budget. We will use as much of the club lighting as we can. He will be on stage for most of it with some scenes in the crowd and bar. I will have a crew of me plus 1 or 2. I've yet to come across mixing Letus footage and straight cam footage. Any recommendations?
 
Letus footage is generally softer and sometimes add a color shift depending on the lens used. Create a scene file that mimics the bare lens (my HVX letus scene file: +4 detail, +3 color +2 coring, -5 Mast Ped...etc). Even though the DoF is drastically different, the two cams should inter cut well.

You will need a certain ambient light level to overcome the light loss of the DVX and Letus. Talk with the lighting guy about that light level before starting the shoot.

Shoot everything Manual.

White balance before starting.

Remind the Hip Hop artist not to wear white (especially if he/she is african american), red or busy patterns. Large brimmed hats can be difficult to light as well.

Set up the tracks he is lip syncing with onto something that can be tracked through easily. In fact, you should set up markers to be able to jump to chorus, v1, v2...etc.

Capture a master sequence of the whole song first - maybe just a wide shot with little or no movement. Then go in for Hand Held, focus rac, snap zoom, whip pan and other trick shot cut-aways. Try to get ahold of a basic dolly or jib for a few tasty shots.


Jason
 
Letus can look great for music videos, just make sure you always always check the back focus.

The music video I shot on the letus is showcased in their gallery,.. kinda cool I thought!

I agree with what Jason said. I hate hate hate white shirts,.. eww.

We had a little budget for lights, thats about it. We shot on my HVX-200 with the Letus Extreme. If you care to view it here's the link: Lines are faded

Good luck!
 
Thanks again guys! Great advice

I have a track dolly and a jib already (which I love using!) Up until this point I have been really focused on just shooting live bands with 2 cams and not on actually music video production. This will be my first shoot using the Letus in an actual scene (Up till now its just been practicing)

What kind of lighting do you recommend for the Letus?
 
Difinitely light it more than you think you should including the clubs lights. You can have the talent lit with a few 1ks and it still look like its a club scene then gloss it up in post.
 
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