Learn how to shoot music videos from a man who has shot and edited over 150 of them!
Slow motion is one of the most effective techniques for making music videos feel more cinematic and visually dynamic. Used correctly, it can emphasize movement, create dramatic moments, reveal details that happen too quickly in real time, and give performance footage a completely different feeling. However, getting good slow-motion footage involves more than simply slowing…
Lighting is one of the biggest factors separating flat-looking video from professional-looking footage. Even with a high-quality camera and expensive lenses, poor lighting can make a music video look dull, inconsistent, or amateur. One of the most useful lighting setups to understand is three-point lighting. It is a simple and adaptable technique that can be…
Choosing the right location can completely change the way a music video feels. A good location can give you production value before you’ve even turned on a light. It can establish the mood, create depth, provide interesting backgrounds, influence the color palette, and give the artist a visual world to exist in. You also don’t…
A good music video usually starts with a good plan. That doesn’t mean every music video needs a massive production schedule, a giant crew, or a 30-page treatment. Some of the best music videos are incredibly simple. What matters is knowing what you’re trying to make before you start spending time and money making it….
A good music video usually starts long before the camera comes out. A lot of problems that happen on a music video shoot can be prevented during pre-production. Missing locations, unclear concepts, bad lighting conditions, not having enough time, forgetting props, running out of battery, or realizing halfway through the shoot that you don’t have…
Lighting is one of the biggest factors separating a music video that looks intentional from one that simply looks like it was recorded. You can have a great camera, expensive lenses, a high-resolution image, and a talented artist, but if the lighting isn’t working, the footage can still look flat. On the other hand, you…
When people say they want a music video to look “cinematic,” they usually mean they want it to feel more like a film and less like somebody simply pointed a camera at an artist and hit record. The good news is that you don’t need a Hollywood budget to get there. A cinematic music video…
If you’re getting ready to shoot a music video, one of the easiest things to overthink is your camera settings. There are a ridiculous number of settings on modern cameras. Frame rate. Shutter speed. Aperture. ISO. White balance. Picture profiles. Autofocus. Resolution. Bitrate. It can get overwhelming pretty quickly. The good news is that you…
You don’t need a huge budget to make a good music video. I’ve always thought that one of the biggest mistakes artists make is assuming that a professional-looking music video requires an expensive camera, a giant crew, a bunch of actors, and ten different locations. It doesn’t. A bigger budget gives you more options, but…
If you’ve ever looked through your camera settings and wondered whether you should be shooting at 24 FPS, 30 FPS, or 60 FPS, you’re definitely not the only one. Frame rate can make a surprisingly big difference in how your footage looks and feels. For music videos, the choice between 24 FPS, 30 FPS, and…