In order to enhance my music video and make it look as professional as possible, after I had edited the music video, I added many a number of effects via the video editing software “Adobe Premier Pro”.
- Titles at beginning. I added two titles at the beginning of my music video, the first being Ben’s stage name “Benjamin John”, between 0:07-0:11, at the same time as the white fade. This establishes the music video as Ben’s video, so the audience can start to form preconceptions about what the video will be like. The title fades in and out, and is in the same font as is used on the CD cover and on his website, so there is intertextuality, and links between the 3 products. This title is also in black and white, but is in a graffiti style font so it can be seen easily, as it is in the centre of the screen. The second title comes at 0:11-0:13, and states the name of the song. It is in a different font to Ben’s name, and is in the same font as is on the CD cover. It also fades in and out, but because the background isn’t plain, but is footage, I had to place it in the right hand corner, where there isn’t anything to overlap, so it could be clear.
- Black and White tint to footage. Music videos in black and white are typical of the Indie genre, and while I wanted to stand out from other videos of this genre, I also wanted some of the codes and conventions to be the same. Also, in the original footage, there was a lot of bright colour from the pavements, people’s clothes, shops etc, which could take audience’s attention away from the focus of the video, i.e. Ben and Lucy.
-Fade to white at beginning. Between 0:07 and 0:11, the first piece of footage fades to a white screen, to mark the beginning of the ‘story’. This makes the video seem like a memory, as if Ben is just remembering it, or like a dream. This also makes the title of Benjamin John stand out, because it is a graffiti style font.
- Cross fades. I have added many transitions between the clips, which are used to soften the cuts between clips, or to show a change of location or time. I used cross fades mainly in the instrumentals, when using clips of miscellaneous things such as the waterfall and the beach.
- Fade. As well as cross fades, I also used fade ‘dissolves’ between shots. This, like above, is used to make the transitions between the clips smoother and to highlight a change in time or location. For example, I used these mostly when cutting back to the frequently-used shot of Ben standing with his guitar and singing.
- Solar Flare. Between 0:40 and 0:46, I added a solar flare effect to a shot of Lucy. This is the first time in the video that the audience sees her face, and the flare makes her seem unreal and mysterious, like she’s as tangible as sunlight. This adds to the whole ‘dream’ concept of the video. I had to add this before the black and white effect; otherwise the flare would be in colour.
- Jump Cut. Jump cuts are used in music videos in order to hide a mistake made by someone. In this case, I had to create a jump cut because the recorded music was too fast for the footage. I softened the transition between the cut, so it would seem less harsh and slightly less noticeable in the process. This cut can be seen at 1:13.
- Slowing Down of footage. In two clips in the video I used the ‘Speed/Duration’ tool to slow down footage. At 1:20-1:23 in the shot of Ben running across the road, I slowed down the footage to 75% rather than 100%, as was the original. I did this because at that point in the song there was a long, drawn out note sung by Ben so the part I slowed down fit more with the music. Also, the slow fade I added flowed better with the slower footage. In another place, I slowed down a clip where Ben was singing (3:04-3:09), to 95%. I did this because the footage of him singing was too quick for the recorded song, and his lips weren’t in time.
- Speeding up of footage. As well as slowing down two pieces of footage, I also sped two up. At 3:23-3:34 I sped up a clip where Ben is running, to 115%. I did this because the tempo of the music was increased, and therefore needed quicker visuals in order to link together well. At 3:37-3:43, I increased the speed of the footage to 120%. The clip was when Ben was spinning around searching for Lucy. Again I did this because the tempo of music was increasing to the maximum point in the song, and therefore required quicker visuals. Also, because the increased speed makes his searching seem more frantic.
- White fade. At the very end of the music video, I added a white solid which the footage fades into, and then into black, where it ends. This is to mark the end of the ‘memory’ or ‘dream’ which Ben was remembering/living, and really emphasizes the mysterious, dream-like concept of the music video.
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