Please review my first Music Video! :)

[Arthur John]

This is the music video which I produced for my intro video editing class (beginners)
It's my first video production, and was edited in Sony Vegas 4.0.


There was a problem with the larger Media 8 version that was posted, sorry.

The size of the file is about 6.2MB and will play in Media Player 9.
I don't think this one will play in Media Player 8.


http://www.users.qwest.net/~schmalza...%20R2%20S9.wmv



IMHO this was the best video submitted out of all the projects done, which I'm really proud of since the teacher keeps saying 'You're only as good as your last video'.

This was a great learning experience, and I'm sure I can do better on my next project which will be a documentary film.
Production on that project will begin in about a week, and will be about the dwindling profession of horseback ranchhands.

Please tell me what you think, constructive feedback is what I'm looking for here :)

[Rob Lohman]

I thought the editing was nicely done. It looked okay as well, but
missed some punch (visually) in 50% of the shots or so. Some
shots were nicely composited and shot. The only real gripe I have
with the piece is that it all looked a bit alike (type of shots), so it
didn't really "grab" me. I liked the last shot with the man walking
in!

Good job. And as with everyone we do, we'll learn new things
for the next one!

[Kyle Kauss]

the song is what really turned me off (sorry man its just boring as hell to me anyone else would like it)

the shots were pretty good (just like the guy above said you did a lot of teh same thing mix it up a bit)

it was pretty good for the most part though

[John Locke]

Arthur,

I think you've done a nice job...especially since this is your first project. The nice dolly/crane shots aren't aren't seen so often in first-time videos...and the editing is good.

Now, for constructive criticism...

1. I take it the girl in the video isn't the actual singer? I'm just guessing that...since we never see her sing. Personally, I'd rather see her singing along...whether it's her song or not. This wouldn't have to be all the time...just intercut singing shots with the acted scenes. Seems the general consensus so far is that you need to "break it up" a bit with something different...like weaving acting and singing scenes.

2. The lighting is a bit flat in some of the shots. Try breaking it up and using different intensities to get a bit more depth. For instance, the overhead shot of her on the bed would have been enhanced with a window pattern across her...or perhaps a pattern of curtains blowing. The living room shots could use some more strategic lighting, avoiding lighting the whole space (which flattens it out). Experiment with accent lights and/or a cucoloris.

3. Some of the shots are nicely composed, while others are lacking "oomph"...like Rob said. I'd put almost all the living room and bedroom shots in this category. The lighting is flat and the composition is sometimes lacking. Plus, there are some opportunities for shallow depth of field that were missed. Take the "glass" shot for instance... might have been better to start in much closer on it, blurring out the background and getting lots of highlights in the water and glass. Then, pull back and shift the focus.

Just some suggestions...take them for what they're worth. Overall, though...you've done a commendable job for your first outing. I'll be waiting to see the second.

[Rob Lohman]

You don't know Norah Jones, John? It is indeed not the girl in
the video... <g>

[John Locke]

No...do you know Fumi Yakamoto?

[Joe Lloyd]

looked nice for a first video. My major gripe would be the lighting in the scene where the couple was "ghosted" the ghosted people were casting shadows which I thought was weird..

but then opinions are like @s*holes , everyone's got one :)

keep up the good work

[Josh Brusin]

man, everyone is on norah jones these days... I like her but that song belongs to Nina Simone. Anyway. I think visually it was way too literal. no need to see a glass with the line, or the desert composite still, etc... it's redundant. The look is good, color tones worked... if you're going for a narrative try and develop the song direction visually and conceptually not literally. Maybe listen to Nina's version and visually address the differences. Norah Jones' version is not the sultry old lady blues that this song is. "Like a school kid..." line resonates in a completely different way here. Not to keep harping on different performers but it may change a perspective slightly and add something to your concepts... Nice job.

[Joe Lloyd]

Heh, a bit off topic but that last post made me go find my Nina Simone cd.

[George Ellis]

I saw a couple of things I wondered about.

Is the 6 seconds of black at the beginning a class thing? At 1:30, I thought I saw a cut fragment. Do you really want the music to fade in the credits? Maybe using an exit with them together (and the bedroom would be too obvious...) to end the song? I think I remember that there were a lot of fade to black transitions. I thought they broke the video up too much, but that could be me.

It was good. Especially if this was your first edit project!

Media Player 8 does not care if you used the WM9 Encoder. It will detect that it does not have the codec, check the MS site, then offer to load it if you do not have. Of course, you do need to have the privileges to install it...

I would guess that your next assignment should focus on the interaction between the horses and the handlers. Shoots that have the horse's head and neck and the handler's waist up might give it a really good "personal' touch between the two. Watch your framing and remember your 1/3's as this would be a good place for it. Don't forget the other things involved like moving hay, cleaning the stalls, and getting the horses reactions to these actions as you can cut that into the chore to show interaction. Just my thoughts and I could be wrong ;)

[Arthur John]

Hi there. I really appreciate all the input!

To start off, I wish more time had been available to actually shoot the project. Even with a shot sheet and a storyboard, actually getting some good shots took a lot longer than I thought it would. It was done in two days of shooting, and there was pretty crummy weather outside. I would have loved to add some outdoors shots or used sunlight to brighten up/change a few scenes.
I used a lighting kit, 3-point lighting with a smaller fill light as well, and was mostly trying to get rid of most of the shadows.

John -I still have a lot to learn about light placement and will try to read up a bit more on the subject to find out more about dramatic lighting and different techniques.
I like your suggestion about another way to do the 'glass' shot. It was originally all one shot, but I had to chop it a bit to work with the timeframe that was available for it. Your idea would have shortened the shot and been a little more interesting I think.

Joe- The ghost shadows I didnt realize I had until editing. I tried to use some masking filters, but I just couldn't get it to quite look right. My lesson learned here was that when doing a 'memory' sequence, to change the lighting to remove the back wall shadows, or just shoot that against a blue screen and edit them in that way.

George- yes, the way the video was cut was to class project specs. And I also think there could have been a few more different kinds of transitions used. The fade and crossfades I chose because I thought they fit the video, soft and sultry rather than quick, but then again I still have to play around with all the different transitions so I'm sure I missed a few that would have worked better.

Mostly I appreciate the opportunity to learn by doing projects like this, and also from feedback from great dv members such as yourselves.
And Thankyou for all the great replies so far :)