Have you ever wanted to make your own music video? Here, voice teacher Liz T. shares the steps for creating your first video…
With technology today, making videos for your personal website or platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo, or Vine can be a great way to share your music with the world!
I have released several videos to my original songs, and want to help you create your first music video. Follow my tips for creative inspiration!
1. Visualize Your Music
So you’ve recorded a great song — now your task is to sit down with a notebook and visualize your music. What is the story or scenes you want to depict in your video? Jot down as many ideas that come to you. Think of characters, places, props, scenery, costumes, and so on. Look in your lyrics and melody to help with your brainstorming! Really get creative, and don’t be afraid to explore. You want your video to be original, so don’t try to copy another person’s vision!
Once you have your ideas, this will be your visual storyboard that you should give to your videographer and actors involved in the music video. There are many acting websites online (and even Craigslist) where you can advertise for people to act in your music video. Some will want pay, but some will do this for free to build up their acting reels! You can also recruit family and friends — you may be surprised how many of your friends will want to participate!
2. Find a Videographer
Find a videographer who has a decent camera and knows how to work with actors and musicians. He or she should also have a knowledge of editing music and putting it to film. I suggest asking to see some of their work before you hire your videographer. Also, consider your budget; I personally would not spend more than $1,000 on your music video if you are an indie artist. You can often find film students and videographers who are just starting out and may even volunteer their services to build their portfolio.
Once you’ve hired your videographer, send him or her your music, lyrics, and visual storyboard ahead of time so that everyone will be prepared when it comes time to filming! You should also scout out locations ahead of time. You may want to select a place where you can shoot for free, such as your neighborhood street, the subway, parks, or a church. You can also reach out to local businesses and offer them promotion and advertising in your video. I’ve filmed many scenes of my videos for free at local restaurants, bars, music stores, and schools to help advertise their company, and they love it!
3. Filming
Now that you have your visual storyboard, videographer, actors, and set locations, it’s time to film! Make sure you allot several hours for filming. Some people prefer to shoot all in one day, while others may want to break it up over time. Just remember: filming always takes twice as long than expected. Weather, traffic, and noise can factor into your shooting time.
When you shoot your video, you can either lip sync or sing along with your track. Either way, it should look real and authentic. It’s best to have your song playing near you while you’re shooting the scene, either on your iPhone or on a set of speakers.
4. Editing Your Final Product
It’s important that your videographer takes multiple shots, or takes, of the scenes you are doing. He or she should also film you singing the entire song, so that you will have enough footage to use. Most music videos are between two to five minutes long, and you will need a lot of footage to choose from for your video. You may want to ask your videographer for a rough draft of the video, and also ask him or her what a realistic timeframe is for the completed video. It’s not a bad idea to have a contract in writing of both your expectations.
Follow these steps and you’ll be able to make your own music video that showcases your work and your talent. Now get out there are start filming!
Liz T. teaches singing, acting, and music lessons in Brooklyn, NY, as well as online. She is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music with a B.M in Vocal performance and currently performs/teaches all styles of music including Musical Theater, Classical, Jazz, Rock, Pop, R&B, and Country. Learn more about Liz here!
Photo by Alexander Brugger
Suzy S.