Editing DONE

We have now completed the editing process. Overall this process was stressful as at times it was difficult to imagine what the video would eventually look like, but it was also enjoyable as it was exciting to see all our hard work come together.
We were pleased with the rough cut but the next stage of editing was all about percicsion. So we went through our timeline frame by frame to make sure that the cuts were in the beat to the music. We would put a marker (the marker creates a snap-point on the timeline or on a clip that the playhead will lock onto) exactly where each beat is and then we would line up the clips to the marker so that the clips would cut on beat. This was a slow process as it required a lot of attention to detail, but most of the time we were only a few frames out so no serious changes were made. Once this was done the whole thing looked far sharper.

We then watched through the video a few times to ensure that all the footage we used was the best quality. It was bought to our attention that there were a few clips which were out of focus, and although these were not really noticable, we still wanted to change them so that our video would be the best it could be. So we located the faulty clips, delted them and then replaced them with better quality footage, but we had to ensure that the clips we added fitted in with the music and the other footage before and after it. Once this was done we were finished with the offline work and it was time to move onto the online work to do tidy the whole thing up.

The online work consists of the nitty-gritty editing where we get rid of an sections of a clip which are not good. We initally worked on the opening and ending footage of the paint on Elina. We started by getting rid of the cup which was accidentily in the clip for a few seconds, we had to highlight this area and then remove it and replace it with something else. We then adjusted the settings of the clip in order to make the gold paint more prominant, as orgionally it was a bit dull and not very noticable. So as this is a key element of our video we wanted to highlight it so that it was clear. Lastly, we worked on improving the texture of the floor so that it portrayed a road more convincingly, so we worked on developing a concrete/gravil texture and then we replaced it for the orgional studio floor thus giving the illusion Elina is lying on a road. 
After all this post production our video was completed and we were really proud of it as we thought it looked really interesting and professional. We have had some really positive comments from people who have been watching us create it and we are really excited to show it to our target audience and see what they think.

Editing so far

We have now begun the slow process of editing our music video. After loading all the footage onto final cut pro, organising the clips into different 'rush' bins based on the setting they were shot it, we began to sync up the lip singing. This was a difficult task as we became aware that our singer didn't get the words that accurate, so we had to chop and change the different clips in order to ensure there was always accurate lip singing on camera. We decided to keep the cutting slow at the beginning in order to build up to the chaos at the dance break, otherwise the whole video would be quick cuts and would get boring. When putting in the clips with the projected images, we came across another problem, we discovered that most of the clips were shot in the second half of the time frame of the video, so we had limited footage for the first half of the video, this required us to be selective about where to put the footage so that it would have an effective impact. As we worked towards syncing the end of the video where we had planned to use the setting with blinders, we decided that this setting really wasn't in keeping with the rest of the video, it was too 'pop video' like, and our video is more edgy and dancy, although the footage was nice and Elina looked amazing, we decided to not include it in order to keep our video within the one genre.

Secondly we added the dance element. This was an exciting part of editing as it really bought our video to life as the idea of chaos was introduced and Lelia played the role of Elina's temptress, toying with her emotions in limbo. Initially we put clips of Lelia alone, painted in white, into the first verse of the video. We then introduced the boys and Lelia in black for the dance break. But as we watched through that first chunk of the video with the dancers, we realised that the white didn't really work well in the initial verse as it didnt feel as if Lelia was a serpent type character due the fact that she was white and this signifies purity and innocence. We then replaced the white footage of Lelia alone to black footage of Lelia alone and this worked far better, so although it is not in keeping with our timeline, we have decided to use this black footage as it looks better as it made Lelia appear more devil-like and showed that she was trying to tempt Elina. We then added more dance footage to the second half of the song, as the editing pace increases at this point we were able to introduce more quick cuts of the dancers, this helps us target our specific audience as they would be expecting these quick cuts that match the beat of the music and it links Elina and the dancers together well. When it came to the second dance break we had originally planned to have super quick cuts between the white and black footage of the dancers, so that it appeared that the boys were vanishing and reappearing, but there was an issue with lack a continuity between the two clips, so that they do cut into each other accurately. But we put the footage on anyway to see if it would be a massive issue, and it turned out that it worked really well, the clips are not massively out of time with each other, and so cutting between the two adds to the erratic-ness of limbo.

Account of Shoot day

Day Before Shoot

Building Our Set

Changes in Set Design

Costumes

Rehearsals

Music Video Analysis: Comparing it to our own

Shooting Schedule

Music Video Analysis: Comparing it to our own

The Iconography of the Album Cover

The art of the album cover is a curious one, part packaging, part advertising, often an insight into an artist's worldwide view and usually the happy result of a successful collaboration between creative minds, the best album cover art illustrates and accompanies the music in a way that creates the whole package. Julian House who is a creative partner at London creative agency, The Intro Partnership, speaks about how most of the direction for the album must be taken from the artists and this usually involves sit down discussions where the artist gives ideas, then the creative people go off and do several sets of visuals and present them, then hone it down from there. House also explains how the album sleeve is an entry point into the universe that the music is in, its a window into the themes of ideas of the artists and that there is defiantly a need for a visual accompaniment for the music and there is a resurgence of vinyl; special packaging sells quite well to a select. There are a lot of people still who need a tactile product, something to pore on.

Deconstructing album cover art
Album cover art can be extremely varied utilising photos, graphics, typography, or any combination of these. As a type of media text, it can be deconstructed like any other. When analysing it we can use the same tools we'd use to analyse and understand any visual media text.

Who made it, why how, for whom, and for what purpose?
It is vital to take into account who and why that person constructed a media text, but it is also important to think about who the audience is for any given text and how they may respond to it. Album covers are made to essentially promote the album, to be eye-catching and intriguing, and to tell us something about the musicians and the music contained in the album. While the immediate target audience is likely to be those who frequently buy music, especially those who are fans or specific bands, artists or genres, the artwork may be designed to attract a wider audience.

Associations & Connotations:
Detonation is identifying the elements in the image and connotation is examining what meanings and associations the image may link to. For an example, an image that denotes a powerful looking car may have connotations of speed or power, but in conjunction with other elements making up the art it might also have connotations of escape or thrill-seeking. On a pop or rap cover, there may be connotations of conspicuous wealth and extravagance, given that genres conventions.

Signs, Symbols and Codes
A sign is a representation that refers to something else and has meaning, such as the car. A code means the structure of how signs are organised into systems to make meaning. They are usually divided into the technical and the symbolic, there are also written codes that included the use of language and text layout.

Composition & Framing
This focuses on the construction of the album cover, like how do light, shadow and colour play a part. We refer to conventions as established ways of doing things, in this case, established forms of presenting and image. It can be helpful to examine how closely any given image tracks the conventions you'd associate with it, for example a death metal album sleeve might conventionally use a gothic or medieval-looking typeface, horror or occult based imagery, and a lot of black. Album cover art can also be self-referential, adding an extra layer of meaning to the image

Examples:

The painting on this cover is actually a fairly famous painting called 'A Basket of Roses'. A cryptic colour-based code is used to represent the band name and album title. This album cover suggesting that these songs will be fairly deep, meaningful and slow beat.








With its bold typography, simple colour scheme and striking, high-contrast photography, this is a classic example of iconic work which defines the classic 'Blue Note' look of this period. This album cover suggests that the songs contained will be fairly dark and depressing with a 'calm-rap' sort of sound.

This Pink Floyd cover was inspired by a physics text book and the band's desire to use a simple design. The artwork continues seamlessly around the gate fold sleeve. The impressions you get from this cover a far more broad and could be interpreted in anyway, but I feel that the the cover suggests that the songs will imply some sort of search for something.

After reading this article on the iconography of album covers I am more aware of what will be required on my cover in order to make it successful. I feel it is important to make the album eye-catching, thus multiple colours will be used in order to draw the audience in and as our target audience is teenagers who essentially have a shorter attention span, the colourful cover will work in order to keep the audience's attention. I want to ensure that there are connections between the front cover and the music contained, and since the song has a theme of limbo I feel that bizarre and unusual image will work effectively in giving clues of the content so the audience can connote the cover and what it may link to. In terms of signs and symbols, I feel a recurring thing in our video is the use of the Aztec print backdrop, so this will be incorporated in the album cover in order to again make codes that the audience can interpret.

Music Video Analysis: Comparing it to our own