Comparisons (Post-Edits/Edited)

Comparisons of the editing process 

Here, I have included screenshots of the comparisons of the raw footage and the edited footage to track my exploration through Final Cut. For each frame of footage, I toyed around with the natural shadows and highlights that were apparent and edited them so that it would suit my next step in the editing process: adding a filter.

With the intention of my music video in mind, I applied a colouring filter called ‘Luma Keyer’, that added an element of grittiness to the footage and enhanced the grey within the clips. The filter, in my opinion, made the footage feel surreal and dream like as although it enhanced the natural grey of the footage, it also exaggerated some of the blue and cool hues of the videos. With a lot of consideration, I have decided to stick with the editing choices that I have made, as I believe that the filter alongside the extra focus on the natural shadows and highlights made the intention of my music video clear.  

Aside from the filter, I also added the 'Letterbox' feature that completes the look of my final product and gives it a professional look; as seen on many other professionally made music videos. The ratio I have used for the 'Letterbox' feature is 2.35:1. 

Edit 1

Edit 1.1

Here, you can see that the filter brings out the grittiness of the footage and adds a cool hue to the visuals. The raw footage was too light for what I was trying to achieve, ergo, I sifted through the varying filters until I found Luma Keyer, which was the best filter for what I wanted in my music video. For this scene, I also modified the rate at which the video played, and slowed it down by 75% - this captured the emotion of the character more as it was in slow motion. (See Edits 1 & 1.1)

For the opening scene of my music video, I filmed a collection of old photographs that were of my parents when they were younger. Originally, the footage was incredibly light, especially with the reflection of the fire on the photographs. Adding the filter brought out the blue hue of the photographs and the footage, whilst also darkening it. During the editing process, I actually reversed the footage so that it was panning away from the fire, as originally, I had filmed from the fire and then panned over. Accompanying this, I also modified the speed again, retiming it to a 70% frame rate. (See Edits 2 & 2.2)

Edit 2 

Edit 2.2

For a close up camera shot of my parents, I knew that I wanted to film in a well lit area, preferably in the natural light. Travelling to Spencer's Park just at the top of my street was the prime location for this. We headed out at around 1PM as we were a little pressed for time, as the sun usually sets incredibly early during the winter months! With an initial idea of what I wanted in mind, I got the footage and when it came to editing it, I found that although it came out exactly how I wanted it; the footage wasn't right for the overall  aesthetic of the video. Thus, I took to Final Cut Pro X and added a colour corrector to see if that would change anything significantly - this was to no avail. It only slightly altered the colour balance and actually added to the colour, when I wanted to take the colour away. 

Because of this, I undid the colour correction and ran it through the Luma Keyer filter as well as the Letterbox feature. It looked exactly how I wanted it to, but in comparison to the rest of the video, it was still significantly brighter. I took to my friends and asked them to watch it, and they all said that it worked well because it was, quote: "a significant frame in depicting the raw emotion of the actors". They also said that the brighter colour contributed to the emotion that was being conveyed, and that I should keep it that way. After re-watching it several times, I toyed with the shadows because I still wasn't convinced. Tweaking the shadow balance convinced me and with the filter, the scene fits extremely well with the rest of the video. (See Edit 3 & 3.3)

Edit 3

Overall, I am still continuing to develop my editing skills and technique and it will consequently have a great impact on my final music video. Ultimately, my intention and goal is to evoke an emotional response from the audience - thus, I believe that the editing process is one of the most significant stages of development. 

Edit 3.3