DEVELOPMENT - Final Band Footage and Band Photos!

On 22nd December, I booked out a professional music studio, Banana Road Studios, http://www.bananaroad.co.uk/home.html. We then used this studio to film our band acting as Kings of Leon recording their single Use Somebody which we will incorporate into our music video. I booked the studio out for 4 hours, allowing us enough time to get our footage accurate and of a good standard from not rushing. From using a professional studio this will make our overall music video look very realistic and share the conventions of other real life music videos that are set in a studio of the band rehearsing.

I chose to film in the large room at the studio as this gave us extra space for us to film in, making sure there was enough room for our cameras, tripods and other recording equipment. The room included PA and mics, 2 guitar amps, 1 bass amp and a drum kit with 3 stands. These features made the studio look very realistic and professional and the PA system was useful when playing our song, Use Somebody, as the band members were able to lip sync to the lyrics.

Here are some photos of ourselves filming the band:

During the day we also took band photos that we will use across all of our groups ancillary tasks, especially the website and the album. We used a Canon DSLR camera which took better quality photos, adding to the professional style of the band and studio.

As we were unable to use a green screen on the day, we made sure we had a plain background instead. We looked at band photos from our research and positioned our band in a similar way, conforming to the codes and conventions of the alternative rock genre.

For a variety of photos to use on the website and the album, we took photos in different locations.

• Down an alley
• Against a brick wall
• On the stairs

The photos taken in the alley with the ice patches on the floor and the photos against the wall with the moss and graffiti on it, fits in with the style of alternative rock bands as it is a generic setting for this genre of music. This style links to the professional band photography taken of The Cribs, Muse and Crystal Castles in similar locations to ours.

Comparison to existing bands:

The Cribs

Location: Against  a brick wall

Muse

Locations: Side street with graffiti on the fence

Derelict building

Crystal Castles

Locations: Against a brick wall

Against a graffiti covered door

From identifying with these band photoshoots, I understood the different camera shots used and how the band members are positioned. There is a symmetry within the photo as the tallest member is in the middle with each of the other members either side. Also, the lead singer is conventionally placed in the foreground with the other members in the background. As our band models are aged 20-21, it allowed us to represent our band in a more realistic manner, as official alternative rock bands are aged in their early to mid 20s.

As Cigarettes are an accepted part of the rock and roll community we incorporated this into our own photos, along with piercings and tatoos to make our band stand out and appear more realistic.

We focused on these areas when taking our own photography to maintain the consistency of the codes and conventions used.