Piano Instagram Promo Evaluation

My two Instagram piano tutoring promotions are now completed and are on my Youtube channel, here are the videos:

Out of both of my promo's, I prefer the first one as I think it runs the most smoothly and flows more professionally, rather than the second one which I think is quite amateurish. This is because I left the visual on a few clips on a bit too long and therefore could cause the target audience to lose interest in the promotion. I also think the audio on the second promo cuts off too fast at the finish and the video has a sudden, unexpected end.

I like the first clip because the volume levels on the audios fluctuate according to what is needed to be heard. For example when the voice over ends, the piano backing music gets louder, whereas when the talking is going on the music continues but at a lower volume. Here is a link to another one of my blog posts, which explains this further with screenshots included: Piano Promo Update.

For example, here is a screenshot of the technique that I used to create this effect:

I decided to use my phone for the audio recordings, however I did use headphones with the built in microphone and this worked really well for my voice over. I also think that this gives a clearer audio quality for vocals, rather than just the mobile itself without any connecting device. I also did the visual filming on my Iphone 6s because the camera on this is really good quality and looks very sharp and precise with the correct lighting.

Here is an image that I found off Google, which shows the quality of Iphone cameras. I used an Iphone 6s for my video footage:

In my opinion my choice of soundtrack was really effective because I actually played the music myself, on my piano at home as the background music. This makes it clear to the audience of what this promo is about and is also confirmed with the voice over throughout the clip. As the music played is a classical piano piece, it perfectly fits in with the theme of the promo and therefore ties the whole thing together flawlessly.

Although I really like the soundtrack, the visual quality on some of the clips within the promo is slightly dark and this effects the overall viewing experience for the audience. An improvement that I would make would be the lighting when recording, so that the clips would be much sharper and clearer.

Piano Promo Update

Today I continued my first piano tutoring service promotion for Instagram. I used Premiere Pro for the editing process, here is a screenshot of my 15 second promo:

Here is a close up version of the individual video clips and the different audio layers that used. I filmed all the visuals and played the piano for the background audio, as well as using my friend Imogen for the voice over.

This next image is a zoomed up version of my piano playing, showing the different levels in audio volume throughout. For example at the start before the voice over begins, the music is slightly louder then decreases when the voice is heard. This is the same at the end of the audio, when the narration ends.

Finally I uploaded my first promotion onto my Youtube channel, here is the finished product:

Promo Research

Here is an example of a short 15 second promo for a music studio:

This was the closest video promo I could find to a piano tutoring service. I used this as my secondary research for this project because it gave me a good idea of how quick the edits need to be, to make sure the audience don't lose interest, as it is such a short video.

What I also found, is that there usually is a musical background with a voice over as well. This is so the visual is not wasted by title screens and therefore is much more efficient to have it spoken over the rest of the clips.

For my own Instagram promotions, I will also adjust the volume of each audio clip, so that the necessary information can be heard.

Audio Copyright

Music copyright it the legal protection given to the music creator. Copyright makes sure recording artists, composers and musicians have a chance to be recognised and paid for their work.

Creative commons is material that can be copied and used, without breaking any legal rules. It is a non-profit organisation that enables the sharing and use of creative works available for other to build upon legally.

Fair use is where content can be used under certain circumstances legally. For example, educational purposes and news reporting. It can mean that you can copy copyrighted material without needing permission from the owner.

Royalty free is where the content is available for the public to use and does not need the contact of the creator for a licence to use their work. However this does not necessarily mean that it is free to purchase.

Piano Recording Test

Today I decided to test out different recording methods of me playing the piano. Also it gave me an idea of which method will be best for when I record the final audio on my piano at home. This is just an experiment of sound, as the piano used is not the best of quality and therefore would sound quite different to mine at home. Although this helps me to figure out the best set up of equipment at home. As well as recording from different positions and angles, I used different recorders also, so I can develop a sense of how the music will sound.

The recorder that I used was the handheld zoom H4N and the microphones I used were the Rode NTG1 and Sure SM58 dynamic vocal. I also used the Rode mic with and without the wind shield.

Here is a link to a test recording I did, to experiment with the audio and to be made aware of the quality of each device used. Here is an example.

Instagram Promo Idea

My idea is piano related promo, this is because I enjoy playing the piano and is a topic that I am interested in. I will have to make up a product or service that the promo will be for, this would either have to be the actual piano/keyboard or a piano tutoring service. I can make up a logo and build up a brand image for this, as well as using this 15 second Instagram promo, to promote the product or service.

Within the 15 second clip, there will be two characters, the piano tutor and a student. The tutor would welcome the student into the tutoring room and introduce them to the piano. Throughout the promo, the background music will be a pianist playing, so the audience can identify and are immediately aware of what the clip is about.

This media production is considered fiction, because I don't actually have a piano tutoring service, however I can create one for this promo. I have also researched how to record a piano so I can get a god quality recording for my promo, and so that it sounds professional.