Monday, 7 July 2014

The Technical Codes in Music Videos - Lighting

  • Lighting is an important aspect of any music video and can make the audience feel different things. For example, naturalistic lighting may help the audience to connect to the music video, because the lighting isn't considered 'out there' and unrealistic.
  • Lighting can portray different moods among the audience, or how the artist is feeling. This can link to the lyrics, the speed of the song or the location that the video is set in. Artifical lighting is also used to achieve a desired effect, or used for creative flair.


  • The lighting in Disturbia by Rihanna is always dark. This is reflected in the lyrics of the song and the link to mental illnesses. This music video really stands out from Rihanna's other videos, where she is over sexualised and seems very 'pop' genre. The lighting really brings out the darker elements of the video, making everything seem shrouded in mystery and shadow.
  • The colour of the music video seems to have been darkened at every possible opportunity, with no bright colours and nothing to stand out ultimately - all colours are grey, black and an orange hue.
  • The music video as a whole is represented as dark not only through her lyrics and the editing techniques, but literally dark in reference to the lighting. The audience will be intrigued by this because of how different it is to her other music videos - and so because of that, this video is a success.

No comments:

Post a Comment