As technology becomes more accessible to people, more video footage of DJs and events are popping up all over the web. This gives us a new opportunity to market ourselves and our music in ways we couldn’t before without spending thousands of dollars.
It’s one thing to hear a mix CD, but its something else completely to have video of you rocking a crowd, hearing fans calling you name, or seeing you freak the EQ. This type of footage is priceless and certainly meant for your media kit if you can get it. You only need about 3-5 minutes too, just enough to capture a moment of hotness. This short video should leave people hanging and wanting more.
I’ve been trying to capture this for some time and I finally got it last weekend and you can too. Since it is usually hard to film yourself, ask friends to help you out on this. If you don’t have a video camera, many cell phones do now. The primary use will be for Internet sites like youtube so you don’t need to have high resolution for this. I’ve seen Sony HD video cameras for as low as $169-$199.
I’ve attempted to record video several times but often the footage just isn’t good. There was low light, too much camera movement, or poor sound quality. But…I keep trying by having friends do it here and there until I get what I want.
So last night I’m DJing an afterhours and several people came up to me and told me that they saw my vieo of FaceBook, which made them come check me out at the afterhours. Again, the music on your mix CD is great, but SEEING people react to your live set is PRICELESS!
Peep the video here: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/1593569
I agree video is priceless, and many bloggers, and music writers love to have video to help promote as well as enhance the content of their own sites.
It is virtually impossible to get great sound quality from portable devices. What I see many DJ’s doing is overlaying the mix over the video in order to give a good presentation.
Good sound quality can overcome bad video, but bad sound will ruin good video.
I was impressed with your video David, being able to capture the ambiance in the room and still able to deliver a decent quality of sound that doesn’t distort. Very full and rich.
You are right, a 2 minute promo can do wonders. You don’t need the budget of a big production. Basic editing software ( even the one that comes on most computers these days) will do the trick.
“Good sound quality can overcome bad video, but bad sound will ruin good video.” – Absolutely! I’ve been trying to get a video clip like this for a long time with good video, sound, and light. It takes a few trys to say the least. And most of all…..good crowd, totally into the set….PRICELESS! All I can say is keep trying til you get what you want.