Codes & Conventions in Music videos

All Music videos will include: 

- Lip syncing

- Close ups usually of specific parts of the body (for example of female artists legs, eyes, hair, breasts or butt wheras for males tend to be eyes, hair, stomache)

- Faster paced editing compared to film, more shot variation.

- Music videos used to argue about post modernism (Andy Rhefeldt plays around with post modernism in his videos)

- High angled shots to single out an individual to make them look centred but also small and vulnerable.

- Low angled shots are used to make the individual powerful and promenant compared to the others.

- In bands music videos the vocalist is promenant with the most shots and closeups compared to other members.

- Some videos challenge conventions, and may only contain one take although may contain more special effects and have more visual. A band or artist may also choose to do this because they dont feel they should have to and without a music video some coporations refuse to give awards or play on music channels meaning less hits examples of these are; Okgo, The Lazy song - Bruno Mars, Yellow - Coldplay, One day like this - Elbow and One - U2.

- Multiple Layering used as an effect to make the state of mind of the singer seem uneasy or mixed up or in dance tracks when beats or lyrics repeat for example Come as you are by Navana.

- Sterotypes are used for example the idea of the 'black pimp' who rap about sleeping with numerous 'hoes' one of the stereotypes based around gender and sexuality examples of this would be in California Gurls by Katy Perry ft Snoop Dog or Trey songz ft Nicki Minaj - Bottoms up.

- Computer graphics are graphics made to show the representation of an image which can be exaggerated using specialist software and hardware good example of this U2 - Vertigo.

- Product placement is legal in music videos although some artists still do it in their videos, advertising a brand in return for a cash payment from the company. It has been done in Lady Gagas Bad Romance video and Blackberry in Black eyed peas videos. (It is illegal for BBC to do in tv programmes)

- High key lighting in Pop videos, pop videos tend to have big stars in them and they want to across as glamourous and have no shadowing in.

- Low key lighting is found in more indie and lower budget/indie music videos.

+ Some music videos purposly ignore the known codes and conventions of music video such as Martin Solveig, the director who created the music video Hello to look more like an opening to a romantic comedy film by using alot of titling overlayed onto takes and adding a narrator before the song kicks in.