Sunday, 18 November 2012

Video Analysis of Paloma Faith

Here are some screen shots taken from Paloma Faith's music video for 'Picking Up The Pieces'.


This frame is interesting because the artist is placed in a car, showing loneliness and escape. The camera cuts back to the car scene every so often throughout the music video, and the artist is seen just sitting in the car singing. Shooting through the window from outside creates emphasis on the isolation and gives us a sense of looking into her life. She puts a lot of emotion into her performance and directs it at the man. We know this because as he gets out of the car she watches him walk away.  We can see a slight reflection in the window, which makes us feel like we are looking into the artists life and doesn't fit the ‘perfect and precise editing’ technique most music videos use.


I like this frame because it is symmetrical. The building in the background is quite posh and looks very upper class, like a stately home. The fact that the artist is sitting outside of the building tells us she is alone (and this links in with the lyrics), but also has connotations that she has been chucked out of a house. Her clothing is very sophisticated and fits her image as an artist. Her body posture is straight and very close together which tells us she is contempt with herself. Also, the lighting is very dull along with the colours used, whereas her clothing and her hair colour make her stand out against the background and the rest of the frame.


The artist is using indirect address and looking down which tells us she is upset. The rule of thirds is used for this camera shot, and the camera pans around the artist. Again, the lighting is very dull and it doesn't appear that much artificial light has been used. This tells us they wanted to create a dull and depressing atmosphere because it reflects the lyrics of the song, telling us she feels like second best to her partner after his previous relationship. There are smoke canons in the background either side of the building which also adds to the dull and mysterious effect. In the majority of scenes where she is wearing this outfit she is singing both to the camera but also just performing like she is alone and expressing her feelings.


This is a close up of the side of the artist’s face. It is quite a strong frame because she is looking forward, but with no expression. This shows her unhappiness and how she is just following her partner around. The light coming from behind the artist’s face creates a very clear outline around her face against the light. This gives an interesting effect. She is wearing bright red lipstick which connotes love and romance, which contrasts with the black earrings which connote death and unhappiness. Her face is very sharp and looks as if it has been photo-shopped to create perfect skin and make up.



This frame uses the rule of thirds arrangement. The line of trees in the background creates vectors which create the effect of a vanishing point. The flowers in the foreground are central and the leaves are falling off the trees suggesting its autumn, which again creates the dull effect because of the poor lighting. The artist’s clothing is bright and white, which suggest purity and innocence. But also because it is against a dark background she stands out much more. The top third of the frame is very dark, almost black due to the lack of light on the trees, which tells us more light is being emphasised on the foreground  and the artist. 


This frame has a narrow depth of field to emphasise the importance of the hand in the foreground, with a very soft focus on the background. The hand is resting on a chair, which tells us she is rested. This frame is very strong in terms of the subject because her hand is covered in dripping wax. The detail of the wax is really clear and it is obvious that it is dripping off the artist. This could be interpreted as her cleaning her body, removing the pain from herself. The wax makes her seem unrealistic which makes us question whether she’s giving the message that she’s invisible.

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