OLIVIA EVITT
Ed Sheeran - Photograph
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran released Photograph on his second studio album, X, in 2014. The single was released in May 2015 following the premiere of the narrative video.
Photograph's music video follows a montage of homemade videos of Ed Sheeran's infancy, childhood, and adolescense. All of the footage is shot with a handheld camera, showing the composition of the shots were not at all intentional/thought about due to the footage being for family purposes only. This adds to the realism of the music video and allows the audience to feel as if they can create personal relationships with Ed, according to the uses and gratifications theory.
At the beginning of the video, as we see Ed in the very early stages of his infancy, many high angle shots are used. This emphasises how young and innocent he was; putting his size and inability's into perspective. Focusing directly on the artist is unconventional for this genre; showing that Ed Sheeran is an artist of whom often breaks conventions and shows originality; something very regulary seen in the indie pop genre which brings us to Neale's theory that genres are instances of repetition and difference.
All of these shots at the beginning of the video are asynchronous in comparison to the lyrics which state "Loving can hurt, loving can hurt sometimes" however the footage we see is very lighthearted and connotes happiness, oppose to the negativity we would expect to see when matched with the lyrics. The video continues to show differences between the lyrics and the visual representation, however the use of asynchronous aspects within a music video is conventional within this genre. I think this can be successful, Photograph proves this, however I think I would try to avoid causing as much confusion in my own work.
As the video progresses, the speed of the cuts increases and the shots being to change in synchronization with the guitar strums/piano keys in the song. This enables footage that is very abstract, and was never made for music video purposes, to work successfully in time with the music; this is very clever as well as rare, as using homemade footage for the whole length of a music video is something that has more than likely not been done by an artist before. The uniqueness of the video reflects the originality of the artist, which is therefore valued.
In terms of mise en scene, the location is set in a family home more often than not, which allows the audience to relate and feel at home with the artist. Many shots are included that show the artist playing instruments such as the guitar and piano from a very young age, showing music was more than likely a life long ambition and that he has been connected to it since infancy. Instrument stick with him through the video as we see him grow older, showing how his musical career developed. As an audience, we value this, and again feel as if we can reach out to the artist and create personal relationships. As the video progresses and the artist grows older, we see the Ed Sheeran busking on streets, performing to small audiences, and then eventually performing on stage to an audience of thousands. The progression in locations reflects the progression of his career, and the narrative to the video captures the audience into feeling as though we have seen the development of Ed since birth. The overall mood created from this is very lighthearted, and the narrative side to the video portrays positivity. A narrative type of music video is not very often seen within this genre, therefore we learn again how Ed Sheeran aspires to be different to the rest; an individual.
In terms of sound, diegetic sound is used to accompany the song. Examples of this include the artist crying at his baby stage of life, laughing during infancy, playing instruments etc. We also hear his dad say "Are you at the top of the mountain?" right at the end of the music video, implying he has reached the 'top of the mountain' in his musical career; made his dreams a reality and got to where he wants to be in life. The use of non-diegetic sound emphasis the reality of the footage shown, and allows the audience to feel more included and close to the artist.