Adding Music to Videos

My zoo video was an experiment on two fronts. It was the first one using the hybrid video mode on my new camera, and it was the first time I added a music track.

My initial videos used the audio that the camera recorded with the film. But, in places like the park, there is a lot of background noise; you pick up snippets of conversation, and the passing trains and traffic. In the interest of continuing my filming experiment, I decided to try adding a music track to the video. Partly to overcome the distracting background noise, and partly to add a new skill to my repertoire.

Choosing the music was difficult. It was easy to decide what didn’t work, but much harder to decide what did. On top of finding something I liked, there were other things to consider: the length of the music compared to the video, and the important question of licensing.

I was really surprised at the difference the music makes. It gives the video a very different feeling. It seems more cohesive and more interesting. The track I eventually settled on reminds me of a fair ground, and so it seemed appropriate for the zoo.