| Decision | What the evidence shows | Planning use |
|---|---|---|
| Typical crewed budget | 20-60K is typical for most music videos; larger productions reach 100-300k or more (currency not stated in the source) | Use as context for what crewed productions cost. Scale the concept down rather than compromising the song. |
| Zero-cost video | One artist self-reports a total cost of $0 | One self-reported case shows it is possible. Keep the idea simple enough to shoot with what you already have. |
| Modest budget | A self-reported $3,500 budget included a lighting package valued at $3,000 | Lighting can make a modest budget look larger, so decide early where the money goes. |
| Lighting | Shoot outside, or plan to spend a hefty amount on lights | Daylight locations remove most of the lighting line from the budget. |
| Phone as camera | Phones struggle in low light | Avoid dim interiors if a phone is your main camera. |
| Concept | Budget limits which concepts can be shot, and director Ed Shiers recommends pivoting early concepts to make them achievable | Rework the idea before you book anything. |
Figures above come from Wrapbook’s music video production guide and Aristake’s tiny-budget walkthrough.
How to make a music video starts with the finished song: fix the audio, choose a concept your budget can actually shoot, then build shots around the track. Budget limits which concepts work, so simplify early.
This guide treats the video as audio-first, with sync and release planned for independent artists. It sits within the wider live music culture that independent artists work in.
Budget and concept decisions
Budget decides the concept before it decides the gear. A video that needs three locations, a cast and a lighting package cannot be rescued by a better camera, so settle the idea first.
Write a treatment, then cut it to fit
A treatment is a document that shows your vision for what the video will look like, covering look, subject and budget scope, according to Wrapbook. On an independent release the artist often acts as director, so the treatment doubles as the brief you hand to anyone helping. If the first draft costs more than you can spend, follow Ed Shiers’s advice and pivot the concept rather than stretching the budget.
Choose a concept route that fits your resources
- Performance-led: the cheapest route to something finished. As CD Baby’s DIY Musician guide puts it, the video is nearly finished the second you get a good take of the performance. It suits artists with little crew and no story to tell.
- Alternate location with fans or friends: Wrapbook notes that a different location with a group of the artist’s fans or friends can work just as well as a costlier set-up. It suits a concept built on energy and a crowd.
- Storyline: CD Baby’s guide says storyline videos are awesome if you have the idea, the budget, the time and the pool of talent. Choose it only when all four are in place, otherwise return to a performance concept.
Gear and lighting choices
A workable kit list covers cameras, lenses and camera support such as tripods, Steadicam, motion rigs and other mounting devices, as Julian Langham’s guide lists them. For a first video, a tripod and one reliable camera cover most of a performance concept, and fancier support only earns its place when the shot list calls for movement.
Lighting matters more than the camera body
Good lighting is key to making filmed images look great, says Julian Langham. Aristake’s advice is blunt: either shoot it outside, or plan to spend a hefty amount on lights. The same artist’s $3,500 video looked good largely because of a lighting package, which makes lights the item to protect if you have any money to spend.
Using a phone
A phone can serve as the camera, but iPhones notoriously don’t do well in low-light situations, according to Aristake. Pair a phone with daylight locations and keep the dim club scene for a camera with better low-light handling.
Shot list and shoot day
A good idea is to write a shot list or storyboard in advance of filming, Julian Langham recommends. The shot list is where the song’s structure becomes a schedule, and it keeps the day from drifting into one favourite angle.
A shot list template
Build one row per shot with these fields:
- Song position: the lyric line or section of the track the shot covers, so you can see at a glance which parts of the song are still uncovered.
- Shot description: what the viewer sees, in one plain sentence.
- Angle and lens: wide, medium or close, plus which lens or camera position.
- Location and light: where it is shot and whether it depends on daylight, which helps you group shots that share a set-up.
- Takes and coverage: the number of passes and alternative angles you intend to capture.
- Notes: wardrobe, props or performance reminders.
How much to shoot
Edit pace drives footage volume. Julian Langham notes that a faster-paced edit may require more shots than a slower one, so a quick-cut concept needs a longer list. Ensemble Schools advises shooting extra takes and multiple angles, longer than you think you’ll need. A storyline shoot is the extreme case: CD Baby’s artist case needed an extremely long and thorough shot list for a two-day shoot across multiple locations.
Syncing audio to video
Sync is where an audio-first approach pays off. The finished recording is the reference, and every performance take is filmed to match it.
Film to playback
In CD Baby’s case study, the team took the audio track from a handheld recorder and played it loudly through speakers while filming. The same guide says it is best to use footage from the take of the performance that you end up using for the audio. If the visual vocals do not match the recorded vocals, Aristake warns, it will be jarring to the audience.
Rehearse the song first
Wrapbook points out that artists often played the song in the studio months earlier and will have forgotten what they did. Allow rehearsal time before the shoot so the mouthed performance lines up with the recording rather than drifting from it.
Check sync early in the edit
Ensemble Schools’ 7-day plan puts the first-pass edit, rough-cut organisation and sync check with the music on Day 5. Whatever your own schedule, check sync at the rough-cut stage, when a drift can still be fixed by swapping takes rather than re-editing a finished video.
Editing choices
Cut to the song, and let the pace you planned in the shot list guide how often the picture changes. For software, Aristake says iMovie is fine for the time being on short projects, with Final Cut Pro or Premiere suited to official videos. Ensemble Schools lists free or low-cost options: DaVinci Resolve, iMovie, CapCut, HitFilm and Lightworks. Pick the one you can already operate, because learning new software mid-project eats the time the shoot saved.
Releasing on YouTube and other channels
YouTube is the obvious home for a finished video, but rights come before upload. Julian Langham warns that to post on YouTube you must make sure no one else owns the copyright in the music, which is straightforward for your own original recording and a blocker for anything borrowed.
Each channel also publishes its own technical specifications, so export the master once and then check the specifications of every channel you post to before making versions for it. If you are still producing the song itself, How To Make EDM Music: A Practical Starter Guide To Producing Your First Track (2026) – Voiceoriginals covers that stage. Once the video is out, How To Make Money With Music: 10 Practical Ways To Earn In 2026 – Voiceoriginals looks at how it can fit into earning from your music.
Frequently asked questions
Is a lyric video a legitimate alternative to filming a performance?
Yes. CD Baby’s DIY Musician guide describes a lyric video as very easy to make, and it can result in an immersive experience for your audience. It suits artists with no crew or on-camera ambitions.
Where can I find crew without a big budget?
CD Baby’s guide notes that music videos are awesome projects for aspiring film-makers and videographers, and it suggests universities as a source of collaborators. Offer clear credit and a defined brief so the project is easy for a student to take on.
Do I need permission if the song is not mine?
Yes. Julian Langham says you need the permission of the music artist or artists and any copyright holders of the composition. Get that agreement before filming rather than at upload.
