Wide shot
The whole artist and the setting. It sets the scene and gives the video room to breathe between two tight shots.
Tutorial · Shooting
How to film a music video with your phone
Your phone is enough for the picture. What makes a music video look professional comes down to three things: the song playing during every take, at least four angles of the same passage, and cuts placed in the right spot. Here's how to do it, step by step.
Updated · 6 min read
Prepare the song
Everything starts with the final version of your song, as an MP3 or WAV file saved on your phone. No file yet? Here's how to put music on your phone.
In TREMOLO CUT, the app plays that file while you film: that's the playback. You listen to it and sing or play along. Nothing else to set up. Every angle is filmed over the same file, which is what lets the app sync them. The music is your timeline.
Filming with another phone or a camera? Play the song out loud next to it during every take, loud enough for the device to record it: that sound is the reference used to sync the takes when you import them.
Tip Really sing, don't just mime: lips follow the sound, and it shows on screen.
Choose your section and editing style
Once the song is picked, the app asks what kind of music video you want:
- The length: 15 s (viral), 30 s (quick), 1 min (standard) or the full song.
- The format: 9:16 for TikTok and Reels (recommended), 16:9 for YouTube, 1:1 for posts.
- Your favorite section: you place the window on the song's waveform, often on the chorus, and listen to it before confirming.
Then comes the editing style, meaning where the cuts land:
- On the beat: the cuts land on the drum hits.
- On the melody: the cuts follow the notes of the melody, most of the time the vocal line.
- Hybrid: the beat and the melody together.
Last, the intensity: from calm to intense, it sets the number of shots to film. All that's left is to tap “Start filming”.
Pick four angles
Filmed from a single angle, a music video looks like a recording of a performance. Two angles are a bare minimum: the edit just goes back and forth between them. From four on, it has enough to tell something. Well filmed, more angles are even better.
Medium shot
Face and hands. This is the shot that carries most of the video.
Close-up
Face, mouth, eyes. Save it for the strongest vocal moments.
Moving angle
The phone circles the artist or lingers on a detail: hands on the instrument, a dancer's feet. It's the one that brings the energy.
Set up your phone
- The same format for every angle. Same resolution (1080p is enough), same frame rate, same orientation: vertical for Instagram, TikTok or YouTube Shorts, horizontal for YouTube.
- Lock focus and exposure. On iPhone, press and hold on the artist until “AE/AF Lock” appears. On Android, it depends on the model: look for a long press or Pro mode.
- Light facing the artist, never behind. A window in daytime is enough. Backlight turns a face into a silhouette.
- Clean the lens. One fingerprint and the whole take is blurry.
- Turn on Do Not Disturb. One notification during a take and you're filming it again.
- Stabilize. A tripod, or the phone in both hands with your elbows tucked in. For the moving angle, walk slowly, knees soft.
Film each angle
Without a dedicated app, film each angle over the whole song, from start to finish, without stopping: when editing, you'll be able to pick any angle at any moment. Messed up a take? Redo the whole angle rather than one section.
Keep the same outfit, the same light and the same energy from one angle to the next: once edited, the takes should look like they were filmed at the same moment.
In TREMOLO CUT, the app shows which part of the song you're filming and slips in a tip along the way, for example: “Your window covers the first chorus — film it moving, it carries the energy.”
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The craft
Cut in the right place
This is the step that separates an amateur music video from a pro one, and the one nobody explains.
- Cut on the beat. An angle change that lands off the beat is felt, even when you can't say why.
- But not on just any beat. A beat often lands in the middle of a sung phrase: the cut is right on the rhythm, and the voice is cut in half. Wait for the end of the phrase, or the breath.
- Follow the song's structure. Few cuts in the verse, more in the chorus. Change angles when the song changes section: that's where the ear expects something new.
- Let it breathe. A video that cuts on every beat is tiring. The pace of the cuts follows the song's energy, not the metronome.
These rules come from twenty years of editing. They're the ones TREMOLO CUT applies: the app follows the song's melody — most of the time, that's the vocal line — and puts every cut on the beat without cutting a phrase in half.
Edit your music video
By hand, in editing software: you import the four angles, sync them one by one to the sound, then decide on every cut. It's doable, but it's slow, especially the syncing.
With TREMOLO CUT: you film in the app while the song plays, or you import the takes from your camera. The app syncs the angles and places the cuts on its own, on your phone: no video is ever uploaded to a server. Your first full project is free, exported in 1080p.
FAQ
How many angles do you need for a music video?
Four. Two angles are a minimum to get started, not enough for a real music video. Well filmed, more angles are even better.
What audio file do you need to film a music video?
Your song as an MP3 or WAV, saved on your phone. The app plays it while you film each angle.
iPhone or Android: which is better for filming a music video?
Both work. What matters is using the same settings for every angle.
Do you need to know how to edit?
Not with TREMOLO CUT: you film, the app edits. By hand, yes: syncing and choosing the cuts take experience.
Are my videos uploaded to a server?
Not with TREMOLO CUT: all the editing happens on the phone. No video and no music ever leaves the device.