Get that “polished production” feel with professional SFX and music [sponsored]

Sounds of all sizes and shapes...

Audio is a vital part of any video production, but not everyone knows exactly how important it can be. Because the right Sound Effects (SFX) and the right music can actually make your project look better.

How does it do this? 

High-quality audio adds to the sense of a high-quality production. There are all sorts of reasons for this but perhaps the biggest is that great sounding audio implies that a lot of thought, attention and - inevitably - budget has gone into the production. If the audio sounds great, it can truly elevate the impression you make on your viewers.

It doesn’t matter whether the audio is in the foreground or more subtly in the background: the effect is the same: it just seems better. 

But there are other ways that audio can improve your video work. 

Audio can be used to tell the story

The right audio can trigger emotions. It can foretell and fortify the on-screen cues. The same applies to danger and threats: audio can set the scene, and make the visual content more vivid; reactions more extreme. You hear a breaking twig in dark forest: there’s something there, but you don’t know what yet. There’s an audible backdrop of leaves rustling in the wind. It paints the picture and makes it intensely real.

Audio can not only boost the current scene, but it can set you up for the next. As the video fades to black, the music keeps the tension going and raises expectations for the next part of the drama. 

Audio can add credibility and authenticity

The right SFX and music can make a scene feel old fashioned, contemporary or futuristic. There’s nothing like the up-front sound of a vintage car engine to set the scene. Modern-sounding music can establish a contemporary feel, and sweepy synth music suggests a high-tech, clean and minimalist future.

Credible sound effects can inject a huge does of authenticity to a scene. A creaky gate, a slamming car door and “atmospheres” - audio reflections of real environments. These all add to the sense of reality. In other words: the sense of “being there”. 

Music can add scale or suggest intimacy

A wide, symphonic score can add weight and gravitas to a scene. Small, closely observed sounds like a spoon stirring a cup of tea and then being placed in a saucer - can be used to suggest intimacy. Loud, deeply modulated baselines imply movement and pounding urgency. 

AudioBlocks has a vast collection of extremely high quality, easily searchable production music. Find out more here. And don’t forget VideoBlocks is a great resource for moving images to use in your films and videos. All of these resources are at a great price point.