Avoid These 3 Practical DSLR “Gotchas” for a Smoother Shoot

Cameras 47 Comments

Canon 5D MkII DSLR Camera Body

Creative Commons License photo credit: Mark Sebastian

Where were you when the floodgates opened?

Only a few years ago, the first HD video capable DSLR cameras were released. Fast forward to today and DSLR’s are not only prevalent on set, but the camera system of choice for many filmmakers.

Whether or not you agree with that choice is a different discussion and also largely irrelevant. The fact of the matter is you will eventually (if you haven’t already) work on a production that’s shooting with a DSLR.

And if you’re working on that gig as a camera assistant (AC), you’re going to find out why some moan and groan when shooting with DSLR’s. A lot of the reason behind these hissy-fits are the camera’s impracticalities in a film production environment — or “gotchas” — and here are three of them that can stall your production or even ruin your footage.

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Field of View Comparator from Abel CineTech

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Choosing between the multitude of camera systems can be difficult in itself, but then choosing a lens set to accompany them deepens the hardship even further. There’s a sort of magic that needs to be had between a camera and a lens set to provide both practicality (in terms of focal lengths, speed) and “look” (in terms of aesthetics). One of the important aspects of choosing focal lengths will have to do with what kind of field-of-view the camera provides. Luckily, there is an internet web tool that will allow you to compare different lenses on different cameras without ever having to shoot some tests.

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Independent Film and Hollywood: How Technology is Closing the Gap on the Great Divide

Behind the Lens 3 Comments

It seems these days that the gap between independent films and Hollywood couldn’t be greater. Where the bread and butter of indie films has always been small character dramas, Hollywood is finding more ways to expel these stories from its gables and make spectacle, “tentpole,” films its area of focus. It’s interesting, though, that films like Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan, The Fighter, and 127 Hours are pulling in huge per-screen averages while heavily marketed fare like Tron: Legacy sinks lower in box office every week. Audiences hunger for the story of the indie film but lust for the spectacle of Hollywood. And while the two are seemingly impossible to meld together, it seems that Hollywood inches closer to indie filmmaking with every chance it gets through technology, while keeping an arm lengths away when possible.

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RED Epic vs. ARRI Alexa vs. Canon 7D

Cameras 43 Comments

As we leave 2010 behind, there’s no doubt that the digital cinematography race is getting tighter with options across the board. Three of the major players in this game are the RED Epic, the Arri Alexa and the Canon 7D. The Epic offers astounding 5k resolutions, Alexa offers a subtle dynamic range that Roger Deakins thinks is as close to film as anything, and Canon’s DSLRs offer affordability. But how do these cameras stack up against each other when handling light? After all, the art of cinematography is “writing with light.” So, whose pen has the most power?
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Behind the Scenes of the Virginia Lottery “Holiday Dog” Commercial (Video)

Behind the Lens 4 Comments

A couple of weeks ago I worked as a camera assistant/swing on a behind-the-scenes shoot for a Virginia lottery commercial. The commercial, which centered around a dog wrapping lottery tickets as gifts for his owners, was shot in Richmond, VA. While the commercial itself was shot on the RED, the behind the scenes crew was shooting with a Canon 7D – an odd choice for documentary work, I thought, but it ended up working out. If you pay attention to the beginning of the video, that’s me slating, and that grumbling off-screen voice during interviews is yours truly as well :P  Video after the jump…

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Toolkit DIY: Homemade Hoodman Part 2 (The DSLR Edition)

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Shooting exteriors in bright sunlight, or in a brightly lit set, can make it difficult to see viewing systems on any camera. This is especially true on the DSLR form factor where the LCD screen is comparably tiny to dedicated film or video cameras. This isn’t the first time I’ve posted about a homemade hoodman, but I recently had to construct a couple for a commercial gig that used Canon 7D’s. These were more unique because the screen was smaller and located on the body of the camera and the cardboard shade I made had to be adapted to accommodate.

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Interview with Director Josh Davidson of ‘Dead iSland’ – a Feature Film Shot Entirely on iPhones

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Josh Davidson is an actor, director and overall one-man-band filmmaker whose newest movie is sure to make waves in the indie film community. That’s because his movie – Dead iSland – was shot entirely on Apple iPhone’s. Yes, a film shot on a phone. And it’s a feature. Awhile ago I blogged about the iPhone DSLR project, made possible by the upgrade to Apple’s latest iPhone 4 that allows it to record HD video at surprisingly crisp quality. Back then, I asked if this was the future, but little did I know how poignant that question would turn out to be. As far as I know, Davidson is the first filmmaker to use iPhones to shoot a feature length dramatic script – a script that is serviced by the unique production techniques:

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Cheap DIY Follow Focus Solutions

Toolkit 7 Comments

A follow focus is a mechanism used to adjust the focus ring on a lens without having to directly touch the lens barrel.

While very useful, follow focus units are also very expensive. The reason for this is because they have to be precision milled to incredible accuracy or else shots could be “soft” as a result.

Unfortunately, you may be in a situation on a low/no-budget film where production won’t rent a follow focus or you’re a one-man-band filmmaker who can’t afford one.

Luckily there are some easy techniques to rig up a follow focus on the cheap, most for under $10.00.

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Past and Future Lens Technology News

Cameras 1 Comment

I’ve got the goods from the guys at Engadget who lead me to two interesting stories that both involve lenses. One story whisks us into the past as Timur Civan over at the cinema5D forum has mounted a lens from 1908 on his DSLR. The other story brings us far into the future where depth-of-field may be infinite and focus be chosen in post-production (no that’s not a joke).

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Canon 7D vs. Barbie Video Girl (Video Footage Test)

Cameras 4 Comments

Though RED MX and Arri Alexa currently are the higher end options for digital cinema today, increasingly common is the practice of filming with DSLR cameras. Canon’s 7D is the frontrunner of the DSLR’s, though recent developments have even seen the iPhone make a crack. Well now Barbie Video Girl enters the scene with this video that compares the two camera systems side-by-side. Video after the jump.

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