Lav Bodnaruk Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 hey hey, hope you can help me out with this one :D I've got a short coming up, set in the sunshine lit back yard (same as the back yard scene from my feature film's preview) you can view the preview here: http://www.translationthemovie.com No lights have yet been booked (but can get anything I need - as long as the budget allows). Got some short ends of 500T (around 600ft all up) and a can of 250D, 16mm Kodak. The 'look' I'd like to achieve is that of CSI Miami. I've been trying to find a photo that captures that look, but haven't found anything that hits the nail on the head. Basically, I am interested in utilizing what I already have (500T) in achieving that signature look... those saturated colours; Any suggestions, tips on which lights to get? filters? Thanks a bunch! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddie bonfanti Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 hey maybe 500 is a bit too fast for bright daylight use, especially if you wanna emulate the finer grain look of CSI. i would use 250 and rate it 200, and if you can afford it do skip bleach the film in the lab. i dont think they do it in CSI but that would definitely help you to get a overall higher contrast, saturated colors and crush the blacks. if youre in a tight budget you can always saturate the colors in post. remember that it also comes down to lighting, they use a lot of bright top backlight and soft keylight on the faces. hope this helps Freddie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Brereton Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 hey maybe 500 is a bit too fast for bright daylight use, especially if you wanna emulate the finer grain look of CSI. i would use 250 and rate it 200, and if you can afford it do skip bleach the film in the lab. i dont think they do it in CSI but that would definitely help you to get a overall higher contrast, saturated colors and crush the blacks. if youre in a tight budget you can always saturate the colors in post. remember that it also comes down to lighting, they use a lot of bright top backlight and soft keylight on the faces. hope this helps Freddie Actually, Skip Bleach will desaturate the colours., and will look very different from the still. If you want saturated color and rich blacks, overexpose by 2/3 stop and print down. The still that you've posted actually has a rather pastel quality to it, rather than highly saturated. Either way it's easily obtainable in telecine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lav Bodnaruk Posted November 23, 2006 Author Share Posted November 23, 2006 (edited) Thanks for the input guys! I agree with Stuart and think that skipping bleach wont do the 'signature' CSI Miami look that I am after, but Ill definitely take the lighting tip that Freddie mentions. Overexposing by 2/3 of the stop and printing down makes sense, although I am still not certain that might be all that I need to achieve that 'signature' CSI Miami look. Plus, will I be able to pull it of with 500T? The still above is not quite as saturated as most of their shots are, but as I mentioned in the original post, I just wasn't able to find any better once... here is another I tracked down. Thanks guys! just found this one... great background and more of them here: http://www.kevingage.com/movies/csi-miami.php Edited November 23, 2006 by Lav Bodnaruk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Cooper Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 If you don't mind shooting reversal film, Ektachrome 100D should give you a contrasty, saturated look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddie bonfanti Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 mmmh, sorry if i gave a wrong tip! but when i skip bleached my negative, i used 200t, i definitely got more contrast and richer blacks. i was sure that happened with the bleach bypass process Freddie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Stephen Murphy Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 mmmh, sorry if i gave a wrong tip! but when i skip bleached my negative, i used 200t, i definitely got more contrast and richer blacks. i was sure that happened with the bleach bypass process Freddie more contrast and richer blacks yes, but not more saturation; regardless of what stock you shoot on bleach bypass on the neg will desauturate your images. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernhard Zitz Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 although it has a warm feeling, the picture of CSI you attached doesn't look very saturated to me. It's more the shallow DOF that's intriguing. As I remember CSI, they often use colored grades (maybe tobacco) for the sky on outdoor wide-shots... I haven't seen the show for a while, don't know If they still do that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddie bonfanti Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 you're right, i shouldnve said saturation...still unsure about these english terms!!! anyway i still wouldnt agree using 500...too fast for bright australian sunlight, but thats my humble opinion. Freddie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernhard Zitz Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 500...too fast for bright australian sunlight, but thats my humble opinion. yep, heavy ND needed... maybe something like a light chocolate, coral or tangerine filter for the warmth. To me some shots of CSI look like soft keylight and some diffusion (maybe Black Pro-Mist or Black Diff), but I can't really tell, I'm actually no DOP... :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddie bonfanti Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 havy ND to get that CSI depth of field on medium close ups, too...lots of glass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member David Mullen ASC Posted November 23, 2006 Premium Member Share Posted November 23, 2006 I notice that most or all those shots were done in sunlight under large silks... then contrast added in post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andres victorero Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 If you shoot outdoor don´t forget about Pola filter, you archieve more saturated colors (sky) and less reflections. Go to a very wide iris to get shallow deep fied. study your background colors with lot of primary colors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Keith Mottram Posted November 23, 2006 Premium Member Share Posted November 23, 2006 and don't forget to get a good colourist! csi miami is heavilly graded, those shots don't look hi con in camera but do look heavilly 'posted'. so slow stock and a decent colourist is probably your best bet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Phil Rhodes Posted November 23, 2006 Premium Member Share Posted November 23, 2006 Hm, I shoot constantly under the biggest "silk" in the world (horizon to horizon overcast) and my stuff doesn't come out looking anything like that! Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernhard Zitz Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 csi miami is heavilly graded has anyone precise information what is done in post on CSI and what's done in camera? Grads, Diffs etc? just wondering... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lav Bodnaruk Posted November 26, 2006 Author Share Posted November 26, 2006 Thank you guys! This has given me plenty to think about. I sort of see that my best option to getting that look is to change the stock I will be using, put a big silk over the scene and maybe see which filter (perhaps Pola filter as Andres mentioned or light Chocolate, Coral or Tangerine filter for warmth as Bernhard mentioned) might best suit the job... then leave it for heavy colour grade at the telecine. I might see what my mate from Panavision suggests too, as far as the filters go; Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Worth Posted November 27, 2006 Share Posted November 27, 2006 Keep in mind that CSI is shot for television. That means they could have shot it one way, and completely changed the look in post. Remember that shows meant for television, or films using a D.I. process for that matter, aren't limited to photochemically achieved looks. In fact, the whole concept of "achieving the look in camera" is obsolete, and in my humble opinion, very limiting. Of course, if you're worried about getting fired off a show and having the producer come up with the look in post, then be my guest -- bake it into the negative. However, for the most flexibility, you should shoot as low-contrast and "muddy" as possible, utilizing the high dynamic range of the negative to capture and store as much information about the scene as possible. Here's an example of capturing all the information in the scene (the original is pretty muddy and ugly, huh?) and then extracting portions of that information to achieve your desired look. All in the comfort of an air-conditioned room without people bothering you. And by the way, you don't need a gimmicky tool like Magic Bullet to do this -- you can do the same thing in After Effects with its stock plugins: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lav Bodnaruk Posted November 28, 2006 Author Share Posted November 28, 2006 Thomas, that is a brilliant answer! I appreciate you posting! I am saving those pics, calling my post prod house and seeing that we can do exactly that! Thank you my friend cheers from oz, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Phil Rhodes Posted November 28, 2006 Premium Member Share Posted November 28, 2006 Hi, I'm not sure she'll thank you for the bleach bypass. Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lav Bodnaruk Posted November 28, 2006 Author Share Posted November 28, 2006 Hi, I'm not sure she'll thank you for the bleach bypass. Phil HE HE HE was thinking the same thing when i saw that girl... Especially since one of the members recommended that all i needed for the "CSI Miami look" was the bleach bypass! If that would have been my outcome, I'd be shot! :D I think I might just stick to 'muddy' look, which gets worked on in post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Feldspar Posted November 28, 2006 Share Posted November 28, 2006 I notice that most or all those shots were done in sunlight under large silks... then contrast added in post. Wow! Can you tell that by looking at it (and if so how?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddie bonfanti Posted November 28, 2006 Share Posted November 28, 2006 (edited) HE HE HE was thinking the same thing when i saw that girl... Especially since one of the members recommended that all i needed for the "CSI Miami look" was the bleach bypass! If that would have been my outcome, I'd be shot! :D I think I might just stick to 'muddy' look, which gets worked on in post. maybe you got me wrong mate, all i said was to overexpose your stock 2/3rds of a stop and then bring it down in telecine (look back, i specifically told you to rate a 250 ASA stock 200ASA). i did also tell you to use bleach bypass, but i misunderstood your post at the beginning when you said "signature" look, i thought you wanted a very particular look, not necessarily EXACLTY the same one of CSI: i even told you that i didnt think they do bleach bypass on CSI! Edited November 28, 2006 by freddie bonfanti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lav Bodnaruk Posted November 28, 2006 Author Share Posted November 28, 2006 (edited) hey Freddie, Sorry for the misunderstanding. Perhaps all that stuck in my mind from your post was exactly that term "bleach bypass" and not the rest of the post as that was what I was unfamiliar with. I have since inquired about it a bit... Bleach bypass on its own definitely wasn't the formula for the signature CSI Miami look, but I see now you didn't say that mate... again, my apologies. Cheers, Edited November 28, 2006 by Lav Bodnaruk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddie bonfanti Posted November 28, 2006 Share Posted November 28, 2006 no problem, hope all goes well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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