General Cinematography XL2

[Jim Mirra]

Hello,

 

I am new to shooting dv video. I have no experience with film either. I purchased an XL2, and a light kit a few years back and have shot and edited multiple hobby projects.

 

I am interested in learning how to properly light and expose shots using my xl2. I recently learned how to use the color correction tools and scopes in Final Cut Pro and noticed all of the footage I shot had very limited contrast range, most values on the waveform are in the middle, with a few areas over 100% white.

 

Is there a book or tutorials that would teach a beginner how to properly light and set exposure, as well as how to adjust the specific setting on the XL2? Most information I find regarding this topic pertains to film. I am looking for something specific to the XL2 camera, or at least DV.

 

Thanks

 

Jim

[Jeff Clegg]

Jim,

 

The library section on this site has some great books, personally I have been re-reading "Cinematography" and "Film Lighting" by Kris Malkiewicz recently, but they are all worth a look. Even though a book may deal with lighting for film, the same theory really does apply to video.

 

I have found that along with reading on the subject, testing and shooting are great ways to learn what works and what doesnt. Since you already have a camera and lights, you are in a perfect situation to do some set ups on your own and see what they look like. A good calibrated monitor can be good for this, just any old TV wont really be too helpful as you cant really set them to give a proper image.

 

Another thing that may help is watching movies or shows that you like the look of and then finding what it is you like about it, and attempt to replicate it in testing. Testing different looks in an enviroment like this where you can afford to take your time without holding up a whole production has been a great help to me.

 

Hope that helps some.

Edited May 13, 2007 by Jeff Clegg

[pascal Boyer]

Hello,

 

I am new to shooting dv video. I have no experience with film either. I purchased an XL2, and a light kit a few years back and have shot and edited multiple hobby projects.

 

I am interested in learning how to properly light and expose shots using my xl2. I recently learned how to use the color correction tools and scopes in Final Cut Pro and noticed all of the footage I shot had very limited contrast range, most values on the waveform are in the middle, with a few areas over 100% white.

 

Is there a book or tutorials that would teach a beginner how to properly light and set exposure, as well as how to adjust the specific setting on the XL2? Most information I find regarding this topic pertains to film. I am looking for something specific to the XL2 camera, or at least DV.

 

Thanks

 

Jim

 

hi ,

look a lot of "making of "to see the light settings,you can also get the book "reflections:twenty one cinematographers at work" to get some ideas.