Matthew Kerins Posted April 10, 2014 Share Posted April 10, 2014 Hi! I'm doing my dissertation on film vs digital. I've done my research and would love to hear people's opinions. If anybody knows any industry professionals that would like to help me out that would be great. Just to simply offer their opinion on the matter. My question is just Film vs digital, the advantages and disadvantages of each one, which is superior? and why? What do you prefer? and why? Thanks alot in advance. :) Cheers Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 10, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 10, 2014 Your dissertation sounds a lot like that Keanu Reeves documentary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dorland Posted April 11, 2014 Share Posted April 11, 2014 "Side by Side" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2014338/?ref_=nv_sr_1 Keanu Reeves also wrote a nice companion article for The Guardian about the topic. http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/feb/14/keanu-reeves-future-of-cinema Just a side note: I wrote a similar paper for an English class once, and ended up having too much to write about. You may want to clarify what part of the pipeline you are writing on for digital vs. film - Production, DI, Distribution... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timHealy Posted April 12, 2014 Share Posted April 12, 2014 As part of your research, I would suggest trying to shoot a few frames of film and a few frames of video (well more than a few), both static and moving shots, maybe vary frame rates and see how things expose and move both projected on a large screen and on a monitor. Play with filters on the lens and diffusion on the lights, etc, etc. And go through the post process as well. This would not be a small undertaking if you did it right. Best Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 Film is past, digital is present. One day digital will be compared to something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 Film is past, digital is present. One day digital will be compared to something else. I guess I missed the memo because I will be shooting a feature this summer on 16mm film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 I guess I missed the memo because I will be shooting a feature this summer on 16mm film. Go ahead, good luck with that. People still drive vintage cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 Go ahead, good luck with that. People still drive vintage cars. How is that sterile look, poor color rendition, and shabby dynamic range of your "present" medium working out for you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavan Deep Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 Not this again! Films is past, but it's present too and I am sure it'll be around in the future. Pav Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 Not this again! Films is past, but it's present too and I am sure it'll be around in the future. Pav To quote a child..."but he started it!" :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 (edited) How is that sterile look, poor color rendition, and shabby dynamic range of your "present" medium working out for you? Lol, funny :) Never saw any dynamic range presets on my Red Scarlet or Blackmagic. Edited April 14, 2014 by Vadim Joy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 Lol, funny :) Never saw any dynamic range presets on my Red Scarlet or Blackmagic. I guess your reading comprehension is up there with your ideas. I said "present" not "preset." I was referencing how you said digital is the "present" medium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 I guess your reading comprehension is up there with your ideas. I said "present" not "preset." I was referencing how you said digital is the "present" medium. My mistake, sorry. I agree film will be around for long time, but the point is that digital is getting closer and closer to replacing film. All those new movies are shot on digital for a reason. And the reason is that when you sit in that dark room eating your popcorn watching next epic masterpiece you won't notice any difference at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freya Black Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 All those new movies are shot on digital for a reason. 3D Freya 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 3D Freya No, this is not it. First 3D film was The Power of Love, screened at 1922. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavan Deep Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 (edited) I hate to post on such topics the fact is some people will never see the validity in other opinions I have been hearing that video has been 'getting closer and closer to replacing film for decades now', it's interesting that film is still here and is still a valid choice. Pav Edited April 14, 2014 by Pav Deep Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 I hate to post on such topics the fact is some people will never see the validity in other opinions I have been hearing that video has been 'getting closer and closer to replacing film for decades now', it's interesting that film is still here and is still a valid choice. Pav I try not to diss digital these days as long as those who choose digital are equally respectful of my choice. I actually am quite interested in Black Magic and what they are doing. I have even considered them since they have an awesome industry standard color grading suite to go along with their cameras. But it is hard to give any validity to people who have a reduser fanboy type of attitude toward film. If you cannot respect film and what it has meant to the industry and the history of motion pictures then you are not to be taken seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 It always will be here. But less and less people will be using it. Digital cinematography is the future. Why don't people light the scene with open fire on the set? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 It always will be here. But less and less people will be using it. Digital cinematography is the future. Why don't people light the scene with open fire on the set? But your comparison is false. In most cases of things being deprecated, it is due to being obsolete by means of something else having superior quality and functionality. In this case, film is being deprecated because people are cheap, lazy, and impatient. I don't know how you can't make the connection in your mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 Well, some people just want to be part of future, to move on and to keep developing this industry. Some don't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 Well, some people just want to be part of future, to move on and to keep developing this industry. Some don't. Well, when you use your Epic to create something that is more beautiful than Lawrence of Arabia, let me know. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim Joy Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 Cheap doesn't always mean bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Matthew W. Phillips Posted April 14, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted April 14, 2014 Cheap doesn't always mean bad. Of course not. But why do you feel the need to disparage film as outdated or like a "vintage car?" Why insult something that has stood the test of time and has a catalog of works to its credit that are not likely to be surpassed any time in our lifetime. Do you really think digital is approaching the level to look better than Gone with the Wind, Ben Hur, Ten Commandments, Lawrence of Arabia...even Sound of Music? I don't know if we will ever get anything that looks like that again, TBH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dorland Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 Well, some people just want to be part of future, to move on and to keep developing this industry. Some don't. Ahh, progress for progress's sake. If associating yourself with these noble people of the future makes you feel sophisticated, more power to you, but I'd rather not have my medium of choice driven to extinction by a different medium (and yes they are different). Imagine painting materials going out of style simply because we've been able to photograph since the 1830's. Proponents of digital cameras often cite artistic freedom as one of their greatest aspects, even while it snuffs out the artistic freedom of other artists. Maybe that last sentence was melodramatic, but it gets my point across. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dorland Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 (edited) Of course not. But why do you feel the need to disparage film as outdated or like a "vintage car?" Obviously the vintage car remark was intended to dismiss film, but it was a lame attempt at dissing. I doubt anyone would dismiss a 1969 Mustang. Edited April 14, 2014 by Dan Dorland 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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