Davi Silveira Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Hello, I'm a Cinematographer based in Seattle and I'd love to get some critiques from my latest commercial. I just want to learn and get better so any helpful advice is encouraged. Thanks 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Field Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Do you have any narrative samples of your work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davi Silveira Posted January 20, 2016 Author Share Posted January 20, 2016 Do you have any narrative samples of your work? Not available online yet, but I have some stills from my latest Narrative. Please don't judge the color, as these are not CC or CG yet. BMCC 2.5k RAW Thanks Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.47.30 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.48.47 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.50.10 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.51.07 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.52.47 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.53.04 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.54.03 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr Screen Shot 2016-01-09 at 6.55.16 PM by Davi Silveira, on Flickr 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Jay Young Posted January 20, 2016 Premium Member Share Posted January 20, 2016 I rather like that last shot. Very interesting, will look very nice with some color grading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Satsuki Murashige Posted January 20, 2016 Premium Member Share Posted January 20, 2016 Framing looks very good in the stills, nice sense of natural light. The spot is mostly well done, I think you just need to work on the smaller details. In the first overhead shot of the drawing, I like the little slash of light you put in on the table, but I would also like to see a soft reflection of a white card in the black coffee which otherwise has no detail. A little steam would be nice to see as well. In the 3D printer shot, it would have been nice to see a little more detail in the white plastic. I know that usually these types of shots are quite difficult to light because of a lack of control, but it may have been possible to request a different color plastic or use a colored gel to give it some color and keep it from blowing out. Then if you couldn't turn off the lights in the room or throw up a Kino against the backside of the printer to get a more dramatic edge light, maybe consider what you could have done with negative fill. Tough situation though. I have the same problem with the other shots of the printed product. The color and texture of it lack contrast, so you need to use lighting and grip to shape it more. And because it is white, you need to pay extra attention to it not getting too bright. The very last shot I think needed to be rethought in terms of time of day. It's dark and moody in the background, and it feels underlit. It would have made sense to me to make it either warm late afternoon or evening, when the family is all together and having family time in the living room. I probably would have set it in the den or living room instead of the kitchen table, and created a warmer, cozier ambience with some warm sunlight coming in from the side through a window to light the background, and maybe a practical in the foreground to bring up the child. I think I would have done it as two shots - first, MCU profile of child sitting in front of tv, Dad hands him the new controller, he turns toward camera, smiles, takes it, starts playing. Cut to MCU Dad watching his son play and smiling. Then, if you want cut to a wide from the back of the room. I don't think you need it though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davi Silveira Posted January 20, 2016 Author Share Posted January 20, 2016 Framing looks very good in the stills, nice sense of natural light. The spot is mostly well done, I think you just need to work on the smaller details. In the first overhead shot of the drawing, I like the little slash of light you put in on the table, but I would also like to see a soft reflection of a white card in the black coffee which otherwise has no detail. A little steam would be nice to see as well. In the 3D printer shot, it would have been nice to see a little more detail in the white plastic. I know that usually these types of shots are quite difficult to light because of a lack of control, but it may have been possible to request a different color plastic or use a colored gel to give it some color and keep it from blowing out. Then if you couldn't turn off the lights in the room or throw up a Kino against the backside of the printer to get a more dramatic edge light, maybe consider what you could have done with negative fill. Tough situation though. I have the same problem with the other shots of the printed product. The color and texture of it lack contrast, so you need to use lighting and grip to shape it more. And because it is white, you need to pay extra attention to it not getting too bright. The very last shot I think needed to be rethought in terms of time of day. It's dark and moody in the background, and it feels underlit. It would have made sense to me to make it either warm late afternoon or evening, when the family is all together and having family time in the living room. I probably would have set it in the den or living room instead of the kitchen table, and created a warmer, cozier ambience with some warm sunlight coming in from the side through a window to light the background, and maybe a practical in the foreground to bring up the child. I think I would have done it as two shots - first, MCU profile of child sitting in front of tv, Dad hands him the new controller, he turns toward camera, smiles, takes it, starts playing. Cut to MCU Dad watching his son play and smiling. Then, if you want cut to a wide from the back of the room. I don't think you need it though. Satsuki, Thank you for the well composed reply. I'm grateful for your critique and well thought suggestions. You're right about me needing to be more careful with the product since it was white, a little blown at the end I think.. Also I agree with the time of day choice could have been much better. Shooting when the sun was more visible in the frame would have really changed the feeling for better. And of course shaped the whole scene with more shadows. I'm glad you liked the flash of light on the first scene that was intentional. (I should of kept that mindset) The cup of coffee needed more steam!!! We had some but never heated up the cup during takes. Again, thank you. Davi Silveira www.davi-silveira.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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