Daniel Madsen

One thing a DP has going from them in a location like this is dark production design and a large room. With dark production design it's easier to maintain contrast with softlight. Yes, you still need to control spill but if the walls and everything else is a ways from your subject and your subject is the brightest object in the room you have a lot on your side.

For lighting interviews I'm partial to a chimera. They're especially nice because they don't take up as much space and are modular. I'm looking at the Westcott Spiderlite TD6 which accepts compact fluorescents, nice because the source itself is large (all those low wattage bulbs) and so the diffuser can be closer to the light. Space always seems to be at premium and I prefer to put extra space behind the subject to create separation rather than behind the camera with lots of stands, flags and lights.

Shooting an interview at F/1.9 80mm might be frustrating.

Having theatrical lights like pars and ellipsoidals in frame would convey a theatrical theme. Also, I think you could use a hard backlight without contaminating the low specularity of the overhead. The overhead could also be goboed off to create a round source.

Multiple round overhead sources of different colors would help your theme.

I would probably enhance the spotlight effect in post using a vignette.

Hello:

Is there any difference in image quality when you use gain while shooting vs. pushing the image/increasing image brightness in post?

Thanks,

Dan

if you're into corporate propaganda......

how many cows will die for your sexy little satchel?

hi everyone,

the contract did read that I was responsible for the equipment. However, the contracts were exactly the same for everyone in the G&E department, but only my and my co worker's checks were withheld on the ground that we did the check in/check out. I told the producers- for the same reason the other people were paid, I should be paid too. they didn't buy that.

Dan

I would shoot at 144 degree shutter to make the exposure time (1/60 sec) the same as the refresh rate on your projector.

A show that I worked on is withholding my last weeks paycheck because of the

amount of equipment lost and damaged during the production. The L&D isn’t one person’s fault, but the best boy electric and I are being held responsible implicitly through the withholding of wages. My contract does say that I am responsible for the equipment, but it’s very general and is no way different than the deal memos signed by other people on the crew. It certainly doesn’t say you are responsible for paying for what you broke.

The thing is, no crewmember would ever work on a film again if they knew the cost of L&D would be subtracted from their paycheck. My question is, is the production in anyway justified in withholding payment?

We were working off a five ton with eight G&E peeps of varying skill levels.

In addition, because the producers think they are on solid ground legally, they consider Grip Nation’s blog and video slander….

http://gripnation.blogspot.com/

Any legal insights appreciated.

Best,

Dan

Which was well enough spent.

Hahahaha......you slay me.

I think it’s true that people look for life in the image of life (that is, symbols of a fulfilling lifestyle). Of course people are going to be let down by Hollywood. Hollywood manufactures the images that by design no one can live up to. Don't we ensure this as camera people?

Let's face it- we're not providing a great service to humanity. Haskel tries and I really appreciate it.

download and read page 142 for insight into image and ideology.

http://www.daysofwarnightsoflove.com/

Does the light travel the entire distance of the monofilament, or does it taper off? Have you tried any effects of moving it back and forth past the light?

In my experience the monofilament is placed behind the lens. There are two reasons for this...

1. If you put it on the front of the lens the filament is likely to be illuminated even when there isn't a light source shining down the barrel.

2. The filament is right up against the image plane and therefore produces a hard colored shadow (i.e. fake anamorphic flare)

If you do place the monofilament behind the lens keep in mind it has to be positioned perpendicular to the lens axis and takes an extremely long time to position correctly.

Luck.

This isn't as good as playing around with the camera, but menu guides like this one exist for every build.

http://www.xlfilms.tv/2008/shared_images/X...Menu_Map_v1.pdf

Also do a "Red" search at http://www.wonderhowto.com. There are a lot of good though pretty basic tutorials.

Enjoy over breakfast.

Dan

An option:

D is the distance between the camera and the rear projection screen, which should also be the distance between the camera and the point at which the skidding car comes to rest when you shoot the background plate ( B ).

The advantage to rear projection is the car can be “rocked” when the car appears to be hit. I recommend rocking the car with a 2x4 and an apple box. This alone won’t be enough so jar the camera as well and consider some green screen blood splatter ©. You may actually want to be inside the car (not outside like the illustration would suggest).

What is your opinion on using a HD one light 35mm transfer for both TV presentation and the creation of an EDL? I’m trying to avoid the cost of a scan, DI and film out. This is for a 35mm project, finished photo chemically for a theatrical release.

Dan

My wife works for the Social Security Administration here in the US... believe me, we give a TON away to those who in no way deserve it. A week spent in any Social Security Administration office will turn you around... BIG time! Now, THERE is a Docu ready to be made. People filing for "disability" because "well, I don't deal well with authority"... yah. That is not a joke.. she hears it all the time!.. from people who can't (won't) name the father of each of their children.. who can't remember the spelling of their children's names... for REAL! At times... it has literally made her sick. They are smart enough to 'work' the system so, no, they aren't mentally incapable...

Really? If we are talking about wasteful government insurance policies, you might want to start with a discussion about our nation’s financial institutions and the “too big to fail doctrine” that has prompted a public bailout. Starting with a discussion of SS is just laughable- it doesn’t even compare. If US banks are too big to fail then they shouldn’t exist. Otherwise, corps will be in our rears by design.

well, it is a mentality that promotes a Big Government (Big Brother).. that can easily smother creativity, risk taking, entrepreneurialism, private ownership and on and on...

 

Since when did Big Brother become so 'cool'?

 

Let's give some trust back to the States... and most importantly.. to INDIVIDUALS.

Are you trying to paint a picture in which big brother and entrepreneurialism are working against one another?

Not in the real world.

http://www.chomsky.info/talks/199805--.htm

Dan

I'd shoot the close ups in the morning when your subjects are in the shadows and the light is more diffuse. The extra contrast later in the day won't be as bothersome if you're covering the action in a wide shot.

Suerte

A: Direct blow up from S16 negative to projection positive including contact print of the optical sound negative.We usually make a S16 contact print first to check the grading etc. After approval and/or grading corrections the negative is printed on the optical blowup printer and in a second pass the sound area is exposed on a 35mm contact printer. Very high quality but only suitable for very small number of prints.

 

B: IP/IN blow-up: After the S16 contact print for checking the grading, the S16 negative blow-up is done to Intermediate film (5242 or similar) as interpositive 35mm. From this 35mm Interpositive a contact or optical 1:1 intermediate negative (5242 or similar) is made. From this new 35mm intermediate negative standard contact 35mm positive prints with optical sound can be made on high-speed printers at low cost. Some labs will do a S16 interpositive instead but this reduces quality at a lower price.

How much would each of these options be? Am I right that it's more common to do something like skip bleach using choice B on the intermediate negative?

Thank you Richard and Dirk.

Dan

In optically blowing up 16mm negative to 35mm, are you simultaneously timing the 35mm print. I want to make sure I'm not missing some intermediate step.

Also, what is the advantage in striking a 35mm interpostive from your 16mm negative vs. just a regular positive? Any insights at all about optical blow-ups are appreciated.

Dan

I'm not sure if there is such a thing as a lavender scrim. I've heard of a lavender net, which cuts 1/3 of stop of light. It's rarely used and being so fragile, usually has its own case.

I've never seen a black silk, but it would diffuse light just as much as a regular silk in addition to cutting intensity significantly. I don't see a huge use for it. Are you thinking of black velvet?

Dan

I enjoy the practicals and the shafts of light they create along the wall. There looks to be some light leakage at the top of each fixture though. I would have gotten rid of those so only a single point source, the flashlight, was in frame. This would have helped to emphasize your character.

The flashlight is not that bright. Did you consider using something else?

.....a grad helped some too, I think.

Back lighting your subjects with many smaller sources may be prove less frustrating. With sidelight, the light will fall off very quickly and may look contrived.

You might consider losing the adaptor in exchange for an extra stop of lights. Also, when you scout the street location go at dusk and see whether your streetlights come on while there?s still enough sky light ambiance. If you?re well rehearsed before that ?window of opportunity?, you may be able to pull off the shot. Bring your camera to the scout if you can. I prefer dusk for night when it can be done.

I’d use the silk to soften the light and bring the foreground subject within a few stops of the background.

Good to consider the reflections. The camera and any gear would be backlit, so I’d either throw up a solid behind camera or shoot at an angle to the window and employ a polarizer.

The background subject will need something too and unless you’re renting a generator, I’d rely again on the sun redirected and modified with grip goodies.

My schematic assumes there will be direct sun and that you will be fighting contrast. You may be doing the opposite if it’s overcast.

* go heavier or lighter depending on the desired relative brightness of your foreground and background subjects.