F Bulgarelli

Personally I think Star Wars is a masterpiece and that's all I have to say about that one. I just saw Alexander today. Great battle scenes and that's about it. If there is something cinema has done well in the past years is battle scenes. Other than that it felt like you were watching one of those History Channel shows, I didn't think the writing and the acting worked, it seemed cheesy at times. The movie just didn't touch me in any deep level. I was kind of dissapointed since I expected more. This is just my humble opinion, Francisco

Requiem for a dream

Certain movies have a way of growing on you. When I first saw Mudholland Drive I really wasn't that impressed with it but now that I've seen it several times I think it's a great film. Sometimes people underestimate films (including me) because they are not willing to look beyond the surface and really explore the content and the meaning. More and more people want instant grattication and thin plots. As far as Citizen Kane, I think the opening scene where they come to take the kid away is one of the most powerful scenes ever made. Francisco

Hi Michael. I was wondering if I could have your contact info. Every once in a while I'm in need of an experienced gaffer. Do you have a gaffer reel? Thanks Francisco

I really like Adefasin's work on Elizabeth. I understand he likes to use different color silks and other types of fabrics. Does anyone know more about his technique. I also like what Lubensky did in Great Expectations to light Gwineth Paltrow, specifically the nude scene where Ethan Hawk (?) is drawing her in his studio. Francisco

Thank you all. This is really helpful. I think the most important thing is taking care of the faces and I'll put a lot of effort into that. I'm gonna try to backlight the actress as much as possible and use soft bounce for fill. Bill, I'll be shooting next weekend (NOv 20th and 21st) Francisco

I konw you said you didn't want a zoom but something light and small like a cooke 10.4-52mm could be handy and not too expensive (probably even less than a zeiss prime). Specially good for documentary work. Francisco

Thanks guys, Well, the technocrane is a sort of "donation" and the steadycam is a friend of mine willing to help me out for little money. As far as the HMI's, Not much power around where we are and we can't afford a generator. Anyway, would you guys go with c/u early morning first and wide shots midday? Thanks again

Hello Forum I'll be shooting a couple days of exteriors and wanted to get your thoughts as to what's the best way to go about it. It's a 7 page scene which involves two actors in a parking lot. We have one day of mainly technocrane shots and the second day will be steadycam and handheld. Being a 7 page scene and the sun moving around throughout the day, the main concern is continuity, in other words, making it look like it happened in a short span time. I like to shoot c/u during the early morning or late afternoon because the quality of the light is much better, leave the wide shots for the middle of the day and cheat it when necesary. What's your experience with this kind of situations. Any comments will be greatly appreciated. By the way, all we have is 2 1200 HMI's, reflectors, mirrors, silks, etc. Francisco

It's definetely great to be busy. The one thing I find challenging is the creative aspect of it. I mean, coming up with creative ideas for the different projects. It almost seems like you could hit a mental block when there is just too much thrown at you and might become a bit repetitive. I'm not really that busy, but the times that I've had to deal with several projects at the same time I found it a bit chalenging, creatively speaking. Francisco

The best thing for you is to go by a rental house. If you are in LA I can tell you where to go. Francisco

Hello there Would anyone like to comment on the issue of dealing with several projects at the same time. For instance, you are shooting a commercial this week and then you have a music video coming up in a couple of weeks and perhaps you are interviewing for a feature. I know most people are not this busy but I'm sure some people have to juggle several projects at the same time. What's your strategy! Thanks Francisco

Hello everyone What's the best way to get blurred images; I'm referring to something similar to what you can do with a still camera by pannning or zooming really fast at a slow shutter speed. My guess is, the same thing applies to motion picture. In particular, I'm interested in those time lapse shots of cars at night that look really cool. Thanks Francisco

Hi Mitch I did it myself. On a lens projector I put on the zoom lens and mark the corners of the format at the wide end. Next I did the same with a prime, I had to go all the way to a 9.5mm zeiss to match the corners. I'm not surprised, most zooms show discrepancies as far as how wide they truly are. Check the 18-100 Cooke. Francisco

Excellent lens. Very similar to the canons (7-63 and 8-64) as far as resolution is concerned but a longer focal range. Not truly a 7mm at the wide end, more like a 9mm when compared to a prime lens. Definitely more breathing than the canons. Some light loss at the long end as indicated on the iris ring. I just used it for a music video and very pleased with it. However, I think the Cooke 10.4-52mm is cleaner (less flaring) than any other lens. Hope this helps

Hi I'm in the process of shooting my first feature and here are some things I've learned. 1- Don't let the rush at the end of the day compromise your shot. If your intution tells you it's not right better double check. Otherwise you might regrett it. 2-Fight for coverage. Sometimes the director might think he has what he needs until he starts editing and wishes he had that close up and that medium shot. Specially on long dialogue scenes. 3-Stick to your vision. I know we are there to bring the directors vision to life but the DP has his own vision too and you have to know what's right as far as the visual aspect of the film. Hope this helps...

Principal Photography by Vincent LoBrutto

Most people will agree Van Gogh was a genius and that's a whole different story.

I believe, most of the time we aspire to create art. Ceative people are in a continous search for something interesting or beautiful; in that search, sometime we might susprise ourselves (and others) and come out with something great. If anything maybe once in our lifetime. What I love most is the journey. Success means doing what you love and getting paid for it.

"Touch of Evil"

Have you guys seen Paul Cameron's commercial reel on reelsondemand. Excellent!

Thank you guys, Aaron, your work looks very nice. Michael, What I mean by "snappy" is an image clean and grainless. Maybe I'm not using the term correctly. As far as what I'm looking for, let me give you a scenario: Let's say that I could shoot a side by side test with both stocks rated at 250asa and I have a situation in which my key is at T4, I want to be able to see some detail in the background 20 feet away, which reads...let's say T1.4. I know that I won't get much information 3 stops under but I would think a faster stock like the 7218 will give me something, perhaps more than the 46 eventhough I'm rating them the same. Right? Thanks, Francisco

Hello everyone, I'm still debating on the stock choice for a music video. I'm going for a clean, saturated, grainless look. The shoot mainly involves a long, narrow hotel hallway. There is a good amount of light coming through some windows and skylights so I'm going to balance for daylight. I need about a 250asa stock so I was thinking the 7246D would be a good choice, however I'm still considering 7218T with an 85 filter and rated at 250asa. I'm a bit concerned that the 46 might not read into the shadow as well as the 7218, (we can't use a lot of lights) but I was thinking the 7218 might be grainier than the 46 which might give me a cleaner, snappier image. It already sound like a compromise...but maybe it doesn't have to be. Any comments or suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks Francisco Bulgarelli

Sorry, I meant to say 46 or 18 instead of 45. This is actually mainly interiors; a hotel hallway; there is some light coming through windows and skylights but it's pretty dark. Also, the walls are painted bright colors and we want that to pop. I was thinking about using a daylight stock so I dont loose any stop by having to use an 85 filter and also avoid too much of a mixed light situation. Our lighting package consists mainly of 1200 HMIs, Kinos and some small units. Thanks

I understand your concern since diffusion, specially on men, could be very touchy. I would definetely go with no haloing effects like you mentioned. I'm with Mr Mullen, I think SFX is probably one of the most versatile and subtle diffusions out there. good luck