Owen Donovan

Thanks guys....yes the Pola i don't think will be coming off the camera : )...I'll strap an ND or so on there with it and dive in ; )

I am currently working on a short film to be shot in the countryside, on a farm with the HVX200 and 35 adapter. The majority of the film will be exteriors taking place during the film as one day from dawn to dusk. The film will have a heightened but still realistic look. Slightly over-saturated hedging toward golden light as the film draws to a close. Aside from the problems of daytime exteriors which cross the board I was wondering what ideas you folks had on ways of maximizing the latitude of the HVX for day exteriors I've already asked that the middle of the day (11:30-5ish) be hardly used for shooting outside. The change in the color of the day given by incrementing coral filters 1/4 to 2. It was my thought that a black-promist 1/2 might do the trick in attempting to control some unruly highlights which are bound to show up; then upping saturation a little in post. What concerns me most about using a pro mist is that it may be degrading the image quality too much in combination with a 35 adapter. Using an Ultra Con would seem appropriate but I'm not sure if it controls the highlights fittingly. I know there's plenty of you out there that have tried to wrangle this beast and any suggestions or corrections would be great! Thanks, Owen

Hey all, So I'm leaving the quiet confines of Brooklyn College and heading out looking for work. I've put this reel together and am looking for feedback on making it as appealing as possible. Any suggestions are welcome. Owen Donovan Showreel M2 and nikon lenses DVX-100A, FX-1, HVX-200 Thank You, Owen Donovan P.S. Student Filmmaker Magazine this month has an article on lens adapters, my work is featured and not too many pages away from an article by David Mullen! if anyone out there is looking in to getting one you should check it out!

Hey guys, Thanks for the feedback. I used Nikon primes 24, 35, 50, 85mm. The contrast issue so far has been a problem since I haven't been able to color correct on an NTSC calibrated monitor. I shot the movie overlit so as to preserve detail and try and fake some extra latitude but bringing it down to where I want in Final Cut is a pain. We'll have an actual website w/ a real trailer up sooner or later I'll keep it posted here. Owen

bump. Sorry to bump again but I've never posted something online before....I FINALLY have a good place you can check it out. here it is. The Creswood GOOD LINK

bump. Ignore the first link here are better quality versions. enter code in top right corner 640X480 http://www.gigasize.com/get.php/304468/Creswood_640x480.mov Small http://www.gigasize.com/get.php/304482/Creswood_Small.mov

My friend's final project for his Undergraduate. a Throwback B&W Horror short. I co-wrote and DP'd. This is the first thing of any considerable length that I've DP'd. Could use any help w/ constructive criticism and your reactions to the piece . This is only a temporary trailer. Should have different cut soon. DVX100a RedRock M2, YouTube. I'll bump it when I get a different place to host.

Thanks Bill, I checked out that "Age 13" Really interesting for the time period....I used a Nizo s56 for indoors Nizo 148(I believe is the model number) for exteriors. And a cannon for the macro shots. As far as the soundtrack goes, Jordan Stone, a good friend of mine with whom I've worked with in the past did the music. I just talked with him over the phone after he had saw some shots and explained my take on the mood of the music/themes of the story etc. etc. And he sent back something way better than I hoped for! I pretty much dropped it in the time line and it matched all the cuts! :D Very talented guy, everything he does really has an interesting quality/sound. I can't help with any technical q's about the soundtrack but if you had any I'm sure I could find out.

Thanks for the comments rob. Guys and Girls, I know this is only lowly super8 but any critique would help. I mean the views to reply ratio is greater than Vincent Price's floating head! Owen.

Hey all, This is a link to a super8 reversal film I shot a little while back. It was all daylight stock 50 E.I. even indoors to reduce grain. The circut breakers weren't too happy! It's a DIY transfer though I'm thinking of getting it telecined this summer? is it worth it anyone? The site washed out some of the contrast. Note: when the man enters the room at the end the shadow IS intentional. Anyway let me know what you guys think of it. I've since shot 16 and will post some of that after a telecine. Looking for any helpful criticism. Camera, lighting composition etc. ;) http://medialab.ifc.com/film_detail.jsp?film_id=1074&list=1 Thanks, Owen

This is a pretty good reel, there are some nice shots in it. The shot of the young girl moving through the reeds is fantastic. Alot of the shots from that period piece are nice but with such low light why so little contrast? I preferred the exteriors to the indoor stuff. The shots of the piano player on stage are nicely spot lit. However with shots of him inside the lighting is a fairly obvious 3 point scheme. Watch that key-light getting on the wall: when he is playing in the apartment there is a noticeably large shadow from the piano down-cast on the wall. No one would have a light source in that location. Unless it's supposed to be moonlight-then you should have diffused it. Learn to love that tuff white. I've read the whole thread and understand you are a student (I am too) so take this with a grain of salt if you want, but you should really try hard to avoid a three point lighting scheme it gives a VERY interview-like feel. For example the interior of the piano player in his room his face is reading a normal exposure when the light from the room appears to becoming from behind him. Now since there are no other shots of this scene i don't know if there is a practical located in front of him. But if there is I'm guessing the likelyhood is that it isn't head-high which is where the light appears to be coming from. If there is no practical which is my bet you could have used a kicker as a key light and a little bounce from your main light source behind him for fill. His mood does appear to be somber in the shot so I would guess less light on the face would enhance that. I would STRONGLY recommend removing the B&W shots of the hands making the sandwich! They just have no place in there. The reel is a bit long, and I'm not feeling the music with the visuals, though it is a nice Angelo Badelamenti sounding groove. BTW the composition of that shot of the girl walking the door in mid reminds me of a scene from Twin Peaks...You a Lynch fan by any chance? Anyway this is nice student work I think you should adjust your reel because you can definately get more out of it. Hope it helps

I absoloutely agree, NYC has so much to offer, whatever mood you want to set you can find it here. And often times it's only a few blocks walk "ritz" to "raff" especially in my part of Brooklyn. I've had fellow film students complain how hard it is to shoot in New York without making it look "Cliche". PSHHH what a load of crap. Maybe they think their cameras only work in Manhattan. and J-ro....Thanks for clearing that up. I've heard mixed things about the film program over there but my roommate in screenwriting says they push hard to sell their students on current writing trends in the media. Of course film is a visual medium and any film program (IMHO) should stress the visuals as much as if not more than the story. So what your saying makes alot of sense. Also just to let you know over here it's 150 beans a year for insurance coverage! :lol: Group plans!!!! Anyway do you know if it's common practice to hire out for DP's over at NYU and Columbia? or is it just cause you knew the directors well? If it is common practice maybe I should get down there after I've shot more 16 and peddle my wares. Would be nice someday to strictly shoot something and not have to put in a hand at various other jobs. I see where you're coming from with the whole PA thing....a buddy of mine is doing that now....But doing that you SEE how they are doing it, but you don't have the technical skills and full knowledge and confidence you get when you leave a film program...he's a great guy but I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him with a camera or light meter....I mean sure you may have mastered the ability to assertively tell a stranger to stop walking cause "We're shooting a film" But who's really gonna take the chance, even on a small student/post-student production of you taking 5 hours to light a scene with the appropriate ratio? Maybe I'm naive But I believe with a strong thesis and reel you can bypass the whole P.A. phase out of school....not to say a good reel starts you off DP'ing/directing indie films lord knows that's a LONG shot. But you won't have to guard a camera or bring folks coffee on a music video/commercial shoot. but hell, who knows. If anyone has thoughts on this I'd love to hear it. :)

J-Ro i'm confused :blink: The thread is about learning cinematography in NYC. Did you attend either of these schools or just DP for student projects? I understand your best work was for students at NYU but if you didn't attend this school then they hired out...Just wondering if you could clear this up. ;) For tuition, I have a roommate who attends NYU for screenwriting and pays close to 40k a year. A film student would have to pay a few grand more with lab/equipment fees etc. and this is baseline before you start producing a film. Columbia I don't know but I would assume it's close to the tuition at NYU. I go to Brooklyn College which costs me 4k a year 1/10 of NYU yes the facilities themselves aren't quite as cozy i'm sure but we have plenty of power mac g5's that run final cut, bolex's, K3's then for upper classmen there are cp-16's, as well as arri MOS, sync-sound, and crystal runs available. Not to mention a great Cinematography teacher. The point I'm getting at is this: sure if you are ok with going about 200k in the hole for an undergrad in film go right ahead, but for most people living life that isn't an option. Brooklyn gives you all the means necessary to leave with a solid reel ready to compete with students from both NYU and Columbia for jobs. It's not what you got so much as it is what you make of it. Hell the money I will have saved going to BC could produce two (very modest) full length indie films on 35. And with cinematography only so much can be taught, alot of it comes from the gut/ intuition/ artistic sense/ luck whatever you want to call it. And yes I'm only a little bitter I can't afford to shoot a 10:1 ratio on 35 for my thesis but great creativity often comes out of understanding one's limitations. And just for record several profs over at Brooklyn taught at NYU before coming over here, They prefer teaching at BC and say you recieve MUCH more individual attention compared to NYU. Though I haven't been attending too long I would definately say the BC film department is like an extended family; every prof knows your name and I have met with each several times a semester if not more regarding my work. I would venture a guess that whoever teaches Cinematography at NYU, Columbia, or SVA would not be willing to stay until 11 o'clock at night talking with students about their work. If i'm wrong i'm wrong B) . And YES they are not gonna bad mouth BC but these are honest people.

WE LOVE Brooklyn College. I am a student there now, haven't made it to advanced cinematography yet it's a shame they only teach it once a year, However my experience there has been great so far. CUNY prices, Some really great professors and alot of diversity in taste among the students. Brooklyn really has a lot going for it. My perspective on film school, learning production and cinematography is this: alot of the eductation you recieve at the school you're attending is UP TO YOU. You can spend 20k plus a year to go to SVA or NYU but you are really paying for the name. A school like Brooklyn allows you access to everything those schools do minus 35mm but no one is stopping you from going out and renting a 35 to shoot. Remember film is a creative medium! you can leave college with a B.A. in film from SVA and NYU and your reel might stink! If you have talent and ambition it doesn't matter where you go you will learn alot and excel in whatever aspect of film you wish to pursue. Anyways I wouldn't want to attend film school w/ a bunch of rich boys and girls because from my experience any artform isn't survived by the priviledged as art or the "life of an artist" is not to be romaticized. It is a necessity.