Jim Feldspar
-
Posts
288 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by Jim Feldspar
-
-
volume, thats how they do it volume!
there were shadow and lots of them, but because of the volume of lights and all the same style wattage and distance they even out the shadows to a soft source look, kind of like a cyc light system.
Thank you. it's funny because if you didn't look at the lights pointing down,you could think that the light on the game was bounced somehow because it was so even. it would be fun to see what the place looks like with just the lights from any one side turned on. I also wondered what the wattage on them might be and if they are run on higher voltage as well. Still must be pulling lots of amps.
-
Went to an NHL game last night with all lights on for tv broadcast. Looked nice and bright, practically shadowless on the ice. The lights were like tv scoops, about 200 way way above the rink arranged in a shape that matched the rink below. Hard to tell but it looked like they had some kind of diffusion, material or not eggcrates but louver type things maybe. At that distance though, any diffusion would really just act as a scrim wouldn't it? The light was so soft and these lights are so relatively small and far away, why wouldn't there be more and sharper shadows?
-
That's an Alexa with an OB-1 on top.
Thanks and thanks for the bonus answer about OB-1. I didn't know what that was either.
-
This is the camera used on Law and Order LA from behind the scenes photos on NBC website. Does anyone know what this is and what format is the show?
-
Jim how did it work out? Was was your final choice for the table lighting?
hi thanks for asking. I made up a bunch of sockets and got some Chinese lanterns and 250w bulbs. I planned to hang them from a polecat
mounted between two grip stands but couldn't maneuver both stands out of all three cameras frames. ended up adding a couple arms to grip
stands and hanging lanterns off of arms extended out above table. that worked good and used some baby fresnels with gel to accent walls.
cut/corrected windows with ND/CTO
booked a 1200w and 575w HMI but had to cut due to budget. what we did worked out and at lower wattage which was good because
we were in there all day and it was hot! hot inside, hot outside
would have liked to do some things differentl, closer to recommendations on here but we made the day and got a lot of material.
with the small room, sloping ceiling, five people looking across the table in different directions, skylights and ten scenes it was a
challenging day but we wrapped on time with happy clients
although could not take all advice given on here I have to say that it was all appreciated and helpful and that being able to discuss it
and hear opinions was a big help in figuring out this job and in ultimately getting it done
thank you all
-
I think he's afraid of the low ceiling, so a wall spreader plus a fixture hanging might end up too low. I like the idea of bouncing off a white card - that can be taped to the ceiling with not much damage. If you are going to screw something in the ceiling, why not just screw some Kino fixtures up there? Thin, and your choice of daylight or tungsten lamps.
Don't forget that CTO+ND exists like Lee 207/208. You can correct the windows and knock them down an additional stop or two at the same time.
yes the ceiling is low so getting wide enough to see everybody gets the frame up high as well, to where it would
be close to seeing lights if not what's holding them. plus the ceiling slopes on one side so can't use a polecat and
haven't used a wall spreader like that with an angled piece of wood. does anybody? wouldn't want to above people
for sure. too low budget to put wall plate in ceiling and repair afterward but speed rail and stands is good suggestion
if I can get it out of shot
shoot is next week, going back tomorrow to see location again and will take some pictures, thank you for help
-
That has to do with how big each post can be (100K) i think.
And no, I mean rim in terms of backlighting talent (backlight/rim light, oft interchanged). and you can shoot up so it just hits into the ceiling w/o causing any problems.
might be 100kb per thread b/c won't let me do in this post either thanks for your reply
that seems like a good way and different for me to get a rim/backlight effect. not sure if I can
use it in this case b/c cameras on each side might be between light on floor and talent but I will
give check that approach out soon.
I usually can make a plan fairly readily and maybe I'm just dull from lot of long hours this past month
but this shoot has me going back and forth between the restrictions on lighting and the tight spaces for
cameras to move and cover five people looking in different directions and talking I think that I will go
with one camera behind two people shooting over them, another matching camera behind the other two
people in the same respective position and a third that I could bring with no one to operate but
lock off on the mediator in the middle.
Every time I sketch this out though I end up with a problem crossing the line at some point.
-
keep getting this message, can't upload pictures:
Used 105.73K of your 100K global upload quota (Max. single file size: 2MB)
-
Maybe a small HMI in a pancake Chimera if you can get enough height. Or even a chicken coop. Could you possibly shoot the discussion at the table with several webcams? If conversation jumps from one side of the table to the other, will you be able to film both side of the conference table without ever having the opposite camera in frame? If it's only four participants, could you re-orient the table, use a smaller table, or a semi-circular table, so the mediator is on on side and all four are facing him or her? Seems like this is a situation where you, the mediator and the client, need to take control of the pace and logistics of the discussion/presentation.
I like the chicken coop approach but not sure how I could get it up there with no place to hang it
or to put up a polecat or something. The seating arrangement is fixed by the client. I can spread the
people on the sides apart a but but that's all. Most likely shooting mini-DV or P2 with Panasonic cameras.
I'd look into trying to go with HMIs, if possible, as David Mentions, and also NDing the window down a bit, then using some small T fixtures, like 300 Arris, with 1/2 CTB as rim lights from low on the ground going up for some seperation on people close to the wall. Also, you can use mirrors to redirect light to a certain extent, to keep the head out of frame, e.g. mirror on an arm and knuckle bouncing the beam of say a Joker pointing down onto it, back up to the ceiling. Mirror can be low to the ground out of frame on the bottom or even in those sloped corners if the angles work out.
Adrian Sierkowski
Adrian@AdrianSierkowski.com
Adrian Sierkowski.com(Reels/Resume/Gear)
IMDB
By rim lights with this description, do you mean low on the ground and up to give an effect on the walls
like architectural lighting gives that scalloped look to buildings? For mirrors would you use the type that you
can get at a home improvement store? Would you fix them to a thin board or something and then put a baby
wallplate say on that for the grip arm to hold?
Here are a couple more pictures I could get of the room and set-up somenody else shot previously. Thanks for
your replies.
-
That picture doesn't really show the whole room so it's hard to tell what to do...
I'd probably either put some white cards on the ceiling and bounce a Joker 800 Source-4 Leko into it, or two, or use an HMI in a Chimera ball if I had the height. Otherwise you have to gel the windows with 85/CTO to correct to tungsten.
I have put bounce cards up high by clipping them into a grip stand with arm and raising that. If I did bounce, going off a card would get
better color light than off the paint. Would/do you just use gaffers tape to put bounce cards up like that? I do have some large rolls of CTO
and ND so I could put a couple layers in to reduce by a couple stops and correct to tungsten.
-
Day interior? Can you provide a photo of the room?
yes it will be a day interior thanks although I thunk that I can't use skylight for light because they are low, in frame and would
be too hot, like this one here. this is only picture I have right now. reverse has a bit more room going back and red brick wall
behind it.
-
have a job coming up with five business people at a rectangular table, two opposite each other and
one, the mediator, at the end and in between them. Going to use three cameras to cover many discussions.
This is for a business use DVD and we can start and stop a bit but mostly need to keep going. I would use
polecats to hang a bunch of small lights, maybe Chinese lanterns, but ceiling slopes into wall on one side
no place to put them.
the room is small about 20' by 16' by 9' high. there are a couple of skylights that are hot in the shot due to
sloped ceiling. Going to ND them.
coverage is going to be kind of tricky too. I might have two cameras on homemade dollies to be able to move a
bit behind people and shoot over their shoulders because people shift and talk at the same time, even seated.
The table is about 6' by 3' so people on each side tend to sit close by each other lean in to confer just when
somebody across from them is talking, which blocks camera that was shooting between them.
2nd floor location and low budget so can't use big lights or blast anything in from outside. would like a nice even
soft light. Bouncing open faced lights would be hard to control and heat up the room because would need more
wattage from farther away than smaller lights on polecats. lights on stands kind of difficult too because of shape
of ceiling would limit their height in certain spots and size of room would make it hard to hide them
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
-
One of my neighbors is a licensed electrician with 20 years experience. If I do anything, it will be
after running it by him, even on a shoot by shoot basis. I talk to him about them anyway already.
I do ask him a lot of questions so before I ask him about this I've been looking to see what info. I
could bring him about what film people might already do. Was at the rental house today but the shop guy
didn't say anything. I'm not so interested in his knowledge as in whether in the industry any rental houses
have such four wire plug to break out boxes already made up and rent them.
If a box can be made that is legal for me to use then it might be worth doing. If so, I'd hire my neighbor to make it.
He'd probably wouldn't take any money because he always helps me since I'm been a kid. If he thinks that it's not a good idea
he will say so for sure and he won't make the box either.
I know one guy in the neighborhood who has his own home made box for getting more power out to his tools but
he said that doesn't mean that I should do what he does.
I know people do tie-ins. I'm not going to even get into that. If I could find a way to plug in more lights when I really
need to and it's safe and legal that would be good. If not, then I won't.
-
See this thread: http://www.cinematography.com/index.php?showtopic=38565 Use the search function, "dryer outlet", "dryer plug", this question has been answered many times before.
The real answer is, if you have to ask, you don't have a basic grasp of electricity and shouldn't be doing this. Don't depend on some rental house guy to substitute for an experienced set electrician. Read your Harry Box, Set Lighting Technicians Handbook.
Thanks for the link and the advice, will do.
-
Are there any breakout boxes that can be plugged into a dryer circuit and split 220v
into two 110v legs? I asked the shop guy at rental house today. He thought so but won't sure and are going to check. I know that there are older three wire circuits and newer 4 wire circuits both with different plugs. It seems that for shoots that have to plug in, this could add a lot of power if possible.
Do people do this? Is it safe if done correctly? Is it legal?
Another question is I have a shoot coming up I want to power two 2Ks. Generators are not options for this shoot. I can get power from a building with 20A circuits but the run would be about 200 feet to each unit. I generally use 12/3.
That is a long run. Is there a way to plug into Edison outlet in building and have another length of 12/3 at the light but feeder cable in between? What should I ask for at the rental house for this?
Any help is appreciated tahnk you.
-
For me personally, I would avoid a camera that has been updated with the German motor, because if the circuit board is still French, you still have the same problem. Rule of thumb is to avoid any 16SR with a serial number lower than 60901.
-Tim
Sounds like a wise plan. I like that I might also be able to get an older decent SR1 at a good price and
eventually upgrade. I've done some more research and found out about using the newer gates rather than
machining and making a 180 degree shutter work rather than a 172. 8 or a 172.8 with a glued on 7.2
wedge!
The P+S Technic conversion looks really good. Thanks for all the info..
-
This helps enormously. Thanks for the tip about the serial numbers. I did a search to see if I could
find a site for the SR1 that would show where to look for the serial number but I couldn't find one.
I did find this puzzling line on e-Bay about a regular SR1 for sale:
Serial number is 603XX, but the camera was updated with a German motor.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...em=220194246807
What's up with that? serial numbers "XX" ? What do I do if somebody tells me that the camera
I'm looking at has been updated with German motor?
Is that possible? Is there a way to tell? Where is the serial number found on an SR1?
Much obliged.
-
Jim,
Alot of it is going to depend on who did the conversion. If it is an Axel Broda conversion or a P+S Technic conversion, those are top of the line conversions which make the camera almost equivalent to an SR3. The gate is replaced with an SR3 gate, the fibre optics screen is replaced with an SR3 screen. The camera is converted to a PL mount that is exactly to ARRI specs, and a few other things. Those conversions fetch top dollar.
There are a number of other folks doing conversions where they just machine out the regular 16 gate (which causes some issues), and use a remarked fibre optics screen, and use their own design PL mount (which still works with most PL mount lenses, it is just the mount pieces are not interchangeable with the ones made by ARRI), and a number of other things. These conversions can vary quite a bit in price depending on the quality of the conversion.
Hope that helps,
-Tim
That's good information. I'll find out who did the conversion, although I haven't heard those names so
I'm pretty sure it wasn't one of them.
I'm going to make a question list from your info.
1. Who did conversion?
2. Was SR3 gate used or if not then what gate?
3. Is fibre optics screen replaced with ST3 screen or if not with what?
4. Is camera fitted to PL mount including to Arri specs.?
Can you say what are the issues if somebody machines out the gate? Are they enough to steer clear
of such a conversion? Does it depend on the quality of the machining or is it just to be avoided in
general?
Does a PL mount make more sense, if there's a choice, than a bayonet mount? I guess that would depend
on whether there is a bigger selection of PL mount or bayonet mount lenses for this camera? Is there any
inherent quality difference between the two mounts? Is one easier or more reliable than the other? It seems
that the PL mount is the newer design?
What would be a ballpark price for a camera such as this if it is a quality conversion although not by one
the names you mentioned or somebody elsewhere also well known? Should I be looking for a certain type
of motor? Certainly I want to be able to shoot sync sound and would like variable frame rates but are there
different brand/quality motors or would they all be Arri motors but different in what they do, such as range
of frame rates?
Can the SR1 take a video tap? When converted to Super 16? Does it have a light meter?
I would want to use my own meter but I'm wondering if this camera has one and if that affects anything
or can just be ignored or maybe is it reliable enough to use in a pinch if I ran up a hill for a quick shot and
forgot my meter?
Lots of questions I know. Thank you for help so far. Any more help would be greatly appreciate.
-
I have a chance to get an SR1 S16 conversion from a friend of a friend. I trust my
friend and anybody she trusts. I'm curious what you think a good/fair price is for an
SR1 converted to S16, by a quality camera house and well maintained. She says
that he might sell it somebody made him an offer since he doesn't use it anymore.
She knows that it works well because she borrowed it last month. Since then it's been
sitting. It might be available without the lens and since I have a friend with good lens
connections, I'm thinking of going bit by bit rather than all at once.
In another thread on here, a poster was advised that SR1s should be able to get
lenses for either PL or bayonet mount fairly easily, at least in major cities. If you were
starting from scratch, would there be something that would cause you to favor getting
a camera with one mount style instead of the other?
Thanks.
-
I've seen this lots of times. Any unit under 2k run from AC flickers, its a question of degree. Most times you'll never notice it, especially in the days of projection, but when telecine came in it suddenly became noticed. People tried to nail it down to the most incredible things, even the plastic take up belts on Mitchell magazines were blamed for a long time.
AC fluctuates, its the nature of the beast, but on larger units £2k+ there is enough thermal retention to maintain light output from wave to wave.
I was 1st AC on a shoot doing high speed stuff on a treadmill, 4 x Dinos through silks were used and the flicker @120fps was amazing - so even the bigger units can suffer. We reshot from a DC power source.
It not uncommon, surprised if experienced people have not encountered it.....
What would be used as a DC power source as you described above? Thanks.
-
Flicker is inconsistent exposure frame to frame -- what I'm describing is an overall exposure change each time you trigger the camera, consistent within the take, but inconsistent take to take.
Vey clear now. Good distinction to know. Thanks!
-
It's more to do with getting a nicer matte out of your VFX element. I don't have any rain examples on me, here is an example using blurry lights, notice how the lights seem to blend in perfectly with background image. We're using the image itself as the matte instead of trying to create a matte based on a particular colour.
Cool, thank you!
-
The problem with a 45 degree shutter and an older magnetic ballast is generally not flicker, but inconsistent exposure. At a 45 degree shutter, 24 fps, you are exposing less than a full sine wave of the light output. So depending on whether you catch the wave at its peak or valley and then fall in sync with that, your overall exposure may be normal or dimmer than it should be.
With a high-frequency ballast, you have a lot more pulses to capture even with a 45 degree shutter.
I know that you must know, but I thought that flicker is inconsistent exposure,
caused by the flickering light causing some frames to receive more or less light.
Good luck, Christophe!
-
Jim, Photoshop isn't designed for doing any sort of motion graphics work (film/video/animation), however it can be used to do so if your prepared to work frame-by-frame or by batch processing image-sequences.
Rain VFX can be accomplished a few different ways. Shooting it as an VFX element, by filming the rain against a black background and then compositing the rain, or by using particles - which can be 2D or 3D depending on what program your using - but unless iMovie comes with a 'Rain' FX preset then your best bet is shooting water falling in front of a black background. You then can 'screen' (see below) this footage over your plate.
In compositing a 'screen' operation creates the matte/alpha of the image using the luminance of the image, this is handy for shooting elements such as smoke, water, fire and dust.
I definitely do not want to do frame by frame for a ten minute short that takes place in the rain! I
think
that the video I watched is extremely misleading as it begins with the host talking for a minute or so
with falling snow and also lightning and I doubt that was down frame by frame and I guess not even in
Photoshop!
I really like your suggestion of shooting the rain and compositing it. I've done some things like that.
I know that I'll have to backlight the rain but why do you suggest a black background? I can do it but
I'm just curious; would green screen somehow affect the shot more or do people simply not want to
get their green screens possibly wet?
Thanks!
Lighting a sports hall for a school reunion
in Lighting for Film & Video
Posted
What would have been the most power that would have been drawn for that? The smoke detectors are hard wired in places like gyms. How did those get handled? Wondering how a lower budget production could do with those requirements.