Shawn Mielke

Wanted to second, or third, Godard and Coutard. Almost ten consecutive, groundbreaking, years of work from these two. Someone mentioned Tarkovsky and Nyqvist. An excellent combination, although they worked together only once. Tarkovsky worked with only one cinematographer more than twice, and that was with Vadim Yusov, on one student film and then Tarkovsky's first three features. Another superb combination...

I would go with a 3CCD camera, not because of the improved color fidelity that you would obtain but not need, but because of the other IQ benefits that, generally speaking, are coming with what is an inherently more sophisticated (and more expensive) videographic instrument. It isn't just two other CCDs that most 1chip cameras are lacking in comparison. What the other fellow said: the lens, DSP, dynamic range, etc.

In the future, I would begin by shooting wide open and dialing in-camera sharpening down as far as can be. Utilizing a longer focal length may further enhance this, depending on the shot/subject.

The PD170 is an improvement over the PD150. Cleaner video signal. Simultaneous LCD and VF. Much improved LCD visibility in bright sunlight. More rugged handle. In the case of either cameras, however, an external recording device is highly recommended for any serious audio acquisition as preamps are shamefully low rent.

I've been achieving B/W in post with my PD170 footage for the past number of months. Pleasing b/w dv is definitely possible, and is a surefire solution to one of the format's weaknesses: colour!

Yep, his work with Pasolini will certainly be remembered by some of us, more than the spagetti stuff.

My advice is that you work the flickery, sickly, hollowed eye look into the misen scene. Cheapest way to go. :-] Sorry, not enough sleep last night. S.

Price being no object, the Canon gives you high res 16:9, the option to use a good manual lense, or two or three, plus a lengthy optical zoom. Sounds good to me.

I have seen the Criterion discs. Definitely a film worth several looks. Some of the scenes are a tad difficult to understand because of the "cinema verite/observational filmmaking" commitment to no voiceover or other techniques used to clarify narrative ("only life caught unawares"). There's sure to be lots of documentary theory related discussion on this film.

He is Godard going into his video phase. He recognizes the immediacy of video in terms of artistic growth, and will experiment for a while, as all artists worth a damn should. His last film, Mulholland Drive, clearly spells out a criticism of the industry and it's vapid world and product that Lynch found himself in the middle of, and he is ready do things differently. He'll probably come back to film, but his thoughts and feelings are elsewhere for the moment. I'm willing to bet on this.

Yes, I read and heard about that (dvd notes and commentary). The film scholar that did the commentary said something about one of the doctors being an amateur historian and particularly being into the French Revolution at the time. I've been watching mostly silent films for the last few months, for personal interest and edification, and I'm re-realizing the power of a music score. The music by Anonymous 4 enriched The Passion in unexpected ways. The abstract use of certain instruments to represent action within many silent films fascinates me. It makes silent cinema feel much more like a graphic art than do most of the talkies that make up most of the body of the history of cinema, to me. Recorded sync sound has given way to mere imitation of reality, where the human voice is everything. In any case, this much time spent with silent cinema has opened my eyes and ears to more of the potential of cinema. Joan Of Arc feels so damn modern with it's dollying and plethora of closeups! Amazing amazing.

Holy Cow! Just saw this film for the first time. I'm completely blown away. I think a good part of it's impact has to do with how pristine the 1928 print is. Once again, thanks Criterion! Shawn

It's funny. The long takes are what kept my interest in this film. I love the pace and structure and look of this film.

Hi. I'm rather new to B/W DV, but my experiments are showing me that it's possible to get very good looking B/W video, but that the choices made during shooting are fairly different than the ones made for a colour product. Experiment with in-cam saturation as it pertains to grey scale. Framing seems to be quite different for B/W. It's an art, and certainly not a wimpy one. The emphasis seems to be on pattern and detail and contrast (a toughy in DV). And of course, post production tweaking of mids and blacks and all that. BTW, progressive scan video helps the impact of B/W enormously. Even if you're going to hire someone else to shoot, experimenting a little to help yourself get clearer on what you want is maybe good idea? Shawn

Hi! Can we start a thread that deals with everyone's tips and tricks and preferences regarding good looking black and white video? I've read through the forum on the subject, have been doing my own research and experiments recently, and would like to share as well as consolidate observations and information. I have limited time this first post for sharing my own findings, but here goes... camera: PD170 I have been running tests on how varying levels of in-cam color saturation affect the look of a post-desaturated video image. Surprisingly, I've found that some colors are obviously affected by in-cam saturation, while others, seemingly not at all! For instance, red is quite obviously affected, and blue,not at all, or hardly at all. Also, I think I'm finding that any amount of in-camsaturation tends to muddy the black and white image, lessening contrast, lessening the impact of shadows. Minimal in-cam color saturation seems to be the best choice for me. White balance. In-cam white balance seems to affect the grey scale of a post-desat. b/w video image, although it's subtle, and depends on other in-cam adjustments. That's it for now. All in all, I'm finding that it's very much possible to get excellent b/w video images. Shawn

Lighting for B/W is not the same as lighting for colour. Take a risk, make a critical choice for your project. B/W or colour? Two different processes...

I'm very much wanting to work with black and white over colour these days, although I have been seeing some colour photographs in recent days that are so incredibly controlled in their palette, as to act on me in somewhat the same way that b/w does. In any case, in terms of film and video as art forms and not mere would-be imitations of reality, I think it's very important to have worked exclusively in b/w for a period. It can only improve and inform your understanding of colour. I've been watching many many silent era films in the last month or so. B/W, tinted and/or not. Some are just out to tell the story, seemingly without overt regard to the monochrome nature of the medium, some seem to use it brilliantly (Expressionism, of course, of course). I work mostly in DV right now, but am experimenting to make the very most of it as a black and white medium. some favorite black and white films: Mad Love: the films of Evgenii Bauer (1913-1916?) The Fall Of The House Of Usher (Jean Epstein, 1928) Institute Benjamenta (The Brothers Quay) Tetsuo: The Iron Man (Shinya Tsukamoto) Andrei Rublev (Andrei Tarkovsky) Raging Bull (Martin Scorcese)

Yep. Naked Lunch is what compelled me to start that other thread. Amazing, from a lighting pov, imo.

Marvelous film!

I've been watching documentaries left and right this week, shot on either DV or 16mm, and 16 just gives better images. In less controllable shoot situations, I would want to shoot film.

Wow. Alright. Thank you, David S.

How much does this camera go for, new, out of curiosity?

Yes, T.'s Sculpting In Time, along with his films, revolutionized my understanding of art and cinema, art in cinema. Sokurov. I would like to know lots more about he and his work. I've seen Russian Ark and am in awe. Is more of his stuff available in NA? I was very interested in the film Repentance as a younger man. Haven't seen it in years.

I'll be interested to know what you thought of Barry Lyndon, my current favorite.

My interest in Russian cinema hasn't covered a wide amount of material. I'm a disciple of Tarkovsky at heart, and I'm very interested in Dziga Vertov was doing. I particularly like The Man With The Movie Camera. Tarkovsky's Stalker and also his Mirror have had an enormous impact on me. All of his films have, really.