Simon Wakelin

Anyone used this - shot today and intrigued to see how 10 ASA reversal will look - if, indeed, I have exposed correctly on my Nizo... looks amazing scanned/shown on demo reel on the plasma at pro8mm in Burbank! Apparently old "titling stock" from Kodak...

Anyone interested in a brief interview re: using the Cine Speedcam? I understand the visario sensors are rather good at resolving color & detail... anyone here know about these sensors... apparently fuji also use the same type... This will be for an article in HDVideoPro... I am the editor - you can e-mail me at swakelin@wernerpublishing.com I hear the mark II has also been release BTW cheers, Simon

"if only you could see what I have seen with RED eyes..."

Can anyone elucidate the difference between why one would go for, say Dalsa's higher bitrate compared to Arri (or Red's) lower bit rate? Where would one find a difference? Thanks in advance...

Thx Michael - do you, per chance, have any links to the topic of shading? I am scribing about lens design in HD cameras, MTF, floating elements etc... and from my basic understanding of shading I think I'll need to cover it... any thoughts on this? Sorry to be vague, out the door and hoping to r/s this tomorrow... cheers

Hmmm, what is the Venom?

...essentially slang David, sorry if I was not clear. Basically he is extremely happy with the Genesis system after using other cameras... thus "down" with it... he sees it as the best option currently out there. Of course it's all subjective, especially as each camera records the exact scene in its own unique way... also with The Red threatening to shake up the whole industry it's interesting. People I have spoken to say it's the real deal. Hopefully there will be a unit at NAB. Of course there is the Arri D20 with a CMOS sensor which is interesting to me, while the Red people built their own sensor ?!?! (which is amazing/insane to me!) Any thoughts on the future David? ...we're certainly in a confusing era with the general consensus being we're moving away from video as a capture medium to other forms of capture (such as the Panasonic P2 HD system that just documented the Iditarod race in the Arctic, handling temperatures and wind chill below minus 40 with no loss of data... tape would just get stuck to the heads in previous years using BetaSP... and the raw capture of Zodiac at 4:4:4 etc...) know of any other solid forms of capture? Cheers

thanks David - just got off the phone with Paul Cameron who came up with some interesting stuff. He's totally down with the Genesis. I'll update you on the article, if interested, when I'm done...

...this is an open ended question as I am about to write an article on lighting for HD. The general topic is: Where did the myth that less light is needed on a HD production (compared to film) arise? If HD cameras possess a higher sensitivity to light, could this be the reason why it is believed? I want to then discuss how this myth is insanity. How HD doesn't have the latitude (akin to transparency) so it really does comes down to the craft, the lighting, the contrast ratio, the gradient filters, paying attn to bright sources etc... By no means does HD equate to "less lighting", or "less attn to lighting is required" - one actually needs to pay more attn to lighting and light in a different way for a different format because of the added detail, depth of field issues etc... Excuse the cursory description here as I am looking for your thoughts on lighting in HD. Thanks in advance for any nuggets of information, general comments and experiences on this subject...

David, I spoke to you about 9 months ago about shooting stills on a non-union feature. It went well and actually turned union - giving me 2 weeks (13 days) of union at the end of the gig, plus 24 days non union before the show signed an agreement - however, upon applying to contract services to join the local 600 they refused to give me more than the 13 days union and had no knowledge og the 'grandfathered in' scenario... Question to you is; should I still attempt to get in seeing the production turned union and I have 37 days under my belt? thanks in advance for any thoughts/advice

Am shooting stills on a feature, just wondering what the specs would be for digital files? Previously I've submitted film but the production requsted digital files so am shooting with the Nikon D1h (after some careful re-vamping of my F4 blimp to accommodate the new Nikon body - Jacobsen are insane to charge as much as they do for new blimps when they can easily change a plug socket connector... but business is business I guess)... ...anyhow I figure 11 by 14 at 300 dpi should do the trick, saved in P'Shop in Adobe RGB? Any sugestions would be appreciated... back to P'Shop!

appreciate the words... Gallery 1 is a spec campaign rejected by Pony - here's another link for info of the shoot: http://ad-rag.com/118827.php simon

...not that difficult to get into the union someone says above: I guess so... 100 days on music videos & commercials over 3 years? I can *just about* scramble that together. Proving those days is another matter -- as a photographer for variety/american cinematographer you're not on the call sheet & shoot for magazines not prod companies/studios/labels etc... (plus I don't even know if that counts toward the tally?) I have to say that the fees are a bit ridiculous. Last time I checked it was around 7,000 dollars to join -- easy if you're a dentist or lawyer to pay, but a humble photographer schmoozing his ass off around town to get freelance work with a baby on the way? Well, I just can't afford it... do they have loans/bursaries/help for serious snappers that want in? Thanks for your comments thus far, Simon

...apologies for this neophyte question, but what is the 'local 600'? The producer is willing to help... thanks for the response, simon

Unfortunate: offered to work stills on-set -- my first independent movie for Sony... finally managed to move on from commercial and promo shoots, at least ZI thought so... was offered a flat fee for the 18 day shoot, then after completing first day I hear from the producer that I can no longer be used because I am non union... Question is: doesn't the union now have to offer me membership? If so, what do I tell the producer... any advice would be sincerely appreciated in this uncomfortable position...