Mike Washlesky

Well, 10-2 means "laying cable" as it were.

Build a tent of duvateen around the camera when shooting the passenger side. You can close the fabric in the top part of the door and gaff the lower half. problem solved. the front windshield issue should be reduced by the previous post.

oh man,cable stretcher - I forgot about that one!

I love the old Apertures bit. I too like to make up names for things especially when working with a green crew, because they dont know any better. You can totally make up random names for things. Here's a few: Monitor = Picture box (say it with a southern twang, works great) batteries = juice box electrical cable(stingers) = juice straw china ball on a c-stand = glow pop power outlet = holes clapboard/slate = flat gator grip truck = lite box tripod/sticks = camera lifter

Crap. Sorry, missread. You need diffusion. BUT, same principal, use dissolved baking soda to cloud the water.,

Crazy idea...suspend jars of water colored with food coloring of your choice. Gives you the flexibility of creating exactly the subtle colors you desire. And water doesnt burn last I checked. I have never done this but thought about your question for a minute. Thats what my brain came up with..as long as the jars arent moving, no shimmer. Dont know if thats cheaper or not, but a suggestion.

Its extremely annoying because SAG refuses to sign the deal that the WGA, and IATSE among others have already signed and infact, forced the producers to amend. Other labor orgs have already approved but no, SAG has to be special and get even more that the blue collars who labor on the show. Ladi-da. No wonder film production is fleeing from LA. Entitlement ruins good business. I totally agree in the concept of unions to a point. They have helped workers in all fields of labor from the early days in the auto industry for fair wages to safety, but, there's a line that gets crossed where they can hurt an industry such as in auto manufacturing currently, and of course its looking like SAG is too. Sign the freaking deal and get back on set..

Thats funny..

The book "Reflections: twenty-One Cinematographers At Work" available through the ASC is a great book with practical information. It also includes a DVD with interviews from tons of DPs. You should check it out.,

Thats great advice man...

I guess you didnt have a DP? Usually that would be the guy that would write out your shot list in shooting order and then hand that to the AD. Rattling off the edit after blocking doesnt help anyone but you and the editor, and thats kind of problematic when you are in the middle of shooting. As a DP I usually talk in depth with the Director about every single scene and how it will all break down visually in edit-order, then go back after we've created that shot list, and break it down into shooting order. There is never an AD involved in those situations. Your DP is the one who needs to be checking off mentally what shots are needed and what have been shot. At least in my experience thats usually the way it shakes out. Also, having an overhead diagram of camera positions with a number by each camera position to signify shooting order really helps. Thats really the simplest way to convey your ideas to anyone who needs that info and that reduces confusion. The whole video camera thing you mention seems like a "time-suck 2000" and if you are working with experienced production folk, wouldnt want to spend the time viewing that. I know I wouldnt.. Was this AD an experienced veteran or a student filmmaker?

and 20% are innacurate.

guilty here...for same reason as David gave. Sometimes it boils down to experience and if the project will even be completed if the Director stays in charge.

Ahhh. I see. BTW, I LOVED Pumpkinhead.

Whats "double posting"? Dont want to be yelled at..

I think you mean Rob, but thanks anyways...good luck.

Photography was good but it was a terrible flick.

thats pretty sweet. but, I guess you cant really frame while shooting right? Just go wide and then control the chopper? Or do you have some type of video monitor to see what is being captured. If so, what brand. Curious if there is any interference from the RC controler and the vid signal.. Do you have any pix of the rig/chopper?

Prices are listed on the Jimmy Jib website for all configs and accessories.

Jimmy Jib is reasonably priced and can support both small and much larger cameras. http://www.jimmyjib.com/index1.html

Try something like this. Provided the room is fairly closed off, this should produce some nice steam. Just used one like it to create SFX breath plates for a winter scene. It steamed up pretty good. You might need 2 in order to really kick up the humidity. http://www.cleangrout.com/mcculloch.htm

Well, the XL1 is a pretty old camera and it could be a number of problems. How many hours have been shot on the heads? They could be worn out, or, it could be an issue I have experienced being one of the drum heads is moving slower during recording than the other head. I am not sure where you had it repaired, but send it to Canon for them to take a look at.

Great story..the fact the synthetic lenses are UV protected is pretty cool too.

Oh man, I forgot about the old dogs. I once had to resort to a footspa basin I bought from a Walmart in the Texas Valley during a show. I couldnt walk in the mornings because they hurt so bad. Making movies, especially the low budget ones I am on, really takes a toll physically. Usually takes about a week for me to recover personally. And those gell inserts are a joke. In a Texas summer, they just get sweaty and slide around your boots. They are nice if your doing laps around the mall, but not slaving on a brutal show...

Uh..all of it. I just got off a 10 week shoot and every shot has handheld. It has wrecked my back over the years, and being tall anyways, the added weight of a camera exacerbates any potential issues one might have had anyways. What I have found to really help is working out with weights to counter the one-sided pressure of the camera always being on my right shoulder and to try to focus on the left side to keep the muscles symetrical. It really helps with endurance as well, but mostly it really helps minimize the potential for major back problems. I am only 32, and I am kinda scared to see what 50 will feel like frankly. Really the only other thing is stretching and taking breaks, but over the years, it seems there's really no way around it unless they develop a camera that sits on your chest dead-center with the weight equally on both shoulders. I am considering yoga but havent found the right leotard yet. But seriously, yoga could be the key..