Brandon Del Nero

Wow, no Fincher/Cronenweth yet?

Not only Fight Club and The Social Network, but "Freedom '90"

please contact brandon@frameworkla.com for more details

Thanks

Brandon

Sony EX3

Phantom for the high speed stuff

DSLR for the sunset time lapse at the end.

 

There is an article on the web somewhere, but can't remember where it is now.

If you happen to come across it, I'd love to read. Might try to dig it up. Seems pretty seamless for a 3 format shoot

Brilliant music video, but I've been wondering for a month or two what camera was used. I thought I heard right after the video was release earlier in the summer that it was a 5D, but the ramping leads me to think otherwise. It definitely looks to have the compression artifacting of a DSLR in some places (of course that could be the export quality)

Can't seem to find a "making of" or stills of the shoot, but according to Wiki it was an 18 hour shot WITH the band, about 9 days in all. Impressive stuff

Guesses?

Great stuff! The interlacing is throwing me off a little, I think you can render out to a bit higher quality format

Although Freya may have mentioned this, television is one way to go. I've ready of many British DP's getting their start in TV and documentary work. Then what happens is most people end up coming out here

There's some good stuff in here, but I really think that the music is a bit too ambient to get a viewer very excited. I don't listen to much current pop music, but I think a lot of it is great for reel work (cutting my current reel to Goldfrapp's "Ooh La La")

Ditch the shot of the guy throwing those sticks into another guy's neck, it looks fake. Also, you can probably afford to lose a few close ups, we only need to see one or two well-lit ones and then it just begins to become repetitive.

After doing a fair amount of DP work over the course of the past 3 years, I'm more or less seeing my career as a bit stagnant. I'm in the same boat as many young DPs out there, kinda caught in a perpetual cycle of free work for web series mixed in with the occasional short documentary or reality shoot. I guess I'm slightly confused as to where my career is headed and how to steer it in the direction I see fit.

I've always thought that the idea of having a mentor was great, especially in times like these, and although I've come close to having a one before, it never quite seems to pan out. There have been a few very well respected guys here in the industry that have shown interest, but ultimately had to bail on me, likely because of time restraints, which I can completely understand. What’s escaping me at this point is how people find the right person to take them under their wing and pass on knowledge to the next generation of filmmakers and what the dynamic of the relationship is. Are these chance relationships or is there a degree of searching? I’ve reached out to people I respect and have had some success, but nothing has really gone anywhere.

It seems this was the norm in old Hollywood, but these relationships seem to be scarce nowadays.

Any opinions or info would be much appreciated!

I like my Sekonic 758C, and if you get it through Mole Richardson and you're a film student, you get a substantial discount (at least I did when I was a student)

What are the dimensions of the room, including ceiling height? Those 2K's are going to cast quite the shadow, to prepare for that battle. Also, what format are you shooting on?

yeah its not too big of a problem in AE.

I find many people go with vintage lenses for flares with some character, the old russian Helios or vintage medium format primes. I could start another thread altogether on strange lenses for the 7d

Were there disco balls in the 40s? This is a serious question, I don't know. I think they feel a little out of place for a lounge singer, but that depends on if its a period piece or a contemporary with a 40s "mood"

You can hit her with a par for some strong backlight (think Janusz Kaminski, overexposed a few stops) and toss some 1/2 CTB on it (I know you don't like the daylight for this one, but I think you can sell a cooler light for the 40s), plus the spill might make for some nice beams of light with the smoke

Your 1K will give her some dramatic shadowing on the face, which I like. Mixing color temperatures is always a nice look, too.

Consider putting your china balls on a flicker box, might add to the effect you're getting with the location. Also, I like the greenscreen idea for comp later, just make sure you have a nice, evenly exposed light on it

Looks great Drew! Did you use the L glass or standard?

Also, were the lens flares native or added in post? I'm finding it more and more difficult to get a good lens flare with all this lens technology haha

Great job!

14 days to shoot a short?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? How many pages is this?

That look is not exclusive to Red. Soderbergh's film would have looked the same if shot on film. Natural light is natural light. I thought the pics in the link you posted looked stellar. Very natural. I often think lighting in mainstream films looks forced and very very fake. I love the work of guys like Doyle and Deakins because they take natural light and augment it with other lights to strengthen the effect, it still feels very natural. Your low budget film looked much much more professional than films with way higher budgets using three grip trucks worth of cinema lighting. The Red one does not have a set look if you know how to work with it. I recently saw the Academy Award winner for best foreign film. I could have sworn it was shot on film, it looked so, well, filmic but i later found out it was shot on Red. There have been a number of films that looked a little digital to me only to find out later that they were shot on film.

Well put. I feel you have to think very far outside the creative box when working with natural light. And if you're working with exclusively natural light, you'll have some ups and downs, unless you have complete control of where and when you shoot. My advice is when tech scouting your locations, ALWAYS have at least one practical source and keep an array of 100-250 watt light bulbs available at all times. At least then, you have control with your interiors.

And as Andrew said, the Red has a decent level of flexibility, but I strongly feel as a DP, you have to think about post and finish too. What look can you achieve in a DI session (if you're scheduling one)? Is there a through-line to your work, or are you just pressing record when you find an angle that looks passable?

The more I think about what I just wrote, the more elementary it sounds, but we tend to forget about the basic foundation of photography with natural light. The basics may be exactly what works in this case.

Hey all!

Check out my reel:

www.playgroundpictures.net

Its about a year old, so I'm looking to recut it, toss a few things, add some new ones. I think my taste in reels has dramatically changed

What works? What should get the boot? Any feedback is appreciated!

Thx

b

Great Job!

Question, did you have any mechanical problems with the Elaine? Taking nothing away from your film at all (because I think it looks wonderful), the Elaine is just a horrid 16mm camera. The block is poorly built from my experience, wondering if most people have the same issues with it

I sure do know how to kill a conversation :(

Again, nicely done sir!

I'd go with a basement for the jail cell. You don't get ambient light from windows. If you can find one with a long hallway and a few doors, just give the place a few nicely exposed pools of light and some fill, then leave the rest up to the production designer (or vice versa)

I don't think its a moving parts or card issue with the dropping of frames, its an overheating issue. Keep a fan on set and hit it with that between takes

good advice. I'll attest to that. I've had issues with darks getting noisy after the key is applied. For my purposes I try to stay away from Blacks in the wardrobe area, at least for head to toe stuff. Now when you say "even" exposure, do you mean flat lighting?

I think "even" might be a bit of a misleading term, apologies! More like making sure your darks aren't too far underexposed. I suppose your lighting may tend to be a bit flatter than desired, but it's the tradeoff for being able to pull a good key and adjust your subject without the fear of standout dancing grain

Also, throwing a mirror underneath your subject can kill some spill onto the feet and legs, if available.

And as a side note, if you're shooting digital, try to get a nice and even exposure on your subject, paying special attention to your lower ranges. When compositing, there tends to be a decent amount of curve adjustment, and having to crank the lows too much will pull your image apart with grain. I especially notice this on the Genesis, but I'll make the assumption that the more evenly exposed subject, the better in most instances

I did a scene just like this (www.playgroundpictures.net)

Basically, we had cubby holes up in the ceiling, so we lined the square cubbies with white card, a few 2x wall spreaders to hang 1 and 2k's on (the 2Ks above the subject), and kept the ceiling as far out of frame as possbile.

I threw a few 4K HMI Freznels across the room from frame R with some full soft frost (if I remember correctly, it was several years ago)

Short answer, mount bounce from the ceiling and keep it out of frame, throw from a distance with some power if possible for a nice dramatic key

250 watts with 2K power...sounds like its at least worth a rent to test out. I'd be a little skeptical about the light build if you're using them on a construction site though

You can send it off to a place like Technicolor and get it scanned (although I don't think Technicolor will deal with students anymore), google "16mm scanning", I'm certain you can find a place close to where you're at. Make sure you know whether you want a print or a picture negative for DI sessions

Hell, I'll take the bate. I considered writing a dissertation on a similar subject (although not nearly as broad), so I have a few minutes to give my two cents.

1. Using digital cameras over film cameras has obvious advantages: cost, quick turn-around, more integratabtle post workflow, and a greater degree of on-set adjustments

2. I feel the biggest advantage of using film over digital is picture quality. Film looks better, hands down. It also has more latitude in your highlights exposure, and color. I also strongly feel film is far superior in roto and compositing. Digital tends to acquire a bit more motion blur on the movements

3. I don't think that a timeline of digital replacing film can be fairly predicted, if it ever happens

4. When I light digital, I don't need my light meter as frequently haha. Also, I'm watch just a little more closely for clipping in the highlights. I don't feel the aethstitics(sp?) change for the most part

5. Digital has definitely changed the learning curve of the younger generation trying to get in. I've felt the effects personally. But this question is really an entire essay on digital cinematography and the direct economical effects on the existing industry. And if an aspiring DP wants to work in the studio and commercial world, he/she should have moderate knowledge of film

6. Again, this is a question that can't be fairly predicted. There will be a demand for film at the professional level for the foreseeable future since digital still has a way to go

7. I think computer-based cinematography skills are completely fair. Cinematography is traditionally technology-based, so its only natural that we evolve with the rest of the world and use these programs to our advantage. Successful cinematographers of the future will know data and delivery formats, complexities of resolutions and compressions, and have the skills to develop their workflow to appease the next step of the process

8. I don't think i'd like to see it "develop" as much as I'd like to conserve our roll in the creative control of the picture, which digital has definitely transformed somewhat

Sorry the answers cant be longer.

Hope it helps

b