David Matthews

Hey guys, We're in the midst of a national campaign for a seed company down south. The bulk of the principle production is over and now, as the season progresses, we'll be running back out with a skeleton crew for more B-Roll. We have a day coming up that we're dedicating to getting beauty shots of a crop duster. My primary camera has been the Red One MX with Zeiss SS lenses with a second unit getting timelapse on a 5D mark ii. I want to stay as consistent as possible, but make sure that I'm being practical as well. We'd like to explore rigging options for said crop duster. Please note that these will not be intended for ariels, but rather to feature certain aspects of the crop duster itself. These will all be wide to super wide focal lengths... assume 18mm or less depending on the format I choose to shoot. For the sake of this conversation, please leave FAA regulations out of it. I'm interested in mounting options and in smaller compact cameras that have exceptional image quality. My concerns are shutter issues and severe vibration. We do not have the luxury of taking a wide array of cameras and running multiple tests. Should I even consider Go-Pros? Your input is much appreciated, -D

Thanks for the feedback. The trick is getting these lights configured in a manner that won't be cumbersome when moving from set-up to set-up. I'm still doing a bit of troubleshooting, but getting good results.

As simple as the topic sounds. I'm just looking for some new and innovative thinking when it comes to catchlights. I realize it can be all relative to the subject matter, but I was hoping some of you might have a few clever ideas for creating a unique look when dealing with eyelight reflections. Any and all unorthodox methods are welcome. I've got a Christmas themed hospital shoot involving lots of close ups on children coming up and I'd like to do something different. The direction I'm heading at the moment involves several dozen frosted Christmas bulbs around the matte-box. It seems to be working nicely, but prompted me to seek out new ideas. I figured if nothing else, some fresh ideas might be shared. Thanks D

I have a shoot coming up where I need to show the amount of coverage that one spray bottle gives as opposed to the leading competitor. The agency wants to do a black light gag to achieve this look. Two actors will stand side by side and use their spray bottles to coat themselves with whatever the product is. Right now I'm using several black light sources for the UV effect along with several tungsten units gelled with medium blue for supplemental lighting. My problem is finding a solution that shows up well under the UV light. I've tried club soda, tonic water, etc. These work alright, but it's just not enough. I need a substance that's really going to illuminate once the UV light hits it. Preferably something slightly opaque, but thin enough to work with a household squirt bottle. Any suggestions?