Ian Coad

oh and one other thing i wanted to know is if particular filters reduce the probability of getting such a flare.

i've got a second year advanced project coming up in a month or two that i'll be dp'ing. i'm interested in doing - for lack of knowing its true terminology - what i would call, 'big fogged-out flares'. see the attached photos for references of what i'm talking about. essentially, its where the flare floods the entire image frame. i'm trying to pinpoint, or understand the physics of the way light - or a particular kind of light - hits the lens and fills the image with this fog like effect. please understand that fog fx, or a fog machine will not be on set, and from what i'm seeing it would be unnecessary - this should be a result obtained solely through flaring the lens. one thing though, i do seem to be seeing that this effect for some reason occurs more often and more naturally on longer lenses. the images i included were taken with my canon rebel xti with a 50mm 1.4 lens. thanks. - ian.

its interesting hearing these stories. its been a while since i've had a real beater, a garbage dumpster on wheels that i don't ever have to worry about getting keyed or getting stolen. its relaxing to have those as long as they stay running, i fear the idea of losing my car mid shoot and its something i dont look forward to experiencing. my cinematography professor also has a prius and we students joke that he got it custom painted at maaco with 18% grey. however, more on topic, i guess what i'm asking is, can one potentially lose work opportunities if their car isn't equipped to carry a lot?

i've got one year left in my graduate studies. i've decided to sell my semi-suped up subaru wrx, as i need to pay back loans, it isn't mpg friendly and i don't really feel it fits my personality. so i'm faced with the decision of replacing it with something. i'd like something small and managable, like a vw golf or honda civic. the question is: am i shooting myself in the foot if i don't have a cavernous suv or station wagon? because i don't know whether the expectations of lugging equipment around will be an issue for crewing and being hired on low/no budget productions? most films have some sort of a grip truck. can i rely on this? i'd love to hear from the dps out there who are fresh in the industry. thanks. - ian coad.

i'm working on a project where i and the director intend to do what is many times done in music videos: shoot at 48 or 60fps with an audible onset lipsync dialogue recording. this will be used for a dream sequence, where the characters will move in slow motion, while their dialogue is spoken in real time, creating a subtle but surreal effect. i need to prove to the director and producers that this is within our means (we are students). can those with applicable experience please help outline the issues and potential pitfalls i should consider and be aware of. as well as if possible some of the methods they recommend. while we are shooting with super 16 can i test this with an hvx? thanks very much. i wont be able to have this approved without a realistic game plan.

thank you so much guys. at this student level is just one massive hurdle after another, where i obsess and do everything in my power to digest something...just in time for something else to come along, but i wouldn't have it any other way. david i'm gonna take a look at that sight right now. cheers. - ian.

i'm having some difficulty understanding differences in widescreen aspect ratios. i feel like i know and am visually familiar with 1:2.35, yet at times certain dvds appear much wider, without any noticable distortion. i see films by david fincher, steven spielberg and paul thomas anderson, and these tend to appear as longer, more narrow rectangles. can someone inform me as to whether films ever go wider than 2.35? is there a difference sometimes utilized in anamorphic widescreen vs. spherical? thank you. - ian.

I'm selling my Alan Gordon Mark Vb Directors Viewfinder for $645. product link: http://www.alangordon.com/s_camaccessories_markvb.html for those unfamiliar, it is aspect ratio adjustable between 1:1.33, 1:1.78 (HDTV), 1:1.85, and 1:2.39 (anamorphic). and has lens readings with the following zoom ranges in each format: Film 16mm film: 8.5-100mm Super 16 film: 10.5-125mm 35mm film: 18-200mm 35 Anamorphic film: 35-420mm Video 2/3" video: 8.5-75mm I'm selling it because I need the money to work and live in Europe this coming summer. Its in pristine condition (with original box) and accessories. No scrapes or marks, its clean. New at Alan Gordon these go for $699 + tax. making this price over $100 less. i'm including a weather resistant padded carrying case by LowePro - worth $21. product link: http://products.lowepro.com/product/SlipLo...-30,2039,43.htm Let me know if you're interested. I'll take the most competitive offer. The viewfinder is also listed on Craigslist. - Ian.

i'm nervous that i might have underexposed a student film i just shot. 7219 served for the entirety of the shoot. color charts were rated at 500. while actual shooting was rated at 1000, a simple means of underexposing by 1 stop. the film was shot at a motel with night interiors and night exteriors. our references were films like munich, american gangster and godfather - films that incorporated a large amount of darkness into its frames, making light something that is attempting to survive. the director and i talked a lot about the power of films that portray their characters in darkness instead of in well lit settings. i exposed the film a stop under because with my limited experience i've never seen any of the 7219 i've shot look too far underexposed - even with my meter reading EU, footage has looked even. i've felt that the latitude is immense and has all kind of capability for capturing images substantially below grey. however, this was a black cast. and black skin is not something i have had the opportunity to shoot before. further still i was unable to do tests prior to the shoot. i did look at the kodak vision 3 dvd and looked at images that were two stops under - which appeared strong. though i question the honesty of this. regardless, i'm wondering what more experienced dp's can say about underexposing black skin with 7219. i have the option of pushing the film one stop to correct for this stop - though this would obviously create a different sense of contrast altogether. any advice?