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Ian Carleton

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Posts posted by Ian Carleton

  1. Hello all!

    I'm looking for insight on the Canon 70-200 F2.8 IS II.

     

    Canon says that this lens is not parfocal and more often than not this is true where the image looses focus while zooming.

     

    For example:
    - at 70mm you focus on your subject

    - you then zoom to 200mm

    - your subject is now out of focus

     

    From time to time however I have come across version that magically hold focus when you crash zoom in. Has anyone discovered why this happens, or if there is a way to identify versions that work better than others?

     

    Any insight would be much appreciated, even if it's just letting me know that yours holds focus while zooming.

     

    Thanks in advance!

  2. Hey Tobi,

    I'm not sure if you have made your purchase yet but I can share my experience. I use a 1.2K HMI at every opportunity I get, especially for corporate and music video projects. The quality of light is great and the output gives you a lot of options on how you would use it, bounced, diffused, through windows, even just popping it to bounce off a ceiling to add ambient light. Although it's helpful to have a gaffer to run lights for you, I have done a lot of projects with the 1.2 k all on my own. This perhaps comes with experience but if you are confident with what you are going after and have a plan its no hardship to work it with a small crew or solo.

     

    The maintenance costs are something I don't encounter as I always rent this type of light, but I can tell you if you invested in a good HMI it would be a tool you will use often and for a long time.

  3. In regard to the top space lights (for the floor green), how does that affect your subject, particularly with their eyes and other possible shadow issues? What's the ratio you use to counteract the top-light with the Key and fill... and if those have to overpower the top-lights, then how do you get enough stop out of them without causing the shadows?

     

    Thanks!

     

    Do you have any photos of setups or diagrams to share?

     

     

    Again, Same as David but ill just pipe in to give you a double confirm.

     

    I do whatever I can to avoid having the lights for my green screen hit my subject. That really complicates things, the more independent the subject can be the better. Then I have the freedom to light them to match the plates that will be going in.

    I don't have a screen grab on me now but if I find one on my hard drive tomorrow ill toss it up.

     

    Cheers,

    Ian

  4. Just to toss another voice in here,

    David is pretty bang on with his input. I use pretty much the exact same setup for all the web banner work I do.

     

    I started out trying to fuss around with +Green Kinos to hit my screen, but have since learned that lighting from the top with soft lights is far superior IMO.

    If I can't go from a ceiling grid I get my gaffer to rig up a pipe on roller stands so we can hang 2K softlights evenly spaced across the screen. The roller stands are great too because if the rigging needs to be moved we can lower the setup and just walk it back and forth.

    I prefer a ceiling grid if I have the option though because it reduces your footprint on the floor giving you much more flexibility with your other lights. I find it helps the brain get more creative when you just need to think about lighting your subjects / can place your lights wherever you want. Blank canvas. Also, if you are worried about appearance, makes the set look nice, clean, organized, if clients are hanging around...

    I think the biggest thing is to try and get as much space between the screen and your subject, I always push for the biggest studio space the budget will allow. Next to that try your best to have wardrobe and props steer clear of anything reflective. It's amazing how much simple production design changes can make your day run smoother.

    Oh, I as well do a bounced fill 95% of the time.

     

    Hope some of this helps!

    Good luck!

     

    Ian

  5. Hey Guys,

     

    Back when the 5D first got the manual control update I briefly tested it under HMIs in Toronto. There was a pretty bad issue with the sensor reading those gross bars refreshing across the screen. I was wondering if anyone has found a way around this. I tried shooting at all the shutter speeds and nothing seemed to get rid of this. Mind you this was a little while ago and I can't quite remember what the best option was, but I know I was not satisfied with the end result. If anyone had some information on how to go about shooting under HMIs I would love to hear it as I have a project coming up that really would benefit from HMIs.

    Thanks in advance,

     

    Ian Carleton

  6. Hi Gang,

     

    I was wondering if someone could explain to me how to go about using higher power bulbs in a practical socket. Can you just pop one into a standard household lamp if you are using it for a short amount of time, like turning it off between takes?

    Or is it something where you have to modify a practical lamp to make it work?

     

    Also, who would make bulbs to use for this, are they available for ordering online?

     

    Any information you would have would be greatly appreciated.

     

    Thanks!

     

    Ian Carleton

  7. Don't forget about lighting your backgrounds / make sure they are exposed to your liking. One of the biggest things I have learned from shooting night exteriors (learned from my own mistakes) is that its easy to get carried away worrying about your face exposure/placing shadows and ending up with underexposed backgrounds, or pockets of the backgrounds that are just too dark. This can easily happen if you are doing a walking shot, where you might think about lighting your start and end frame, but get sidetracked from the middle areas, and then end up with sections of the dialogue where they pass areas with nothing visible in the backgrounds, causing the subject's light to look very staged. Also, don't forget the power of practicals in the background, get some PAs to drive the production cars past to give you splashes of light from the headlights!

     

    Best of luck!

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