Sing Howe Yam

I agree with David about the RED. It is not as harsh as other HD cameras. I was thinking that my footage was softer due to me using Canon FD lenses due to age and tech. But than I shot some stuff with nicer glass, some zeiss and cooke glass and I was amazed. Still sharper but not that HD sharpness. I've been using diffusion on the RED more for the effect of halation of hard back lights or point sources rather than softening the image.

Filmmaking in general is such an independent world (a lot of freelancers) and in the beginning the only person you have to market you is yourself. There are so many different ways to get into your career path but it is solely upon you to find that right path for you. I graduated last year from filmschool and was trying to figure out what I was going to do exactly, I actually asked David Mullen some advice on the reduser.net forum about moving to LA at the time or staying where I was because I was getting a few DoP gigs. He told me to stay and I did and I wouldn't have traded it in for anything. Just because I have been DPing for the last for the last 8 months steadily (nothing absolutely huge, but not tiny either) doesn't mean I think I am the greatest DP to walk the earth after getting out of school. I do know there is plenty more to learn and even great established DoP's still learn things on every shoot you do, I personally think there is no limit to what you can learn in this industry. I still take on any gigs I can find as a gaffer or an AC or even an electric on bigger shoots. I do call myself a DP because I have been hired multiple times by the same directors for music videos and they have been very happy with my performance. I also think as a DP in such a competitive market you need to have confidence in your abilities, you just need to have a balance in confidence and modesty. If I was a director interviewing possible DoP's for a job I want one that has confidence in his own skills rather than someone that is questioning if he has what it takes. I did have a run in on one production I was being hired on as a DoP for a $20k music video and the producer who has never worked with me was having major issues with me being as young as I was and even after viewing my reel and being impressed still didn't trust me and said I was a risk the production was taking and would not let me bring any of my camera team or my G&E team. They were going to hire people they knew for me (basically I was potentially going to be babysat). Unfortunately (fortunately for me) the production got canceled because of issues with the band. I understand where this producer was coming from but I was very unhappy about how I was being treated and that I didn't get any slight respect when I was being very mindful of the situation. Either way, this producer later worked on a music video about two months later that I was shooting as an AD and was completely taken back by his former thoughts on me and my crew. Just last week I just finished shooting a music video for this producer and I did have my crew on this show. The producer realized why I was pushing for my guys, my crew is part of me and from the bat work smoothly together rather than having a ice breaking period with a new crew. But I am all up for working with new people, but on a small schedule and tight budget I will go with my guys that I can rely on. Again, I'm not boasting myself. I'm just saying that because I just came out of filmschool doesn't mean I can't shoot. I will agree I don't know everything and still have a lot to learn, for example at this point in my career I would not take on shooting a million+ plus budget shoot. But do I feel I have the potential and passion to make it one day up to that level, the answer is yes because I have been steadily working on reaching that point. I personally feel the way my mind works is best at the DP position, I could never be a great AC - my brain just doesn't work that way. I think at the end of the day what really matters is the difference between that guy that really cares about what he is working on and than that guy who only cares about how much he is making that day. Not to say you shouldn't protect yourself and make sure you're not getting screwed but that shouldn't be your drive behind being a cinematographer, director, editor, producer, etc. Every job I do I remind myself why I originally wanted to become a filmmaker, that was because I wanted to tell a great story. Damn, sorry this was really long.

I myself do not like camera assisting. I have been DPing as of lately on a lot of music videos and do a few AC gigs (I'll work whatever, I find it challenging and fun, except ACing). I respect AC's though, it is a very hard job and what an AC does is more than just pull focus. My AC i've been using on all these videos is just as important to me as my gaffer. A good AC knows how to read the DoP really well to the point where he makes a DoP not worry about small details with the camera when he should be dealing with the overall image. My AC does things like this take makes him stand out. Whenever I am running around with a viewfinder he is always behind me with his fat max measuring my height and taking notice of what lens I'm looking at. Then I talk to my gaffer about what I want and my AC already has the sticks set to the height and the lens strapped on before I ever said anything. A good AC in general is any AC that makes camera team reliable and fast. I know everyone has come across a gig where the AC or yourself have not had the proper time or blocking to get correct marks. A lot of people not in the cinematography department might overlook this area and get pissed when they see a slightly soft shot in dailies. An AC has so much pressure on there shoulders and a lot of people don't understand how hard what they do is. A good AC is worth their weight in gold. I can't do the job myself and enjoy it because the pressure of nailing marks freaks me out and I lean more towards an operators mindset of composition. I'm always looking at composition. In the end of it all, this is the reason why there are so many credits in movies. You can't be the best at every position, but you do hire the best for every position.

Can always use an onscreen practical or build some kind of light that sells as built in. I have no clue what you're doing though, just an idea.

Hello, I have a several music videos next week in Tampa and I am looking for a rental house to order up a G&E package. I don't know of any in the Tampa area, so an info on existing houses in the Tampa area would be awesome. Sing

I actually agree unfortunately ;) It was a paying gig, I think it looks good but I wasn't being pushed as a cinematographer to tell a story, I was being pushed to look flashy - but when being paid I have to do what I am told...

Hey check out a trailer for the movie Dead Men. Shot in Chesapeake, VA in 10 days. check it out ----> DEAD MEN TRAILER A little info on the project check out my work blog ----> BLOG

Nice work, was there any thoughts on using shiney boards? As it reads here, seems like you were having to use a lot of power to fight the sun a good bit. You state in the beginning that you ran behind, I'm assuming since you had to use a genny and run power (which is time consuming and can be a bitch in pinch moments). For the golden hour look, were filters a consideration? Could be an easy way to keep an accurate color tone throughout. But cheers on the Cool Kids vid, it must have been fun.

No I am working with CineFilm in ATL. The film is going to be pushed back into early summer, not bad news because I would prefer this movie have the proper time to prep. 2 months was going to be rushing the project when some development things needed to be handled. Nothing worse then going into a film that has not had the proper time to get prepped. Still working on camera quotes, finding out my options with Panavision now, looking at Pana Florida or Pana Dallas.

SAUL: It's funny you bring up the plasticy feel of the RED. The director said it felt flat in dimension and I could see where he came from. The last feature I shot on the RED was interesting, the camera doesn't act like film emulsion, it still can't handle going under like film can. Its strength before falling apart is no comparison to film. I found myself shooting a little hotter than usual with the RED and pulling it down in RedCine, one to make sure I get no noise (underexposing the red has a good bit of noise). I'm looking forward to going back to film though, it's nice picking stocks again and hearing the sound of a film camera. I actually just got my quote back on the MovieCam and will be going with Ultra Primes with an HR rather than the Optimo (maybe even no zoom). ANDREW: I did get lucky on this director and it's great having a director that really appreciates the look of 35mm. I will let you know about my process and transfer rates, I got a quote on that is amazing. 90,000ft of film with HD dailies, HD-CAMSR, and 40hr of DI a 53,000. Let me know how your shoes goes?

I actually didn't have to convince him, we were originally going to go with S16 but because there is some effects work I told him to go with the RED (one for price and resolution!). He was fine with that, and I put a package together and had a great quote. He spent some time reviewing over other RED footage and called me one day and said "I don't like the look of the RED for this movie, I can tell it has a great image but it doesn't have the look of 35mm." I respect his decision, he doesn't think digital is the right medium for this project, I'm excited about it but also a little worried too about some things. 20 day shoot schedule on S35 is fully capable of being done and has, but has it quirks and has situations where it takes longer. His decision is the aesthetic of film, he likes the look of film and that is how he wants his movie to look for the story. P.T. Anderson only shoots on film in scope only and doesn't believe in DI. I got lucky that I found a director that knows what he wants. Film and HD aren't the same, acrylic and oil paint will never be the same, you just choose what fits the project.

Yeah that is what I was thinking. The 535 is somewhat of a beast, I think it's going to boil down between the MovieCam Compact or the ST LT, in the end it will come down to the budget. The ST LT is most expensive rental out of all the cameras. Thanks for the link to the Modula, it's definitely turning the wheels in my head right now.

Delorme: I will say the Nestor Almendros idea isn't the opposite, I talk about the hard shadows from what you're saying I'm still using that concept since the shadow that is casted for the shade is being chiseled out by the sun burning around them rather than the talent casting the shadow. Good way to make me think about using it the other way, just like taking out a backlight but using the bright background to make them "pop" in the frame. Maybe I could play these shadey areas as a small space in the frame to the point where it is, the only contrast in the frame could be a single area of shade in the frame (maybe, this sounds like a hard idea! Would be difficult to only have one place where shadow falls in a wide frame!)

It's funny you bring that up, Fear and Loathing and Natural Born Killers are two of my look samples. Camera movement wise I don't think I'm going to match those films, maybe for the trip scene but I think we're going away from the handheld wide angle lense close up for the majority of the film. There is a considerable amount of car work that is going to be done. I'm pretty sure we're going to go with a insert car + process trailer so that we have control of our situation and that we have more angles than a car mount (side and front...). We have a lot of scenes that take place in a car so I want to open the door to more shooting possibilities to keep it from feeling repetitive and bland. Wil still be using car mounts for driving shots and such though for inserts and cutaway shots of the car actually visibly rolling on the road it self. Also doing some stuff from just the back of the insert car, I'm looking forward to it, will be my first time dealing with an insert car + process trailer. The night time car scene is going to be the interesting, definitely going to use the process trailer there, has anyone ever done a rig mounting a 35mm camera to a bicycle to get a similiar effect that Libatique used on the rig for Requiem for Dream where they put the camera on the actor looking back at them? I want to mount it the same way to the bicycle at the handlebars looking back at person on the bike. I'm worried about the safety of the camera and the actor (maybe a use here for the arri 235?).

Hey guys, I'm about to embark onto my first 35mm feature. Going three perf to save the $$$, looking at three camera packages right now - 1. Arri ST LT 2. Arri 535 3. MovieCam Compact Glass: Ultra Primes or Cooke S4 + Optimo Prime (25-290) or the possibility of going with older glass, depends on what the director finalizes (old cooke S2's, shooting a music video this weekend on the RED with the rehoused ones from Wilmington Camera (formerly known as Joe Dunton Camera). I'll put a report up about the lenses soon. So the story is about these four latino's in there 20's and 3 are guys and 1 is a girl who works for this concert venue and he boss is a crazy neo-hippy who has a calculation that the world is going to end that day. So he is holding a concert/potfest to bring everyone together to share the "green". The three guys decide to do what they thought best, and that was look for the perfect bud to smoke to the world ending. Through their journey for the perfect bud the main character runs into various obstacles that keep making their search difficult. That's all I will say for now, but I think the script is hilarious and would be a fun shoot. The director knows it's a pothead film but he wants to turn it into a cult classic. We've been tinkering with the idea of the sun/burning object coming towards earth as an underlying antagonist. Want to create a hot summer in the city of San Antonio. The idea is I want to make the world feel like it's sweating, everything is blazing hot and you can't escape the heat. Want to play it through hot edges, strong defined kickers playing from the sun. Hard shadows and such. I've thought about cross processing kodak 5285 (100 Reversal) to get the big boost in color contrast and color shift. Maybe it might be too much, we have a segment where the 3 guys are bugging out after smoking something they shouldn't have, maybe there CP would work. Did think about shooting the day ext. with the 5285 and process it as reversal, tad pricey so I'm not sure if it is worth it. I will be testing all these stocks in mid Feb, should be interesting. Also looking at Fuji's Vivid160T. Anybody who has experienced shooting with these stocks would be awesome if you guys tell me how your experience was. Would be really appreciated. Night ext. I plan on going with the tried and true 5218, I feel the 19 sees like my eye does and that to me is seeing way too much into the blacks. Possibility of some rear projection! Looking forward to doing that if it becomes finalized. Things are still premature which is good/bad, I feel indecisive but at the same time still viewing my options. So please, anyone any tips or advice about the stocks and the cameras i'm thinking about give me some feedback. Like I said this is my first feature on 35mm, so feel free to comment.

I've notice that I bring less and less to set (not saying I'm top notch) because my crew usually brings everything they need. I still bring my ditty bag and now a rolling setwear bag (which is awesome by the way, isn't too big and holds a lot) just in case if there is an emergency and we don't have some kind of tool, etc, etc. Usually stays in the car though. What I do bring to set is a Spectra Meter (finally got another lightmeter, last one was stolen :angry: ), working on replacing a spotmeter, DSLR, 35mm SLR (personal set photos), contrast glass, viewfinder, thumb drive, multi card reader, grey card, color charts, my own lens solution (it's annoying to ask your AC's for this, just easier to have your own). Thinking about getting a colormeter but not sure if I would use it enough to yield the price of one. I also bring fingerless ironclad gloves for operating handheld, if you can invest in a pair they're great. Extremely grippy and have gel padding in them and is articulated so it isn't bulky, big help if you do any long takes handheld. MacBook Pro w/ FC studio, CS3, RED (all their little programs), Microsoft office. All these thing are pretty obvious, but it is a pain when you don't have all of these things, a lot of the DP's job is organizing, big time in pre-pro. So anything that helps organize and make your life a little less stressful in the DP world I would say is good to have. I'm going to start bringing my printer with me and possibly get a AT&T internet card, the last shoot I was on become a little problematic without the last two items I just listed.

Was there any thoughts to having in B&W? I feel the sepia throws me off because when I see sepia, I feel there should be a defined period look (like the 40's and 50's) obviously this is modern and I think B&W would work one, it's classier, two, I think the red bag would pop out more. Red isn't sepia at all but it does roll along the same side of the warm color spectrum and blends in when I'm supposing you're trying to focus on the bag. For commercial purposes I would consider B&W for my two reasons. Shot selection wise I think it fits very well for what your trying to do. Very fashion'esque. I agree about the sky, the sky throws me off a lot. I definitely feel this commercial is suppose to convey class but that orange sky does not do it for me. Then again all this might be out of your control.

Hey Waqas, I feel that Disturbance is probably your most recent work and I think it is the best (photography wise). The exposure is well controlled and the shot design works very well with what your trying to say story wise. Mister Morris was my least favorite, some of the shots seemed to be locked off on the tripod and the composition suffered from it. I think composition wise this is your weakest up there. A lot of shots of the artist from profile when I want to see his expression on the rapper's face when he gets all into his students. The studio, as said with the guys in the black suits, some seperation would have helped, spot light from above to play as motivation from a "track light" or something. The shots of the sound board when the hand is moving, it's in the foreground and is out of focus. Doesn't effectively work for me when biggest subject in the frame is out of focus. Maybe you have part of the shot in the actual take where it is in focus, I do know part of it is in focus on the actual sound board automating but because it's not a tight shot of the faders moving it just appears the whole shot is soft to me. Movement (dolly) for the segments on the artist would of been a good thing to do. Pushing in when he was in the studio would of helped, as a music video our goal is to sell and artist and for hip-hop a push in would make the artist seem more epic. Plus based off the beat in the song it can serve as jump cuts throughout the push in which a lot of hip-hop videos do in cutting. Possibly things you can think about trying in your next music video if you would like. Same goes as the previous comment about Wrath Fight and the watermark. The work is not bad, as said it looks like everything keeps getting better and better. Disturbance looked very good.

I've just finished shooting a feature on the camera and I didn't get an of the problems you've listed. As Joe said it might be your playback that is causing this, I shot the whole film at 4K @ 2:1 @ 24fps and had no problems and did some fast dolly shots. Shot some at 2k for slow motion and the footy cut together really well. Then again t depends what you're projection is going to be, the 2k I would be more worried about my lenses getting longer, which can be a bummer at times.

Seems like haze/smoke on set wouldn't hurt considering the climate conditions of actual HK. I've been there three times and the smog level for one is terrible but also throughout the city there is a lot of little "ports" of smoke that churn out throughout that city. There is a natural haze to the city, I remember having photos I've taken there and could definitely see a difference from just natural diffusion from the climate there. I too am a fan of the pro-mist. Maybe you could use a 1/4 for standard to wide lenses and a 1/8 when you go telephoto and regulate the rest with on set haze. Just throwing out another opinion, could be a better choice so you're not stuck on relying on filters to give you your halation. Plus you could use the smoke or whatever in the frame to help create more depth. Chinese markets in HK always have little shops that are cooking up something that provide steam and what not too. This sounds like you're going to have a great time with this. Anytime Doyle becomes a look sample for your films you know it's going to be visually stunning. Best of luck with the shoot and post stuff once you get the chance!

Hey Kevin, I sent you a PM.

Love the darkness of the shot, the lights add the depth to the frame with how they run down the right side. I agree about the point source at the top of the light. Another option for a flashlight could have been a Scorpion flashlight that has a xenon bulb. Usually someone on the G&E team has one or local film equipment retailer carries them. Just an idea in the future.

The film right now is in post and is scheduled to be screened Feb. 12. There is suppose to be a small theatrical release with I think 100 some Carmike theaters on the East Coast. The stills look awesome Sing. What was the project about? Chayse, the movie was a romantic comedy about a independently owned movie/music store who can't seem to find love. He can't find it because he's too scared to go out and try. When he does things kind of go to poop at first because his actions are too abrasive.

Well the shot was on curve track and based on where I wanted the light to be it didn't suffice for the 320, plus with all the ambient light from street lamps, christmas lights in the distance, cars, etc. I wanted 2/3 of stop more just for a little more information. If I shot 320 I could have pushed in the light but the problem was the light would cast our shadows on the actors as we went around in our dolly move. This was the issue because finding the sweet spot for our light was the problem without 1) seeing our shadow 2) seeing the light at some point in the shot. As for the lenses, it's still sharp don't get me wrong, but with their age and the older technology they were softer. As stated in my blog there were times where I added some Schneider Black Frost to the lens, but it wasn't really for just soften the image it was more for an effect. If you took the Canon FD's against a set of Zeiss Ultra Primes or even Super Speeds there would be a difference. The actresses we had on the shoot were all very pretty though too so I didn't really need to add a lot of diffusion, but a lot of my lighting was usually soft as well. Nothing was done in post.

I might have a possible project coming up and the director was asking about an HD tap source out of an SRIII. Is this possible? Any info would be great, also comments and recommendations on the best taps to get for the SRIII would be great.