Sing Howe Yam

If possible I would like your guys feedback and comments on my work. This was my first feature so critiques/feedback would be greatly appreciated. I do realize if this is what I wanted I should of probably put this in the Critique my work forum. My apologies!

I think the combination of Kodak's 7217 and 7218/19 is a unbeatable combination. I agree with David on the Fuji's 250T as well. The two Kodak stocks I just said also work very well together as in matching, I ran into a problem where I ran out of the '17 and I took the '18 and rated at 320 to clean it up grain wise and it intercut perfectly with the already existing '17 footage in a short I did.

I shot a short this past spring on Fuji 8573 and Kodak 5218 and there was not that much of a difference. I feel a lot of the color negative stocks now are more for acquisition, sure I think there are difference between the two stocks, obviously since both of them use different technology for them but I really did not see a big difference to where it was jarring for me. It was intercut within the same scene when I used both stocks. If you go to narrative section on my website and play the short, I doubt you can tell which shot is different. I think the difference between the stocks is the whites, I feel Fuji might have a cleaner white while Kodak has a warmer tone to the white. Some color differences in the green as well, people say Kodak is warmer while Fuji leans to the cooler side.

Just finished up DPing on a three week shoot in Wilmington, NC for the feature Redefining Love. It stars Tim Woodward, Ryan Small, Jodi Sweetin (from Full House), and Sarah Laine. We shot on the RED ONE. Please check out my work blog for screen grabs, set photos, and info here --->BLOG

This is very true. I just got done DPing a feature in Wilmington, NC. I rented the camera from a friend of mine that has his own because he gave us an awesome deal. But the fear is what Jaron was talking about, if that RED went down one day we would have to stop shooting and go to the local camera house and fork out the money for a full priced daily rental, or worse, shut the production down for the day. If the production had the money I would have rather gone with the local rental house in Wilmington to get the full support and the backup cam if things were to go wrong. Thank god though nothing went wrong because the production would of been in a predicament. I had to go the cheaper route because of budget but when I do get on shoots that have the budget I go with the camera house. In the long run it is worth it because on set time is money and when a independently owned camera goes down I bet there isn't the greatest options laying in front of you. It is just another camera, I couldn't see the Dark Knight being a shoot for the RED. This whole HD will destroy film is crazy, it's like the choice between oil paint and acrylic paint. You choose them accordingly to every project. Just my two cents, hope I'm not going to get any angry poster coming after me. Enjoy the holidays!

If equipment is shortage for your situation it would probably be easier to also cheat the subject into a more controlled area based on the position of the sun. A lot of it also depends on the focal length you're using. I just did a feature recently and for a clean single on this actress we put up a double 12X12 net behind the actress and the car behind her to cut down the white wall behind her that was too hot. Also if you're shooting against the sun it's amazing what you can bounce back depending on the shot. Be weary about making sure the mattebox to the lens is covered with a donut or a black cloth to avoid any kickback onto a filter. But like everyone else that has posted on this topic, it would be easier to further assist you with a screen grab or a photo.

The flares are from 1K par cans with narrow bulbs. We had 6 of them set up behind the band and we had 20ft. of track that we tracked back and fourth on, it allowed us to have multiple flares throughout the move. The key light was a 1.2HMI and then we had a source 4 leko w/ 19 degree barrel as a spot light swinging through the frame to mimic a halftime'esque spotlight.

Finally got a size that works. Here you go, ignore the last post.

Couldn't load the photos on here, too big. Check out my work blog for the snapshots: BLOG

Just got done shooting a music video for the band Alesana. We shot in Raleigh, NC. The concept was the band plays as a terrible basketball team playing a really good team. They get their ass kicked and then the teams scape goat comes out and scores a dunk on the last second. It is intercut with the bands performance section that we made look like a hafltime show. Actual pull from footage after one pass through RED cine. Shot at 320, 3k @ 2:1 for slow motio, shot stuff at 48fps.

Well it has been settled on this shoot and we're shooting with the FD's. The way I see it right now is that I will have to work with what I have and just do my best. The camera was done on a backend deal and we're getting a full setup but some of the stuff we're getting is a tad old. The tripod I'm getting is an O'connor 50. Never used it looked up some stuff about and not sure if I should be worried or not. I want a decent head for this shoot!

Wow, this really blows me away. I haven't seen much shot like that and fool me that it was film. When I saw one of your first frames and then read it was shot on the F900 my jaw dropped.

Hey everyone, I'm about to start a feature on the RED in Dec. and I'm wondering about external drives to store our footage. I would like to hear several recommendations as to what kind of drives we should get based on reliability, speed, and price. Also for anyone who shot a feature on the RED, how many drives did you have for the shoot? Let me know, Sing

Thanks for the advice on remarking the lenses Chris. Definitely something I will do if this is the final decision. Last night I had meeting with the producer and he got completely hot headed about me bringing up more about trying to get stuff for the RED. I got a great quote for a set (5 lenses, 18mm, 25mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm) of Zeiss Standard Primes (T2.1), 2060 O'connor head with tall and baby sticks, hi & lo hat, Arri FF4 follow focus for 19 days at $2,500 for the whole shoot. Told me it was too much, I wanted to smack the guy. I also brought up the time issue with the still primes and of course he used the usual "you're just a cinematographer that just wants toys." People are so ignorant.

I do agree with everyone that we shouldn't criticize Kaminski's work like we're the next big DP that Spielberg would get if he couldn't for some reason get him. I've heard the rumor that Kaminski is on a $250,000 retainer to be on call for Spielberg and when he does make the call there is a separate contract drawn up for the actual picture. So if this is true I think anyone who is talking poop on Kaminski should be quiet because I don't think there is any DP who can say they have that deal! Plus I'm a firm believer that great DP's don't always shoot stellar movies everytime. It's like everyone who shoots stills, everyone has had terrible shots and the next time they load a roll of film up they make sure they don't make the same mistake again. Plus I want to honestly hear if anyone thinks they could pull War of the Worlds and Munich off in the same year to both contend in the Oscars(Deakins is the only other person I can think of that had 2 movies appear in the Oscar nominations). I know a lot of people on here have read the AC articles on both those movies and that is amazing they can shoot a movie of that calibur that quick. Not just the photography, think of everything that is going on in Spielberg's frames, so many departments have to be point on or a lot of money has been wasted. I respect people who can deliver under that kind of pressure. On the ASC topic, I think it would be awesome to receive that badge. The ASC is comprised of the most respected cinematographers in the world and it is them that decide if someone else should. So I don't see how people think it's silly, who better than the best in the business to judge your work and see if you deserve it. To me the ASC, BSC, AMC, etc. is like the olympics for cinematographers. It's an honor.

Yeah I was assuming that just like any of those 35mm adapters, same issues. Did you think the color reproduction from the FD lenses look good? I'm still going to try and push for some PL lenses if we can somehow find an awesome rate. It seems like it would be easier to pull focus by hand as long as it's not conflicting with the DP/Operator.

Hey guys, I'm starting a feature next month and I'm shooting on the RED with still canon fd mount lenses. Has anyone shot with this setup and is there any little things you've noticed that is unusual or something that you really need to pay attention to. We can't afford cine lenses for the shoot <_< Also how did the lenses perform? Were you happy with the results of the canon lenses? Any info or advice on this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Sing

I would only use this as a reference for something or just a rough idea of where you're going with by using the DSLR (be it lighting, angle selection, etc.) I would not use a DSLR as a lightmeter for shooting 16mm or 35mm or any motion picture stock. DSLR's don't have the same characteristics as the film stocks. I've seen too many people go this route because they treat it as an on the spot assurance. I've learned the hardway about this. I was gaffing a show and for a particular shot I kept pulling this fill away from someones face and relied on a white tea cup when raised to the actors face to give a decent amount of bounce back. I snapped a photo of it on a Canon DSLR to match everything 1/60 shutter, matching stop and matching ASA. Look fine on the DSLR and I went ahead with it. Before I saw the DSLR picture I was thinking I needed to push in the off screen bounce source in a little more, but I didn't because of the DSLR! Well what I learned when dailies came back that the face did not get as much fill from the cup meaning I should have moved my off screen bounce in for more of a base fill light. Which left the actor about 1 stop to 1.5 stop underexposed. The DP was able to push it out enough in post without increasing grain so I got lucky. The only time I use a DSLR is just for a reference but never for final decisions. Sing

You might be alright, the 19 was designed with more latitude in the over exposure aspect. Both the 18 and 19 respond incredibly well in low situations might have some grain issues where it's extremely dark in frame (those stocks eat up whatever light it can take!) Then again I'm not sure how exactly your composition is set up. but as far as grain it seems since you're pushing a stop I guess grain is something you want. Plus where you read f16 isn't constant so your fire will clip in and out.

I've recently shot a feature on an HVX200 with the Redrock adapter with Nikkor glass. Yeah I think the shallow depth of field is great but you have next to nothing control with your DoF. The director called me up recently and told me that some of the shots were slightly soft (wide open on some long lenses!) and I told him that my AC for that show is really good and unfortunately these kind of things happen. Plus we didn't have a nice HD monitor to view off. Had a crappy low res on board monitor that was more for composition, definitely not focus. Robert Elswit ASC came to my school as a guest artist and showed us Goodnight and Goodluck and he talked about how his AC's had to pull focus on the fly at some fast stops. Not all of the movie was in focus due to that and I commend his AC's for doing that well and even with soft shots the movie was nominated for best cinematography that year! The director of the feature is ignorant to anything related to understanding the difference between still glass and cinema glass (or cinematography itself). He brought up how my AC on a RED music video shoot with Zeiss Standard primes was a much better focus puller. What this director didn't take into account/doesn't understand the difference between the two shoots. Music Video = Cinema glass on ext. shot music video shooting at 8/11 for the day. Not to say pulling focus is easy, but with these facts, focus becomes easier Feature = Still glass wide open on interior with crappy monitors. A lot of pressure on an AC who had 98% of this movie in focus. Not to say this is an excuse but definitely more difficult. I remember my first tough pull shooting on an SRII with an 85mm zeiss super speed @ T1.3. It was a shot of a girl at a bar starting at 18'7 then she walks towards the camera towards our main character into a 6'8. I was freaking out a whole bunch waiting for that DP's dailies to get back. There was a small section in her travel that went out of focus, the beginning and end marks were sharp but still unfortunately I couldn't follow it through. It things like that give me total respect for great focus pullers. I think pulls like that should be done by instinct and like anything it just takes time and practice to become a very good focus puller. 35mm adapters are what they are but I think the amount of work and headaches it takes is not worth the look it gives. Plus cinema prime lenses don't breath! still primes breath because like David said there is a reason they design glass for different applications. Still glass is taking one frame, no point in having to deal with the breathing issue. Unfortunately the next shoot I'm doing is on the RED w/ canon still primes. I tried to get a set of zeiss glass for the shoot but the budget won't allow for it <_< I actually prefer pulling from he actual barrel of the lens (cine glass) unless it's a handheld shot. Does anyone else prefer pulling by hand rather than a follow focus?

From what you're saying it seems you don't want the actual daylight to render as white. I would shoot the 7218 as is and let it go blue if that is what the director wants. If it's a little too much supplement the instruments (assuming they're daylight balanced) or the windows that the natural light is coming through with whatever degree of CTO you want or if it needs to be more blue add more CTB. Add more CTO, CTS, or whatever gel on the warmer side you choose to your instruments and practicals when the light is switched on. Having to use CTB cuts down your light output more than CTO does. Plus this way you can rate your film at 320 and not have to deal with the filter compensation on top of that. I've shot ext. night scenes on the 7218 @ 2/2.8 and there is barely any grain, as long as you expose properly and don't underexpose. Crazy for 16mm. Check out my website: www.singhoweyam.com and go to the narrative section and watch that film. I shot it on the 5218 (35mm) for this project and shot it uncorrected and let the daylight go as is. Keep in mind though, I shot that film with stylized look with top lights exposing 5-8 stops over my shooting stop to achieve a certain look. My DP demo reel has the ext. night shot that was done on the 7218 with the campfire if you want to get a grain reference. I'm thinking what I just said is what you're looking for, your post is slightly confusing so I might have made things even more complicated! Good luck with your shoot though. Sing Howe Yam

Yeah, that is where I was confused. Because traditionally the DP relates what the Director wants to the camera operator in terms of the movement and composition. But blocking is laid out with the director and DP and then the camera operator helps the DP in that sense. To me it appears you're looking more for a gaffer. I feel you're more of the DP if you're handling the blocking and movement and want a gaffer who can come up with lighting schemes from what the director says. I guess I was confused because most low budget indies usually don't have the means to pay for a camera operator in the camera department. I would be interested in your future films, do you have anything lined up between January - March? Let me know, so if you're looking for a gaffer/chief lighting technician you should check out my friend/DP's website: www.magarcia.com his DP reel is mostly lit by me, all the bleached footage and the gangster with the rain is by me. One was on Super 16mm and the other was on 35mm. I'm currently resorting my gaffing reel (my macbook pro and a lot of other gear was stolen on the first day of a feature I was doing 2 months ago!), recently just got all the footage and a new macbook pro.

There are so many ways to approach this subject but when everyone thinks the photography shouldn't hinder the story, I find that kind of odd because the art and business of making a movie is completely reliant on the cinematography. A good cinematographer needs to be able to mesh with the director and use the camera to tell the story the right way. Be it through lighting, movement, etc. Good cinematography is just being able to understand every other departments involvement to come together on the same page. I feel sometimes people on movies start to get an ego when they're the key of that department. It shouldn't be that way it is a collaborative effort, there is a reason a lot of great movies have huge credits, it took a great number of great "filmmakers" to make the film. As much as this sounds like some "go team" kind of reply I think it's really important that you know that every department is working just as hard to make the best movie they can. I know everyone remembers that last time you were on a set and you just look around and everything is coming together because everyone has their poop together and are on the same page. Makes it completely worth it when you know you're not the only person working your ass off.

To everyone that left their advice and the video's it helped a lot just from looking at the lost post with the screen shot, completely made sense to me. Thanks a lot guys. Sing Howe Yam

So from your comment on the edgelight forum are you asking for a gaffer and you're DPing? Or you're directing and need a DP? I would be interested in either one really. My schedule is booked for a 19 day shoot (Dec. 1-19) in Wilmington for, ironically, another Romantic comedy that I am DPing. If you go to my website - www.singhoweyam.com and go to my reel section and play the narrative you can watch the film with the girls in the yellow and red outfits. I would be coming from VA, I know you said you wouldn't mind bringing in someone else. Drop me an e-mail at sing@singhoweyam.com with more information about the shoot (script, dates, type of budget, etc.) Thanks, Sing Howe Yam