Austin Serr

Yeah, I don't think you actually have to be hands-on for it to be considered "experience". You're going to need plenty of time on-set to learn from mistakes and really get to know equipment but if you consistently have cinematography on your mind you'll just get better and better at it. Keep in mind that while there are guidelines, there's no right or wrong way to do it; as long as you're passionate about it and always open to new ideas/techniques, you'll get to be where you want to be, which is what's most important. Figure out what your style/voice is and work to expand on it. To make sure you're always "thinking" about cinematography, I'd recommend taking a DSLR with you wherever you go and constantly try to think photographically in whatever surroundings you happen to be in. Look at the lighting in whatever area you're in and try to think about what you like about or what you'd do to enhance the light. Look at the architecture/geometry of your surroundings and try to think of interesting ways to place a camera as if it was a location you got for a film. Also, if you're a student (like me), try to work on as many student projects as possible. Even if you think it's going to turn out to be a terrible film, do it anyways. It's always great to know that upon seeing the finished product, your cinematography overall helped the film become halfway decent. It's very liberating and it helps to keep you passionate all while providing a worthwhile experience that you can only learn from.

Current top ten and my 3 favorite films (cinematography-wise) of each: 1. Christopher Doyle (In the Mood for Love, Fallen Angels, Limits of Control) 2. Robert Elswit (There Will Be Blood, Punch Drunk Love, Good Night and Good Luck) 3. Conrad Hall (Road to Perdition, American Beauty, Searching for Bobby Fisher) 4. Emmanuel Lubezki (The New World, Children of Men, Y tu mama tambien) 5. Harris Savides (Elephant, Zodiac, Gerry) 6. Lee Pin Bing (In the Mood for Love, Three Times, Flowers of Shanghai) 7. Roger Deakins (The Assassination of Jesse James, No Country for Old Men, The Man Who Wasn't There) 8. Gordon Willis (The Godfather, Manhattan, The Godfather Part II) 9. Janusz Kaminski (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Catch Me If You Can, Schindler's List) 10. Lance Acord (Lost in Translation, Where the Wild Things Are, Being John Malkovich)

The images were interesting and well shot but all it was was a montage of images. Cinematography's about using photography to bring out an emotion or to better the telling of a story visually; it's tied in with the narrative aspects inherent in film. Photography and cinematography are completely different mediums. I think what Kieren is trying to say is that it was quality photography but there's nothing to critique when talking about cinematography.

Some good stuff in there. The black and white shots as well as the warm shots of the girl were very nice. I especially liked the wide-angle B&W of the man walking. It had an interesting contrast and I liked the lens choice. Just a quick suggestion: for that last B&W shot, I'd recommend a background light to soften that cast shadow. You're attempting to use that lamp as a motivation for the light but considering a 60-70 Watt bulb is fairly soft, the cast shadow kind of breaks the illusion that the lamp is creating that light.

DJ Shadow's "Six Days". It's directed by Wong Kar-Wai and Chris Doyle does the cinematography. It's amazing.