Rachel Oliver

Hi; K40 is as tight grained as any of the low ASA stocks, tighter infact! But yes it's tougher to expose, more like video infact but without the instant feedback bit.... Olly

Hi; DP as in "Da Pope" right? Olly

Hi; The 20X is a fair bit sharper than the old 16X auto, is that worth $700 to you? Olly

Hi; I agree, for a 1st personal project for DVD I'd find an XL2 and think of it like a baby SDX-900, use the stock lenses, maybe get a soft con and a few ND's and buckle myself in for a steep learning curve.... Olly

Hi; I saw two so far, I'd say it does live up to it's "lo-fi" vibe but I can't help wondering if this latest generation of minds will simply miss that point and see it as well.... just crap!? I have to say I thought League Of Gentlemen was far more interesting visually, this looks a bit like deep space nine or something but I'm still watching. Olly

Hi; Daniel, move to Wandsworth! A good friend of mine got a 5K film grant from Wandsworth council to make a Doc about the RCA. But in reality you are living in one of the least film friendly places on earth, in my experience anyway. Remember, think laterally! Olly

However the problem comes when you try showing it on an HD screen Or start projecting the image onto a large screen You begin to see some softness and the pixels of this low-rez image. & honestly it's not a substitute for 16mm...no matter what post FX. Hi; Absolutely, S16 looks far far better blown up but I would never shoot with a mini DV cam for blow up (unless I had no other choice) As I said for DVD viewed on an SD monitor I'm really shocked by how well it works, Infact there are moments in my tests that look very similar to 16mm (viewed from an SD video transfer on a TV) That is something I did not expect and has convinced me that for cheap shorts destined for DVD showreels and "little" ideas that would otherwise never get made due to cost it's really a great tool, Believe me though I aint about to sell off my 16mm gear..... And yes it always comes down to the eyes behind the camera! Olly

Hi; I've been testing an XL2 for a short film coming up taking place in a lush summer landscape and coming from pretty much a total film background I was not too sure..... I have to say so far the tests have been a great suprise. (On an SD monitor that is) I've found combining a Tiffen soft con with either an ultra pol or .6 ND grad together with some menu tweaking (pre tape compression) to give some sharp and quite "cinematic" images. You really have to be careful of the DOF with things like the soft con combined with a wide lens, I use a .9 screw in ND on my 3X wide constantly outside to kill some DOF. All in all I guess what I'm saying is for dramatic SD work that's gonna end up on a DVD this camera can give stunning results for filmmakers with lean wallets. Olly

Hi; A correction, it's CCD's are actually not "oversized" they are infact the same size as the XL1 and XL1s, it's just that they have way more pixels squeezed into them, I believe this is what ups the res..... Olly

Hi; The XL2 uses an oversized 4:3 chip so that it's 16/9 image (although coming from a cropped 4:3 ccd) is of higher resolution than it's "squeeze mode" cousins. It also uses a crop for 4:3 too, thus never quite realizing it's true potential in 4:3 mode but making it's 16/9 option higher res.... I own one and it's really a very very good image for mini DV, stunning infact when shot well. Olly

Seriously, keep aiming high, Daniel. Just try not to alienate too many of the people who may be able to bale you out if you ever need it. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi; Great advice, no one likes an arrogant twat, especially when they come back seeking help. Olly

Hi; Maybe Art is whatever an "Artist" claims is "Art"...... Whether it successfully portrays it's intentions is another question? Olly

Hi; That's true Phil, It can get you jobs but only for as long as you can live up to your projected ability, success breeds success where as arrogance and inability well just, well.... Hows LA? Olly

Hi; That's true Phil, It can get you jobs but only for as long as you can live up to your projected ability, success breeds success where as arrogance and inability well just, well.... Hows LA? Olly

Hi; your self confessed arrogance will become a major problem for hiring producers I guarantee. I don't really believe that your all that ready to work on "Upscale stuff" yet Daniel, from reading your many posts it's clear to me you are very much a student on the fringes of a film understanding and have very little actual film making experience. "those DP's" I worked with worked their way up through the ranks as assistants, focus pullers and eventually got breaks DP'ing on small projects which then lead to bigger projects if they're any good and VERY lucky, this process takes years, to get to their skill level. Let me guess, you have taken some 35mm stills and you have gotten a smidgen of "delayed payement" jobs with a little miniDV cam for some naff TV that might one day be broadcast (but probably wont). With your totally over inflated opinion of yourself you'd better pray all those producers that are gonna hire you for "Upscale stuff" are full of BS too! Then you can all make crap together and pretend it's great. Olly

Hi; Any films I've shot for other people I've asked to be credited as "Lighting and Camera operator." I've been shooting films on and off for eight years and still don't have the nerve to call myself a DP because I know some very good one's and I'm not the same animal. Infact having worked alongside some very talented DP's I'd feel darn right disrespectful using their hard earned title for myself just because I could.... Olly

Hi; DVC PRO is ALWAYS compressed 5:1 There is no such thing as uncompressed DVC PRO, it needs to be compressed in order to squeeze the life outta all that lovely film colour and resolution and give you the shadow of it's former self on that tiny DV tape :P Olly

Hi; If it's for standard 16 then a Kern Switar 10mm will be perfect and is available all over the place for a good price, also if you want a slight "fish eye" look check out the Peleng 8mm..... With a C-mount adapter it's a lovely lens for a Bolex, cheap too. Olly

working uncompressed with it on your computer - which is certainly something I'd encourage you to do. Hi; This is something I've been confused by for a while Phil, If I need to colour correct Minidv in say Final Cut Pro why will I achieve better results if I change the timeline to uncompressed 10bit if the colour and compression on the dv is already 4:2:0 and 5:1? I'm assuming that I'd need to stay in uncompressed 10bit and output to say digibeta for this to be worth while too rather than going back to minidv? Thanks for any scraps o' wisdom..... Olly

Hi; Ie Landon, it's such a lonely and monotonous process one might actually extinguish one's self! As in Claret would be spilled, as in the light would be let in via the wrist, I've chopped up many 16mm work prints on Steenbecks, I'm sure it made my brain work differently than a computer but I've become so soft I don't think I could take it anymore. Olly

Hi; I own a Canon XL2 and also a Bolex (S16 conversion) I have to say that from a practical point of view, adding all this stuff onto ths mini DV camera is going to cause you more trouble than it's worth. I started out thinking all the stock Canon lenses (20x, 3x and 16x manual) were probably crap but I have to say they work really really well with this camera, I love shallow DOF and a "Cinematic" look, but I've found that using the regular lenses that are actually designed for the camera, together with a bit of latteral thinking and time invested, renders me with some very pleasing and very "filmic" images and I diddn't have to spend a fortune on film primes just to end up compromising them onto mini dv.... The stock lenses are really very sharp indeed, i'd invest some quality time seeing what can be achieved with them. Olly

Hi; Unfortunately by the time I got to work with her Harris Savides was too busy, She dosent really have a "house style" she just gets a look after talking to the artist. I think she may have recently worked with Savides on a Radiohead video shot with a pin hole/Bolex rig, but it may not have been him? The two shoots I was on were unfiltered too, very much a telecine finish. Olly

Hi; I've worked with Sophie on a couple of shoots. (not as DP) She used Kodak reversal, (Cant remember exactly what type,) and it was very much her call.... she messes around in TK alot too. The cams were Arri SR2's n' 3's with zeiss zooms mostly as I recall. Shes a very nice girl and about as experienced a promo director as there is, it's ALL she does! I must say I rather liked the looks she got on reversal, hope that helps. Olly