Brandon Arandt

Hey everyone, I know this will be different from project to project obviously, but what is the average number of scenes/setups you feel comfortable with on an average day of shooting? Just curious.

You need to learn on digital. Then move to film. Or your not going to figure out what your doing for a long time and after a lot of $$$!

Take the DLSR video, then take a long exposure still and mask in post. Voila...

Perfect, thank you David!

David, Thank you for explaining this to me, it is very straight forward, I have never had anyone break it down so that I could understand it. So, with that said...I should probably shoot for the 2.35 or 2.40 aspect ratio. I guess I will have to figure out how much of the sides I would need to crop off. Maybe a better way would be to take the squeezed footage, keep the same codec and put a guide on the footage and bring it back into camera and throw on the old tape guide!

Hello there, I'm hoping I can get some clarification on aspect ratios with my setup. I'm shooting a micro budget project on either a 5Dmkii or 7D because I don't have the cash to shoot on RED. I do have a Lomo Zoom 20-120 with both 1.5 and 2.1 rear anamorphic that I would like to shoot on. I love the anamorphic look and think that it will give me a more cinematic look, despite the fact that Im shooting on a DSLR. I'm getting a little confused though about desqeezing and what aspect ratio the final output will be and if that output will be OK for distribution in the case that it gets sold for DVD and or on demand rights. Does it even matter? If I use the 5D with the 1.5 anamorphic, do I just shoot in 16x9 mode and desqueeze in post? What aspect ratio will that give me? Will I have to crop the sides? Also, will it be a problem mixing footage with the anamorphic shots 60% of the time and cutting it with non anamorphic lenses on the really tight shots? (Cropped to the same aspect ratio for those shots in post?) Please help this young jedi understand all this stuff. Thanks

Looks cool

I'll be there. I live in LA so it's only a few minute drive. I wrap my first 90 minute feature 3 weeks before so I'll have some nice footage to show around. Shoot me an email and we can meet up for a drink, the bar is where you make most contacts (so I hear). brandon(AT)onwardmotionpictures(DOT)com

When lighting for a gritty indoor scene (IE: David Fincher's "Se7en"), what would be the method to light and more importantly the ratio of light for lighting the main actors face and lighting the background? Do I use standard exposure for the face (or is that too hot) and light the ambient background a few stops lower while creating some contrast for shadows? What would be the best method to approach a scene like this?

I was just going to buy a steadicam for an upcoming project. Right before I pulled the trigger I was told to look at the CMR blackbird. Im glad i did, it is only $600 and seems smoother than the steadicam, the learning curve isnt bad and it takes 20 seconds to switch. Im may be pitching this and i dont work for the company, just a happy customer. Most "stadium operators" will laugh at a cheap stabalizer but go on vimeo and search for "cmr blackbird" and the footage speaks for itself. Its unreal.

I guess what I was trying to say was I like the look of the contrast ratios as it creates a moody look, but I dislike the noise Im picking up in the darker parts of the image.

Great post. BTW, how did you light this shot? Tungsten with some flags?

Hey all, I have some confusion about setting up general lighting scenarios. If I am shooting on Red for example: When exposing a general daylight scene inside, what point do I bring up the exposure in the darks so that I will have my shadows free from a lot of noise? What I have been doing is setting the ambient exposure to properly expose the light coming in from outside so they are not blown out and then adding light on the interior for my subject. I love the moody look it gives, but do I need to add more light to the whole scene so the shadows reach a certain point and then crush them back in post? What is the proper way to do this? Thanks for helping me in advance.