timHealy

Hemp can be found all over a film set, especially a stage where it is used in the rigging. Used mostly by grips and secondly electricians. best Tim

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a DP doing films like this to get the experience they need to hone their craft. But like John said, look at their work and look beyond the bad acting and low budget effects. Do the films demonstrate artistic and technical proficiency? Then ask if you like the guy? Can you work with him? Learn to see if you value his input and experience. I would seriously consider giving him a chance if you like his work and you get a long with the guy. Maybe others have mistaken him to be only a horror movie guy too and didn't even ask if he would be interested in other work. Dan Pearl for example shot the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre and went on to be one of the biggest and most popular music video DP's since the late 80's. Give the guy a shot. Best, Tim

I tried looking for Commotion on Pinnicle's website recently and got the impression they don't make it anymore or rolled it into another product. There is no listing of it on their products webpage. I have not talked to anyone about it though maybe I am wrong. I hope I am. I have an os9 version that I love. Anyone know anything about that?? Best Tim

I don't think anyone told Steven Soderburgh. He is in NY shooting a small part of a feature called Gorilla to be shot later in the year. But the small part they are doing now with Benecio Del Toro is being shot in 16mm black and white (as I understand it from a friend who is working on it). Best Tim

for me one of things that show how cinematographers are great is when the display through their work an understanding of the technical and creative elements of the craft and the relationship between the actors, the camera, lighting, and the story being told. And doing all that during a potentially political environment of a film set and industry. Best Tim

I used these guys for about two years - over ten years ago. http://www.nase.org/ might be worth checking out. Tim

I am not a Hitchcock expert but I was surprised to see that he apparently worked on some WWII films http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/camp/synopsis.html that Front Line has made available. I love Front Lines website. I haven't watched it myself but I will in the next day or two. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/camp Best Tim

This camera seems to have similiar description. Could it be the same person? Arri S package simliar Arri S scam?? or perhasp the scam guy got his description from this legit auction Best Tim

Call the Mayor's Office for any questions http://www.nyc.gov/html/film/html/index/index.shtml also some explainations: http://www.nyc.gov/html/film/html/permits/...ting_home.shtml The city is great in terms of helping filmmakers. Permits are free and they provide police when you need them for free as well. Even to student films. However police are not provided to student films for weekend shoots. Best Tim

Whatever the price and whatever the film, if you are a student and if you buy film from Kodak's will call office in NYC, you can get 20% off, if I am not mistaken. I am not sure if they make that available to all will call offices. http://www.kodak.com/US/en/motion/about/ww....1.4.5&lc=en#us Best Tim

I'm not an electrical engineer but I believe you were fooling around with a capacitor which stores electricity. It'll give you a good zing but not enough to kill you. best Tim

Hey Phil, I tried to get in touch with my friend to find out what his experience was to see if my memory was wrong, but he must be away with the holidays and all. But I do appreciate the time you took to spell it out. My professional strengths are in electric/lighting/production/film and not in the video/post world. My knowledge of DV is limited to my own shorts filmmaking in things shot on film and transferred to beta and dubbed to DV and DVcam, and stuff shot in mini DV, both edited with Final Cut, utilizing After Effects and the like. I do try and keep up with the higher level video camera tech specs and post routines, but until I get that work, the material doesn't seem to stick, no matter how much I throw against the wall. So what I am basically saying is that I'm not an amatuer, but do need guidance from time to time in the areas I am not specialized in. So thanks in advance for your patience concerning all stupid questions I may post in the future. And the FAQ list would be a great idea. Perhaps even saving forums like cinematography.net (sorry Tim Tyler) would be a great way to go. But with the search feature here, that may be redundant. Thanks, Tim

It is the same thing as politicians: "trust but verify" The two outlandish posts I saw this week was the one where someone said Jaws 2 was shot in three weeks and the guy who said my friend knew the guy, but I forget his name, who invented using nets behind a lens. But that may be a bit off topic but in the same vein. Best Tim

Not to be too off the main topic, I was under the impression the mini DV format did not contain timecode at all. A friend recently edited a project shot on film, had dailes made to digibeta and dubbed to mini DV for editing. When he tried to edit he told me the tapes did not contain timecode and he had to make DVcam dubs for his editing. He was using Avid Express and went back to film and conformed the neg to the EDL. I could call the friend later today for the straight story. best Tim

I am not 100% sure, but my gut reaction is that there will be no loss in quality. Having said that, using a deck for digitizing and capyuring would be a better than another camera for all sorts of reasons. best Tim

What level of filmmaking are you working in? A computer animator would be great to respond to this one for a 3D answer, but if you are finishing on tape and to add what David mentioned, you could shift the crowds you have to an area without crowds and use a "matte" to keep them off of where they logically wouldn't be. Make it like a Photoshop layer. You could also reduce the size of this layer to give them the right perspective. Shoot like David said with the background battle extras in the foreground and use them to build your troops into the distance. And feather the edges to blend with what you have. Success may depend on your wide shot planning and the location. This is a low budget Final Cut or After Effects solution. Good Luck. Best Tim

I just sent some Super 8 shot at 24 fps to be transferred at 18 fps to http://www.posthouse.com/. It is my first time with them but I understand they have a wetgate to help keep scratches down to a minimum. It would probably be more helpful to older film, but what the hell. best Tim

I saw Munich last night and cracked open a War of the Worlds xmas gift today and though much of the two movies looked very similiar. That's not a criticism. Just a mental note. I enjoyed both and thought the looks were appropriate for the subject matter. Best Tim

Perhaps it is just me, but I often find it difficult to judge focus with most video camera eyepieces. Could it be that it was shot without an external monitor, the operator forgot to zoom in and focus, or something changed after he or she did, and no one noticed until after the fact. I'm looking forward to seeing that Scorsese Dylan doc. I heard that it was terrific. I also heard that there was a chance they were going to have it released to some theatres but haven't seen anything. Perhaps that is not going to happen since it has been out for a few months now. Best Tim

I took a look at the demo and it looks good. However I try not to be too critical of any web video whether shot in film or video because unless it specifies codecs and frames rates you may be comparing apples and oranges. One needs to compare video to video to really understand the differences. Just my 2 cents. But I completely agree with Trevor. If it looks good and makes sense for your film, use whatever works for your project (DM says this all the time) On a side not I just shot some Super 8 7218 and am looking forward to seeing the results. Happy Holidays Tim

Hey RJ, You could shoot in a well lite area and probably be fine. Occasionally, an old flourescent, usually magentic, will flicker, but personally I have no way of telling. Perhaps if anyone has advice on that one... some tool or something. I caught an old flickering fluorescent once when a producer saw it on video tap. I could not see it through the viewfinder. We did one take for safety with it off and sure enough it had been flickering on the dailies. But the other fluorescent fixture were all fine. If no one has a tool to recommend, I would say just go for it. The one thing you will have to address would be color. Are you transferring to tape or just finishing on film? Either way you should bring a color temp meter and see what the K and green is. You can correct for these via filters on the camera. If you are going to video you could get away with not using any correction on the camera during shooting but it would be helpful to the colorist if you did. If you are finishing on film then I would say you MUST use correction filters on the camera to get the look you desire. Also one word of advice. If you are small and shooting without a permit and get caught, play dumb and profess ignorance!. It is always easier to apologized for something later. Practice these lines "Permit? We need a permit. Oh I'm sorry we didn't know! this is just a school project" And keep your student ID's on you so you could prove your that your just a dumbass college student. I would also stay away fron the PATH subway sytem. I think their security is a little tighter than the MTA. Best of luck. Let us know how it goes. I have a friend that shot two scenes for his film without a permit, and with a handheld 35mm camera a few years ago with three actors a sound guy and available light and he pulled it off. So it can be done. Tim

If I can address your issue about shooting on the NYC subway system. It can be a pain in the ass. For film shoots you most likely need a permit from the MTA people. The same people that the TWU is stiking against. So many people want to shoot films in the city subway they have a few people to work with film shoots and the woman who is the head of the department can be difficult. Unless you are shooting The Sopranos or another Spider Man movie. You could try to shoot without one, and you may get kicked out and then again you may get away with it. If you try to do it without a permit, shoot at night, keep it small, and shoot at a remote station or on a line that you could try and do it incognito and probably handheld. I did something small in 16mm under the auspices of a 3D class I took a few years ago and it was a pain to arrange and deal with the MTA. Now they do have differnent rules for video! You could try to talk to them and tell them it is a video shoot. And I would guess no one will ask to see the tape. They also may have more security issues since Sept 11 and the London train bombings. As far as the lighting down there, I just shot whatever it was and had it timed out in the transfer. I wasn't using any additional lighting so I didn't even figure it out, but if you want to you could use a colortemp meter and add the correct green to your additional lights to match and time it out. They are either warm whites or cool whites and may be high output so you couldn't just bring in your own bulbs. If your shoot gets to be big and you want to add lights, electricity become an issue to solve. The only reel options are a run from a generator on the street if you are a platform, and on the train cars: put-puts if ventilation is OK, car batteries and inverters, or battery operated lights. I hope some of this helps Best Tim

http://www.adcritic.com use to be free but was bought but the adage people and now costs $99 for a subscription. Tim http://www.reelsondemand.com has cinematography and directing reels for free. Movies commercials and perhaps a few muscic videos... Tim

ah ha! I found the other vendor of the lantern harps: http://www.jemlighting.com These work really well. best Tim

Around NY many people will call a FAY light a "nine light FAY" also to differential from single shot, and double shot FAY's some people like. Some call them a "mini brute" as opposed to a nine light PAR 64 maxi brute. in addition DWE's are the same as an FCX medium flood 3200k except they have two terminal screws to attach wiring. FAY's and FCX's just get installed and pressed into contacts on a nine light FAY. (like in the photo above). I have only seen DWE's in Wendy lights and FAY lights made by an elelctrician in California with a nice design to spin the bulbs. Mole Richardson FAY lights have to have the bulbs installed in one position so the medium flood bulbs all spread in the same direction: Horizontal. The connectors on the back of the bulbs and the lights only allow the one position. With DWE's and a little wiring, bulbs can be placed in any direction and thereby spreading the beams in all sorts of directions. Maxi brutes do not have this problem as they have a differnet connector. All in all I personally love mini and maxi brutes. They are very easy lights to work with especially through frames, book lights, and bounces. When I first got into the union in NY I worked on a job with a cameraman where he did things "old school". Though he was not old himself, he was using tungsten mini and maxi brutes during the day with full blue diffusion for fill light. I have to say the experience was easier than dragging around and trouble shooting HMI's all day. Best Tim