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Justin Oakley

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Everything posted by Justin Oakley

  1. Oh, Ive been eyeing the new BMPCC a little bit. Part of me wants to go for it. But, like many things in the tech world, the first wave can be a little dicey...bugs and whatnot. So Ive heard. Plus another concern is the mount. Not sure if I would be able to adapt it for my lenses. I really like them. And they cost me a pretty penny. I really dont want to have to buy all new glass. I also watched some videos on the URSA mini. Not sure if its too much for me or what. I dont really know what other stuff I would need to buy for it. This is tough.
  2. Yes! I did look into magic lantern a while ago for just this reason (shooting RAW). I went on the Canon forum to ask if anybody had experience with it. And everybody there pretty much condemned it. Turns out they dont take too kindly to that kind of stuff there. I didnt end up installing magic lantern, mostly just chickened out. I did, however, install that cinestyle profile...I guess thats the next best thing. The difference isnt THAT noticeable when editing. I dont think.
  3. Yes, I'm looking at DSLRs mostly for affordability and because, well, its all I know. I dont really care about taking pictures. I know its all backwards and Ill probably catch hell for it. But I just dont think photography is all that interesting. I know its good to understand the fundamentals, as still photography is the language of cimematography. I appreciate this. But I just dont care about snapping photos, sharing them on social media for a few likes, and sticking them in some folder somewhere to be forgotten. Anybody with a smartphone can do photography these days. As far as what I plan on shooting, Im a hobbyist. I have a some cool ideas and I want to make short films. I dont plan on shooting travel videos (or whatever you call them), but I do hunt and I enjoy filming my hunts. I would also like to do music videos for local bands. Maybe make cool, interesting stuff for work (firefighting stuff). Anyway, if I could afford it I would just buy a nice cinema camera. But again, the DSLR is all I am familiar with. While on this topic, would it be unwise to buy a used cinema camera? I found a site when doing a google search (it seemed reputable) and I saw a couple Canon C100s for about as much as Im willing to pay for a DSLR. All the 4K stuff isnt necessarily high on my priority list, but options are nice. Ive heard it said time and time again that DSLRs are photography cameras that happen to shoot video. And I have a lower-end model. Which sucks. My biggest issue with this thing is the artifacts and noise that I just cant seem to shake...no matter what lighting or how well the image is exposed (I made a thread about it). When I get my next camera, that will be it for quite some time. So I want to get this right and not screw myself.
  4. Hello, Hopefully I can ask this question here. I am looking to get a new DSLR camera for filming. I wont ask what the best one is, since thats like asking what the best fishing lure is...also, some of the best DSLRs cost almost as much as some cinema cameras. But hopefully some of you here could help me at least narrow one down. Im not in the position to test different cameras and my only experience is with the Canon 1200D aka Rebel T5, so I cant make informed decisions as I have nothing to compare it to. Just looking for something sharp and good in low light...something I can bring out smooth, stunning images withno artifacting or noise. And of course, affordable. Im just a regular working stiff and I cant drop $5,000.00. Also, I have a couple Rokinon Cine lenses with the EOS mounts. So a camera that I could use them with (via adapter or whatever) would be great. If thats even a thing. A long shot here, but any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys
  5. So go a little wider with the shot to catch the paintings that are on the wall (and out of frame)? Move them down maybe? There is a table by the door with a little lamp on it. And theres a 6 lamp right by the couch...again, out of frame. Move them? Its just an apartment. Not super tiny, but tight enough. And thank you. Thanks to all of you.
  6. Not sure what specific look Im going for. I guess dark, sinister, but not overly horrific. As far as color, Im not really a fan of really warm colors...especially indoors. So Im partial to cooler colors...but I dont necessarily want it to look like somebody sitting in a dark room with moonlight leaking through the windows. If that makes any sense. Im new. I dont really know how to articulate this. Ok, brief synopsis here: Im planning on making a short with my fiancé. In this scene, she is seated on the couch, staring blankly at the tv. The living room is lit like a normal room I guess. But Im going for dramatic...plenty of contrast is nice as long as I can sort out this ridiculous noise issue. Its a transition from fantasy (violent murder) to reality. She has just dragged my body out of the tub and to the bottom of the stairs. She sits, exhausted, detached. I walk in the door. The dream stops and reality picks up in real time. I want the mood to be heavy. Uncomfortable. Also, shes a redhead. So more light or less? I have no idea.
  7. Man the first part of that YouTube video doesnt look half bad. But Im viewing it from my phone. Playing the freshly rendered video in QuickTime, on my computer, shows all the ugly crap jittering around in the grays.
  8. I read something just a few days ago about how its actually better to (almost) overexpose then to underexpose. The living room was dark enough, as you could probably see. And that was with two lights. Its not a big room. The second I go higher than f2, it darkens the scene considerably. So try 4.5 and throw more light in?
  9. I guess my problem is that I only recently started getting into this stuff. My first major purchase was a couple lenses. And Ive been building from there. I guess I can compare it to my other hobbyhunting and fishing. One of my bows that I hunt with is maybe 200 bucks. Bare. But I have a 240.00 sight on it. I have another bow that probably cost me 1,800 bucks. Its how you use it...as the saying goes. I use the cheap lights because, apparently, you can still pull off a decent lighting set up with them. People do it. Im just trying to figure out how. So if I shoot with the aperture at 4.5 or whatever, and it darkens the image, just add more light? The darker the area, the potential for more noise, no? Maybe I can buy better bulbs? Brighter? I dont really see how the cost of the actual housing would affect quality. I dont do this for a living so I have to buy the stuff I need a little at a time...as I can afford it.
  10. A $6.00 clamp light I bought at Lowes. You know, the aluminum ones? And the first part of the video is the one I color corrected. Well not corrected per se. But I messed with the curves. Do you think brighter lights would help reduce noise? I think the part that I messed with was the most noisey. That couch!
  11. Let's try Google Drive... https://drive.google.com/file/d/1saEs-j_1izFEsqSu4OvkV_KztN0pu-tg/view?usp=sharing
  12. Alright, well I guess YouTube makes it look a little different after compressing it and whatnot. Still looks like garbage...but a different kind of garbage.
  13. I just plopped a couple clips into YouTube. The second part was made after I messed with curves and stuff. look at the couch. Heinous. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eljzVlvr2h8
  14. I attached the file but I guess it didnt work.
  15. Here is a clip I have. I was testing to see just how the lighting worked. Focus is bad, as I wasn't really able to pull it off with just myself. Shot with Canon 1200D (Rebel T5), Rokinon "cine" lens (35mm), aperture pretty much wide open at 1.5, ISO at 100. Also, I use that Cinestyle profile that you install on Canon cameras. Shutter speed 50--24 fps It's pretty much a low/no budget DIY show for me, so it's obviously amateur hour here. So any insight is greatly appreciated. It's a medium(?) shot so the practical light/lamp isn't in frame. I used a cheap clamp light with aluminum reflector from Lowe's--diffused with a 5 in 1 reflector. In this particular test I didn't use fill light (hair lighting...or whatever you call it) I had placed off to my right...but those had the same issues. Maybe the lights aren't bright enough? Noise due to lack of sharp focus? My cheap camera? I don't know...
  16. I dont plan on unloading from my phone. I just cant see how to attach anything...probably because Im viewing from my phone.
  17. Im at work for the next 48 hours so Ill try to get a snapshot or small clip up if I get a moment. Also, how does one do this? Im on my phone right now. But I cant really see an option to post links or whatever.
  18. Hello, I am having trouble sorting out this annoying image noise problem. Full disclosure: I am NOT a professional. Im a DSLR Guy and I just want to make some cool stuff. I posted a whole spiel in general discussion about how Im probably in over my head here. But I guess its ok for me to post my idiotic question as long as its in the right area. So Im throwing myself out there. Because Im desperate. So here it is. I have learned about various lighting techniques and Ive tried to apply them, but no matter what I do I cant seem to shake this noisy/grainy crap in my footage. Sometimes its a little more subtle. But when Im editing and I see it, I cant NOT see it. It gnaws at me and irritates me to no end. So Im doing some tests...going for a darker dramatic look (in my living room). I have a practical light (a lamp), a key light, and I also mess around with a fill light. It looks ok when shooting it...really dark and moody. But once I drop it into my editing software, there it is. Garbage. I watch a lot of YouTubethe guys over at Film Riot for exampleAnd of course their footage is always clean and sharp looking. I put this light here, and do this, and place a fill light here... Oh look how easy that is! Let me try. And then I jack it all up. My ISO never excess 200, I use pretty fast lenses, and (to my knowledge) the exposure is alright. People in other forums have been nice enough to school me on nailing exposure and stuff. I have learned a lot. But Im obviously still coming up short. Even when theres a lot of light, I can still see it...like in my gray couch. What other variables could there be? My cheap POS camera maybe? Ive seen clean video shot with cameras in the same class. Im just really frustrated. Thanks in advance to anybody who has the time to entertain this.
  19. And thanks guys. Ill poke around and try to find the appropriate sections for my novice questions.
  20. Yes! Thats the word Ive gotten. It doesnt matter which high speed/low drag gear you have. Although Im sure it matters to a certain extent, for obvious reasons. But apparently, the hallmark of a good filmmaker is their ability to make awesome stuff with less. And Im sure there are plenty of boring, not-so-good movies that were produced with outrageous budgets.
  21. Apologies. I probably shouldve posted this in the INTRODUCTION section. Im already off to a great start. Sorry about that
  22. Hello there, I joined this forum because I figured it would be a good place to ask questions and maybe learn a thing or two. But cruising through some of these threads I realized that I may be in waaaay over my head here. I am NOT a professional. I cant emphasize this enough. Im a full time fireman. But Ive been geeking out on this stuff pretty hard lately. Whenever I find something I like doing I go all the way and it consumes a lot, if not all, of my spare time (even at work). What little Ive done has been a one man operation, shooting, editing, sound, lights, etc. I take my modest little DSLR and other miscellaneous gear out and pretty much just go for it...guerrilla style, if you will. Learning as I go. No film school or anything. YouTube University is pretty much the extent of my education. And the only real set experience I have is doing odds and ends PA stuff, helping with lighting, moving gear around, and asking dumb questions without getting in the way too much. Ill get on social media, find local independent/student film groups, and essentially ask them if they need help from a guy willing to learn. Im starting to get a grasp of the language and rhythm of a movie set too. Good stuff. Anyway...thats me. So I guess my first question is this: is there a place here for low/no budget filmmaking discussions? A place for amateurs such as myself? I had some questions about lighting, specifically image noise, and I kind of pulled the reigns when I saw people discussing ARRI cameras and whatnot. I just dont want to go staggering around here like a dizzy idiot annoying people with my petty questions, making a jerk out of myself. Thanks guys
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