Max S. Moore

I agree with everything that was said. However, if i look at the background on the JLO video, it seems well exposed - with a similar exposure to the subject. I could be wrong. Which is a real head scratcher.

HI Mark, Great tips. My ambient light comes from a bunch of lights I have pointing at the ceiling . I can try to turn a few off. I will give it a shot. Good idea with digital.

Thanks AH. Adrian, forgive my ignorance but can you explain what a 12X12 frame is? Is that in inches? And what about 4X4 and 4X10? Where can I learn about this?

Thanks David. I will look into makeup too. But in the case of J LO, the "burnt" look on her face is also showing on her arm - which makes me think it's not the makeup but rather the lights. What brand/type of softboxes are you guys recommending for this type of work?

Thank you Adrian. You are very kind. Just to confirm. Is it a good technique to use an incident meter and cover with your hand to block the light from the other side?

Yes it's very clear now. Thank you so much for taking the time to make a diagram. I was trying to light her face from the front so there's no shadows under her chin - and everything is soft. That's why I put two equally powerful softboxes on each sides. But it appears it wont get me that "glowing" look. How does J LO not have shadows under her chin? I just tried in my studio with a mannequin with similar lighting you mentioned and the shadows are pretty harsh under her chin. On film, it may not be as bad. For the meter reading technique you described, do you use a spot meter then? Or do you use an ambient meter and use your hand to block the light coming from the other side - as to not influence the side you are reading? Because the meter has a dome shape, it has similar reading from shadow side to highlight side. Also, you mentioned diffusion filter for female. Is that on the lens? What are the names of them?

So, are you saying my background is too lit compare to the girl? If I keep my exact same lights in front of her (her face will still be at F11), and I lower my ambient light, so the meter will now read F4... will I get highlights in her face? Right now I have none.

Hey Adrian, thanks for your input. I set my camera based on the exposure reading that I get right in front of the Model's face. In this case F11. My background was reading at F8. The studio is well lit from ambient light so everything else except the girl was F8. She was at F11.

Hey all, I hope you're having a good Sunday. I have been shooting 16mm film with a female Model, and I cannot get any highlights on her face - even though I have 2 big softboxes (24X36") in front of her and a ring light. Therefore I have a ton of light - but I have zero highlights - which also means I cannot push highlights in post. There are none in the log footage - so clearly I can't push them in post. I have tried under-exposing, normal-exposing and over-exposing my film. Still zero highlights. I am trying to replicate this look with J LO - where her face is "burnt" - because the highlights were pushed to the extreme in post. If I try to do that, it does not work, because I have no highlights in the original footage. 500T film. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Here is a shot under-exposed, normal-eposure and over-exposed.

That's amazing work. Thanks for all the comments. Jim, is 2c techniscope a fancy name for 2-perf? I agree it's a great format - with great $$ savings.

The main question now is... is it overexposed in the camera or in post? Or both? Or, is it underexpose in the camera slightly and overexposed like crazy in post? I'm sure all the details matter. It's a science haha! The most impressive thing from these screenshots is the fact that EVERYTHING is blue but the skin tones are not. The skin tones are perfect. That's mind boggling!

Thanks guys. What size image will be a single frame from a 4k scan on a 2-perf film? 4K is normally 3840 X 2160. Can I get 3840 X 2160 from a 2-perf film, scanned in 4k?

Thanks Giray. By how much?

Wow, that's a great resource. I did not know that. Unfortunately, they do not seem to list the DPs.

Thanks Tye. I just picked up some 250D last week and I have lots of 5600K lights. I should be able to do some tests soon. Would you overexpose or underexpose the stock?

Thanks Uli for the video trailer. Does shooting in 2-perf format REQUIRES you to have black bars on top and bottom of the image? Or can you do without it?

Here are more examples of the look I am trying to do. If anyone has some experience, I would love to get your feedback.

Thanks for all the input. I will check out Kamera Doctor. That seems really interesting. Stephen, thanks for the offer.

I am interested in finding out who the DP was for certain music videos. But after some research, I am not having too much luck. IMDB will provide some credits for music videos, but for some reason the DPs are not mentioned. Can you guys thing of a way to get the credits for a specific music video, most notably, who the DP was? thank you

How much light is lost when using an 85A filter?

Thanks Dom. That's a great article on the 2C.

Hi everyone, I am considering buying an Arri 2c 35mm camera from ebay and I have some questions about the camera. Is the shutter angle 165-degree or 180-degree? Because I found the operation manual and on page 4, it says 180-degree, and on page 22, the chart starts at 165 -degree (biggest opening) - see below. I don't see 180-degree on the chart. Also, is this a 4-perf camera? Can this be converted to a 2- perf or 3-perf to save costs? What is the procedure to do so? I am unfamiliar with this camera. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thank you Max

Hi Ryland, Since it's happening on 2 different cameras and 2 different stocks (and a new problem), I would agree that it is probably from the processing or the scanning. You can try SPECTRA FILM & VIDEO in North Hollywood. Yes, they do E6. They scan with SCANITY - which is said to be an amazing machine. https://www.spectrafilmandvideo.com/Lab.html I have yet to use them, but they are the first on my list - once I have film in the can. I called a couple times and they are super helpful and very patient.

Thanks Joel. You mentioned overexpose a bit... Are you thinking half a stop or more?

Hi everyone, I recently fell in love again with one of my passions from many years ago: motion picture cameras. After finding out that Kodak still makes film - I am excited to shoot again soon. I am interested in creating the HIGH-GLOSS, FASHION look - which is normally found in commercials and music videos. I understand film may not be the best choice to do this look, but I would like to try. I will be using either 16mm or 35mm, but most likely 35mm. I am thinking 250D film may be a good choice - since most of my lights are 5500K. Is it better to overexpose or underexpose the film? I hear different opinions on this - and this seems like a crucial decision. I decided to post this under GENERAL because it covers several topics : film stock, lighting, scanning, etc. I am attaching samples of the high-gloss fashion look I am referring to. Thank you in advance. Max