Building a new department

[Alan Balch]

[Todd Terry] “I certainly do NOT intend to cast aspersions on Alan’s ability (and for all I know he might light better than Haskell Wexler and Roger Deakins combined).”

Thanks for the vote of confidence Todd! In my dreams, though.

[Todd Terry] “and I know personally for me, I learned more about lighting and cinematography by watching the DP in my first four hours on a real movie set than I did in four years of film school (and that is, sadly, not an exaggeration).”

I love this idea, and as a matter of fact, next week there is a production company coming in from out of town to shoot some 3D stuff and I could use all the help I could get!

[Chuck Johnson]

Hi Allen,

Very exciting time for you and I can empathize since I was in the same situation in 1994. Although the times are different, in terms of cost of entry in the business, the basic things you need to do are:

– start introducing yourself to department managers and ask them what their communications or training pain points are.

– Get buy-in from your supervisor and discuss now if you will charge-back your time and materials cost to people using your services. You might have your cost spread out over multiple department budgets as a services fee or management fee. My department started that way but eventually went to a straight fee for services cost structure albeit half the cost that external companies would charge.

– Have you thought about all the other things like music licenses, legal forms, software and equipment maintenance contracts?

– Also, a biggie is starting an archive now while getting off the ground. Will save you tons of time later. I like CatDV.

– you should also develop some way to track your time and productivity so when your boss asks you (and they will), you will have all of it ready.

Feel free to contact me or email off-list and I can share some insight in starting and managing a hospital based production arm.

Regards,

Chuck Johnson
Big Bad Wolf Creative Group
Fort Worth, Tx
817-429-0818

[Alan Balch]

Chuck,
I’m not sure if your from Fort Worth or just live there now, but from one Texan to another, thanks a bunch(I used to live in Austin.)
I’m getting settled in here and have just ordered the computer I want.
27″ iMac
3.4 Ghz Intel Core i.7
32GB RAM
768GB Flash Storage
NVIDIA 2GB gpx card
Promise Pegasus 12TB external storage

I’m still looking at cameras and could use a little advice. I’m looking at a Panasonic AG AC160
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/857500-REG/Panasonic_AG_AC160A_AG_AC160A_AVCCAM_HD_Handheld.html

or a Canon XF 300
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/684199-REG/Canon_4457B001_XF300_Professional_Camcorder.html

In my experience, I’ve always used Panasonic cameras and have never had any problems. I’m thinking of ‘going with what I know’ on that one.
On the flip side, a lot of my former colleagues say that in all of their personal experience, they love the products that Canon puts out. That makes me think that maybe it’s time for a change. Any thoughts?

[Todd Terry]

[Alan Balch] “colleagues say that in all of their personal experience, they love the products that Canon puts out. That makes me think that maybe it’s time for a change. Any thoughts?”

Well, personally I’m a die hard Canon guy now. I used Sony cameras for years and always found them to be the “industry standard,” and Canon was more in the consumer world.

Not any more. We bought an XL1 about 15 years ago just as a small “B” camera, and really liked it… although we still shot Sonys as our primary cameras. About five or six years ago we switched to the then-brand-new Canon XLH1 as our primary camera, which (when paired with a P+S Technik converter and cine primes) was unbelievable for the time. It was my favorite camera ever. Until now… after switching to the C300 almost a year ago, now that is my favorite camera ever. So much so that even though I was a hardcore film guy for years I have now sold my last 35mm camera, which was my last remaining piece of real film gear. The C300 has totally won me over.

Now, I don’t recommend that particular camera for you… it’s definitely cine-style gear and that might not be most appropriate for your particular usage (or it might be, I really can’t say). But I blather on about that to say, yes, you should definitely take a look at the current offerings from Canon.

T2

__________________________________
Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com

[John Davidson]

Just to throw it out there, I’m obsessed with the Sony FS700. Now that it’s getting RAW and 4k, I’m in love with it even more. If you’re shooting regular HD, you just load the SD card into your iMac and it loads in without a hassle. Nice n’ easy. Check out the Metabones Speed Booster for it too. You can get full frame images into the cropped sensor AND you’ll gain a stop of aperture. Pretty nifty.

John Davidson | President / Creative Director | Magic Feather Inc.

[Alan Balch]

[Todd Terry] “But I blather on about that to say, yes, you should definitely take a look at the current offerings from Canon.”

Todd, your not the only one going on about Canon. All of my former colleagues are doing the same thing, so that makes the decision, in my mind at least, pretty clear. I did look at the C300, I’m really impressed by what I’ve seen however, since I’m a OMB around here, I feel that the XF300 is the way to go. I like what I’ve seen and the reviews I’ve been reading.

Here’s a question. If my understanding is correct, when shooting HD a 16GB card will get me about 30mins of recording time. I’m basing that off of what I know from using the P2 from Panasonic. Is that a global figure or would Canon be different. If that is the case, would I be able to get an hour of shooting time from a 32 GB card and 2 hours with 2 cards?

Thanks!

~Alan Balch

[Chuck Johnson]

Hi Alan,

Give me your email address so we can carry this conversation on off-list. Mine is cjohnson@bbwcg.com or phone is 817-429-0818

I moved to Fort Worth in 1984 so pert’near a Texan!

Chuck

[Craig Seeman]

[Alan Balch] “Here’s a question. If my understanding is correct, when shooting HD a 16GB card will get me about 30mins of recording time. I’m basing that off of what I know from using the P2 from Panasonic.”

Very basic math. Card duration is relative to the data rate. MPEG2 GOP and AVCHD data rates are more efficient that DVCProHD in most cases.

[Alan Balch]

Hey Bob,
To answer your questions, I’m the lone videographer but I do have three graphic designers and one webmaster to work with so I’m not totally alone in this venture.

[Bob Zelin] “f you have help – even freelance help (especially if it’s freelance help) – you should ASK THEM what they like to shoot with, what has worked for them, and what they feel comfortable with”

Your reading my mind, dude.

[Bob Zelin] “Like I said – ask for advice from your freelancers, or existing staff – since they are the ones that will be using it – and not us. If it’s just you – well, then I guess our advice is as good as you are going to get. “

Don’t sell yourself short. There is a TON of experience in this forum and while I may not take all the advice, It would foolish to marginalize it!

[Todd Terry]

[Alan Balch] ” If that is the case, would I be able to get an hour of shooting time from a 32 GB card and 2 hours with 2 cards?”

It depends on settings etc. For example with the C300 you can shoot at various bitrates, although I always shoot at the maximum which is 50Mbps.

I shoot on the 16GB cards, which are more than big enough for most of my projects (but then again I’m almost exclusively shooting :30 broadcast commercials). You can of course shoot on the 32GB or 64GB cards (as long as they are fast enough, always at minimum use the SanDisk Extreme 60MB/s cards), although anecdotal evidence tells me the 16GB cards are the most stable ones. I always shoot dual cards, recording the same thing to both card slots so I have a backup.

A 16GB card at highest bitrate gives me 41 minutes of 1080p 23.976fps footage.

T2

__________________________________
Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com