[Charles Mercer]

It’s an old joke, but they say a camel is a horse designed by a committee. So you convince your client that your final cut is a masterpiece who then goes back, hot-foot, to the committee. They say they love it, but could you just work for another unbudgeted three hours, put in some shots not in the contract and change the music which we all agreed as first choice before you shot a frame. Maybe it should have a ‘Yes, but………..’ or a ‘Could you just………’ button. How we love our corporate clients.

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

Thanks for all the useful information. Our official get-in date is 1st July, but I can get access after 1st June. I’ll certainly try some of the ideas and I’ll post later when I have some results.

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

I’ll check out our local carpet shop for the vinyl, sounds perfect. I have found a background mount with rollers and chains for free, so I was going to ship it into the new studio. Can you roll up the vinyl without the paint cracking or does it have to be left in a permanent position? I located some clearance masonry paint at the local DIY store at one third normal price, so I scooped it up – it’s mid stone in colour which is a grey variation. It’ll serve as an undercoat if we don’t like the final colour, but I think it will be OK.

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

I think I’d reached the same conclusion – once you’ve built the Cyc, you’re stuck with it. And in the last year and a half, we’ve never actually needed it. We like lighting backgrounds with cuckies, so a neutral, adaptable wall in our case would seem sensible. I think I’m beginning to favour a light grey, extending that down onto a floor, as well as leaving a corner for the green screen. Again, we’ve only used this to shoot waist-up, and nobody has complained. It would extend our range to get the green out onto the floor so we could use full body shots as we have the luxury of the space. I’m very much in favour of making the most profit from the least outlay, so it looks like the paint tin and roller are going to come into play.

Thanks for the comments.

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

Some good points here, Bill. We have a three phase supply into the room, and I’m looking at a lot of conduit pipes which carried power to some outlets for the previous occupant ( a pottery studio) I think we shall have to do a lot of re-routing (our previous place was an office space which had 9 dips for desks, and that was very convenient) I’m musing on building a cyc – any thoughts? We have previously used only a green screen supported on two poles which (once we worked out the lighting) was more than adequate. I’m tempted to go the cyc route and to paint onto the floor (plain yellow linoleum at present) so we can get the talent right into the screen. We would still have space for a grey/black wall. And we have to consider a small client changing area which I think we could easily set up with some folding screens – there is a sink unit which is nicely placed, and only needs a mirror to make it look respectable.

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

Thanks for the interesting replies. It’s certainly nice to have the luxury of an empty space with bare walls and it’s easy to start thinking up lots of issues which probably aren’t there in the first place. It’s a question of getting in and learning on the job I suppose. I like the grey paint idea – it’s definitely a colour that will respond well to gelled lights and very flexible. The curtain for sound reflection reduction sounds useful. We were thinking about putting in some sound baffle panels on the walls, but this may be over-cooking it a bit. Our editing area is partitioned off from the stage by a wall of chipboard panels, so this might be the one area that needs attention. Getting the density right might involve a bit of cost.
Fortunately the ceiling is quite high and has sound insulation in the form of heavy straw-type panels below the roof itself. It won’t stop the aeroplane noise as we’re on the flight path to Luton airport, but we’ve lived with that already and it’s not a major deal.

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

Hi marc

Just a thought – here’s the code for the bubble we use in the Riffa
Showbiz Quartzline Halogen 88450 230-240W 0 043168 884501
650 Watt

This may mean nothing to you as you are on different voltage, but I’d be interested to have a look at the code on your bubbles. The bubble which failed last time is now back in the new fitting sent by the suppliers and has worked fine so far. This really makes the fitting suspect, but two in a row has to be really unlucky.

Regards
Charles

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

Hi Mark, thanks for the quick response. I agree with you. I would be unlucky to get two duds in a a row, but I really can’t see how else I can get these bubbles into the fitting. The little metal clip just stops the body of the lamp passing into the fitting to allow the pins to engage into the holes. Do the pins have to be in tight, or should a touch fit be adequate? As you say, we’ve had poor bubble life – max about thirty hours and are getting exasperated at the replacement cost. I wonder if we are using the same bubbles, as we are situated in UK – our bubble has a groove in the metal base which I presume has to seat onto the metal clip. Also, we are on 240v here, but I don’t see why that should make a difference with correctly rated gear. If I can find some time, I’ll try to get my pal Simon to film me putting a bubble in, but it sure ain’t easy.
Regards
Charles

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

Thanks for the info – I’ll have a look at the CD and Field Guide when I pick up the kit. Might be sensible to grab one or the other in view of the limited time available to learn the tricks. I find manufacturers’ manuals useful but arcane in their presentation, and certainly time consuming to plow through. However, you can’t beat the maxim ‘ When all else fails, read the indstructions’.

Regards
Charles

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions

[Charles Mercer]

Great post Gosford. I’m getting a new Sony EX3 on Monday and I have to shoot with it on Wednesday. (I’m currently using a Cannon XHA1). Doesn’t leave a lot of training time, but things are always like that aren’t they? I was going to ask if you knew of any obvious pitfalls with the EX3 – things to avoid getting in trouble with on the first day. It’s going to be on the job training, but I’ve tried to cover most of the angles with extra batteries (Swit) and cards. Be grateful for any quick tips.

Regards
Charles

Charles Mercer
Pearldrop Video Productions