Mark D'agostino
Forum Replies Created
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I have designed lighting for news sets and LCDs are a godsend. It takes little tweaking to find the correct angle to avoid reflection/glare. I had to light one set a few years back with a 52″ CRT, not a flat screen, in the center of the set. Talent sat next to the monitor. They were upset when I had to raise the height of the keys to avoid reflections. Talent ended up with less than ideal lighting and the grid was full of flags.. The client’s production chief would not return the brand new monitor in favor of a flat screen crt even though the cost difference was minimal. He did not want to accept that he made a mistake. I’m glad those days are mostly gone.
Mark DMark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
Mark and Rick,
Thanks a bunch for taking the time to respond so thoughtfully. I do agree the best “wrap” comes from getting the light as practically close to the subject as possible. My choice would be a large source through some level of diffusion on large frames, or bouncing light back through a light diffusion. However, this specific use is for those situations when I’m in a 10×10 office/closet. I’ll stick with the Chimera because upon some research, without additional stands and accessories, it’s look is somewhat softer than the Rifa. I was using a D-light but am switching to a tota. The other case against the Rifa is the absurd cost of the egg crate. I use that all the time on the Chimera and setting up stands to flag is not practical for this. By the way Mark, did you check out https://www.lighttools.com/subgrouping.htm?cat=20880 to see if you can get their egg crate cheaper for the Rifa?
Thanks again. You guys really helped me work this out.
Mark D’Agostino
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
Hey Bob,
I’ve rigged china balls in the past but always found my method a bit cumbersomeHow do you attach the sockets to the china ball and the ball to the arm?
Thanks!
MarkMark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
Thanks John. I guess I didn’t properly describe what I am looking for. I have created different looks using charts but am just looking for a particular scene file that the folks at Abel Cine loaded that I liked and unfortunately lost. I wanted to get the exact matrix numbers to match something I’ve already shot. I’ll give them a call. Thanks again for your quick response.
MarkMark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
I did like the color reproduction of the factory set scene file 4 which was dialed in to closely resemble the look of the Varicam. It does a nice job with blues. I was just about to post because our camera settings were accidentally reset and I lost that scene file. I believe it’s matrix was set to R-G: +5, R-B: +3, G-R: +4, G-B: +15, B-R: +4, B-G: +3 to closely match the Varicam. Does anyone know If I have those numbers right? I do like the way this setting I created above looks but just want to see if it’s different than what the guys at Panasonic set up. Thanks.
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
Another light weight version of a frame…I bought some 3/4″ pvc pipe. A lot lighter than conduit. No tools are required to assemble because the pipe fits snugly into the elbows. I attached shorter pieces of pipe to two sides using those adjustable pipe straps, (the ones with the slots you adjust by turning the screw). On my stands I attach grip poles and slide the frame’s pipe down the pole. This allows me to quickly adjust the angle. This is good for up to a 5′ x 5′.
I bought some grid cloth and put grommets along the sides and attached sash cord. I keep these stuffed in a hip pouch. I just pull ’em out, and tie them on the frame. Total assembly time for one person is less than 5 minutes.
A cheap-o flex fill …one of those reflectors you leave on the dash of a car to keep the sun out while parked.
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
The HDX 900 does in fact create the time lapse in-camera. I tend to set it to capture 2 frames at a time at whatever interval you need for the length of your final shot. All the math is done for you in the menu. That worked nicely for an 10 second time lapse I shot showing a commercial jet from it’s arrival at the gate, crews offloading/loading luggage and leaving. That took about 45 minutes. The HDX 900 did the time lapse and I was able to view it there completed about 15 seconds after I hit stop. I agree with Ernie that 1 frame capture for cloud stuff looks nicer than if slower.
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
I agree with Ernie on the flakiness of the firewire connection with the firestore…it’s a royal pain. However, we’ve been using it since last July. My camera assistant/audio checks it frequently during shoots to be sure it’s running, (silly that we have to do that). We also always record to tape. We did lose a shot in the firestore once on a commercial shoot, but the tape saved us. One place I would never use the firestore is for “run and gun”/documentary stuff. There’s no way to constantly check it, so for those type of shoots we record tape only. For controlled situations it’s fine and makes the post process so much easier. I do use the double right angle firewire cable and also gaff tape it on both ends…proof that we live in a world of advanced technology.
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
The FS100 from Focus Enhancements is a hard drive device that you can mount to the HDX900 via firewire and record in P2 format directly. You then just copy the files from the FS100 onto your computer and import into your NLE and you’re good to go.
Mark
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
Thanks for your suggestion Russ. Using the selection tool and then dragging the clips to “overwrite with transition” in the canvas works. I also found that cmd-A, or dragging the cursor over the clips with the regular selection tool to select them all also works. In all cases I did not have to give an in point.
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com