[Phil Balsdon]

Green screen / chroma key.

If you have not shot footage for this type of work before do some research on the techniques, there’s plenty online including here at Creative Cow.

Lighting is vital, not only for getting a good key but for making the key look authentic by matching the lighting style of the background you are keying into. Also lens focal lengths and camera lens height etc are important.

Getting a good technical is reasonably easy if you follow the rules, making the key look realistic is another ball game.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

If you are going to go for the 50mm get the f1.4. You already have this focal length covered with your current zoom so it’s main benefit will low light advantage hence you’d be better off with the f1.4.

Canon have an EF S 17-55 f2.8. Shooting video you’ll often find yourself in a confined space or wanting to do camera moves that often better done using the perspective properties of a wide angle lens.

You might get away with using a good quality alternate manufacturers lens with video, because a certain amount of information has to be lost extracting the 1920 x 1080 image. The stills format will not be as forgiving though. Spending more on good quality lenses is always a wise investment, they’ll outlast your camera by a number of generations.

I’m still using a couple of Mamiya 645 lenses and some fast Pentax SMC lenses with Fotodiox adaptors, that I’ve had for over 20 years, when my new Canon zooms aren’t fast enough or long enough.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

I use the make a Disk Image method on location and copy to an external hard drive.

The Canon Plugin works on my MacPro with OS 10.5.8 in FCP7.

It does not work on my MacBook OS 10.5.8 with FCP 6 fully updated.

I’m doing exactly the same thing on both systems, FCP 6 on the MacBook gives me an incorrect file structure message.

Are the other people (there’s been a few posts on various forums) having this problem only on FCP 6?

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

You’ve got an option for Apple Intermediate Codec there, try that.

But yes you’re up against with FCP 5.

You could also try shooting at 720p in the 7D and using the DVC PRO HD 720p codec they’re identical frame sizes. (Although it appears you already have the footage).

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Don’t know why it’s not working in FCP 6.0.6. Its supposed to, but I’ve seen a couple of posts with other people having problems with 6.0.6.

I’m doing exactly the same as in FCP7 and get a message about file structures in FCP6. That same file on the same drive opens in FCP7.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Disk Utility settings

Give the Save As a relevant name (Scene Number?)
Settings;
Image format – compressed
Encryption – none

One thing I didn’t mention but its not relevant to the Disk Utility bit.

I use the Canon Plugin in FCP7 on a MacPro Quad with Leopard OS. It works perfectly.
I haven’t upgraded the FCP6.0.6 to FCP7 on my MacBook and I can’t get the Canon Plugin to work in Log and Transfer. I’ve tried everything, the same files on the same disc work in FCP7 on the MacPro. I will need to install FCP7 on the MacBook but need to wait until I have the time to do it properly.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Can’t help you there Steve. Unless some how they’re getting a frame grab from the video output.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Very simple. I keep an alias of the Disk Utility app (the original is in the Mac OSX Utilities folder) on my desk top.
Plug the card reader with CF card into the computer. Open Disk Utility select the card in the top left window then click “New Image” in the top menu bar. Decide where you want to put it. You will have all the necessary data, it’s a perfect replica of the CF card.

You can rename the default “Canon EOS” copy as a scene number or whatever works best for you, I’d be asking them to then put this in a folder with a suitable name and the relevant audio files for that scene so its all together. Then copy this folder to a second drive for back up. (This is the new “Clapper / Loader” or 2nd AC’s job in the camera department). It’s often given to the work experience person, they need to know how important the job is and be shown exactly how to do it right.

This will mean its an organised structure for you and save you hours of searching and working out what is what in post.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

The Canon plugin works well with Log and Transfer. It’s the fastest way to bring the H264 format of the 7D into FCP as directly as ProRes. It also has the added and extremely useful benefit of translating the camera’s time of day recording into a timecode track, its the only ingest system for this format that currently does this.

The audio on the 7D is inadequate for a feature. PluralEyes works well but I’d still use a slate for better organisation.

Your big problem will be if the location crew doesn’t follow a workflow that is organised.

The most reliable way to bring the files from the CF card to a drive is to use Disk Utility to record a New Image. This should then duplicate this to another drive for security. You and they need to get together and decide on a suitable workflow these files and associated audio tracks, renaming and putting them in folders so that you aren’t left with a massive task of trying find what goes what before you start to edit.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

I think what means is it will include the area behind the transparent mask, that doesn’t get recorded in video mode, in the still frame.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/