Richard Herd
Forum Replies Created
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“Cross key backlight,” can you explain that? It probably makes sense from its name, but just to be clear…thanks!
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Unless you’re going for that Charlie Rose look, don’t forget about the background walls, which, in my opinion, look best at diagonals to the subject with plenty of distance between the wall and the subject to avoid shooting mug shots.
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PS AAU, SF was worth every single penny: hard work and long hours, but worth it!
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I like the book a lot. I don’t have it handy at the moment, but from memory: it starts with still photography. All those examples should be shot (in my opinion) on reversal stock, E6 processing. It’s really important to know the relationship between the shutter and the aperture. Then in the cinema sections the shutter angle and frame rate will make much more sense.
There really is a difference between “exposing a frame” and “snapping a photo.” Plus, there’s lots of shots and camera moves from which a visual language is created. Eventually, all the shots for a given scene will be handed over to an editor. This book really explains how to accomplish consistency, which for me, when the editor says, “This is really consistent photography,” then that is the best compliment I can hear.
It’s an interesting read all by itself, but for those interested in actually shooting, I highly recommend it and (in addition to shooting E6), also buy a light meter, and use it for the shooting (like the Sekonic L-398A Studio Deluxe III). Measuring the light is the only way to achieve consistency, and the Sekonic is at a great price point.
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That’s the book I used in Jonathan Fung’s class at AAU, SF. And, since I already had a BA, my BFA at AAU, SF took 2 years, 66 units.
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[Todd Terry] “a little sorta tent”
Tents are awesome. I made mine out of fabric from the fabric store. The fabric is completely opaque (and next I’d like it dyed black), but it hardly matters because it’s not very reflective. Nonetheless, the fabric was cheap. The best part about using tents is the sun doesn’t move–what a miracle!
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My $0.02: If the entire lighting setup is keyed only by the exterior light coming in, I find it looks flat and boring. Instead, use it as “fill.” That is, expose for the exterior light (so you can see outside), but raise the luminance inside the room and shape it properly so the subject is perfectly lit. How you go about raising the ambient light can take many forms. How you shape the light on your subject can also take many forms.
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I have the same pet peeve. Black and white on miniDV actually looks nice.
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Need more information about the scenes and coverage plan before the lighting design can be created. There’s a bunch of give and takes to consider, but for $100, you’re basically looking at photo flood bulbs, and at $6/each, you can get several of them plus a ceramic fixture for your budget. NExt question though is how are you going to power those?
EXT. SNOW — NIGHT (sounds like you need a generator, too, and there’s some math to do so that you have enough amperage).
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There’s no end to learning. 🙂 I pitched an ad concept for a film school, but it wasn’t accepted. Here’s the pitch:
Busy city street. Folks all around. Walking fast. A guy starts singing: “I know everything…” Slowly the others on the street hear h him and begin to chime in, until it’s a huge hollywood musical dance number, singing in a 6/8 shuffle:
“I know everything
there is to know
about making movies
’cause I went to film school.
And I bought a book.
And I memorized the f-stops:
{sing along}
1 1.4 2 2.8 4 5.6 8 11 16 22
{big finish}
I know everything
there is to know
about making movies
’cause I went to film schooooooool.”The cast goes back to living their normal life in the city.
I guess it’s too sarcastic, for a film school brand. THe point is, I guess, MAN! there’s a ton to learn.
🙂