Steve Crow
Forum Replies Created
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Jec,
I think you are missing a basic point when thinking about Glidecam type shots and that is that you don’t adjust focus while shooting – in fact you don’t touch the camera at all because that would upset the balance. There are very expensive solutions for a remote focus puller to operate a follow focus attached to your camera for you but for a hobby application that doesn’t make sense.
Also check out this article about vest-based systems out of China that are dramatically lowering the cost and reducing operator fatigue at the same time:
https://dslrvideoshooter.com/steadicam-x-pro-from-de-cinema-kit/
Regarding the Steadicam mentioned in the article I did a little research myself and found that there are several manufacturers making almost the exact same rig with steadicam and vest so before you buy anything make sure you look around the Internet for the best deal
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
Yes I agree with George, that should do it. Funny how what is generally considered a “mistake” can be exactly right for some situations and for some clients. So expose for the background and let the foreground go dark but not totally black so that you can still make out some basic shapes. Fine tuning in your editing program will probably be the way to get just the right mix.
Here’s an old joke: Shooting out of focus or with a bad exposure once is a mistake, three times and it’s a style!
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
Yes I did watch full screen and I still only saw the camera trying to resolve fine detail in the grass and the tree branches (perhaps some aliasing on the overhanging electrical wires too) and not what I would generally cause digital artifacts/camera noise.
Your question about shooting wide open is interesting as applied to this specific kind of shot since you really don’t have a foreground object and nothing specific for the camera to focus on….so when shooting wide open perhaps the camera IS indeed confused. This is worth researching since I don’t have a specific answer for you.
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
I am not seeing much, perhaps a tiny bit of moire patterning as the camera tries to resolve the fine detail of the grass but nothing distracting.
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
Perhaps if you posted a screen grab showing this crackling/noise the issue would be easier to diagnose. Shooting wide open by itself should not be causing any issues. Some areas I would test out would be:
* The ND filter
* Trying some different lenses….
* ISO? (your ISO should be really low if you are outside and need an ND filter)I have a strong feeling that whatever it is that you are describing is not noise – it may be a very dirty sensor or something going wrong in the camera electronics – particularly when you say crackling that doesn’t sound like classic noise to me. Do some tests and see if you can narrow the issue down.
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
Yeah that’s a feature I wish they had too
It’s pretty basic in what you can do but hopefully it will grow into those
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
The Canon 6D, a full frame camera, is on sale now for the same price (or about) as the 70D.
https://www.dslrfilmnoob.com/2013/12/06/canon-6d-1415-amazon/
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
We’ve had this basic balcony question several times already on this forum
https://forums.creativecow.net/search.php?q=balcony&content=F&f%5B%5D=280&age=&library=T
but Yes, you can get closeups from the balcony if you have a lens that is long enough and if it has a wide enough aperture to let lots of light in. (2.8 is reasonably fast)
Because of the crop factor of your camera, your 200mm lens will actually be giving you the equivalent reach of 320mm which I would THINK would be sufficient but I haven’t ever tried.
I bet you can find pictures of the inside of that very church online and you can make some rough estimates of how far away you would be – you might use the pews and estimating the distance between them to give you a rough idea of the distances you will be dealing with (don’t forget to add in the vertical distance, ie how high up the balcony is)
Once you know that you can ask people about specific lenses and if they’ve shot from that distance before but I got to believe it won’t be a problem since sports photographers shoot at LONG distances from the sidelines (but yes with HUGE and expensive lenses)
Most of these shots from the balcony are going to be very very boring and we haven’t even yet talked about the sound.
Have you thought about putting 1-3 GoPro Hero cameras on the sanctuary? and just let them run continuously by themselves so that you can have a camera(s) that will capture the couple from the opposite direction? (When they face the priest, their back is going to be to you and everyone else so you will be getting a very boring shot of just their backs unless you have cameras facing the pews.)
You can even turn on a GoPro remotely over Wifi but that may be more hassle than its worth to you.
Honestly, given the restrictions I hope you are underselling to your client what they can expect. How are you going to get the shot of the bride and groom walking down the aisle as they enter the church??? I didn’t understand your description of where the 2nd ground floor camera would be, what direction it would be facing and if anyone is going to be operating it.
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
No worries Jeff, interesting to hear about FCP X’s built-in retiming option. I’m curious to know if it’s doing the same thing as the “speed” option in FCP 6 and 7 (or Motion’s Optical Flow?) or is it doing the “change the metadata” thing?
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com -
I did check out the forums myself but I think for just the general sense of what’s it’s like to operate a relatively newer DSLR camera with older Nikon lenses, the topics on the forum were too specific so it didn’t really answer my much more basic questions. Thanks anyway Rob – it’s probably a great resource for later should I go in this particular direction with my lens choice.
Can anyone provide a paragraph or two on just the big picture, exposure and how the camera body interacts with an older lens.
Steve Crow
Crow Digital Media
http://www.CrowDigitalMedia.com