GH1 film look: question

[PIMP]

So I have been seeing a ton of footage shot without cc correcting that looks so amazing and film like. And a friend of mine (phil) just got his GH1. He shot some amazing stuff that looked great but didnt have that same dynamic look of film I have seen in clips from vimeo. If what everyone is claiming is true about shooting with the kit lens and not correcting shouldn't his stuff would have looked the same. Granted he shot it without a nd filter and outside. However i keep seeing these people post clips of their kids playing outside in the daylight in similar situations that we were in today and they look dramatically different.

Any help will be appreciated because i have to decide whether to make a move for this camera real quick.

thanks

[Nitsuj]

Just do what I did when I decided on this camera. Research the hell out of it. Read as much of the forum as you can stand. Look at other forums. Take note of all the camera settings people use for different situations. Of course this was all I could really do until I actually got mine but it was useful to know. Now I am in the process of writing down every setting I change in a small notebook so I know what exactly to set in a situation.

That being said I am willing to bet that he is over exposing. ND's help with that. He needs to learn how to use the histogram completely and then it will make things easier to get that smooth look. Speaking of which... Smooth film mode is a quick way to get that look on top of proper exposure and shutter speed. Oh and of course make sure the camera is in full manual. I just picked up a PL filter and it is helping with keeping things at bay so you might want to look into that as well. Practice makes perfect. It also helps to note everything for future use... least it is for me.

[PIMP]

thanks. and perhaps you are right. he is just waiting on his nikon adaptor. Since all his lenses are nikon and plus he has the nd filters for them. So that might make a difference.

[editman]

The elusive "film-look". Expose correctly, lighting, 1/50 shutter, camera movement, framing, scope, acting... the list goes on.

[Mike@AF]

Personally I say forget about "film look". The typical movie-going audience doesn't even know what they're looking at. If you ask the typical movie-going audience what Michael Mann's last 3 movies were shot on they'd probably say film. Why? Because they don't care about that. They want a good story and an entertaining movie. The point is, it doesn't really matter. Just make it look good.

[Ozpeter]

Simply googling for "film look" throws up lots of interesting links.

I guess one has to learn to look with a more analytical eye at films whose visual style one particularly appreciates. Always remember you are not looking at reality! Imagine what was just out of shot in the way of technical support for what you see, particularly perhaps lighting.

If you haven't got proper lights, then indoors look for good natural window light at the right time of day - you'll learn to recognise when it has that quality that the old master painters used to relish. Outdoors, get to appreciate the special qualities of morning and evening light. And so forth.