Things seem a little hazy regarding Hazer choice.

MattinSTL

MattinSTL

Sound Modulator
I searched the archives and it looks like few people are talking about hazers... There are a couple threads with just a brief mention of the word. Foggers don't count! Not unless they can double as a hazer.

So do any of you guys use one frequently?

I'm amazed at what a great tool a hazer really is... I see a fine mist in many shots that don't even seem like they'd need it... but it's just another tool of light and depth... if you put just a little fine haze in the air you can seperate subjects with focus and light WAY easier.

I'm not talking about something akin to mounting a pro-mist filter and just leaving it on for every shot... but at this point I feel like a hazer is the secret weapon of many cinematographers. Once you get used to one it will blow your mind seeing the haze in nearly every movie at one time or another.

Do we have any lighting gurus on here who care to comment? Would a Chauvet be a total waste? Should I only consider Martin or Rosco? C'mon... clear up the haze for me.
 
Thanks for the link, but $1800 is a little more then I want to pop on one. I always get a laugh when a company boasts that one machine can replace two machines which are each at 1/3 the cost.

Martin makes a really great fogger that's about $470 from Midwest Stereo in Chicago... this fogger is the most common fogger in stage, theme park, and theatrical production in the WORLD... rock solid and pumps like a mother... I could probably get that and their best hazer and still be at less then 2/3 the cost of that G300... I'm sorry that I didn't say I'm on a low budget... $500 would be the top end for me... so maybe this thread is pointless after all.

LeMaitre is a great brand though... I don't doubt that they probably are the best.
 
Check this, haze in a can: http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=41069


I haven't used it formally on a shoot yet but played with it last weekend on a shoot where we had a projector in the scene, it looked great, but depending on the size of the room you might not have a lot of time before dissipation occurs, then again I was in a VERY LARGE space, so maybe an average size room it would hold for a while... guess I need to experiment with it more, just haven't gotten around to it yet.
 
I have a cheap-ass fog machine that I've been meaning to play around with. Maybe I'll get to that this weekend.
 
Got to be HAZE man... got to be haze.

When you see it applied you'll understand. With just the right amount in the air it's something that the audience won't even think about even though it's totally obvious once you point it out.

Think about it... no house ever has softly defined shafts of light coming through windows, and when you see it on screen it gives a shot so much more emotion.

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Sometimes obvious... sometimes not... but google (or watch) one of your favorite movies and I'll bet you'll be surprised at how many scenes utilized haze for emotion and cinematic depth.

Haze is just another tool of light... it's something between light and shadow... or crisp focus and blur. Most people think more about what they illuminate with a light instead of what they can choose to hide... I put this in the same category. Since this subject seems to be mostly untouched on this forum (hey I said mostly!) I'm glad we're talking about it.

Thanks for the canned haze idea Shawn... that might be worth a try for quickie indi stuff.
 
The Haze in a can is definitely of the fine mist style you're looking for but like you implied, not ideal for volume.

As an aside, here's a minor Google search tip I use: for some reason many times I get better (more useful) results if I do my gear related searches in Google Images first, for example, when I search for hazer 'images' it brings up a lot of good sites and products:

http://images.google.com/images?svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&q=hazer
 
Years ago, I was involved with some 16mm shoots that used something called 'cookie' or 'smoke cookie'. I believe it was later determined to be carcinogenic.

Excuse me while I go blow the blood from my nose...

Here's some interesting info.
 
If your patient and practice a little you can do all of those hazing effects with a cheap fogger and a fan. I worked art dept and assisted the SFX guy on a 2.5mil dollar movie where we hazed nearly every scene. We even did a place that was turned into grand central station. We did it all with a low end fogger and a fan, but Dans been doing it a long time and knew exactly how long to run the fogger and the fan.
 
Yes, cheap foggers can do wonders. The air circulation/ventilation of your location has more to do with your success than being a "haze master". :)
 
JESUS! I haven't thought of haze before... Seems like a great tool. I've often wanted to bring back the volumetric lighting effects from the 80's, but I've never known how! But now it's time for the post-apocalyptic action flicks to return .. hehe :)
 
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