shoting in nightclubs

TubEfingers

TubEfingers

Well-known member
hey all,
im taking delivery of my hvx200 (pal) tommorrow,
on the 14th im shooting a big dance event in a nightclub,
i need advice on getting good shots in a dark club environment,
i want to use some slow shutter speeds for streak/blur effects,other than that its gonna be trial and error,
im taking it to a few club events this weekend to test a few things out,
id really appreciate any advice on settings/style to acheive some nice shots that capture the energy of the dj's/clubbers and lighting/dancefloor,any extra kit i might need etc
thanks in advance

im using a G4 powerbook-1.67ghz/1gb Ram/FCP 5.0.4/AE 6.5/Motion2 for post
 
Whatever you do, use an onboard cameralight. For wide angle shots, the clubs' showlight will work, and can give great shots. But for closer shots of people dancing, use the cameralight to get out the faces. If possible, get a cameralight with a dimmer, so you can match the levels to the surrounding light. If not, use some spun/silk. Cameralights also give a nice 'twinkle' to the eyes.
 
Of course 2fps will mean it's going at 12 times normal speed (15 for 30p). You could though try 22 or even 20 fps. Will speed stuff up a bit but not too much and will give you a bit more light.
 
sorry,forgot to mention,im limited to shooting in SD right now,will this prevent me using varied fps?
best settings for SD pal?
also can you recomend any onboard cameralights,im at college close to the main street for cam shops in london (tottenham court road) so choice is wide,
how do you mean spun/silk?
until recently ive been shooting only underwater videography so my knowledge of land based shooting is lacking,
how do i acheive framerate hacks?
i'll be filming handheld apart from some interviews with dj's/promoter
thanks for help so far
 
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i hate shooting in any situation with a sun-gun, the lighting looks so cheap and it bugs people. unfortunately, you may have no other choice in a club, but if you position yourself so that your subject is in front of some lights, (strobe lights, lasers, all that club stuff) you can get nice looking outlines of yor subject. best bet is to just experiment and have a good time, (i always shoot best after a couple of drinks ;)
 
i looked at lights today,cant afford any right now,i'll be shooting interviews in well lit areas,the rest of time ill be having to take advantage of whatever lights there.
keep the advice/tips coming-taking it all onboard,
thanks all
also-if i set to squeeze am i shooting in true 16:9?or is that a stupid question,the other choice is just bars dropped onto a 4:3 image right?
 
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TubEfingers said:
also-if i set to squeeze am i shooting in true 16:9?or is that a stupid question,the other choice is just bars dropped onto a 4:3 image right?
Click to expand...

Correct. 'Real' 16:9 in SD is shot anamorphicly. The image is squeezed into a 4:3 image, so that the full bandwith is used. At the final stage in broadcast the image is unsqueezed, or on a DVD, it is flagged as anamorphic so the DVD-player outputs a correct image. The other one is 'letterbox': black bars are dropped on at the top and bottom. This way, you loose about 33% of resolution.

SD is always 4:3. In this picture you can put a normal 4:3 image, a squeezed 16:9 image, or a cropped 16:9 image( =letterbox). HD is different: it is natively 16:9. No squeeze, no black bars.
 
thanks eleventy,
so if i shoot using squeeze what sequence settings will i need when it comes to capturing using FCP?
also for shooting in SD-am i better off using dv/dvcam/dvcam50?
 
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I would goto this club before your shoot and make sure you can see an image.. The HVX likes light.. Don't get there and be very surprised when you cant use any of your footage..

I did a wedding (1st and LAST) and was very very sad to find out that the lighting they used for the rehearsal was alot brighter than what they would be using to shoot.. Lets just say the footage SUCKED..
 
eLeventy said:
Correct. 'Real' 16:9 in SD is shot anamorphicly. The image is squeezed into a 4:3 image, so that the full bandwith is used. At the final stage in broadcast the image is unsqueezed, or on a DVD, it is flagged as anamorphic so the DVD-player outputs a correct image. The other one is 'letterbox': black bars are dropped on at the top and bottom. This way, you loose about 33% of resolution.

SD is always 4:3. In this picture you can put a normal 4:3 image, a squeezed 16:9 image, or a cropped 16:9 image( =letterbox). HD is different: it is natively 16:9. No squeeze, no black bars.
Click to expand...

Maybe this sounds a bit confusing to you: on the hvx its different to the dvx 100: "squeeze" on the hvx 200 means always "native" 16:9, as the hvx got- in contrary to the dvx 100- "real" 16:9 chips, so what you wanna do definitly (also in SD) on the HVX is to record in "squeeze"!
 
I had a nearly identical wedding experience. The HVX requires a LOT OF LIGHT. I shudder to think of what footage could possibly be shot in a club at regular shutter speeds in available light...
 
cheezus,im not filled with joy at the prospect after hearing users views,taking it to a club for a test drive,let you all know how it goes
 
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