4K2HD + Portraiture = need for lens filter?

B

Brian Bice

New member
I'm curious if any of you use lens filters when shooting interviews and such in 4K2HD mode. I don't want to go all Barbara Walters, but with the increased detail, do you prefer to soften skin with filters?

If so, what would you recommend? I'm looking at the Tiffin Black Pro-Mist, but I'm not at all experienced with filters other than ND and Polarizers.

Thanks for any feedback!
 
I feel like filters can be a bit dangerous if not used properly. I do feel like some filters are irreplaceable like NDs and Polarizers.

I do feel the computer does simulate certain filters really well like color grads, color tints and diffusion (similar effect to Pro-Mist). Although I don't use Magic Bullet much, the one thing out of that suit that it does pretty well is diffusion and the soft blooming highlights look, so I mainly keep it to the computer now so I can control it.

Someone else might think differently though as many people like to do it just in the camera.
 
Black pro mist is a classic filter, and works very well. Do some tests before committing. 4K can be very harsh.

But you can achieve the same effect in post. There are lots of plugins that blur only skin tone or you can do that in a program like Resolve.

So unless you are just handing the footage off I would do it in post.

Just my nickel.
 
I personally would never rely on a post effect if I could control filtration on set. Certainly while shooting a sit down interview it is the sort of controlled situation where optical filters could be utilized. The universe is infinite, and the moment we use any interment to capture it we begin to toss away information. And we have very limited control in what we lose. Lens - sensor - compression - processing -- stuff is lost every step of the way. There is way more control with a filter at the beginning of that chain than at the end.

A Classic Soft is a great filter for this. The little lenslets on the filter break down the fine details while not appearing to soften the image. Just make sure not to have an out of focus point of light in the background of the shot as the effect on halation can resemble swiss cheese.
 
I find it rather odd that technology has continued to make video images sharper and sharper; and, people have to use filters to diffuse images which are so sharp they are now labelled "too video looking". At any rate, I've found the solution that works best is to soften the final footage with NeatVideo. While the intent of this plugin is to reduce noise, it also does a pretty nice job of softening skin detail without damaging the rest of the background. I know old school is to use a diffusion filter, but, i ask, "why throw away all the detail in the plane of focus?" Because bokeh will automatically soften the out of focus stuff, and I like to keep detail for in-plane details. The talent usually complains about skin blemishes, and, this is where neatVideo does a great job, especially if you can apply a mask to the plugin.
 
If you want to have a good laugh give pro-mist filters to film school students. There was a short in my class that looked like it was filmed in a fire. It was pretty awesome. But I concur with most people here, there's a time and a place for each. I love me some Days of Thunder grads =-)
 
I also +1 some black pro mists. 1/8 or 1/4 is just fine for cutting some edge off. But experiment with other options if you need to/want to. The BPM is more or less "safe go to choice" I'd say!
 
cuervo said:
I find it rather odd that technology has continued to make video images sharper and sharper; and, people have to use filters to diffuse images which are so sharp they are now labelled "too video looking". At any rate, I've found the solution that works best is to soften the final footage with NeatVideo. While the intent of this plugin is to reduce noise, it also does a pretty nice job of softening skin detail without damaging the rest of the background. I know old school is to use a diffusion filter, but, i ask, "why throw away all the detail in the plane of focus?" Because bokeh will automatically soften the out of focus stuff, and I like to keep detail for in-plane details. The talent usually complains about skin blemishes, and, this is where neatVideo does a great job, especially if you can apply a mask to the plugin.
Click to expand...

I don't find sharpness "looks" like video on it's own, more like the added sharpness makes the motion look more video. The sensor has a lot to do with this as well.

In the end, just like DSLRs, resolution sell cameras.
 
Thanks for sharing your wisdom guys. I'm not too surprised to see a range of opinions on the matter
mail
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Since I already own Magic Bullet Looks, which has both diffusion and a filter called Cosmo for blurring and evening out skin, I'll dial it up and do some experimenting. I've never really thought about utilizing them until now. And perhaps I can borrow or rent one of these lens filters and evaluate the pros and cons of each method.

Now, for those times I appear in front of the camera, I need something like a Hair Follicle Enhancer filter. Let me know if you come across one.
 
I feel like what people want to see lots of detail when the come to see this new thing called 4K video. I like a skin softener in post, like Beauty Box from Digital Anarchy. You can soften the skin a bit, but keep all the crazy detail across the rest of the picture. With a lens filter, you negate so much of what you bought all this equipment for.

Just my view.
 
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