FS7: Critical Focus when you're the Producer/Shooter

V

Vintegreo

Well-known member
I'm wondering if anyone out there is every conducting their own interviews while shooting with an FS7.

I do this periodically and have a 17" production monitor set up to glance at periodically. Apparently my eyes failed me today, though, as the picture seems to be ever so slightly soft on the interview subject sometimes.

In situations like this, I wonder if I'd be better off with a little Atomos of some sort held in lap where I can see it a bit closer.

Of course the ideal thing would be to have someone else shooting the interview if needed, but once it works out this way for us.

Anyway, any input is appreciated!
 
I always use a 7" Odyssey with red peaking when shooting interviews. I want to see the red in subject's eyes. Helps a lot. I don't know how good the color peaking circuits are in Atomos, though as I recall they weren't adjustable. Color peaking can be very useful or can give way too many false positives and different monitors have better or worse implementation. Marshall's are terrible . Odyssey is excellent and you can also punch in on the frame and move around that punched in area , so that's also a good check. If the eyes are red even with a canon 70-200 wide open with speed booster at full telephoto, I know I'm OK. (usually I opt for f2.2 though:)
 
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I'm in the same boat eyesight wise so I'm looking at getting a cheap 7" Feelworld monitor for doing similar work buy with DSLR

I guess the secret is to not shoot wide open but stop down a stop or two and to have the camera to subject and subject to background distances to give the look you want. But that is not always possible.
 
I shoot talking heads mostly with the Contax Zeiss 50mm/1.7 at f2 / 2.0-2.8
Handgrip with magnifier does the trick for me.
 
LennyLevy said:
I always use a 7" Odyssey with red peaking when shooting interviews. I want to see the red in subject's eyes. Helps a lot. I don't know how good the color peaking circuits are in Atomos, though as I recall they weren't adjustable. Color peaking can be very useful or can give way too many false positives and different monitors have better or worse implementation. Marshall's are terrible . Odyssey is excellent and you can also punch in on the frame and move around that punched in area , so that's also a good check. If the eyes are red even with a canon 70-200 wide open with speed booster at full telephoto, I know I'm OK. (usually I opt for f2.2 though:)
Click to expand...

Hey, what peaking settings do you use on your Odyssey? I have the plain ol' 7 and I've been fooled plenty even with this monitor, with red on the eyes even. I tried turning the sensitivity down to see how precise I could get it. Even at 1% (1%!!!!) I was still unsure if I was seeing accurately. I tried that with an EX1 however, not a larger sensor cam.

I feel like I have better luck with the other peaking style (the one that looks kind of like old school CRT).
 
Something else that helps with focus when you're shooting solo interviews is properly considering your depth of field. If you're shooting with an 100mm at T1.4, you need a dedicated focus puller. However, if you shoot on a 50mm at T2.8, your subject can lean forward or backward a little and still be in sharp focus.

Based on a depth of field calculator here, moving from T1.4 at 100mm to T2.8 on a 50mm lens expands your depth of field from .21ft to 1.71ft.
 
Just to add since I do this a lot and have made 'teachable moment' mistakes ;)

I get the subject to put up 2 fingers in front of their eyes. I do it because I've had eyes in perfect focus, but the nose out! and leaning forward put the yes out too!

So I now shoot no wider than 2.8 and I also use generally a 50mm and on top of all that do the finger thing- because I find people are far more likely to lean in, even just slightly, than away which I don't believe I've ever seen.

in 4k, this is a much bigger problem since the last one I messed up, you couldn't really tell in normal HD, but it REALLY stands out in 4k.
 
When I shoot interviews I use a 7" monitor to keep an eye on the entire frame and then use the FS7 VF with 4x magnification on and leave it on the subjects eye/nose area. Shooting at a reasonable F stop helps if you have a subject that moves around a lot. Its good to know what kind of depth you have with each focal length and stop.
 
FrameFarmMedia said:
When I shoot interviews I use a 7" monitor to keep an eye on the entire frame and then use the FS7 VF with 4x magnification on and leave it on the subjects eye/nose area. Shooting at a reasonable F stop helps if you have a subject that moves around a lot. Its good to know what kind of depth you have with each focal length and stop.
Click to expand...

LOVE that idea! I had an external monitor going and this would have worked well for the viewfinder piece.
 
LennyLevy said:
I always use a 7" Odyssey with red peaking when shooting interviews. I want to see the red in subject's eyes. Helps a lot. I don't know how good the color peaking circuits are in Atomos, though as I recall they weren't adjustable. Color peaking can be very useful or can give way too many false positives and different monitors have better or worse implementation. Marshall's are terrible . Odyssey is excellent and you can also punch in on the frame and move around that punched in area , so that's also a good check. If the eyes are red even with a canon 70-200 wide open with speed booster at full telephoto, I know I'm OK. (usually I opt for f2.2 though:)
Click to expand...

Exactly what I do.
And in an OMB interview situation, you need the subject facing R to L so you can man (person ) the camera from the VF side, thereby asking questions while mataining a correct eye line.
When I interview for ABC, I do many of them via speaker phone. Correspondent asking questions from NY, while I shoot the actual interview in Atlanta. When I have to shoot L to R, I have a Wilson tennis ball with a magic marker smile, mounted on a light stand That gives the subject an eye line. But I also use the Odyssey focus function AND...I keep the peaking jacked as high as tolerable for focusing with the EVF. You gotta be vigilant however. I use a follow focus with a right angle lever and sometimes your arm can hit that lever ever so slightly and without you knowing, you are soft.
 
Hard to do OMB interviews . I didn't notice that in my original answer. Ha - I would never dare to shoot wide-open on a 150mm lens in that situation! Fortunately Irarely have to do that. I usually think of myself as OMB when I still have a director but no other support. True OMB director/shooter - yikes that's hard work.
 
I shoot/direct sometimes I always have a sound guy and I have the protagonists alway look at him even as I ask questions the sound guys I usually work with knee how to play along and also throw in questions.
 
allenfacemire said:
When I have to shoot L to R, I have a Wilson tennis ball with a magic marker smile, mounted on a light stand That gives the subject an eye line. But I also use the Odyssey focus function AND...I keep the peaking jacked as high as tolerable for focusing with the EVF.
Click to expand...

Fun idea! I really think for entertainment value on this thread that you should post a picture of your smiling tennis ball! :)
 
allenfacemire said:
Exactly what I do.
And in an OMB interview situation, you need the subject facing R to L so you can man (person ) the camera from the VF side, thereby asking questions while mataining a correct eye line.
When I interview for ABC, I do many of them via speaker phone. Correspondent asking questions from NY, while I shoot the actual interview in Atlanta. When I have to shoot L to R, I have a Wilson tennis ball with a magic marker smile, mounted on a light stand That gives the subject an eye line. But I also use the Odyssey focus function AND...I keep the peaking jacked as high as tolerable for focusing with the EVF. You gotta be vigilant however. I use a follow focus with a right angle lever and sometimes your arm can hit that lever ever so slightly and without you knowing, you are soft.
Click to expand...

This is probably the ONLY time that the horrible positioning of the FS700 screen comes in handy.
Flips around so that you can conduct OMB interviews and still have the monitor facing you so that
you can punch in and check focus, all while sitting on the right side of the camera. This allows you
to have your subject facing L to R and talking to you. I like to alternate which way my interview
subjects face, instead of always having them face one direction.
Heather.jpg
 
I wish someone would invent eye/face detection peaking.
Obviously the technology is there for cameras to do auto focus, but would be handy to have as a function for manual focusing as well!
 
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