Event at Night Help

tashbee

tashbee

Active member
i did a search for this and went nine pages into the event forum but this is my problem

i have a photography friend doing an event that needed an extra videographer, it will be a night time art show type thing around different places with different lighting for each exhibit. i will be going ahead of time to the locations and checking them out at night, and will show up to the event early to see if any extra lighting will be set up.

i will be using a dvx100b and i need help with how should i shoot?
i will not be the editor and the only "rule" ive really been given is whitebalance tungsten (probably so all the cameras match roughly) i dont agree with the rule but im also not going to change what they are paying me to do unless it looks terrible at the time. they have also explained where each of the exhibits i have to shoot are and what type of shots that would like to see and to just shoot double to triple of what i think would be enough

so if its dark im guessing 60i with a low shutter and never over 6 gain to get the best lighting without grain in the picture (this will only be a webvideo for the event website) and i was practicing yesterday outside at night and what would 60i with shutter off be like? it gets the best light but how does that work with shutter off?

if the lighting is decent i would go 30p 1/60 shutter just because i like that look far more then 60i and the editors would not have a problem with editing the footage since it acts like 60i anyways

i also have a on camera light ordered which i placed about 3 weeks ago that COULD arrive before this weekend, i did not find out about this job till last night but if this light does arrive i think all of my issues would be solved but incase it doesnt im coming to ask the experts heer on dvxuser :)


Thanks for any and all of your help
i have till this saturday to get things all planned out
 
Being an art show at night my bet is that the lighting is going to be minimal, so an on camera light is a good bet.

Your photographer friend probably knows that they are going to be using tungsten lights so that's why he's recommending that you use that white balance as a starting point. Keep that in mind and perform a manual white balance on location to get it spot on. If they are going to be using tungsten, then it's a good idea to make sure that your on camera light is also tungsten balanced.

My advice is to stick to 60i just to deliver the same "type" of footage as everyone else. Raise the gain up enough to get a good exposure without too much noise. When the footage will be resized for the web, most of the noise will disappear, but if the shot is underexposed, it'll be useless to the editor. Keep your shots as steady as you can (use a tripod) and deliver what they need first, then if you have time, get some extra "creative" shots so the editor has more to choose from.

By the way, is the event part of Nuit Blanche in Toronto?
 
why yes it is :)
i figured they would be using tungsten light but myself i always manual balance everything so i just didnt understand the make it tungsten like preset.
do you think it matters if i use a scene file setting, or would they want it zero'd out for matching purposes?
im just hoping the on camera light comes in for the weekend otherwise, i can probably borrow one from a friend
im sure more information will be given once im at the event on how they would like the footage but i would just like as much information going into it as possible

Thanks for your reply and any other tips are helpful
 
I'm guessing that if they plan on using multiple cameras and want to cut between them then they probably want to make sure that all footage comes in the "same" with the logic being that if everything is set to tungsten, then it'll be easier to color correct each piece of tape in one pass rather than doing it on each individual clip.

Unfortunately there are too many variables even across similar cameras to make this work and the editor will still need to color correct to match multiple cameras. For example, you still need to change your iris/aperture to get a good exposure for each shot and that has an effect on color anyway, so it won't match. Also, it'll be very hard to make drastic color corrections on DV/HDV/etc., especially shot in the night, without seriously messing up the footage. It's far better to just try to get it right on location.

I think for night, try the scene file that gives you a more flat image so you maximize your dynamic range. More contrast can always be added in post.

You are very right in trying to get as much information as possible, I'd be doing the same thing. Try to find as much as possible BEFORE the event, because on location might be too late. For example, do they want you to do interviews?

Ask about expectations as well. That will give you a good indication of how much you need to invest in the event.

Anyway, I'm thinking of heading downtown on Saturday as well to possibly take some long exposure photos. Not sure yet. :)
 
well they have said that in the past some of the video has been crappy they have recieved, as far as i know right now i believe i will just be shooting the art and events happening with lots of different angles and lots of footage some of the events im covering are pretty cool looking like one is a hallway basically lined with pages from books and i want to borrow my friends stedicam and get a shot of walking through it just to stand out and be different from other shots

Thanks for your responses they come much appreciated

and i actually found out that shutter off is a speed of 1/50th but how would that look with 60i if anyone knows
 
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