Far From Home
- Thread starter dylanpipe
- Start date
I like the drab color scheme. Did you get that in-camera, or in post?
The concept is good, and I like the mood you set. I do think the "SOS" letters were a bit too small to have been seen from the air, even within suspension of disbelief.
Exposure was inconsistent, and a bit hot in places. The last shots of him waking up were too under-lit and under exposed.
Spending so much time shooting so shallow really took away from the big picture. First, it forced you to keep trying to follow your subject, and it seemed that you were having difficulty with that. The constantly-shifting focus was distracting and often failed to land on the right focal point... and though it can be used effectively in extreme close-ups, it doesn't make sense at all for mediums and wides. There also seemed to be very few close-ups that help the viewer connect with the lost hiker. Shallow DOF should be applied conservatively and only when needed.
Second, the constant shallow DOF minimized the expanse of the forest, and this was also challenged by a lack of diversity in camera levels. It seemed most shots were from, essentially, the same camera height, or may be from one of two basic heights. Both seemed to be too high for some shots, looking slightly down when the lens should have been looking across or up.
Last, the constant DOF looked like it forced a higher shutter speed... great for something like "Saving Private Ryan," but too jittery for something like this. ND filtering will allow you to get an open aperture without sacrificing shutter speed.
Also, pans were a bit jerky, especially the opening shot. Not sure what head you're using, but if it's a decent fluid head then there are tricks to making super-smooth pans. Try taking a rubber band, looping it around the panhandle and the other end around your index finger. Pull gently and the pan should start start smoothly. Pull at a consistent speed until you get to the other end of your pan, then gently let the rubber band slack. The pan will come to a smooth stop as the tension releases.
Last, the sound design was quite lacking. The music was repetitive, which got old after a while. It also seemed that much of the source audio was from a non-protected camera mic, making sounds that should have been close seem distant as well as picking up wind rumble. Perhaps grabbing some of the surroundings in stereo with a hand-held recorder, separate from the video, then using FX and Foley to replace all the sounds coming for the movement of the actor would have created a more intriguing soundscape to keep the viewer on the adventure with the film. And the radio newscast at the end... the sound started with radio sounds, and then moved to a clean VO. Treating the VO to sound like it's coming from a small radio would sell the image.
You have a good pace... the technical issues discussed above are easy to fix.
The concept is good, and I like the mood you set. I do think the "SOS" letters were a bit too small to have been seen from the air, even within suspension of disbelief.
Exposure was inconsistent, and a bit hot in places. The last shots of him waking up were too under-lit and under exposed.
Spending so much time shooting so shallow really took away from the big picture. First, it forced you to keep trying to follow your subject, and it seemed that you were having difficulty with that. The constantly-shifting focus was distracting and often failed to land on the right focal point... and though it can be used effectively in extreme close-ups, it doesn't make sense at all for mediums and wides. There also seemed to be very few close-ups that help the viewer connect with the lost hiker. Shallow DOF should be applied conservatively and only when needed.
Second, the constant shallow DOF minimized the expanse of the forest, and this was also challenged by a lack of diversity in camera levels. It seemed most shots were from, essentially, the same camera height, or may be from one of two basic heights. Both seemed to be too high for some shots, looking slightly down when the lens should have been looking across or up.
Last, the constant DOF looked like it forced a higher shutter speed... great for something like "Saving Private Ryan," but too jittery for something like this. ND filtering will allow you to get an open aperture without sacrificing shutter speed.
Also, pans were a bit jerky, especially the opening shot. Not sure what head you're using, but if it's a decent fluid head then there are tricks to making super-smooth pans. Try taking a rubber band, looping it around the panhandle and the other end around your index finger. Pull gently and the pan should start start smoothly. Pull at a consistent speed until you get to the other end of your pan, then gently let the rubber band slack. The pan will come to a smooth stop as the tension releases.
Last, the sound design was quite lacking. The music was repetitive, which got old after a while. It also seemed that much of the source audio was from a non-protected camera mic, making sounds that should have been close seem distant as well as picking up wind rumble. Perhaps grabbing some of the surroundings in stereo with a hand-held recorder, separate from the video, then using FX and Foley to replace all the sounds coming for the movement of the actor would have created a more intriguing soundscape to keep the viewer on the adventure with the film. And the radio newscast at the end... the sound started with radio sounds, and then moved to a clean VO. Treating the VO to sound like it's coming from a small radio would sell the image.
You have a good pace... the technical issues discussed above are easy to fix.
Thanks man!
The colors were mainly achieved in camera with a bit of playing around in color correction. I agree with you that the waking up shots were way to dark, it was hard to get my room lit up properly, but I shoulda planned ahead better.
I should have got some more shots showing how desolate it was and I agree with you that everything was very close and I should have changed up my shots for sure.
thanks a bunch for the comments I will definitely change some things up for my next video.
The colors were mainly achieved in camera with a bit of playing around in color correction. I agree with you that the waking up shots were way to dark, it was hard to get my room lit up properly, but I shoulda planned ahead better.
I should have got some more shots showing how desolate it was and I agree with you that everything was very close and I should have changed up my shots for sure.
thanks a bunch for the comments I will definitely change some things up for my next video.
Good for you!
The more you can do in-camera, the less you have to torture your footage later. That's a great way to go.
Thank you for sharing this. I can't believe you got so many wide shots with the 50mm. It's cropped at 1.6, so it comes out to around 75mm on our APS-C sensor. Great job on that. I really dig the "cinematic" look. For the color settings, did you use Magic Lantern and manually set the white balance? When I shoot flat, I notice that I can bring more detail out in post, but I always lose a bit of the image-quality. Of course, I am still new. Great job on achieving the look you're setting using the you're own presets.
@Alex,
Thank you so much on your critique. So many times, it's easy to take for granted that there are others who have the same interest, but with so much more experience. I always enjoy reading through your comments and learning.
@Alex,
Thank you so much on your critique. So many times, it's easy to take for granted that there are others who have the same interest, but with so much more experience. I always enjoy reading through your comments and learning.