GH1 for shoot Pacific Ocean shoot

R

RandyQ

Well-known member
I am preparing to do a shoot on a tuna boat in the Pacific next year, and I'm planning to do it with a GH1 because of its small size (and great quality for its price). I will be using some sort of shoulder stabilizer, or even a merlin-type copy, but otherwise handheld.

My question is whether the movements of the boat (and footage of ocean in the background) will be too much for the GH1 to handle (meaning too much mud/jello). Or whether I can still make it work if I shoot in 720P/60. I am totally aware that the GH1 might be the wrong cam to bring on this shoot, so any opinions are welcome.

My final output will not be in 720P, but rather in DV widescreen.
 
I was gonna say, ask StephenMick...

But one thing to consider is the 'blue shift" bug. Until they fix that, I'd recommend any major blue-sky footage to be shot using the "standard" scene file setting.

And for your purposes, I'd probably suggest 720/60p mode.
 
Did someone say my name? :D

I'd echo what Barry said above…

- Shoot 720/60p
- Shoot in Standard Scene File/Mode
- Nut Up and Take Two GH1s, Just In Case

With a shoulder-mount (a la Zacuto Tactical Shooter or similar), I doubt you'll have problems with jello, except for possibly at the longest focal lengths on the kit lens. Stay wide as much as you can, and get closer when you need to rather than using the zoom. If the seas are relatively calm, and you want shallower DOF, that's when you can try zooming in.

I'd also recommend looking into a secondary lens, something much faster, like the 20mm f1.7 "pancake" lens, or even an older Nikon manual focus lens with one of the adapters for Micro Four-Thirds. The kit lens is nice, but it is very slow. Chances are, you'll be in situations where you'll be shooting at night, or in low-light conditions on the boat. A good, fast prime will be your friend.
 
stephenmick said:
Did someone say my name? :D

I'd echo what Barry said above…

- Shoot 720/60p
- Shoot in Standard Scene File/Mode
- Nut Up and Take Two GH1s, Just In Case
Click to expand...

StephenMick,
Nice to hear your input on this. Actually it was your shoot on that fishing boat that convinced me the GH1 was up to the task, so big thanks to your "pioneering" work!

I will probably stay wide the entire time - I've done this shoot before, and I had to shoot one-handed most of the time, with the other hand holding on to something. A tuna boat is NOT stable, and especially not in the middle of the Pacific Ocean we're talking about (this is the Marshall islands).

You are correct about low light - which is why I think the Panny f1.7 pancake lens will be mandatory. But a bigger problem is getting a fast wide lens for shooting inside the wheelhouse at night. For this I will probably get an Olympus 12-60 f2/8.

However, I suspect lowlight is NOT as critical as I think, because I can also just put some clip-on lights on the boat to raise the light levels, as well as to provide some modeling (yes, there is power on the boat). Might even make the overall quality better, I think.

For B-Roll, I am planning to rig some sort of Flip cam thingy. I can put this on a rod and have it hanging outside the boat. Quality might not be the greatest, but I can get angles that would otherwise be impossible.

rgds/ RandyQ
 
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