Guerilla Tricks

Kevin Briggs said:
I wonder how many of those I would need to lift my little Panasoninc pv-gs150 above a shoot.
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it's something less than 1m3 Helium or about 40 average (small) ballons filled with pure Helium at 0m above sea level. (I don't know the big ones you're talking about - I once wanted an RC-zeppelin to be constructed but it would have cost abour 30'000 USD...)
 
Man I could have used some of these tricks for glare last spring! I spent half a day trying to shoot a beer bottle close up and was ready to put a gun in my mouth. Ended up scrapping the shot.

Some nice tips :thumbsup:
 
Cheap/Easy blue screen, tack a blue bed sheed from the ceiling. Make it as flat as possible and light evenly.

Great cheap lights: auto mechanic halogen lights. Pretty cheap at Autozone..etc...

Cheap gun shot poof: powdered sugar in barrel of C02 pellet gun

Need to zoom in on subject during one continuous shot? No prob, move around the subject so the zoom isn't as noticeable

Portable light stand: Broken Halogen lamps (You can find them by the dump all the time); clamp some lights to the pole there which is weighted down at the base.

More to come....
 
trick: the 3m "easy off" adhesive pads help put picture frames where you want them in the shot. Temporarily put pictures anywhere. When i shot a legal professional in a interview setting, i lowered an entire row of diplomas to be in the shot.

tip: book yourself more time than you need to set-up. You'll almost always blow it because you forgot something. Then you have time, and the stress isn't built up on set up time so you can concentrate on directing/shooting. WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN BEFORE THE SHOOT SO YOU WON'T FORGET ANYTHING.

My first tip/realization: when doing interviews, be as far away from your subject and zoom in. Zooming in makes the background out of focus, try to get your subject at least 10ft in front of the BG... Open up your aperture to the smallest number, and use either an ND filter or Shutter Speed setting to lower the amount of light. If they aren't talking into the camera (almost never have them look into the camera) Nod when they talk to you. Engage in their conversation. Get them real. "and.... go" usually works a lot better than "action"

tip: keep shooting to get better.
 
You could follow my link above, but that's one designed for a heavy 35mm rig and must cost a fortune. Or go to Toys R Us and buy a $30 skateboard.

I looked into building something a little more fancy than the skateboard rig but linear bearings are expensive.

-Stu
 
There are tons

Wheelchair--cheap dolly shots
Home depot or chinese laterns for lighting
camera attached to 2x4 and 2 guys on the ends--cheap tracking shot
C-clamps (always handy to have, can clamp lights or things places if you dont have C-stands.)
Hair spray on glasses to reduce glaring on closeups
Also, removing the lenses-
Buying Fog machines on clearance at walmart the day after halloween for 75% off
Imply things instead of showing them- car chase, murder etc (saves money on shooting)

Lots more--Im sure if I had time to rack my brain I could come up with a few hundred easily.
 
blckhawk542 said:
And to keep it steady on a boat...if you dont have a tripod...try resting your right elbow on a flat surface and move your body with the boat....I get alot of steady shots when I do this.
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Get a Tiffen SteadyStick and use your sea legs to counteract the boat movement. One use will justify the $100 you spent for the SteadyStick. It works very well.
 
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