help! -- not a DP

K

kookooframe

Well-known member
Any suggestions appreciated! I'm a longtime director helping a student shoot a short. I'll be using a standard def Sony DS-250 which I know well, but have almost always used in auto mode for basic TV local access stuff. Good camera.

For this short, everything is to be shot in a narrow conference room with overhead florescent lights, beige plain walls. No windows. Just a bunch of people around a table, sometimes getting up but not much other action.

It's a no-budget short but the kid has really prepared with actors and crew.

In this situation, my question for the real DPs out there is -- if there is one thing I might do to help improve the chances of getting interesting footage, what would it be?

(Yes, focus, got that. Lens cap off, okay. Get a real DP -- hey, that may happen too...)
 
I'm not much better than an amatuer but here are some ideas you could use:

Use black wrap or any heavy black material to skirt the fluos and get it off the walls that will help the white walls being too prodominant. If it's a heavy drama or thriller like scene, use the fluos to your advantage. Color correct so the image is a little green, try to "dislodge" a fluorescent tube to get a flicker or swiral, this will make the light real grundgy, but make it obvious, subtle will look like a mistake.

Anyway, just ideas...
 
you can't get a different room?
From your description of the room it doesn't sound like an ideal one.

If not it seems like you need a bit of production design, someone to give the space some character and sense of place. Lighting is important to that, but not the only thing.

When you walk into the room is there anything that immediately strikes you visually?

I'd also shoot longer zooms. Since it's mostly people talking around a table you can to a lot of CU and take advantage of the background being slightly out of focus.
 
Thanks everyone for the good suggestions -- keep em coming. My gut instinct is to turn off the florescents and go with tungstens -- it would be a problem hanging them but maybe I can set them on stands and go for a more contrasty atmospheric look. Supposed to be a corporate boardroom. djkarn I like the idea of shooting close with a zoom. Let the faces be the set design. Just have to convince the director now. He's on the fence between a flat "Office" style handheld look, and something more attractive.

We may have time to shoot it both ways -- flat "Office" style with the florescents on, and something that doesn't so much emphasize that it's a low-budget video. I'm also thinking a light application of a smoke machine might give some texture to the air -- has anybody worked with those? Would it be a problem matching shots, say, if some shots don't seem as granular as other shots? Am I getting too ambitious?
 
Can you explain what the mood is. I would study some scenes in the godfather. Gordan wills was very creative in making boring settings more interesting.
 
Comic mood.

I will take a look at Godfather (I remember the cinematography as looking nicely saturated and lush -- interesting to think the settings were not so promising...)

I'm used to directing, so it's a revelation of sorts to see things from the DP's point of view -- I have to resist the temptation to suggest script changes, or put in my two cents on the actors performance. I'll have my hands full just getting the shot he wants, or a fair approximation.
 
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