Jeff Nitzberg
Active member
Hi DVX peoples! I'm currently 177% funded on my Kickstarter and just wanted to share this while there is still a little time to go.
The project in question is actually for a kid's picture book called Clarence and the Spoon. The video I made for the project is very absurd, features cheap special effects, and pizza! It's also under 3 minutes long so check it out:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1087986687/clarence-and-the-spoon
Also for kicks, the follow up video:
To my surprise, some of the most positive feedback I got was for the Kickstarter video itself! It was made on a very tight budget though I was fortunate to have access to some very nice gear, mainly, a 7d and a c300. Can you tell which shots use which?
A lot of people asked me questions about how I achieved the lighting and effects shots and so I made some behind-the-scenes posts on my blog:
(direct links to the video behind-behind-the-scenes in two parts)
Part 1: Inception, Animatics, Budgeting,
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/blog.html?page=8
Part 2: Lighting, Sound, Special Effects
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/blog.html?page=9
The B.T.S. is nothing groundbreaking, but I think you guys might enjoy it and find it at least a little informative and entertaining!
Here is an excerpt from the B.T.S. on the lighting:
"Throughout the video, I used a pretty tried and true technique called "three point lighting." These handy numbered photos below illustrate what a three point setup for my video looked like:
1. This is a simple, dimmable, LED light. This is the "key" or main light that illuminates the subject.
2. This is a dirt cheap clamp lamp and fill light. It mainly adds a little bit of extra light to fill in shadowy bits that the key light doesn't hit.
3. This is a very small camera-mountable LED light. It's functioning here as a kicker (rim light, back light, etc) and it adds extra highlights to the subject.
4. This big black thing is a "flag." It's just a big piece of foam core that cuts/blocks part of the light out, which creates shadows and gives a more cinematic feel.
5. This is real pizza I put on my keyboard. Do not try this at home.
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/images/blog/master2.png (click to see image)
Again, the numbers below correspond to the photo above:
1. The key light has been dimmed to create a soft fill, illuminating the whole frame but mainly hitting my face from camera right. The light level has been matched to the monitor's light level so that the computer screens are not blown out. The strong top light also creates shadows under the desk, blocking out unnecessary visual clutter.
2. The fill light adds extra light to fill in some of the junk food on my desk and evens out some areas that would otherwise be cast in shadow.
3. The kicker light adds a nice semi-hot (or overexposed) highlight to my shoulder, arm, and left side of my face (camera left). This creates a little more drama and separation from subject and background.
4. The flag blocks light on a diagonal axis, creating a dramatic shadow that also directs the viewer's eye from the monitor to my face.
5. Again, this is real pizza. Do not try this at home.
And finally here is a comparison between what my room looked like before and after the lighting:
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/images/blog/jeff_kick_compare.png (click to see image)
Thanks for taking a look, hope you guys enjoy!
The project in question is actually for a kid's picture book called Clarence and the Spoon. The video I made for the project is very absurd, features cheap special effects, and pizza! It's also under 3 minutes long so check it out:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1087986687/clarence-and-the-spoon
Also for kicks, the follow up video:
To my surprise, some of the most positive feedback I got was for the Kickstarter video itself! It was made on a very tight budget though I was fortunate to have access to some very nice gear, mainly, a 7d and a c300. Can you tell which shots use which?
A lot of people asked me questions about how I achieved the lighting and effects shots and so I made some behind-the-scenes posts on my blog:
(direct links to the video behind-behind-the-scenes in two parts)
Part 1: Inception, Animatics, Budgeting,
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/blog.html?page=8
Part 2: Lighting, Sound, Special Effects
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/blog.html?page=9
The B.T.S. is nothing groundbreaking, but I think you guys might enjoy it and find it at least a little informative and entertaining!
Here is an excerpt from the B.T.S. on the lighting:
"Throughout the video, I used a pretty tried and true technique called "three point lighting." These handy numbered photos below illustrate what a three point setup for my video looked like:
1. This is a simple, dimmable, LED light. This is the "key" or main light that illuminates the subject.
2. This is a dirt cheap clamp lamp and fill light. It mainly adds a little bit of extra light to fill in shadowy bits that the key light doesn't hit.
3. This is a very small camera-mountable LED light. It's functioning here as a kicker (rim light, back light, etc) and it adds extra highlights to the subject.
4. This big black thing is a "flag." It's just a big piece of foam core that cuts/blocks part of the light out, which creates shadows and gives a more cinematic feel.
5. This is real pizza I put on my keyboard. Do not try this at home.
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/images/blog/master2.png (click to see image)
Again, the numbers below correspond to the photo above:
1. The key light has been dimmed to create a soft fill, illuminating the whole frame but mainly hitting my face from camera right. The light level has been matched to the monitor's light level so that the computer screens are not blown out. The strong top light also creates shadows under the desk, blocking out unnecessary visual clutter.
2. The fill light adds extra light to fill in some of the junk food on my desk and evens out some areas that would otherwise be cast in shadow.
3. The kicker light adds a nice semi-hot (or overexposed) highlight to my shoulder, arm, and left side of my face (camera left). This creates a little more drama and separation from subject and background.
4. The flag blocks light on a diagonal axis, creating a dramatic shadow that also directs the viewer's eye from the monitor to my face.
5. Again, this is real pizza. Do not try this at home.
And finally here is a comparison between what my room looked like before and after the lighting:
http://clarenceandthespoon.com/images/blog/jeff_kick_compare.png (click to see image)
Thanks for taking a look, hope you guys enjoy!
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