Walter_Graff
Carbonite Member
Request for Ideas!
Many people ask me what a good book or a good video is for learning the intricacies of video production. While there are some good sources out there, I don’t feel any one source gives enough information for one to really understand the intricacies of lighting and production technique. Books are nice but they don’t give how-to instruction as much as general thoughts and what ends up being last years methods. And I have yet to see a video that goes in depth enough on any particular topic. I was going to undertake a lighting video series myself a while back, but to include what I think is necessary would take me weeks to shoot and would end up being a volume of 50 DVDs. So I came up with an idea that is receiving rave reviews from the people I discuss it with; a series of short vignettes about specific topics and areas of interests. It's easier for me to make a 15-20 minute vignette concentrating on a specific production technique than trying to produce a all-around video that covers the bases effectively.
Ideas such as:
shooting at night (specific videos for specific locals and moods)
Filters (what they do and how to use them effectively)
Two-person interview set-up lighting
Three point lighting
Everything I consider in creating backlighting
Camera angles and frames and how 2 make more professional shots
Lighting a band in a club
Shooting outdoors on sunny days
Creating in-camera special effects
Everything you need to get great depth of field
Handheld shooting and lighting in less than perfect environments
Lighting people in hallways and walking
Microphone placement and considerations
Dramatic scenarios
Lighting women for glamour
How to do something real cheap but make it look real good (one-hundred scenarios there)
What is a video picture and how can I understand what I am seeing better
Color, how to use it properly, what to avoid, and how to express emotions with it
etc
So I am beginning production on this long-term series called “Walter Graff Vignettes”. In this series of short demonstrations, I will pick a very specific topic and walk you through all of what I do and think in creating the award winning looks that I create on TV every day. It’s like a reality production show where you are inside my mind as I work through the scenario or problem. So for instance, in my first tape which we shot last week, a camera follows me into the room I am given to do an interview in. It walks with me while I discuss what it is I consider and how I set up the scenario for a three point lighting set-up. Clear diagrams and shots of comparisons of different considerations I make and the final look are all offered in the disk. In the end I create a short but concise DVD that I believe will teach you more about technique than all the books and videos out there today. Best of all each vignette covers something specific so you get only what you want, and don’t have to waste money on something you are not interested in. I keep it exciting, interesting, and entertaining. If you’ve ever attended a lecture of mine, you’ll know what I mean. The first video turned out better than I thought it would. It’s just being finished now. I’m thinking of a price point of $9.95 per disk, which you receive in the mail. On the site I will have clips from the videos compiled so you can sample before you buy.
I’d like a few suggestions from the group as to what you think I should make a vignette on. Camera, technique, lighting, filters, shooting in various scenarios, etc. Anything you can think of that you would like to see in such a series would be welcome as dumb as you think it might be, perhaps it is not. If I pick your idea, I will send you a free disk on that topic when it is released. Send your ideas to
dvdideas@bluesky-web.com
Many people ask me what a good book or a good video is for learning the intricacies of video production. While there are some good sources out there, I don’t feel any one source gives enough information for one to really understand the intricacies of lighting and production technique. Books are nice but they don’t give how-to instruction as much as general thoughts and what ends up being last years methods. And I have yet to see a video that goes in depth enough on any particular topic. I was going to undertake a lighting video series myself a while back, but to include what I think is necessary would take me weeks to shoot and would end up being a volume of 50 DVDs. So I came up with an idea that is receiving rave reviews from the people I discuss it with; a series of short vignettes about specific topics and areas of interests. It's easier for me to make a 15-20 minute vignette concentrating on a specific production technique than trying to produce a all-around video that covers the bases effectively.
Ideas such as:
shooting at night (specific videos for specific locals and moods)
Filters (what they do and how to use them effectively)
Two-person interview set-up lighting
Three point lighting
Everything I consider in creating backlighting
Camera angles and frames and how 2 make more professional shots
Lighting a band in a club
Shooting outdoors on sunny days
Creating in-camera special effects
Everything you need to get great depth of field
Handheld shooting and lighting in less than perfect environments
Lighting people in hallways and walking
Microphone placement and considerations
Dramatic scenarios
Lighting women for glamour
How to do something real cheap but make it look real good (one-hundred scenarios there)
What is a video picture and how can I understand what I am seeing better
Color, how to use it properly, what to avoid, and how to express emotions with it
etc
So I am beginning production on this long-term series called “Walter Graff Vignettes”. In this series of short demonstrations, I will pick a very specific topic and walk you through all of what I do and think in creating the award winning looks that I create on TV every day. It’s like a reality production show where you are inside my mind as I work through the scenario or problem. So for instance, in my first tape which we shot last week, a camera follows me into the room I am given to do an interview in. It walks with me while I discuss what it is I consider and how I set up the scenario for a three point lighting set-up. Clear diagrams and shots of comparisons of different considerations I make and the final look are all offered in the disk. In the end I create a short but concise DVD that I believe will teach you more about technique than all the books and videos out there today. Best of all each vignette covers something specific so you get only what you want, and don’t have to waste money on something you are not interested in. I keep it exciting, interesting, and entertaining. If you’ve ever attended a lecture of mine, you’ll know what I mean. The first video turned out better than I thought it would. It’s just being finished now. I’m thinking of a price point of $9.95 per disk, which you receive in the mail. On the site I will have clips from the videos compiled so you can sample before you buy.
I’d like a few suggestions from the group as to what you think I should make a vignette on. Camera, technique, lighting, filters, shooting in various scenarios, etc. Anything you can think of that you would like to see in such a series would be welcome as dumb as you think it might be, perhaps it is not. If I pick your idea, I will send you a free disk on that topic when it is released. Send your ideas to
dvdideas@bluesky-web.com
