need real DP help tonight

B

BennyMonday

Active member
I'm a director and my cinematographer has bailed on a shoot tomorrow morning. I have no choice and must shoot it myself and need all the advise real DP's can offer.
Here's the situation:
This is for a music video (a favor, thus free). Final use will be web based, vimeo or direct streaming from my website.
Shooting inside a dance studio 40x40 room, flour lighting (5 units, 20 ft in the air), one wall is mirrored other walls are off white. I am filming one dancer doing a routine.
Shooting in HD with a Sony FX-1. Planning on shooting at 24p. I have and can use a Tiffen Black Pro Mist #1 filter. Also have Flour canceling filter, polarized filter.
The only lighting available is a double headed work light and several clip on lights with 100w Incand bulbs.

I really hate to do this but the location will not be available for a long time and the shoot is 12 hrs away. I'd like to provide the best I can for these kids and am in a real whole at the very last minute.

Any McGuyver suggestions experienced DP's have is greatly appreciated.


Ben
 
Here's what I'd do, and it might not make sense at all. I'm not a DP but I tried to do what I could to help.

Use one hard light into the corner of two white walls at an angle to create a shadow and give the corner of the room some definition. Use that as the background.

Position the dancer 15 feet into the middle of the room. Go far enough back so that you can shoot at a 75mm on 80mm equivalent and frame the dancer's whole body up.

More on lighting: If you can, position lights above and behind the dancer on both sides, pointing down. This will outline the shape. Use whatever lights you have left to point to the front of the dancer for fill light. The important thing is the shape of the body, not necessarily the face. If you punch in for closeups, relight by bringing the ceiling lights farther back (more as back lights) and bring the fill lights closer to become the key.
 
Last edited:
Clarification. You're shooting so that the corner of the room is far away and has clear shadows at the corner, and is on the right or left side of the frame, opposite the dancer.

You can position the camera a little below eye line to give him/her a more powerful dramatic look.
 
Sorry for the late response. It went pretty well ... I bounced the large shop lights off the far wall and shut off the Flours in the ceiling. It was plenty of light, a nice softer effect from the Black Mist filter. I took a few shots of all lights off except for two domed clip ons directly on the dancer ... very cool look on a dark bg. Once the rest of the video is shot we'll see how it all fits together.
I would up shooting over 25 mins of footage so I'll have plenty to pick from.
Thanks for the last minute tips!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top