People and Places Reel

Hey Stephen,

Just clicked in here for the first time in a while, took a look at your latest, wanted to offer some thoughts.

First off, not clear if you're looking for corp or run & gun doc style work with this. Either way, I think you need some re-thinking, so I'll give you my .02 on both.

My perspective: producer/shooter/editor, specializing in run & gun doc. style work as a shooter, so I'll give you those thoughts first. Great run & gun still has to have the same "wow" factor as your nature stuff, it just needs to feel more organic, less structured or polished (translation – we want the same beauty shots, only with no time to set up at all). Many of the shots here demonstrate you can shoot run & gun style, but none of them has any wow factor, like your nature work. You need to figure out how to bring the two together. I think I'd chose some run & gun environments that interest you, and go out and shoot with the idea of executing quickly and shooting at a very high ratio, embracing the flaws in each shot, and trying to incorporate the same aesthetic that has worked so well for you with your nature stuff.

In terms of corp. shooting, I do much less of it, because it's a real art unto itself, and when I do it, I have to radically shift my style and thinking. It's quite often a marriage of run & gun shooting conditions in uncontrolled environments with the need to light and block so that the end product looks like it was shot on a backlot. Set yourself a goal of making a data center cooling system or an MRI machine look as beautiful as one of your waterfalls, and you'll be there.

As a producer, I hire corp. shooters regularly, and on their reels I look for something very similar to what my client needs shot. To this end, you need some medical, hi-tech, office environment footage that you execute with the same care and passion as your nature stuff. Clients and producers are fairly myopic, as I'm guessing you're encountering, and they won't make the leap from what you do to what they need, and to be fair, it's very different.

For sure, you are an extraordinarily talented shooter, and I'm certain you can excel at both of these styles if you chose. My guess is the biggest hurdle to overcome is your working style. All run & gun shooting is imperfect to some degree – shots have lots of little flaws, water drops on the lens, things that bug the hell out of you. Corp. shooting is quite often the art of making dull things look interesting. Start collecting some footage the same way you've built your nature footage, and you'll be great.

Hope this helps, you're a great source for so many, wanted to give you a little back.
 
i thought you completely achieved the down to earth people shot you set out to do

the clips give a sense that you can handle the corporate environments and the needs for simple portraiture shots and a range of other things as well
 
Thank you for the feedback, especially DrHST...I really appreciate you taking the time to give me some constructive criticism and it's well taken. I agree with your philosophy and it is my attitude towards shooting any genre. What I have in this reel represents the best of my fledgling attempts and as I get better footage, so too will the reel be updated and become more solid.
 
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