Some stills from a recent project
- Thread starter Barry_Green
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Barry_Green
Moderator
Zeiss ZF 50mm @ f/1.4. I normally don't like opening it up that much, because it gets quite chroma-aberrational, but it's all about the shallow DOF, dontchaknow...
As for exposure, just the 7D's scale...
As for exposure, just the 7D's scale...
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Barry_Green
Moderator
On the fence in what way? What had you on the fence, or -- on the fence between what and what?
Barry_Green
Moderator
Sorry, post updated - it was the 50mm.
Barry_Green
Moderator
Well, ideally I'd have my BT-LH80W monitor with its waveform monitor on hand, and perhaps my light meter, and a crew.
But this shoot, I was the entire crew. So I lit by eye, it looked good in the camera's LCD, the little -3 to +3 meter didn't complain, so I pressed the "rec" button...
But this shoot, I was the entire crew. So I lit by eye, it looked good in the camera's LCD, the little -3 to +3 meter didn't complain, so I pressed the "rec" button...
Well, ideally I'd have my BT-LH80W monitor with its waveform monitor on hand, and perhaps my light meter, and a crew.
But this shoot, I was the entire crew. So I lit by eye, it looked good in the camera's LCD, the little -3 to +3 meter didn't complain, so I pressed the "rec" button...
So Barry how do you attach your BTLH80?
Images seem a micron hot for my eye, but very beautiful.
dantewaters
Well-known member
Screw that... The colors, contrast, and clarity in those stills do it for me...I did not.I wanted the shallow DOF.
the DOF is just the icing on the cake.
Barry_Green
Moderator
HD Fury II. Takes the HDMI output and converts it to analog component.
Agreed. Didn't have the monitor or any way to judge exposure other than just looking at the LCD, and they did turn out a bit hot. David's grading them for the final product, but these are raw images.
Barry_Green
Moderator
160 ISO, so I could get the 1.4 on the lens.
And lights were tungsten, believe it or not. It's been forever since I've done a primarily tungsten shoot; I normally use a fluo for a key, but I wanted a wider softer key for this so I used a 1K in a 24x24 Chimera. Then a couple of 250 open-faces for kickers (a pro-light and a Britek), and that's it.
Well, I also used the overhead can lights in the kitchen, which added some nice pinpoints throughout. I threw a flooded 250 Britek on the cabinets to bring them up some. And we put a UFO "camping light" in the background on the right-ish side to add a little bit of splash in the wide shot.
For the close-up, it's just the 1K softbox key and a 250w Britek kicker. There's a little being added by the Pro-Light on her left, which was his backlight.
Postmaster
Dark Side of the Camera
I always wanted a "Technicolor" look for some of my films, but never really got it right.
I tried my luck on your 2 shots Barry and they hold´s up to my grading better than I thought (without the codec falling apart). I really wonder, because I had less luck with the 5D.
Heck, actually I got exactly the look I wanted (call it Technicolor or not).
Maybe it´s because most people tend to shoot with available light, instead of lighting properly and saturate the sensors.
Frank
I tried my luck on your 2 shots Barry and they hold´s up to my grading better than I thought (without the codec falling apart). I really wonder, because I had less luck with the 5D.
Heck, actually I got exactly the look I wanted (call it Technicolor or not).
Maybe it´s because most people tend to shoot with available light, instead of lighting properly and saturate the sensors.
Frank
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Ian-T
Veteran
That's exactly what I've always thought. We see too many of these kind of videos all of the time. The thing is a lot of folks like to shoot "in the raw" (meaning without proper lighting) and then wonder why their footage looks like poo-poo. They tend to forget that in order to get a more filmic look they have to light properly. I am so tired of the footage I see coming out of Vimeo... Hardly anyone is attempting to light their footage properly. But I absolutely love it when I see someone who does.....so thanks Barry.
Barry_Green
Moderator
More will be forthcoming. Glad people like what they see!
See this is why I like being a little late to the party - people have already been hanging around for a bit and already know where the snacks and the toilets are.
No seriously, thanks Barry.
Rick Rock
Well-known member
That's interesting to hear that you were using Britek lights, Barry. I've had some DPs scoff at using them, saying they blow bulbs too easily, which I did experience somewhat while gripping a low budget feature. They seemed decent otherwise.
My current light kit is mostly SV photofloods with a SV tungsten 650w I got off of Ebay. I'd really like to get a full tungsten kit and was considering going with Britek to start off since Moles and Arris are out of my price range. Would you recommend them?
My current light kit is mostly SV photofloods with a SV tungsten 650w I got off of Ebay. I'd really like to get a full tungsten kit and was considering going with Britek to start off since Moles and Arris are out of my price range. Would you recommend them?
Barry_Green
Moderator
Well, yeah, both opinions are right; Briteks are cheap, and they are junk-ish. As long as they keep working, I'll keep using mine. But I only bought two of them, and they've held together this long.
There's a certain class of gear which just isn't really all that good, but it's good enough to get stuff going. Like the Zoom H4N. Not a brilliant recorder, but for $299 it does decent and you can get on with whatever else you're doing. The Briteks are in the same category.
But, I also have to say, the Briteks I've got are like five years old, and apparently they were better then. I've heard they went downhill later. But would I rather have you using Briteks than Home Depot worklights? Oh good heavens yes! Even though the Briteks really aren't all that good, they're approximately six hundred thousand times better than some worklight on a flimsy stand with a metal grill in front of it.
Y'know, it really depends on what you're coming from. I've caught all sorts of hell for saying that technically the video quality coming off the DSLRs is awful -- and, sorry, just look at a zone plate, the DSLRs really aren't very good at accurately reproducing what's in front of them. But, you can still do beautiful work with one, whether it's technically accurate or not. And the price tag is irresistible. You can make beautiful images with Britek lights, whether they're rugged or not (and the price tag is pretty cheap.) You can record plenty good enough sound on a Zoom H4N, whether it's a Zaxcom or not, and the price tag is really affordable. Would I use any of those products on a paying job with a budget? Of course not.* Would I use them for personal projects, or recommend them for cash-strapped folks who want to start learning and producing good work? Sure, they're great for that. As long as the only person you have to answer to is yourself, then yes, all that stuff works fine.
The DSLR has the key things you need: 24p, and shallow DOF. The Britek has the key things you need: a little bit of focusability, some barn doors, and the ability to mount on a decent stand. The Zoom has what you need, uncompressed sync'd audio, phantom power, XLR connectors, and you can disable the AGC. If those are the level of tools you can afford, there's no shame in it -- they're all very affordable, they can all deliver good results, and you can do a darn sight better with them, with less of a budget, than we could 10 years ago with what we had available then, at their prices! But, with all that said, none of it is what I'd classify as pro gear, so -- if you're a DP or gaffer and building a lighting kit for rental to others, would I recommend Briteks? Nope. If you were a soundman and wanting to build a kit, would I recommend Azden mics and a Zoom recorder? No way. So it depends on what your budget is and what your goal with the gear is.
Well... the thing is, from what you're coming from, they'd be a big step up. The Briteks I've got are somewhat focusable, and they are stand-mountable, and they have decent barn doors. I had a set of SV stuff, and that's really pretty much bottom of the line (but, nothing wrong with that, everyone has to start somewhere). I think I ended up giving that SV stuff away to John Hudson; he didn't have anything, and hey, something beats anything!
So you're asking a tough question, and actually it's kind of an appropriate thread for it. Can you do beautiful work with the Briteks? Yes, absolutely you can. Are they professional? No, not by a long shot. But as a kit to learn on, and to expand on what you've got, they're okay. As long as you check 'em out and make sure there's no potential wiring failure or anything gonna happen to you, of course. And they're infinitely better than SV floodlights or Lowes worklights. But if you could find used professional gear (Altman, Mole, Arri, whatever) for around the same price, I'd definitely heartily recommend the used pro gear over the Britek (or other comparable inexpensive stuff).
I'd recommend you scour around for some used Mole Richardsons, and if you can't find any of those, you could consider something like the Blu Line or Britek lineup. The Briteks I've got do have some clever design features, such as a case that just doesn't get hot, and nice barn door design. But it's cheaply made and it isn't gonna last for long. Moles will last forever. I've also got some Bardwell & McAlisters, they're mole knockoffs, engineered and made in the USA. They're okay, not as rugged as Mole stuff, and the barn doors don't lock in...
So I guess what we're getting at is: would I recommend them *for what purpose*? To learn on, for personal projects, for someone who doesn't have much of a budget... sure. Why not. If you can't afford better, they're fine. But if you're a professional shooter making a living and a reputation on your ability to deliver, then yeah, I don't think I'd go adding any more Briteks to my kit, nor would I recommend someone else buy them -- unless you just want a bunch of cheap heads so you have a variety.
*and yes, others are most certainly entitled to their own opinion, I'm sure we have folks here who are plenty happy going out on a professional paid job with an SLR, a Velbon tripod, Britek lights and a Zoom sound recorder. More power to them, and I wish them luck, but that is not my cup of tea, I wouldn't do it. You and everyone else, decide what you're comfortable with and go right ahead.
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