Steadicam, HVX, Low Light

I don't understand the short screenplay...

An anxious woman would not only leave in such a dark place ?? Especially if it is lost... And about the steady I think it's too "on sea". But the lighting is VERY good !!
 
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The Flash said:
I don't understand the short screenplay...

An anxious woman would not only leave in such a dark place ?? Especially if it is lost... And about the steady I think it's too "on sea". But the lighting is VERY good !!
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I don't think so... You can't see the faces / expressions of the 2 actors for most of the scene. The steadicam work is below average in my opinion... seems that the camera is never properly leveled, and is always either looking up or down.
 
NICE. But a PA's sleve gets o nthe screen about half wat through. Love the lighting setup. Simple but effective. A few dings is this, the initial place where they test the door. the light shafts coming in though thr gate, would never be perpindicular like that. it hsoulda been at a 30 degree angel atleast to make it seem like sunlight. OTher than that, the shots looked great.
 
yeah, I don't have any huge problem with the steadicam work. I mean, I forgot about it and got into the scene, so...

But I too would like to know which one you were using.
 
Since about to shot in low light i would appriciate if you could share you camera settings. Settings= all of them:)
 
The settings were loaded from the DP's SD card from other cameras on the set so they would all match. I'd give them to you but I gave their card back and reloaded my own back into the camera. Sorry. Just as well though, I most likely would have done some adjustments if I were setting them up.

Unless you are shooting under HMI lights with a fog machine, your results would be different.

By the way, I went through the other takes and updated the clip with slightly different footage. Some longer continuous Steadicam shots and no sound guy's shirt in the shot.

The Link: http://www.ifoliohd.com/hvx/LastBreath800Kbps.mov
 
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SomewhereinLA said:
I don't think so... You can't see the faces / expressions of the 2 actors for most of the scene. The steadicam work is below average in my opinion... seems that the camera is never properly leveled, and is always either looking up or down.
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There are some instances where the level is off but there is barrel distortion in the vertical lines from the wide end of the HVX lens that adds to this feeling.

There are also times when the camera has to tilt up and down...to follow a tall actor, walking backwards down a steep ramp, and to follow the action.
 
i'm not so interested in your settings as much as your shutter? what was the shutter set at please? the image doesn't look blurry so I am imagining a 1/48 or 1/60 shutter...if we went film shutter I would say 180d or 160d....can you verify please
 
This was shot at 720 24pn with 180d shutter. On the full res shots, there is some motion blur on the last shot of the girl running out of the room but not so much to be distracting.

Shutter and frame rate are important when doing anything with a Steadicam. If there was a lot of fast movement or running with the rig, a faster shutter or even a faster frame rate may be in order depending on the look you want.

I've shot some sports stuff at 60p that looked great. Super sharp.
 
Nice steadicam work... Is that your main gig, or were you just doing it on this? Also, the lighting is good in certain parts, but whoever your DP was, should have really made sure that the end part was lit well.. Dark is ok, but you need to be able to see peoples faces..
 
SomewhereinLA said:
I don't think so... You can't see the faces / expressions of the 2 actors for most of the scene.
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I liked it. Disagree on the lighting - nice and created a great mood (no mean feat on the HVX) - I don't think you need to see every detail (reference Jennifer 8, coal-hole dark for minutes at a time - Multi Oscar nominated DP Conrad Hall - or Se7en - also no slouch in the cinematography department and similarly lets the imagination fill in the details) so two thumbs up here. -

The Steadicam work is below average in my opinion... seems that the camera is never properly leveled, and is always either looking up or down.
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I appreciate the tai chi excellence of a Garrett Brown Trike shot as much as the next guy but "Below Average?" Very Harsh - You must have been enraged during Die Hard with its occasionally off level steadicam (but some of my personal favourite work for tone and shot choice and, yes, the occasional wobble contributed to the feel of the John McTiernan film IMHO). I don't want to start a fight but occasionally on the forum, I think people could be a little more sensitive in delivery of their opinions.

I thought it was some of the only footage I've seen from the HVX which made me curious as to what the film was about. Props again on the lighting from me, I think you're a good DP.

So edit this thing and lets see it. :laugh:
 
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jamestmather said:
I appreciate the tai chi excellence of a Garrett Brown Trike shot as much as the next guy but "Below Average?" Very Harsh :
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Not trying to be harsh here, one of the point of showing your work to a forum is to get constructive criticism. I did explain what I didn't like and why. It is also fairly commun for Steadicam Ops to critise their work and finding out what could have been done better . I am not an Opereator by the way, but I have worked with and hired operators on projects and I do own a flyer which I use on my personal projects as well, so I can recognize what to look for in good operating). Maybe I spend too much time on the steadicamforum...:laugh:
In any case, this certainly is how I like my work to be criticised, I want people that look at my work to let me know what doesn't work rather that concentrating on what does. This is how one progress... Sometime we are too close to our work to see what could have been done better.

I don't want to start a fight but occasionally on the forum, I think people could be a little more considerate in delivery of their opinions.
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Not sure why giving an opinion/criticism should be consider unconsiderate. I am always surprised when people take criticism personally, especially coming from someone that actually didn't even post the original clip... It seems to me that only KevinM has the right to be angry at my comments... This is a discussion we are having here, an exchange of ideas. Nothing personal.
I have been very fortunate to spend the last 15 years having a successful career in the industry, and most of the people that helped me get there, were my fiercest critics. But their critics were always meant to push me to be better and work harder... It is a harsh world out there, but we don't have to be cynical... :beer:

KevinM,
if my criticism felt harsh, I do appologize.:embarasse
 
Fair enough SomewhereinLA - I think you were sincere in your thoughts - In general though I find the anonymity of the net makes people occasionally didactic about things (this is a general thought - not levelled at you at all SomewhereinLA). We're all doing our best and people don't necessarily put their stuff up to get constructive criticism (read: occasionally slapped hard) but because they're enthusiastic- they're proud and want to share it - In my crews, this is the attribute I do my utmost to preserve. The people I seek out and work with love the industry - and movies - and I love that they do. If I have something bad to say (and I occasionally have) I try to sugarcoat it a little. I find that once that enthusiasm is gone, it's very hard to get back.

KevinM,
if my criticism felt harsh, I do appologize.:embarasse
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But that tells me you're a pretty cool guy. :thumbsup:
 
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SomewhereinLA

No, I didn't take your comments as harsh because I saw the same things in the operating that you did. That is why I posted it here rather than the Steadicam forum where I would have been bi**h slapped. I know as a Steadicam op what needs improvement here. I was interested to see what other filmmakers noticed. (with and without Steadicam background).

I'm not the kind of person to make excuses but there were many variables on this set that made for some very challenging Steadicam work. Building and balancing the rig in the dark for example. Then having dynamic balance thrown off by having to add filters at the last minute. (This is what made the difference in the level during camera rotation.) BUT, it is up to me to pull it off in the end.

The fact that this will end up being a tension-filled horror film, some movement will be acceptable where it wouldn't in another type of film. This is not my best Steadicam work and I was disappointed that there wasn't the time to get it perfect. The director said "we got it" and I was done.

I do like constructive criticism and thanks to those as well who came to the defense of the shots. This tells me that the shots will be fine.

By the way, I've worked in advertising for 16 years so I have a very thick skin. - No offense taken.

Thanks again for the input guys.
 
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