Several crucial tasks of this course involved developing pieces of practical work in regards to film production. By the time that the course came to an end, I had developed four large pieces, as well as four additional films that were purely designed to advance my practical skills.
The course commenced with researching into the studies of camera and lighting features. This included multiple subjects, such as ISO, aperture, shutter speed and frame rate. Despite providing substantial amounts of detail for the explanations of such features, it took me quite some time to effectively make use of them. As I was constantly forgetting how to control each, I decided to write down the locations of them in terms of the camera. However, due to receiving different camera models each time that I was required to film, my writings did not help as much as I would have liked. Eventually, I had gained an adequate understanding of controlling the features, and so I was able to complete a total of seven experiments. My first was to present the effect of a focus pull, which had a successful result. The five that followed all revolved around testing certain ISO levels within particular environments. Four of these experiments specifically requested of me, and so although all but one appeared unsatisfying to the eye, they were all considered a success due to only following instructions. The final one, however, involved creating my own test, which turned out to be boring and ugly. My final experiment was to exhibit the effects of shutter speed on movement. Although this took a significant amount of time to complete, the product of a water fountain spraying liquid at different speeds was worth how long I spent gathering my footage.
In addition to experiments that I filmed personally in my own time, I also researched and witnessed others test three different lighting techniques known as Rembrandt, butterfly and split lighting. This helped me to increase my knowledge of professional film lighting by learning how to create certain effects, and when said effects should be used.
A major assignment of this course was to write an essay about a certain type of new wave cinema. Choosing to focus on the British genre, I spend many hours researching the history, filming techniques, and installments of the subject. Once the essay had been completed, I used the knowledge that I had gained to create my own new wave film following the styles of the three 1960s motion pictures that I had discussed in my written work. After planning to film my father working around some of the rural areas outside of my hometown, I ensured that my camera battery was fully charged, as I would not be able to provide it with more power when outside. Due to most British new wave films having been produced with very little equipment, and since cameras were often held by hand, or fixed onto cheap support stands, I was able to complete my film using nothing but a simple video camera and tripod. Additionally, most films of the era that I was trying to recreate were not lit by professional equipment, but merely by the cameras themselves and the daytime. Therefore, I took advantage of this by not using any external lighting sources to help produce the film, as the daylight provided enough brightness for the visuals to be seen efficiently, as well as relate to the style of filmmaking at hand. Unfortunately, there were a few shots that featured some sky, meaning that the very top of the frame was slightly overexposed, which was not, despite the cheap budgets and rushed filming, in keeping with British new wave cinema. In order to improve upon this flaw, I would either ensure that no sky was filmed, or alter the lighting features built into the camera.
As I was planning my British new wave film, I was required to record footage to be used in four short films. For a certain day in each of four weeks, in order to improve my practical skills, I was provided four hours to film enough footage which would then be edited throughout the rest of the week, to produce a finished product. For my first challenge, I filmed the college in a mysterious and haunting manner by not including any people, to give off the appearance of all previous occupants having suddenly vanished. Since this task was mainly performed to give me footage to edit so that I could familiarise myself with editing using Adobe Premiere Pro, I only learnt very basic practical skills from it. As an improvement, however, I would try to again record the shots captured outside, as they appear somewhat overexposed. To prevent this problem, this most reasonable option would be to set the camera so that the daylight does not appear too powerful, causing the colour to look slightly blanched.
The second challenge involved me spending a few seconds filming four other students located in certain positions within one room. Each time that I stopped filming, the others would move to different locations or alter their poses for me to record. The camera would remain in the exact same position so that only the people within the film would represent change. Overall, it would not be unreasonable to say that I did not learn anything new from this experience, as the main challenge was encountered during the editing of one-hundred and fifteen clips. Nevertheless, in terms of improvement, I would use external lighting to keep the tone consistent throughout the film, since it does alter very slightly as the film progresses.
Unfortunately, I learnt nothing from the third challenge, as I was not at all involved in the production of it. Therefore, once again, the main lessons arose from the editing section.
For the fourth and final film challenge, it was not even possible for me to learn anything practical, as my film had to consist of nothing but found footage. Regardless, this proved to be a blessing, as once I had finished the editing stage after many hours, the film turned out to be by far my favourite of all four.
Later into the year, I was tasked with creating a music video for a song that did not already have one. To somewhat simplify this task, I chose a song that consisted of many lyrics that I could mirror using materials. This, however, enlarged my challenged, rather than shrink it, as I came to the conclusion that I wanted to record this through stop motion animation: a technique that I had always adored, but never once used before. Due to this, the video took many weeks to produce, and although I eventually finished the filming and editing, it was not before the deadline. Thankfully, this did not matter, as what I had completed before proved my understanding of music video production. Unfortunately, due to not having a professional setup to film the video, certain aspects of production are rather deficient and unsatisfactory. For example, the lighting is not at all consistent throughout the video, as although the window blinds were closed constantly, the outside environment still managed to affect the saturation and colour scheme.In terms of camera positioning, what with creating a stop motion video, the device had to be kept in the exact same position for the whole of production. This requirement revealed itself to be slightly more difficult than I initially imagined. The camera had to be removed multiple times from the tripod in order for it to be charged. Usually, charging would occur between each new segment of the video, meaning that whenever the visuals changed to present something completely different, the background and main set piece of the mountain would unintentionally move position slightly, breaking contingency and visual flow. In order to improve upon my video, I would most certainly implement a professional lighting setup, and stick the tripod legs to floor, so that the general appearance stays consistent throughout, and a strong level of contingency is present. I would also hope to have a backdrop that is large enough to cover up the background room.
For my final practical commission, I was going to tasked with producing a promotional video for a real business client. However, due to the outbreak of COVID-19, causing many companies to close temporarily, this task could not be assigned, and so the unit was thankfully changed. Instead, I was required to plan for the production of a promotional video that would advertise a fake application known as DNA - the purpose of which was to enable users to access their family trees, and share information with their distant family members. I created many different pieces of work to help plan for such a video, including a mood board, storyboard, Gantt chart, voice actor script, finding of a music piece, and video release agreement. In addition, I also spent many hours researching everything highly specific that I would need to create the video that I had in mind. This entailed finding websites to hire and/or purchase such equipment and people from, as well as producing tables detailing how much everything would cost in total. Such equipment and people included camera and lighting equipment, a filming studio, catering, actors, hair and makeup artists, equipment technicians, property masters, a voice actor, an editor, a recording studio, and many different clothing props, resulting in an ultimate cost of £24370. Overall, although this did not provide me with real experience of communication between myself and a client, it did help me understand the true importance of planning and budgeting in regards to filmmaking. In my opinion, the area in which I did not improve was that of health and safety, since I did not include any of it in my planning. Therefore, including such information, as well as writing about how I ensured that all cast and crew members followed it, is most definitely the main improvement.
Showing posts with label Practical Skills. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Practical Skills. Show all posts
Saturday, May 30, 2020
Monday, April 13, 2020
DNA Application Promotional Video Planning
Upon meeting my client, full detail of DNA's purpose was provided, as well as the extent to which it could be utilised. I was given evidence based on tests suggesting that the application would allow collaboration across the world in a shared, global family tree network, enabling relatives to share information with each other. This would ultimately allow users to more easily associate with their current family members, learn about deceased ancestors that existed centuries ago, and appreciate their heritage much more than before. I was also provided with the message that the client wanted me to implement into the advertisement, which was the concept of family. Specifically, it was most important that I make the audience realise the true beauty and significance of the forming and maintenance of bonds between current family members, as well as of the momentous experience of learning about the lives of past relatives. After discussing the application's purpose and message to the world, the client clearly explained the type of audience that my promotion should aim to appeal towards. Consisting of explorers and seekers of their family history, generally between the ages of twenty and eighty, the audience would be the most important aspect of the service. In terms of brand perception, the client obviously requested that the title of the application be present at some point in the video, in addition to the company name and logo being clearly visible at the end of the advertisement. Additionally, the promotion must plainly state that the application is completely free to use, thereby including the downloading, creating of accounts, and receiving of results. Furthermore, although not entirely necessary, it was suggested that I try to include within the visuals a certain shade of crimson that the company is hoping to make people associate with the application, as it is the main colour of the logo, and is used all throughout the program itself.
Due to being told of the application's high potential of enabling users to learn about past relatives that existed many centuries ago, I wanted my advertisement to capture the visual distinctions of previous time periods, along with the fascination that comes from discovering that one's ancestors can be traced back to such periods. Overall, I knew from the beginning that one of the most appropriate ways of promoting this feature was for my advertisement to feature realistic depictions of individuals from certain eras. Such eras would be portrayed through the clothing, makeup, and possessions of each character. This meant that the advertisement would consist of actors using their appearance to represent one of multiple time periods that had yet to be chosen. I performed basic research on the majority of previous eras set after a certain period that Fruit Bowl Tech told me was too unlikely to trace family trees back to. Afterwards, I narrowed the amount that I would include in my advertisement down to ten, based on general appearance. Once I had a general concept in mind, I produced a basic mood board consisting of online images, to help visualise the characters.
The types of individuals that I had chosen were Ancient Greek, Roman Soldier, Viking Warrior, Renaissance Lady, Tudor Nobleman, Georgian Lady, Victorian Lady, British World War I Soldier, British World War II Soldier, and Modern Man. Satisfied with the idea, I began work on the official planning by creating a storyboard to determine the exact content of the advertisement.
The advertisement would begin by fully presenting the first character: a male civilian from Ancient Greece, dressed in a white chiton (form of tunic) worn underneath a red himation (form of wrap), complete with a pair of leather sandals. Appearing from afar at first, the camera will quickly zoom in, keeping the character in the centre of the frame. Once the camera is at least two meters away from the character, it will begin to move horizontally left around the figure, whilst simultaneously moving upwards in a gentle manner, so that the whole attire is shown in full detail. This will last for seven seconds, before the camera reaches the character's face, neck and shoulders. Their eyes, which will be looking at the camera lens since the beginning of the advertisement, are the main focal point at this time, due to being centered in the frame. After three seconds, the camera will turn completely around to the right, in order to reveal the second character, who will be stood the same distance away as the Ancient Greek originally was.
Stood in place as the new figure, he will be donned in Roman Solider uniform, consisting of a galea (form of helmet), chest armour made of metal strips worn above a red tunic, and caligae (heavy-soled, hobnailed, military sandal boots). He will be wielding a gladius (sword) in his right hand, and a scutum (shield) in his left. The camera shall move in the exact same manner, before turning around to reveal the third character.
As a Viking Warrior, the new individual shall be wearing a brown sort of coat made from faux fur (to represent a real animal pelt), topped with a tunic made of linen, above a pair of woollen trousers and leather boots. The character will also be featured sporting a spangenhelm (form of helmet), and shall be holding a bearded axe in his right hand, as well as a round shield in his left. Once the camera has finished presenting in the same fashion as before, it will turn to exhibit the following historical individual.
In order to capture the likeness of a female civilian from Europe during the period of the Renaissance, the fourth character appears in a chemise (long, white garment resembling a nightdress), underneath a leather corset, mostly covered by a full-length, orange gown. Upon her head sits a conical hennin (form of headdress). The camera will perform its movement, and finish by centering the next character of the advertisement.
For the appearance of a Tudor Nobleman, the next individual will be dressed in a doublet (tight-fitting jacket), topped by a jerkin (short jacket) that is slashed to show rich lining underneath. Worn above this is a gown edged in fake ermine (winter fur of stoats), whilst a ruff is sported around the neck. His legs will be fitted with breeches (trouser-like garments), placed above white hose (form of stockings), accompanied by squared-toed, leather shoes. The top of the head will be covered by a bonnet (round, wide-brimmed cap). To complete the look, the character will be using his right hand to wield a rapier (form of sword). The next individual will be presented through the same use of camerawork.
Following on, the sixth figure - a Georgian Lady - shall be fitted with a chemise, underneath a farthingale (hooped petticoat around the hips) worn to greatly extend and shape the woman's skirts placed over. Atop this will be a dark blue kirtle (underskirt), suited below a somewhat lighter shade of blue overgown, which will be fashioned to allow a front piece of the kirtle to show through in a 'v' shape. Although the skirts will completely cover the figure's legs and feet, she will also wear high-heeled shoes to increase height. Lastly, her hair will be tied back into a loose-fitting bun. Once again, the camera will circle the character to display her thoroughly, before turning to reveal the following figure.
Succeeding the previous individual, the next dresses as a Victorian Lady. Therefore, she will be wearing a chemise, topped with a corset, three ordinary petticoats, and a crinoline (structured petticoat stuck out at the back to create a bustle shape). Above all this, she will sport a red undergown that trails on the floor behind, as well as a chequered overgown that is draped over the front and back of the lady, and ruched up at the sides. Despite her shoes not being seen due to the length of the dress, she will wear high-heeled, leather boots to appear taller. Her hair will be curled, whilst being held high at the back of the head, and pushed over her left shoulder. Atop her head sits a small postilion hat, made with a high crown and narrow brim, decorated with a red band and black feathers. After she has been presented in full detail, the camera will move as it always has done to show the very next individual.
To represent a British World War I Soldier, the following character will be donned in a thick, woolen, khaki uniform consisting of a tunic and a pair of trousers. Many pockets will be sown onto the tunic in specific places, as will a set of brass buttons. Puttees (form of wraps for legs) will be worn around the ankles and calves, above ammunition boots with hobnails attached to the soles. A Mark I Brodie helmet must be placed on his head, and fastened securely using the strap that comes out from either side of the helmet, before being stretched around the chin. He will also wear a webbing for carrying kit around his front, back and shoulders. To finish the look, the character will be using both hands to wield a replica of a WWI rifle with a bayonet fitted on the end of the muzzle. As usual, the camera shall record the soldier, before unveiling the individual that follows.
Being clothed in battledress (form of military uniform adopted by the British Army), the adjacent figure matches the appearance of a British World War II Soldier. The man will sport a short blouse with two pockets, as well as a pair of trousers that features a cargo pocket on the left leg, and is enclosed by webbing anklets. He will also wear a pair of black ammunition boots, along with a webbing for carrying kit around his front, back and shoulders. His head shall be covered by a Mark II Brodie helmet fitted with a chinstrap, and coated with a helmet cover (camouflaged netting). Most of the face will be hidden by a gas mask, and he will will use both hand to hold a replica of a Lee-Enfield rifle. Despite the mask, the camera can still present the character's eyes through the lenses, until it turns to display the next figure.
Ending the line of characters, the tenth and final individual will represent a Modern Man by being dressed in a simple, grey hoodie with white drawstrings, combined with blue jeans and white trainers. This modern look will help the majority of target audience viewers to relate to early on in their DNA journey. When the camera has circled the man, and is facing his eyes, instead of turning to the right, it will slowly back away, keeping the character in the centre of the frame. A male voice can be heard calmly saying 'Discover your past. Navigate your present. Achieve your future.'. The visuals will then fade to reveal the application's name and logo, as well as the web address and company phone number, over a background coloured with the shade of crimson used by the service. At this point, the same voice will say 'For free, join and use DNA today. Thank you.', before the advertisement ends. It is important to remember that from the moment that each character appears onscreen, they will not move, remaining frozen in place as if they are statues. Additionally, for the whole runtime, the background used behind and all around the characters will be the same crimson shade that the company hopes people will associate the service with.
For the organised scheduling of tasks, I created a Gantt chart to plan the dates that each duty should be completed by.
A script was required to give to the voice actor that would later be hired, and so I took the time to produce one.
Since the advertisement is to contain no diegetic sound, music is required to suit the visuals. Without any, the video would play in complete silence until the voice-over plays at the end, making the experience seem uninviting and improper. Therefore, in order for the advertisement to be even more enjoyable as well as impactful, I chose to layer the footage with royalty-free, public domain music in the form of Scott Buckley's Titan: a song that both matches and enhances the monumental experience of discovering past relatives and the periods of which they lived in.
For legal reasons, I printed copies of an official form detailing release of the video itself, to later ensure that all actors hired to star in the video would willingly sign.
Once basic planning for the advertisement had been completed, I contacted the client via email, sending a copy of my work, in order to receive feedback. Upon reviewing my ideas and way of executing them, the client approved, and granted me further permission to begin creating the promotion on camera.
Due to the advertisement's nature of being intended for television broadcast, it obviously needed to be filmed using highly professional camera and lighting equipment. In order to utilise such resources without spending ridiculous amounts of money on the purchasing of said equipment, I hired what was required from a company known as Cameraworks. The hardware consisted of a camera, lens, gimbal, and four LED lights. Although the equipment was only needed for three days, I decided to hire all for a week each, since doing so for the first three pieces equaled the same price as hiring them for three days at a time. For example, instead of hiring the camera for three days at the total price of £480 - due to usage for each day costing £160 - I chose the option that meant paying £480 for each week, as I would be spending the same amount whilst receiving a longer time of usage.
For the cinematography that I had in mind, I would need to make efficient use of a green screen studio. My search results informed me of Studio 1 at Camberwell Film Studios located in London. Not only did this establishment appear highly impressive to me due to being 7.5 metres wide - which I needed to take advantage of - it also seemed suitable because of what was included in the price. A production office, wardrobe and makeup room, drive-in for cars, on-site parking, Wi-Fi, shared use of the canteen, and basic catering, are all covered in addition to the studio. I decided to pay three lots of £725, equaling £2175 in total, as three days was the estimated amount of time that the filming for the advertisement would be finished by.
As is the case for all film and television productions, all crew members hired to operate in the rented studio within working hours, must be well fed and watered. While Camberwell Film Studios do not offer catering directly, they are local to a café situated very close the establishment that would serve as the work area for at least three days. Each of the seventeen crew members would be given £20, equaling £340 overall, to spend on food from the café, which could be ordered through telephone call, before being collected and eaten in the canteen provided by the studio. The café was also suitable due to its likeliness to please everyone, including vegetarians, through its wide variety of menu items such as breakfasts, ciabattas, paninis, wraps, sandwiches, burgers, jacket potatoes, salads, various main meals, various desserts, tea, coffee, soft drinks, milkshakes, and smoothies.
Four groups of people were required to effectively produce the advertisement. These were actors, hair and makeup artists, equipment technicians, and property masters. All ten actors were hired from Backstage, and agreed to be paid £300 for each of the three days spent filming. Two makeup artists were employed from Brushstroke, both accepting payment of £250 per day. In addition, a couple of equipment technicians working for Kennington Film Studios were recruited, with one being paid £350 each day for managing camera equipment, and the other being paid the same amount for management of lighting. Lastly, two property masters listed on Source Media TV were also commissioned, each for a price of £200 per day, with one being responsible for acquiring the props needed, and the other tasked with overseeing them.
After browsing Voices.com for a professional voice actor, I encountered one who I felt truly captured the wonder behind the phenomenon of tracing family bloodlines to discover the lives of past relatives. Thus, I decided to hire him by sending a copy of the script, before he agreed to be paid £40 to speak for a definitive eight seconds.
PeoplePerHour provided me with a range of qualified editors suitable for creating the advertisement's closing scene. Finding a freelancer who had produced similar work to what I had in mind, I hired him for a very reasonable price of £20 per hour. This meant that I only needed to pay him one amount due to knowing that what I was asking for would take little time to develop.
In order for the voice actor to record their lines efficaciously, I needed to hire a recording studio so that I would be granted access to audio equipment that enabled the voice-over to achieve a high level of authenticity and trustworthiness. Impressed by Studio 3 at Voiceover Soho in London, I paid £99 for its Wild Voice-Over Recording option. Since the overall price was £99 per hour, I thought it wise to only pay for one hour, since only eighteen words were required to be recorded.
Perhaps the most important feature of the advertisement was the clothing that the actors would be dressed in, as these would not only make such individuals appear very different and rather eccentric from the people of today, but would enable the audience to determine the periods from each character originated. After spending a large amount of time searching online, I finally managed to assemble full-body outfits for the actors to wear. Websites such as Medieval Shop, Guntrader, Etsy, Wish, eBay, and Amazon.com provided me with items that I required to craft the centrepiece of the advertisement. This resulted in spending an enormous total of £5346, which although extremely costly, was also highly fruitful.
Ultimately, the official cost of the production of the advertisement was £24370.
At the very end of development, I had a result that I was overly satisfied with, which I therefore sent to my client. After a few days, I was invited to another meeting to hear official feedback, as well as discuss how the advertisement would be presented to the public. Overall, my client was exceedingly pleased with how the promotion had developed. In terms of concerns, the client did inform me that they would have preferred the cost to significantly lower. Nevertheless, they were thrilled with the result, and believed that with the correct presentation, they would be able to earn back the same amount of all money spent, as well as receive plenty more in a reasonably short time.
Friday, March 13, 2020
Music Video
When considering my choice of song, at the time of listening once again to Man on the Silver Mountain by British rock band Rainbow, I released that most of the lyrics could be reflected by handcrafted visuals, particularly through stop motion. Although the majority of music videos in existence do not mirror the song lyrics, due to having very little knowledge on the design and production of such an art form, I saw Andrew Goodwin's theories on illustration and amplification to be the most suitable way of approaching my task. Furthermore, by using a form of animation to complete my work, I was able to avoid including any real people in the visuals, as most music videos have a tendency to do. Not only did this enable me to work freely, but kept my work unique and different from others.
Since the majority of the video is filmed and edited as stop motion, my main influence was a small collection of pre-existing music videos that implemented the same technique. Although I knew that I would never produce a piece as astoundingly impressive, the principle video that inspired me to use stop motion was that of Peter's Gabriel's Sledgehammer. Winning nine awards at the 1987 MTV Music Video Awards, it is in my mind, one of the most spectacular music videos of all time, not only due to the finished result, but the sheer amount of effort put in by the creators. Two other music videos that also inspired me to approach my task in the way that I did, were the ones for There, There by Radiohead, and Sober by TOOL, mainly due to the fact that they base their visuals around objects that are a combination of being hand-made and small materials taken from larger counterparts.
Unfortunately, due to not having a professional setup to film the video, certain aspects of production are rather deficient and unsatisfactory. For example, the lighting is not at all consistent throughout the video, as although the window blinds were closed constantly, the outside environment still managed to affect the saturation and colour scheme.
In terms of camera positioning, what with creating a stop motion video, the device had to be kept in the exact same position for the whole of production. This requirement revealed itself to be slightly more difficult than I initially imagined. The camera had to be removed multiple times from the tripod in order for it to be charged. Usually, charging would occur between each new segment of the video, meaning that whenever the visuals changed to present something completely different, the background and main set piece of the mountain would unintentionally move position slightly, breaking contingency and visual flow.
Each segment of the video is a general reflection of the song lyrics. Therefore, the segments have to begin and end as soon as the corresponding song verses do, which means that timing is key. Overall, my video has been edited to meet this requirement very well, due to careful resizing and placing of each frame.
The main set piece of the mountain was constructed by shaping a large piece of cardboard into a cone, before sticking on scrunched up pieces of newspaper covered in kitchen roll, and painting it all silver. The man was created by spreading orange plasticine over a small wooden doll in order to determine the structure, while still enabling the figure's limbs to move. Ultimately, I would say that the set design eventuated rather well, and emitted a whimsical, childlike impression similar to my main inspiration. Although others disagreed, I do, however, feel as though the video would appear better if the background room was not within frame by having a backdrop big enough to cover the surrounding area.
In order to improve upon my video, I would most certainly implement a professional lighting setup, and stick the tripod legs to floor, so that the general appearance stays consistent throughout, and a strong level of contingency is present. I would also hope to have a backdrop that is large enough to cover up the background room.
Since the majority of the video is filmed and edited as stop motion, my main influence was a small collection of pre-existing music videos that implemented the same technique. Although I knew that I would never produce a piece as astoundingly impressive, the principle video that inspired me to use stop motion was that of Peter's Gabriel's Sledgehammer. Winning nine awards at the 1987 MTV Music Video Awards, it is in my mind, one of the most spectacular music videos of all time, not only due to the finished result, but the sheer amount of effort put in by the creators. Two other music videos that also inspired me to approach my task in the way that I did, were the ones for There, There by Radiohead, and Sober by TOOL, mainly due to the fact that they base their visuals around objects that are a combination of being hand-made and small materials taken from larger counterparts.
Unfortunately, due to not having a professional setup to film the video, certain aspects of production are rather deficient and unsatisfactory. For example, the lighting is not at all consistent throughout the video, as although the window blinds were closed constantly, the outside environment still managed to affect the saturation and colour scheme.
In terms of camera positioning, what with creating a stop motion video, the device had to be kept in the exact same position for the whole of production. This requirement revealed itself to be slightly more difficult than I initially imagined. The camera had to be removed multiple times from the tripod in order for it to be charged. Usually, charging would occur between each new segment of the video, meaning that whenever the visuals changed to present something completely different, the background and main set piece of the mountain would unintentionally move position slightly, breaking contingency and visual flow.
Each segment of the video is a general reflection of the song lyrics. Therefore, the segments have to begin and end as soon as the corresponding song verses do, which means that timing is key. Overall, my video has been edited to meet this requirement very well, due to careful resizing and placing of each frame.
The main set piece of the mountain was constructed by shaping a large piece of cardboard into a cone, before sticking on scrunched up pieces of newspaper covered in kitchen roll, and painting it all silver. The man was created by spreading orange plasticine over a small wooden doll in order to determine the structure, while still enabling the figure's limbs to move. Ultimately, I would say that the set design eventuated rather well, and emitted a whimsical, childlike impression similar to my main inspiration. Although others disagreed, I do, however, feel as though the video would appear better if the background room was not within frame by having a backdrop big enough to cover the surrounding area.
In order to improve upon my video, I would most certainly implement a professional lighting setup, and stick the tripod legs to floor, so that the general appearance stays consistent throughout, and a strong level of contingency is present. I would also hope to have a backdrop that is large enough to cover up the background room.
Thursday, November 14, 2019
Lighting Techniques and Experiments
Rembrandt lighting is a lighting technique that is used in studio portrait photography. It can be achieved using one light and a reflector, or two lights, and is quite popular because it is capable of producing images which appear both natural and compelling with a minimum of equipment. The technique is characterised by an illuminated triangle under the eye of the subject on the less illuminated side of the face. It is named after the Dutch painter Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, who often used this type of lighting.
In order to achieve Rembrandt lighting, normally, the key light is placed high and to one side at the front, whilst the fill light or a reflector is placed half-height and on the other side at the front, set to about half the power of the key light, with the subject, if facing at an angle to the camera, with the key light illuminating the far side of the face.
The key in Rembrandt lighting is creating the triangle or diamond shape of light underneath the eye. One side of the face is lit well from the main light source whilst the other side of the face uses the interaction of shadows and light, also known as chiaroscuro, to create this geometric form on the face.
The triangle should be no longer than the nose and no wider than the eye. This technique may be achieved subtly or very dramatically by altering the distance between subject and lights, as well as relative strengths of main and fill lights.
Butterfly lighting is another lighting technique commonly used in studio portrait photography. It is also variously referred to as 'clamshell lighting', 'glamour lighting', 'beauty lighting', or 'paramount lighting'. At its most basic, butterfly lighting consists of a single light pointed directly at the subject straight on, and raised high enough to create a downward shadow on their face. This causes a little 'butterfly' shadow to appear directly underneath the subject’s nose.
Often, the butterfly lighting setup is augmented by a reflector or fill light placed in front of the subject, located underneath and just outside the frame of the shot. This is so that some light will be bounced up into the subject's eyes, as a light at such a high camera angle generally causes the eyes to appear very dark without it.
This technique is considered the 'fashion' lighting setup. Often times, this is considered a flattering look for young women. It is especially well-suited to women with narrow faces and high cheekbones, but because there is very little shadow cast on the face, it can add weight to subjects with rounder faces. Additionally, the lack of shadows means that it is unsuitable for subjects who have skin problems, facial scars, facial hair, and other inaccuracies. Although it is occasionally used as a fashion setup for men, it is so commonly used in women's fashion photography that it has become 'synonymous' with women's glamour lighting, so much so that even people who do not pay much attention to such things may still consider portraits of men with butterfly lighting applied as being 'funny', even if they cannot articulate why. Furthermore, the lack of facial shadow that is cast by the light is generally not especially flattering unless the man’s features are somewhat feminine already.
Split lighting is also a lighting technique often used in studio portrait photography. It is constructed with a single light source placed 90 degrees offset from the subject at a position a bit higher than eye level, lighting one half of the face, and leaving the other in shadow. One of the advantages to using the split lighting technique is that there is only need for a single light. Therefore, this setup benefits the photographer greatly if they are a beginner in the subject, and do not have the budget for a full light kit.
Overall, split lighting is considered a very 'moody' lighting option, and so it is generally used when the photographer wants to create a strong sense of drama with the image. It is less frequently used in portrait photography because generally people want to see a subject’s whole face in a picture, although it does appear in fashion for commercial and advertising photography every few years. The technique is often referred to as the 'comic book villain' lighting style, and indeed, many comic artists use this technique when they are portraying villains in their comic books. Whereas other lighting setups are much more common, and the vast majority of portraits will use almost anything other than split lighting, the technique is labelled as an 'accent' lighting choice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rembrandt_lighting
https://photo.stackexchange.com/questions/6772/what-is-butterfly-lighting-and-when-do-i-use-it
https://photo.stackexchange.com/questions/6656/what-is-split-portrait-lighting
Within the first screenshot, an illuminated triangle can be seen underneath the right eye on the darker side of the face, creating a Rembrandt lighting effect.
For the second screenshot, a downward shadow is projected onto the face, causing a 'butterfly' silhouette to appear directly underneath the nose, creating a butterfly lighting effect.
In the last screenshot, the right side of the face is obstructed in shadow, whilst the left side is lit brightly, creating a split lighting effect.
In order to achieve Rembrandt lighting, normally, the key light is placed high and to one side at the front, whilst the fill light or a reflector is placed half-height and on the other side at the front, set to about half the power of the key light, with the subject, if facing at an angle to the camera, with the key light illuminating the far side of the face.
The key in Rembrandt lighting is creating the triangle or diamond shape of light underneath the eye. One side of the face is lit well from the main light source whilst the other side of the face uses the interaction of shadows and light, also known as chiaroscuro, to create this geometric form on the face.
The triangle should be no longer than the nose and no wider than the eye. This technique may be achieved subtly or very dramatically by altering the distance between subject and lights, as well as relative strengths of main and fill lights.
Butterfly lighting is another lighting technique commonly used in studio portrait photography. It is also variously referred to as 'clamshell lighting', 'glamour lighting', 'beauty lighting', or 'paramount lighting'. At its most basic, butterfly lighting consists of a single light pointed directly at the subject straight on, and raised high enough to create a downward shadow on their face. This causes a little 'butterfly' shadow to appear directly underneath the subject’s nose.
Often, the butterfly lighting setup is augmented by a reflector or fill light placed in front of the subject, located underneath and just outside the frame of the shot. This is so that some light will be bounced up into the subject's eyes, as a light at such a high camera angle generally causes the eyes to appear very dark without it.
This technique is considered the 'fashion' lighting setup. Often times, this is considered a flattering look for young women. It is especially well-suited to women with narrow faces and high cheekbones, but because there is very little shadow cast on the face, it can add weight to subjects with rounder faces. Additionally, the lack of shadows means that it is unsuitable for subjects who have skin problems, facial scars, facial hair, and other inaccuracies. Although it is occasionally used as a fashion setup for men, it is so commonly used in women's fashion photography that it has become 'synonymous' with women's glamour lighting, so much so that even people who do not pay much attention to such things may still consider portraits of men with butterfly lighting applied as being 'funny', even if they cannot articulate why. Furthermore, the lack of facial shadow that is cast by the light is generally not especially flattering unless the man’s features are somewhat feminine already.
Split lighting is also a lighting technique often used in studio portrait photography. It is constructed with a single light source placed 90 degrees offset from the subject at a position a bit higher than eye level, lighting one half of the face, and leaving the other in shadow. One of the advantages to using the split lighting technique is that there is only need for a single light. Therefore, this setup benefits the photographer greatly if they are a beginner in the subject, and do not have the budget for a full light kit.
Overall, split lighting is considered a very 'moody' lighting option, and so it is generally used when the photographer wants to create a strong sense of drama with the image. It is less frequently used in portrait photography because generally people want to see a subject’s whole face in a picture, although it does appear in fashion for commercial and advertising photography every few years. The technique is often referred to as the 'comic book villain' lighting style, and indeed, many comic artists use this technique when they are portraying villains in their comic books. Whereas other lighting setups are much more common, and the vast majority of portraits will use almost anything other than split lighting, the technique is labelled as an 'accent' lighting choice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rembrandt_lighting
https://photo.stackexchange.com/questions/6772/what-is-butterfly-lighting-and-when-do-i-use-it
https://photo.stackexchange.com/questions/6656/what-is-split-portrait-lighting
Within the first screenshot, an illuminated triangle can be seen underneath the right eye on the darker side of the face, creating a Rembrandt lighting effect.
For the second screenshot, a downward shadow is projected onto the face, causing a 'butterfly' silhouette to appear directly underneath the nose, creating a butterfly lighting effect.
In the last screenshot, the right side of the face is obstructed in shadow, whilst the left side is lit brightly, creating a split lighting effect.
Thursday, November 7, 2019
Four-Hour Film Challenges
Haunted College
Due to the fact that lessons were being taught whilst filming this video, I was able to take advantage of the college's quiet atmosphere by only filming scenes devoid of people all together. The purpose of this was to present the college in a haunting manner, as if all of its previous occupants had suddenly vanished. In order to increase dramatic tension, I and two others manipulated objects without revealing ourselves to the camera, creating the impression of supernatural behaviour. By filming some scenes in an unused, derelict area of the college, it would seem that the emotions of fear and uneasiness would become much more prominent to the average viewer. The eerie music that I added over the footage also helped strengthen these emotions.
Overall, since I had never used Adobe Premiere Pro before editing this video, I learnt the basic concepts of the software, such as importing, structuring, snipping, and reversing clips, as well as overlaying and fading music, all before exporting the completed video.
Although I find the narrative of the film to be somewhat lacklustre, in terms of camera techniques, I do believe that the few scenes shot outside are slightly overexposed. As an improvement, I would record these scenes again, but set the camera to ensure that the light does not appear too powerful, causing the colour to look slightly blanched.
Jumpcut Madness
As the camera operator, I would spend a few seconds filming four other students located in certain positions within one room. Each time that I stopped filming, the others would move to different locations or alter their poses for me to record. The camera would remain in the exact same position so that only the people within the film would represent change. By the time that the lesson had finished, I had filmed one-hundred and fifteen clips. In terms of editing, I layered the Nintendo Wii theme music over the footage, before cutting the length of the clips down, and structuring them so that each time that a new note began to sound, a new clip would play. This 'jumpcut madness' would be used for comedic effect, along with the silly fart noise that I added at the end of the video to the appearance of the French word 'Fin'.
In order to achieve the final result, I learnt to match the start of each clip to the main individual notes of the music. Being able to view the sound waves helped greatly, as I could actually see when each note began so that the footage could be accurately synched to the rhythm. Therefore, the main lesson learnt was how to match footage to music.
Due to the camera position, one of the four sets of two tables cannot be fully seen, as a corner is not within frame. This is because if the tables act as a midpoint, the camera was unintentionally placed to capture more of the room located on the left side, rather than being placed to capture an equal amount of both sides. Although others may be untroubled by this, I cannot help but find it rather irritating, especially since in most of the clips, nobody is positioned in the left-sided area that I see as being inconvenient, which renders the area useless onscreen. Obviously, correcting this 'error' would be a small price to pay for having to start the project from the beginning, but it is an improvement that I suggest nonetheless.
1920s Feature
This film, which was not at all planned or filmed by me, depicts two students within a chase sequence. One obviously believes that the other is trying to harm them, and so she runs in an attempt to get away. The other, who only wishes to return the runner's pass, is forced to chase her until she is eventually cornered in a room, where she realises the true intention of the chaser, before the film ends. With the use of iris shots, title cards, black and white imagery, and film grain, the final result is designed to follow the style of 1920 feature films.
During the editing of this film, I learnt how to create iris shots, meaning that a black circle opens within the middle of the screen in order to begin the film, whilst another closes to end it. I also learnt how to input still images - in this case, title cards - as well as text, which was used to present the characters' speech, and narrate a part of the story. Additionally, discovering how to remove the colour from the footage helped keep the film remain true to 1920s cinema. The final technique that I gained understanding of was overlaying multiple pieces of footage, as the whole video plays with a film grain effect present.
Personally, I do feel that the acting of the two students was somewhat laughable, but at least one can tell that they had fun doing it. Furthermore, in relation to improvements that I could make, I would try to speed the footage up slightly, as the majority of fast-paced 1920s films were produced in such a way. There is a problem that would arise from this, however, which is that the footage would end long before the music could, which is not in favour of 1920s cinema. Although I could always cause the music to fade out, this would also be out of keeping of silent films. Therefore, the only solution that I can see should I apply this improvement, would be to receive more acceptable footage to include.
Found Footage Music Video to Resident Evil Film Theme
For this film, I was tasked with producing a music video for XXYYXX's song About You, using nothing but found footage. Although the main requirement was for most of the footage to play in sychronisation with the music, and that aspects such as narrative and meaning were not necessarily important, I not only felt the track to be uninspired, but quite irritating. Thus, for the sake of my own sanity, I decided to change the song to Marilyn Manson's Resident Evil (2002) film theme song, as I enjoy it, and believed that it would work better with the found footage that I had in mind.
After searching the Internet, I began to start editing once I had downloaded thirty-four pieces of found footage. In order to create a strong connection between the clips, I made sure that the majority of them followed a red colour scheme, as I find the colour to be the most representative of the horror genre, which relates to the sinister nature of the music as well as its origin. Similar to my 'Jumpcut Madness' film, I decided to view the sound waves of the music so that the synchronisation of the clips to the sound was as accurate as possible. Ultimately, I would not say that I learnt anything new from this project, but at least I was highly satisfied with the outcome.
In all honesty, I cannot find anything about this film that I could improve upon. Although I do wish that every piece of footage used was able to play in 1080p, the only solution would be to remove them, but, of course, doing so would also remove their great contribution to the project.
Due to the fact that lessons were being taught whilst filming this video, I was able to take advantage of the college's quiet atmosphere by only filming scenes devoid of people all together. The purpose of this was to present the college in a haunting manner, as if all of its previous occupants had suddenly vanished. In order to increase dramatic tension, I and two others manipulated objects without revealing ourselves to the camera, creating the impression of supernatural behaviour. By filming some scenes in an unused, derelict area of the college, it would seem that the emotions of fear and uneasiness would become much more prominent to the average viewer. The eerie music that I added over the footage also helped strengthen these emotions.
Overall, since I had never used Adobe Premiere Pro before editing this video, I learnt the basic concepts of the software, such as importing, structuring, snipping, and reversing clips, as well as overlaying and fading music, all before exporting the completed video.
Although I find the narrative of the film to be somewhat lacklustre, in terms of camera techniques, I do believe that the few scenes shot outside are slightly overexposed. As an improvement, I would record these scenes again, but set the camera to ensure that the light does not appear too powerful, causing the colour to look slightly blanched.
Jumpcut Madness
As the camera operator, I would spend a few seconds filming four other students located in certain positions within one room. Each time that I stopped filming, the others would move to different locations or alter their poses for me to record. The camera would remain in the exact same position so that only the people within the film would represent change. By the time that the lesson had finished, I had filmed one-hundred and fifteen clips. In terms of editing, I layered the Nintendo Wii theme music over the footage, before cutting the length of the clips down, and structuring them so that each time that a new note began to sound, a new clip would play. This 'jumpcut madness' would be used for comedic effect, along with the silly fart noise that I added at the end of the video to the appearance of the French word 'Fin'.
In order to achieve the final result, I learnt to match the start of each clip to the main individual notes of the music. Being able to view the sound waves helped greatly, as I could actually see when each note began so that the footage could be accurately synched to the rhythm. Therefore, the main lesson learnt was how to match footage to music.
Due to the camera position, one of the four sets of two tables cannot be fully seen, as a corner is not within frame. This is because if the tables act as a midpoint, the camera was unintentionally placed to capture more of the room located on the left side, rather than being placed to capture an equal amount of both sides. Although others may be untroubled by this, I cannot help but find it rather irritating, especially since in most of the clips, nobody is positioned in the left-sided area that I see as being inconvenient, which renders the area useless onscreen. Obviously, correcting this 'error' would be a small price to pay for having to start the project from the beginning, but it is an improvement that I suggest nonetheless.
1920s Feature
This film, which was not at all planned or filmed by me, depicts two students within a chase sequence. One obviously believes that the other is trying to harm them, and so she runs in an attempt to get away. The other, who only wishes to return the runner's pass, is forced to chase her until she is eventually cornered in a room, where she realises the true intention of the chaser, before the film ends. With the use of iris shots, title cards, black and white imagery, and film grain, the final result is designed to follow the style of 1920 feature films.
During the editing of this film, I learnt how to create iris shots, meaning that a black circle opens within the middle of the screen in order to begin the film, whilst another closes to end it. I also learnt how to input still images - in this case, title cards - as well as text, which was used to present the characters' speech, and narrate a part of the story. Additionally, discovering how to remove the colour from the footage helped keep the film remain true to 1920s cinema. The final technique that I gained understanding of was overlaying multiple pieces of footage, as the whole video plays with a film grain effect present.
Personally, I do feel that the acting of the two students was somewhat laughable, but at least one can tell that they had fun doing it. Furthermore, in relation to improvements that I could make, I would try to speed the footage up slightly, as the majority of fast-paced 1920s films were produced in such a way. There is a problem that would arise from this, however, which is that the footage would end long before the music could, which is not in favour of 1920s cinema. Although I could always cause the music to fade out, this would also be out of keeping of silent films. Therefore, the only solution that I can see should I apply this improvement, would be to receive more acceptable footage to include.
Found Footage Music Video to Resident Evil Film Theme
For this film, I was tasked with producing a music video for XXYYXX's song About You, using nothing but found footage. Although the main requirement was for most of the footage to play in sychronisation with the music, and that aspects such as narrative and meaning were not necessarily important, I not only felt the track to be uninspired, but quite irritating. Thus, for the sake of my own sanity, I decided to change the song to Marilyn Manson's Resident Evil (2002) film theme song, as I enjoy it, and believed that it would work better with the found footage that I had in mind.
After searching the Internet, I began to start editing once I had downloaded thirty-four pieces of found footage. In order to create a strong connection between the clips, I made sure that the majority of them followed a red colour scheme, as I find the colour to be the most representative of the horror genre, which relates to the sinister nature of the music as well as its origin. Similar to my 'Jumpcut Madness' film, I decided to view the sound waves of the music so that the synchronisation of the clips to the sound was as accurate as possible. Ultimately, I would not say that I learnt anything new from this project, but at least I was highly satisfied with the outcome.
In all honesty, I cannot find anything about this film that I could improve upon. Although I do wish that every piece of footage used was able to play in 1080p, the only solution would be to remove them, but, of course, doing so would also remove their great contribution to the project.
Thursday, October 17, 2019
British New Wave Film
The film is of my father walking through rural areas outside of my hometown, before sitting down on a bench within a park. This footage is accompanied by the song Wonderful Land, performed by 1960s, British, instrumental rock band, The Shadows.
In order to create my film to be as accurate to British new wave cinema as possible, I made sure to use as many possible techniques that are in favour of such a style. For example, using natural lighting was very common throughout entries in the genre, and so, I did not use any external lighting sources whilst filming, relying only upon the light that the camera and daytime provided.
Although the footage was all filmed in colour, during the editing stage, I changed it to appear in monochrome, as it made the British new wave aesthetic even more prominent. Despite some films of the genre having been filmed in colour - such as Tom Jones (1963) and Alfie (1966) - it seemed wise to follow the colouration of the majority of British new wave instalments, many of which few people today will be familiar with.
To further relate to the period of filmmaking at hand, all the shots contained within the film are long, and progress from one to another through jump cuts. Such cinematography was commonplace in this genre, as the long shots helped to mesmerise the audience, whereas the jump cuts worked to make the audience remember that they were watching films.
All of the shots were filmed with a basic camera attached to a simple tripod. This is in keeping with British new wave films, as they were produced using very little equipment, and cameras were either held by hand, or fixed onto cheap support stands.
Essentially, most films of the new wave genre, regardless of their country of origin, have a visual, static effect to them, due to the cameras used to film them being cheap and underdeveloped. Therefore, although my film was not recorded with any camera that would cause such an effect, I did apply a similar texture during the editing stage, in order to capture the same aesthetic.
In order to create my film to be as accurate to British new wave cinema as possible, I made sure to use as many possible techniques that are in favour of such a style. For example, using natural lighting was very common throughout entries in the genre, and so, I did not use any external lighting sources whilst filming, relying only upon the light that the camera and daytime provided.
Although the footage was all filmed in colour, during the editing stage, I changed it to appear in monochrome, as it made the British new wave aesthetic even more prominent. Despite some films of the genre having been filmed in colour - such as Tom Jones (1963) and Alfie (1966) - it seemed wise to follow the colouration of the majority of British new wave instalments, many of which few people today will be familiar with.
To further relate to the period of filmmaking at hand, all the shots contained within the film are long, and progress from one to another through jump cuts. Such cinematography was commonplace in this genre, as the long shots helped to mesmerise the audience, whereas the jump cuts worked to make the audience remember that they were watching films.
All of the shots were filmed with a basic camera attached to a simple tripod. This is in keeping with British new wave films, as they were produced using very little equipment, and cameras were either held by hand, or fixed onto cheap support stands.
Essentially, most films of the new wave genre, regardless of their country of origin, have a visual, static effect to them, due to the cameras used to film them being cheap and underdeveloped. Therefore, although my film was not recorded with any camera that would cause such an effect, I did apply a similar texture during the editing stage, in order to capture the same aesthetic.
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Shutter Speed Experiment
Shutter speed is described as the unit of measurement which determines how long the camera shutter remains open as each picture is taken. The slower the shutter speed, the longer the exposure time. The shutter speed and aperture together control the total amount of light reaching the sensor.
The video shows the falling drops and splashes made from one water fountain, in three different shutter speeds. This video consists of three separate recordings filmed in dissimilar speeds of 1/30, 1/50, and 1/250. They have been placed in the order of lowest to highest speed. For the first speed of 1/30, the water droplets cascade down in a continuous shower, appearing as rapid lines of white light, before hitting the water surface, creating the impression of cloud-like cotton wool. In the second speed of 1/50, the water lines appear thicker and seem to fall much faster, causing the cotton wool effect to become froth-like. Within the third and final speed of 1/250, the lines of water have disappeared, grouping together to become heavy droplets of snow-like balls, which hit the surface and cause the splashes to appear more lively, whilst the ripples in the water level are much more prominent.
As the screenshot shows, at a shutter speed of 1/30, the water drops appear thin, and seem to fall rapidly before landing on the water surface to form a resemblance of cotton wool.
In the following screenshot, at a shutter speed of 1/50, the water drops look as if they fall even faster, as they become slightly thicker, and create a froth-like effect once they hit the water surface.
Within the final screenshot, at a shutter speed of 1/250, the water drops seem to fall much heavier than before, as they have grouped together to form balls that hit the water at a greater impact.
The video shows the falling drops and splashes made from one water fountain, in three different shutter speeds. This video consists of three separate recordings filmed in dissimilar speeds of 1/30, 1/50, and 1/250. They have been placed in the order of lowest to highest speed. For the first speed of 1/30, the water droplets cascade down in a continuous shower, appearing as rapid lines of white light, before hitting the water surface, creating the impression of cloud-like cotton wool. In the second speed of 1/50, the water lines appear thicker and seem to fall much faster, causing the cotton wool effect to become froth-like. Within the third and final speed of 1/250, the lines of water have disappeared, grouping together to become heavy droplets of snow-like balls, which hit the surface and cause the splashes to appear more lively, whilst the ripples in the water level are much more prominent.
As the screenshot shows, at a shutter speed of 1/30, the water drops appear thin, and seem to fall rapidly before landing on the water surface to form a resemblance of cotton wool.
In the following screenshot, at a shutter speed of 1/50, the water drops look as if they fall even faster, as they become slightly thicker, and create a froth-like effect once they hit the water surface.
Within the final screenshot, at a shutter speed of 1/250, the water drops seem to fall much heavier than before, as they have grouped together to form balls that hit the water at a greater impact.
ISO Experiments
ISO is a digital camera setting used to either brighten or darken photos. As the ISO number is increased, the photos will become progressively brighter, whereas decreasing the ISO number will cause the photos to become darker. For that reason, ISO can help to capture images in darker environments, or be more flexible about the aperture and shutter speed settings.
Using an ISO of 100 is shown to be highly unsuitable for lighting an area outside at night, as this video showing a piece of back garden demonstrates. Not only is it extremely underexposed, but if viewed closely, one can see faint traces of grain. The most obvious solution to these problems would be to increase the ISO, and see what problems arise from said setup.
Continuing on from the previous experiment, the next does indeed consist of upping the ISO level - in this case, from 100 to 3200. The time and area in this video is the same as the first, only the space appears to now have the correct exposure, as light from bulbs both inside my house and outside can actually be seen, along with the objects that the light casts onto. Unfortunately, lots of grain is present at such a high ISO level, which is a problem that can be resolved by using external lights designed for film production to effectively illuminate the area. In turn, this would mean that the ISO could be decreased, and so the amount of grain would also receive the same treatment.
This video shows a pan of one side of my back garden whilst under heavy sunlight. An ISO of 200 was used to film the area, which appears to be most suitable, as barely any grain can be seen. In addition, the space can be considered lit very well, since there is very little underexposure or overexposure present, with the exception of the portion of the garden cast in shadow.
Filmed entirely indoors, the video presents one side of my bedroom at night, with an ISO of 1600 having been set. It would seem that the amount of exposure is suitable for the area, however, plenty of grain can be viewed at all points. The best solution to this issue would be to utilise external lights designed for film production, as they would help illuminate the area professionally, meaning that the ISO could be lowered, which would produce less grain.
An ISO of 100 was used to film this experimental lighting video of my computer screen rapidly flashing a red light. The experiment was to see how far the light would reach into its surrounding area. Alas, the light did not cause as much effect as hoped, due to the ISO being too low, and the screen not being powerful enough to produce more light. Furthermore, a significantly distracting amount of grain can be seen wherever the light touches. It would be wise to correct this by making use of external lights designed specially for film production.
Using an ISO of 100 is shown to be highly unsuitable for lighting an area outside at night, as this video showing a piece of back garden demonstrates. Not only is it extremely underexposed, but if viewed closely, one can see faint traces of grain. The most obvious solution to these problems would be to increase the ISO, and see what problems arise from said setup.
Continuing on from the previous experiment, the next does indeed consist of upping the ISO level - in this case, from 100 to 3200. The time and area in this video is the same as the first, only the space appears to now have the correct exposure, as light from bulbs both inside my house and outside can actually be seen, along with the objects that the light casts onto. Unfortunately, lots of grain is present at such a high ISO level, which is a problem that can be resolved by using external lights designed for film production to effectively illuminate the area. In turn, this would mean that the ISO could be decreased, and so the amount of grain would also receive the same treatment.
This video shows a pan of one side of my back garden whilst under heavy sunlight. An ISO of 200 was used to film the area, which appears to be most suitable, as barely any grain can be seen. In addition, the space can be considered lit very well, since there is very little underexposure or overexposure present, with the exception of the portion of the garden cast in shadow.
Filmed entirely indoors, the video presents one side of my bedroom at night, with an ISO of 1600 having been set. It would seem that the amount of exposure is suitable for the area, however, plenty of grain can be viewed at all points. The best solution to this issue would be to utilise external lights designed for film production, as they would help illuminate the area professionally, meaning that the ISO could be lowered, which would produce less grain.
An ISO of 100 was used to film this experimental lighting video of my computer screen rapidly flashing a red light. The experiment was to see how far the light would reach into its surrounding area. Alas, the light did not cause as much effect as hoped, due to the ISO being too low, and the screen not being powerful enough to produce more light. Furthermore, a significantly distracting amount of grain can be seen wherever the light touches. It would be wise to correct this by making use of external lights designed specially for film production.
Focus Pull Experiment
The focus pull (also known as the rack focus) is a creative camera technique in which the camera changes focus during a continuous shot. Usually, this comes in the form of adjusting the focus from one subject to another.
This camera technique is useful for directing the viewer's attention. For example, if there are two people in shot but only one is in focus, that person is the subject of attention. If the focus changes to the other person, they then become the subject. This is often used in drama dialogues, as the focus shifts backwards and forwards between the people speaking. A slightly more subtle trick is to focus on a person speaking before pulling focus to another person's silent reaction.
The video shows two ornamental statues located on a table. The statue of the Ancient Greek god Zeus is placed close to the camera lens. Stood behind and to the right of Zeus is a statue of Medusa the Gorgon. By turning the focus ring one way, the camera is able to present Zeus' details clearly with no or very little blur effect, but causes the figure of Medusa to grow softer and become much less clear to see. On the other hand, turing the focus ring the other way, forces the camera to lose focus of Zeus, yet gain focus of Medusa.
https://www.mediacollege.com/video/camera/focus/pull.html
This camera technique is useful for directing the viewer's attention. For example, if there are two people in shot but only one is in focus, that person is the subject of attention. If the focus changes to the other person, they then become the subject. This is often used in drama dialogues, as the focus shifts backwards and forwards between the people speaking. A slightly more subtle trick is to focus on a person speaking before pulling focus to another person's silent reaction.
The video shows two ornamental statues located on a table. The statue of the Ancient Greek god Zeus is placed close to the camera lens. Stood behind and to the right of Zeus is a statue of Medusa the Gorgon. By turning the focus ring one way, the camera is able to present Zeus' details clearly with no or very little blur effect, but causes the figure of Medusa to grow softer and become much less clear to see. On the other hand, turing the focus ring the other way, forces the camera to lose focus of Zeus, yet gain focus of Medusa.
https://www.mediacollege.com/video/camera/focus/pull.html
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