Search Results for 'no'

[James]

You can now post an image in the forum. If you are in the “Visual” tab, you’ll see an icon on the right. Click on that and it will allow you to upload the image.

[GianniRanzuglia]

Thanks for the advice James, another factor I also think played into it was the need and want to stand out. I’ll keep your advice at the back of my mind for next week’s shoot!

[James]

Hi Max,

Apparently, when you first post, it requires approval. And I’m not sure if this forum allows posting images when you first post a topic. Obviously, something I’m going to have to figure out how to change!! I did approve your topic and I see there were no images. Could you try posting the images in the reply and see if that works?

Thanks for your patience.

J.

[sanghamithran]

hi , master roger
can you say what were your most used focal lengths on jesse james film. if possible on these attached images.
especially the shot which jesse standing in front of the train.
was a bit worried since forum was inaccessible for some days.
everyone will be very relieved now .
T
Thank you.

[Max A.]

Hello Mr. Deakins and all the cinematographers here on this fantastic (new) forum. I really like the new forum but I’m also so sad if everything on the older one was lost, it was really a giant lighting encyclopedia to study every time 🙁
I hope you are well and enjoying your time. Is it true that you could come here to Italy for a Byways event? If it is so I will do everything I can to be there and see you live!

About 20 days ago I ended up shooting my first feature film (it was such an intense, powerful, inspiring, frustrating, and improving experience) and after some “relaxing” days is time to study again and learn.

Yesterday I was watching again “In Time” and studying some awesome patterns you created in the urban night scenes (it would be fantastic if you have some diagrams to publish in the “looking at lighting” section – I think this movie is so underrated as lighting).
I remember you said that movie did not have a big budget so you had to “embrace” existing sodium streetlamps and “boost” some areas with your own fixtures.
I think this is maybe more “difficult” to re-light an entire area because you have to create pools and shapes with something that you can’t manage at 100%.

I was studying, angle by angle, one of the first sequences where the “mom” ends her ‘time’.
I think it was a complex sequence for the number of angles and light patterns (did you shoot that sequence in one single night?).
I was so captured by the wide dutch angle (I attach the link to the frame below) with that big pool of light, it gives me a noirish look that blows my mind.
I was asking myself how to achieve that kind of light result. The light is “focused” on the center but has soft and saturated edges.
Following shadows on the floor of the ropes, building, and pole I could be thinking that you use more than one lamp (maybe projected through a big diffusion?) with different intensities to create the soft fall-off. Or maybe could have been Dino lights?
Image:

The second frame that I would like to ask you for insight into (attached link below), captured me not only for the pool that “wash” the subjects (that I think you had repositioned to “hit” them) but also for the light pattern on buildings into the background.
Did you use fresnel lamps? (maybe something like 5k?)
By chance are those that I see placed into the background on the floor, or did you project those from the roof of the building on the right?
Image:

I like to understand and analyze alone what’s going on, frame by frame (it helps me to learn better maybe), but I also think that I have a giant occasion and a big honor try to ask you “how” and most important “why”, and learn from your words.
This is priceless for me (but I think for all of us).

I want to thank you in advance for your patience and your time, I’d be hours and hours listening to you and asking questions but maybe you would kick me after 3 minutes LOL.
Apologies for my bad English.

I wish you a peaceful day.
Max.

[James]

We have two upcoming exhibitions of Roger’s photos in Europe in November. It’s a chance to see the photographs in person! The exhibitions will be held in Bologna, Italy and Katowice, Poland.Italy opens November 16th and Poland opens November 25th.

There will be images from BYWAYS but also some unpublished work as well.

More to come!

[James]

Sometimes too, when you get tired (and we KNOW that happens during a shoot!), you definitely overthink things and end up adding too many lights. Sometimes, it’s good stand back and ask yourself “Did I overthink again?”

[James]

Hi Tyler,

One aspect of testing that is very important is that it is a “rehearsal” for the shoot. You get to meet the different departments and work together is a very non-stressful environment. And you meet the actors as well. This allows you to get past the awkwardness of not having met people before you have to work full speed with them. It really helps a lot.

[James]

Hi Mike,

No, the website wasn’t down. But the forum was. I believe the software had a vulnerability and notice that their website was down. So I just started from scratch. So the website didn’t crash.

Florida is really getting hit. I’m hoping that everyone is alright.

[Roger Deakins]

I have not seen the film as yet. Have you? What are your thoughts?

[alegandro]

Hello you all! English is not my native leaguage, I hope you excuse my mistakes.

So, here’s the thing. I am shooting a 60 secs stop motion with puppets, where the puppets must be set on fire. Fire is going to be animated in 2D animation. I am wondering how can I light this scene, so that fire seems to come from the puppets. I want it to be the more organic as possible.

Do you have any idea on mind? I appreciate your help. Thank you so much!!

Here’s a still from a test we did. This is our scene and the fire starts when we go to the reverse shot.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uYNh5JnEScTl056KGQ0ICE14VghSCbnw/view?usp=sharing

[GianniRanzuglia]

Roger Deakins wrote:

Placing diffusion on the barn doors of a lamp will not really make the source ‘softer’ unless your subject is very close to it. The diffusion will spread the light in a more even wide beam but it won’t actually soften a shadow. A second layer directly on top of the first might spread the light even more but it will still not soften the light. To do that you need to make your source larger, as would be the case if your second layer of diffusion is set a few meters in front of the first. In general terms, the further your diffusion from the lamp the softer the light.

Thank you for your time and advice!

[Tyler F]

New forum looks great, thank you James, Roger and the team!

In regards to lighting and testing in general, while you were coming up Roger, how often were you testing (lighting, camera, lenses, compositions, etc.) ? I’d imagine in pre-production you spent quite a bit of time finding what you liked/not liked.

Was there an approach as-well or was it more intuitive than that, considering you spent the early part of your career in documentaries?

Further, as filmmakers what amount of importance do you place on the role of testing?

Thank you for your time!

[Roger Deakins]

Ahh! I’ve corrected that. I should have said more observational. ‘Jarhead’ was definitely more subjective!
Had we gone hand-held I would have been the operator slipping around in the mud so perhaps that was another reason I didn’t favor hand-held! Seriously though, we wanted that solid unrelenting forward movement that the Trinity, the wire rigs and the crane gave us.

[NicolasLabra]

I guess it really depends on how you choose to market yourself, im on the renting the gear camp, but there are benefits and downsides to each approach, if you have gear you can make it work for you, but at the same time if you dont choose correctly, you might spend quite a bit of money on gear that never gets rented, an acquaintance runs a camera rental exclusively for Red cameras, some lenses too, he invested a pretty penny on the whole DSMC 2 systems, really good gear but he struggled to make the equipment earn any money, lo and behold Red just a couple of years after brings the V Raptor and completely eats the market for the Monstro, wich is now an expensive paper weight on the rentals HQ, its still a superbly capable piece of equipment, but no one wants to rent it, in the end it was just a money dump, i guess my point is, if you are smart about owning gear, you can make a profit off of it, but its pretty easy to get it wrong or just have bad luck and end up with gear no one wants to rent, though i think this is more the case with Camera equipment, harder to get it wrong with lighting gear, in any case i hope this is somewhat useful if at all for you.