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That’s a good ‘mistake’ to realize. If you shot a scene where you bounced around from a 14mm to a 24mm then a 75, how would that feel to watch and be cut together? Part of a DP’s job is to help visualize the scene with the Director. Some directors will tell you straight up, “I want this on a 50mm” or they may say something like ‘let move to a close up’ and you may think to either move in closer or flip to the 75mm.
It’s a balance in how it’s all being cut together but also how does it feel in your gut? Some DP’s shoot on only long lenses and then you have a Chivo who shoots on extreme wides but will move in close.
Study films and see what you like then bank a bunch of shots in a folder and refer to them when you want the same feeling.
Go to the rental house with a friend and test a set of lenses with all the focal lengths and see what each does to your talent as well as the environment.
Unfortunately you really get the best sense by just doing it yourself and by what’s available to you. If you have ‘X’ budget that allows you to get an Alexa Mini and 2 lenses then you’re forced to choose right? Maybe you want a 28mm and a 50mm, and that’s enough to cover your movie. Sometimes those limitations end up creating a style that’s unique to you and that’s what gets you hired?
Watch movies, do tests, shoot, read ASC magazine, study what your peers are doing, go to the rental house and play with lenses you’ve never used before. It all adds to your repertoire and you’ll be that much better for it!
Good luck!
Why don’t you test as opposed to taking someone’s word for it and hoping they’re right? Shooting film is very expensive and you don’t want to really take any chances unless you’re absolutely certain it would have the desired effect. You could do a test where you underexpose the film and have the lab push it for you and see what the results are. You may like what’s there, but you may not. 500t is going to have more grain than 250d but since 35mm is a bigger negative, the grain will appear smaller.
If you have a short end, you could use that for your test. Maybe shoot like 20-30′ and tear off the film, spool it onto a core and have lab develop it (if they do that sort of thing).
I would think they did this with lights that were already built into the room. Imagine walking into an office with overhead ceiling lights and just putting a camera up—Similar approach.
Bigger light + closer it is to object, the softer it will be. You could also pepper many lights into the space effectively making “one” larger source, but you’ll have to be careful of multiple shadows.
Master Primes are amazing lenses but they aren’t all that much better than some of the other affordable options out there. The problem I think you’ll face is that once you buy one, you’re likely going to find yourself wanting another.. and another, just to complete a set. If I were you i’d look into a set of Zeiss Super Speeds or even Standard Speeds. Perfect lenses albeit older and finding a decent matching set can be tricky. Sharp but still have a quality that won’t resolve “too much” detail to where it’s a bit sterile. IMO that’s the way to go!
Yea I think that’s an interesting question because I think off the bat, you’re boxing yourself into a style: Comedy needs to look like this or that. Rather, you should do what comes natural to you rather than try to do something because it’s some “established” look to a genre. I was just speaking to a DP whom I respect that shoots according to his taste no matter the setting. Roger Deakins is a perfect example of being able to shoot comedy (albeit dark comedy) with the Coen Brothers, yet still have the traditional look of drama. I think Bradford Young is also another prime example of this. I’d say motivate your main key from the door then use practicals to balance out your interiors. If you need to give extra level, then maybe bounce a light that is “motivated” by the practicals throughout the room.
Last I might say is hire good gaffers/grips that can take your ideas and make them work for you in a tasteful way.
A bit of a separate question for David, but when you’re designing a shot like this are you planning well before to set your framing for how the trucks will sit and the characters both in the fore & background? Like this still is incredible…
It definitely varies as each scene mostly likely is different. Night vs. Day. Interior vs Exterior, etc. Sometimes you don’t have control and have to lean into those obstacles.
What you can do is, let’s say you want to shoot at a t/2.8 the entire time. Then maybe your subject at key is always a 2.8. You can modify through lighting or in camera via ND, shutterspeed/angle, ISO..then work from there.
Maybe the fill or shadow side of your subject always lies at a t/2 or 1.4, then adjust accordingly. Same goes for background or practical’s.
A light meter is your best friend, buy a combo if you can! I think Roger (and myself) own the Gossen Luna Pro which have both. Cheap to find and take a 9v battery.
I look at it this way– You are investing in yourself and if it’s something you plan to make a return on by creating an end product, it should pay itself back relatively quickly. I’m not sure what level you’re at, maybe your day rate is $500-1200/day f0r example and your kit fee is $300/day, you can expect to pay off that camera in a few videos. There is a saying that if you do it right the first time, it will be cheaper in the long run as you won’t be needing to upgrade again and again.
And if you really want to pay it off quickly, throw it up on a rental site or house or rent it out to your friends and you’ve got yourself passive income.
Turtle Base, they are the bottom or ‘feet’ of a c-stand. Essentially the lowest position you can get on a stand without a babypin nailed to a piece of plywood.
@Roger — Ah I’m starting to see where there was confusion in my thinking. Printer lights and timing are completely separate from each other? I was assuming they were a part of the same process.
So if one shoots on 16mm (or any film for that matter) and scans to digital, then there is no real need for printer lights as that’s meant for projection?
@Quijotesco — Yes I’ve done something similar using Resolves false color to figure out ratios between background and talent or to see where the overall exposure lies within a frame. You’re correct though in saying that the final image is what you’re basing it off of, so if it was decided in post to take down the background 1 or more stops… you’re left up to imagination.
@David — That’s the most true statement if I’ve ever heard it haha. At the end of the day it’s not so much technicallities as it’s about the story and how we feel about it.David,
Thank you for such a considered answer!!
Since I’ve shot entirely digital in my career, my familiarity with printer lights is only up to the last few weeks, so it all feels rather “sorcery”. Your example including Richard Kline makes sense to me though as I assume it would’ve otherwise been left up to a lab technician to decide what was ‘normal’?
Also thank you for the tip about doing tests and shooting a grey card at the top of the roll –that helps me understand this more.
Roger, i’m more recently shooting 16mm on a Bolex and mostly gauge off my meter where a general exposure would land — printer lights are done once the film has (or is) been scanned correct? Then you can tell if you’ve been under or over in the shooting process?
Your DI on the day sort of has your back while shooting, monitoring scopes or waveform, but I imagine in your head you still expose just as you would’ve when shooting film.
I hope i’m not complicating the topic, i’m just curious to your method
Ah yes and I have played with such tools in resolve. It actually makes it much easier to grade as it’s a point based system (+\-1) within each RGB channel as opposed to moving a wheel around.. i’m no colorist so I can’t say that I full understand resolve in all it’s complexities.
The problem with unbleached muslin is that it significantly reduces light emission. Depending on your lights, placement of lights and diffusion you may lose a ton of light and be in a pinch–which is why a lot of the time, muslin can be more efficient as a bounce source.
Your best bet is to test a scene where you had your light open face (or w/o diffusion) then place each sheet and see if you like the effect. I hope that helps
-T
