3D: a new perspective

Electronics manufacturers have been prepping us quite a while now for the new generation of electronic equipment: 3D camera’s and TV’s. For us filmmakers this has considerable consequences: how do you shoot (for) 3D? What do you need, how do you prepare? En what to consider when on the set?

But the first question should be: do I even want to shoot in 3D? Why? What is the added value of 3D?

I recently saw the animated film ‘Cloudy with a chance of meatballs’ in 3D with my kids.  At first I was somewhat amused by the flying fastfood all around us but to say I was heavily impressed…  except for some visual trickery, what did it really add to the experience? You see one flying meatball, you’ve seen ‘m all and I found myself being increasingly annoyed by this repetition.. It certainly did not compensate for the equally annoying 3D glasses you have to wear all during the show. But the glasses will soon be history, I understand, and maybe 3D is the unavoidable future, just as HD replaces standard definition.

No sleep, no shot

Yesterday I had a job shooting a timelapse of a huge party tent being set up. I had to be somewhere 130 kilometers away at 7 AM. Which meant that I had to leave the house at 5.30 AM. Not my best time of the day...
So I go to bed early and at 11.45 PM, just after I fall asleep, I am awakened by a phonecall. The tent guy calls to say things are moving faster than expected. Could I be there at 5 AM?
So suddenly I have only 3,5 hours of sleep left and that idea keeps me wide awake. The more I look at the clock, the more awake I become. This stresses me out so much that sleep is completely out of the question. At 3.15 I get up and arrive at the place at exactly 5.01 AM. And what do I see? A big white, nearly completed tent! They started at 4 but didn't bother to tell me... All I can do is set up my camera and film them raising the last post of the tent. I feel utterly useless and am cold and hungry. And just as I think it can't get any worse than this, a giant shower pours from the sky over me and my camera. I have arrived in videoproduction hell...

ALL THAT'S LEFT FOR MY TIMELAPSE

Cool DSLR app

Don't you just love this idea- and this iPhone app looks great, too.
For 8 bucks you can buy yourself the Swiss Army knife of DSLR-shooting. (although certainly not limited to DSLR's). Main features:

• Electronic Slate
• Viewfinder
• Daylight hours
• Shot log
• Depth of field calculator
• Spirit level

There's more in-depth information at the website. It's a Beta-release; on the website a few functions are mentioned that may behave 'erratically' but the developer seems to be serious about fixing these issues. It's to his credits that he mentions the shortcomings.

Everything you always wanted to ask about FCP X...

but were afraid to know... Apple posted a page on the most asked questions about FCP X and about what they are planning for the future. They also posted a nice overview of the 50 most important features of FCP X. How kind of them!
(by the way, the response to my post yesterday about 5 kilo's of FREE FCP TRAINING BOOKS has been overwhelming. But no one wants to be photographed?!)

This picture is not just gratuitous sex aimed at luring you to my blog. (although it helps!) This is the result of googling for pictures on 'FCP X' and using the 'Large' filter! There were more scarcely clad ladies but this one appears to be the most X in my view...)

Free! 5 kilo's of Apple Certified Training

Anyone interested in a vintage series of Apple Pro training books? Five volumes including Motion, Color Correction, Optimizing your FCP system and Advanced Editing Techniques. Hundreds of highly informative pages, each book including a DVD. New price between $400-500! I'll throw in the unforgettable Final Cut Pro 4: time-saving tips and shortcuts from the pros, just for the hell of it.
There's only one 'but': you have to collect them at my place and agree to have your picture taken for this blog! Alternatively, the whole lot will be donated to the Apple Museum of Brutalized Applications.

Beauty of Bokeh

A first experiment in defocus. Edited in... tadaa FCP X! Hard to say anything about it because I just delved in. It's a completely new and unfamiliar program... Will say more about it once I get to know the app. Definite iMovie feature: exported my timeline straight to Vimeo. But do I like that? The export editor is limited and I have no idea where the QT file is on my computer?! Or has my creation merely been absorbed by The Cloud?
But back to bokeh. It's just as hard to get a consistent bokeh as it is to get accurate focus!

Soft Summer in the City from Filmersblog on Vimeo.

7UP in the USSR

I'd like to mention a documentary series that ranks high in top documentaries of all times: the 7-up series. The idea is simple: follow a group of children from the age of 7 and revisit them every 7 years. Take children from various social backgrounds and from different parts of the country and ask them about their dreams, their fears, their passions, struggles and daily lives.
What you get is a extremely personal and confronting portrait of a people and a nation. With every 7 years added to the series, the project becomes more interesting because all the (unfulfilled) dreams and (unexpected) developments have a history we know of. Once we meet people as children, you understand and sympathize with them as grownups.

New: Camera pants

It's sunday, I have an incredible hangover, I visit my mother and she gives me these (swimming)pants. The upside is that I have a subject for my blog. The downside is that I'll look like a freak the entire summer... Love ya, mom, thanks.

I did it - FCP X is mine

I have to say, much of what is missing in FCP X, I really won't be missing. I don't work in a complex editing environment. I hardly use third party software. I am a one man band. I don't work with tape. My current FCP system is not stable. I want that lightning fast 64-bit rocket speed. I like new stuff. Lots of reasons to take the plunge. And then I read this, which tipped the scale in Apple's favor. I think Apple will deliver the goodies (for me, at least). In the meantime, this setup will work fine for me.

(One more thing: who says it's only €240? You're not going to leave out Compressor and Motion so it's actually €320. (or US $400))

Mailbox: Slik Pro 700 DX tripod

I received my Slik tripod today that I was very much looking forward to. My Manfrotto 525P kit is just too bulky and heavy when riding my bicycle around town to shoot video. (or the occasional photograph)
Besides, I already had a Fancier 717AH video head and only needed an extra pair of legs to have a second tripod for events and video registrations.
I bought this from a US eBay seller and got slapped with €30 VAT and import taxes when the courier delivered at the door. As a business, I get the VAT back (€20) and the import tax I can deduct later on but still... this was the first time in years I had to pay for importing gear. I had practically forgotten about these taxes! It's probably because it's the biggest piece of gear I have imported in years.

(e)X Final Cut Pro?

This hurts. A lot of bad stuff has been written about the new Final Cut. And rightly so. It appears Apple has said goodbye to professional video editing environments. There's just too much to neglect. No backwards compatibility with 'vintage' FCP, no multicam editing, lousy compatibility with other postproduction software, no professional external monitoring, no way to customize media organization, no capture from or to tape (aside from firewire), the list goes on.
And yet... FCP could still be for me. I am a one man band and almost exclusively deliver finished projects, quicktime files. I just signed up for an informative meeting around FCP X, to get the nitty gritty from the pro's. I am unsure whether to buy: should I go Adobe Premiere, AVID?

The world has changed. FCP is no longer the realm of video professionals. It belongs to the masses. A revolution is about to take place. What will happen to all the usergroups? Los Angeles Final Cut Pro User Group? L-AVID-UG? LA-AP-UG. Or the more generic LA-VIDEOEDIT-UG? The base of these groups may very well disintegrate. Macvideo? Will it lose its following? The Mac has lost its exclusive, cutting edge image. It aims for the Big Numbers. If financial success is a measure, then hipster Mac has become the new nerdy Microsoft...

Final Cut Pro X hands-on!

The first video's are starting to appear where people are actually using FCP X. I just watched one and I am excited and disappointed at the same time. Excited because it's new, fast and full of good stuff... and disappointed because I feel iMovie users will be faster at editing than I am with my 10 years of FCP experience...

We got 'm!

FCP X is here to download. €239,99 We got a new Compressor (4) and Motion (5) as well. 39,99 each. Friendly numbers...
I'm scared: 10 years of FCP experience means nothing anymore! I want to download and install and get to work but maybe it'll be weeks before I can even finish a simple assignment. Help!!

Sexiest topic on earth(not): lens adapters

SALESPERSON DEMONSTRATING C MOUNT ADAPTER

no-brand, well machined

(too) simple design

Ok, so it's not the most sexy topic in the world: adapter rings. An adapter is an adapter is an adapter, right? A simple piece of metal designed to connect two otherwise incompatible connectors. Yes and no. On the one hand it's supposed to do just that: connect two alien bodies. (it's getting sexier already...) But on the other hand: even simple little devices can vary enormously. Since yesterday I discovered some adapters are far more superior than others, even though they cost a lot less than some of their counterparts.

thicker metal, better grip

it works, but not great

Comparing the C mount to micro 4/3 adapters from Camdiox and a no-name one from this seller, I noticed that the no-name is much better machined, uses thicker metal and, perhaps most importantly, the outer ring has a very nice 'grip-design' that lets you attach and detach your lens with ease. It's the difference between disposable design and craftmanship. At US $8 including shipping this ring is highly recommended. I give it 4 stars: **** (out of five- always leave room for improvement...)

grip and thickness difference

Small camera for Big Jobs?

I'm still holding off to shoot a commercial assignment with my Panasonic GH2. The reason is as simple as it is silly: appearance. Many clients still like -demand!- big camera's. And they distrust small camera's. I have heard people talk in derogatory terms about 'that small camera', 'that photocamera' and other nasty references to what people consider to be 'unprofessional equipment'. I have seen beautiful footage shot with the 5D Mark II, much more impressive than what I could do with my EX1R, but the one thing that stuck in their minds was that 'the guy worked with a really small camera...'. An ignorant remark perhaps, but it's the reality of working with certain clients.
I think a matte box will do an adequate job of impressing clients that require so... Well, in combination with the Gini rig, follow focus and an external monitor that I already have. But the matte box wouldn't just serve cosmetic purposes. I think the convenience of a matte box for adding and removing ND filters would be a great plus. A matte box is a simple system designed to hold filters and reduce flare. But looking at their prices you'd think you are buying high tech space constructions. Looking for a solid Chinese or Korean alternative but even the simplest design goes for well over 100 dollars. And that doesn't even include some rod-mount option. So if anyone knows of a quality, budget mattebox with rod-mount- I'm open to suggestions!

FCP 7 to FCP X

This is going to be a Pain in the Butt for everyone but there's no escaping this one: a complete reinstall of the OS and (editing) software. Before you master FCP X you may want to keep a copy of FCP 7 to get those quick jobs done... quickly.
Here's a tutorial on how to keep multiple operating systems on one computer and 'Make a seamless transition' from (Snow) Leopard and FCP 7 to Lion and FCP X.

Budget portable jib

This looks like a great jib at a very reasonable price. I just asked about their shipping costs to Amsterdam but if it's too much I may add it to my 'US gear shopping list' when I visit the East Coast this summer!

Portable 4' Video Crane Samples from Olivia Speranza on Vimeo.

When disaster strikes...

...continue to work and pretend nothing is wrong. Last night had very bad karma. I was suffering from a bad headache that lasted for 2 days and had barely slept the night before. And when you're tired, you slip. I discovered that I forgot my quick releaseplate (at home, attached to my Canon 550D) just before we were about to shoot a group of people interacting. Four hours of panning and zooming without a tripod? Disaster. My partner gave me a roll of duck tape and I taped my EX1 to my tripod. It's a heavy camera so it took a lot of tape! It was sitting all crooked but by turning the Guide Frames on in the LCD screen I was able to level the camera by eye, using the walls and windows in the background to match the horizontal lines. Far from ideal, but it worked.
After about 3,5 hours of non-stop shooting, disaster number 2: my partners Sony A1 broke down. It refused to close when changing tapes... it jammed, blocked and stayed that way whatever we tried. We looked like a battlefield: one crooked, one broke. Disaster never seems to travel alone.

Outta Space!

To boldly go where no man has gone before...

SPACE SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR FINAL LAUNCH from Northern Lights on Vimeo.

Mailbox: Russian Helios 44-2

I just couldn't resist when a Russian made Helios 44-2 came along, a 58mm f2 lens, and I bought it for 20,-
I took it outside to play for a few hours and shot this footage of raindrops in the park. I called it 'dewdrops' because it sounds better ;-)
Unfortunately I couldn't fit my Fader ND filter on the lens to be able to shoot wide open. Most of it is actually almost closed at f16. From what I've seen and read, you get some really funky bokeh with the Helios- which isn't too apparent here. Shots came out nice though and the lens is pretty sharp.

Shot with the Panasonic GH2 and Helios 44-2

Dewdrops from Filmersblog on Vimeo.

3 million viewers in one year

I've been watching my 10 year old son, who's developed an addiction to Lego Star Wars animations on YouTube over the last few months. To my surprise, he doesn't watch trailers or excerpts from the original Star Wars trilogy but prefers to look at the simple (or sometimes not so simple) Lego figure animations.
I though it was so funny that he was fascinated by all these amateuristic, homemade video's but I soon understood why he liked them so much: because it was part of his experience. He has the same action figures and star ships and can recreate that world. Which he does: hours and hours a day. I encourage him to make stop-motion films or at least make photographs and share his creations with likeminded peers. So he can accomplish what I can only dream of: reach over 3 million 600 thousand of viewers in one single year!

The promised land of tapeless acquisition

Life was supposed to be all good once tape was abolished and we were all going to the promised land of tapeless acquisition. Well, the acquisition part is mostly good and I'm glad I never have to think about buying tape or worry about running out of tape in the last ten minutes of a theatre registration...

But the convenience of handing over a tape at the end of a shoot and writing an invoice is also history. Because handing over your flash memory cards is a no-no unless you can make a copy at the spot. Which means dragging a laptop and a harddrive to the set, make extra time to copy all the files, hand over the drive to the client and hope you get it back. Not very practical.
My last job I chose to send the files to my clients' server. Upload speed was 50 Kb/s so I was 'lucky' it was only 10GB in files. After 50 hours the upload was finished. My client can't see my work because he needs to send it to his editor to import it into a NLE-system first.
I love tapeless acquisition. It's just that life was a lot easier when I could just hand a tape over to my client.

DIY quickrelease viewfinders

I really like my clone LCD viewfinder. It took a while to figure out a good way to work with it, but ever since I disposed of the metal sticky frame (kept falling off), I was good to go. (With the articulating screen on the GH2, glueing a metal frame on the screen was never an option.) I use it like a jeweler, hanging the loupe around my neck. Whenever I need to check focus or whatever, I stick it on and otherwise its off, out of the way. Especially when you're on the go and want to set up and break down quickly, this is a nice, portable approach. 
Then I saw a DIY video on something I had thought of before but had never seen: using the LCD-protector mounting system to make a 'quickrelease viewfinder'. Great! And for those of us born with two left hands, here's a readymade solution that's not going to break the bank.

A few cents for smooth pans

An oldie but goodie. Never seen it before. Should also great in combination with a slider so you don't get those jerky starts or stops.


Rubber Band Tip from Braxton McCarthy on Vimeo.

A documentary masterpiece

I saw the incredible documentary 'Stand van de Sterren' (Position of the Stars) the other night. It is the last part of a trilogy on three generations of Indonesians: an old woman, her middle aged son and a granddaughter. The maker, Leonard Retel Helmrich, is a completely original and tenacious filmer who has developed a unique way of operating and using a camera. His films have a 'fly on the wall' feel but now 'the fly has left the wall' and circles and flies with & around his subjects. His aim is to shoot a scene with as few interruptions as possible; as one long, smooth shot.
He does this with amazing agility and I believe he has developed special gear to fly high or low and get incredible perspective. Sometimes he approaches the face of his protagonists within inches and, amazingly, they don't even flinch an eye. It's like the filmer and his camera are not there.
Not only his style, but the content of this trilogy is baffling as well: at once extremely personal and dramatic, showing his characters vulnerable, flawed and at all times captivating and intimate against the backdrop of social turmoil and changing times, religious differences and inequality.
This is a film that every film and documentary maker should see, as an example how style and content come together to form a masterpiece.

A bag for my new tripod

fancy but heavy

 

It seems like I'm spending a few bucks more on this tripod than planned... Funny, hasn't that happened before... with other purchases?
But I have to protect my new investment. Can't go around slugging and beating it against the pavement, in and out of cars, on and off my bike without some sort of protection. So I started hunting for a tripod carrying bag and found a really nice, affordable 'Slik' bag, designed specifically for my tripod, but it seems just a bit short for the legs and leveler and head combo. Another downer is that this bag adds 3/4 kilo's to the weight I'm trying to save...
So after a little more research I think I found what I'm looking for. 20 euro's incl shipping.

slim and lightweight

Tripod on the way: Slik 700DX Pro

I went ahead and ordered this set of tripod legs. These legs combined with the Fancier 717 AH video head and Manfrotto 438 ball leveller will form my new portable tripod set, while serving double-duty as a second pair of decent legs for event registration. The set weighs around 4 kilo's, which is a whopping 3 kilo's lighter than my Manfrotto kit. With a maximum load of 6,5 kilo and rising up to 1.90 meter this tripod fulfills more than all my needs.
Strange that these Slik legs are not available in the Netherlands. I decided to order from a US eBay seller for 92 euro's all in, a very decent price for a solid yet light set of legs. Below a guy doing a review who was advised to buy this combo by a knowledgeable photographer who contributes to the B&H photo and video website. My combo beats that by a 100 bucks.

(royalty) free music

Who doesn't need it? A soundtrack for a commercial, a soundbite here, a musical interlude to spice up a clip... When I just started out in this business, I would simply pick a nice tune from my extensive music collection, add it as a soundtrack and everyone was happy... I never imagined I had to pay copyrights for these 3 minute budget productions I was making. But then a client of mine was approached by a copyright organization about the music I used for a video I produced for them.

It just happened to be that I 'composed' it myself in Garageband but it was a warning nonetheless.

Lately I've pretty much exhausted all the Garageband tunes and was looking for something else. A friend and colleague of mine pointed me to this online library where you can find a lot of great tunes, many of which you can use for commercial purposes, as long as you credit the makers. With over 90.000 tunes available -and growing- there must be something for every clip and every mood. Some of them sound more professional than others but if you take the time to explore, this is a very worthwhile place for finding royalty free music for your videos.

I need some legs

SILK PRO 700DX legs

I've got a head, so that's taken care of. I've also got a ball leveler, thanks to a good tip from Neil, a loyal reader. Now I just need a nice set of legs. After doing a lot of reading and clicking, somewhere along the line I stumbled on a set of Slik Pro 700DX legs for US $89,- That's a price I can live with, especially considering the raving reviews.
These sticks are very hard to find in Holland and if you do, they are 2 to 3 times the US price... Maybe another purchase during my trip to the States this summer..? The only doubts I have about this tripod is the weight: 2.7 kgs for the legs only. If I add that to my fluid head and ball leveller, won't it match my big Manfrotto kit in weight? There must be something lighter, I don't mind if it only carries a few kilo's. But carbon is way out of my budget... Any ideas anyone?

Sex sells

I just watched the latest episode of this informative series by Larry Jordan & Co on 'sounddesign' ie the importance of adding layers of sound to create an extra dimension -or extra dimensions- to your film. I have a great deal of respect for Larry Jordan and have learned much from his tutorials on FCP and the entire FCS over the last years. But the 2 Reel Guys don't cut it for me.
I have to start out that content-wise I have nothing but praise so that's not the issue. Larry and his partner are knowledgeable and the topics covered are relevant.
But I cannot help feeling that I'm looking at two very nerdy schoolteachers who talk too much and really like to listen to themselves. And they use too little examples to clarify their points. And when they do, it's pretty lame: a cheapish highschool theatre setting with overacted dialogue. (Or is it a joke? I couldn't tell.) Everything screams 'zap me outta here'...
Yes, watching this episode is like being in high school all over again: when can I get outta here? But just as it was in high school, sex saves the day. Larry introduces the biggest set of tits and suddenly I'm all eyes and ears! Tell me, Larry, and look me straight in the eyes, was this girl a lucky break or was this 'n old trick of the trade..?

Review: C mount 4-12mm Tamron 1.2

Here's a kid who's made a nice, thorough video review of this C mount lens on the Panasonic GH2. Also interesting information about using C mount lenses in general and surveillance lenses (such as this Tamron) in particular. Only critique I have is that there's no link to a seller of this lens! (he mentions he bought it for around 90,- but didn't say where)

Special offer: DVD Willem + book for 15,-

A few years ago I made a film, my first feature documentary, about a Dutch artist called Willem van Malsen. In Dutch the film is called: 'Willem, een duivelskunstenaar'.

The literal translation would be something like 'Willem: a devilish artist'. But the word 'duivelskunstenaar' in Dutch has several meanings: someone who is a master in his trait, a sorcerer. In relation to Willem it has even more meaning because he had a devilish/dark side to him. First off, he was funny as hell but it was it was the (d)evil in him, his substance abuse, that ultimately killed him at the age of 65.

These are the first 6 minutes of an intimate portrait of an irresistible, gregarious individual and wildly versatile talent through the eyes of some of his best friends, family members and colleagues.

This film was selected for the Nederlands Film Festival and was broadcast by the AVRO (public broadcasting) in 2008.

'Willem: een duivelskunstenaar' from Imagine Video on Vimeo.

The DVD plus a special edition sketchbook by Willem can be ordered for 15,- excl shipping for a limited time. (month of June) To order, please send an email to info@imaginevideo.nl

Biking in Belgium- no filmpost!

Just finished 120 km in the Belgian Ardennes and driving back to
Amsterdam, wasted and satisfied with my performance. Two things on my
mind: bath and beer!

great deal on a DSLR-bag

Late last year I bought a LowePro Slingshot 102AW for a decent price. I had (and still have) a LowePro backpack for DSLR and laptop and love the quality of their products. The Slingshot seemed ideal for running (biking) around with a DSLR, extra lens and tripod.
But the design never really worked for me. I used it a few times but it never became a love affair, to say the least... I want to be able to quickly have access to my camera: open a velcro flap and that's it. I wound up using an old Sony mini-camcorder bag and the LowePro disappeared in a closet. But the camcorder bag does not hold an extra lens and LCD viewfinder. So I decided to look for a new bag; a shoulderbag that can hold 2 extra lenses and a viewfinder, plus an extra compartment for cards and batteries.

Now I've always liked Crumpler bags. I like their look, the padded, waterproof nylon and thick shoulderpad. And one eBay seller had the right Crumpler bag for the right price: the Messenger Boy 8000 for 45,- incl shipping. That's less than half of what they charge in a store here in Amsterdam. UPS delivered it blazing fast; the very moment a lady stopped by to buy my LowePro Slingshot. The nice thing about the Crumpler is that it is much more versatile than the Slingshot: it holds a DSLR but also my Sony EX1-R videocamera. And take the dividers out and you have a regular messenger bag. I think I love this bag...

Dirtcheap steadycam: first impression

If you can offer a metal camera stabilizer including shipping for 50,- you deserve the label 'dirtcheap'. The Turkish company Lensse does exactly that. Today I received my 'steadycam' and I was very curious to see what I would get. Shipping: not in a box but in a bubble envelope. And inside the bubble envelope were two additional bubble envelopes: a big one holding the stabilizer and a small one holding the weights. There is a single piece of printed paper with very basic instructions how to set the unit up.
FEEL & FINISH
The stabilizer itself feels far from dirtcheap. It's a simple yet solid design with a nice, comfortable handgrip, an all-metal gimbal and nice little details like anti-slip strips where the camera sits on the stabilizer, a comfortable plastic knob professionally lined with metal threading for attaching (and removing) the weights and a black finish all over. The only part that slipped through quality control is where there is some 'play' between the plastic cap and the screw that holds the weight. But that doesn't affect functionality and is purely cosmetic.
BALANCING
I tried balancing my Canon 550D/T2i with batterygrip and Helios 58mm on it but that didn't work out. Without the batterygrip I'm sure it would have worked. Then I mounted my Panasonic GH2 with Lumix 20mm and that felt right. I was able to balance it fairly quickly.

We read the friggin' manual! (update)

A while ago I wrote about my struggles with a brand new Sennheiser wireless G3 set that would not work. Three experienced videographers and a professional sound engineer could not get a signal out of that particular set. It was a frustrating and humbling experience. My friend spent an entire evening knitpicking the manual, came to me in sheer desperation the morning he was supposed to shoot with it for the first time and finally took my G2 set because I wasn't succesfull, either.
He sent the set back to the store and received a new one a week later. He hooked the set up to his camera, turned it on and... no signal... Not again! But a second later he discovered he had hooked up the transmitter to the camera instead of the receiver... Switched them around and by god, a signal! So yes, very once in a while you have memorized the manual and things still don't work... you just happened to have that one-in-a-thousand-lemon...

new and improved!

 

I discovered a new way of viewing the blog which, for us visually oriented readers, is a lot quicker and more interesting way to browse through all the entries in the blog! In the right top corner you can actually select a few different ways of viewing the blog archive in a pictoral overview. (now I just have to find a way to permanently display my blog that way... anyone?) Did I produce all of that content..?

Shooting football

A very nice day to shoot a football tournament. No rain! Hamburgers!
Relaxed people! And even time to catch a nap in the grass. Lovely.

Mailbox: Manfrotto 438

MANFROTTO 438: BUILT TO LAST

A few days ago I wrote about my frustrations about not being able to find a practical solution for leveling a portable tripod without a bowl. I have a decent tripod head, the Fancier FT-717, but it's not a bowl head. I also have a cheap Velbon tripod I can only level by extending/retracting legs: tedious and impractical. My Manfrotto 525P kit is too heavy/big for portable use. Reader Neil McDiarmid suggested the Manfrotto 438 ball camera leveller which turns my Fancier tripod head into a bowl-type tripod head. It is certainly not cheap, but very well-built and very practical.
Aside from using it on a tripod, the 438/head combo also comes in very handy in combination with a slider like the Konova. Leveling made easy and lightweight- without a bowl!

438 and FANCIER HEAD COMBO

A new job

I started a new career as a hart surgeon! Here I am after a
succesful open heart operation.
(ok, I lied. I'm just filming surgery... 3 operations. Got up at 5.45
and won't be ready before 5 om. Then I'll be picked up for the next
job at 6pm. (my wife needs money...)

The Great Adapter Shootout

You have two C mount to Micro 4/3 adapters. One costs 17,67 euro, the other 7,50. Is the expensive model twice as good? Is is superior build quality? Better fit? Filmersblog took these babies to the limit and came with some suprising results...

First off, the adapters were weighed and measured for thickness. Next, they were scrutinized by a panel of experts consisting of my wife and I to see if different designs and metals were used and if they had any imperfections. And finally, they were mounted to a GH2 with a Pentax 6mm and Wollensak Cine-Velostigmat.

Outcome:

• Weight and thickness: no difference
• Design: no difference
• Imperfections: no difference
• Materials used: no difference
• Functionality: no difference

Et voila our shocking conclusion of the Great Adapter Shootout, Edition One. For a simple C mount to M43, the model that costs 133% more is not even a fraction better than the budget model. However there seems to be another contender who uses different materials and at a whopping 42 euro's must be in a league of his own. Will this infamous Kipon adapter finally allow me to focus on infinity using my Pentax 6mm f1.2? Follow Filmersblog and find out in our next edition of the Great Adapter Shootout!


                                                   Find the differences

THE 17,67 MODEL

THE 7,50 MODEL

A boxer who doesn't like to fight

A new trailer for a doc I've been working on for 2 years with co-director Mark Limburg, a classical from rags to riches story about a man who's taken many beatings but refuses to go down.

As a boy growing up in a small village in Nigeria, Innocent Anyanwu realized that the cycle of poverty and illiteracy had to be broken. He took the fate of his village on his shoulders and started on an a journey that forced him to overcome many challenges. Three continents later he is faced by the greatest challenge of them all: to become a world boxing champion and earn enough money to realize his dream.

Shot on two EX1's (one was upgraded to an EX1R). Now in postproduction. (looking for funding & partners)

I am Innocent - 4 minute trailer from Filmersblog on Vimeo.

Tripods: why you need 2

Well, actually, YOU don't need two. It's just that I need two. I am riding around town on my bicycle a lot lately, carrying a small (DSLR) camerabag and a tripod and it's not working out. I tried shooting with a light, plasticky Velbon tripod but you really can't shoot video with these. It's a pain trying to level without a proper bowl; extending and retracting legs. Then I took out my Manfrotto with 503 fluid head but that's too bloody heavy when you're setting up and breaking down 25 times a day...
So I have been looking into a nice, multi-purpose tripod: I want to be able to use it for my second camera when shooting events but it has to be portable as well. I want something much lighter than my Manfrotto 525P kit yet it has to go as high as 6 feet. I want a bowl in a portable package.
Well, forget it... It doesn't exist. Either you go high and heavy or short and light. And in the latter case, you can forget the bowl. I'm open to suggestions. Anyone know something close to the Best of Both Worlds?

GH2 better than GH1? It better be...

I don't have the slightest doubt it is, but here's someone who has too much time on his hands and decided to go nitty gritty on the comparison. (I'm actually thankful someone does this: it keeps manufacturers sharp. Let us consumers decide which camera is better!) This guy takes a look at stills as well as video functions: autofocus, form factor, video quality, rolling shutter and more. This is actually a very nice blog about micro4/3rds photography so there's much more interesting stuff to read.

Bike mount

 As you may have noticed, I am an avid bicyclist. I am the proud owner of a 30-speed racing bike. I am not a very technical rider but compensate this with lots of enthusiasm. This morning I biked 60 or so kilometer with a mate and I have explored areas in and around Amsterdam I would have never seen without a bike.
In a few weeks I will ride 100 kilometers in a tour called the Steven Rooks Classic. Steven Rooks was a famous cyclist and this tour will take us to the south of the Netherlands, with lots of slopes. For someone who never rides anything but flat roads, this is going to be one tough cookie to swallow. And when the going gets rough- I want to take out my camera and record it!
I bought this little device to mount my Panasonic TZ7 on my bike. Turns out it doesn't fit my fat tubular steering wheel. So I guess I have to resort to more primitive gear. It doesn't look as good but it does the job. It keeps the camera upright and aimed forward. I hope I can accomplish the same in 2 weeks...

dirtcheap steadycam

Some sort of steadicam-device is part of many filmers' toolbox but somehow rarely used. (And then there's a few that completely overdo it and use the 'fly-cam' all the time.) I guess that's because we are always under pressure to get the shots and the steady-shot is -usually- not essential for the edit. And most of us have never really mastered the technique.
I once bought a Steadicam Merlin and used it maybe 5 times in my paid productions. That's almost 200 bucks per shot! And they never lasted longer than 4-5 seconds because that would be the point where the rig started to bop and sway... I never really got the hang of it and I'm sure that's because I didn't practice enough. I finally sold it because I couldn't balance my EX1 on it. Two months or so later I bought my DSLR and they would have worked together perfectly... It figures.
A week or so ago I saw some nice results that someone achieved with a 100,- Hague steadicam device much like the Merlin design, but in a budget version. He wrote he was able to stabilize it fairly quickly. I paid 9 times that much for my Merlin and the results looked the same. So I became interested and noticed these stabilizers are sold under different names. The (Turkish?) company Lensse seems to be the source manufacturer and sells them even cheaper. I decided that if I could win an eBay auction for around 50 euro's I would buy one. And I did! So if I only use it 5 times for my productions, that would amount to 10,- a shot. I can live with that.

Is it a bike- or a steadicam?

If you like bikes and DSLR-gear, you must love this piece of homemade ingenuity. A steadicam made completely out of bike parts. (except for one part, I believe) I love it not only because it shows you how to recycle your old bicycle into a piece of gear, but for the sheer fact that someone came up with this idea. It's the summum of recycling!

New FCP-plugin for Canon DSLR-shooters

There is a new EOS plugin for 5D Mark II, 7D and 60D owners. Where does that leave us 550D and 600D users? Why not a plugin for all DSLR EOS cameras? Or do we 550D/T2i owners have to change scripts in the plugin folder again as we did for the first EOS plugin? The ways of Canon are mysterious sometimes. (and often frustrating- ever tried to find something on their websites?)
Here is an explanation why this plugin should be a great improvement over the first one.