Monthly Archives: July 2010

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A friend just recently started shooting DSLR video and the Canon T2i is his first. He's had some practice on my 5D Mark II when I first got it years ago, but switching to an all DSLR workflow takes some getting used to. Originally he was using the Canon HV20 camcorder. Since he did have access to some Nikon Film lenses from past Photography hobbies, a simple adapter from eBay allowed him to use a Nikon 85mm on this project. This project was submitted to PopTent.net - a very fun video contest website with cash prizes and a cool social network twist. No additional lighting was used, just the Canon T2i + Nikon 85mm. Here's the direct link to his video submission.

I think he did a great job with very minimal experience in DSLR, and very minimal equipment. There's plenty of funny stories behind the making of this short clip, which we plan to do a 'Directors Cut' interview for. I'll sit down with him soon and ask him a bunch of questions on what it was like to shoot on DSLR.

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sony-nex-interchangeable-lens-camcorder

Ok, so i'm sitting here playing with the Sony NEX-3 Interchangeable lens camera trying to figure out better ways to make this shoot like a real video camera. Next I get an email from Alex Cahiz pointing me to the latest Engadget article about Sony's latest Video Camera announcement. A 3" Swivel LCD, Still Photos, 1080p, 24 frames, and SDHC storage are some of the terminology being dropped, oh and also an estimated street price of $2,000 US. It should be bundled with an 18-200mm lens, so it's not a terrible price for something that acts more like a Video Camera should. Check out the full write up over at Engadget.

From the images above it looks like it has both an LCD and a ViewFinder for sharper focus? It also has a better Stereo microphone position over current DSLR's. The smartest thing Sony can do to really steal back some of the current market is to come out with a Canon Lens adapter right from the start. Hey, Apple went to the Intel platform, supported Windows installations, and now look where they are at. If Sony can adapt for Canon, i'm sure most of the Canon users would love to pick this thing up and test it out with the current gear they are already so much invested in.

Update: Looks like more specs are available and many comments are talking about the correction on 24p. It's actually 24Mbs bitrate which is half the 5D Mark II, and no indication of 24p. This is a big time deal breaker for people who can already afford the T2i with several aftermarket accessories available on the cheap. I don't think Tamron, Sigma, or Tokina are making Sony mount lenses for the NEX? This will definitely put Sony in a niche audience.

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Above is an older video from Dynamic Perceptions LLC. I just heard a rumor that Dynamic Perceptions will be releasing their long awaited motion controlled timelapse rig. Ok, i'm lying they emailed me, I was on a newsletter list. It's not a rumor. I hope this isn't top secret guys! Soon to be released and awesome as hell, I can't wait to start seeing some Timelapse videos shot with their new motion controlled rigs. Dynamic Perceptions are responsible for the rig that was used to make that famous Iceland Volcano timelapse found here.

They promised a really low budget motion controlled timelapse slider, and from the estimated prices, it looks like they've met that promise. If you're interested in seeing more awesome footage, hit em up. If you guys happen to get one before me, share them videos.

Another fine example of the Dynamic Perceptions Timelapse dollies was used for this video.

Macro Timelapse Dolly Moves (Hacked GH1) from MILapse on Vimeo.

The most demanding moves for the timelapse dolly are macro. What's a better way to test my freshly hacked GH1??

This is using the dynamicperception.com timelapse dolly at full speed for various focus rack moves. All shots were captured in avchd VIDEO with a hacked GH1 (thanks to tester13! donate now! https://www.gh1-hack.info/) with a Sigma 105/2.8 macro. Most are 1-3 inches of travel...

I'm running the GH1 @ (40(5) 50(5) 56(5) 60(5) aka the jobless 'D' settings) which should result in 37.4 Mbps. It looks astounding to me! enjoy & feel free to download for a big screen mind melting experience...

Track: NIN "1 Ghosts I"

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Thanks to a reader submission, here's an unusual LCD View Finder for DSLR's that's even viewable at an angle. Through the description it says it's also magnified. It looks to be similar in design as the Zacuto Z-Finder, but doesn't look to be quite the build quality. Prices are pretty steep, and I haven't seen anyone else talking about this or using it, but it's great to share this information I guess. You can find the unusual Angle Viewfinder for DSLR's at this link.

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I received the $99 Dollar DSLR Shoulder Shooter from Express35.com today. It was late when I got home, and didn't get to test it out with all my Canon cameras, but I did quickly throw on the Sony NEX which seems perfect for it. I have extra clamps which I was able to mount my Rode VideoMic and my Zoom H4n.

This is a great start to an excellent event coverage type rig for me. Very lightweight and very stable when holding it. Some things i'm looking to improve upon this lightweight setup is to replace the Rode Microphone with something hard mounted, not with a shock mount.

Azden-Hard-mounted-shotgun-microphone
Maybe an Azden Self Powered Mini Shotgun Microphone would suffice.

The Azden SGM-X found at BHPHOTOVIDEO.com, looks promising.

I also want to replace the Zoom H4n on this rig with the new Zoom H1 (once it ships). This would make it extremely light. Also I may add a very small LED light if I happen to be shooting in a Night Club scene.

zoom-h1
click image for pre-order

The Sony doesn't allow me to adjust Aperture manually with the current lens. There is a Canon FD mount adapter that will allow me to use those older Canon FD manual lenses on this Sony, so that should fix that problem. I'll see if I can get one of those to finish it off with a nice FD 50mm. Check out the Canon Lens to Sony NEX adapter.

canon-fd-lens-adapter-sony-nex
click image for Canon FD adapter to Sony NEX

Soon i'll get some footage up of a Canon DSLR on this $99 Dollar DSLR Shooter, unless someone beats me to the punch. As of now I love the look of this shoulder rig on this Sony NEX, and the rig seems to be the right size for it.

The Sony NEX interchangeable lens camera is now available at bhphotovideo.com

sony-nex
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Strobist: Canon 5D Mark II + Canon 24-105mm IS F/6.3, 1/125th, ISO 200, Single 580 EX II (set to manual mode) Shot through White Umbrella - Camera Left. No HSS, triggered with ST-E2, Exposure Controlled by Fader ND filter.

My neighbor often sees me running around the front of my house chasing my kids around with my camera. He asked if I can take a few snaps of his daughter. I don't think he really knew quite my investment and experience in photography. It was about 12 noon on a super duper bright sunny day. In order to expose for the sky without maxing out my shutter speed and keeping some DOF, I threw on the Fader Filter ND. It was important for me to keep my shutter down under 1/250ths of a second. Forgive some of the shots, this is her first time in front of a camera, and she's only 13. We started in the studio (my living room), to get her a bit comfortable, then took it outdoors. I think she might have been a bit intimidated by all the equipment and assistants I had with me also.

Why not use High Speed Sync?
With a single 580 EX II, shooting through an umbrella, I wanted to use the maximum power output of my 1 flash. When going into HSS mode, the flash needs to pulse which reduces the power output. So by keeping my shutter speed to normal sync speed, I was able to use the full burst power. In actuality I only needed between 1/8th and 1/4 power. Staying at fractions of full power allows me to have super fast recycle times too.

Threw my subject into a shaded area to balance lighting, under exposed the sky using a Fader ND, and then filled my subject with a single 580 EX II off camera, shot through a White Umbrella, triggered by a Canon ST-E2. Very simple, portable, cheap, yet effective way to get quality fill flash outdoors. This method allows you to use any flash since the sync speed is below HSS needs. Too bad I didn't have someone shooting some BTS video, this would have been a great tutorial to share.

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Music video shot on (2) Canon 5D Mark II's. Here's the final version of a project I was invited to hang out with. A friend of mine told me they had plans to shoot a music video (all DSLR) at a San Francisco residence, so he invited me to check it out and bring some of my gear. This music video was for the artist 'Sherlock Tones' on a song featuring Terra Rothman titled 'Distant Strangers'.

The fairly large crew on set were kind enough to let me shoot along side as 'Camera B', with my Canon 5D Mark II and I was able to provide a few nice lenses that ended up being used quite frequently. Lenses used were primarily the Canon 100mm Macro IS F/2.8 (my new one), 85mm F/1.2, Canon 50mm F/1.4, and I believe Canon 24mm was on hand. There was a RedRock EyeSpy deluxe with Follow Focus on hand, but many of the shots were handheld or Tripod, and also the $99 slider played a very small role. You can catch some of the BTS footage shot by Warren during the music video shoot, and all cast and crew credit information can be found at this Vimeo link.

Thanks to all the guys who let me hang out. Hopefully I wasn't too much in the way of all the production, and helped contribute a little something to a very awesome shoot!

Credits from the Vimeo Link:
"Distant Strangers" is available on iTunes: ow.ly/29N6s
sherlocktonesmusic.com
inhouserecords.com

Director - Anton Delfino
Producers - Reinel Adajar, Khattab McIntosh, AC Lorenzo, Melissa Santikul, Eric Quintana
Co-Producers - Albert Mangay, Anton Delfino
Cinematographer - Albert Mangay
1st Assistant Director - AC Lorenzo
Gaffer/Media Manager - Eric Quintana
Production Designer - Melissa Santikul
Hair/Makeup - Katrina Baligaya
1st Assistant Camera - Chester Manuel
B Camera Operator - Emm
Media Assistant/Playback - Warren Moises
Production Assistants - Anthony Dimalanta, David Liem
Locations - Penelope Lim
Catering/Craft Services - Regina Lim, Victoria Delfino

Special Thanks - Tess Arenzana, Joy Bontigao, Monica Santos Quintana, Caleb Quintana, Julius Sambajon, Jon Fordham, Paciano Triunfo, John Raposas, AJ Calomay, Patricio Ginelsa, Christal Calderon, Jess Lin, Borrowlenses.com, Portillo's, Sherlock Tones and Inhouse Records

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Looks like Vimeo member Choon Ean, was doing a bit of research into a handheld stabilizer and chose one I recommended for lightweight cameras. Thanks for the plug on my stabilizer video Choon Ean!

She does an excellent job showing off the capabilites of this stabilizer with lightweight gear such as the Panasonic GH1 + 20mm lens. She also does an impressive job of switching hands several times to show how stable the video can be maintained. I'm not sure how long she's been 'flying' this camera, but she sure looks like a pro. You can find prices for the Hague Mini Camera Stabilizer here.

hague-mini
click image to buy

Check out the Lensse modeled exactly like the Hague.
lensse-stabilizer

Check out the Stabilizer from IndieHardware. This one brags to be much better than the Hague, possibly in size, and gimbal rotation. It does look pretty beefy.
camcorder-camera-stabilizer

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This rod may not show up in searching under DSLR stabilizers, that's because it's been around for quite a while. The Tiffen Steady Stick (somtimes found under Davis & Sanford Steady Stick) works similar to the Body Support Rods underneath Shoulder Support rigs, except you don't need to buy the entire rig. This type of stabilizer will give you a nice support contact via belt clip, to support the weight of your DSLR camera, so you can concentrate more of your focus and composition. It also can pack up to travel size to fit in your luggage, and won't even break the bank. Check out the Tiffen Steady Stick prices on eBay..

So why am I posting this information now if it's been around for a while and many people already know about this item? Well, i've had my eye on the thing for quite a while also, and prices normally averaged $99 dollars. Right now you can grab them at just $59.95 + Free Shipping [via Amazon]

Or if you're a B&H Photo Video customer, you can grab the Davis & Sanford Steady Stick over at bhphotovideo.com for the same price [+ shipping charges]

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