new music video (high iso footage with hacked gh1)

[twerked]

so in the 'film making on a budget...' thread i was saying how i found you could use the iso's greater than 1600 that are usually locked out in video mode on the panasonic gh1. i shot a music video with some guys i work with and their band last week and it was the first time i've actually used the new iso's.

i shot all of this (except for the opening and closing b&w shots) with either the toyo 28mm/f2.8 or the canon 50mm/f1.8 at 2000 and 3200 (the max on the camera) iso's. needless to say, there is some noise/grain. however, i personally don't think it's really that much or that bad. i kind of like it actually when it is noticable, and it sort of fits the overall feel of the video. i didn't really do much to the footage by ways of coloring or anything like that. there's a little bit of stuff i did, but the original footage, which i can post later, isn't much different.

using the two fd mount lenses and the fact they are much faster than the kit lens, helped a ton with avoiding noise. using the 50mm lens wide open and at 3200, the footage looked great. all of the christmas lights and stuff were in the space. i brought a projector and put two halogen work lamps in two corners and bounced the light off of the walls to brighten everything up a bit

anyways, here it is..c+c are welcomed.

[JacksSenseOfRejection]

Looks great. The colors are nice.

My main criticism is the focus pulling. Wit a lot of DSLR cinema "focus finding" and "focus pulling" has become a thing, and it works sometimes, but it has become a bit over used.

Focus pulls should be used to aid in the scene, and have a purpose. Pulling focus for the "oh cool" effect can work on a small scale, but over using it will make the camera an "actor" in the film making and I'm never a fan of that.

It also will look as if you're not quite sure how to focus and follow focus through your shots.

The video is great, just a minor thing on the composition stand point. Focus pulls work great for music videos, but I wouldn't use them on an actual narrative piece unless the scene calls for it.

[twerked]

on the focus pulling stuff, i did want it to have a kind of blurry, dream-like feel to the performance part though, so i think it works for that. but i totally agree...it was the first time i've used those lenses for video and shooting with them wide open was kind of tricky. i usually try to avoid it, or use it sparingly. as i was going through the footage i didn't like how much there was but, oh well. the guys are happy with it, and to the average viewer it looks 'artsy' or something like that.

it seems like ever since hdslr's came into widespread use the whole bokeh/soft focus thing is all the rage. i rarely use manual focus when i'm shooting skate footage. the gh1 has decent continuous autofocus with the kit lens. and yeah, if i was doing a narrative/documentary, the shooting style would be completely different.

thanks for the input. i'm still going to get around to doing a more 'empirical' test of the higher iso's. but i have to say i'm really surprised at how usable the footage is.

and what do you mean it 'makes the camera an 'actor''? just curious, but it would seem we may have differing theories/beliefs on filmmaking (at least for certain types/genres)

[JacksSenseOfRejection]

and what do you mean it 'makes the camera an 'actor''? just curious, but it would seem we may have differing theories/beliefs on filmmaking (at least for certain types/genres)

Well my theories are generally based on the material and classes I took while I was going to school for film. My emphasis while at school for film was writing and directing.

Actual camera mechanics and light for photography are still things that I learn from shoot to shoot. As with most video/film makers.

What I meant was more directed toward narrative film making. Not so much music videos.

In Narrative film making you should compose your shots and think about the story and how the story unfolds. There is so much in the mise en scène to tell the story, the camera shouldn't be an actor. Meaning things like focus pulling should be used thoughtfully in a narrative piece. Otherwise your camera is telling the story, not your script, not your actors, and not your composition.

It's a crutch, and it become a bit gimmicky. There are a few filmmakers who rely heavily on this type of shaky camera work where the focus is roaming, but they'll never be noted as true artisans and masters of the craft.

When you bring the audience's attention to the camera or the editing process, it should having meaning. Goddard was one of the first and few to pull this off and have it make sense in a narrative.

But then you see masters of the craft who are able to seamlessly compose a scene without the camera or focus be anywhere near the forefront of the audiences perception. People like Hitchcock, Jeunet, Kubrick, Polanski, etc.

Your mise en scène tells the story, not the camera. The camera is merely a stage for the mise en scène.

[daydreamerdude]

Nice Man, very well done.

[twerked]

Nice Man, very well done.

thanks

Well my theories are generally based on the material and classes I took while I was going to school for film. My emphasis while at school for film was writing and directing.

....

Your mise en scène tells the story, not the camera. The camera is merely a stage for the mise en scène.

got it. i went to film school too, i majored in film studies though, not production. i wanted to do more production work, but i'm a TERRIBLE writer. and for some reason all film schools feel the need to make each student do everything...by yourself. which really isn't how films are made. at all. and not to mention most of the upperclassmen/grad students at the production place were all pretentious douchebags and trying to buy some film was a process in itself

anyways, i agree. if/when i do narrative film, i'd be shooting completely differently. music videos though give me more range to do some different things. personally, i like when the attention is given to the camera/editing, whether it's narrative (if it fits the story) or otherwise..things like direct address and other kind of jarring, uncomfortable camera movements/edits that make the viewer aware that yes, this is just a video/film. ('funny games' is one of the more memorable ones for me that does that). but there are other times where i want the camera/edits to be more or less invisible. for this song, i felt like i could get away with a lot more weird stuff than usual. it just kind of has that vibe.

i think you could add the soviet montage (vertov, kuleshov, and most notably, eisenstein) directors to the people who successfully drew the audience's attention to the editing/camera. and they are among my favorite films. those and german expressionism.