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If there's anybody in Europe/the UK that can give me an answer on this before 12pm you'd be saving my life, but why can't I select DNxHR on my Blackmagic Ursa Mini? It's greyed out. RAW and ProRes are fine but I'm not going to shoot RAW and I don't have Quicktime Pro for ProRes support on this Mac I'm using. So DNxHR will be my video workflow. Only I can't record in it! Edit: Found an updated manual. Not supported yet. poo poo. Guess I'll have to shoot in 4:1 RAW and transcode. poo poo. Edit 2: Somehow Premiere on my Mac supports ProRes without me having to do anything. Yay! thehustler fucked around with this message at 10:46 on Nov 28, 2016 |
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Nov 28, 2016 10:06
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Yeah, you haven't had to pay for Prores on OS X for a few years now.
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Nov 28, 2016 11:04
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Did not know that. Very useful to know
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Nov 28, 2016 11:27
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thehustler posted:If there's anybody in Europe/the UK that can give me an answer on this before 12pm you'd be saving my life, but why can't I select DNxHR on my Blackmagic Ursa Mini? It's greyed out. hey, total Black Magic newbie here. Do some options appear totally greyed out on cameras that can't support them? I'm trying to activate focus peaking on my t4i and though it gives me the option to turn it on/mess with the tolerance, I can't get it to display. I'm using the INFO button to toggle through the displays and it never appears.
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Dec 9, 2016 08:22
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If they know they're going to add them at some point in the future they may put them on the menus but it's by no means guaranteed. I personally wouldn't, just in case the feature never makes it (global shutter, anyone?)
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Dec 9, 2016 10:48
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HOW DO I BECOME A DIRECTOR? 1. Just start directing, find a script and team who want to make a movie and offer to direct 2. Don't be an idiot, directing is a thing you can't just declare yourself to be, you have to start with a broom and work your way through the ranks 3. Nope, it's like being a musician - any fool can do it, but to be good, it's more than just saying you ARE one. Do I just start putting it out there that I want to direct somebody's film? I love movies, love the scripts, the shots, the composition, the bigger story, blah blah. I suppose I could be my own writer/producer/director, but, do you find there are movie makers who WISH somebody else would take the reigns for directing, or is that the most delusional thing I've come up with in years?
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Dec 22, 2016 16:17
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If you're just starting out you'll need to drive your own projects, but you don't have to write your own scripts. It will be a while before anybody asks you to direct something that isn't your project, though.
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Dec 22, 2016 16:36
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magnificent7 posted:HOW DO I BECOME A DIRECTOR? If you're talking about professional film directing I can't help you, but if you're talking indie stuff then I would start by getting involved with a local filmmaking or screenwriting group on Facebook. Meet some of the people on there, help out making films with them as crew, figure out who knows how to do what and who you like to work with, and then when you find the right script or writer to set up your own project get them on board and you've got a movie. It's not crazy for a writer to try and find someone else to direct, I know a number of people that prefer to just write and really don't have an interest or the skill set to direct. You may have to start out by doing your own writing/directing/producing just to show that you know what you're doing though, I'd be very surprised if you could find someone willing to let you direct without having seen work you've already done or without having worked with you before. I've never directed myself because that's definitely not my bag, but as someone that's worked on/produced amateur projects, one of the most important abilities of a director is to assemble people you can get along with and trust them to know their jobs and to get what you want achieved without having to micromanage. Nothing kills a crew faster than a director trying to tell the sound guy exactly where to have the mics or telling the gaffer exactly how to position the lights. You need to be able to explain your vision to your crew heads and trust them to know their jobs enough to get it done. I'm not saying you can't have them change it if it's not exactly right but I've seen sets where the director basically tried to personally set up everything himself the whole shoot despite having very talented people running the various departments and it was miserable and slow. Obviously all of this depends on the size of the project, sometimes you have to be all those crew members because you simply can't get or really don't need a bunch of people to make what you want to make. Also, and this is just my personal preference as a producer, but finding a writer and a producer that you can team up with early is very helpful. That way the three of you can work a script to fit your vision, capabilities, and your budget without it feeling like it was half written by someone that's not a writer and stay within your limits so that the film is less likely to end up being something that never gets finished.
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Dec 22, 2016 16:49
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If you have the burden of extra money and want the shortest route, you can always go to the Ney York Film Academy School of Directing and just get shepherded through the process (provided you turn out to be any good).
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Dec 22, 2016 17:30
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magnificent7 posted:HOW DO I BECOME A DIRECTOR? Directing is the only job in the industry that has no set obvious path of progression, everyone directing films in Hollywood basically got there in their own unique way. An old joke on amongst film crews is that the only entry level jobs on set are runner and director. If being a director is all you want to be and you have no interest in any other job in the industry, then my advice is to not just start applying for runner roles in big productions and try to work your way up. That's how it is for all the other departments and it may have worked that way for directors in the 1940s but not anymore. The only way to be a director is to actually go out and direct stuff, and hope your last job is good enough to convince someone to give you money to make the next thing. And that applies to David Fincher or Denis Villeneuve just as much as you or I. If you've literally never done any film directing before then the best advice is to just get out there and do it with whoever you can find in your local area that also wants to make a no budget short you can shoot in a day. Other good ideas are offering to make a music video for any local bands (you can basically use it as an opportunity to make a silent narrative film about whatever the hell you want) or make online content for some local businesses (not narrative, but you will learn about story construction and how to shoot for an edit very quickly). The director is basically the only person on set who doesn't have a defined job, but basically 1. Have a vision of the film in your head - tone, mood, atmosphere, what it will feel like to watch. 2. Communicate this vision amongst the cast and crew clearly, convincingly and get them all to buy in. 3. Take advantage of all the great ideas your cast and crew will offer you - be flexible enough to incorporate the best ones, strong enough to discard the poor ones, and lucky enough to be able to tell the difference.
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Dec 22, 2016 17:54
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Thanks for the great various perspectives on it - all solid starting points for me.
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Dec 22, 2016 18:30
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If you have any film industry where you are, go PA for indie films. Volunteer if you have to. The director's job on set is a management position, you need to know what people's jobs are to be able to keep them happy and doing what you need them to do. On micro / no budget sets, you can work your way up from there to 2nd 2nd AD to 2nd AD to 1st AD pretty quickly. It isn't strictly necessary to go that far, but you do need to understand set etiquette and terminology, how/when to stay out of people's way, how/when to help expedite something. There is nothing, absolutely nothing more frustrating for a crew than a director who has limited or no experience on set. It is the one thing that I've seen tank the morale of a shoot more effectively than lovely food. I don't agree that the director doesn't have a defined job. In fact, if it isn't clear what the director's job is, they're probably something going wrong. The director's responsibilities are: 1. Be the final say for every artistic decision on set. That means having the complete vision of the film planned out. The director needs to be able to "see" the movie at all times. 2. Work with each department to make sure they're accomplishing that vision. That means knowing how to communicate that vision in the language of film crew. Each department has a slightly different dialect. 3. Communicate with actors. This is really a combination of 1 and 2, but it's its own skillset so I'm making it a separate entry. On low budget sets, this will also mean having some acting coach tricks up your sleeve. Anyway, go show up on set. Learn how everything works, be a part of a movie. You might end up wanting to do some other job!
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Dec 22, 2016 19:17
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Dr. Fishopolis posted:If you have any film industry where you are, go PA for indie films. Volunteer if you have to. The director's job on set is a management position, you need to know what people's jobs are to be able to keep them happy and doing what you need them to do. On micro / no budget sets, you can work your way up from there to 2nd 2nd AD to 2nd AD to 1st AD pretty quickly. It isn't strictly necessary to go that far, but you do need to understand set etiquette and terminology, how/when to stay out of people's way, how/when to help expedite something. Yeah, probably a more precise way to say what I mean is that the director is the only person on set who doesn't have a specific set of tasks that they need to be doing every step of the way, whilst a clapper loader, standby carpenter, dolly grip, make up assistant etc. all do, and also to a slightly lesser extent each head of department. The director is a floater who can spend their time talking to whichever department they think most requires or would most benefit their input at that particular time, and their time is a valuable resource they must spend wisely because you can't be everywhere at once and if you try to be you end up having no impact at all (which I have seen happen and it is both very obvious to the crew and extremely frustrating). I would slightly disagree that working your way up the AD tree is helpful to directing. I mean i guess it wouldn't be unhelpful but really it's a totally different skillset. In my experience there is very little to no correlation between a director's history in non-directing crew positions and their skill and ability to direct and lead a crew. As an anecdotal example, one of my best and most enjoyable jobs was for a director who had literally never set foot on a working film set before day one of principal photography (they were a playwright making their first film) and they were really great right from the get go despite their technical ignorance and the film turned out very well (it didn't make much money, but hey what does these days?). I have also worked on one film where the director had a long career as a director of photography and it was their first directing role and it was a terrible experience. Directing is really unique in filmmaking and I think the only way to tell if a) you enjoy it and b) you are any good at it is to have a go. As for me personally I've directed a few shorts with very little budget and would probably enjoy doing a low budget feature or some episodes of a tv drama, but you couldn't pay me enough to direct a studio feature. As soon as you are talking eight figure budgets the stress levels are through the roof and there's no loving way I would put myself through that three year process of constant pressure. Camera crew is much more fun! 
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Dec 23, 2016 01:23
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tanglewood1420 posted:I would slightly disagree that working your way up the AD tree is helpful to directing. I mean i guess it wouldn't be unhelpful but really it's a totally different skillset. In my experience there is very little to no correlation between a director's history in non-directing crew positions and their skill and ability to direct and lead a crew. As an anecdotal example, one of my best and most enjoyable jobs was for a director who had literally never set foot on a working film set before day one of principal photography (they were a playwright making their first film) and they were really great right from the get go despite their technical ignorance and the film turned out very well (it didn't make much money, but hey what does these days?). I have also worked on one film where the director had a long career as a director of photography and it was their first directing role and it was a terrible experience. Directing is really unique in filmmaking and I think the only way to tell if a) you enjoy it and b) you are any good at it is to have a go. Yeah, I didn't mean to suggest that it's either necessary or relevant to go the AD path, my point being you should know what things are called and what the gently caress people are actually doing on set. Producer or electric or AC would be just as good, I only didn't suggest it because those jobs require skills the OP probably doesn't have. It's like working in a kitchen. Everything's on a short clock, there's a language to learn, tight job synergy and a non-obvious hierarchy that has to be navigated to avoid loving other people up. I just think you should probably try being a prep cook before jumping in as chef. That said, I've also had good experiences with first-time directors without a lot of experience, but those people universally had close friends that were producing, DPing or both and could fill in the gaps for them. Directors don't have to know poo poo about lenses or electric or set construction, but they should know in broad terms how they work and how to ask for what they need.
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Dec 23, 2016 01:42
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In other news, I've been waffling about upgrading my ancient AF100 for web delivery stuff, so I got a Ninja Blade to see if I could get past some of the problems I have with the aging codec. Holy crap, I have no idea how I lived without it. The display is incredible, the focus peaking is incredible, the false color and histograms are incredible, the battery life and stability and shooting straight to Prores on a hard drive is incredible. It's incredible, I love it, amen. I tried the Blackmagic equivalent a while back and this just blows it out of the water. Cheaper than the GH4 body I was gonna get and now I have a better rig for what I'm doing.
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Dec 23, 2016 01:48
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To piggyback on director chat, same question but for DP/cinematography. I have a decent lighting kit for interviews, and a DSLR camera rig along with a drone. I kind of have an inkling to shoot a documentary about the fitness industry, but i don't really know where to start. I have kind of a rough idea, one person at one gym and their preparation for their first big show of the year about 4 months from now.
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Jan 2, 2017 05:15
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red19fire posted:To piggyback on director chat, same question but for DP/cinematography. I have a decent lighting kit for interviews, and a DSLR camera rig along with a drone. Documentaries, though I haven't shot much in that style, seem to mostly depend on you being there, often, gathering as much material as you can and developing relationships with the people you meet to allow you more access. The second stage, editing, is in some ways tougher because you've got a mountain of stuff to sift through to create something watchable. You need a bit of a plan (and it sounds like you've already got that) but things evolve organically. My advice is to just follow your nose, and start shooting. Make sure you give yourself extra material/b-roll, to have editing flexibility in editing, but the best advice I can think of is: be there. For interviews, that's a bit tougher 'cause that more of the director's arena, but I'm sure there's a ton of resources by doc filmmakers on their processes.
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Jan 2, 2017 05:26
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Doc directing is a different beast. You have to consider things like how you're going to steer the interviews if you're the only crewperson and you're focused on running camera. People aren't naturally good at being talkative and interesting while being active, so the likely outcome is going to be a home video of a guy at a gym where not a lot is said. Plan your questions out, and ask them to the subject in advance to get an idea of the answers. Discuss the answers with them, and have them suggest questions. Get them used to starting their sentences in a way that includes the question. You should have your start and end planned out on paper — filling the middle between the two will happen naturally as you go. And by their nature, docs evolve. poo poo might happen that takes your production in a whole new direction, and it's awesome. This is the cinematography thread, but that's absolutely the least important thing in a documentary. You're not shooting Planet Earth. If the story is engaging, nobody will even notice how it looks. Get good audio. Two-source record it if you can. Audio is the heart of subject-based doc.
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Jan 2, 2017 05:40
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Dudes. I landed my first paid video gig with a small business. We're doing a 3 minute feature on their startup, and I'm really excited. I'm just about to send them a contract outlining the work to be done, but I'm new at this. Is there a sample template out there that would work best? Heck, is it even a good idea to use a template or should I consult a lawyer to draft one up that I can use for all projects moving forward? I live in Canada, if it helps any.
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Jan 5, 2017 04:47
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melon cat posted:Dudes. I landed my first paid video gig with a small business. We're doing a 3 minute feature on their startup, and I'm really excited. I'm just about to send them a contract outlining the work to be done, but I'm new at this. If it's for a paid gig it's probably worth getting at least your first Statement of Work from a lawyer and updating it yourself moving forward (or having them do it depending on the fees). I don't think their package includes an SOW contract but 99% of the contracts I've used have come from chainoftitle.ca, they have contracts for both US and CA.
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Jan 5, 2017 16:25
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Scruff McGruff posted:If it's for a paid gig it's probably worth getting at least your first Statement of Work from a lawyer and updating it yourself moving forward (or having them do it depending on the fees). I don't think their package includes an SOW contract but 99% of the contracts I've used have come from chainoftitle.ca, they have contracts for both US and CA.
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Jan 5, 2017 17:05
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Hi guys, does anyone here have the Ursa Mini 4.6k? I would love to chat with someone who is using it daily about things like how easy it is to operate and setup and what your shooting equipment is as far as lights/tripod/gimbal etc goes.
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Jan 22, 2017 00:25
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I'm curious about experiences with the 4.6k too. The only people I know who have them use them more for side projects so it's hard for me to judge how reliable they are (which is my main worry.) Seems like they might be kindof annoying for run and gun, and it also sounds like some people really dislike the way they handle audio?
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Jan 22, 2017 06:07
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A friend of mine shot with the UM4.6 recently and he liked it quite a bit. He shot a night interior at 400 ISO and it looked pretty good. I personally haven't shot with it but I've been doing research since it's one of the cameras I've been thinking about buying as an owner-operator and the majority of information I've gathered is this: -It's not a low light camera, exposure tests I've seen where if you have a properly exposed gray card, it's actually a stop under, so expose to the right -It's good to shoot between 200-800 ISO but 1600 is possibly unusable, though the new 4.2 firmware adds black shading and I've heard it improves 1600 a lot -The dynamic range is actually quite a bit narrower than the 15 stops Blackmagic Design advertises (which is pretty standard) -Still has problems with fixed pattern noise, though firmware 4.2 supposedly cleans a lot of this; black shading in 4.2 also helps get rid of blue channel noise in underexposed areas in 1600 ISO -The sensor has weird issues with lenses that aren't telecentric, which causes uneven magenta patches in the corners (and I've heard in the center of the image also); units with later serial numbers apparently don't suffer as much from this as early units -There's an issue with the manner of how images are debayered, causing a crosshatch pattern. Apparently it happens in camera when shooting ProRes, but if you import RAW footage into Resolve, it doesn't have the crosshatch issue (though it apparently happens if you import RAW footage into other programs like Premiere CC, FCPX) -Audio preamps are pretty crappy, low SNR Uh, this is the main stuff I think. There might be something I'm forgetting but this is the main issues that have been brought up. VoodooXT fucked around with this message at 07:34 on Jan 22, 2017 |
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Jan 22, 2017 07:29
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Yea I heard those too. I believe the magenta color issue is completely fixed as of firmware 4.0. And the integrated audio is good for scratch tracks and nothing else. I listened to a comparison vid and the internal audio sounds like rear end compared to pretty much any half decent mic out there but that's to be expected. I am still leaning towards getting one because I am not sure there is anything out there for that price that has the image quality of UM 4.6. Just need to do some more research. On another note what do you guys think of the GH5 so far? I have one on preorder. Thinking of making it my location scout/mess around and maybe a B cam. On paper it sounds pretty drat good. Was checking out that Neumann films vlog footage that's available for download and it holds up pretty well in Davinci for CC. Anyone else thinking of getting one?
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Jan 23, 2017 06:54
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I like the specs of the GH5 on paper but I really don't like the footage I've seen out of the GH4 at all so I'm not sure what to expect.
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Jan 23, 2017 19:58
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powderific posted:I like the specs of the GH5 on paper but I really don't like the footage I've seen out of the GH4 at all so I'm not sure what to expect. Yea I agree, problem with cameras like GH4 is it is very hard to find footage of actual productions (good or bad). %99 of the footage is the typical shots of some environment with natural lighting or 120 fps cat/dog vids. Though, there is decent stuff I found like: https://vimeo.com/131641914 https://vimeo.com/194537015 If you want to play around with the gh5 ungraded 422 vlog footage neumann films have it available here (link is at the video description): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-qUZTTb1fY I have never held a GH4 in my hands so I am not sure about it's ergonomics.
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Jan 24, 2017 05:17
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I really wish this thread was more active.  If anyone is still reading this thread, can I get some recommendations for c-stand / light stands I am on a budget and all the ones I looked at locally are very expensive.
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Jan 29, 2017 07:36
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I don't know of any that aren't the standard ones you see on every job. Their whole function is to hold expensive stuff and for support/safety so there probably aren't going to be a lot of inexpensive options. You can always go get a bunch of lumber and screw together some 2x4 stands and use construction pipe to clamp lights to.
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Jan 29, 2017 17:17
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keyframe posted:I really wish this thread was more active. Yeah c stands are expensive. You can get some used/banged up ones from rental houses for "cheaper" sometimes. Just don't get the spring loaded Mathews stands... Those are the worst.
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Jan 29, 2017 17:27
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There are some thing you'd use c-stands for on a real set that you can get away with using lighter photography lightstands for. But actual C-stands seem to be really standard prices across the board, $130 to $150 or so, even if you're getting a lovely no name brand.
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Jan 29, 2017 18:47
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BonoMan posted:Yeah c stands are expensive. You can get some used/banged up ones from rental houses for "cheaper" sometimes. Just don't get the spring loaded Mathews stands... Those are the worst. The one Matthews c-stand I got for $50 used from a closing studio is pretty bad. Fully extended it leans over like the tower of Pisa, just enough to be worrisome. I also have a $20 no name one that's straight as an arrow, and an avenger that's so heavy duty as to be overkill for most of my photo work. But even a 'bad' c-stand can be better than a light duty photo light stand. Once you learn the rules/guidelines for using them, they're really handy.
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Jan 31, 2017 10:41
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Where did you get a no name c stand for twenty bucks?
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Jan 31, 2017 19:18
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Yeah if it's at all decent I'd definitely pick a few up.
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Jan 31, 2017 19:37
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Not the cheapest but B&H's house brand Impact has great C-stands since they're just rebranded Avenger stands.
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Jan 31, 2017 20:30
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Chitin posted:Where did you get a no name c stand for twenty bucks? I got it on craigslist, the guy used it for years in photographing ultramarathons, where he set them up in an area of south america that got hit with a mudslide. I got it for an extra $20 when buying a flash from him, had to take it apart to clean out the mud and scrub off the rust. They're out there, but it's just random chance if you can find deals like that.
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Feb 1, 2017 04:01
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Just keep on the look out for rental houses that are going out of business. They'll do a fire sale of all their equipment and you can buy whatever for pretty good prices.
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Feb 1, 2017 07:01
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Thanks for the tips guys. I will ask around in case anyone is doing a firesale.
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Feb 1, 2017 08:03
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keyframe posted:Thanks for the tips guys. I will ask around in case anyone is doing a firesale. Are you in NY/NJ? If so you can have my leaning magenta short rocky mountain C-stand for like $30. with a grip arm. I reduced my lighting to 2-3 pieces so I don't really need it anymore.
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Feb 1, 2017 17:41
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red19fire posted:Are you in NY/NJ? If so you can have my leaning magenta short rocky mountain C-stand for like $30. with a grip arm. I reduced my lighting to 2-3 pieces so I don't really need it anymore. No I am in Vancouver, Canada. What is your current lighting setup if you don't mind me asking?
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Feb 2, 2017 04:20
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