BLOG QUESTION BEG/ADV: FALL SEMESTER SUMMARY

As our semester draws to a close, take some time to reflect on what you've learned. Write down three things that you've learned and how they will improve your video projects in the future. For those who are continuing into next semester, also list three things that you are looking forward to learning in the Spring. Why do you want to learn these things? What do you want to concentrate on doing better? What could you improve? What kind of projects are you looking forward to?

I've learned a lot about visual storytelling and how elements such as movement, composition, color, depth of field, and lighting affect the mood of a story and drive the plot forward. I am, looking forward to learning more about lighting next semester, since I only know the basic 3 point lighting technique. I'm excited to work on the noir, since it relies heavily on lighting. I want to concentrate on improving my technical skills since we've fallen behind this semester on a lot of lighting equipment and the director monitors. 

BLOG QUESTION ADV: DEEP FOCUS

How does deep depth of field affect the audience's film experience? Why would a filmmaker want to use shallow vs. deep depth of field?

Deep depth of field affects the audience experience by bringing attention to the details in the background. For example, in the movie Citizen Kane, they use deep depth of field to emphasize the blocking of the characters and show the actions of everyone in the shot. A filmmaker would want to use shallow depth of field to guide the audiences eyes to the details they want them to pay attention to. A deep depth of field is best used when the filmmakers want to bring attention to the background, as well as the foreground. For example, when two characters in frame and one is in the foreground while the other is in the background they both are able to be in focus.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: FOCUS TOOLS

What is the peaking function on your camera? How does it work? What are the four different tools you can use right now to improve your focus that the presenter brings up in this video? How can you put these to use right away?

The peaking function on the camera helps you by showing you what subjects/objects are in focus through the LCD Screen. It does this by highlighting these subjects with a brighter color to show the sharp points, edges, or contrast. You can use other tools, such as magnification, which allows you to digitally zoom into a subject to determine whether or not you're focused, without changing the lens length. You should usually try to focus using your subject's eyes, since it's the most important part of the subject's face. Lastly, you can have your subject hold a small flashlight when trying to focus on a certain point of their body. You'll know it is in focus when the point on the light becomes very small. We can utilize all of these features as the sony fs5 either offers them, or we can use tools such as a flashlight which is easily accessible. I feel like the flashlight is a handy tool if you're trying to focus up very quickly without having to adjust any camera settings.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: SETTING MARKS FOR ACTORS

What are the rules for setting marks that this video mentions? How can you begin using these suggestions immediately in your productions?

It is up to the 2nd AC to mark where the actors are standing They typically use paper tape since it's easier to rip with no residue. The mark of tape is usually in a T shape to direct the actors where to point their feet. Each actor should have a different colored piece of tape so they can differentiate their marks, and the same goes for camera placement. There are also other alternatives such as sand-bag or metal t-marks, it just depends on the surface you want to place them on. I've used marks for actors on my productions before, but i can start using these for camera movement also since we're starting to incorporate more movement in our assignments now.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: HIGH TEA REFLECTION

Live shoots can be a whole different animal in video production. They present their own unique challenges. Reflect on your High Tea shoot yesterday. How did the shoot go? What were some challenges? How did you overcome them? What would you keep in mind for your next live shoot?

I feel like the High Tea shoot went pretty well. Leading up to the day, it was a bit stressful trying to plan and coordinate what to shoot because we didn't know the entire schedule until the actual day of the event. Despite this, we were able to adjust our plans as we received new information. Some challenges I encountered when filming the fashion class' involvement in the event was that there wasn't much preparation to film (in comparison to culinary's), so we had to really make sure we got plenty footage of their students on the day of the event. Next time we shoot an event, I want to make sure I acquire a clear schedule and start pre-production much earlier, so we are all on the same page on the event day.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: STILLS VS. CINEMA LENSES

What are 4 key differences between still lenses for video and cinema lenses? Why would you use a still lens to shoot video? What would you need to shoot with proper cinema lenses?

The 4 key differences between still lenses for video and cinema lenses include: Cinema lenses have focus marks on the side of the lens. On still lenses, these marks are less easily accessible. Focus, Aperture, and Zooms on Cinema lenses are manually adjusted with rings, not motors for accuracy and precision. A cinema lens's iris is measured in T-stops. When shooting with proper cinema lenses, It's handy to have a dedicated focus puller, which will save the camera operator time from having to multitask. 

BLOG QUESTION ADV: WHAT IS A RACK FOCUS?

How can using a rack focus shot enhance the storytelling and emotional impact of a scene in your own films? Provide an example of a situation where you might use this technique effectively.

A rack focus shot can enhance the storytelling and emotional impact of a scene by directing the viewers attention, highlighting key events, adding depth/contrast, conveying emotions such as suspense, conveying subtext, and revealing hidden details. One example of a situation in which I could use this technique effectively, is if I'm trying to highlight an important detail (such as an object in the background) to foreshadow a certain event that might have to do with the object that is being focused on. It's a great way to highlight details without disrupting the dialogue within a scene.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: BACK FOCUS

1. What is back focus? How does it affect the image that you are shooting?

2. How do you check the back focus? Are our JVC camcorders different than the Sony EX3? How? What are the key differences between adjusting the back focus?

Back focus is the distance between the rear lens and the sensor. If the back focus isn't set accurately, the image becomes out of focus when you zoom out. You can check the back focus by zooming in to the max. focal length onto the center circle of a Siemens star, or something with a hard edge and contrast (such as black text). When the circle is sharp, you're focused. JVC Camcorders are different from the Sony EX3 because you can only adjust the back focus from within the camera settings, whereas most cameras you have to adjust it from the lenses.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: TIPS FOR BETTER FOCUS

1. Pick three of these techniques and summarize them. What does each technique demonstrate? What does it add to the shot?
2. Which techniques could you start using right away? Why?

When focus pulling, start by focusing on the closest subject to you and then focus pulling to the farther subject. This is because objects further away from the lens have a bigger focus area, meaning that it's easier to focus on them and leads to less chance of error. When you're trying to focus on a moving object, you must be aware of the physical distance between them and your lens, as well as what effect turning the focus ring left (if you're getting to far from the subject) or right (if you're getting too close to the subject) has on the image. You want to maintain the same amount of distance throughout the movement. Lastly, you can use pieces of tape on your camera to mark the focus points for each subject in frame, allowing you to do controlled focus pulling. I can use all of these techniques right away since they're eitehr basic habits that I need to fix or something I can implement to the camera very quickly.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: SENSOR SIZE AND CINEMATOGRAPHY

1. How do larger sensors affect the image?

2. How does sensor size affect using lenses?
3. What are the benefits and drawbacks of using a large sensor camera?

Large sensors affect the image by recording a larger image. The sensor size affects the lens sizes. The smaller the sensor, the wider lense it needs. The larger the sensor, the longer lense that's needed. Some benefits of using a large sensor camera include a shallower depth of field, since they require longer focal lengths. Some drawbacks of using a large sensor camera are that it's more prone to noise in low light, it's often bulkier, and it has less dynamic range to capture light and dark levels.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: THE IMAGE SENSORS ROLE IN VIDEO

What is the role of the camera sensor in a video camera?
How does the CMOS sensor work?
What does having a larger sensor do for the image?

An image sensor converts light information entering the lens into an image file that contains color, tone, shadow, and highlight. The light data determines the brightness and color of a pixel, and when combined, creates a digital image. A CMOS sensor uses multiple transistors for each pixel to transmit the light charge. A larger sensor delivers more signal that noise, giving it a greater signal to noise ratio. It also allows you to have shallower depth of field.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: CAMERA SENSORS

1. What are the pros and cons of a CCD sensor?

2. What are the pros and cons of a CMOS sensor?
3. What are CCD sensors better at? What are CMOS sensors better at?

Some pros of a CCD sensor are that it's relatively noise free. Some cons of it is that each time an electron is shifted, some amount of charge is lost which is a problem for higher resolution images. The serial readout is also slow and the sensors require a higher voltage. Some pros of a CMOS sensor are that is requires much less power, the voltage is read in parallel meaning that the sensors are capable of reading the data faster. Some cons of it is that it produces more noise and it has rolling shutter. CCD sensors are better at producing high quality images with less noise and shooting in low light. CMOS sensors require less power which makes it ideal for both consumer and professional cameras.

BLOG QUESTION ADV: CONTROLLING DEPTH OF FIELD

What are the different factors that you can use to control depth of field that this video mentions? What is one of the primary ways to control depth of field?

There are three ways to control your depth of field . You can adjust your aperture, change the distance of the camera from the subject, or changing the focal length of your lens. Usually, you first want to start by adjusting your aperture. Shooting at a lower f-stop decreases your depth of field, and shooting at a higher f-atop increases it. Adjusting the aperture will effect the exposure of the image, but you can increase or decrease exposure using other methods (adjusting light level, ND filters, iso/gain, or shutter speed/angle). You can increase or decrease your focal length by either switching lenses, or by zooming in/out of your image. Having a longer lens or zooming in (makes image more compressed and distance between objects smaller) will make your DoF shallower, and having a shorter and zoomed out image (makes objects in image appear further apart) will make it deeper. Lastly, the closer you get to your subject the shallower your DoF will become (you can also put more distance between your subject and the background, but it will affect the composition), and the further you are the deeper it'll be.