Jason Prisk

Advanced Fill Lighting Techniques

2012-01-25T18:50:00.000-08:00

Art Adams has another great article about all the different ways to utilize a fill light. This will be a worthwhile read for anyone who lights scenes or even interviews on a regular basis. Very in-depth explanations with plenty of illustrations.

Visit his article at ProVideoCoalition.

Pionair Radio Spot

2012-01-18T20:15:00.000-08:00

Produced a radio spot today for a company called Pionair and their Air Treatment System. Chris Chase, one of the founders was featured in the spot along with one of their very satisfied clients. Check out the website and see what their MiniMate can do for fruit in the refrigerator. Pretty neat.

Shooting Flatly (not the Riverdance guy)

2012-01-16T08:34:00.000-08:00

I have been shooting quite a bit lately on Canon DSLR's, and am just now getting the hang of it. Since I am a trial and error type person, I had to learn the hard way some things that should be obvious. The biggest is that the lens makes all the difference. There is just no way to get great footage using the stock or cheaper lenses. While you can get probably get something usable in a good lighting situation, you will never get that smooth, sharp look that makes you feel really good about your footage as you sit in the editing bay. Hint: Use Canon L-Series lenses or better for great results. The second thing I have had to be convinced on is shooting flat. (This means shooting a very low-contrast, desaturated image to preserve as much detail as possible for using in post production.) Since I have started using this process, however, I have seen a great difference in the look of my footage. On the left is an example of a shot that I captured flat with a 7D and graded in post using a simple plug-in and one click.
If you are a Canon DSLR shooter, you can download Technicolor's Cinestyle picture profile for free as well as the S-Curve LUT that will "decode" the image in post. (Be sure to read Technicolor's instructions carefully to ensure best results.) The only other thing you will need is the free program from Magic Bullet called LUT Buddy that plugs in to Final Cut, Color, After Effects or Premiere Pro. Once installed, you will simply apply the S-Curve LUT to your footage in your editor and adjust it to taste. Of course, you can do all of the grading yourself without even using this plug-in, but it is a great place to start.

Circle of Wealth Conference

2012-01-16T08:04:00.000-08:00

Setting up the equipment at our shoot last week at the Peabody Hotel in Orlando, FL. This is a conference that we handle the sound, lighting and video for each year. The conference was attended by 800 financial advisors from around the country and is an enjoyable event to work. The four-day event kept my crew of five busy shooting every session (including breakout rooms), running sound and video screens, shooting stills and b-roll footage, taping video interviews and even putting together a last-minute production for use at the conference.

AMTC's SHINE EVENT

2012-01-12T04:56:00.000-08:00

Here is a snapshot of the view from my judges' table at the SHINE event last week in Orlando, FL. This event is a top-knotch talent showcase featuring some of the best new performers as chosen by Actors, Models and Talent for Christ (AMTC).

Other VIP's included the heads of casting for MGM, BET and 20th Century Fox, as well as the top agents and managers in the country. I had the opportunity to audition a number of amazing actors (and even a singer or two) for potential roles in upcoming films. A big thank you to actor Craig Crumpton for the heads-up on this organization.

Erin Bates/Andy Leftwich in Studio

2012-01-03T05:11:00.000-08:00

Just finished up studio sessions at Playground Recording Studios in Nashville producing Erin Bates (TLC's 19 Kids and Counting) and Andy Leftwich (4-time Grammy Winner). We had two very long days, but got some great stuff in the very unique piano-fiddle combination. One session was shot by a video crew for an upcoming TLC special on Erin Bates family. It should air in March sometime. I will post it here once I know the date.

Doddle

2011-12-17T07:08:00.001-08:00

If you are looking for quick and interesting reads each day to keep up with what is happening in the film and television industry, subscribe to Doddle at http://news.doddleme.com/ for their daily news update. They also have an app called DoddlePro that has tons of industry info and contacts, although it does not seem to be particularly helpful in my market of Atlanta just yet.

Directing Fact #5 - Your Script Matters

2011-12-08T05:29:00.000-08:00

Somewhere around Day 5 of shooting and then once again around the halfway point in editing, you will have a realization that this film is a lot of work. At that point, you will either be encouraged to think how worthwhile the project is or will be completely deflated to think of the huge waste of time and money you are in the middle of. Your response will be determined primarily by how good your story is. Do you have something that is barely passable as a movie--or do you have something that will move, inspire and thrill people?

There was a time (only a few short years ago) that you got credit for trying. What I mean by that is that anyone who was actually able to turn out a finished film was lauded and people would watch it. I remember going to a screening about 12 years ago for a film that a friend of mine had helped finance. They were all raving about it, but when I saw it I was thoroughly embarrassed that I was even sitting there watching it. The tools back then were not as inexpensive as they are today, so it was not a cheap production. The story was so weak, however, that it was truly a waste of an hour and a half. Afterwards, everyone was congratulatory of the filmmaker and were honestly excited that they were a part of the project. I assure you that this is not the case anymore. With the number of indie films released each year, and a very large number of them with pretty high production value, it takes a great story and an interesting premise to even get people interested. Major Hollywood releases are even taking huge losses these days when they do not connect with people on some level with the story.

The lesson in all of this is to make sure you have something great before you commit a large part of your life to it. The least expensive stage of production is the writing stage, so take the time to find or develop a script that you can be truly excited about and that you know will connect with your audience. If you do, then you will find the strength to press on when the process of making the film turns from fun to work--and it always will at some point.

The Solomon Bunch Official Trailer

2011-12-02T09:25:00.000-08:00

Lighting With What Is Available

2011-11-10T18:52:00.000-08:00

Probably my favorite blog for practical information about filmmaking is the one by ASC Cinematographer Shane Hurlbut (Terminator Salvation, We Are Marshall, Act of Valor). Shane is happy to share his knowledge and has garnered quite a following among aspiring DP's. In a recent post entitled, "Lighting Basics: Going With What Is Available," he breaks down the lighting (almost nothing) and light control instruments used in the street scene of one of his films. It is not easy to find this type of breakdown anywhere (believe me, I have searched far and wide), so certainly take this opportunity to read about his decisions and learn from one of the best in the business. His newest movie about to hit theaters is Act of Valor, which he shot almost entirely with Canon 5D MkII DSLR's. Read and follow Shane here.

Targeting Your Audience

2011-11-08T04:46:00.000-08:00

No matter who you are or what your business is, all of us can benefit from good promotion on the Internet. Lance Cummins of nearlyfreelance.com has a great post about building traffic on your website through great content that is narrowly targeted. You can read it here.

Canon C300 and RED Scarlet

2011-11-03T21:38:00.000-07:00

For the past several months, filmmakers have been eagerly awaiting this day for the announcements from Canon and RED about their new "game-changing" cameras.

Canon's C300 seems to have hit the mark as far as rolling the best features of the large sensor DSLR's into a truly workable film production package. The footage looks great, of course, and the features are what everyone has been asking for. The only problem I see is the price point. I really was hoping they would realize who their largest market is on these things (not generally the same market as those who would and could buy a RED Epic) and offer this solution at a price no one could pass up. The MSRP that I heard was around $20,000. Not an unfair price at all, but still way higher than most of their current 7D/5DmkII owners can afford to upgrade to. That said, it looks like perhaps there could be another lower-cost version coming soon, though no guarantees on that. I am curious to see also what the price point will be on their new cinema prime lenses. Those certainly look enticing.

As for RED, the Scarlet (also a large-sensor 4k camera) looks great and is an amazing product for the price--probably a better deal than the Canon. The biggest downside to products from RED, however, is the post workflow and the number of expensive accessories needed to do it all properly. It would have been nice to see a test film using the Scarlet, like we did with LaForet's C300 film, but I guess we will have to wait a little for that. Learn all the details about both of these cameras at www.prolost.com. All in all, a good day for filmmakers. Always love having great options when it comes time to shoot a project!

Envato Mail Freebies

2011-10-27T07:51:00.000-07:00

Envato is a company that has created websites (which they term "marketplaces") for every type of creative professional. They have over a million members on their marketplaces. The two sites that I use most often are VideoHive.com for footage and After Effects templates, and AudioJungle.com for music cuts. Their prices are among the lowest for the quality they offer. Each month they send out an Envato newsletter that includes eight or ten free downloads from their various sites. Check it out.

Rig Wheels Mini Dolly System

2011-10-27T06:14:00.000-07:00

I know I just posted last week about another mini dolly system, but this one looks great as well. I don't think either of these are a replacement for a full-sized portable dolly, but this one, Rig Wheels, is really very versatile and leaves a lot of its uses up to your imagination. You can watch the promotional video and learn more at their website.

Editing the Movie Courageous (Part 2)

2011-10-26T05:17:00.000-07:00

Steve Hullfish has a continuation of the article I linked to last week on the work he did for "Courageous". It is a bit on the technical side, but has some good insight into the behind the scenes decisions that must be made in post production.

Read the article here.

Directing Fact #4 - Location is Everything

2011-10-25T05:42:00.000-07:00

There has been a cliche in the business world for a long time that goes, "Location, Location, Location." It simply means that nothing is as important as where you choose to set up your business. This applies to shooting a film as well. The choice of location will impact the production in a number of ways, both on-screen and off.
On the practical side, there are many considerations that go into choosing a set. These include location fees, cost of travel, ease of access, distance from other set locations, availability of extras, availability of crew, availability of power, water and restroom facilities, sound considerations, natural lighting considerations and more. When you are operating on a small budget, the impact of each of these is magnified. For example, even something as simple as a bathroom may be the determining factor in the final choice of location. A big budget project would never think twice about bringing in a facilities trailer where needed, but even an extra $100/day for a porta-potty could be outside the budget of a small production. Likewise, a small budget may consider a couple of hours drive between locations to be cost-prohibitive due to the extra fuel and mileage charges, whereas a studio film may be able to shoot in Moscow, Buenos Aires and Morocco all in the same week. Because of these financial limitations, directors often have to "settle" for what is available and close.

The big thing to remember is that what ends up on-screen is all that matters. Often we think we have to have the perfect complete location, when in fact we only need a couple of good "spots" to shoot. It would be nice to find an amazing old factory with all of the right junk in just the right places, but the truth is that we can get by with a brick building in an alley and probably tell the story just as effectively. No, it will not have the epic establishing shot you pictured, but many films (even large budget films) these days do quite well without establishing shots. A good DP should be able to get you a great look even when you have very little to work with. I remember being very disappointed in a couple of the locations we ended up with on my last film, especially for our scenes in the woods. However, once we put it on a long lens, it was amazing how that spot just came to life. In the end, that location in the woods turned out to be one of our better ones.

This is not to say that the location does not matter, because it does. The primary consideration, however, is that it has the right feel about it. One of the things I really wanted to achieve on my film, since it was for children, was a bright, happy and colorful feel. Contrary to my earlier beliefs, this had very little to do with the lighting and had everything to do with the sets, props and costumes. We missed the mark on a number of scenes because I did not understand how much that feel would be impacted by the location. Several of our scenes, for example, were shot at a building that we had free access to. The building had a couple of rooms that I felt would work perfectly. What I did not consider was that the very nice, warm earthy tones of the paint scheme (and lack of color contrast) would make those entire scenes feel moody, dark and less interesting visually, despite the colorful costumes our actors were wearing. Even a white wall would likely have been better in that it would have provided more contrast with skin tones and the costumes--and would have felt brighter and happier overall. On the other hand, had we been shooting something with a more moody feel, that location may have been the right choice.

There are obviously hundreds of considerations when choosing a location, but from my limited experience, I would say that finding something to fit and enhance the overall "feel" of your movie is far more important than having a list of great individual locations with varying looks and feels that ruin your story's continuity. Make this your number one priority whenever possible.

Editing the Movie Courageous

2011-10-17T05:34:00.000-07:00

A few of the crew members on our recent film, The Solomon Bunch, were also a part of the crew of Courageous. This is a fantastic film, and one that I recommend you go and see. After three weeks in theaters, it is over $20 million and is still in the top 10 (despite being in only about a third the number of theaters that other major releases are in).

Steve Hullfish worked with Alex Kendrick on the edit for Courageous and has a very in-depth article about how they handled the workflow from two RED cameras and some 5DmkII's. It is featured on ProVideoCoalition today.

Read the article here.

Super Portable Mini Dolly

2011-10-15T07:39:00.000-07:00

I am totally over buying cheap stuff and trying to "DIY it." Most of the time the hassle is not worth the results--and you end up with a product that is quirky at best and makes your clients question if they have hired the right person. This little dolly, less than $100, seems to be a great little product that is well-built and will certainly offer more than $100 in production value the first time you use it. If you use HDSLR's, GoPro's or other small cameras, check out the extremely portable Pico Flex Dolly here.

Flag Kit from Digital Juice

2011-10-10T21:29:00.000-07:00

Without tools for controlling and shaping the output of your lighting instruments and the sun, you will never be able to get consistently great results on-screen. This set of flags and scrims looks to be a tremendous value. As long as you have some C-stands or at least light stands with grip heads, you should consider adding this kit to your toolbox. The best thing about it is that it is super-portable, although I am not sure how durable it is for everyday use on-set. Knowing the track record of Digital Juice, I am optimistic in that regard as well.

Learn more about the DJ Flag Kit by visiting their site here.

The Great Camera Shootout

2011-10-07T07:12:00.000-07:00

You will enjoy watching this episode, the third and final installment, of the 2011 camera shootout. It is very interesting to see how each film camera handles different situations. If you will be deciding on a camera purchase or rental for a particular project, you will want to watch these videos first.

Watch episode here.

Where It Goes, No One Knows

2011-10-07T05:05:00.000-07:00

Don't you just love it when you find new information that shows you that the way you have been doing things for 20 years is really not the best way? Well, actually, I do love it. Better to find out late than never.

This article gives some really good insights into the use of your fill light. The ideal placement may not be where you think it is. Take the time to read this article by Art Adams, and you may improve your lighting design tremendously.

Declare His Glory

2011-09-30T09:32:00.000-07:00

Bible Truth Music has just released a set of music books along with the demo CD which I engineered. It is a collection of songs for ladies' trios to sing in church.

They have a few clips from the cd on their website.

Master of None

2011-09-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

Have you ever met a jack-of-all-trades? Well, let me introduce myself. Here is a list of the hats I regularly wear--often all in the same week. I am still trying to figure out which one of these is supposed to be paying my bills.

• Video/TV producer
• Editor
• Camera operator/DP
• Film director
• Script writer
• Radio/TV producer/show designer
• Record producer
• Live sound engineer
• Recording engineer
• Voiceover artist/Radio announcer
• Live event announcer
• Radio/TV/sound consultant
• Audio/Video Instructor
• Acting Instructor
• Graphic designer
• Web designer

Believe it or not, this is not enough! My wife thinks I should know how to fix the garage door and crack eggs without breaking the yolk. With this list, it is pretty clear that I will never be really great at anything. The upside is that at least my life will never be boring. Little blessings.

Correcting An Underexposed Shot

2011-09-29T10:01:00.000-07:00

Working on a shot this morning and I thought I would post about it. This was shot in Phoenix with nothing but a standard tungsten interview light kit. With daylight correction gels on each lamp, it was just not enough light to match the subject's lighting to the level of the windows in the background. Because of that, I left her underexposed in order to keep the windows from blooming too much. To get enough rim light on her hair, I had to put my light stand just behind her and in the shot. I was careful to shoot a clean slate (without her in the seat) for replacing that area of the frame in post, and did so with an 8-point garbage matte cutting out around the light and stand.

In color correcting the shot, I cranked the mids way up and then boosted the saturation to compensate for the desaturation that naturally occurs. Because I shot with a camera that has good detail in the shadows and did my grading in a 10-bit environment, the shot looks fairly natural--just a tiny bit of grain. I also added a face light, which is like a little bright spot over just her face and upper body. This helps set her off even more from the rest of the image. One other thing that would focus the attention on her would be to do a vignette centered on her. I tried that look, but really prefer this shot to have a little brighter and more open feel, so I decided against it.

The only thing I wish on this shot is that I would have had a larger sensor to work with on the camera. The background is just in too sharp a focus for my taste. One more thing to point out about the text. I really like the look of the thin lettering I have chosen. Because it is so thin, however, it tends to get lost in the background. My solution on this one is to have the text moving just slightly (the words slowly pass one another), which always makes it more readable.

Identify Any Font Quickly

2011-09-27T15:41:00.000-07:00

Myfonts.com has a great little app for web and for iPhone that will identify any font for you. This is a big timesaver when trying to match the fonts in your video to the client's existing print and web designs. Kevin P. McAuliffe has a short tutorial to show you how it works.

View tutorial

Moving On...

2011-09-27T13:53:00.000-07:00

Making the transition away from Final Cut Studio is looking like more and more of a necessity each day. Oliver Peters explains why in this article and gives some sound recommendations about how professional editors should begin making the transition now by making current FCP projects as future-proof as possible. If you are a professional editor, you should at least skip to the end of his article and heed the six transition steps he gives.

Check it out.

The 12-Step Plan for Film Actors

2011-09-22T05:48:00.000-07:00

I start my acting class tonight--assuming we have a few people show up. In the last week, I have been developing a curriculum and have come up with what I am calling a "12-Step Plan". This seemed fitting since we will all be sitting around in a circle anyway and starting with something like "Hi, my name is Jason...and I am an actor."

My twelve steps are the skills an actor must develop to be a success in on-camera acting. If you are in the south Atlanta area, come check out the class some Thursday evening. Here is the website.

Amazing Inexpensive Equipment Cart

2011-09-17T15:05:00.000-07:00

I travel to most jobs in a Chevy Suburban with the seats laid flat. With all the equipment loaded, I have very little room left. I have been needing a rolling cart for a long time, but the ones that fold small enough are either way too flimsy or way too expensive (as in $1,000). Usually, I end up borrowing one from the shooting location when they have one. The last one I used was very small and two of the wheels kept falling off at the slightest bump throughout the three days of shooting.

Today, I saw a great solution at Costco called the Origami Rack. The Costco version already has rolling casters (although you will probably want to consider putting larger wheels on if you will be on any terrain rougher than interior floors or concrete sidewalks). While it is not as heavy duty as the $1,000 version, it is an amazing cart for the price of just $50. It folds flat for transporting and is super simple to use. The one I am referring to is the medium sized cart in the photo above. Check out the video here.

Promo Video for Brian Neher

2011-09-17T07:58:00.000-07:00

Just posted a promo video that I have been working on for portrait painter Brian Neher. The look of the piece starts with an After Effects template from Footage Firm that I have customized. I also used a built-in Motion template from Final Cut Pro for the photos flying in three at a time. That also took a little customization, including reversing the effect occasionally so that viewers would not get tired of the effect happening the same way every time. Watch the promo here.

Lighting A Scene Naturally

2011-08-18T06:14:00.000-07:00

Here is a blog article from Shane Hurlbut, ASC that walks through his decisions in lighting the final scene of The Greatest Game Ever Played. He deals with some ideas such as "Color Contrast" that you may never have heard before. If you deal with lighting at all, you should read this. He plans to do a series of posts on lighting, so I will try to keep you up on the latest from his site.

Shane's blog.

The Tool or the Task?

2011-08-17T09:27:00.000-07:00

For several years I have followed with great interest as all the cool new tools have been released. Every few months there is a new camera that is the "must-have" for filmmaking, and hundreds of companies are now creating amazing tools for the independent filmmaker.

But the vast majority of the equipment is being purchased and reviewed by people who will never use it to create a marketable product. I know several people personally who own the latest software, hardware, cameras and accessories and never actually create anything with it. And before you think I am being too critical, know that I have my share of stuff sitting on shelves and in the garage that has rarely seen the light of day. Thinking about all of this yesterday let me to this conclusion.

You can test whether you are a true working professional by gauging the following. When you hear about an unbelievable new product, are you more excited about the tool itself or more excited about the specific task it will help you achieve? If you are mentally plugging that tool in to your existing workflow realizing that it will help you work better, faster or more economically on an upcoming project, then you are probably a professional. If you are solely interested in features, specs and marketing photos with no particular project in mind, then you are probably a hobbyist (or maybe an engineer).

I am always amazed when I talk with professionals in the film industry how little they know about the "latest and greatest." It seems they are even disinterested in it. Perhaps it is because they are entrenched in the old way of doing things and not interested in trying anything new. This is probably a little true. More likely, however, is the fact that they are more focused on the task of filmmaking than they are the tools. They are able to work with almost any tool to get a great result on-screen. And they have figured out that any new tool will eventually reveal it's limitations. Since there is no perfect tool for every job, they simply learn the limitations of the one they are using and make sure they work around those problem areas.

There is some great stuff on the market today, and I am glad for it. It has certainly made things cheaper and easier for the indy filmmaker. But there are a lot of "flavor of the weeks" out there too. To me, it is like the infomercials for kitchen tools. There are literally thousands of different types of cutters, choppers and dicers that have come and gone over the years. But no matter how many you may have bought along the way, chances are when it comes time to slice the vegetables, you end up using a plain old kitchen knife. The others were amazing when you watched the commercial and when you first used them, but for whatever reason you reverted back to the knife.

In the end, there are a lot of ways to get the job done, but if you are focused more on the tool than on the task, you will accomplish very little.

On-Camera Acting Classes

2011-08-15T19:59:00.000-07:00

I have decided to do a group acting class each week to work with actors not only on interpretation, but on developing the necessary skills to work on a film set. My brother, Nathan, who is the Fine Arts Director at Creekside Christian Academy in McDonough, GA, is working with me to offer the classes to those involved with the school as well as to those with interest in the community. If you live in the South Atlanta area, check out the website, which will have even more information as things progress, to find out details. You can get there by clicking here.

Directing Fact #3 - The Books Are Right

2011-08-14T20:22:00.000-07:00

Every book I read, every seminar I attended and everyone I talked to said the same thing. "Never do a movie with children or animals!" I guess I thought it was just something people liked to joke about, because I promptly went out and wrote a script that featured both.

It is not that all kids or animals are problems, in fact, I had a few really talented kids who were much more professional on-set than were some of the adults (including seven-year-old Chase Wainscott, pictured here). However, it only takes one or two poorly-behaved kids to turn the entire set into utter chaos. One of our most tension filled moments of the production came after about three hours of trying to get ten kindergartners to walk single file down a school hallway without looking at the camera. Everyone on the crew was yelling either at each other or at the kids. Between takes, the 2nd AD and one of the PA's were trying to keep the kids in a line by playing follow the leader between rows of desks in a classroom. One of the five year-olds looked at me during this exercise with seething hatred in his eyes and asked, "What is this, some kind of a circus?" Well, yes, actually. That is what it had become. The worst thing about the situation was that one of our executive producers had chosen that very moment to bring some of his friends on-set to see the production. They did not stay long.

When you realize that every additional take you shoot is money, it becomes important to cast professionals in your film so that you can get great stuff quickly and consistently. Screen actors must be skilled in doing multiple things at once. Not only do they have to jump into character immediately and remain in character for reaction shots, but they must at the same time perform precision blocking, hit floor marks exactly without looking, stay open to the camera when other actors move, and be conscious of leaving extra space in the dialogue for editing, Oh, and they must do the entire scene EXACTLY the same way every single time. Children, while they may be great on-screen, rarely have the ability to pull off this combination of things. They also need a lot of reminders about things like speaking clearly. Therefore, you spend a lot of time in additional takes and you pray that there will be options for cutting shots together with continuity once you get into the editing room. In addition to their acting inabilities, children are also subject to child-labor regulations that dictate a shorter workday with more breaks. This results in a less productive daily schedule.

Animals do not need much explanation, but you should heed the warnings there as well. Unless you are using trained animals, you will spend a lot of time even on the simplest task. We needed a dog to jump up in a window sill to scare our kids. No amount of coaxing or treats would do it for a good thirty minutes before we finally got lucky. Horses tend to be frightened by large reflectors and run away at the least opportune times. If you need just one or two to stand in a particular place, good luck. You have to use feed to get them there, but that also brings the other six horses from across the field. In most cases you have either no horses in your shot or too many. All that said, it is very rewarding to get a great shot with horses in the background.

Would I ever do a movie with children and animals again? Probably (except for kindergartners). But I would be sure to plan appropriately and spend more rehearsal time working through the exact blocking they would be doing on-set. I would also audition more carefully and would have someone stationed in the waiting room during auditions to find out which hellions we should send packing.

Directing Fact #2 - Time Flies. Period.

2011-08-12T23:07:00.000-07:00

You may think this photo is from a night shoot, but no. This is just after finishing our final scene on Day 5. There are a lot of reasons this one went long, not the least of which is that we were attempting the impossible--shooting actors on one boat from another boat without either boat being anchored to anything. What a nightmare. But even without that impossible task, we had a difficult time making our days, simply because everything takes longer than you expect. I don't know how many times I thought to myself that a particular simple scene or portion thereof would take a couple of hours when in fact it took two or three times that long. Learning to estimate the shooting schedule is critical, but coming to the realization that there is no such thing as a simple scene is a good start.

Even the simplest scene with two actors requires a minimum of 3-5 setups. Outside of the setup time required for blocking and lighting (30 to 90 minutes), there are a huge number of other factors which can eat time off the clock. Delays during setup can include power issues, equipment malfunctions, intermittent cloud cover, makeup and costume problems, missing props, location issues, crew indecision and more. Once you actually roll camera, there are any number of things that can ruin a take. These include actors missing marks, flubbing lines, looking at the camera or breaking continuity. Of course, you can expect multiple takes for getting the perfect performance as you have envisioned it. There are also camera issue such as lens flares, improper exposure, operator error, boom mic in shot, wrong framing, wrong timing between the dolly and actors, bugs or other stray objects in frame, or the biggest issue of all--missed focus. The sound department also contributes their share of re-takes for any number of sound issues including mic interference, visible mics, handling noise, air traffic, animals, insects, vehicles, trains, air conditioning units, lawn mowers, noisy off-screen cast and crew, and everything else you can imagine. Now, throw in complicated technical elements such as extras blocking, untrained animals, airplanes taking off/landing during a scene, remote-control helicopters hitting marks, etc.

This list is only things that happened during our recent film shoot to cause delays. It is by no means comprehensive. When you consider that a take must be free of all of these issues in order to be usable, it really does become necessary to shoot a huge number of takes in order to get even one that can be considered good. So, you can see why even a scene with only three setups (angles) can never be considered "simple." The lesson to be learned is that a shooting schedule with high per-day page counts will often result in either incomplete days or in compromised production value. Finding a balance between meeting the budget and keeping the quality high (technically and in performance) is certainly one of the biggest challenges a director faces.

I Know These People!

2011-08-09T13:00:00.000-07:00

This is one of the funniest videos I have seen in a long time. Every single statement in the piece is one that I have heard multiple times over the years. If you are a video professional, I am sure it will ring true with you as well.

Can't believe it took me this long to find such and excellent video! Watch it here.

Lighting Tip #10 - The Language of Lighting

2011-08-09T05:35:00.000-07:00

Which face in the two images on the left would be considered properly lit? While you may instantly decide that you prefer one over the other, the fact is that either one could be correct. In the context of this particular film, however, one would be correct and the other would be very wrong. The only way to know which is correct is to know the lighting ratio that has been pre-determined for the project.

Lighting ratio is simply a way to communicate the difference in level between the key and the fill as it falls on the subject. A ratio of 2:1 (something like the image on the left) would be much more evenly lit than a ratio of 5:1 (something like the image on the right). My numbers for these particular shots are guesses, by the way, since I did not measure the light on location--but you get the point.

In this film, which is a children's film, the decision was made in pre-production to keep it bright and happy. The best way to accomplish this goal was first of all to choose colorful locations, costumes and set decorations. Equally important, however, was to keep the lighting ratio low. This is why the image on the left is the only choice that could work for our film. The image on the right is much more moody, gritty and dark, which may be perfect for another film. And, in fact, it could work in our film, but only if we were trying to accomplish a dark, scary effect on one of the subjects.

Why is it important to know all of this? Well, it is the language of lighting. How else could we describe to the second unit director of photography how to light scenes that will match the first unit? How else could the History Channel hire DP's in ten locations to shoot interviews for a show and have them all look like they were shot by the same crew? It is critical to be able to describe to someone else what you are looking for, and that is where knowing your lighting ratio is important. It is important for your own shooting as well. If you can have a clear idea of the ratio you want while you are lighting each shot, you will end up with a much more consistent-looking project in the end.

Lighting in the Real World

2011-08-08T05:11:00.000-07:00

Dan Lennie at F-Stop Academy has put together some very extensive training programs for would-be video producers. One segment that he is offering as a stand alone module is called "Lighting For Digital Filmmakers" and is currently at a special price.

The one thing I think is a problem for those of us trying to learn more about lighting is that most training only deals with 3-point lighting and generally the examples shown are interviews. It becomes infinitely more complicated, however, when you are lighting a "real-world" scene, especially one in which characters are moving around. Dan deals with this more effectively than most training courses do. You can learn more by checking out his website.

First Movie Poster for The Solomon Bunch

2011-08-06T15:51:00.000-07:00

Just created a temporary poster for The Solomon Bunch. We needed something to submit along with all the information to be listed on the IMDb website. Everything should be online within the next week or so.

Visit the official website for now and I will post once they have us online at IMDb.

Directing Fact #1 - YOU are not making a movie.

2011-08-05T10:53:00.000-07:00

I come from twenty years of productions that for all intents and purposes have been a one-man show. I have many times marveled at the credits on television documentaries, wondering why in the world they would need that many people. More often than not, I choose to not list credits at the end of my own productions because I am embarrassed that I only have three or four names total. While this can and has worked for me in documentary, promo, training and commercial productions, it does not work on a film set.

Preparing for my first film, I found myself often making a mental note of something I would need to be sure to take care of on a particular day of the shoot. They were all very simple things that would not take any time or effort at all. But somewhere along the way, I started to realize how fast they were adding up. There would be no way for me to oversee all of these little things by myself. So I began passing them off, which now unnerved my production manager and assistant directer since these were things they had not heard about previously. I finally got my list down to just one task the night before shooting began and one task on the morning of Day 1.

The first task was putting together the sound cart for our audio guys. Most of the equipment was mine or stuff I had borrowed, and I already had a plan for how to rig it up as a cart. I estimated about two hours to put it together. I was a little off. By the time we had rigged it all together, labeled everything, proved microphones, set up recording templates and gathered all the accessories that might be needed, I got a total of fifteen minutes of sleep.

The task the next morning was much easier. I had agreed to pull the trailer with our movie car to the set. This would not be a problem since I was driving my SUV to the set anyway. Call time was at 8 am, but at 8:45 I was still waiting alongside the Interstate for a police officer to show up. With a flat tire on the trailer, my plan was to simply unload the movie car and drive it the last 30 miles to the set where it would be needed soon. I could not do that, however, without a police escort since my movie car was a very convincing police cruiser. While I really could not afford to be a couple of hours late to the set, I figured it was a better option than being arrested for impersonating a police officer. After permissions and escorts from two counties, I finally drove onto the set in the police car.

No one noticed, of course, because they were already busy shooting the first scene (as I had instructed them by phone). Looking around, I suddenly realized two things. First, this was way bigger than me. My first AD and Director of Photography had things humming and probably would have had a decent scene in the can whether I showed up or not. It was humbling, but it also gave me a great sense of respect for what we were undertaking. My second realization, however, was that I would not see my own vision for my film on-screen if I was also a PA, grip, sound guy, production manager and driver.

A film is like a ship at sea. A lot of people and processes are in place to make it move and maneuver. The captain may be running the show, but his only real job is to hire a good crew and then make sure the boat is always pointed in the right direction. If he has to run up and down the ship taking care of things, no matter how important or how simple, he will be distracted and the results could be disastrous. As a director, after you have found great actors and a great crew in pre-production, you should be focused on only two things--getting the coverage you will need in the edit room, and getting the performance you want from your actors. Everything else is a distraction that someone else should be handling. It is not easy to make this happen on a small budget project, but I believe it is the key to having a great, cohesive end-product that you will be happy with.

Lighting Tip #9 - Know Your Camera

2011-08-04T05:49:00.000-07:00

While good lighting practices generally apply to every situation, it is important to know the capabilities and limitations of the camera and format you are shooting on. The amount of latitude in a camera can make a difference in the way you light. For example, when using a camera with 10 stops of dynamic range, you will be forced to light the scene much more evenly than if you had 14 stops. With a higher latitude camera, you can get away with including both well-lit and very shadowy areas in the same scene--and it may actually create a better result in some cases.

Another thing that is important to know is how your camera handles highlights. Some cameras have a nice-looking roll-off into a blown-out window while others may have the same window looking like a home video. If your camera falls under the latter category, then you will have to bring up the overall lighting of the interior, gel the window with a neutral density filter. or simply find a way to keep the window out of the shot. Be aware that each camera handles differently the highlights in different colors as well. Some may blow out reds before any other color, so you will need to take that into account when lighting the scene.

The overall light level of a scene can be affected by the camera as well. For example, if you have a camera with a higher ISO rating, then you are able to work with much less light and get the same results. While one camera may require an evening scene to have a 5k light as a key and a bunch of lights bringing up the background, another camera may capture the same scene with a small KinoFlo as the key and existing light for the background. In the picture above, we shot a scene of two boys in a fishing boat at close to nine o'clock at night. It was supposed to be a daytime scene, and because we were shooting with a camera rated at 800 ISO (Sony PMW-F3), we were able to get the look of daylight with just existing light and a single Litepanel LED light. On most cameras, this would have looked far too grainy to be of use.

Inception - Behind the Scenes

2011-08-03T08:56:00.000-07:00

Here is a BTS video I found to be very interesting and informative. It covers the filming of fight scenes that were done in a tumbling hallway. I am glad someone out there is willing to put in the effort to figure this kind of thing out, because I have a feeling I will be making no such contribution to the filmmaking industry.

Great Camera Shootout 2011

2011-08-01T04:55:00.000-07:00

Zacuto has posted a new documentary which compares the capabilities of most of the popular film cameras on the market today. It is a very in-depth and scientific comparison that will give you a good grasp on which cameras work best in which situations. The Sony F3, which we used on our recent film shoot, is included, and I thought the results matched very closely to what we found on-set. One thing in particular that seems to be a weak point is the way it handles yellows. It tends to overexpose in the yellows well before it overexposes in any other color. We thought this was strange while shooting, and sure enough these tests found the same thing. Other than that, I thought it matched up well against the other professional formats when you consider the price range it comes in. Take a look at this documentary, which is in three parts. The final segment is due out sometime this month.

Last Chance for Free Templates

2011-07-29T06:41:00.000-07:00

Footage Firm has been giving away stock footage and music for only a small shipping and handling charge for a couple of years now. I have found much of it to be useful in my productions. This new product, which is After Effects templates, is the best thing they have released to date. There is no reason not to purchase this set. It will pay for itself the first time you use one of the templates. Check out their site now since these will not be free for much longer.

Video Promo for SermonAudio.com

2011-07-20T11:31:00.000-07:00

Here is a video promo that I just recently completed for a Gospel of John outreach being sponsored by SermonAudio.com. More than 10,000 scriptures will be sent directly to homes in the Denver area and this video was created to show the specific need of the city of Denver. I loved shooting there, by the way. If you see my next movie script starting with a description of the setting that says "somewhere in the Rocky Mountains," you will know why.

Stills from The Solomon Bunch

2011-07-04T13:05:00.000-07:00

I have been in production on the film, The Solomon Bunch, for the past several weeks, which is why I have not posted anything to this blog. I will spend some time discussing the experience as director sometime in the near future, but for now I figured I would at least post some stills.

We shot with the Sony PMW-F3, which captured some amazing images. There were a few things we did not like about the camera, but overall we were very pleased with how everything came out.

These stills are screen captures as-shot. They are ungraded. For time and cost considerations, we shot directly to the SxS cards in-camera and tried to get as close as possible on the look while shooting. If this were intended to be a theater release rather than just at TV/DVD release, we probably would have shot in S-Log to maintain the image resolution needed for the big screen.

Like It Or Not, I'll Be Clubbing Tonight

2011-06-01T10:41:00.000-07:00

Booking a hotel on a website that will not give you the name of the hotel until you have agreed to the price and have made your purchase should raise a few red flags. But no, I pressed on while humming a simple tune over and over in my head. The words go something like "h-o-t-w-i-r-e...hotwire dot com."

So, here I am in Phoenix at the hotel, amazed that some photographer was able to make the pool look as large as he did--and wondering if it is even legal to crop out surrounding buildings in promo picts of your hotel online. It is not a horrible place, but it is still daytime and I am concerned about the note I found upon entering the room. It was accompanied by a set of earplugs.

Covering the Legal Bases On a Movie

2011-05-28T19:54:00.000-07:00

On our film, "The Solomon Bunch," one of the producers and I have been using this book from the American Bar Association for drafting contracts. They have contracts already made up for agreements with writers, actors, directors, crew, locations and much more. With a few adjustments here and there, we have been able to do ourselves what should have cost us several thousand dollars. The revisions are easy, since an accompanying CD-Rom has all the files available in text document form. I would recommend this book to any filmmaker as I cannot imagine a simpler way to go about it. The fact that it is from the ABA lends credibility as well, since many similar products that are available come from other filmmakers and not necessarily a legal authority. You can find the book on Amazon.com or buy it from us when we finish our movie.

History Channel Using My Footage

2011-05-25T10:54:00.000-07:00

Here's a weird feeling. Lying in bed watching television and out of the blue seeing something you shot. The History Channel is using my footage in a promo about their special Memorial Day lineup. The shot that caught my attention was particularly familiar since I have used it many times in my own productions. They didn't steal it, though. It was purchased through one of the online stock footage brokers I use.

Free Footage from RevoStock

2011-05-24T07:19:00.001-07:00

Here is a free video clip from RevoStock. This one will only be up this week, so download it quickly if you want it.

Shooting Headshots Using A Flash

2011-05-24T07:11:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I come across something from the photography world that I could use. Even though there are many overlapping principles between photography and video, there are many things I still need to learn about DSLRs. This course from Steele Training looks like something that I may take advantage of in the near future. Among other things, it deals with shooting headshots and portraits using only a flash.

Creating Videos On A Tight Schedule

2011-05-21T20:15:00.000-07:00

David Womack at collidemagazine.com has a helpful article about getting a project organized and finished when on a tight deadline. It deals specifically with church media productions, but is great advice for anyone who is creating content. My only question in reading the article was how he has time for so many "peer reviews" of his project at every step or the way if he is really on a deadline. Even so, it is a common sense approach to making it happen.

Lighting Tip #8 - Be More Controlling

2011-05-17T08:11:00.000-07:00

Getting a good frame in the end is all about learning to control your light. Getting your instruments properly arranged in a 3-point lighting setup is fine for a usable shot, but that shot does not necessarily become a great shot without controlling it. Through the use of flags, scrims, gels and cookies we can get a frame that has the desired impact and dramatic effect.

Flags are simply a black piece of material or foamcore that is used to control the spill of the light. This may be to keep light off of the background or a particular subject. It may also be to keep light from shining directly at the camera creating lens flares. Whatever the purpose, it is not unusual to see several flags of different shapes and sizes being used to control a single light's output. It is helpful to know that the edge of the shadow created by the flag will be softer the closer it is placed to the light. Gels are generally used to color-correct a light to match the other lights in a scene. They can also be used for adding color as an effect in a scene. Scrims are diffusion material that comes in different thicknesses. They are used for lowering the light level and for softening the source by making it bigger. Finally, cookies are cutout shapes that are placed in front of a light to "break it up" and cast a more random pattern of light. Whether used on the background or on other elements in a scene, this tends to make a scene more interesting and often helps it to feel more natural. In the above example from a production by the company Encendedor, you see quite a few light-control techniques being used, including a scrim placed directly on the front windshield of the car.

On Set With Cinematographer Bob Scott

2011-05-13T10:22:00.000-07:00

I was on-set yesterday visiting Bob Scott, the cinematographer who will be director of photography on our movie, "The Solomon Bunch," next month. We caught a few minutes here and there on breaks and lunch to discuss our plan. The rest of the time I observed the process.

I took a few behind the scenes picts with my Blackberry included here. The film is called, "Laughing At the Moon" and is being shot in Knoxville, Tennessee on about a five week schedule. The top two pictures are of a scene that was shot in the evening and as the sun disappeared, lights were added to supplement. I thought it was interesting that when the 12K (big light closest) was put up, it had very little diffusion. As the sun provided less and less light on each take, they actually added more diffusion to bring the level of the 12K down and brought the camera's iris up slightly. I assume this was so that they could still include some of the sky in the shot. If you instead added more light, then your sky would look darker and darker. At some point, you do have to abandon the sky and get shots that do not include it. The good thing is that they were able to get the master shots (wide shots) while the sky had light, then get their closeups without needing to show it after the sun was gone completely.

In the top shot, you see the First AC (assistant camera operator--also called the focus-puller) on the left, the Camera Operator on the dolly, and the Key Grip in the background looking on. The bottom shot is inside the tent that housed "video village," where the Director and Script Supervisor watch each shot as it happens. Here, the AD (assistant director) checks the frame for anything out-of-place. On the screen, you can see Bob Scott, the Cinematographer, explaining to the actor where exactly he would need to put his hands on the canvas to begin his abstract painting. Bob actually filled the role of Director as well in most cases, since the Writer/Director of the film is also the star and is on-screen in nearly all of the scenes.

Free Stock Music Collections

2011-05-13T09:49:00.000-07:00

Footage Firm announced more royalty-free music collections today. Each collection costs only about $8 (shipping and handling) and includes different length cuts for each song. I recommend their products and use them often. Check it out.

Lighting Tip #7 - Outdoor Subjects

2011-05-07T14:52:00.000-07:00

Common sense would tell you that if you are shooting a subject on a sunny day, you should position the subject so that he/she has the sun lighting their face, right? While this may be necessary and desirable in some situations, it is not generally the best way.

Backlighting, or rim lighting, is critical for a professional and flattering shot. In fact, when outdoors, it is often desirable for the backlight to be much hotter than the key. This is almost impossible to do, however, if you use the sun as your key. So, what is the best approach?

Most DP's will use a combination of diffusion and bounce in order to get the best shot possible. First, face the subject with their back to the sun (offset a little is actually a good idea for eliminating lens flares and creating less symmetrical shadows). Second, put a diffusion screen between the sun and the subject to knock down the overall light level and soften shadows a bit. Third, use a bounce (reflector) in front of the subject to act as a key light. In my experience, a white bounce usually works best. Silver is usually too harsh and causes the subject to squint (as they would if they were facing the sun). Now, sometimes you will not be able to generate enough light (depending on the look you are going for) just using a bounce and it is necessary to use an HMI in place of the bounce. The picture above is from the Elk Run Productions website and illustrates this. They have a number of other examples of lighting setups at that sight that you may want to look at as well.

The Solomon Bunch Rehearsals

2011-05-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

Working with actress Kay Hall and a bunch of great child actors at a rehearsal for our film "The Solomon Bunch." I am pleased with how well most of them are doing even as this was the first rehearsal for these scenes. You can view more picts and info about the film at the Facebook page.

What Should We Think About Bin Laden's Death?

2011-05-02T15:06:00.000-07:00

My pastor, Roy Mack, has a great post about Bin Laden today. It is one thing to rejoice as an American, but what is God's perspective on all of this?

Speaking the Language of Actors

2011-04-30T18:53:00.000-07:00

What a great find. This article about working with actors is some great information and was exactly what I need as I head into production on my first film next month. The site itself is great, too. It is run by tv director Peter Marshall (21 Jumpstreet, Black Stallion, etc.) and has lots of good helpful stuff for indie filmmakers. Take the time to check it out and let me know what you think about the article.

My Personal FCP Plug-In Favorites

2011-04-29T11:44:00.000-07:00

I was talking on the phone with a colleague in Florida this morning and he said he would like to see a post about which plug-ins/resources I use on a daily basis. My workflow is certainly not the most organized and I do tend to get stuck in a rut many times, so I will not claim to have found the best tools out there, these are simply the ones I have and use often.

• Color corrector 3-way. This is not a plug-in, but is worth a mention since I use it all day long for quick color temp, brightness and contrast adjustment to clips.
• Lyric Shadow-Highlight is a great quick fix for bringing out detail in shadows and fixing blown-out highlights.
• Transitions from Too Much Too Soon, Eureka, and Stibs (cannot find a working link currently) are great.
• Digital Heaven has Grid and Guides plug-ins for centering and aligning elements and text onscreen.
• Primatte Keyer is a simple but powerful way to pull keys since FCP is woefully lacking in this area.
• Face Light is included with FCP, but I did not really start using it until a couple of years ago. Now, I use it often to highlight one or more areas in a shot that need attention. It is a very handy tool to have on-hand.
• MyMusicSource.com is an easy way to find the perfect cut of music. It has a strange way of interacting with Final Cut, but is called a plug-in. You can download "audition" versions of any cut of music and wait until the video is approved by the client before actually paying for it.
• Magic Bullet Quick Looks is an easy way to give each project it's own feel. One click and your video is color graded.
• Final Cut Compressor/Limiter. Again, this is a part of Final Cut, but deserves a mention since it is a critical part of my workflow. Every project gets audio compression applied to the entire audio track before the final export.

You will notice that most of these are free plug-ins. There are some great packages of effects and transitions available out there for purchase, but I have managed to get by with the free ones for many years. The occasional addition of specialized effects from places like CrumplePop, Drop Zones, etc. have spiced up my projects from time to time, but the ones I have listed above are my go-to plugins for sure. We will see which of these are still supported once FCP X is released. Any great plug-ins that you use which I have overlooked?

Are You On YouTube?

2011-04-28T12:35:00.000-07:00

NoFilmSchool.com has a helpful video about using YouTube as a marketing tool. Maybe you are in the same boat I am, where you just cannot bring yourself to accept that YouTube is "the biggest platform" as stated in this video. It can certainly yield tremendous results, but only if you treat it with the importance it deserves. Viewing it as something you do "on the side" does not work, it takes a lot of work and the right strategies to make it successful.

Filmmaking Is More Than Amazing Shots

2011-04-20T04:49:00.000-07:00

Kendall Miller at FreshDV posted a great article about calling yourself a film-maker. It has generated a ton of comments both in support of and against what he has to say. You will find the article to be interesting and thought-provoking.

Estimated Time: About 19 weeks

2011-04-19T10:59:00.000-07:00

So, are you saying that with the faster processing and background rendering in Final Cut Pro X, that I would be able to hear the audio portion of my TV program by the end of the summer? Awesome! By the way, I am not rendering Avatar here. This actual screen grab is a common thing that happens when FCP tries to estimate how long a render will take. (This particular render actually took less than a minute.) Do I want this fixed? No. It makes me feel good to know that someone working for Apple is even more pessimistic than I am.

The One-Day Edit!

2011-04-19T07:17:00.000-07:00

Here is a video that was put together for the final night of the Baptist Friends conference last week. On Wednesday and Thursday, we shot footage and loaded it into the computer. Then on Friday, I worked non-stop to edit it by that evening. With God's help, I made it (with not a moment to spare) and it was well-received. Here are a few observations.

We had no time for color correction, so with the exception of maybe six or eight clips that needed to be brighter to be seen, this is all straight out of the camera. Most shots are from the Canon 7D using an f2.8 70-200mm lens and recording at 24p. You will notice the shots that are from a camcorder at 30p. Color and feel are completely different--and certainly inferior (in my humble opinion). Those shots were also captured using a monopod, so they are not stable like the ones I shot on a tripod. The only reason we plugged those in at all was because they covered events or angles that I was not able to get myself. Also, because the edit was very sparse on the b-roll with about two hours to go, I started grabbing anything that worked and just plugging it in.

I was actually pretty happy with how it turned out. The story flows well, which is the most important thing, and the overall feel of the piece is good. The one shot of mine that I hate is the very grainy shot of the two girls talking about seeing old friends. They turned the auditorium lights out while we were in the middle of the interview, but what she said was critical to the piece, so I used it with a ton of gain and kept it as short as possible. My favorite shot is probably the one you see above. The sun was setting just right as I ran to my truck to get something. I quickly set up a shot behind a statue of a lion and loved how the lens flare turned the entire shot to a golden hue. One thing to know on the edit is that the lady at the end who says she "learned to have greater faith at the conference" is missionary Margaret Stringer. I thought it was powerful that a woman who had spent her life living with a tribe of cannibals that had never seen a white person would have "learned to have faith" in God at the conference--must have been a pretty good one!

Back To Civilization

2011-04-11T20:32:00.000-07:00

I just got back from the better part of a week at a boys camp in Horseshoe Beach, Florida. There was no phone service and I was unable to get on the Internet, so this is my first post in a while. I had a great time at the camp and shot a good bit of footage while I was there. This montage video will give you a good idea of what the camp is all about. Be sure to select the HD option for viewing rather than watching it in this small window. Double-clicking on the play button will take you to YouTube.

Free Stock Footage - San Diego Sunset

2011-04-06T05:51:00.000-07:00

This is a sequence of free stock footage shots that were taken at sunset on the beach in San Diego, California.

Shots of waves and sunsets seem to come in handy in a variety of projects, so these will be good clips to add to your collection. Tell someone else about my site if you download these. All of my clips are royalty-free and yours to use in any project.

Download Clip #1

Download Clip #2

Using Facebook For Your Business

2011-04-04T19:09:00.000-07:00

Lance Cummins over at NearlyFreeLance.com has quite a few really helpful blog posts about using social media to your advantage. I learned a few things about setting up a page for my business by watching this short tutorial video. Take a look at what he offers to small businesses while you are on the site. Great stuff at amazing rates!

Share Your Audio Mixes Using SoundCloud

2011-04-04T08:58:00.000-07:00

Check out this great online application called SoundCloud that allows you to upload audio files (like you would to YouTube) and then share them on any of the social sites or on your blog or website. It is a great way to do client reviews of mixes or to create an audio blog. Church sermons too! The display shows up as a waveform with a pause/play button and a way for listeners to give feedback as they listen.

Media Workshops in Knoxville, TN

2011-04-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

I am hosting a series of workshop sessions on April 12th-15th at the Baptist Friends Int'l Conference in Knoxville, TN. I will cover a number of topics that will be helpful for churches:

• Your Church & the Local Media
• 10 Ways to Make Your Website More Effective
• Creating Great Church Video
• Broadcasting Your Church Services
• Connecting With People Using the Internet
• Stepping Into the Sound Booth: An Intro to Audio

I have also asked my friend Greg Howlett, an Internet marketing guru (or so he tells me), to teach a couple of these sessions. If you can make it for the conference, we will look forward to working with you to improve your church's opportunities for ministry.

Great Deal on After Effects Templates!

2011-03-31T04:56:00.000-07:00

I have mentioned Footage Firm a number of times on this blog in reference to their stock footage and stock audio. They have just added something new--and it is an amazing value.

A huge time-saver for video producers/editors is After Effects templates. Starting with a customizable project rather than starting from scratch can save days or weeks of work. And for someone with limited AE knowledge, it can make the impossible possible. Most of the time, you will find AE templates being sold for somewhere between $50 and $150 each. I have always thought this was a real bargain--especially when I have found something that will fit my needs perfectly. But Footage Firm has just announced 50 great-quality templates for less than $100 (you pay only shipping and handling charges--the product is free). I do not know of a better value anywhere--and certainly not on AE templates. They will be available for a limited time at this "free" rate before going to the normal cost of $2,500 for the set. Check out their products today.

Free Stock - Train Passing

2011-03-30T10:04:00.000-07:00

This shot has some exciting movement to it and works well in a quick montage. The sky is not very interesting, but no one will notice because the action keeps their attention. A good starting point is where the focal length begins to shorten. The gradual widening of the angle emphasizes the speed of the train as it approaches.

Download now.

Television Tape!

2011-03-28T06:57:00.000-07:00

NAB time is the most exciting time of the year for audio-video pros. We get to see all the new stuff the manufacturers are coming out with. Of course, there are always those products that are released early so as to avoid getting "lost in the crowd." This one is sure to be popular. Check out all of the nifty transitions you can do with it...

Downloading Internet Videos

2011-03-25T06:58:00.000-07:00

I have known about this program for a while now and used it on a number of occasions, but never thought to mention it on the blog. However, I imagine many of you may have need for something like this to help you pull video off the Internet. It is called DownloadHelper, and if a video will play in Firefox, this program will download it (with transcoding) quickly and simply. There is an article today on ProVideoCoalition.com that talks more about it's capabilities. It is a donation-based product, so check it out.

Great Deal on Westcott Light Kit

2011-03-22T17:50:00.000-07:00

If I was just getting started in video production and did not have any lights, this would be the deal I would go for! MarkerTek is selling a three-light kit from Westcott (a big name in video and photography lighting) for under $250 that is a great starter kit. With two 500watt softboxes and a kicker light for the background, you can do the vast majority of interview setups you will need to do, and the softboxes work great to add a little light here and there when shooting other footage. I would certainly recommend checking this deal out and investing in lights like these to bring your production value up to another level--from amateur to professional. If you do purchase this kit, be sure to read my lighting tip about two-point lighting.

Review of WebStarts Design Tools

2011-03-22T08:11:00.000-07:00

While I really do not consider myself a web designer, somehow over the years I have created dozens of sites. Sometimes it is for someone I know or for a client that really needs a good website in order to display a video I am producing. Occasionally I have taken jobs on-purpose when I needed the income. I have worked in a number of different programs, from ones that simply facilitated HTML programming to others that were supposedly WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). Lately, I have done most designs in Photoshop and then chopped the design up into pieces. This is a horrible idea, by the way, if you want to improve your rating on search engines. Whatever the case, I have never really enjoyed designing for the web because it was always a drudgery.

When it came time to do a site for our film recently, I figured I would look to see what new tools were available--especially for creating something quickly and very cheaply. I was pleasantly surprised to come across WebStarts.com, which claimed to be simple drag and drop functionality. After working with it for the last several weeks, I can say that I am sold! This tool is fantastic. Although I have been tweaking a little here and there, the actual design of the site as it looks right now took me less than two days. I based off of a template (but changed the look completely) and without any instruction was able to figure out how to do just about everything in the program. Adding widgets or other HTML or Java code-based gadgets is unbelievably simple, and requires no programming knowledge whatsoever. With the exception of one little glitch that I was able to resolve quickly with the very helpful U.S.-based support team, it has worked flawlessly. I recommend you check out WebStarts and all of the many built-in functions and SEO-friendly features it offers. A basic 5-page site is absolutely free, if you don't mind the added text link to WebStarts at the bottom of the page, and full functionality is super cheap.

Free Stock - Washington Monument

2011-03-20T16:25:00.000-07:00

This clip is from below the Washington Monument at night. A nice long shot that works well in normal speed or in slow-motion. Use this in a patriotic montage or in a piece about darkness in America. A very unique angle with a lot of good possibilities. Great movement in the flags, too. I have some other matching shots to go with this. Email me if you have need of them.

Download now.

Judging A Talent Contest

2011-03-18T05:38:00.000-07:00

I got a call yesterday from The Actor's Scene in Atlanta about being a judge on their annual talent contest. They are a respected organization that trains and represents actors and singers here in the southeast. Sounded like fun to me until they said I would not be allowed to give verbal comments after each performance. What?! My visions of myself as Simon Cowell bringing some young actress to tears and seeing her run from the stage after a particularly harsh criticism were dashed. Oh, well. I accepted anyway and look forward to the event on May 14th. Find out more about it on their website.

Good News in the Tape Shortage?

2011-03-17T07:54:00.000-07:00

The big news in the video world today (literally today) is the tape shortage that is happening. Sony's factories in Japan are down due to the earthquake and as we speak, production houses everywhere are on the phone and internet frantically buying up all of the Sony tape stock. The problem is that certain formats are only made by Sony, including HDCAM SR, which is the mastering format used for any high-end production. It is also the format for delivery to television networks and stations. Expect SR tapes to be either impossible to find or very expensive, and other tape and cartridges (such as XDCAM) to be difficult to get as well. There are a couple of good things that might come out of this. First, we will once again be reminded how great it is to be shooting to cards and drives rather than tape. How quickly we have taken this "new" workflow for granted. Second, my hope is that more stations will be forced to accept programs as computer files (ProRes, for example) on a disk. With super-stable computer systems now available for playing the highest-quality video, it seems silly that anything has to be mastered to tape at this point (many places are ingesting it from the HDCAM SR tapes anyway). Life would be simpler and cheaper if they were to start offering that option--here's hoping.

My Upcoming Workshops

2011-03-17T06:48:00.000-07:00

I have schedule several workshops in the Knoxville area that you may be interested in attending. They will be at the Crown College as a part of their Baptist Friends International meeting on April 11-14. The registration fee is minimal and there will be sessions on many other topics helpful to church leaders. This is a conference that will be attended by thousands from all over the country, so it is a great place for meeting others in the ministry as well. You can learn more about the conference at their website, which is www.baptistfriends.org.

The topics I will be covering include 1) Stepping Into the Sound Booth--An Introduction to Audio, 2) Creating Great Church Videos, 3) Starting a Church Telecast, and at least one other topic. There will be eight classes total in the "media" track that runs over the four day period. Let me know if you are interested in finding out more about what I am teaching or if you have suggestions.

A Beka Book Curriculum

2011-03-16T14:16:00.000-07:00

Working today on mixing songs for the A Beka Book curriculum used in Christian schools everywhere. This is four CD's that will be used in conjunction with preschool materials. So now you know why I have taken a break to blog about it. A man can only hear "Baa Baa Black Sheep" or "Hickory Dickory Dock" so many times in a row without going crazy....Okay, back to work.

The Solomon Bunch Website

2011-03-14T20:25:00.000-07:00

We have launched the official website for our film, The Solomon Bunch. Today, the site went live and we announced the majority of the cast members who will star in the production. A few characters still have not been nailed down for various reasons.

Be sure to visit the site and our Facebook page as well to follow us as we go through the process of making a movie. Help get the word out by telling others about us as well. You can even get credit in the film if you generate enough buzz. Check the website for information about that.

Free Stock - Sunlit Forest

2011-03-11T10:43:00.000-08:00

This clip of those famous "sweet Georgia pines" is a fairly-quick panning shot (to the right) that comes to rest with the sun in the upper left corner. It has good energy and will work in either a slower or faster-paced production. Adding a little diffusion on the highlights such as a bloom filter might look kind of nice.

Download now.

Shooting Professionally On HDSLR's

2011-03-09T07:27:00.000-08:00

If you are shooting professional video productions on an HDSLR, then I don't know of a better place to learn the right way than from Shane Hurlbut. Shane is an ASC cinematographer who has worked on many well-known movies. For several years now, he has been shooting with HDSLR's and getting great results. This new training series from B&H Photo/Video will be a great help to you in getting the in-camera settings just right and in knowing how to accessorize your camera for best results. Check it out.

Salvaging Poorly-Lit Shots

2011-03-08T07:16:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago I had to shoot a presentation for a speaker and had just enough set-up time for a couple of cameras and an HD Tricaster to switch between them. There was very little light in the room and the projector was directly behind the speaker--. a "worst-case scenario" because of its brightness and color temperature difference, but one in which we seem to find ourselves quite often. My only option was to underexpose the scene, putting the whites of the screen just into the clipping range and letting the darks, including the speaker, fall where they may. I knew that there would be some graininess in my final product, but I did the best I could.

Fortunately, there are some handy ways of correcting levels in post production, and some are included already in editing software packages. The go-to correction controls are the three-way color correction filters that allow you to adjust the bright, dark, and mid tones separately. This means you can bring the brightness of the screen down without adjusting the blacks at all, and you can bring the dark areas up without pushing the bright areas to where they clip. With these controls, you can even out a contrasty shot like you see on the left (the original shot). There are other plug-ins for this, too. On this shot I actually used one of my favorites--the free Shadow-Highlight plug-in for Final Cut Pro from Lyric. In about five seconds, I was able to correct my blown out highlights and bring the shadow areas up to where the speaker is visible. While I would still not consider it a great-looking shot, it is a far cry from what it was.

Free Stock - Paving Crew

2011-03-07T05:51:00.000-08:00

This week's free stock footage is actually a sequence. I have included two matching shots instead of just one. (In the future, I hope to do more of this, by the way). Often this can help to give more depth in editing or allow you to keep the pacing quick by using two shots instead of one to show the same thing. This road paving crew was on a rural road in northern Colorado. As with most of my stock footage, it was intentionally shot a little on the flat side, so as to leave you more flexibility in color grading. If nothing else, applying a filter such as Quick Looks from Magic Bullet should make the image pop.

Tell others about my free stock footage. The more people who are accessing it, the more I will be able to add to the collection.

Download clip #1.

Download clip #2.

The Solomon Bunch Final Auditions

2011-03-05T19:45:00.000-08:00

Today was the day for call-back auditions for our film, The Solomon Bunch. Casting has turned into quite a difficult thing. For some roles, we have had a hard time finding someone, and for other roles, there are two or three really good actors that we hate to have to choose between.

Whatever the case, we should have a great cast. When casting a comedy, it is always a good thing when you find yourself laughing out loud at the performers in their auditions. That happened numerous times today, and was encouraging. Sara Prisk, my sister in law and a producer on the film, worked with me on the casting process along with co-writer Jack Gregory (not pictured). Our core cast should be announced soon on The Solomon Bunch website. We are still looking for some skilled volunteers in the production department, by the way, so let us know if you are interested in working on the film.

How To Slate Properly

2011-03-02T07:41:00.000-08:00

In this article on 25 Tips to Help You Slate Like a Pro, Art Adams covers a skill that seems like it would need no explanation. However, I know from personal experience that it is easy to create frustration in the editing process when the slate is not done right. On many occasions, I have slated in such a way that it is unusable later. So, this article is a good read for anyone who works in the camera department on-set or may find themselves using a slate for any reason.

Recording Crown College Choir

2011-03-01T14:26:00.000-08:00

We just wrapped up the initial recording sessions with the Crown College Choir in Knoxville, TN. The entire 160 voice choir has finished their part of the recording, and tonight we do it all over again with a smaller ensemble of about 14 voices. This ensemble will sing along with the recorded vocals of the full choir in order to add a closer, cleaner sound that will make the final mix sound much fuller and on-pitch (assuming these 14 voices are as good as they are supposed to be). Once completed there will be a total of 348 voices (two passes of the full choir and two passes of the ensemble). It may seem like overkill, but the fact is that a single pass recording of a choir sounds much weaker than it would sound in person. It takes the extra time and effort to get a recording that sounds accurate and has the fullness people expect when they listen to a CD. These picts from the magnificent camera in my Blackberry show you my setup in the middle of the auditorium and the microphones on the stage. We are using 6 mics across the front of the choir--2 Neumann TLM-103's, 2 Neumann U-87's and 2 Rode NT-1's. Don't try to find any rhyme or reason in that, it is what I had access to. You will also notice the two mics on the tall stands in the middle. These two AT-4050's give me a more distant stereo pair that really smooths out the overall sound. Sorry I did not get any pictures while the choir was up there--just too busy to think of it.

Understanding Compression

2011-03-01T13:56:00.000-08:00

One of the most powerful tools in your arsenal as a sound tech or video editor is the compressor. This piece of equipment (or software) will not only improve the sound of your mixes, but it will save you a ton of time by bringing your tracks into a manageable dynamic range. I love to see the look on the face of church sound techs when I first plug in a compressor and add it to their vocal mics. It makes a huge difference in quality and in the ability to keep each singer's volume consistent. Disc Makers has an article that describes compression in simple terms and also includes some samples so you can hear exactly what it does. Take a minute and go check out the article.

We Are Pulling For You, Apple!

2011-02-25T08:26:00.000-08:00

Apple is finally giving video people something to get excited about. With Avid and Adobe releasing some great products in the past year, I wondered if we were getting left in the dust.

The new Macbook Pro has some great improvements including a much better battery and a superfast port (12x faster than firewire 800!) called ThunderBolt. You can read about the laptop at BHPhoto. The other news that is out (not officially, mind you) is that a new version of Final Cut Studio will be out in the next couple of months and there are apparently some major improvements/additions. Although there is much speculation right now about what those are, we will wait and see before lending credibility to any of the rumors. Suffice it to say that it should be good--and it better be good if Apple wants to stay competitive in the professional video market. Here's hoping!

No Time For You

2011-02-25T08:08:00.000-08:00

Since I began this blog, I have never missed more than one or two days without posting something--until this week. I have gone almost a week and I am sure many people are thinking that I have gone the way of most flash-in-the-pan bloggers. I assure you, I have not.

So, why has it been so long. Partly because I have been so busy that I have not been on the Internet at all, and the times I had a few moments to spare, I did not have access to the Internet. Here is what I have been doing. On Sunday, I was at church all day recording our choir doing one song that will go on a compilation disc to be released next Christmas. On Monday, I recorded the soloist for that song at my studio and then did the mix. That evening, my wife and I went to Greenville, SC for a casting call for our film, The Solomon Bunch. While we had very few show up to audition, we found three really fantastic actors that made it all worthwhile. Tuesday morning I was at a studio in Atlanta producing vocals for the Daybreak Quartet's new album. I rushed from there to south Atlanta for a conference to do a multicamera shoot of one of the speaker's presentations. Late that night I worked on a design for a friend's youth rally. Wednesday I was in the studio all day with the Daybreak Quartet and then mixed a couple of tracks for pianist Greg Howlett at my place in the evening. Thursday morning I got a four am start and traveled to Knoxville, TN where I am now teaching a series of audio/video seminars through Monday. I will have 9 sessions in all--each one being 90-120 minutes. Probably should have had something prepared! While I am here in Knoxville, I am staying in a guest house that is beautiful and has everything--except the Internet. On Monday through Wednesday, I will be doing a recording of the Crown College Choir and then leaving Wednesday afternoon to head to Pennsylvania with the Daybreak Quartet for one of their concerts.

So, if you don't hear from me for a few more days, it is not that I have quit blogging--I am just too busy to take time for you. Might as well just put it bluntly.

The Four Principles with Brian Neher

2011-02-18T12:16:00.000-08:00

Getting close to having a completed product for painter Brian Neher. His series is entitled, "The Four Principles," and teaches the basics of Drawing, Values, Color and Edges. This will be a great training piece for aspiring painters. I had a go at it (using color crayons) after sitting through his instruction during the taping. I won't publish it here, but my picture did not turn out half bad--infinitely better than what I could have done without using his system. Anyhow, this is the look of the cover designs in a screen grab from the promotional video that is finishing post today. Editor George Ordway is working on the last of the training videos and should be finished this weekend as well. Check out Brian Neher's website for examples of his work.

Super-Speed Phantom Flex Camera

2011-02-18T05:21:00.000-08:00

The newest Phantom camera from Vision Research, the Phantom Flex, is even more amazing than the first. This one shoots full 1080p at over 2,500 frames per second. DP Tom Guilmette has a post on his blog of some stuff he shot with it if you want to take a look. Before you get too excited, the original Phantom was renting for over $3,000 per day, so it is not something you will be incorporating into most of your videos. Still, it is good to know it is there when you need it.

How Many Takes Is Too Many?

2011-02-17T12:37:00.000-08:00

Here is a great article for anyone directing talent on-set. It is very easy to run your actors/spokespeople into the ground through retakes and poor communication if you are not careful. On more than one occasion, I have sat in the editing suite working on a project and have been shocked to realize just how many takes I actually ran on a particular shot. What may have seemed like about fifteen minutes of retakes while on-set was in reality close to forty-five--and I wondered why my talent was getting a little frustrated! It is certainly important that you leave the set with usable material, but you should be competent enough to realize when you have something you can work with. This article from www.nofilmschool.com expands on this idea a little and will be helpful to you, I believe.

Free Stock - Father Son Fishing

2011-02-17T04:35:00.000-08:00

This is a high value shot with a beautiful dolly push with obvious parallax toward the father teaching his son to fish. Be sure to do some color grading on this as it was shot fairly flat. Hope you enjoy the clip--I am sure you will find a use for this one pretty quickly!

Download now.

CrazyTalk Animator

2011-02-16T05:50:00.000-08:00

Last year I purchased a simple facial animation software program called CrazyTalk 6. It sat on the shelf for a long time, but I finally had a job in January that called for it and it worked very well. It was quick and easy as advertised, especially the way it automatically creates mouth movements based on the audio file you import. Although we did have some difficulty getting a thin mouth line that was not aliased, it was certainly well worth the money. Well, Reallusion has stepped up their game even further. CrazyTalk Animator is not only for facial animation, but for creating full-blown environments by simply dragging and dropping elements from anywhere. Any still can be incorporated as an element, and you can also choose from a large number of built-in elements and customizable characters. And speaking of characters, it really is amazing the functionality this program has for doing just about anything with your "actors" in a completely intuitive way. Right now, Digital Juice is selling the entire suite of programs at half off. For only $164.95, you can be creating professional, viewable content today (literally). Check out the overview video and features on the Digital Juice website.

Lighting Tip #6 - Matching the Mood

2011-02-15T05:08:00.000-08:00

I love all of the websites and articles that promote 3-point lighting and the exact "formula" that you need to light an interview. While that is a good starting point, doing it right is not always that simple.

Just like anything else, rules were made to be broken. If you understand the principle of 3-point lighting, then you can begin modifying your setup to meet your specific needs. Have you noticed the look of interviews on shows like 20/20 or Dateline? Their interviews are often in support of a serious or dramatic topic, and they use the lighting on the interviewee to enhance the mood of the piece. Many times, they will use no fill light at all. This creates a bit of mystery, especially when the key light is on the side of the face away from the camera as you see in my example above. Sports segments leading up to the beginning of a game will take this concept to the max, often using very stark single-point lighting (from directly overhead, for example) to cast distinctive shadows across the face. On the other hand, lighting an interview for the Today show might call for four or five point lighting on the subject. This could include not only a key, fill, rim and additional edge light, but also a broad fill (often bounced off a white card from below the subject) to raise the overall base illumination and eliminate shadows under the chin. In addition to that, you might use several lights on the background in order to create the happier atmosphere you need on a morning show.

You have a lot of choices when lighting a scene, and though we are talking about interviews here, these same principles apply to narrative storytelling--it just becomes a little more complicated when people are moving around. The basic take-away here is to know the story you are shooting and light accordingly. Your story will be enhanced and the look of your overall piece will have a consistent feel to it.

The Little Things

2011-02-14T08:48:00.000-08:00

You might start seeing more of these pop up on my blog. They are from despair.com and I think they are hilarious.

This one is particularly meaningful. I have realized that my hatred for details is causing me more and more grief as time goes on. Let me explain what I mean. It is not that I am not a perfectionist--I most certainly am. A client recently told me they did not want their seminar DVD's to be good, they just wanted them quick. Well, I don't know how to do that--and believe me, I would love to learn because I really need to be on to something else rather than spending an extra week perfecting something that doesn't require it. So, it is not that my end product is not good or that I don't care how things turn out. That is not my problem.

My problem is in the details to get there. I am the type that does not have time to read the instructions, so I spend twice as long each time I put a bookshelf together. When it comes to video...

I don't have time to import all my assets into one folder, so when a client needs a re-edit six months later I spend hours finding and reconnecting (sometimes even recreating) media.
I did not have time to reorganize my equipment after the last shoot, so on this shoot I am missing something (usually just something small--like a way to power the camera, for example).
I did not take the time to white balance every shot, so now I have to do all kinds of funky things to get my colors to look right.

It is really quite easy to make a huge amount of work for yourself through one simple mistake. A videographer I used on a recent shoot selected the wrong setting while capturing in Quicktime. He has been shooting for a long time and knew what he was doing, but just overlooked that one particular setting. When he checked his recordings afterward, they looked great in Quicktime. However, when we tried to transcode them later, we could not get them to play without considerable jerkiness (looked like it was playing at about 3 fps). After several days of three of us trying every possible solution, including all of the major encoders (Squeeze, Compressor, Media Encoder, MPEG Streamclip) and a dozen others, we all came up empty handed. What seemed like it could be fixed simply turned out to be a nightmare.

This is only the most recent example. I could cite many more. My point is that we need to pay attention to the small things before they become big things. There is a balance here, by the way. I have another friend who does work for me that takes it to the other extreme. He would plan for three days to shoot an interview if I would let him. I usually have to tell him, "good enough," so we can actually get some work done. So there are two sides to the coin, I guess. Whichever side you are on, try to "move a little more to the center" (I never thought I would catch myself saying that).

Lighting Tip #5 - Separation

2011-02-12T21:07:00.000-08:00

One reason for taking time to light each scene properly is that you need the subject to stand out from the background. Getting good separation keeps your shots from looking flat and uninteresting, and makes sure your subject is not lost.

There are several ways to get separation. First is by using rim lighting, also known as backlighting or edge lighting. This creates a glow around the edge of the subject and causes him or her to stand out. The image shown here is from the Lowel website. For a demonstration of where to place backlights, visit the site. Another way to get separation is to make sure the background is not too bright. Using "egg crates" on your softboxes or barn doors on your open-faced lights, you can keep the light from spilling onto the background. A few highlights on key background elements helps bring the background to life, but too much light is a distraction from your subject in the foreground. Of course, this is not a hard and fast rule. A darker subject may require a lighter background. (Note: The "Chiaroscuro" principle is a good one to know. It says that the brightness of the background should be in direct opposition to the brightness of the subject. For example, if the key light is on the left side of a person's face, the background would be darker on that side and move to lighter on the side where the fill light is placed.)

The most obvious way to create separation is to actually leave a little space between the subject and the backdrop. Instead of shooting someone on a couch against a wall, try seating them in the center of the room. While this does not necessarily create separation by itself, expecially if you are using a longer lens, it does allow the background to go out of focus with very little effort. A sharp subject stands out very well against an out-of-focus background.

Free Stock - Sailboats

2011-02-11T10:28:00.000-08:00

Two sailboats slowly leave Charleston harbor. This is a free stock footage clip that can be used royalty-free in any production. It is a long enough clip that it could be sped up a little for effect. To see the resolution of the clip, click on the image and to download, click the link below. Please continue to pass the word along about this blog!

Download now.

Lighting for Portraits

2011-02-11T04:32:00.000-08:00

On this blog right now, I am in the middle of a series of posts on lighting. Last night I just happened upon this video from photographer Jay P. Morgan. In it, he goes through the different types of lighting setups for shooting portraits. You will not hear this same terminology much in video production, but the principles are sound and will give you a better understanding of how your placement of the key light affects the feel of the shot. Make sure you watch the video all the way to the end--you will be glad you did.