Matthew Kurth's Cinematography Ramblings & Such

Whoever thought 48fps Movies was a good idea?

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 21:09:38 -0500

Whoever thought 48fps Movies was a good idea?:

The first time I heard Peter Jackson & James Cameron talk about shooting movies at 48fps I thought it sounded like a bad idea. One of the things I love about film is the 24fps feel. I’m sure 48fps has its place, but I just don’t see it being the movies. Hey who knows maybe in 10 years all our movies will be shot at 48fps & we’ll all love it. Here’s a first hand take on the new frame rate from CinemaCon…

NAB 2012 Cameras

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 16:57:26 -0500

So I write this post from the Las Vegas airport about to leave NAB 2012. This year there was some pretty crazy cameras to see. It amazing how fast camera technology is moving right now. It was only a year ago that your large chip camera options were really limited to only a handful of cameras (under $25k anyway) & If you eliminate the DSLRs from that category your options dropped down to 2-3 cameras. And only 6 months ago did the RED scarlet & C300 enter the scene. In the last few weeks we’ve seen camera manufacturers add Blackmagic’s cinema camera, Sony FS700, C500, Canon 1D-C, 5D MIII, & who knows what will be coming next. It really is an amazon time to be a filmmaker because no longer do you have to have a major studios budget & resources to be able to tell your story. Now we have more camera options than ever that will enable us to film high quality pictures in ways that were never possible before. So, find the tool that best suits your story and get shooting!

New Canon 4k Cameras

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 21:04:21 -0500

New Canon 4k Cameras:

It’s a crazy time to be a filmmaker. I can’t wait to see all the new toys at NAB next week…

Story, Story, Story, Story

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 20:37:01 -0500

Watching movies with my two year old daughter this last weeks has made me realize even more how important your story is. Her current favorite movie is Toy Story 3 (which she calls “Jesse”) & since she liked that one do much I bought her the first two. I saw the original Toy Story when I was 12 & haven’t seen it in something like 10 years until last week. Being a DP I do like pretty pictures & I knew that the original Toy Story film was the first full length animated feature ever created & that it didn’t look as good as the newest installment in the Toy Story franchise. But what I didn’t realize is how bad it looked in comparison to the new animated features which have the advantage of 15+ years of computer animation innovation. There was almost not depth of field, the scenes didn’t feel like they had any depth to them because of the lighting & shadows, & the characters didn’t move as life-like as we’re accustomed to today. That being said, it’s still a great movie because of the story & characters in it.

Living in an age of new exciting technologies where new cameras pop up every other week that shoot 12k images and are small enough to fit in your pocket, it’s easy to get caught up in feeling like you have to have the latest & greatest RED in order to shoot a good movie. The truth is though, that while having those pricey toys that make beautiful imagery is great, the story is what is most important. You can shoot the most beautiful film ever & if the story is crap your film is going to be beautiful crap. Find a story worth telling & then shoot it the beautifully with what you have. Story is always King!

Here’s the 3D video I created from the tutorial in my last...

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 21:35:52 -0500

Here’s the 3D video I created from the tutorial in my last blog post.

3D Workflown Tutorial

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 22:52:31 -0500

In a recent blog post I talked about shooting a short in 3D and I thought today I’d share a little bit about my post workflow for that project.

So my setup was basically two flip cameras gaff taped together plus a shotgun mic rubber banded to the bottom of my rails rig. It was definitely pretty ghetto and not even close to perfect, but I was surprised how well it actually worked. Since I was shooting on two cameras plus recording dual system sound, I ended up having to sync three clips for every shot. Once I had copied all the footage from my cameras and sound recorder to my computer I made sure that all my files were easy to match up by labeling the corresponding clips with their take number. I then started by syncing the two cameras as closely as I could (most shots were definitely off a by sub frames since record wasn’t pushed at the exact same moment) using their scratch audio tracks. Once the cameras were synced as best I could, I then synced the camera footage with the separately recorded audio files.

After each shot had been synced, I then edited the clips together and then copied the clips from my Premiere timeline and pasted them into a new After Effects comp. I could have dynamic linked the projects so that if I made any changes to my Premiere timeline it would automatically update in AE, but for this project I decided I wanted to have all the clips separated in case I needed to make adjustments to the individual clips. When you dynamic link the projects the Premiere file would come in as a nested composition…

Next, inside AE I created a new solid that was the same size as my comp and placed that layer on top of my copied footage. Then I split the solid layer so that it matched the length of each of the edited clips. Then I applied the 3D Glasses effect to each of the split solid layers. By doing it this way I could easily make adjustments to each of the clips without using a lot of keyframes to set the convergence. I then set the convergence ( the point that you want your eyes to focus on where the red & blue meet) for each of the clips.

Once that was all finished I exported the comp from AE and imported it into Premiere. Since all the timing of the clips was the same I just laid it on a track above the original files and everything was still in sync.

The last thing I did was create the graphics for the video. I wanted to make them 3D as well so here’s what I came up with to pull off the effect. In AE I created a composition with the graphics I was going to use and placed the graphic in 3D space. I then created two cameras that were offset from each other around 100px. My goal was to basically create a L eye camera and a R eye camera. I then duplicated the comp and in one comp turned the L eye camera off and in the other I turned the R eye camera off. Now I had two separate comps with slightly different views, one for each eye. I then dropped the solid into a new comp with the L & R eye comps and set the convergence and that was it. This may not have been the best process and it’s possible it could have been done more easily and efficiently, but this was just the one way I chose to accomplish the effect.

This project definitely wasn’t on the level of James Cameron or anything but it was a fun test of using 3D techniques. I hope you find it helpful. I’ll post the final video soon so get your red/blue glasses ready and you can see how it all turned out.

3D Update...

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:40:51 -0600

So my homemade 3D rig ended up working better than I thought it would. Beings this was the first time I’ve ever attempted something like this, I definitely learned a few things along the way & I’ll share them with you soon. Stay tuned…

Tell Your Story-Even if it Means Shooting in 3D

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 21:56:40 -0600

Everyone knows that 3D is all the rage right now. It seems like everyone & their mom is wanting to shoot in 3D. Although I believe the extra dimension can have a drastic impact on a film, unfortunately that drastic impact isn’t always a positive one.

With that being said, I turned to the dark side today & tried my hand at shooting a simple short sermon intro in 3D. My rig didn’t consist of RED Epics configured with a beam splitter or anything, but was simply two Flip cameras setup side by side. As you can see I just used a simple rails rig, some gaff tape, a coffee stirrer, a “shotgun” mic, a couple rubber bands, and a Tascam digital audio recorder (I’m pretty sure Peter Jackson is gonna be jealous of this rig).

This hodge-podge rig that I threw together today did get me thinking. Just because you may not have millions of dollars to throw at your next video project, don’t let that stop you from telling your story. Be creative, think outside the box & have fun. I assure you if you do you’ll be surprised with what you come up with…

PS…I’m going to start the edit in the next day or so, so you’ll have to stay turned to find out how it turns out…

DIY Heavy Duty Dolly & Track 2.0

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 00:10:37 -0500

It’s been awhile since I posted last but I’ve been busy working on several different live productions and had a few days relaxing and recuperating afterwards. I even had the opportunity to direct a 53’ TV truck. Nice view, huh? Anyways, back to our topic. Once again all the materials used in the construction of this project was purchased at Home Depot with the exception of the skateboard wheels & bearings, which I purchased on eBay.

The platform was built out of 3/4” plywood, 2x2’s, and some leftover 2x4’s just for good measure. Since I lack the skill of a true carpenter who can build something rock solid out of almost nothing, I tend to compensate for that lack of skill by just adding more support. As a result this dolly is a bear to move when it’s not on its track. The platform dimensions are 48”L x 39”W. I originally attached only four 6” pieces of angle iron at the corners each with four 52mm skateboard wheels. In version 2.0 I added two more 12” sections of angle iron with an additional six 52mm skateboard wheels on each. I used 3/8” zinc plated hex bolts to attach both the angle iron and the skateboard wheels. I offset the skateboard wheels just a little so that they reduce the “bump” when going over the joints in the track. I also added four handles, two on the top and one on each end. Since this dolly platform is so stinkin’ heavy, I added a couple of wheels to the bottom side of the platform as well to help make moving it a little easier. Next, I added four eye hooks to the top of the platform so that I would have somewhere to secure the tripod to the platform via bungee cords. To finish the platform off, I added two threaded steel pipe flanges (I don’t know if that’s the right term or not) to either end of the platform so that I can screw in the T-bar I made out of 3/4” steel pipe for use in pushing or pulling the dolly down the track.

Now for the track design. For the track I used 1 1/2” schedule 40 PVC pipe in 10’ sections. I then slightly modified 1” threaded PVC fittings that I then glued to the inside of the 1 1/2” PVC pipe. Now to put the track together, all you’ve gotta do is screw the pipes together. This is probably the cheapest part of the dolly as it only costs about $6 or $7 for each section of 10’ PVC with fittings.

Hopefully, this helps any of you who are trying to build your own dolly & track. Oh, and one more thing, if you’d like to see some pictures & a sample video from this project click the link to my flikr…I gave up trying to format the blog post with them in it.

Questions or comments? Email me at matthew.kurth@greenlitmag.com

DIY Dolly

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 23:39:33 -0500

Last year I made my own heavy duty dolly & track for just a couple hundred bucks. Over the last year I’ve been putting it through it’s paces and definitely found some flaws in my original design. I’ve been making mental notes about what I could do to make it even better and I’m currently working on implementing them in the next few days. Once I finish tweaking everything I’ll post a detailed how to guide for your perusal…stay tuned.

The Indie Filmmaker’s Best Qualities...

Wed, 22 Jun 2011 23:59:09 -0500

     If you’re reading this blog, you’re most likely an indie filmmaker or at least someone who hasn’t had their big break yet. I know at times it can seem like you’re never going to get your big opportunity and that you may be stuck in this merry-go-round of frustration & failure. Well my friend, cheer up because I think there’s two things in you Mr. (or Ms.) indie filmmaker that many Hollywood filmmakers can sometimes forget & lose sight of. Those two things are hard work & ingenuity.

     While you may not be the best of the best at whatever it is that you might do in the filmmaking industry, you can always work harder at whatever task you are given that anyone else. When you get the opportunity to work on a real set, don’t take the opportunity lightly, even if your job seems menial. Whether it seems like it or not, the people who sit above you on the totem pole notice things like hard work. Now I’m not saying you should be a brown noser, because I don’t think anybody likes those kind of people and can usually spot them from a mile away. Just work hard & do your job at 110% even if it is only making coffee on set. Your hard work will be rewarded.

     The second quality is ingenuity. As any indie filmmaker knows, when you first begin your filmmaking career, you usually don’t have people lining up to throw money at your projects and because of these meager budgets you’re forced to be creative. If you don’t have the cash to buy that $2k RedRock Micro cinema rig, you figure out a way to MacGyver something similar out of some old pipes & bolts you found in your garage. And when your extras don’t show up because it’s too hot outside or they’d rather party with their other friends, what do you do, you figure out a way to creatively duplicate those two friends who did show up to make a large army of bad guys. It’s this ingenuity that will set you apart from other people who can’t or don’t come up with creative solutions to challenges that they face. Don’t always look for the easy way out. Oh and as a side note, when you do get a chance to make that blockbuster with a massive budget, make sure you shoot as much of your film practically as possible & then pay top dollar for any 3D shots that you have to have.

     Sometimes it may take awhile, but if you work hard at what you do & continue to show your ingenuity, it will pay off for you in the end.

Questions or comments? Email me at matthew.kurth@greenlitmag.com

Cheap Handheld Camera Stabilization: The Monopod

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 20:04:00 -0500

     Recently I’ve been posting a lot about camera support (some of you may be screaming bloody murder by now) because as a DP this is something that is important to me. I think it is one of the determining factors between friends making a movie in their backyard and hollywood features. As an indie filmmaker, I totally understand working with tight budgets.

     Another great way to support your camera is by using a monopod. Using a monopod will give you a similar look to a shoulder mount rig but at a fraction of the cost. While the monopod isn’t quite as versatile as the traditional shoulder mount rig, it works perfectly when you need to shoot head-bites or anything really where you don’t need to follow someone. Now, just like about any other camera accessory there’s about a million different monopods out there. And although you may find this little blog post helpful you now may feel more lost than ever trying to figure out what monopod is right for you. Am I right? Now I can’t claim to have thoroughly tested a large sample of different monopods, I can recommend the monopod that I use…the Manfrotto 681B. This is a very sturdy three section monopod that will support up to around 25lbs, which is more than enough for your DSLR camera and lens even if you’re using a mammoth like the Canon 400mm 2.8L IS. I got mine for around $70 from B&H.

     While you probably won’t see Christopher Nolan or Steven Spielberg using a monopod to support their cameras on their next feature film, using a monopod is a great way to stabilize your camera and get better looking footage without shelling out a bunch on cash.

Questions? Email me at matthew.kurth@greenlitmag.com

DIY Camera Support: The Ugly Duckling

Sun, 12 Jun 2011 01:37:20 -0500

     Although the benefits on using good camera support are nearly priceless, sometimes your budget may not allow you to be able to rent/purchase the gear you want. In my last post, I discussed several different types of camera support and what each one did. Today I want to give an couple of ideas about how to build your own shoulder mount camera rig for your DSLR camera when you’re on a budget.

     While a good camera rig can easily cost you $2k, I was able to build this one for around $200. I was able to build this rig with parts from Walmart, Home Depot, McMaster-Carr, & BoltDepot.com. It took me awhile to figure out how to attach everything together with these readily available parts, and although far from perfect, I finally did. The rods are 15mm Carbon steel tubing that I cut using a metal cutting blade on a skill saw. I connected the tubing using either standard 1/4-20 screws or u-bolts. To make the platform for the camera to rest on and the counter-balance plate for the back, I cut a piece of sheet aluminum with the metal blade on my skill saw. The handles were made from some larger steel pipe (1/2” I think) and some bike handle bar grips. I used two layers of pipe insulation to make the shoulder pad on top of the rear tubing. This is the offset style rig which you can use if you don’t have an external monitor or EVF. I also cut a second set of rails which will allow this rig to be converted into a straight rig which is useful if you are shooting with an external monitor or EVF.

     It’s pretty obvious from these photos that I’m not much of a carpenter/metal worker. There’s nothing really that’s pretty about this rig (other than the paint job maybe). However it just goes to show you that if you are really serious about your craft, you’ll find a way to make something work when you’re on a budget, even if it is MacGyver style.

A Camera's Supporting Cast...

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 22:44:09 -0500

Camera support, we all need it (unless you’re creating a Blair Witch Project sequel maybe). So you just bought yourself one of the new fangled DSLR cameras and you think you’re ready to make beautiful cinematic pictures, right? Well if you don’t have anything to support that camera of yours you might not be ready just yet. Camera support is one of the most important aspects of making films. When your camera is supported properly, your audience usually won’t even notice it. However, when there’s a lack of camera support, your audience will probably be grabbing for their barf bags. Even when the shaky cam is used in films it still needs to be supported properly. In the next few lines here, I want to talk about the different types of camera support and when to use each. I won’t necessarily go into all the nitty gritty here, but I just want to give you an overview of the basics.

Tripod
The tripod is probably the most commonly used piece of camera support. A tripod consists of three legs (hence the name tri-pod) and a head which your camera attaches to. The tripod allows you to pan and tilt your camera while keeping the movement very fluid. If you’re looking to purchase a tripod I’d definitely recommend going with a fluid head tripod to make your moves smooth as butter.

Jib
Jib. Cammate. Crane. Techno-Crane. While these are all different types of tools they all give you a similar type of camera support. The jib/cammate/crane/techno-crane (heretofore referred to as the “jib”) basically are tripod with a long arm inserted between the tripod legs and the tripod head. The jib not only gives you the ability to make the same moves as you could on the tripod, but it also allows you to make the big sweeping moves which makes the camera fly over the crowd’s heads at a concert or boom from the entrance of a building to it’s roof in a single move.

Handheld-Shoulder Mount
If you’re shooting with some type of digital cinema camera, you’re definitely going to need one of these if you plan to shoot hand held. Since most digital cinema cameras (like the Canon 5D MII, RED, Sony F3, etc.) have a less than conventional form factor that doesn’t really fit on your shoulder, if you try shooting hand held with one of these, you will notice a lot of unnatural shake that is a result of not being able to rest the camera on your shoulder like you would in a traditional EFP style camera. By using a RedRock Micro, Zacuto, or some other type of rails rig, you will be able to turn that boxy oddly shaped camera into something that will fit right on your shoulder.

Steadicam
The steadicam gives you the ability to make super smooth camera moves where it used to be impossible to do so. Say for instance you want to do a camera move down a hallway following your actor on a dead run. Using the steadicam will not only allow you to follow your subject for an unlimited distance, but there’s virtually no shake in the movement at all. It’s as if the camera is floating on air.

No matter what type of camera support your film requires, using the proper support for your camera will take your films to the next level.

If you have any questions about this article, you can email me at matthew.kurth@greenlitmag.com.

Sweet Monitors: A DP's Best Friend

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 23:44:14 -0500

Anyone who has shot something with a DSLR knows how important monitoring is. These camera’s large sensors give us that oh so gloriously coveted depth of field; however, this new breed of digital film cameras does have a downside, pulling focus. While there are many different techniques that can help you keep your subjects in focus (especially when shooting with the aperture wide open), I think one of the best solutions to be able to tell if you’re in focus or not is by using an external monitor for all your critical focusing. I know this may seem like a simple solution, but when you begin to take a look at the plethora of monitors available, this seemingly simple solution becomes a monumental decision. Being the technical nerd that I am, I always want the top of the line model that has every bell and whistle, even if those bells & whistles are seldomly used. That being said, I am a firm believer in the idea that you get what you pay for. This is my personal opinion regarding which monitors I believe give you the most bang for your buck. While this won’t be an in depth review of each monitor, I hope to shed a little light on my favorite features of each monitor.

Small HD DP6 w/ HD-SDI $1299

This monitor is the cheaper of the two, yet it still has some pretty impressive features. One of my favorite features of this monitor is the fact that it has a native resolution of 1280x800 which really helps when you’re trying to pull critical focus. A lot of the DSLR camera monitors have resolutions that are around 800x480. The DP6 was also one of the first monitors to boast the DSLR preset, which allows you to see your image full screen on your monitor without the black/grey bars on the sides, top, & bottom. The DP6 also has some nice features like a false color filer, focus assist, & 1:1 pixel mapping just to name a few. However, I think this monitor’s best feature quite possibly could it’s future-proofness. I’m pretty sure we’ve all bought that iPad or other electronic device only to be disappointed a couple of weeks later when the new & improved model is released, leaving us to have to deal with electronics envy. With every DP6 purchase, Small HD includes a 2GB flash drive which will allow you to download new firmware & software updates that can then be installed on your monitor giving it the latest and greatest features.

TV Logic VFM-056WP $1495

I saw TV Logic’s monitors a couple of years ago for the first time at NAB and I have to say I was quite impressed with what I saw. These are some of the most professional monitors on the market and I have been very impressed with their features. Like the DP6, the VFM-056WP is a 5.6” monitor with a native resolution of 1280x800 and features such as false color, focus assist, & 1:1 pixel mapping. There are a couple of features that I think really make this monitor stand out among the rest. One of those features is the fact that you can input an HDMI signal into this monitor and output an HD-SDI signal. This is a really great feature if you plan on running a video village or just want to hook up a second monitor and eliminates the need for HDMI splitters and HDMI to HD-SDI converters on your camera rigs. The other feature that I think is really nice to have is waveform and vector scopes built right into this monitor. This is just one more feature that will help you ensure that you get good footage while you’re out in the field…unless of course you think that the vector scope is some sort of radar that can find all the best shooting locations or something.

Although I personally give the TV Logic monitor the edge I would be happy to have either one in my camera case. Ultimately though it’s important to keep in mind that having a really nice monitor will not magically make you a better cinematographer, it’s merely a tool that makes your job a little easier.