Glen Elliott
May 9th, 2009, 01:16 AM
Just wrapped up 4 more scenes today for the music video I'm producing (3 are shown here). Again these are untouched stills directly from the final cut timeline (resized 50%).
This shoot was much different from the previous one as it doesn't feature the artist(s) what so ever- plus no dark & moody contrasty setting with candles. Instead we started building the story- which is about a young pregnant woman who is struggling with her position and contemplating abortion. Only available light was used.
Shooting with a knife's edge DOF is challenging but very fun!
PS A very high compression setting was used for the stills hence the jpg artifacts.
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_01.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_02.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_03.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_04.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_05.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_06.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_07.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_08.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_09.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_10.jpg
http://www.msprotege.com/members/LazerBlueP5/unborn2_11.jpg
Jon Nelson
May 9th, 2009, 04:47 AM
Fabulous looking images!
Excellent work!
Will be get to see the finished video project?
Rickey Brillantes
May 9th, 2009, 08:19 AM
Fabulous stills you got there, was that the ef 24-70 L lens?
Ray Bell
May 9th, 2009, 08:20 AM
Those look great... what lens are you using now...
Dylan Couper
May 9th, 2009, 09:19 AM
When you say "only available light" do you mean you shot it as is, or used reflectors/bounces to manipulate the available light? It looks so well lit, I wouldn't have guessed it wasn't artificially lit. Extremely nice work!
PS. So.... genre...? Horror? Sci-fi? Zombie?
(kidding :)
Glen Elliott
May 9th, 2009, 09:21 AM
Thanks guys- I'm really thrilled with the results I'm getting the first time out of the box (and second) with this camera! Lenses used on this shoot were my 24-70 2.8L and a rented 85 1.2L.
I heard rave reviews about the 85 1.2L so I HAD to try it. I was even considering saving up to buy it- it's quite expensive at $1800. However I'm quite glad I rented before buying because I hated everything about the lens. First of all it's heavvvy! Much heavier than my larger 24-70 lens. Secondly it doesn't use a traditional focus ring- it's focus by wire....and it FEELS it. Additionally the focus range on most lenses is 1/2 turn of the ring or maybe 2/3rds a turn from macro to infinity. This lens seemed to have a focus range 360 degrees. This caused issues with my redrock focus gears as the point that fastens the gear on kept hitting the final gear on the follow focus unit not allowing me to achieve focus. Several times I had to loosen the gears and reposition them to allow clearance to get to get the focus ring position I needed for a particular shot.
After all that I felt the 85 1.2 was a huge disappointment until.....I reviewed the footage. I'd have to say this is some of the best looking footage I've shot with the 5DmkII thus far. Besting the footage I previously shot with a 50 1.2 and 135 2. I'm not so down on the lens now. It does have it's quirks but yields astounding results. Sound familiar- does it not....maybe a bit like the camera we are all using to shoot with in the first place.
Wayne Avanson
May 9th, 2009, 12:01 PM
Absolutely stunning images Glen. You;re getting some of the best pics I've seen from this cam and trust me, I've seen hell of a lot recently!
So you'd say the 85 1.2 outguns the 24-70 in the image stakes?
Looking forward to seeing the moving images. You realise you're setting some pretty high standards that the rest of us are now determined to follow?
Cheers for sharing.
Avey
Glen Elliott
May 9th, 2009, 11:46 PM
Fabulous looking images!
Excellent work!
Will be get to see the finished video project?
Sure thing- however it may be some time before it's finished. We have at least two more shoots and lots of editing (I went crazy with the number of takes). :)
Glen Elliott
May 9th, 2009, 11:47 PM
When you say "only available light" do you mean you shot it as is, or used reflectors/bounces to manipulate the available light? It looks so well lit, I wouldn't have guessed it wasn't artificially lit. Extremely nice work!
PS. So.... genre...? Horror? Sci-fi? Zombie?
(kidding :)
Hey Dylan- yeah I did use a reflector in one scene. The one from the first photo (her in waiting room). Otherwise they were shot as is with no light "manipulation". Thank you!
Glen Elliott
May 9th, 2009, 11:50 PM
Absolutely stunning images Glen. You;re getting some of the best pics I've seen from this cam and trust me, I've seen hell of a lot recently!
So you'd say the 85 1.2 outguns the 24-70 in the image stakes?
Looking forward to seeing the moving images. You realise you're setting some pretty high standards that the rest of us are now determined to follow?
Cheers for sharing.
Avey
Wow thank you- that's very flattering. The 24-70 is much more usable, mainly because of it's focal range. However it can't compete with the creamy bokeh the 85 produces wide open. Just keep in mind shooting like this is quite challenging (ie you can't even focus on an entire face).
Thanks again for the kind words. I've been working with the images in post with color grading and I'm extremely excited myself for the finished product. I'm still trying to learn all I can about this cam. With all it's limitations it still runs circles around my XH-A1s in the IQ department.