Railsback - xXx - UWOL Long Form
 

Well, I was going to do a longer version of my film "The River" following life on the river for a year. During the Summer of '08 we had a 500 year flood.

But then I had a chance to go to South Africa to shake out Panasonic's new HPX-300.

Even though it was a whirlwind trip, I fell in love with the place and its people.


So, I hated to not be able to use any of that footage so I cobbled up a quick idea. It may go down in flames faster than the Hindenburg but hey it's a challenge right? :)

The Pangaea theory is one that states that all present continents were once together and collectively known as a 'supercontinent' called a Pangaea. The word 'Pangaea' means 'all lands' in Greek, accurately defining the way the continents were 200 millions years ago before it split up.

Over time the continents drifted apart on continental plates "floating" on top of the Earth's mantle. Some, like the African continent stayed around the equator where it experienced little change. Because of this, Africa enjoys an incredible diversity as flora and fauna have been given time to evolve and specialize.

North America on the other hand, drifted North ( duh ) toward the pole where it was shaped and reshaped.

Iowa for example was once covered by a shallow sea and then scarred by glaciers during the ice ages which scoured the land.

In geological terms, the face of Iowa is fairly new compared to an area like Africa.

This film will examine the changes that effected Iowa and prevented the diversity we see so much in Africa.

Or, it may not. Who knows. Like I said, I'm flying by the seat of my pants on this one. So, I'll probably be looking for a lot of help.


So here's some footage. I just set it to a temp track to make it a little easier to take.

http://www.silverphoenixllc.com/Africa2.mov

As usual, beautiful images Kevin.

In doing research for my film, I discovered that Pangea was only the postulated last of other earlier super continents... and for most purposes 250 million years takes one back far enough... my problem was trying to recreate the land mass 2.5 Billion years ago.

Interesting and bold concept you have in mind. I am sure the final film will be breathtaking in its beauty.

Chris Swanberg

Stunning stuff and what a diversity indeed.

I give up already!

I'd like to comment, but I'm speechless. Would you please stop raising the bar!

Raising the bar? Are you kidding? I limbo'd underneath it compared to what other people are doing.

Had to go film a professional dance team tonight or I would have commented on the other threads.

Will try to do that later this week.

HI Kevin,
Well what more can i add. I guess you were hoping to get some feedback on your idea, well i love it. Your idea coupled with shots like those is a winner in my book, & yours is definately one i am eagerly awaiting!
Bryce

Thanks Bryce. Still trying to figure it all out. Just thought it was a shame not to use the Africa footage but the rest of my shooting will be here in Iowa so what they heck can I do to combine both places? :)

Kevin, wow what can I say! As always stunning cinematography from your hand!

I like your idea very much, very exciting. Can't wait to see how you progress on this one

Thanks for sharing Kevin!

Hi Kevin:

Oh my, this is so inspiring! Your filming and subjects are mind-blowing. Now, your continental drift idea is interesting BUT something to consider... it might be really difficult to show differences between Africa and Iowa purely on the locations of the continents upon which they sit. So much less of Iowa is in a natural state because of agriculture, development etc. than Africa. It would be tough to single one thing out from the other and make a compelling argument. Do you think? I'm just spouting off my first impressions.

On the other hand..... you could easily captivate me for 20+ minutes strictly on Africa itself. You are a master at what you do Kevin! Bring us your own version of "Out of Africa" and inspire us all!

Cat

I think your idea for the film is very good. You have much amazing material already.
The short form on “The River” was near perfect. I think it would be difficult to compete with your own masterpiece..


Finn-Erik

Kevin,


Well it has all been said already!!! WOW.


Fantastic clips!!! Where you going from there??

Can't wait for the whole show!!

Hi Kevin and welcome back from the African wilderness.
Well I can see your dilemma in how you can use these great Africa clips in your long form film about the river. Your skills are that great that I think you will work it out. Both the way you handle the camera and your history making. Great stuff :)

Best of luck.
Geir Inge

Magnificent footage. And the music so perfect.

Kevin,
When I commented about raising the bar, this is what I meant. I have been using your UWOL submissions as a sort of on-line videography course. I thought I had mastered a few of your techniques, but this one puts a bunch more on the table, especially in the area of color and contrast management.
Your comparison of species diversity in Africa and Iowa is a wonderful idea.
The Smokey Mountains, also spared the ravages of Ice Ages, has more tree species than all of northern Europe. Another angle you might be interested in is the likeness of certain habitat-sharing species. Did you get any footage of Longclaws over there? Sure look like Meadowlarks.

Longclaw - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

O wow - that looks very familiar! Just love it. You certainly managed to capture a wide diversity of species and some interesting behaviour/action shots there Kevin. Your slow motion always adds a fascinating aspect to your images and watching your elephant glide through the bush is quite something!

I really had to smile when I saw this movie. I often think to myself when out filming - how would this person from Uwol handle this or how would that person approach this one - just to keep me on my toes. It s actually quite difficult to imagine some of you filming African wildlife but now I have first-hand evidence of how you would do things! Stunning stuff. Anyway you may be quite amused to know that I came across a river scene in Kruger a few weeks back that reminded me of you and I said to Tom - this is going to be a Kevin scene. I took pictures of the scene at every shutter speed/ aperture setting I could - just for fun. I even took some shots using 50i so I could slow it down when I eventually get AE!! Still have to edit my tapes but look forward to seeing the results. I certainly won’t have the sharp images you have though.

That is certainly some camera you had the opportunity to test out. The HD images are razor sharp the colours are beautiful. My only criticism, having lived here all my life and being very familiar with the bush, is the saturation is a tad too exaggerated for Africa - one or two of the images have an almost artificial feel that doesn’t quite sit right with me - and I am enamoured of saturated colours myself. I would tone some of it down a little - although not too much.

Your plan sounds very interesting and I really look forward to seeing the outcome - please keep that fire extinguisher at hand at all times though - we certainly don’t want to see this one going up in flames!!!!.

other than the fact that I'm jealous that you got to shoot with a brand new camera in Africa, I loved it. Gorgeous and nice to see something besides Iowa on the other side of the camera...

Kevin,

Very nice. If possible, can you please describe your workflow with the HPX-300? Did you shoot DVCPro HD or Intra AVC?

Thanks and nice work,

Daniel Weber

Never mind. I read Barry Green's article on another website that described your trip and the workflow that you used a little.

Daniel Weber

Superb footage Kevin! My only criticism is it looks a little too vibrant. Was that a decision made in post?
Very interesting idea about comparing the wildlife in both continents. I look forward to your discoveries!

Yeah, most film savvy people think it's too saturated while regular joes love the color. Go figure. :)

The almost artificial stuff isn't so much because of the saturation as it's over exposed.
I had the zebras down to 90 but it was still burning stuff out.

No CC that's how it came out of the camera. I guess I can dull it up in post and desaturate it. Maybe I should make it all B&W? :)

Kevin,


I personally love the richer colors. If its for the populace then the average joes should rule!!

You have a very interesting topic here Kevin. I can’t wait to see which way you go with it. A classic example of speciation often used in textbooks has been the effects of glaciation on the North American wood warbler family. They’ll be migrating through your area in the next few weeks.

Mike,
I'm not aware of the concept of glaciation affecting speciation in Wood Warblers, but would love to learn about it. Do you have any references.

Sure Steve,
As far as I recall, it was first mentioned here:
MacArthur, R. H. 1958. Ecology. 39, 599-619.
And formally stated here:
Mengel, R. M. 1964. Living Bird 3, 9-43.
Mengel, R. M. 1970. Univ. Kansas Dept. Geology Special Pub. 3,279-340.
There’s a general discussion here:
Mayr, E. 1970. Populations, Species, and Evolution. Belknap Press. 453pp.
as well as in several introductory biology texts.
Here is a recent internet discussion:
WarblerWatch: What’s an example of a “superspecies” in the wood-warbler family?

Several recent papers using mitochondrial DNA have confirmed the hypothesis, at least in part, while maintaining it occurred earlier than originally proposed.
There's also a similar hypothesis for Plethodon salamanders.

Ah yes,
Those mythical, localized salamanders with the intriguing names like Cheat Mountain.
Thanks for the references. This should be fun.

Am I the first to respond to your second entry about the STIR organization? It was very interesting and eye opening...he was very well spoken and interesting. I assume that you will inner-cut the interview footage with the African stuff and then various other locals to show global environmental impact issues and then how it affects Iowa specifically?

I was intrigued by the interview but I think the lighting on his face could have been a little brighter or robust his left sides to increase the shadow/light contrast a little better.

Looking forward to more…

Kevin:

Details! You are amazingly silent in your endeavors. STIR is eye-opening and I am hoping that your film of this will bring its agenda before the world. But I'd love to know how you are going to be weaving your work, from the Iowa river to Africa. I know, I should go back to your initial notes and comments, but I would have liked a bit more to go on in your entry!

Knowing you, this will masterfully weave film, subject and emotion into a stunning outcome but I'm looking for clues!

Your narrator executes very well in front of the camera, but why the sheets over the furniture? I am one to distain the usual flooded in light one sees in some indoor interviews, but a bit more soft light on his face would have helped a bit.

Looking forward to your next entry, when much more starts coming to light and we see the excellence that we are accustomed to in your work!

best,

Cat

Hi Kevin.
Well, most have been said I guess, so I'll just wait for your next contribution.
I'm anxious to see your next move :)

All the best.
Geir Inge