SmartShoot Producer's Blogg

Fixing Banding on your DSLR Footage

One of the by-products of video from HDSLR is the banding artifacts that can result from the rolling shutter used to capture the video image.

When shooting under fluorescent light (very common in commercial locations) the flickering of the light source can create colored bands across your image which move across teh frame and pretty much ruin your shot.

Simplest fix is to make sure you're shooting at the correct shutterspeed. For the purposes of keeping motion-blur and strobing under controll, the 180-degree shutter rule dictates the shutterspeed be set to 2x the framerate. A 24p framerate would require a shutterspeed of 1/48" (functionally 1/50"). Only problem here is this framerate is too slow to avoid banding. 

In the US fluorescent bulbs have a frequency (flicker) of 60Hz so setting your shutterspeed in multiples of 60 (e.g. 1/60", 1/120", etc.) will negate the banding. Same rule applies for Euro countries where the bulbs are 50Hz. Here's a quick cheat sheet:

US (60Hz)

• IF: Framerate = 24p, 30p or 60i 
• THEN: Shutterspeed = 1/60"
• IF: Framerate = 60p
• THEN: Shutterspeed = 1/120"

EUROPE (50Hz)

• IF: Framerate = 25p or 50i 
• THEN: Shutterspeed = 1/50"
• IF: Framerate = 50p
• THEN: Shutterspeed = 1/100"

 

BUT MY FOOTAGE ALREADY HAS BANDING, WHAT NOW?

This can be a tricky fix to make in post -- but not impossible. All it takes is a little time with a Color-Correction Filter and tweaking some of its masking properties. 

Here's a great guide from DSLR Video Shooter walking through the fix in FCP7:

 

 

 

 

Fantastic Free Color Grading Tutorials on Vimeo

01. FCP X Color Grading Tutorial: What is Color Grading? 

If you've ever had questions or confusion about Color Correction or Color Grading you definitely need to check out Color Grading Central. The 15-part series is provided courtesy of Denver Riddle and covers all the basics of color correction and how it functions within FCPX.

The videos provide tons of helpful information regardless of the platform you're currently editing on so we highly suggest giving them a look.

Knowing how accurately match color balance from shot to shot is definitely a key skill and can go along way towards creating videos that clients love. A good guideline is to always make sure all your footage matches for contrast, exposure and color balance then worry about customizing the look for a more cinematic effect in your videos.

Do you have any special tricks or techniques you use while color grading to help give your footage a distinct look?

 

 

A Great Quick Guide to Using Sliders

 

 

Sliders are a great tool for giving your shots a unique look and movement but can be a somewhat cumbersome and complicated piece of gear.

We came across a great short guide from Preston Kanak on Vimeo for getting awesome tracking shots. Definitely worth a watch.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

TH FM Guest Post - Steve Janas Talks $$$ and Feature Production pt. 2/2

Here's part II of Steve Janas' insights on the cost and challenges of getting a feature film produced. In case you missed it check out part I of Steve's post. You can also check out Steve's blog Life of a Preditor for more great info.

There is a bright side to the challenge of getting your film shown on the big screen. This can be formulated into the following question: "Why, exactly, do you need to show your independent film in theaters?" That's certainly not the way most people these days experience visual "content" (to use the parlance of the contemporary entertainment industry).  

Consider this statistic: in December, 2010, Internet users watched a record 14.3 billion online videos. That's Billion, with a "b." In just one month. Upload your film, and it has a potential audience that numbers in the hundreds of millions. And how does one get one's video onto the Internet? Find a web-video hosting service like YouTube or Vimeo, and upload it. That simple. 

Fine. So making independent films (and distributing them) is easier now than ever before. The problem is: how do you make a living at it? Especially if you're giving the content away for free on YouTube? 

Well, I did say not to count on making a living at it. But, you know, there's even a hopeful new light shining on this bleak reality. Namely, people have figured out new ways to make money off of internet videos. 

The business models are familiar from television: you make money either by selling advertising or allowing the end user to pay a fee and download the product. For the latter, there have been a number of start-up businesses that are amassing a library of content which subscribers will have access to. For example, 2-Way TV has developed an app that will allow makers of short, independent films to offer them for sale on Apple's iPad. 

 The advertiser-supported model is much more common. YouTube, for example, has recently offered to "monetize" certain videos that garner a large number of hits. In other words, they sell advertising on the video, and split a portion of the revenue with the video's owner. 

To be sure, we're talking pennies for most videos. However, there are many instances of entrepreneurial individuals making a killing this way, and more are cropping up each day. To cite an example: Los Angeles-based Internet celebrity Marina Orlova's "Hot For Words" YouTube channel has registered almost 420 million hits since it launched. Through monetization, that has provided Marina with a reputed monthly income of $30,000.  

In short, the movie business - the entertainment industry in general, in fact - is going through a major transition. As with all such times, there are enormous opportunities for those with vision and the willingness to work hard to see that vision through. 

Now the challenge is to make that person you.

 

Tax Day Coming Up - A Helpful Infographic to Get You Through It

 

Tax season is upon us which can always be hectic for freelancing folks - Schedule C forms, Quarterly vs. Annual Filings, Qualifying Deductions, it can all get a bit confusing. We came across a great infographic that'll help you navigate the madness. 

Enjoy!

TH FM Guest Post - Steve Janas Talks $$$ and Feature Production pt. 1/2

This week we wanted to kick off a new feature on the blog. We'll be having some of veteran filmmakers onboard to talk about the ins and outs of film/video production.

This month we've got long-time TurnHere filmmaker Steve Janas talking about the practical costs of producing a feature film.  With the cheaper cameras shooting amazing looks images (e.g. DSLR's), the barrier of entry to producing a film is becoming less and less of a challenge. If you follow Werner Herzog's school of thought then all you truly need is passion for your project and the resourcefulness to see it through.

Make sure to follow Steve's blog Life of a Preditor for more great insights. We hope you really enjoying sharing in knowledge, tips and tricks that our guests have to offer.

 

Several years ago, as part of a life-long quest to have a career making independent films, I enrolled in a day-long seminar on the subject featuring renown Independent Film guru Dov Siemens.  Specifically, the topic was how to make an independent film for less than $100,000. This, Siemens argues, is the bare minimum required to produce a movie that met industry standards for distribution. 

A hundred thousand dollars. How times have changed.

In the past 10-15 years, the film world has become flooded with the product of a technological revolution that has cut the cost of making an independent film to a fraction of what it was a generation ago. The more successful ones have grabbed headlines: "The Blair Witch Project," made for around $30,000, wound up grossing well over a hundred million. Robert Rodriguez's "El Mariachi," shot in Mexico for about $6,000, got picked up for distribution by no less an industry heavyweight than Sony Pictures. Kevin Smith made "Clerks" with about $13,000 he charged to various credit cards.

So, to the question 'Is it easier or harder nowadays to make an independent film?," the answer is this: It's easier, but don't count on making a living at it. Yet.

To refer back to Siemens' lecture, he insists that a feature film made on anything less than 35 mm film didn't have a shot of ever landing a distribution deal. Well, have you ever priced out a 35mm film? It makes a college education look cheap in comparison. Not only is the film stock itself expensive, but everything else associated with it goes up in price by a comparable factor, from processing the negatives to striking a final print.

Now, since most movie theaters still project on 35 mm, for the time being, you're going to have to create a 35 mm negative if you want your movie to be shown in theaters. So - bad news. But the good news is that you don't necessarily have to shoot the film in 35 mm.

On the feature-length music documentary "Better Living Through Circuitry," on which I served as Associate Producer - among other things - we delivered a 35 mm negative to the film's distributor, 7th Arts Releasing. The negative cost about $20,000 to make at a post-production lab in Burbank, Calif. There was no getting around that - we just had to swallow the expense. 

However, we shot the movie on Sony's first generation of 3-chip digital cameras, the VX-1000. They recorded to mini DV tapes, and retailed for somewhere in the neighborhood of $2,000.  

Two thousand dollars. We shot a feature-length movie on a camera that cost a mere $2,000. And it gets better. The editing system on which we cut the film (in the producer's living room, it should be noted) cost all of $17,000 to buy. Sure, that sounds like quite a price, but keep in mind that, previously, computer-based, non-linear digital editing systems (like the industry-standard Avid systems) cost upwards of $100,000 to purchase, and you had to keep a tech on-staff at all times to deal with the system's inevitable idiosyncratic issues. 

That was more than ten years ago. The cost of computer-based editing systems has dropped dramatically since then, particularly after Apple released the game-changing Final Cut editing software, which at first retailed for around $1,000. Its latest version can be downloaded from the Internet for about $300. And the camera? My latest purchase, the Nikon D7000 DSLR, sold for $1,100 (minus the lens, it should be said), and yet film Director Darren Aronofsky used this model as a production camera on the Oscar-nominated film "Black Swan."

To re-cap: making independent films can be relatively inexpensive these days, unless you want your film shown in theaters, in which case you're looking at a bitter, $20,000 pill you have to swallow...

 

Stay tuned for Part II of Steve's post coming next week...

 

 

3 Tips for Dealing with Dark Locations

Good Lighting is crucial for good filmmaking and as such always an issue for run-and-gun shooting. Whether it's an SMB profile video or a documentary production you can never be sure if an unscouted location will have adequate lighting to get good exposure in your shots. 

Here's a few quick tips on what to do if you encounter a dark location:

 

ADD MORE LIGHT

      First thing to do is ask the business proprietor or property owner if the lights at the location can be cranked up; this can be a tough sell if the location is a restaurant or some place that offers a certain mood which requires low-light. Never hurts to ask though.

      Alternatively you can also open up the iris on your camera all the way so the maximum amount of light is hitting the sensor. You'll want to be aware of how shallow this makes your Depth of Field, shallow focus may or may not work for a particular shot.

      We also recommend always having an on-camera light in your kit. This will at least give you the advantage of a strong key light to use in your setups. Pair this with a small reflector and you have a miniature 2-light set-up.

 

LOWER YOUR SHUTTERSPEED

      Slowing down the shutterspeed will give you a longer exposure and thus more light hitting the sensor to brigthen up the shot. You'll want to be aware of the 180° Shutter Rule to minimize the motion-blur in your shots. Typically you'll want the inversed shutterspeed to be about 2x the framerate. This means that if you're shooting at 24 fps your shutterspeed will be about 1/50", 30 fps = 1/60", 60 fps = 1/120" and so on.

 

BUMP UP THE GAIN

      If all else fails crank up the gain/exposure setting on your camera (if on a DSLR you'll be adjusting the ISO setting). Adding gain increases the overall exposure of the shot uniformly across the image (similar to adding a brightness filter in post-production). This should be a last resort to get proper exposure since increasing gain also increases the visualize noise in your image and will soften focus.

 

Remember that these are just methods and tools to achieving a quality image. In the field, your judgment and ability to use these tools together effectively is of greatest importance. Consider the possibility of using a small amount of each method in order to improve the image quality overall.

Need Help Conducting Interviews - We Got Your Back

Sometimes it can be tricky to get good material out of an interview. If your doing an on-camera interview for your video you'll definitely want the client to fill out a Production Outline and use that to guide the interview.

In some cases you might not be able to rely on the Production Outline so here's a great fallback - TurnHere's Tried and True Interview Questions. Use these questions to supplement your interview extract additional soundbites: 

1. What’s your name and title (please spell both)? What’s the name of your business?
2. How long have you been in business?
3. What motivated you to start this business?
4. Can you give a short (15-20 second) description of your business?
5. What are you best known for and why(i.e. Signature dish, special service you offer, etc.)? 
6. What sets your business aside from others in the field?
7. Why should a customer choose your business?
8. What keeps your customers coming back?
9. What geographic region do you serve?
10. Do you have an anecdote about the business that summarizes what you are all about? (i.e. plumber who fixed a leak on Thanksgiving day)
11. What about your business makes you the most proud?
12. Complete the following sentences:
    • “When a customer walks into our business they can expect….”
    • "What really makes us unique is ... "
    • "What makes us stand out is..."

 

Download a copy of the PDF and bring along on your shoots and you'll have a solid ace-in-the-hole.

L3's & Slates - From Flub to Fab in 3 Easy Steps

        

Lower-thirds and Text Slates... they're a small element of video that you see all the time. They might seem inocuous but adding a little style to these spots are a quick and easy way to really bring a more professional look to your videos.

Here's 3 steps to making great graphics:

 

FULL FRONTAL FONT-AGE

Nothing keys says BORING to a viewer than stale fonts so steer away from the standard font sets like Times New Roman and Verdana and use something unique. Handwritten fonts are great for a creative look while fine sans-serif fonts can make things look really clean. Google Web Fonts is a great source for freebies. Here's some more tips from Larry Jordan on how to format fonts for video.

 

CREATE SEPARATION

Using drop shadows between your text and background is a great way to may a graphic pop. Similarly you can format your fonts to display with an outline, the contrasting edge will set it off from whatever you're displaying the text on. 

 

BEAUTIFY YOUR BACKDROP

Using a color gradient over a solid is a simple way to spruce up the background of your graphic. One of our favorite techniques is to slow down a clip (or just use a still image) and combine it with a blur filter, a much more expressionistic look.

 

Best of all is that you can accomplish this look within your NLE so no need to jump over to a separate graphics program

 

 

 

Dealing with Clients - Remember Wheaton's Law

Will Wheaton (AKA Ensign Wesley Crusher for the non-Trekkies)

 

What is Wheaton's Law? It's really quite simple: Don't be a... let 's just say say "jerk".  Sounds simple right? It may, but sometimes Wheaton's Law can come into conflict with bringing out the best in your client and their project.

Here's some of our top tips to help you in envoking Wheaton's Law:

 

REPRESENT, REPRESENT

When you're out on a shoot you're not only representing yourself and Turnhere, but also our partners (e.g. Yelp, LIM Berry, Career Builder, Lexis Nexis, the list goes on...). Being prompt, polite and dressing professionally make a huge impact on your first impression with the client and how you're relationship with them proceeds.

 

GUIDE THE CREATIVE PROCESS

Some clients will have a very specific vision for the visuals, message, etc. to be presented in their project. Since not all of us have film or photography degrees there may be a logistical gap between what the client wants and what is possible to accomplish. Don't be afraid to flex some creative muscle and advise them on best practices for setting up shots, soundbites or whatever else. If the client wants to shoot a backlit interview against a picture window tell them (or even show them) how that will negatively impact exposure. At the end of the day the you own the quality of the final product so if you think the client's wants may jeopardize that gently recommend a proper course of action. A little coaching goes a long way

 

WHO YOU GONNA CALL?

Great communication skills can go a long ways towards remedying or even completely circumventing all kinds of problems that may pop up in production. When you take on a TurnHere project there's a few phone calls you'll definitely want to make:  

•  Call the client 24-48 hours before the shoot. Take some time to introduce yourself and see if they have any questions about the shoot. This is also a great opportunity to do a little pre-shoot location scouting. Ask the client about the lighting and sound conditions at their location and prepare accordingly.

 

• Call TurnHere if there's ever a problem you can't resolve. We're here to support your creative process so whether you have trouble reaching the client, need advice on production or just want to ask us something you can always reach us at 877.559.9898 or shoot an e-mail to network@turnhere.com

 

We love to hear about some of your experiences in the field (working with TurnHere or otherwise). What tips and tricks to you use to facilitate a more successful production?

 

 

 

Want to Raise $125K? Here's How

The fact is, making a feature film takes money, especially a movie about sports. In just 38 days filmmaker Koo of nofilmschool.com, raised a nice chunk of change using the crowdfunding site Kickstarter.

How did he achieve this goal? 

1. Having a sensational campaign video. (See below)
2. The blog 
3. Several newsletters during the 38 days.
4. Facebook & Twitter 
5. Crowdfunding is a full time job. Set several hours aside daily.
6. Having sweet rewards for backers
7. Be ready to hustle the last day (ManChild raised $18,000 the final day) 

All it takes is a smart startegy but more importantly passion for your project

Man-child Kickstarter Video from Koo on Vimeo.

Rundown of 180° Shutter

If you're going for the film-look in your videos the 180° Shutter Rule is something you'll want to be aware of. This terminology is one of the hold-overs from celluloid filmmaking but still plays a large roll in digital videography.

When tweaking shutterspeed you're changing the amount of motion-blur in your shot. The 180° Shutter Rule gives benchmarks for the ideal shutterspeed to shoot at a given framerate.

Here's a quick breakdown for the most common framerates:

• 24fps = 1/48 SS
• 30fps = 1/60 SS
• 60fps = 1/120 SS

Shooting at a slower shutterspeed than what's listed above will start to introduce excess motion blur into your image which you'll want to avoid for the most part.

You might want to break this rule for artistic purposes - as always proper execution is what makes it a successful effect

We came across a great in depth explanation on Tyler Ginter's blog; includes some nice illustrative animations and examples too.

 

Frame Rate vs. Shutterspeed Demystified

There's a lot of terminology in the filmmaking lexicon that is really easy to get jumbled up in your head - the difference between Frame Rate & Shutterspeed is one excellent case.

Thankfully the crew over at Vimeo posted an awesome illustrated example to clarify the confusion - check it out:

 

 

 

If you're more into the brevity thing here's a comparison in simple terms:

 

Frame rate = the number of pictures your camera takes every second - in traditional film cameras that shoot on celluloid this means how quickly the film strip is moving past the shutter

• Low frame-rates = filmic look (think 24p & cinematic aesthetics)
• High frame-rates = video-y look (e.g. sporting events, multicamera sitcoms)

 

Shutterspeed = the length of time the shutter is open and exposing your film or image sensor to light

• Low Shutterspeed = longer exposure time, brighter shots & more motion blur (good for creative projects but typically undesirable in formal/corporate projects)
• High Shutterspeed = shorter exposure time, darker shots & minimal motion blur (you'll need to open up your aperture to compensate)

 

For TurnHere projects you'll mostly be working in frame rates of 24 & 30 fps and relatively quick shutterspeeds - motion blur is a no-no.

This being said we always enjoy playing with a camera's settings to see what custom looks can be achieved - frame rate and shutterspeed are a great jumping off point to what unique qualities you can bring to your shots

 

 

 

 

Transform your Tripod

We'll spare the verbage for today's post - came across some interesting stuff from Alex Cican over on Vimeo. Check out his vids below on how to reconfigure your everyday tripod into everything from a shoulder-mount rig to Vertigo-esque zoom+dolly setup. 

We tried these around the TurnHere offices and the results are surprisingly good. Enough yapping though - on with the videos!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have a chance to try these techniques out send us a link to your footage and we'll throw it up on the blog for the world to see.

 

 

Making Your Clean Video File - Easy as 1-2-3

Today we wanted to do a post about the importance of uploading a good Clean video file and some quick tips for cranking these out lickety-split.

First some common questions we get:

 

What is the Clean video file?

The Clean is an identical copy of the Master video file (your finished video) with some key exceptions. The Clean has all music, graphics (lower-thirds, slates, etc.) and transitions removed.

 

Why Do I Have to Upload a Clean version of my Master Video file?

A good question - what is the purpose of uploading what amounts to a 2nd copy of the Master with a few changes made? 

When processing customer edits on videos we use the Clean video file as a source for recutting material in the video - something that wouldn't be possible with the Master video file given continuity issues presented by music, graphics, etc. which are included in the Master.

If the Clean video wasn't required it would be necessary to get an upload of pretty all your raw footage (a hassle no one wants to deal with).

 

How can I quickly make the Master & Clean video files?

1. Proceed with editing your video like you normally would but save your graphics, transitions & music for last (you'll want to put your audio crossfades in as you go)
2. When adding graphics & music make sure they are located on secondary tracks from your main footage (e.g. no nested sequences)
3. Mute/Hide the your sequence tracks that have the graphics & music
4. Export your Clean Video File
5. Unmute/UnHide your sequence tracks with the music & graphics
6. Add in your video transitions where needed
7. Export your Master Video File

Following the logistics of this process will mean that you've got a Clean video that matches your Master and hits all the necessary quality specs.

We'll be posting some videos about workflow recommendations here on the blog and on the Filmmaker Resource Center in the coming weeks so keep an eye out for these illustrated examples!

 

 

 

 

Expect the Unexpected - Preempting Challenges on Your Shoots

 

Great filmmaking doesn't happen on its own. Part of the reason commercials look and sound great on TV is because everything happens on a locked down set where there's complete control over the lighting and audio conditions.

Unfortunately Indie and TurnHere filmmakers alike are not fortunate enough to have DP's or SD's on set to control these things so knowing what to expect for shooting difference business types can be a great help.

Here's some examples:

 

Bars & Restaurants Typically have Dim Lighting:

Not surprisingly these types of business are set up to give a distinct ambience for diners rather than look good on-camera. If you find that you've got an upcoming shoot at a bar or restaurant then make sure you bring an on-camera light to throw some extra luma into the image. Always better to add more light than to bump up your camera's gain

 

Salons & Auto-Shops can be Noisy:

Blow-dryers & air guns aren't designed to run silent but you'll find these in the hand of any Hairdresser or Mechanic. If you've got to shoot a salon or auto-shop be aware that it can be a noisy environment so you might need to move your interview to an isolated portion of the business like an office or ask that the noisy equipment not be used during filmming.

 

One way you can help yourself circumvent issues before they compromise your shoot is to talk to the client ahead of the shoot date. We recommend always calling the client 24-48 hours before you shoot so you can go over details and figure out if any issues like those above might impact the shoot.

 

Better to be safe than sorry so be prepared and you'll do fine!

Vimeo Video School

http://vimeo.com/videoschool

One of the best video sharing sites out there just got better. They recently introduced a section on their site dedicated to teaching people about digital filmmaking and its 100% free!

Not only do they have a vast library of different tutorials, but most of them are videos! I have watched a bunch of them and they are short, educational, and entertaining.

You can browse tutorials by category:

• Behind the Scenes
• Do-It-Yourself
• DSLR
• Editing
• Gear
• Lighting
• Shooting
• Software
• Sound

*They even have an entire section exclusivily about DSLR shooting and editing.*

http://vimeo.com/videoschool/lesson/11/introduction-to-dslr-cameras

All these tutorials are great information that will make everyone into better filmmakers!

 

Reducing Audio Noise with Soundtrack Pro

Hi Everyone,

So now that you've been to your shoot, captured your footage and you are back home editing, what do you do when you realize that some kind of annoying noise (maybe that refrigerator fan that kept turning on and off) has popped up in your soundbites?

Hopefully, if you notice the problem while on the shoot, you can find a quieter shooting location. But if not, you can try to reduce the noise with this cool Sountrack Pro technique as demonstrated by the knowledgeable staff over at geniusdv.com. This technique demonstrates a good reason to leave the camera running even if somone isn't talking so that you can utilize room tone and if possible, isolate the noise from the speaker's voice.

Below is the video from the geniusdv blog as seen on YouTube:

 

Basic Color Correction

Ok, let's not get too crazy. I promise I won't ask you to paint your walls 18% grey.

The only rule: Always use a 3-way color corrector and avoid the brightness/contrast filter. And use your video scopes!

Let's take a look at this shot. It's not bad. In fact, I bet the lights were a little yellow, so the camera was white balanced pretty accurately. But a little color correction can clean up good shots and sometimes even save bad ones!

1. Auto adjust whites/blacks using the eyedropper. (For this shot, I chose the white board and black pants.)

2. Use the Vectorscope to see information about skintone by using the flesh tone line (be sure to crop your canvas to just show skintone).

Use the 3-way CC to adjust (oftentimes, using the Mids is the way to go, just drag the central adjuster in the direction it should go according to your Vectorscope):

 

3. Use the Waveform Monitor to see how far off the whites and black are from trueness.

Use the levels in the 3-way CC to adjust:

 And admire the improvement! This one is quite subtle, but now the whites, blacks, and skintones are much more true to life.

 

And of course, there are lots videos (and tutorials) floating around on the Internet about color correction if you're dying to know more!

7 tips for shooting in low-light situations

Thought this article/video from IzzyVideo had some good tips worth sharing.