Our editor, Nayim Saati, spends a lot of late nights at the Depot. Whether rendering, uploading, or capturing footage, he has a lot of time on his hands, waiting for processes to complete. He uses this time for tests of cameras and postproduction processes.

Last night, he decided to recreate the invisibility cloak effect from the Harry Potter movies. He used the Sony EX1 camera and locked it in place. He shot footage of the background, and then shot himself pulling our portable green screen over his head.

On his first attempt, the shadows were too heavy to be useful in post. The second time around, he used two Arri 650 lights and that was all the lighting he needed. Using minimal lighting still left shadows on the green screen, a necessary step in order to capture the cloak texture of the invisibility cloak.

In After Effects, Nayim used the Keylight plugin to do the chroma key process. He layered the shot of himself pulling on the green screen over the empty shot of the background, keyed out the green, then dissolved to get rid of the folds.

In all, it was a productive way to spend his time waiting to render and an impressive video for an hour of work.

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The Canon 5D captures the smashing of an acoustic guitar.

Cinematographer Philip Holahan lent his photography skills to the creative team of BLOODTIES, a rock musical written by Ned Massey. They smashed 4 acoustic and 2 electric guitars during their promo photo shoot at dvDepot. BLOODTIES will premiere at The 2010 New York Musical Theater Festival. Holahan shot the photographs at dvDepot using a Canon 5D camera.

An Array of Advantages

The Canon 7D camera is very popular and exciting to work with, shooting still pictures and digital video. Canon single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras create high quality video and give filmmakers more control over their image than video normally allows. The fact that the cameras are affordable and very lightweight only adds to their appeal.

Digital cameras use chips as their sensors. Larger sensors mean an ability to take in more information and therefore, a better image quality. The Canon 7D’s chip is larger than ¾ of an inch, which is a step up from the ½ inch chip in a Sony EX1, which is itself an excellent camera.

More Lenses Means More Merit

Canon’s SLR cameras open more possibilities in shooting because you can use Canon photo lenses. Still camera lenses are more readily available to the average user, allowing more choices in how you want to shoot. Additionally, using these lenses can help create a very cinematic look, including more control over depth of field than you normally have with digital video. As you can see in this video, a shallow depth of field can create a very dramatic look.

The L Series Prime Lenses

dvDepot carries a full array of L series prime lenses, including:

14mm F/2.8
24mm F/1.4
35mm F/1.4
50mm F/1.2
85mm F/1.2
135mm F/2

And the 70-200mm F/2.8 L series zoom lens.

Other New Equipment

The new Canon 5D is now available at dvDepot.

In addition to all the new Canon cameras, the Zacuto double barrel shoulder mount is now available at dvDepot. Not only does this cutting edge shoulder mount adapt to any DSLR camera, but it also looks super cool. It can easily be customized for every camera operator; the shoulder mount can be rigged on either the right or left side and is height adjustable. Throw in the Zacuto follow focus and you’ve got everything you need. This new equipment can be rented from dvDepot as a part of any package that includes a DSLR camera.

The Canon 7D is available for rent or in a crew package with an operator and the Canon 5D is available with a shooter package. Call 212.333.5100 and get in touch with the rental or crewing departments for pricing.

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Ice Cube and Stephen A. Smith discuss current topics.
photo by Andrew Foltz-Morrison

dvDepot filmed the latest installment of Food For Thought, a BET television series, on May 27. This episode, “Food For Thought: Conversations with Ice Cube” aired in early July. As in previous episodes, three media personalities, the Media Assassin Harry Allen, Hot 97’s radio host Angie Martinez, and sports journalist Stephen A. Smith, conduct interviews with Ice Cube over lunch. Previous installments of the show featured musical celebrities Jay-Z and 50 Cent. Since this was the third time dvDepot has shot Food for Thought, members of the crew have become friendly with the interviewers, leading to what we in the industry call “water cooler conversations.”

Lots of Equipment; No Space

With this shoot, dvDepot continues to provide the BET series with both crews and equipment.

A confined space required specialized lighting.
photo by Andrew Foltz-Morrison

The crew used four HDX900 cameras to obtain top quality footage. Using the steadicam also contributed to a very smooth shoot. Due to multiple cameras, lots of lighting equipment, and many crew members, the set was chaotic, to say the least. In addition to all of this activity, the restaurant was open to the public; diners looking for a quiet meal certainly got an unexpected surprise!

Hot 97's Angie Martinez enjoys Sylvia's laid back atmosphere.
photo by Andrew Foltz-Morrison

The Location: Sylvia’s Restaurant

The interviews took place at Sylvia’s, the world famous soul food restaurant. Situated uptown in Harlem, the eatery is famed for providing great service and an array of Southern favorites. Sylvia actually came out from the kitchen to meet the crew and personally took their orders. Munching on delectable macaroni and
cheese, divine fried chicken and catfish, and delicious cornbread kept the entire group more than well fueled for a full ten hour day of filming.

Steadicam Op Jon Beattie expertly maneuvers his rig.
photo by Andrew Foltz-Morrison

Multitalented Crew

Each member of the nine person crew brought their unique talents to set. Alex Sierra resumed his position as DP for the third installment of the series. Ameer Grice exhibited enviable packing skills; the utility’s ability to stow so much gear into a relatively small van was nothing short of beautiful. dvDepot’s own Jose Caraballo along with freelancer Jack Hutson handled the audio with impressive skills. Most importantly, however, everyone displayed impressive eating skills that would have made anyone on the competitive eating circuit jealous.

Ice Cube

Working with Ice Cube was wonderful. The artist had a professional attitude that translated to a very functional, stress-free shoot. Ice Cube’s acting background became obvious as he handled the shoot like an experienced professional. The platinum artist had only one indisputable stipulation about the shoot; the day had to end early enough so he could watch the Lakers playoff game which, fortunately, they won.

The artist rocked a feathered fedora on set.
photo by Andrew Foltz-Morrison

Though the shoot was crowded and long, our crew maintained a cheerful attitude. With great food, better company, and completely functioning equipment, the day ended on a positive note. We look forward to working with BET on the next episode.

To see more pictures from this shoot, visit our Facebook page.

DP Alex Sierra.
photo by Andrew Foltz-Morrison

Camera Operator Andreas Wagner.
photo by Andrew Foltz-Morrison

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2. BET’s Food for Thought with Jay-Z
3. BET’s Rising Icons with Hal Linton

For those off-season Superbowl fans who love the commercials as much as the game itself, you’re in luck: the 2010 World Cup airs its own range of loveable ads. From the clever to the inspirational, we’ve picked a few favorites here at dvDepot and would love to know what you think. Which one gets your vote for best World Cup 2010 commercial? Links are below, and feel free to post other nominees!

Learn what it really means when a player misses a goal in Nike’s Write the Future ad:

Team meets their match in the desert, as shown in Pepsi’s Oh Africa ad:

Players and fans get their groove on in Coca-Cola’s History of Celebration ad:

Reality and a beloved film favorite combine in Adidas’ Cantina ad:

The lengths a kid will go to for a competitive game of soccer in Stratos’ How to Get A Soccer Partner ad:

Post-World War tensions linger in MTN’s One World Cup ad:

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1. World Cup Trek 2010

The World Cup Trek is an epic race from Berlin, Germany, the location of the 2006 World Cup, to Cape Town, South Africa, the 2010 tournament venue. The contest, organized by dvDepot client Rob Evans, involves three teams, each comprised of two volunteer members, driving 10,000 miles through sixteen countries on two continents to reach the southern tip of Africa in time for the Cup’s final game. Sponsored by dvDepot and produced by both Burgess Productions and Nomadic Nation, Mr. Evans and his team will film their seven week adventure with the intent to transform their journey into an adventure/reality program.

Race for Charity

Contest organizer Rob Evans

As a social activist, Mr. Evans has been involved in several charity initiatives. Some of his recent projects include establishing and maintaining a storage facility for charities in his hometown of Phoenix/Tempe, Arizona, helping organize community projects, creating an arts community in Scottsdale, Arizona, and becoming an organ donor by donating one of his kidneys. Mr. Evans’ conception of and participation in the World Cup Trek is yet another of his charitable endeavors.

Benefiting from the race are three non-government organizations: Grassroot Soccer, Kick 4 Life, Coaching for Hope. These multifaceted organizations work in third world African countries to both coach underprivileged children and aspiring soccer players and provide education and preventative measures to combat the AIDs epidemic.

The Gear

dvDepot is sponsoring World Cup Trek’s production and furnishing the teams with video equipment, including two Sony PMW-EX1R HD cameras, six 16GB cards for footage, two 7” Nebtek monitors to review the footage before uploading it into a computer for editing, and other accessories. With the pristine quality of the Sony EX1, and the durability and storage capacity of the memory cards, no moment of the weeks-long journey will be missed.

View World Cup Trek 2010 in a larger map

After being equipped with dvDepot gear, the World Cup Trek teams began their exciting trip. Departing on May 9th from the United States, the volunteers set out for Berlin, Germany. The teams and the production crew stopped at Berlin’s co-sponsor hostel CityStay to finalize travel plans, go over the route, get all the needed vaccinations and load the last of their supplies into their Renaults.

On the Road

The World Cup Trek cars on the Autobahn

On May 18th, the team hit the Autobahn and almost immediately ran into their first setback. One of the three cars blew a head gasket 200km into the race, a frustrating mishap that could have been avoided. The car, driven by team members Jonathan and Susan, had to wait for the production vehicle to send for a tow truck; however, that car struck a flat tire and its spare tire was coincidentally flat. With two vehicles down, the team had to wait for tow trucks to arrive for both cars. To compound an already rocky beginning to their journey, the police declined to deal with cars that were ill-equipped to handle the Autobahn to begin with.

Into France and Spain

Barcalona Harbor

After two days of camping outside a McDonald’s in Hof, the team was back on the road in rainy, foggy weather. After seventeen full hours of continuous driving through miserable weather, the team left Germany and finally entered France nearly two days behind schedule and in dour spirits. The fair weather and sunshine in France, however, lifted team spirits. The group even had time to stop for a rest at Beziers, a picturesque city with a large winemaking industry. A 10-hour scenic road trip from Beziers to Barcelona (effectively avoiding traffic and tolls) was the next course of action for the team. From Barcelona the team managed to rest up before catching the last ferry out of Tarifa and into Marakech.

With any luck, the team will reach South Africa around July 5th, a few days earlier than planned. We hope to continue providing support and enthusiasm for the entire team on their amazing trip! Be sure to follow updates about the World Cup Trek on dvDepot’s Twitter and Facebook.

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Indie band Kafei - Alex Kahn, Doug Raus and Eric Henkels

dvDepot is always excited to work with student filmmakers. After two months of preparation, on Saturday March 6th, a group of NYU film students shot a music video for the indie band Kafei. The Lansdale, Pennsylvania band is comprised of Alex Kahn on guitar, keyboard and vocals, Doug Raus on drums and vocals, and Eric Henkels on vocals, keyboard and guitar. Guitarist Alex is an NYU student, as well. Check them out on tour or online! http://www.myspace.com/kafeimusic This video is for “Stay Close” off of their new album Intimacy Addiction. Read, watch and enjoy. http://vimeo.com/10537859

The Crew

In late January, director (and my good friend) Zoe Robyn approached me with the task of producing the video. I jumped at the chance to work with such a great group of people, all NYU film students. The production staff consisted of Zoe as Executive Producer and Director, Megan Pinson (aka me) as Producer/AD and Kathleen Sullivan as Assistant Producer/2nd AD. Mandy Mandelstein served as DP with Gabby Moses as her AC (who also served as onset photographer) and Josh Glass as DIT. Mandy also worked closely with lighting designer and gaffer Eric Mann. Joanna Naugle handled art direction. Elexa Cangelosi did wardrobe and makeup for the actresses. Divya Gadangi served as hair stylist.

On Set! Gaffer Eric Mann, DP Mandy Mandelstein, Director Zoe Robyn, DIT Josh GLass, DIT Gabby Moses

PreProdcution

Finding the right location, a large enough space which we could get on our small budget was the first task. Transforming that space – a large basement with black walls and a stage for the band – for the video was an undertaking. The art direction was an enormous amount of work. Joanna designed and created the three life size Barbie boxes, which along with the stage, served as the set. It took 12 large cardboard boxes and nearly a whole roll of duct tape to make them!

Art Director Joanna Naugle with her work.

Finding the right look and personality for the “dolls” was essential. Sara Nurmi, Chantelle Fuoco and Dasha Kittredge were all highly enthusiastic about the project and they were great sports when it came to spending an entire day in the Barbie looks Elexa and Divya crafted for them. We also organized a couple dozen extras to shoot a crowd scene, only to discover that we could not bring such a large number. It was frustrating to find out we had to eliminate that scene the day before the shoot. I was so concerned with finding enough extras; the regulations of our location never crossed my mind. However, eliminating that scene from the shot list and shooting schedule meant more time to work on other shots.

Zoe Robyn directing the dolls

The Budget

Realizing, however, just how much a shoot requires is always eye opening – equipment, art supplies, wardrobe, craft services, etc. Working with a low budget meant renting and borrowing equipment from several different places – some last minute essentials (apple boxes!) came from dvDepot. Eric and Mandy came up with a lighting set up which effectively lit the space according to Zoe’s vision, using as few lights as possible.

Gaffer Eric Mann checking out the lighting set up

At the end of the shoot, we did go over budget but only by about 100 dollars. The budget was broken down in terms of equipment rentals, art supplies, wardrobe, and craft services. Art supplies and wardrobe actually turned out to be the main areas where we went over budget. Chances are we could have stuck closer to the budget with better communication between all members of the crew. While the budget was broken down by department, the decided upon numbers did not make it to each crewmember who was then reimbursed for their particular purchases. Emergency purchases the day of the shoot were also not factored into the budget. Who knew we would run out of false eyelashes?

Mandy and Zoe working with the band

The Shoot

It’s a lot to ask a college student to be awake and alert at 8:00am on a Saturday, but not when it comes to a shoot. Shooting started at 9:30am and lasted until around 10:00pm. With Mandy leading the camera crew, the shoot went very smoothly. Her job as DP started months before the shoot. She and Zoe worked closely to create a look and tone for the video. While location scouting, her ability to visualize the shots before the sets even existed was an asset in planning. When it came to shoot day, Mandy knew exactly what she was looking for.

Director of Photography Mandy Mandelstein shooting on the Canon 7D.

During the shoot, my main responsibility was making sure everyone was happy, well fed, and in the right place at the right time. Shooting in a location with poor cell phone reception definitely complicates things! As it turns out, the greatest obstacle was completely out of our control. Kafei’s car had been towed earlier and getting it out of impound took far longer than expected, delaying the second half of the shoot by about three hours.

Cutting the crowd scene, though, meant we still had enough time at the location to finish shooting and clean up according to schedule.

Checking the shot out on the monitor

After the Shoot

Looking back, there were a few things that could have been done differently. During preproduction, a lot of time was dedicated to location scouting and casting, which was, of course, very important. However, waiting until just the week before to figure out the lighting set up and look into lighting rentals was a risk. One thing to keep in mind for the future is that everything takes more time than you think it will; planning is key. Zoe finished editing the video this week and the final product looks amazing. I am very excited to have been a part of this project. Watch “Stay Close” here! http://vimeo.com/10537859

The dolls destroying the set!

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TV DNA celebrated their 10th anniversary at dvDepot last night. The TV Diva Networking Alliance is a group connecting women working in the TV industry. They meet periodically to share knowledge and resources. Membership is exclusive, limited only to women actively working in television, and based on recommendations of current members. The members include producers, network executives, production managers, line producers, among other positions. One of our owners, Deborah Wolpert is fortunate enough to be a member and hosted the anniversary party.

The Sony Z5U, the Panasonic HVX200 and the Sony EX1 hooked up to monitors.

At last night’s meeting, dvDepot also set up a demo of our HD cameras for the Divas. We went through the advantages and disadvantages of several HD cameras including the Sony EX1, Z5U, and A1U, also the Varicam and HVX200 from Panasonic. Comparing cost to picture quality to post workflow, each camera is appropriate for various situations. The demo was a success and then the men of dvDepot scurried out to leave the Divas to their celebration.

You can read more about the TV Diva Networking Alliance at http://www.tvdna.net and see more picture from the event on our Facebook page.

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Shooter Roger Coraggio is very focused with the SDX900 in hand.

Last month, dvDepot covered Fashion Week. New York City’s Fashion Week is followed internationally. Each September and February, the hottest designers, both up and coming and established, gather in Manhattan’s Bryant Park to debut their collections for the next season. Last month was displaying fashions for Fall 2010. For the past few years, we have been working on this event with Shanghai TV’s “The Style Today.” Host Penny Wei conducted interviews at 9 different shows including Max Azria, Tibi, and Diesel and shot the runways. These photos are “live” from Bryant Park on February 17th.

Roger Coraggio, Penny Wei, and Daniel Pleacoff on location in Bryant Park.

Roger Coraggio has been shooting for “The Style Today” since they first came to us several years ago. His excellent work and coverage of Fashion Week events have produced a strong working relationship with Shanghai TV, which is owned and run by the Chinese government. On this shoot he used the Panasonic SDX900 shooting with the DVCPRO50 format. Along with Roger were sound recordists Dennis Brioso and Diana Milani and Production Assistant Daniel Pleacoff.

Fashion Week is a fantastic event that occupies the entire city’s production resources. At every show, we meet people we know also covering the event. Add celebrities, exciting fashions and a healthy dose of overseas production crews and you have one of the more enjoyable jobs of the year for us.

Roger Coraggio, Penny Wei, and Dennis Brioso.

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With EX1, HVX200, and other cameras that shoot to memory cards becoming more popular every day, the work flow on sets is changing. Log and capture used to be an important phase of post-production, but now, data transfer is a part of production. We’ve had our share of trial and error here at dvDepot trying to figure out how the future is going to look.

Derek Edwards transferring files on set

1. What to call them?

Nobody seems to have any idea of what to call this position. Data wrangler comes up a bunch. More common is “a guy to, like, do transfers and stuff.” Some people just call them camera utilities or assistant cameras. We eventually settled on memory card transfer technician, so that the duties are specific. We’ll shorten this to “card tech” or “transfer tech” most of the time.

2. Can a camera utility or AC do this?

A lot of utilities will know how to do this. But a lot don’t. We sent one of our best utilities on a job to do P2 transfers and he ended up taking twice as along as expected. Any time there was a problem with the camera, he jumped in to help fix it. This is what he’s good at, so it makes sense. This shoot also only ordered two 16GB cards per camera for several multicam interviews in a pretty short time. He had to be constantly dumping and wiping cards to keep up with shooting. We didn’t have time for him to do anything else.

3. Can I send an editor or assistant editor?

It’s tempting to send post people out. They have experience doing file transfers. They know the different formats post requires. We had an editor out once who really knew the transfers down pat and how to format the drives. However, when the camera decided not to recognize the memory card, he had no idea what to do. We sent one of our in-house technicians to solve the problem pretty quickly, but somebody without any knowledge of using the camera on set is missing an important piece of the puzzle.

Labeled SxS cards

4. How do you keep the cards organized?

We worked on one shoot when they were making fast transfers. The transfer tech noticed that he was missing the last batch of footage from camera B. None of the cards were labeled. We had to go through each card again and figure out which one had the missing footage. Most camera operators know to label their tapes, but some overlook labeling their memory cards. Labeling your cards is more important than labeling your tapes because cards will be wiped and then the footage is lost forever.

Labeled P2 Cards

Most people don’t realize it, but P2 cards have an area on the back that is designed for using dry erase markers. You can easily label the cards with A2 or something similar. SxS cards unfortunately don’t have this same convenience. For now, we use paper tape because gaff tape is too thick and can get stuck in the camera. The important thing is training our transfer techs in making sure that all cards are labeled and that they never accept a card from a camera without it being properly labeled.

5. So who do you send?

Kevin Provost is one of our regular transfer techs. He also works for us a camera utility and AC.

We decided that we needed people who are specifically suited to being card transfer techs. They need experience working on set, often as an AC or camera utility. The techs are often called upon to assist in the camera department and they need to be prepared. Additionally, the best candidates are often trained editors. They understand the problems that can arise with file transfers and can deal with them. A lot of our techs are working toward becoming full time editors. Using this as our starting criteria, we have recruited a pool of freelancers who are specifically assigned as transfer card technicians.

By finding the right people to handle the job and making sure the process they use is correct, we’ve turned memory card transfers into a smooth process. We are curious to find out how other people are dealing with this situation. Let us know what you’re doing in the comments below.

If you’re shooting with a camera that uses memory cards, we highly recommend assigning a qualified crew member to this position. If you’re like to hire somebody from dvDepot, please contact our crewing department, by emailing crewing@dvdepot.com or by calling 212.333.5100.

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