With our switch to the RED Epic camera, we’re now working with RAW files on the tv commercial shoots. This gives us an extraordinary amount of color control and range. Below are a few snapshots from my day in the color grading suite optimizing the color on the files from our last shoot.

With film (as opposed to digital), color was an obvious part of the Director of Photography’s job since color was a result of film selection, development technique, and the choice of lighting, lenses and filters. The DP would recommend and come to a decision with the Director before the shoot on what the final look would be, then execute that look.

Now that digital is taking over, the color tones are largely determined in post-production on computers (setting aside set and wardrobe choices). The tools range from simple sliders in the editing software, to separate software packages just for color grading, to full hardware/software integrated bay’s at the higher end like we have in the images here. This particular system is the Nucoda Film Master at the post-production house Keep Me Posted.

Here I was working with a professional colorist. I would explain what kind of look I wanted, he would apply it to the relevant clips or to precise areas within each frame. Then we would watch it again and I would explain what additional changes I would like and he would apply it. It’s a nice way to go if the budget is there to hire a specialist like this. On more guerrilla projects, I do it myself either in the editing software or with dedicated color software on my Mac tower (i.e., software such as Apple’s Color or Da Vinci Resolve).

This is a particularly fun part of the whole process because after working so long on a piece, here it very quickly improves and settles into its final form — this is near the very end of the production line for a commercial or a film. If there’s anything left to do after this it’s typically audio-related.

View images below…

The new RED Epic Camera and Arri 18-80mm 2.6 lens that we were testing in my earlier post has now been rolled into production on our latest tv commercials. It’s a beautiful setup — detailed photos below.

The lens is not only quicker for transitions (no lens changes), but also sharper than the Zeiss CP2 primes we had been using. The raw files are beautiful, with an extensive range to manipulate in post. I also love the well thought-out touch screen field monitor from which you control most functions in the camera. Fast, intuitive with exceptional image quality.

It’s not light, but compared with cinema cameras of even a year ago in the same category it’s far more versatile in terms of movement and rigging. The extra weight is actually nice on the larger fluid head, making moves on the slider (shown below) even smoother.

We had a curve-ball thrown at us in one shoot which required shooting portions at very dim lighting levels, and we had no problem matching the brighter shots with the more dimly lit ones.

Very happy with this new setup, this will be the standard in the immediate future for our broadcast tv commercials.

Photos from the recent productions below show how we configured the rig.

My lighting in this video is a bit dated compared with what I’m using gear-wise now but it shows the the set building and props in full force. Also fun to see some of the classic images come alive.

This was a super fun crew and we covered so much in the two days of the “Curcus Life” shoot, which immediatly followed the other two sections I did for the Hasselblad Masters Book — “My Dark Little Room” and “Witch Hotel”.

Sometimes things just come together in a magical way, that;s what happened here.

I was in the sound studio this weekend with my audio guru and master sound designer, Geordy Sincavage (Emmy recipient from work on Lost, Alias) who I work with closely on motion projects, and with master audio mixer Onna who mixes the sound for CSI among other projects.

Several elements contribute to creating the final audio for a film or dramatic tv . There are endless effects and audio accents that enhance the depth and emotional impact of the work. Every little smack, tap, click as well as braking glass, punch sounds, wind, traffic, etc… is recorded independently by the foley artist. The the mixer blends the volume and level of emphasis for each of those individual audio recordings layered on separate tracks. Then each is directed to an output track for the full surround sound experience.

This is the same sound studio where CSI is mixed (see slide-show). In a facility like this you have a giant screen (maybe 30 feet here) with a fully equipped surround sound installation. In front of the screen is a large space for musicians or an orchestra to setup and play while the film plays above them. The sound engineers work on an elevated platform overlooking both the screen and the musicians, recording and blending the performance with he other audio components and the visuals. On an even further elevated level behind the mixer’s platform sit the director and clients overlooking the entire process but in easy conversation range.

In the end the music is mixed with the sound effects and foley plus the dialogue and ambiance from the original takes and the ADR (dialogue re-recorded in the sound studio later when the recording was not sufficient or ambient noise was problematic during the performed scene).

This studio is where all that comes together. It’s also a candy store for gadget freaks.

Since the earlier post detailing the HDSLR rig we were using for the ABC Family commercials, my team has done several more tv commercials and along the way we have extensively refined the kit. The last setup was highly functional but a bit of a Frankenstein monster.

The new rig is more compact, cleaner and more functional, especially from the standpoint of pulling focus — which is kind of a big deal. You can see the new rig in the slideshow below. The major changes outlined underneath.

The major changes have been:

1. Viewfactor Cage with power routing – tighter, cleaner, more compact, better balanced, and better power routing.
2. Zeiss CP2 cinema lenses instead of Zeiss ZE still photography lenses – wider focus ring travel for more precision, geared, same size diameter on all lenses for faster lens switching with Matt Box, smoother focus ring.
3. Preston wireless follow-focus instead of Bartech – smoother, more precise and more reliable motor.

All of these changes were a big step forward toward dialing-in the system. This rig is solid.

Here is the behind-the-scenes video from the recent Louis Verdad Fall 2011 shoot, showing more of the team in action and more clearly revealing the production process.

Lighting was explained a bit more in the previous post with the time-lapse video, but you can see the tools in action more clearly in this one. The final images were included in the first post on this project. This is the third of the three part series on this shoot.

In the comments section of the time-lapse post, Greg asked some detailed questions which I answered there.

What comes through most clearly in this video is the range of people and talents involved in a shoot. What is not shown is all the preparation by the fashion team getting the clothes finished, and then selecting the looks and finding the right accessories. Nor does it reveal the concept development by the hair and makeup team, or the set design and construction. But seeing the results of those efforts here is a hint at the process that went into getting to this point.

This is the first of a couple views behind the scenes of the Louver shoot that I recently posted images from. The time-lapse covers most of the shoot with a frame taken every 10 seconds. It was a half day shoot with just a few looks, which is relatively short. It gives a sense of the process on the shooting stage in my studio.

Lighting was very simple in this shoot, we wanted to clearly light the models to show the details of the clothing, though also wanted some drama with deep shadows to create mood and give the images some geometric shape. I used a grid on the soft box and feathered it to limit the spill of the light and create some quick fall-offs into shadow on the wall. Lighting was a Broncolor Unilite and Verso pack.

A second light was used to create a pattern of light/shadow at an extreme angle on the back wall adding to the geometry and the dramatic effect. This was done with a Broncolor Pulsospot4 strobe (you put metal patterned slides inside between the lens and the flashtube, then focus to the desired degree of sharpness with the lens on the light).

We’re also finishing up a behind the scenes video (not a time lapse) that will show the lighting tools better and give a look into this shoot form a different perspective, as well as reveal more of the preparation before getting onto the shooting stage.

Popular Photography Magazine has run a beauty story on how I lit this image – I walk through the entire lighting setup in the story with diagrams.

FULL ARTICLE HERE (link)

This is an older one, and a different kind of take on the behind-the-scenes video. My friend the fashion cinema filmmaker Robertino Fonseca shot this footage at one of my shoots then patched together a story from what he captured. Part narrative, part behind-the-scenes.

It does, however, clearly show details of the production so it’s relevant for this website. It’s my old setup, right when I first moved into the studio I’m still in today.