What the BVE was that all about?!
So, I’m sat in Starbucks taking a short break from driving home from what appears to have been another very successful BVE Expo at Earls Court.
I need coffee because I’ve been busy shooting for Sony around and about the show. More interestingly, I’ve been privileged enough to have had a chance to speak to some senior management about the Sony product philosophy and ideas they are having for the next few years. And I’m pleased to say that Sony are really listening and want to listen to people like myself. Very refreshing.
Suffice to say, I can’t talk about it without permission, but it’s great that within the world of professional moving image acquisition, Sony are putting time and energy into their business methods.
But of course, one of the major reasons to go to BVE, is the gadgets. And this little baby caught my eye.
I’m not even sure of the model name, but it’s a super cute little 3D camera. The LCD screen is 3D and it’s so light and versatile, that it makes you think about shooting for 3D on the road, maybe on an adventure shoot somewhere. Wouldn’t that be cool.
You can control convergence (the bit of the image that is popping into 3D), with a little thumb wheel down the side. Very easy. Don’t know any specs or any prices, but all I can say is I want one! Such a gadget.
Other highlights of the show were dropping by the stands and getting your hands on kit like the Miller tripods and the Atomos Samurai. Both confirmed as excellent and are added to the shopping list.
Finally, I took a picture of this…
… for no other reason than it had lots of buttons on it in lots of colours. Brilliant. No idea what it does, but my 10 year old son would love it!
Shooting ‘News’
Just a quick post to let you see a little piece I shot and cut in the same day.
I was shooting news against a deadline. So I had to shoot and edit an A-Roll finished piece as well as D-Roll to syndicate to various news agencies across the world. I decided to use the Panasonic AF-101 for versatility as well as for the SD card workflow.
Aside from the powered zoom feature of a broadcast 2/3rd inch camera, the AF-101 handled everything just fine.
On a technical note, I made the decision to shoot it slightly stopped down so that focus was less of an issue. Some of the shots are at f2.8 and less, but mostly I shot it around f8. Better safe than sorry!
Logo removal using Mocha AE and After Effects
The other day, I was asked to remove some logos that were attached to the side of a piece of machinery that I shot for a recent film. This was a bit irksome as they were very prominent in the shot and the shot was a pan and tilt shot. Some of the logos started in shot and moved out of shot. Others started out of shot and moved in shot. Argh!
Not easy to remove. If the shot had been largely stationary, then it wouldn’t be a problem. Read more 
Broadcast or Corporate/Voluntary Sector – where’s it at?
Traditionally, Broadcast is where all the cool stuff happens.
With big budgets, celebrities, light and glamour, the lure of working in broadcast television is a driver for many people who enter the profession of filmmaking.
But the boundaries are seismically shifting. And I say seismically, because it’s a slow and fundamental shift in how we make a living, doing the things we like to do.
The big lens resolution test on the AF101
A key part of the adaptation to shooting on a multi-lens camera, is knowledge of your lenses.
I bought an additional lens for my kit the other day, a Sigma 50mm f1.4. I was curious to see how good the sharpness was compared to my other lenses, and this led me to creating my own resolution test for all my lenses.
