One of the constant questions film makers and photographers must ask themselves is, “How should I frame?”  There is no right or wrong way to frame because composition is subject to style, feeling, BLAH BLAH BLAH.  It’s one thing to get the subject in your frame, but it’s another to have your composition purposefully tell a story.  There are so many elements that can either strengthen or weaken your story.  When we are shooting we try to ask ourselves a series of questions to help us frame on purpose.

Whats in my frame?

Are there objects in your frame that can distract your viewer from the story your want to tell?  Is there things such as exit signs, gear, blown out back drops, people, that are distracting the viewer from what you want their attention to be on? If needed, change your angle, use foreground, use Depth of field, or DONT use it, to help your viewer feel right.

This shot was usable for about the first 6 seconds.  But then objects in the frame became too distracting to the story.  Its tempting to use the shot and hope that your viewers don’t notice, but they usually do. It will disconnect your audience from the desired feeling.

Here is how the shot started… a great shot!

Once they got a little ways down the isle, things went wrong…

In the picture below with a little adjustment to the framing, the distractions could eliminated.

What’s going on in my frame?

What am I shooting?  How do the things in my frame have relevance to the story? Sometimes as cinematographers we get so focused on getting the shot whether it be some epic slide or insane use of foreground, that we forget to ask ourselves if the composition or the objects in our frame are telling the right story.

The following examples aren’t a matter of right and wrong… but a matter of what story is being told.

As you look at these screen grabs, ask yourself… how do I feel about this subject.  Then make note of what objects are in your frame and how did they help dictate your feeling toward the subject.

In the above images the one on the left gives you a feeling of chaos, disorganization, slob.  Where as the on the right gives you a feeling of precision, cleanliness and clear understanding. Why?

In these images, what is the focus?  The intention for both of them was for the computer to be the focus, although the one on the left had something going on in the background that was a little more interesting. Compared to the one on the right its no question that my attention is supposed to be on the computer.

Once again sometimes we are so focused on getting that slider shot smooth, that we forget to pay attention to what our subject is doing in the shot.

VERY DISTRACTING! : )

What’s next?

Anticipate Action – When shooting concentrate on what people are saying and doing to anticipate their next action.  This way you can be one step ahead and be ready when the action happens.  This allows you to get the content that you intended to get.

Did I get it? If you have the chance, try the shot a few times and with variations.  This gives you more to work with in post production and can make up for mistakes not seen while shooting.

Hope this helps!

Love,
STF

In the three days, we were able to plan, produce, shoot and edit a few films… All to be premiered at our rockin wrap party. Each shooting group broke into two different editing groups and produced their own edit (the reason there are two different films with the same talent). Here the films that were created for your watching pleasure…

Group 1

Group 2

Group 3

Group 4

As with every Cine-skool, there are so many rad people and sponsors to thank so here we go…

LensRentals for providing gear for our attendees to use.
The Music Bed for providing music that makes our industry legit
New Blue FX for making it possible to color our films in a way that they feel right
Big Deal Branding For Their mass amounts of branding brain power
Plural Eyes Software for saving us a bajillion hours in syncing time
Shoot Sac for the RAD sacs
Props FX For the BALLER after party
The whole STF team… Candice, Geoff, David, Brandon, Maci, Chad and Drew

And last but most imprtant all the AMAZING attendees!!!!

Check out the story of Cine-skool Redlands told by the lens of all the attendees’ camera phones…

- Love STF

We were invited to speak at a conference this last week in lustrous Charleston SC.  The In[focus] Event is a conference set up to further the edu-ma-cation of all live event film makers alike.  We had the chance to share the stage with other rad filmmakers such as Freshsox, Michael Y Wong and Ray Roman Films.  We spoke about helping your clients feel comfortable in front of the camera.  Our presentation went from handing out free songs from The Music Bed, free licenses from New Blue FX and 5 hour energy, to a charge to remember why we do this.  When we operate under the premise that we are documenting this day for them to cherish for the rest of their life, we are more able to help our clients feel comfortable in front of our cameras.  We had such an amazing time, and learned a ton!  We are excited to see you all at In[focus] 2013.

In our long laborious search for tools to use in our presentation, we came across a little advertisement that literally changed our lives and the way that we presented at in[focus].  At first we were skeptical, but once we bought in… there was no turning back.  Check it out for yourself!

HUGE special thanks to:

The in[focus] team
The Music Bed
and
New Blue FX

 Also we have one seat left for March 8-10 Cine-Skool experience!! For more info CLICK HERE.

We cannot tell you how many times we have run into situations where our client just doesn’t have the time for us to set up our entire interview lighting.  In addition often times we are shooting weddings that important events end up happening after we have taken down all of our lighting.

We have been trying to figure out an affordable solution to this problem, the perfect scratch to our itch, if you will.  Well, the search is over… at least for now!

Check out the Sima, Color-smart LED light!

What are the things we LOVE about these little gems, you ask? (We refer to them as our little miracle lights.)

1. Small and compact… they don’t take up much room in the bag, which is heaven sent when traveling.
2. Rechargeable… All of the other LED lights that we have worked with took a million “double A” batteries, and they lasted for an hour if you are lucky.  This made them heavy and expensive to run.  Not our little Sima, you plug that little baby into the wall to charge and enjoy free long lasting light.
3. Dimmable… You have complete dimming abilities.  Although you have to be careful, as you get to the lower levels, there is some pulsating issues with the camera shutter.
4. Temp adjustments… With the push of a magical little button, your light temp can go from extremely cold to extremely warm, and everything in between.  This gives you the ability to match the temperature of other light sources… AH-MAZ-ZING!!!!!
5. Piggy backing… They attach to each other with a hot shoes mount.  This allows you to use one, or ten on one light stand. GENIUS!!!!
6. Diffused… They are a soft filling light, not harsh and too direct.
7. Price… These little babies are extremely affordable.  At $54 a pop you can afford to get a few.

Here is an example of an outdoor interview we did at night, using only these little beauties!

(This is an unfiltered clip)

Although these could never replace our ARRI lighting kit, they are a great alternative, when one is needed.

There you have it… now go towards the light!

Hope this helps!!

Love,

STF

In order for us to make a film that matched the feeling of these get togethers, we employed some techniques that help you feel like you are there, experiencing it right along side of everyone else.

Stabilization and lens selection: We shot mostly with the Manfrotto monopod, close up, with short ranges lenses. This was done to give that close intimate feeling.

Angles: The camera positioning in almost all of our shots were from eye level of the main subject in the shot, keeping us on the same level as them.

Audio: There was a lot of use of natural audio and conversations.  This was to help the viewer feel like they are a part of the conversations that happened during the event.  This brings a realness to the viewers involvement with the characters in the film.  With out this element of natural audio the viewer  would have felt more like an onlooker, someone not part of the action, rather watching from a distance.

The goal was to emotionally attach the viewer to the experience, which would drive that person to really want to experience it all for themselves.

Check out what we put together for them!  They are certainly a unique company, producing a valuable product, telling a unique story.

Enjoy!
STF

 Once again… a huge thank you to all our Cine-skool Sponsors that make it possible for us to have this much fun:

LensRentals
Shoot Sac
Plural Eyes Software
The Music Bed
New Blue FX
Big Deal Branding

Oh and just as a side note… The next stop for Cine-skool will be held at the new Shade Tree Studio in sunny Southern California. So grab your sunglasses (or sunnies, as Drew calls them) and head our way on March 8th-10th 2012. For more info on attending the next Cine-skool, check out this link.

Love,
STF

We have been on the hunt for the perfect viewfinder.  The following is our experience with two of the leading brands of viewfinders.  We know that there are a lot more options out there, but we have decided to just review the two that we see as the industry leaders; the Z-Finder by Zacuto and the Cyclops by Cinevate.

Lets weigh the good with the bad; its time for Pros and Cons…

Cyclops:

Pros

-       Dual Eye Viewing: You can look into the viewfinder with both eyes.

-       Magnification: They magnify the screen just enough to be able to see well without the LCD looking pixilated.

-       No Facial Contact: We have heard a lot of buzz suggesting to have multiple points of contact with the camera, in order to create a more stable shot; however, we have actually noticed that with our forehead pressed to the viewfinder our shots are more unstable than if our hands were the only point of contact.  Using the Cyclops you can still see your entire LCD clearly without having your head touch the viewfinder.

Cons  

-       Weight: Cyclops are heavy themselves, and when we use them on the Manfroto mono pod, it throws the balance off, making it front heavy and difficult to make the mono free standing for longer shots.

-       Mount and Dismount: When you decide to use the Cyclops, you have to be committed.  The process to mount and dismount the Cyclopes is a lengthy process involving allen wrenches and screwdrivers. (We know that there are other mounting options, but the cost on these mounting alternatives is extremely expensive.)

-       Mobility: We noticed a reduction in our ability to get a good variety of shots.  The Cyclops makes to really difficult to get low, high or moving shots (such as slider).

-       Size: They are large and make us much more noticeable in live event situation.

-       Durability: some of the parts have broken through normal usage.

ZFinder:

Pros

-       Weight: They are extremely lightweight and compact.

-       Mount and Dismount: They are easily mounted and dismounted in seconds just by pushing it onto a mounting bracket.

-       Mobility: Because of the easy mount and dismount, you are extremely mobile and versatile on the fly. This gives you the ability to move to any level and to use other stabilization such as sliders.

-       Size: They are very compact and discrete, keeping our rig less noticeable in live event situations.

-       Durable: Because they are so compact and easily removed, they don’t take as much wear and tear, and there are fewer parts to break.

Cons

-       Magnification: The magnification is so intense that it makes the LCD look pixilated.  This sometimes makes it difficult to know if you are in focus or not. (There are extenders and different magnifications to help with this, but they don’t make that large of a difference.)

-       Burnt Screen: We learned from sad experience, that if you allow the sun to come through the Z-Finder and hit your screen, it will burn and kill the pixels in you LCD.

-       Single Eye Viewing: Closing one eye is annoying and tiresome.

-       Facial Contact: Your eye must be in the eye-cup for you to see any of your picture.

We wrap all of this up by saying this… We don’t recommend one over the other across the board.  We think that both have there time and place.  We use the Cyclops in interview situations, where we are locked down on a tripod and we don’t need to be too mobile.  We use the Z-Finder in fast paced live event situations where mobility, and ease in mounting and dismounting are a must!

So in your search for the right viewfinder or toilet paper… try them out before you make your purchase.  Rent or use someone else’s to make sure you know what you want.  Viewfinders are a large investment, but in our minds a necessary one.

Hope this helps!

Love,

The STF Team

Of course we couldn’t have done it without The Music Bed supplying the incredible tunes that edited to.  Also the films would not be what they are visually without the help of New Blue FX filters.  PluralEyes software also allowed to the groups to sync their multi-angle interviews, in a matter of minutes.  We have the best sponsors in the industry… just sayin.

Also a huge thank you to Da Smiz, Jonny Adams and Kayti Edwards, for pouring their hearts into the projects and being such tubular people!

Sit back, relax and eat some tacos, because it is our pleasure to present to you the creations of Cine-Skool Dallas!

(These films were created  with-in the 3 day workshop by each group)

Group 1

Group 2

Group 3

Love,

The Cine-Skool Fam

Don’t cry, there is now a cure!

If you have ever been in the post production process of making a film, you know by sad experience that finding the right tunes for your soundtrack is often the most excruciating and time consuming tasks.  It’s often an internal battle, making the choice to use good music illegally or to purchase the rights to not so good music.  The quality of your film depends so much on picking the right music; having access to a lot of good music is crucial to the process of building a good film.

For us, in the past, the journey of finding the right music has been a frustrating one.  We have recently found a cure for our music blues!  Themusicbed.com  has become the glove that warms our chilly hand.  They facilitate easy and affordable song licensing with some extremely talented musicians.  I mean these artists will rock your socks!  With ownership that understands live event filmmaking and its music challenges from experience, The Music Bed has great features that can scratch your music itch.

Here are some of our favorite things about The Music Bed:

• Relevant music selection with a wide variety of genres
• Simple licensing contracts
• Extremely affordable
• Full song preview
• Specific search criteria
• Easy navigation
• Oh, and try the cheese fries, they’re to die for!

We have been fortunate enough to team up with the makers of The Music Bed to help facilitate access of better royalty-free music for our industry.  They have offered to sponsor our up-coming Dallas Cine-Skool and will be involved in helping to make it a tubular experience.

Do yourself a favor, grab your cloak and head on down to The Music Bed.  Take a look around and pick yourself up some fine music.

With love,

STF

We suggest asking yourself… What is the motivation behind the education?

Our motivation in seeking, and providing education in our industry is simple.  As we find better sources of education, we learn to hone our skills and produce a better product.  If we all (live event film makers) continue to raise the bar in quality of our art, the industry will be viewed by the masses as a legit service, worthy of the pay that we want for our art. Cuz lets face it, we are all bustin our chops to make great films, and would LOVE to be able to charge what its worth.

We love bettering ourselves and helping others do the same. In no way do we profess to know everything, or that we have made it. We adhere closely to the idea that if you are not PROgressing, you are DIgressing… there is no such thing as standing still.  We have made it a habit to constantly ask our selves, “what are we doing to progress?”

Some of the greatest relationships that we have with others in this industry are the ones that were established either in educational situations, or while backpacking through the Himalayas in nothing but speedos. (for the record we have never backpacked through the Himalayas in speedos, but could you imagine?) There really is nothing quite like helping each other to achieve more and push each other to greater heights.  Any time that we have the opportunity to teach others what we know, we always end with the commission to take the things we had offered, and bless someone else’s life with the same information.

For us, education is not a quest for more money.   It’s a way to learn more about ourselves as filmmakers and to bring all of us up together as a community.

There are some amazing opportunities coming up in the near future for us to share what we have learned over the past few years:

On Tuesday, Oct 4th we are presenting on the In[focus] Ustream series, sharing some ideas about how to build your film business and get the clients you want on no, or very little marketing budget.  To join in on the fun… follow this link on Tuesday, Oct 4th at 1pm PST.  In[focus] is a community of fellers that have a love and passion for cinema education.  Every year they hold a 3 day conference bringing together some of the best film makers in our industry to teach a wealth of information that will blow your lobes, check them out!

You can also find out all the information about the next Cine-skool here.

With Love,

STF