Production Tools and Techniques

Today we're going to look at the tools and techniques used on set to produce low budget movies and documentaries.

Tools

“These days, you don’t need expensive cameras to get into film making.” Let’s start by taking a look at the tools of the trade. These days, you don’t need expensive cameras to get into film making. Standard consumer video cameras can be an inexpensive way to test your skills on a budget. Let’s say you’ve got a camera budget of between €300 and €2,000 and take a look at three of our cameras that might suit. Your choice will largely depend on what kind of project you’ll be filming.

There are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind when shopping for a camera. Believe it or not, the resolution or pixel count of your camera is not nearly the most important consideration. Digital video cameras take light in through the lens and focuses it onto a chip inside the camera. Most cameras have three different chips in there to detect red, green, and blue light, but some cheaper cameras only have one chip, which dramatically reduces the camera’s ability to record vivid colours. The number and quality of chips, and the quality of the lens matter a great deal more than the camera’s resolution.

The €300 Option

If you want to start out on an absolute shoestring budget, then something like this might suit you. It’s a Panasonic SDR-H40. It costs around €300, records standard definition using a single chip, and has little or no manual controls. This camera is fine for posting to YouTube, or taking holiday videos, and it’s a great  camera for learning how to frame a shot, but if you want to learn about how to manually focus a shot, you’re better off spending a little more and getting a mid range camcorder.

• Set Calls and What They Mean
• The Assistant Director usually calls out orders to dictate what happens on set. Different studios use slightly different calls, but for a digital shoot, the following calls are commonly used:
• Quiet on the set: The crew are told to be quiet as filming is about to begin.
• Frame: The cameras frame and focus on the slate.
• Roll Cameras: The cameras and audio recorders begin recording.
• Mark: The slate is clapped marking a point on all video and audio tracks.
• Frame: The cameras take up their positions for shooting.
• Action: The scene begins.
• Cut: The scene ends.

The €600 Option

The Panasonic HDC-HS100 costs about €600, has three chips, and records in full HD. This camera also has offers more control over your shoot. It has a control ring at the front that can be set to control zoom or focus. This ring can also be set to adjust the iris setting, controlling how much light registers on the chips. The HS100 also has a port for an external microphone and a headphones socket which the H40 lacks. It even has a hotshoe mount on the top for a microphone or a light source. While the price is double that of an entry level camcorder, cameras of this quality have produced video that made it onto TV and into the cinemas.

The €2,000 Option

Stepping up a level again, you could opt for an entry level professional video camera. For example, the Panasonic AG-HMC70 which sells for around €2,000. This is practically the same camera as the HS100 underneath, but the added size has allowed them to add a slightly better lens and a 3CCD chip – which performs slightly better in lower light. The important difference here though is in how you’ll us this camera. It comes with a built in audio mixer that takes two XLR connections – that’s a standard connection for microphones. The channels can then be mixed live, or just recorded onto separate audio tracks and mixed in the editing room. The added bulk of this camera means that you’ll get much steadier shots, and it’s still light enough to lift over your head with one hand if you need to get it up high. A bigger camera like this tends to have a more rugged design, and more comfortable controls.

Media

All of these cameras record onto SD Cards. Some cameras in our price range also record onto a built in hard drive, but if you plan on using it to record live music, or anything that involves powerful vibrations, be warned that the hard drives might not work. We use SD cards for all of our shooting. Your other options are tape or film. Tape is extremely outdated. The quality is worse than hard drive or SD card and it’s a hassle to work with taking a long time to transfer to your computer and needing to be rewound before being used again. Film is even more difficult to work with, but in the right hands, it gives far superior quality than any other medium. Since we record video for web, using a disk based system like a hard drive or SD card is perfect for us. Panasonic seem to be leading the way in that regards with a wide range of cameras that record onto SD card and Panasonic P2 cards.

Which Camera is Right for Your Project?

So which camera is right for you? If you’re shooting something that’s been scripted, and you can afford to shoot multiple takes to get multiple angles, then the pricier, shoulder mounted cameras will suite you better. Your shots will be steadier, and you’ll have some handy audio recording options If on the other hand, you’re shooting something on the fly, like a documentary, spending your budget on a few cheaper cameras is a smarter choice. If you’re not in control of the action, then the more cameras you can use, the better the chances are that you’ll get the shots you need.

Most mid range cameras have mic ports, and adding a shotgun mic will dramatically enhance the quality of your audio. If you can though, it’s always better to have an audio engineer take care of the sound separately and record it onto a dedicated audio recorder.

Technique

• Frame and Focus
• The first shot of a scene is usually an Extreme Wide Shot (EWS). Sometimes the subject isn’t even visible. It’s used to put the subject into a context by showing its surroundings.
• A Very Wide Shot (VWS) is much closer to the subject, but still places a lot of emphasis on its surroundings.
• A Wide Shot (WS) takes us in closer so that the subject fills the frame.
• A Medium Close Up (MCU) shows just the head and shoulders of your subject.
• A Close Up (CU) shows just the head.
• An Extreme Close Up (ECU) narrows in on something very specific like a subject’s eyes, mouth, or hands.
• A Cutaway (CA) is a shot that breaks the action and acts as a buffer between shots.
• Pulling focus means to go from having your subject blurred, and out of focus to having them being in focus. Throwing focus means the opposite.

There’s a couple of things you’ll need to know before you start shooting. Rather than simply pointing your camera at your subject, you need to use the your camera to add to the narrative of the story. Framing your shot requires some thought. Close ups let our subjects fill the screen and our attention while wide shots help to put our subjects in a certain context. Putting your camera on the ground and pointing it up at your subject makes them look powerful, while mounting the camera up high and pointing it down at them makes them look small and weak. Depending on the story being told, simple, but thoughtfully created camera framing and movement can add a lot of meaning to the story unfolding on the screen.

Shooting with Multiple Cameras

Adding multiple cameras offers a range of different possibilities whether you’re shooting a scripted movie or a documentary. It’s useful to have one camera on a closeup, while another has a wide shot. We’ll cover multi camera editing in a few weeks, but for now, If you’re shooting with more than one camera, then you need to be aware of what happens during the editing phase to get the footage from multiple cams into the same timeline. The editor will need to align the different tracks of audio and video so that an subject’s dialogue matches the video of his mouth moving. Most film makers use a slate with a clapper on top to mark an audio and visual cue on all video and audio tracks.

Developing Your Style

In last Tuesday’s post, we talked about developing your team. It’s equally important to developing your teams style of shooting, and system for working together. Of course, there’s more to filming than what’s in this short guide, but if you can master framing, and set organisation, then you can begin to learn about lighting, optics, and more the more technical aspects of film making. Your teams style of shooting should match your style of editing. Next Tuesday, we’ll be back with another post on basic editing.

Tags: Tutorial/Video Cameras/Video Production
Posted in Blog by Andy Doyle |