...and now for something a little different.

Recently i was asked by some friends if i could make a video invitation for their engagement party. The video would be shot using miniature figurines and a cardboard set, it would tell the story of my friend Calvin's proposal to his fiance Pam. At first i'll admit i was a bit reluctant, mainly because my current job has me working long hours leaving me little free time in the evenings, and come the weekend i'm generally pretty exhausted and enjoy just lounging about the house and taking it easy.

However, Pam and Calvin's enthusiasm for the project and the length they went to in creating the very cool sets and figurines totally won me over, and i really got into a creative frame of mind with the project. While also embracing it as something new and challenging, as i my background is mainly in shooting live action video and landscape photography/video. This project presented a new set of problems and issues which i hadn't come across in my previous film experience and they were fun and challenging to work through.... but also frustrating at times haha.


The shooting stage is set (Canon 7D, and 70-200 2.8 L IS)


Upon taking delivery of the sets and figurines, i went about clearing out the garage to create a studio space for the shoot. Due to the nature of the setup, i had initially thought about shooting the piece as a live action video which would be simple to shoot and edit. I had immediately ruled out stop motion video as i knew i did not have the time, experience, patience, or precision needed to do it successfully. I then had the idea to find a nice middle ground between the two methods; i would have the action play out like a live action video (albeit a little slower) but shoot it using the high speed burst photo mode on my Canon 7D. I shot the action at 7fps, which meant that roughly 3 1/2 seconds of shooting would equal 1 second of video, so as long as the action was paced slowly enough it meant that the video would have a stop motion feel and i would be able to shoot it in a fraction of the time.



The makeshift stage, built from pieces of a slat bed.

In order to create a stage where Pam and Calvin could manipulate the characters, clouds, and waves of the set, i found some pieces of an unused slat bed in the garage and i knocked up a makeshift table. This worked perfectly as it allowed me to tape down the set pieces and stagger them to create some depth to the image, while also meaning the puppeteers could move the waves and figurines from below the stage.


Calvin manipulates the clouds for the opening shot.

So, last sunday whilst we were all moderately hungover, Pam and Calvin came over and we spent a good 3 hours filming all the different actions and shots. As i mentioned earlier, the story is based upon Calvin's proposal to Pam which took place at sunset on the beach. The directions given to me by Calvin was to make the video about 45 seconds long and to set it to the song 'Love Love Love' by Avalanche City. so my basic idea was to have enough coverage shots of the set, the waves, the clouds and the characters arriving at the beach, and then have the clouds reveal a wedding ring i the sky, followed by a few close up shots and some subtle changes to the faces of the characters.


Final shot, daytime.

The final shot of the video is a wide shot of the couple holding hands which slowly pulls out (via a digital zoom done in post) and it fades into a night time shot of the same scene. This was done by carefully shooting the two shots right after each other and replacing the background for a night time scene, and colour balancing the night time scene for a blue moon-like-hue. I then did a digital dissolve between the two shots in post.


Final shot, night time.


Over about 3 or 4 nights i rendered all of the photos into their finished 10-20 second videos, and set about editing the video together. Whilst at first i found the idea of telling a story using just cardboard figures quite difficult, using a song and thinking of the piece as more like a music video/story really helped and i think i was able to create a simple and effective retelling of Calvin's story which also captures a fun and creative type feel, which also i think symbolizes their relationship. Overall i'm very happy with how the finished project turned out, and Pam and Calvin were thrilled with the video too. congrats again to the happy couple!


Finished video below:


Thanks, Luke.

from on Vimeo.

...more timelapses! of course.

An ongoing fascination (maybe to the point of obsession) of mine is filming timelapses of the sky. When the compositions work it is a incredibly rewarding experience and it really justifies the good 1-2 hours that you can spend sitting by the camera while it takes a photo every 10 seconds. On the otherhand, for every timelapse that is stunning to look at there are usually two other ones that were awful or just didnt quite work and you can end up kicking yourself for exposing it incorrectly and for wasting so much time while you were freezing your butt off as the camera just ticked away taking photos for final 10 second timelapse video that you wont even use! it is definitely a love hate relationship haha.

In saying that though, i do really enjoy the results, and while i still haven't quite worked out a finished project for all my timelapses i still see the value in them. In the meantime, here is my latest batch of timelapses (with a few older ones in there too).

Luke

Once Upon a Time in the Gym.

Inspired by a number of Western themed viewings in the past month (namely Once Upon a Time in the West, and David Fincher's awesome Nike commercial "Fate"), i set the other week to shoot a short film/promo at The Powerhouse Gym and to give it a Western type feel. I started out with vague idea to shoot the gym as an expansive and desolate space with a sole figure working out, and to then have it evolve into an up tempo workout piece. While this idea remains at the core of the video, i found it hard to get wide enough lenses to create the expansive type feel i wanted. So instead the video is more about mid shots and close ups, this in retrospect probably helps more in conveying the uptempo and intensity of the workout.

Once again, my friend Adam Anderson was kind enough to volunteer himself and let me film his workouts at The Powerhouse, it was shot over two evenings after hours when the gym was empty. I'm very happy with the video and the overall look i've been able to achieve. Given more time i would like to tinker with the slow motion beginning more and smooth that out, maybe when i learn to use Shake better.

Hope you enjoy it:



Gear:

- Canon 7D, Nikkor 20-35 f2.8, Canon 70-200 IS L f2.8.
- Glidecam 2000
- Shot using Marvels Cine Gamma, and graded using Magic Bullet Looks.


thanks,

Luke

Grayson Gilmour Video Shoot

A few months back i had the oppourtunity to work as camera operator on the video for Grayson Gilmour's new song 'Oh, Stasis'. The shoot consisted of a number of passes on a miniature city with a motion controlled rig, along with some live action filming with an actor in a water tank. The shoot was a mammoth undertaking with a very small budget and was aided by some very talented people who work in the film industry here in Wellington. I hope to write more about the shoot and the video once it is released. We shot using two Canon 7D camera's which were perfect for many aspects of the shoot, but following focus with them for the motion control shots was near on impossible which made for some compromises focus wise. The footage looks excellent though, and below are some still photos from the shoot.


















The video is currently in post production and is expected to be released within the next 1-2 months.

Luke

short piece/test shots from the showreel

Here's a short video from my ongoing showreel. These are more test shots than anything, but i guess this gives an idea on the type of 'feel' that i'm trying to create with my piece on Wellington at night. Can't wait to have a few less projects on my plate so that i can go out and devote more time to this piece. It's fun watching all the pieces (shots) fall into place while i'm editing though.



thanks,

Luke

Dreams of Cheese: a concept short film.

What began as a simple dare for my friend Adam to consume an entire 56 slice box of processed cheese, turned into a must-be-filmed event, only to then evolve into a fully fledged concept short film. So last Wednesday, with the box of cheese in tow, and Adam horribly hungover, we set out to a place with some of the best views in Wellington; Brooklyn Hill, to set up for our shoot. Treated to a dead calm day and some stunning views of the city we got to work filming the piece. I wont spoil the viewing, but i will say that a lot of cheese was consumed, and plenty of silliness was captured on film ( er... CF card). 95% of the film was shot overcranked at 50fps and then slowed down in post. In fact, the only shots filmed in 1080/25p are the first and last shots of the film. Most of the shots were improvised and while i did have a general idea of what i wanted for the film, the final narrative was 'constructed' in the edit suite.

Ultimately though it was alot of fun to shoot, and it gave me a good chance to use a bunch of new film gear which i have picked up in the fast few months.

Tech Specs (for those interested):

- Canon 7D (lenses: Nikon 50mm 1.8, Nikon 20-35mm 2.8, Canon 70-200 IS 2.8L)
- Matte Box (with two 0.9 ND's in at most times)
- Zacuto Z-Finder for most handheld shots
- Canon TC80N3 remote (used for the timelapse section which was shot in stills mode)
- Glidecam 2000 (for the steadycam shots, using the 50mm)
- and finally, shot flat using Marvels Cine Gamma, and colour graded using Magic Bullet Looks.


thanks,

Luke

the ongoing showreel project

One thing that i have been working on for what seems like forever (so much so that i have shot it on two different camera's that i've owned) is a showreel type film shot around Wellington at night. It's just one of those things that i like to chip away at every now and then, going out and shooting for a night, lugging around my camera gear and seeing if something strikes me. I hope to put it together eventually, it is finally taking shape though. It started as a piece about isolation and the inner city at night, and it has kind of evolved into a piece more about movement and i want the tempo to build throughout the video. Now, how to do that.....

Another thing that i enjoy experimenting with is the contrast of different lighting sources, especially areas with white fluorescent light mixed with orange tungsten or sodium vapour street lamps, and an occurrence that is rather common in the central city at night. It's a look i've really been drawn to recently and i want to go further with it next time i go out shooting. In the meantime though, here are a few still shots from the footage i have already, the first two stills are actually from timelapse shots where the stars move across the sky, a very cool effect.












Luke