My class is copying the music video, "teenage dirt-bag" by a band called Wheatus. In these lessons we learn to use the camera, edit of the computer and health and safety. These are some notes that i took during the lessons;
-White Balance: always do it after each shot, we can use the automatic setting but it has been proved to be unreliable. The indoor setting button looks like a light bulb, the indoor setting one looks like a sun and the manual setting button looks like an bent at the top rectangle.
-Exposure is controlled by the shutter speed and the iris/aperture. Something called the Grain can be used but only as a last resort.
-After each shot you have to put the camera back to manual focus. This means that the focus of the shot will automatically happen to a focus correctly. We were given a copy each of the teenage dirtbag storyboard and we had to watch the music video and fill out shot number, shot type, description of action, camera movement, location of shot, costume and props used and the description of sound/audio. In another lesson we were put into small groups and told to go and film some scenes from the music video we were copying. We were given a shooting script for each group which consisted of the shot number, take number, description of action and the camera movement/direction. After each take of the scene we were filming we had to write down if that take was okay or not, if something went wrong or if we had to do it again etc. In this lesson i was one of the actors. I had to smile to the camera directly to be the main girl in the music video. I was also one of the extras for some of the shots. We were shown how to direct a shot where we were all given role such as director, actors, extras, clapper boarders etc. Its really important for someone to keep the production team running smoothly and to let everyone know whats going on. In the exercise we did, the director worked with the camera man to set up each shot. They then had to position the actors and extras in the correct positions. After checking the composition of the shot, they called the actors to see if they were ready, then the camera men, the clapper board is placed in front of the lens and then the shot is called (action).
Mounting the tripod-mounting the camera to the tripod can give you stability when filming. It is partcuially useful for zooming, panning and tilting the camera. The tripods at college have a spirit level to make it straight and position the camera correctly.
Setting the white balance-before filming you must set up the white balance to suit the conditions you are filming in whether outside of inside. The camera reacts differently to varying light conditions. When filming outside, you should always ensure that the white balance is set is the "daylight filming" otherwise the footage might end up having a blue tinge to it. Likewise, when filming inside you should set the white balance to artificial light. Once the camera knows what white balance is in different conditions, it can then calibrate the rest of the colours which should give you the results.
Adjusting the exposure-when using the canon XM2 camera, you should get into the habit of using manual settings to adjust the exposure and not let the camera run on auto. Using manual settings will give you control over how light or dark footage is. You can change the exposure using a combination of the shutter speed, aperture setting and gain.
Camera techniques-composition-you can change the frame size to be like the wide screen film. This is called 16:9 ratio. Normally the camera is set to a standard frame size of a ratio of 4:3. Which ever ratio used, you can apply the rule of thirds to help you compose the frame. Depth of field-This refers to the focal range of the camera. You can use depth of field to center the audience attention on a particular part of the frame by having it in focus while the rest of the shot is blurred. This is called a "shallow depth of field". In contrast, if all the frame is in focus that is called a "wide depth of field". Shifting the focus from one part of the frame to the other is called "pull focus".
Time lax filming- This is, for example, a ten minute shot that is speed up into a 10 second shot. You mount the camera the tripod and set is up. The camera doesn't move throughout the shooting but the actors can if they want too.
This is the storyboard for the Wheatus music video that we filled in
Booking the equipment: In real life, the equipment such as camera, tripods and lights are usually hired from specialist video production company's. Usually the rates are worked out by the hour. At college, we had to book out the equipment in advance that we wanted each time we were shooting. As we had to book in advance (48 hours before hand) we had to make sure we had a very tight and organised schedule format so that we spent a good amount of time with the equipment and also that we didn't waste booking it out. We booked it out from Craig, who is the technician at college. Each time we booked out the equipment, we filled in a contact information form which included all my groups contact details and also a risk assessment form where we had to write down any risks that may be a problem or anything that might effect our shoots. These things were such as; the weather, children, traffic, transport, hazardous materials, the location etc. We then had to write down next to each risk assessment what we would do to over come this problem or what would we do if something went wrong. For example, when filming in a studio using the lighting equipment, you would have to identify about the leads and cables that may be lying around as a health and safety point and risk. We would tape down any cord/cables to attach them securely to the floor so that no-one would trip over or hurt themselves.
Practise with cameras:
The point of practising with the cameras is pretty simple really...it's to get used to holding and getting used to working it before you start your own filming. By practisting, it will be easier to get going on with your own project and quicker. It will also give you more confidence so that you can try out new shot types and camera directions. In the real world, the cinematographer or director of photography will have spent 5 years or more learning about the camera and in training. For us, we undertook many exercises to get us used to the camera and the equipment. When making the Wheatus "teenage dirtbag" music video transition, we all had a chance to film some shots. We also experimented with a "timelapse" video in which we were in small groups of; an actor, a director and a clapper board crew member. The videos we made i have put below. As well as the "Whetus" music video.
Original Whetus "teenage dirtbag" music video.
Our own copy by my media A2 group/class.
Timelapse video.
Here i am going to compare the footage of the original Whetus music video to our own copy. Picking out certain shots where we tried to copy, including the camera work and the mise-en-scene and actions.
1) This is the opening shot. On the left you can see the original and on the left, our A2 media group's version. We have tried to copy this shot by having the boy lay in the same sort of position as the original (head down and lying across the stairs). We have also shot the scene on some stairs to copy the original. We have also zoomed in slightly so that its like the original.
2) Here the singer in the band is singing towards the camera. The camera is straight on and the singer is in a central position. This is a mid-shot. He is also holding a guitar. We have tried to copy all of these things, for example, our singer is holding a guitar, singing towards the camera with the same lyrics, has a microphone and the camera position is the same. For the background, you can see in the original, there is a sports chart board (where scores are placed) so it's obvious that they are in a gym in a school. We didn't have a gym to shoot in but we made a cardboard score board for the background and tried to place it in the same position as we could.
3) This shot is where the main girl character is introduced. We see her not looking at the camera but walking in slow motion towards it. We tried to recreate this by using the same camera shot and positioning and also editing it into slow motion. We also shot this scene outside to copy the original.
4) This is another miming shot. The original shows the main singer singing but the camera is positioned at the side of him to make a side-view of him singing. The micro phone is shown and he has a plain dark coloured background behind him so that is what we created as well.
5) In this shot, the main boy watches the main girl as she walks in front of him. He has some extras in the background of the shot as well so we made some people in our class stand at the back of the shot and pretend to be talking. Its a long shot which we re-created. I was an extra in this shot and i had to walk from the right to the left of the shot behind the main boy character.
6) For the next shot, the main boy is walking through the school corridor and the camera is straight on him and he is central. We have also
tried to re-create this shot by using the same camera shot and also added in some extra actors behind him to try and make it look a bit more crowded like in a school.
7) This scene is set in the corridor and the camera acts as the main boy characters point of view. We can tell this by the direct contact he has by one of the school students looking at him and making a "L" sign on his forehead (meaning "looser"). We have again tried to re-create this shot by using extras in the shot and making one of them do that sign towards the camera. We have also set up all the positions of the actors in the shot to copy that of the original. This is the scene that i shot/filmed. In my experience, this shot was quite hard to do as some of the extras kept moving out of shot at the wrong times.
8) This a low angled shot were the main girl's boyfriend and his "gang" are walking in the school corridors towards the main boy character. The "gang" is in a "V" formation with the boyfriend at the front so we tried to copy this in our shot. I was one of the gang members in this shot.
9) This was a mid-shot of the main girl smiling at the camera while the camera is representing the main boy's point of view. We tried to get a depth of field effect on this shot (background blurry and the foreground strong focused). It was really hard to do this but we did manage to get this sort of effect. I was the main girl character in this shot and i had to smile and look into the camera. I also had to walk forward towards the camera and then giggle/smile. It was really fun to do as i have never acted before.
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