Camera Workshop One- Intro to Cameras
Camera Workshop One- Intro to Cameras
On Wednesday the 9th of October we had our first camera workshop with Fergus; we were taught how to use the SONY XDCAM. Fergus taught us the following acronym on how to use and set up different parts of the camera:
S- sound
W- white balance
E- exposure
F- focus
F- framing
We got to have hands on experience getting use to the cameras and filming short experimental moments.
Sound:
I had never worked with sound before so this was definitely a learning curve for me. Firstly we set up the gun mics and attached them to the boom poles. This was something that I struggled with as it took a few attempts to fix the boom pole at the correct height for our scene- now I know that when I use a boom pole I need to allow time for it to be set up as another important thing that we had to do was work out the correct distance to hold the boom pole from the actors, whether it was above them just out of shot or below them, however I learned how key it is to have the mic in the correct place and the right distance from the actors (around a foot) in order to get the best quality of sound for my work. I made a few mistakes such as holding the boom pole too low so that it was just in shot or holding it too far away from the actors so that the tone of sound becomes thinner and more restricted.
White balance:
I was not aware of the Kelvin scale before the workshop, particularly how levels of white balance can change a shot. The warming cards are definitely something that I will use when shooting to help me find the right white balance in my shots, to give off the correct effect to the viewer. For example if I want a warmer feel to the shot then I will use a pale blue warming card to adjust the White Balance.
Exposure:
During the workshop I realised how many factors there are in getting the correct exposure in my work. Before the workshop I was not aware of Iris control and the impact that aperture can have on a shot, but now I know just how important it is.
Focus:
I already felt quite confident with focus before the workshop however I did learn about peaking and this is something that I will use when using the cameras in future along with the expanded focus to enable me to get the clearest focus for every frame that it is needed.
Fergus also explained the difference that zooming in can make on a shot, for example the more zoomed in the more compressed the background is so it makes the frame appear more intimate. I will use this technique in my future projects.
Here is a short video filmed by my group and edited by Matthew Park:
We got to have hands on experience getting use to the cameras and filming short experimental moments.
Sound:
I had never worked with sound before so this was definitely a learning curve for me. Firstly we set up the gun mics and attached them to the boom poles. This was something that I struggled with as it took a few attempts to fix the boom pole at the correct height for our scene- now I know that when I use a boom pole I need to allow time for it to be set up as another important thing that we had to do was work out the correct distance to hold the boom pole from the actors, whether it was above them just out of shot or below them, however I learned how key it is to have the mic in the correct place and the right distance from the actors (around a foot) in order to get the best quality of sound for my work. I made a few mistakes such as holding the boom pole too low so that it was just in shot or holding it too far away from the actors so that the tone of sound becomes thinner and more restricted.
White balance:
I was not aware of the Kelvin scale before the workshop, particularly how levels of white balance can change a shot. The warming cards are definitely something that I will use when shooting to help me find the right white balance in my shots, to give off the correct effect to the viewer. For example if I want a warmer feel to the shot then I will use a pale blue warming card to adjust the White Balance.
Exposure:
During the workshop I realised how many factors there are in getting the correct exposure in my work. Before the workshop I was not aware of Iris control and the impact that aperture can have on a shot, but now I know just how important it is.
Focus:
I already felt quite confident with focus before the workshop however I did learn about peaking and this is something that I will use when using the cameras in future along with the expanded focus to enable me to get the clearest focus for every frame that it is needed.
Fergus also explained the difference that zooming in can make on a shot, for example the more zoomed in the more compressed the background is so it makes the frame appear more intimate. I will use this technique in my future projects.
Here is a short video filmed by my group and edited by Matthew Park:
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