Canon A1 with Letus Flip Enhanced Footage at DVinfo.net

Spencer Lum · March 26th, 2007, 12:49 PM

Thought I'd share - this short shot partially with the adapter and partially without (about 70% was done with the adapter):

www.iriscinema.com/the_letter.mov

Jerome Cloninger · March 26th, 2007, 03:31 PM

Enjoyed it very much! Great camera work.

I liked the ECOLAB truck that passed by on the street, they are a partner company with my dayjob. :)

Paul Watkins · March 26th, 2007, 04:36 PM

excellent!!

Jourdan McClure · March 26th, 2007, 04:50 PM

Spencer,

Love the look. How were you lighting the interior with the male and female sitting down talking. Looks great. Its amazing how filmic it looks with the adapter and proper lighting.

Spencer Lum · March 26th, 2007, 05:02 PM

Thanks! Yeah, the adapter makes such a difference. I just shot a commercial over the weekend, and it really made some of the shots.

The scenes where they are talking were lit on the backside with a softbox and the fill on the front was done by bouncing a light off of white foam core.

Jourdan McClure · March 26th, 2007, 05:49 PM

Spencer,

not to keep bugging you but in regards to the lighting. Some say softboxes some say kinoflos some say litepanels. As I understand it, its all has to do with what you are doing. But the softboxes look great, is there a softbox that you can reccomend that would be good to start off with for most interior shoots.

Steven Fokkinga · March 27th, 2007, 04:08 AM

That's looking great Spencer. I noticed that there was no DP on your credits. Did you do this as well, besides writing, directing, editing, etc.?
Also, did you use the adapter for every shot, also the deep dof outside shots? Thanks!

Spencer Lum · March 27th, 2007, 06:01 AM

Jordan - I used a Chimera with an Arri 650 in this case. It was relatively inexpensive and it did the trick. One thing worth mentioning is that the ability to sculpt out the light is an important consideration, which is something a softbox is less than ideal for. It makes such a big difference in creating the right atmosphere.

Steven - Yeah, I couldn't fit "Director of Photography" in my titles and I was in a rush when I exported this, so I shortened it. I'll have to fix that at some point. But, yes, I was the DP.

From the beginning to the time she first stands up after the side by side conversation, all but a few shots are done with the adapter (the OTS where he looks in the mirror has no adapter, nor does her first entry into the room at the doorway, and the OTS of him that precedes the CU of the alcohol being poured).

After that point, the shots of him getting out of bed, coming back in to look at the bed, and the last sink shot are done with the adapter. The outside shots have no adapter.

John Benton · March 27th, 2007, 07:04 AM

Nice Job Spencer,
How did you find mixing the adapter and the stock lens footage was?
In my experience, the stock is so sharp it is awkwrd to combine the Letus with it (as a result , I mostly shoot with the Letus)

Spencer Lum · March 27th, 2007, 08:16 AM

I had the same experience - that the looks don't match exactly, and I dialed down the sharpness a good amount. I think it works fine when there is motivation for a shift - e.g. shooting with one look in one environment and another in a different one or when there is a dramatic reason for it, but I'd have liked to have kept them more consistent if I were doing it a second time around.

March 26th, 2007, 12:49 PM	#1
Spencer Lum New Boot Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 21	Canon A1 with Letus Flip Enhanced Footage Thought I'd share - this short shot partially with the adapter and partially without (about 70% was done with the adapter): www.iriscinema.com/the_letter.mov

March 26th, 2007, 03:31 PM	#2
Jerome Cloninger Major Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: East TN Posts: 415	Enjoyed it very much! Great camera work. I liked the ECOLAB truck that passed by on the street, they are a partner company with my dayjob. :) __________________ Jerome www.jeromecloninger.com

March 26th, 2007, 04:36 PM	#3
Paul Watkins Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: glassboro, NJ Posts: 87	excellent!!

March 26th, 2007, 04:50 PM	#4
Jourdan McClure Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Roseville, Ca Posts: 55	Spencer, Love the look. How were you lighting the interior with the male and female sitting down talking. Looks great. Its amazing how filmic it looks with the adapter and proper lighting.

March 26th, 2007, 05:02 PM	#5
Spencer Lum New Boot Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 21	Thanks! Yeah, the adapter makes such a difference. I just shot a commercial over the weekend, and it really made some of the shots. The scenes where they are talking were lit on the backside with a softbox and the fill on the front was done by bouncing a light off of white foam core.

March 26th, 2007, 05:49 PM	#6
Jourdan McClure Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Roseville, Ca Posts: 55	Spencer, not to keep bugging you but in regards to the lighting. Some say softboxes some say kinoflos some say litepanels. As I understand it, its all has to do with what you are doing. But the softboxes look great, is there a softbox that you can reccomend that would be good to start off with for most interior shoots.

March 27th, 2007, 04:08 AM	#7
Steven Fokkinga Major Player Join Date: May 2004 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 204	That's looking great Spencer. I noticed that there was no DP on your credits. Did you do this as well, besides writing, directing, editing, etc.? Also, did you use the adapter for every shot, also the deep dof outside shots? Thanks!

March 27th, 2007, 06:01 AM	#8
Spencer Lum New Boot Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 21	Jordan - I used a Chimera with an Arri 650 in this case. It was relatively inexpensive and it did the trick. One thing worth mentioning is that the ability to sculpt out the light is an important consideration, which is something a softbox is less than ideal for. It makes such a big difference in creating the right atmosphere. Steven - Yeah, I couldn't fit "Director of Photography" in my titles and I was in a rush when I exported this, so I shortened it. I'll have to fix that at some point. But, yes, I was the DP. From the beginning to the time she first stands up after the side by side conversation, all but a few shots are done with the adapter (the OTS where he looks in the mirror has no adapter, nor does her first entry into the room at the doorway, and the OTS of him that precedes the CU of the alcohol being poured). After that point, the shots of him getting out of bed, coming back in to look at the bed, and the last sink shot are done with the adapter. The outside shots have no adapter.

March 27th, 2007, 07:04 AM	#9
John Benton Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 658	Nice Job Spencer, How did you find mixing the adapter and the stock lens footage was? In my experience, the stock is so sharp it is awkwrd to combine the Letus with it (as a result , I mostly shoot with the Letus)

March 27th, 2007, 08:16 AM	#10
Spencer Lum New Boot Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 21	I had the same experience - that the looks don't match exactly, and I dialed down the sharpness a good amount. I think it works fine when there is motivation for a shift - e.g. shooting with one look in one environment and another in a different one or when there is a dramatic reason for it, but I'd have liked to have kept them more consistent if I were doing it a second time around.