Hi all,

Shot this little diddy a few months back ...just had time to edit together a few clips. Used the XL2 ..16:9, 30p ......with a century optics .6 WA adapter. ..put it together in vegas ...didnt use any enhancements. Was going to use the filmic pluggin. ..but it was going to take 2 or 3 hours to render ...so i decided not to use it (very impatient) ...

and for those inquiring minds. The girl singing is a local resident of the city in the video. I recorded her using an audio technica mic, 2 $70 mics for the piano, a 16 channel mackie mixer and an ADAT.

www.elpez.com/mata.wmv

file size is about 20 megs

Feel free to critique the video.

Thanks.

j.

Where you using a dolly in those moving shots? They were very smooth. Very beautiful shots. What kind of compression did you use when creating your Windows Media File?? It was very clean.

Kevin,

Yes. I was using a homemade dolly. wood platform, with rubber tires, then built an 8 foot aluminum track. I have some "behind the scenes photos" But I'll have to locate them ..and I'll upload a few. :)

compression? ..hmm ..it was late at night ...i dont know if i can remember. I'll have to check when i get home.

j.

The reason I was wondering is because am working for a small company that wants me to learn how to post video on the web. We are using the WMP format. The problem I am having is finding a balance between quality and lower file size. Any ways the photos would be very cool! I have used a home made dolly which consists of plywood rollerskate wheels and PVC pipe but it is not the smoothest and am looking to build a more sturdy dolly. I would be interesting in seeing you design. Thanx again.

please let us see the fotos of your homemade rig. oh my goodness they were silky smooth!!!! build me and send us some!!! lol!

it looks really awesome. are you making this for like a "come to mexico" to vacation ad? cause it felt like that =).

Did you use any special lighting for any of your shots, or were they all natural light?

Looks great man!

Curtis,

All natural light. It was a frustrating few days of shooting. 60 to 70% clouds. I'd have to wait around for 20 or 30 minutes just to get a minute or 2 of total sunlight.

Early one morning. The conditions were perfect. Clear blue sky, Sun rising ..casting this beautiful light over all the buildings. I was running around as fast as I could shooting as much as I could. Got a good 1 hours worth of footage. Checked the footage a few days later, and the entire tape was destroyed. Must have been dirt on the heads, or just a bad tape. :)

j.

John,

How frustrating for you! I am curious though, on some of the nice SLOOOW moves, the traffic was going by at a speeded up rate. How slow were those moves?

Nicely done! That dolly work elevates this piece to another level. It's amazing what a little creep(an "Andy Rooney" we call it in the biz, get it - a little creep...) can do to raise those production values. How did u get those slow zooms in the time lapse shots? That had to be done in post, right? I just noticed recently that the interval timer feature comes stock, and it's cool to see a sample of what it can do. So what were the settings for that? How often, and for how long did u expose those shots?
I'm also really impressed with the quality of the light in the interior shots. U could have spent hours hanging lights to create that look. I've been struggling with the option of XL2 vs Z1 for my next camera, but i have to say, i'm leaning toward the XL2 after seeing this clip. Anything will be better than my P.O.S. HD10U right now. I swear i'm gonna put a round through that camera as soon as i get a suitable replacement!

i'm interested in time lapse AND zoom as well.

I think this is one of the best XL2 footage that I've seen so far. This is the sort of stuff that we are all looking for: elaborate shots with production value. Something other than tests and "on the run" shooting. Nice!!

Ok, heres my best attempt at remembering settings and details about the footage



* XL2 settings = 16:9, 30p ...no customs

* Century Optics .6 WA

* No enhancements were added in post, as far as color
is concerned. What you see, is exactly what the XL2 captured.


* I did not use the time lapse features of the XL2. I just rolled
tape. On the scene with the red house, I shot about 40 minutes
of video.

* I achieved the slow zoom on the time lapse shots, in post. I
simply clicked on the "Event Pan/Crop" option, in Vegas 5.
Added a key frame at the end of the sequence and changed
the size of the image at the last keyframe. I was really happy
with the results. My favorite shot I used this on was the clip
of the guy playing the piano. The combination of the curved
dolly movement + the slow zoom (added in post) really creates
a professional look.

* I didnt use any lighting on any of the shots, other than natural
lighting. Obviously I would try to pick areas where the lighting
was good, but also I think it's a testiment to the abilities of the
camera.

* As far as the settings for the .wmv file, again, using Vegas 5.

-- Video rendering quality "Best"
-- Mode "CBR"
-- Format "Windows Media Video 9"
-- Image size "Keep Original Size"
-- Frame rate "29.970"
-- Video smoothness "90"
-- Bit rate "1 Mbps Video"

Well that about wraps that up. I've included a few behind the scenes pictures. It kind of goes againsts my nature to do this. It's kind of like seeing a really cool magic trick and part of what makes the trick so cool is that it is a mystery as to how it works. But as soon as you find out that the lovely assitant is just walking through a secret door and behind the curtain, then the trick isnt cool anymore.

anyway ...enjoy

www.elpez.com/behind1.jpg
www.elpez.com/behind2.jpg
www.elpez.com/behind3.jpg
www.elpez.com/behind4.jpg

j.

Is that a home-made jib in the last shot? Thanks for the pix.

I tested the time lapse on the Xl1 before and it's kinda useless for clouds as it's suprising how far the clouds move during the non recorded interval. When I played it back it was jerky even with the shortest interval.

Shooting 40 mins as John did and speed it up in post works very well.

Just my 2c
Donie

Hi John

Meant to ask, did you use longer tracks in some of the shots that what is shown in the still shots you so kindly gace us? Some of those creeps look like you travel a nice distance. Is that a by-product of using the 3x lens?

Thanks for your insights
Donie

Edit: Ok, just noticed it was an 8 foot track, it looks shorter in the shots for some reason.

Donie,

"8 feet" was an over estimate on my part. It's more like 6 feet. That's an interesting question as to ..if the WA lens created the effect that the dolly was moving further than it actually was. But I'm not sure of the answer. :) ...There are 2 or 3 shots on the clip, where the floor was smooth enough to use the cart ..without the track. 1. grand piano clip ....2. the mexico flag ..with pillars in the foreground.


j.

Thanks John,

I was wondering how to make a smooth track and I never though of the way you've done it. BTW: the shots are excellent, I'm very impressed with your work.

Thanks for showing the rest of us how it's done...
Donie

sweet little dolly. i might have to reverse engineer those photos and make myself one... please to be telling us about the jib.

the jib in the last picture is home made. I used a tripod from a telescope, and built the rest. It's a decent little crane, unfortunately the xl2 and the weights required to balance it out was a little too heavy for the tripod . I used the crane as much as I could during the shoot, without it collapsing, but I didnt end up using any of the footage because the lighting in the scenes wasnt that great


j.

<<<-- Originally posted by John Wheeler : Donie,

"8 feet" was an over estimate on my part. It's more like 6 feet. That's an interesting question as to ..if the WA lens created the effect that the dolly was moving further than it actually was. But I'm not sure of the answer. :) ...There are 2 or 3 shots on the clip, where the floor was smooth enough to use the cart ..without the track. 1. grand piano clip ....2. the mexico flag ..with pillars in the foreground.

j. -->>>

Pretty amazing moving footage, John. Almost like shot from the front of a moving plane.

Can you recommend any material on the best ways to shoot using dollies. Videos or reading material would be great.

Thanks,
earon
vancouver, canada

Excellent work, and an amazing depiction of Matamoros, It's close from my hometown, so I know how beautiful it is. Amazing!

First of all the video was great. Incedible use of the dolly to create motion in several scenes.

I do want to ask one question: As a fellow user of the Century .6x WA adapter I'd like to know how p#%**ed off you were when you saw that shot of the ceiling in the rotunda and discovered some dust or small spots on your lens had infilitrated your video? I am not dogging it but this is my single biggest problem with the add on WA adapters. The smallest little speck of dust or dirt and a little light will really show up on the recorded video.

Other than that I love it. Well Actually I love it anyway but I had to comment on that as it happens to me a lot. Just wondering if it frustrates you also.

Thanks!

<<<-- Originally posted by Earon Kavanagh :
Pretty amazing moving footage, John. Almost like shot from the front of a moving plane.

Can you recommend any material on the best ways to shoot using dollies. Videos or reading material would be great.
-->>>

Earon. I wish I could point you to specific information over the use of a dolly. But really all I've done is to try and mimic what I see in the movies. The biggest influence I have as far as "quality" cinematography is a "movie/documentery" called Baraka. It's loaded with silky smooth dolly and crane shots. Mixed in with time lapse.

I remember watching a movie called The Royal Tenenbaums. The director went dolly crazy in that film. It really kind of opened my eyes to the beauty of a smooth dolly shot.


Marty,

I wasnt really P*#$%d ...because I knew the entire time that the WA lens wasnt perfectly clean. My friend had all her lens cleaning supplies ..and we'd try and try to get it clean, but it was so windy, and I had so little time ...that I just shot anyway. ...But I definately feel that that shot is the weakiest one. It looks faded ..and you can see the spots. But I just love the motion. :) ....that was shot with the dolly as well. I just angled the axle so that the dolly would roll in a circle.


j.

john, you even included a picture of the lovely assisstant to the magician =).

very nice rig, very smart too. never thought of that.

Is there any way I can see this on a Mac? Thanks

I use a mac and it worked for me. You might need to download Windows Media Player 9 for Mac

http://www.microsoft.com/mac/otherproducts/otherproducts.aspx?pid=windowsmedia

Hi all

After reading this thred I was looking forward to seeing the movie...no luck I am using a mac with OSX 10.37 with windows media player installed.
I click on the link...the page loads ...but it is blank...nothing.
Any help would be most welcome.
I like the stills very interesting.

did you use safari or internet explorer as ur browser, sometimes one or the other works, its weird, but maybe that can help dling wmv file.

jason

the page that opens does nothing but spawn the wmv file. a plug in should handle it or it will prompt for a save. Try firefox. http://www/mozilla.com
Other than that, pop open your download manager and verify that the file is being transfered.

Man, those were some sexy, smooth shots. A really good combination of great light, editing and scenery. Thanks for the track idea.

john,

Did you slow down the shot of the flag waving thats right after the time lapse shot of the red house? Becuase the motion of the flag looks great! If you did what percent did you slow it to, 85%?80%? Also are those wheels on your dolly from a "hand truck dolly?" like to move ovens with?

Thanks!
Chris

<<<-- Originally posted by Chris Metts : john,

Did you slow down the shot of the flag waving thats right after the time lapse shot of the red house? Also are those wheels on your dolly from a "hand truck dolly?" like to move ovens with?

Thanks!
Chris -->>>


Hey Chris,

I didn't slow down the footage on the flag. The clip plays at original speed. I think I am the luckiest person alive that I got to capture that shot. The lighting, the clouds, the wind speed, and the movement of the flag at the very moment. It's like the flag almost wants to die and "give up" ..but then it regains its strenght and flies strongly again!

About the dolly tires. I bought them in the hand truck dolly section at Home Depot. They sell the individual tire/wheel in a box. I bought 4 of them.

And just incase anyone is going to try and mimic the dolly i used. Let me give a little warning. The dolly is by no means perfect. You have to have an extremely smooth surface, or it will shake/vibrate. The aluminum track definately helps. But it's still not perfect. The tires on my dolly have never been aligned perfectly, theres always been a little curve to the path of the dolly. On 90% of those shots, I was having to put force on one side of the dolly to prevent it from "curving" or else, the tire would have rubbed the side of the aluminum track. Maybe someone can perfect the dolly. :) ..if anyone does, please let me know.


j.

Thanks John!

I will have to check out those wheels. Again, great stuff!

<<<-- Originally posted by Eric A Robinson : Hi all

After reading this thred I was looking forward to seeing the movie...no luck I am using a mac with OSX 10.37 with windows media player installed.
I click on the link...the page loads ...but it is blank...nothing.
Any help would be most welcome.
I like the stills very interesting. -->>>

Hi Eric, it's a pity you can't view it. Not sure which browser you have but you should be able to donload the linked item directly to disk. When you have that done then you can use Media Player to open it directly.

Hope you get to see it. It's worth the watch.
Donie

Hi John,
great video! Makes me want to update my xl1s to the xl2. As for the dolly steering off to the side, you could attach skateboard wheels or rolloerblade wheels to the bottom of your dolly that run perpendicular to your anlge bar. The small wheel could press against the angle bracket to guide along the bar without you needing to compensate. I think 4 wheels, one in each corner would work.

Thanks for the video. It looks great!

you need springs/shocks if you want uber smooth over rough surface.

Hi
Donnie you are the man. I love your spelling of download, I could almost hear the Irish acent.
Why did I not think of that!

I am using Safari 1.2.4

Thanks all.

Hi John
Now I know what everyone is so excited about.
A great peice of work. The music, the singing, the pace,the rythm, the slow oily movement, the colours all add together to produce what is a delightful sensual treat.The main component in this is of course not the camera, that was incidental(well almost), it was all down to your creativity.

<<<-- Originally posted by Eric A Robinson : Hi
Donnie you are the man. I love your spelling of download, I could almost hear the Irish acent.-->>>

LOL, that was not intentional. We might speak funny but we are supposed to spell the same... mostly ;)

Donie