I guess I might as well post a link also. I had great ambitions to produce a complex epic, but ended up with a simple, personal piece. Shot on the 5d2 with 50mm f1.4 and 70-200 f2.8L

Li Wu (The Gift) on Vimeo

Good Afternoon,

What an industrious young lady!!! I liked your video, truly a nice personal piece The bulb shot was really a nice touch. Your selection for the music was good, almost etheral.
I was waiting for the hand crafted piece to be gifted to someone. Truly those types of gifts are the best.

Thank you for taking the time and sharing.

Hi Ken,

That must be one of the greatest gifts you can get.
And a bright young lady she is.
As Dale, I also like the opening shot, very cool. Nice choice of music.

Thank you for sharing!

Those are some truly beautiful images you managed to capture there. The 5d is proving to me to be quite impressive, and you are obviously quite impressive behind it.
Reminds quite a bit of the opening title sequence in "Amelie."
Well done.
-Cole

Ken:

Very sweet story, and what a wonderful little lady.

I love your use of available light, and the camera angles and framing you employed.

And what a way to show off our favorite camera !

Great job.

Very beautiful girl. What else could you possible make a film about after receiving this gift?
You are really showing off that 5D in this peice. Beautiful colors in available lighting. Super shallow depth of field, were you using the 50mm on most of those shots? Need to save up and get me some f1.4 lens. Gorgeous subject.

Might have interrupted the mood of the piece, but I wanted to hear her voice. Maybe after the closing credits?

What a wonderful gift to give to your daughter later! She’s a cutie who will enjoy seeing herself in the “movies" -- not like the typical home movie stuff most of us have. Really pretty shots throughout; you use that camera well.

The gift of a child…kind of hard to top. :)

Very sweet, personal and emotional.
A bit unnecessary shake at the beginning, but everything else was fine.

Thanks for the comments,

Andris as I mentioned in your comment. Normally I wouldn't shoot handheld (especially with the 50mm - as it's not wide enough to hide the jitters). I had my 17-40 f4 on - but It just wasn't fast enough - but you generally can use it handheld on the wider end. I should have stabilized it in post (in fact I think I'll do that).

She already really likes the piece. It's funny because she asked me - 'why is there are picture of me sleeping at the end?' And I told her that the show wasn't about her making gifts, it was about her being 'the Gift'. Then she understood.

I'll get around to commenting on everybody else's. I just need to take the time to watch them all.

Very nice. Those looked like ginger bread cookies, and what a smile to go along with them.
Great color. And thanks for sharing the story.

It was truly a heartwarming view of your new little gift and what a beautiful child she is. Your camera work was very nice and you handled the DOF well. While some scenes may have seemed a little long to some, I understood the camerman's attachment to his subject and it was sweet. Gorgeous colors. A piece you will pull out from time to time as she grows and share with her I am sure.

Thanks for a wonderful glimpse into your special gift !

Chris