Bon Apetite :)

City Life on Vimeo

The camera was set to all manual configurations. Two main areas I need to devote more time to learning are shutter Speeds and aliasing.

Like others have mentioned you can't rely on the viewfinder to view the 'true' image. My first shots taken weren't usable. The next is aliasing: This is actually a bigger problem then I first thought. Again you can't rely on the viewfinder. Many of my shots consisted of a slight form of aliasing.

While I know what 'the book says' and how to combat them or manage them, it's field use and dialing it in so it becomes 2nd nature and you don't have to think about it - because lord knows theres 100 other things going on.

My rig on this shoot was the 7D, el cheapo tripod and kit lens (28-135mm). I have better gear but wanted to keep it 'gorilla'. With el cheapo tripod, had a hard time keeping the shots steady. Literally forgot about Image Stabilizers til halfway through my shoot! Turned it on & some moves were smooth like hot knife through butter; ie the pan up from the diners. I.S. on lens really helps and is worth the extra price.

My focus went soft on some shots (like the biker) and again it's practicing and becoming good at guessing/gauging distance! Also this camera is at its weakest in the run 'n gun form (especially when shooting @ 200mm!).

Look forward to your feedback on any aspect. Want to play more in the future with time remapping and shooting 60p. If I find something cool I'll do a short just on that with a field report :D

Cheers

Great first effort with the 7D! I loved it (not least because SF was one of my favourite frequently visited locations in a previous career). I agree about IS being a big benefit in many instances, BTW. Loved the Afrocelts type music too, worked well with it...but what was it? (I looked directly on Vimeo but did not see a credit for it).

If you can't rely on the viewfinder, what do you use? I'm about to embark on my first shoot and would love some tips. Thanks

If you can't rely on the viewfinder, what do you use?

Great question - for now I treat those settings like an old recipe thats only Grandma knows in her head; I memorize it :) But that is after i mess it up a bunch of times, of course.

It depends on what 'look' you want your project to feel. If you want something closer to a film feel, many say to have the shutter shoot 1/2 the fps or as close as we can. Typically start at 1/50. Theres many discussions at length where you should increase by only 1/60. If you want a video look - start @ 1/30.

For aliasing it's going to require a shooters eye (til Canon fixs it). If you're shooting with a shallow depth of field and theres a strong repeating background with a tight pattern, you'll want to throw out the focus a hair (step up the aperture, zoom into subject, etc...)

The music is from a group from Waterbone Tibet - and you're right forgot to put them in the credits!