Im playing around with some GH2 photos...
I plan on shooting a video and will be using an old cabin similar to this..or maybe this one.

Untitled Page (http://www.downsouthstudio.biz/stills.html)

I CC this still and like the look. How can I apply this to the "entire" music video? Would I have to use an external diffuse filter, or can this be done in Premiere or other software?

Thanks,
Jeff

There are about ten million ways to do it Jeff. The easiest is in Magic Bullet Looks. You may even be able to do it in the free version.

I just looked and there is a preset in the paid version but not in my free version.

You can piece it together using the effects in PP though.

If you have Photoshop, you can do it in that also and apply to the entire clip.

Agreed; this is no challenge in post. Even FCP 7 has a vignette preset that would do that part right out of the box. The CC is just what you figure it to be.
Doing this in-camera would be a bit more challenging, but it's just what you'd think it is with filters and pushing your colors to magenta a bit.
If you didn't want to BUY a vignette filter, you could do the OLD school technique of putting a bit of Vasoline around the edges of a UV filter. That gives a nice organic look to things, but... can be a bit messy. Yuk.
I'm not recommending it, just saying there are options.

Looks like you could use a crappy wide CCTV lens to get the voluminous CA, barrel distortion, and edge softening... something like the SLR Magic 25/1.4 Toy Lens or a Pentax 6/1.2 in ETC, for instance (although those are actually fairly sharp vs. what I'm seeing here). Putting one or more cheap Chicom wide angle adapters on an otherwise good lens can also yield these results.

Agreed; this is no challenge in post. Even FCP 7 has a vignette preset that would do that part right out of the box. The CC is just what you figure it to be.
Doing this in-camera would be a bit more challenging, but it's just what you'd think it is with filters and pushing your colors to magenta a bit.
If you didn't want to BUY a vignette filter, you could do the OLD school technique of putting a bit of Vasoline around the edges of a UV filter. That gives a nice organic look to things, but... can be a bit messy. Yuk.
I'm not recommending it, just saying there are options.

Matthew, you're telling your age...kinda like using your hands to vignette under the enlarger.

Thanks to those that replied...and will reply.

Yes, Id definitely like to do it in post. Clips will be shot over several days, with varying amounts of light for sure. A typical scene is to have musicians on the porch of one of the cabins, with the singer "center porch".

Using stills, it's easy to vignette/blur the edges,top,bottom and leave the center(musicians) in sharp focus. I think doing this will be a real challenge for a video.....ya think?

I can always resort to a undistorted video....if I "have" to. LOL.

All tips appreciated....even the sourpuss ones.

Jeff

Sorry, didn't mean to sound sourpuss... I'm not against the idea by any means - heck, I've shot a few things with cheap Chicom wide angles and the Tamron 4-12 - and even both together - that's why I know you can get exactly that look with cheap wide lenses - the crappier the lens, the greater the effect (and lower the cost). Sometimes it's what you want.

FCP and Premiere have vignetting filters that will get you the edge softening and darkening, but it'll take a mix of other things (distortion, some sort of color channel blur or shift) to get the rest of the look.

@Kevin....
Definitely no offense taken Kevin...just joking ...I do that too much. ha

I'm going a little nuts trying to "rush" the learning curve of both video and photography with my GH2 and XA10.
Too different animals in some respects...video and photography.

For a long time I "thought" I knew what I was doing. Seems the more I learn the worse and confused I become. ha

Onward,
Jeff

Sorry, didn't mean to sound sourpuss... I'm not against the idea by any means - heck, I've shot a few things with cheap Chicom wide angles and the Tamron 4-12 - and even both together - that's why I know you can get exactly that look with cheap wide lenses - the crappier the lens, the greater the effect (and lower the cost). Sometimes it's what you want.

FCP and Premiere have vignetting filters that will get you the edge softening and darkening, but it'll take a mix of other things (distortion, some sort of color channel blur or shift) to get the rest of the look.

You're right Kevin. It would probably be better done in AE layers.

Jeff - I lean towards doing it the way old Hollywood did it. I would slip a $30 Cokin P140 Oval Center Spot Filter into my $50 aIR-Matte A2 Matte Box. If I was more comfortable with my NLE, I might feel otherwise :-)

Good luck - please let us see the results when you're done!

Best,

Bill

Matthew, you're telling your age...kinda like using your hands to vignette under the enlarger.

HAHA!
Tell ya something; I do indeed remember Dodging and Burning parts of an image using my hands and bits of cardboard under the lamp in the dark room.
Ahhh... Yeah... I really don't miss the smell of developing and fixing chemicals. ;-)

But sometimes those old ways are still quite good.

How do you like that mattbox Bill?

Don, some people would say that it is flimsy (it's made out of some kind of thin plasticized board), but it keeps the Sun out of the lens and it holds my filters securely. I like it a whole lot better than screwing and unscrewing filters and lens hoods, especially when the camera is on the tripod or the Flycam. It really can't be beat for the price.

Bill

@Bill....

I've noticed a lot of short film shooters using a mat box and filters. It would be fun to experiment with. Like you say, you cant beat the price.

Do you leave the UV protector lens on the cam while using the matbox/filter setup ?

Jeff,

Yes, I do. I probably lose a little light, but I am paranoid after losing two sacrificial UV filters over the past few years. If I hadn't had UV filters on the lenses, I might have lost their front elements. In both cases, the lenses were fine.

A couple of pictures of the matte box on the GH2 are attached. There is an $8 ND filter in one of the slots.

Cheers,

Bill

@Bill Bruner...

Thanks for the pics....looks like a nice rig.
Were you using some special filter for green screen work?

Im having trouble calibrating my monitor . My prints are coming back low contrast and off color compared to my monitor....so I ordered a calibrator device to see if I fix my problem. Sooo the matbox/filter will have to wait a little longer. ha. I may have to start another thread to get advice.

If you're using an LCD I'v heard the calibrators are not always effective, but I do not know this to be true.

I also don't know about printer calibration, but I think that is something that can be done also in case you didn't know. Good luck Jeff.

@ HARPER...

Hey, Jeff,
dunno yet, can always return it.

Ive noticed my "prints" are not exactly what I see on my monitor(color and brightness). So I need to get monitor and software talking to each other.

The software, the monitor, the video card...ALL have a color balance/contrast/brightness setup routine. Im assuming with the "calibrator" I can "save" the calibrator profile, and then "import" that into the software which should eliminate "some" inconsistency. Im using WHCC for prints and they suggetst sony color space and jpegs at 300dpi.

Im treading deep water here a little over my head, but I will work it out.

BTW....I shot my first clips in a church using the XA10 and GH2, Pmode on both, 25mm 1.4, on the GH2. I was amazed at how close the colors/levels match on both cams. So glad I decided on the XA10 to pair with the GH2.

Im ready to try some weddings now..will advertise.

Thanks for your tips..
Jeff

Jeff, since your into photos so much, consider signing up at photo.net. Lot's of really helpful pros in the forums, it's where I go with photo issues. Someone there will know how to begin the process of getting good prints from you photos, and which piece of equipment to start adjusting, etc.

Yeah..Jeff thanks.
Google is my friend. haha

It's not that Ive neglected my love for video at all. I can find my way fairly well in video. Photography hit me broadside, and made me realize, Ive got a lot to learn. Digging into photography is helping my videos as well.

Will post if I get my calibration problem worked out.

Jeff

Jeff it's not just that you will find the answer by googling, but photo.net in particular is likely the single best source, IMO for anything photography related. Knowing the site as I do, it would be the very first place I'd go.

The membership of that particular site is full of seasoned pros who are very quick to help anyone, that's all.

Good luck, I can easily see the potential issues with printing photos, since there are multiple pieces of equipment involved. I've never printed a photo in my life, so I have no clue.

I always found getting the color right o stills, easier than video. Just print a few test shots to adjust. I would not recommend getting your own commercial grade printer. There are just too many options.

I always used White House Publishing. Two Day Turnaround and they do it all from wedding books to canvas portraits.

@ HARPER...


BTW....I shot my first clips in a church using the XA10 and GH2, Pmode on both, 25mm 1.4, on the GH2. I was amazed at how close the colors/levels match on both cams. So glad I decided on the XA10 to pair with the GH2.

Jeff

It is an amazing match, isn't it Jeff.
I've found the Sanity 5 patch cuts in so well it only takes a few seconds work

Yes...
WhiteHouse is amazing in their customer service! The "flag" any problem they see, and notify you immediately. I can't believe how much care they give to your prints packaging...and ship UPS too.!

My monitor calibration unit should be here monday. I will at least know I can keep my monitor adjusted to the same spec. They all change over time, and should be reset.

Jeff