2nd shoot with the 5D (video stills attached) at DVinfo.net

2nd shoot with the 5D (video stills attached) · May 9th, 2009, 01:16 AM

Just wrapped up 4 more scenes today for the music video I'm producing (3 are shown here). Again these are untouched stills directly from the final cut timeline (resized 50%).

This shoot was much different from the previous one as it doesn't feature the artist(s) what so ever- plus no dark & moody contrasty setting with candles. Instead we started building the story- which is about a young pregnant woman who is struggling with her position and contemplating abortion. Only available light was used.

Shooting with a knife's edge DOF is challenging but very fun!

PS A very high compression setting was used for the stills hence the jpg artifacts.

Jon Nelson · May 9th, 2009, 04:47 AM

Fabulous looking images!

Excellent work!

Will be get to see the finished video project?

Rickey Brillantes · May 9th, 2009, 08:19 AM

Fabulous stills you got there, was that the ef 24-70 L lens?

Ray Bell · May 9th, 2009, 08:20 AM

Those look great... what lens are you using now...

Dylan Couper · May 9th, 2009, 09:19 AM

When you say "only available light" do you mean you shot it as is, or used reflectors/bounces to manipulate the available light? It looks so well lit, I wouldn't have guessed it wasn't artificially lit. Extremely nice work!

PS. So.... genre...? Horror? Sci-fi? Zombie?
(kidding :)

Glen Elliott · May 9th, 2009, 09:21 AM

Thanks guys- I'm really thrilled with the results I'm getting the first time out of the box (and second) with this camera! Lenses used on this shoot were my 24-70 2.8L and a rented 85 1.2L.

I heard rave reviews about the 85 1.2L so I HAD to try it. I was even considering saving up to buy it- it's quite expensive at $1800. However I'm quite glad I rented before buying because I hated everything about the lens. First of all it's heavvvy! Much heavier than my larger 24-70 lens. Secondly it doesn't use a traditional focus ring- it's focus by wire....and it FEELS it. Additionally the focus range on most lenses is 1/2 turn of the ring or maybe 2/3rds a turn from macro to infinity. This lens seemed to have a focus range 360 degrees. This caused issues with my redrock focus gears as the point that fastens the gear on kept hitting the final gear on the follow focus unit not allowing me to achieve focus. Several times I had to loosen the gears and reposition them to allow clearance to get to get the focus ring position I needed for a particular shot.

After all that I felt the 85 1.2 was a huge disappointment until.....I reviewed the footage. I'd have to say this is some of the best looking footage I've shot with the 5DmkII thus far. Besting the footage I previously shot with a 50 1.2 and 135 2. I'm not so down on the lens now. It does have it's quirks but yields astounding results. Sound familiar- does it not....maybe a bit like the camera we are all using to shoot with in the first place.

Wayne Avanson · May 9th, 2009, 12:01 PM

Absolutely stunning images Glen. You;re getting some of the best pics I've seen from this cam and trust me, I've seen hell of a lot recently!

So you'd say the 85 1.2 outguns the 24-70 in the image stakes?

Looking forward to seeing the moving images. You realise you're setting some pretty high standards that the rest of us are now determined to follow?

Cheers for sharing.

Avey

Glen Elliott · May 9th, 2009, 11:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jon Nelson

Fabulous looking images!

Excellent work!

Will be get to see the finished video project?

Sure thing- however it may be some time before it's finished. We have at least two more shoots and lots of editing (I went crazy with the number of takes). :)

Glen Elliott · May 9th, 2009, 11:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dylan Couper

When you say "only available light" do you mean you shot it as is, or used reflectors/bounces to manipulate the available light? It looks so well lit, I wouldn't have guessed it wasn't artificially lit. Extremely nice work!

PS. So.... genre...? Horror? Sci-fi? Zombie?
(kidding :)

Hey Dylan- yeah I did use a reflector in one scene. The one from the first photo (her in waiting room). Otherwise they were shot as is with no light "manipulation". Thank you!

Glen Elliott · May 9th, 2009, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wayne Avanson

Absolutely stunning images Glen. You;re getting some of the best pics I've seen from this cam and trust me, I've seen hell of a lot recently!

So you'd say the 85 1.2 outguns the 24-70 in the image stakes?

Looking forward to seeing the moving images. You realise you're setting some pretty high standards that the rest of us are now determined to follow?

Cheers for sharing.

Avey

Wow thank you- that's very flattering. The 24-70 is much more usable, mainly because of it's focal range. However it can't compete with the creamy bokeh the 85 produces wide open. Just keep in mind shooting like this is quite challenging (ie you can't even focus on an entire face).

Thanks again for the kind words. I've been working with the images in post with color grading and I'm extremely excited myself for the finished product. I'm still trying to learn all I can about this cam. With all it's limitations it still runs circles around my XH-A1s in the IQ department.

Matthew Roddy · May 10th, 2009, 12:57 AM

Damn you're good. :-)

May 9th, 2009, 09:19 AM	#5
Dylan Couper Wrangler Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia Posts: 8,314	When you say "only available light" do you mean you shot it as is, or used reflectors/bounces to manipulate the available light? It looks so well lit, I wouldn't have guessed it wasn't artificially lit. Extremely nice work! PS. So.... genre...? Horror? Sci-fi? Zombie? (kidding :) __________________ Need to rent camera gear in Vancouver BC? Check me out at camerarentalsvancouver.com

May 9th, 2009, 09:21 AM	#6
Glen Elliott Wrangler Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Philadelphia, PA Posts: 2,898	Thanks guys- I'm really thrilled with the results I'm getting the first time out of the box (and second) with this camera! Lenses used on this shoot were my 24-70 2.8L and a rented 85 1.2L. I heard rave reviews about the 85 1.2L so I HAD to try it. I was even considering saving up to buy it- it's quite expensive at $1800. However I'm quite glad I rented before buying because I hated everything about the lens. First of all it's heavvvy! Much heavier than my larger 24-70 lens. Secondly it doesn't use a traditional focus ring- it's focus by wire....and it FEELS it. Additionally the focus range on most lenses is 1/2 turn of the ring or maybe 2/3rds a turn from macro to infinity. This lens seemed to have a focus range 360 degrees. This caused issues with my redrock focus gears as the point that fastens the gear on kept hitting the final gear on the follow focus unit not allowing me to achieve focus. Several times I had to loosen the gears and reposition them to allow clearance to get to get the focus ring position I needed for a particular shot. After all that I felt the 85 1.2 was a huge disappointment until.....I reviewed the footage. I'd have to say this is some of the best looking footage I've shot with the 5DmkII thus far. Besting the footage I previously shot with a 50 1.2 and 135 2. I'm not so down on the lens now. It does have it's quirks but yields astounding results. Sound familiar- does it not....maybe a bit like the camera we are all using to shoot with in the first place. __________________ Glen Elliott Cord 3 Films

May 9th, 2009, 04:47 AM	#2
Jon Nelson New Boot Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Orange County, CA Posts: 14	Fabulous looking images! Excellent work! Will be get to see the finished video project?

May 9th, 2009, 08:19 AM	#3
Rickey Brillantes Major Player Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Ontario, California Posts: 309	Fabulous stills you got there, was that the ef 24-70 L lens?

May 9th, 2009, 08:20 AM	#4
Ray Bell Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 1,414	Those look great... what lens are you using now...

May 9th, 2009, 12:01 PM	#7
Wayne Avanson Major Player Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Lancashire UK Posts: 496	Absolutely stunning images Glen. You;re getting some of the best pics I've seen from this cam and trust me, I've seen hell of a lot recently! So you'd say the 85 1.2 outguns the 24-70 in the image stakes? Looking forward to seeing the moving images. You realise you're setting some pretty high standards that the rest of us are now determined to follow? Cheers for sharing. Avey

May 10th, 2009, 12:57 AM	#11
Matthew Roddy Major Player Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Riverside, Ca Posts: 307	Damn you're good. :-)