Would using a star filter for cinematography be too weird?

[Brian Drysdale]

You're asking a question to which the answer is it depends.

[Pete Cofrancesco]

I'm painfully aware of what he is saying but not saying so let's do a quick recap:
1. He once tried to do a dolly shot it didn't come out right and it was hard to do so he doesn't want to do it.
2. He has discovered that using a gimbal is far easier, requires very little setup and he has a friend who owns one I think.
3. He is going to use a gimbal despite anything you say and he is asking you to confirm that he will be able to get the shots he saw in a movie using a gimbal despite whether it's the appropriate tool or not.

[Ryan Elder]

I can get a dolly and use that, if that's better, I just didn't think the shot would turn out well. Plus it was suggested to go for a more Greengrass style, as that might be more do-able, it was said before, if I read that right.

So if I should, does that mean I should use a gimbal instead of a dolly? It was said here, that the Greengrass style is better than what I am planning:

Originally Posted by Brian Drysdale

This isn't all this equipment, it's pretty basic stuff. Many of the short films made here have this type of kit.

You can do without it, but you need to stop pretending you're making a 1960s Hollywood thriller. You could make an edgy Paul Greengrass style thriller, which could be better than the one you're planning.

So if that's true, should I use a gimbal then, or is a dolly a better tool for the job?

[Paul R Johnson]

Ryan - it's fine to call me Paul - it's my name after all.

The thing I suspect happens is that you are very reluctant to increase your operating skills. You seem to want to open a box, charge a battery and produce excellent work. I have no doubts that if you practice properly, you will be able to do your circular walk without gaining or losing height, and with perfect framing as you turn and keeping the thing sharp. That probably means serious rehearsal time - perhaps weeks worth of practice till it's second nature.

Are you willing to put the effort in? If you hire in somebody it doesn't guarantee they can do it. I remember doing sound on a video shoot years ago, and the helicopter pilot had declared his hours in command for the insurance company, and it was something like 5000. The cameraman was shooting through the open side door, and asked the pilot if he could fly sideways towards the lighthouse, and the pilot really struggled. Afterwards we discovered he had 5000 hours of taking off, flying the same route and then landing again.Never in his flying career had he ever been asked to fly sideways. So our experienced pilot really wasn't experienced at all in video work.

Maybe if you put the effort in you will master the gimbal?

[Ryan Elder]

Oh well it's just I thought an experienced gimbal operator or dolly operator could do better than me, especially since they have the equipment. I was advised before, just hire pros rather than trying to do everything myself. So wouldn't a pro who has had more experience be better?

Plus I have to concentrate on the performances and figured I could do that better if someone else is operating the gimbal or dolly.

[Brian Drysdale]

[QUOTE=Ryan Elder;1958825 So if that's true, should I use a gimbal then, or is a dolly a better tool for the job?[/QUOTE]

If you're doing it Paul Greengrass style nearly everything has to be shot using a gimbal. It all depends on the look you're going for, don't expect someone else to give you an answer it's something the director decides.

[Ryan Elder]

Oh well if I shoot everything on a gimbal I just feel that's very tiring on the operator, especially if I do all the static shots on a gimbal as well. What if I just do the shots where I want the camera to move on a gimbal, and keep the static shots on a tripod. Would that be okay?

[Brian Drysdale]

Shooting all day with a handheld 35mm film camera is also tiring.

[Ryan Elder]

Yeah true, but why should almost every shot be a gimbal shot though for mine? Why not just some shots? It seems to me that about 30 percent of the shots would require a gimbal for what I had in mind, but should I have more?

[Brian Drysdale]

It's up to you, just bear in mind that your favoured 85mm lens shots on the gimbal tend to look more hand held, rather than classical shots on a dolly, so won't mix as well if you're using a tripod for the rest of the scene.

[Ryan Elder]

Oh okay. But why is there a rule that if a gimbal is used for a few shots, then it has to be used for every shot? Why can't audiences accept some handheld looking shots, mixed with tripod shots?

[Brian Drysdale]

There's no set rule, because there are circumstances when a calm scene will explode into explosive confrontation and the camera goes handheld. Kubrick has done this in in number of his ilms.

You may want to have a more "intimate" feeling CU than you get with a tripod for part of a scene.

I'm not sure if this applies to you, since you seem to be unaware of the secondary aspects of how you shoot a scene, since you keep asking questions about it and are till struggling with the basics. If you switch between them you can carry a sub conscious message about the relationships within a scene to the audience.

A gimbal gives a different feel to a dolly, it's not a replacement.

[Ryan Elder]

Oh okay. What feeling does the gimbal give that is different from a dolly if the same type of move is being performed, for the same shot, in the same emotional context? The circular shot around an actor for example, if it's the same move done on both, why would the gimbal feel different, and what would that different feeling be?

Does the gimbal cause a feeling of more anxiety perhaps, or is it more specific than that?

[Brian Drysdale]

Look, if you can't tell that there;s going to be be a difference, why should we waste time explaining it to you?

Just think about the physics involved in using both methods and work out the differences yourself. It's what you need to do with everything when you're directing a film, you can't keep asking, there's a point where you have to decide I wish to use a certain tool for a particular reason.

If you can't work out the differences in your own mind you're going to be limited as a director. You need to sense the reason why you're using it in a particular scene and in a particular way.

[Ryan Elder]

Oh okay, well I guess I just not seeing why a gimbal will not be do-able for a good portion of the moves, but that's just me. The only thing I can see is that the gimbal may add more anxiety as far as feeling goes.