How did they fake the zooms in this music video?

[Brian Drysdale]

The mantra for doing these things on a production is test, test, test.

It's probably quicker to do it using a zoom lens, it seems the video was shot on 35mm, using an Arri 35mm III, so a zoom wouldn't be big a deal. They may have gone for the best performances at either end of the crash zoom, so the editor cut in the middle. With a motorised zoom, the speed will be consistent from take to take.

[Ron Evans]

Originally Posted by Doug Jensen

Seeing is believing, so please produce a demonstration shot of your own to show us how it would look. :-)
And while you're at it, please keep track of the time it takes.

Just watch the video I referred to and time him doing it. That is how long it takes in Resolve. There are lots of other videos showing this.

[Pete Cofrancesco]

Sony 16-35mm f/4 Power Zoom - Brilliant Ultra Wide Zoom...Just Not for Photography - YouTube

[Noa Put]

That's a expensive investment to only create a 3 frame transition :)

[Pete Cofrancesco]

Originally Posted by Noa Put

That's a expensive investment to only create a 3 frame transition :)

I posted as a bit of a joke. The reviewer admits it has limited range and is very heavy. I like his sense of humor he makes me laugh.

[Doug Jensen]

Originally Posted by Ron Evans

Just watch the video I referred to and time him doing it. That is how long it takes in Resolve. There are lots of other videos showing this.

The effect shown on that video is comical and looks absolutely ridiculous. Furthermore, it does not incorporate any kind of snap zoom effect, which is what the OP is looking for.

[Ron Evans]

Snap zooms are easy in post as I am sure you know. Or do you. Your comments were on creating shallow depth of field during this zoom to emulate the optical zoom ramping. How much of the effect is used is up to you. It can be key framed to the effect, altered as the zoom progresses. The video was showing how to do this no attempt at fine tuning for any particular situation. Was a demonstration of magic mask to isolate and work on mask or outside mask.

As we have seen in this case it was in fact several fixed lens shots. Classic film style and a short zoom as Noa found. Very short movement that could also be done in post. But the main effect was fixed shots so no issue of changes in depth of field anyway.

[Pete Cofrancesco]

In the Britney Spears video I'm not sure if people were talking about was when I watched it closer it looked like they either had filter with a mask or the added it in post to blur out everyone except Britney. It doesn't look like they used a shallow dof that most people use today with full frame cameras to isolate the subject. Most of the fast zooms seemed like zoom transitions from wide to closeup camera. Not sure the point of creating this thread because its not hard to achieve.

People have criticized this music video because they dressed up Britney to look like a school girl. Fun fact that some people don't know she was actually 16 years old and in high school when she filmed it.

Speaking of young I ran into this music video the other day. She's 8 years old! She really kills this song and they did a nice job on the video despite the excessive shaky cam. I only realized rewatching a second time that it must have been recorded in studio and lip synced to it in the garage. Well almost all videos do that.

8 yr old Girl KRUSHES "Freak on a Leash" by Korn (v2/2) / O'Keefe Music Foundation - YouTube

[Doug Jensen]

Originally Posted by Ron Evans

Snap zooms are easy in post as I am sure you know. Or do you.

No, I don;t know that. Please show us some examples of your snap zooms that were done in post, with a realistic change in DoF. Looking forward to seeing them.

[Ron Evans]

No I am not going to do that Doug. Pete seems to agree that it is not difficult. Whatever I produce you will criticize so why would I both when we have found out something you do not know.

[Doug Jensen]

I don't know it because it doesn't exist . . . at least not on a level that doesn't require a lot of time and effort in post and that could be done by regular folks like us. If you guys are so sure it isn't difficult, let's see it. Otherwise your assertions that it COULD be done are nothing but conjecture if you can't show any of your own examples. On the other hand, anyone with a decent zoom lens can shoot a snap zoom in a couple of seconds and be done with it.

[Noa Put]

Do you think anyone would even notice a snap zoom vs a zoom in post with some motion blur added in a 3 frame transition?

[Doug Jensen]

The length of the transition is not what is important. It is the length of the shot before the transition and after the transition that matters.

[Doug Jensen]

Just to elaborate on my previous post.

Let's say you have a very tight shot of someone's face and you want to snap zoom out to show their entire body from head to toe. If the shot lasts 2 seconds before the transition, and 2 second afterwards then it better look very good on both sides of the zoom because the viewer is going to have time to scrutinize the quality. However, if you only have a few frames before and after, then you can probably get away with something of much lower quality at one end or the other before you cut to something else.

A snap zoom from face to full body is very easy to do optically with many lenses. Personally, I can do a 24x snap zoom, and anything in-between instantly. But doing that kind of fake snap zoom in post while maintaining high image quality at both ends, and having natural-looking, DoF? I don't think so. Yes, it could be done with enough time, money, and CGI in Hollywood, but I think it goes far beyond the ability of the OP. Get a zoom lens and do it optically. Very easy.

[Pete Cofrancesco]

Here's an example in iMovie how easy it is.

iMovie Tutorial: How to Zoom In & Crop - YouTube