UWOL #2: "Corvus Corax" by Per Johan Naesje at DVinfo.net

Per Johan Naesje · March 23rd, 2007, 05:13 PM

The theme in this challenge was very wide, so I had in fact several ideas in the beginning.

I decided to show my interest for birds, especially the bird of the Crow family. I hope this film has given you a more shaded view of these birds. Even though they are very shy I managed to get some real good close-up of them thanks to my long lenses.

The largest lens used is the Canon 500mm f4.0 L, which give a focal length of 3600mm with the Canon XLH1. I was also using the Sigma 300mm f2.8 and the original 20x HD L lens.

The distance to the bird from where I was hiding was approx. 30-30 meter on the close shoot and the White Tailed Eagle was sitting approx. 250-300 meter away.

Some of the footage are shoot in snow and windy conditions which is a real challenge to get good qualityfootage. But I found that some of these footage are so beautiful by itself, example: where the Raven are taking care of each other, that I decided to go for it.

I also hope that my narrating was understandable? English is not my native tongue, so I struggled a lot with this subject.

Link to the film: Corvus Corax (40.3 MB)
I have also provided a larger version at my website: Corvus Corax - large (64,8 MB)

Enjoy!

Kevin Railsback · March 23rd, 2007, 05:39 PM

Per,
Incredible footage. You film was the first one I watched.
Beautiful color, beautiful composition. Great job on getting the ravens audio too!

The only negative I have to say about this film was I thought the titles didn't fit the beauty of the footage. I think maybe a more organic or simple look instead of the chrome look would have worked better, at least for me.

Your VO was just fine, it was clear, concise and easily understandable.

The driving snow, the wind all added to the beauty of the film.

Once again, you've set the bar high.

Congrats on a fine film.

Steven Gotz · March 23rd, 2007, 07:04 PM

You have a wonderful eye for beauty. And a talent for getting that into the video. Well done. Very well done.

Marco Wagner · March 23rd, 2007, 07:13 PM

That's my favorite bird and I loved the shots -great job!

Geir Inge · March 23rd, 2007, 07:14 PM

I just got to have an EF adapter for my camera, Per Johan, and buy me some new lenses. Beautiful video!

James Hooey · March 23rd, 2007, 07:22 PM

Per,
Your entry from UWOL 1 was good...it didn't strike me as much as this one though! The use of different focal lenths really looked professional and just "right" I guess. It draws the eye into the subject and reveals levels of detail as you move closer and closer to it. You certainly have some excellent equipment and a keen eye to utilise it. All the best and congratulations on an excellent video!

Ruth Happel · March 23rd, 2007, 09:27 PM

Very nice footage, showing the ravens in their habitat and balanced with closeups of their behavior. You have a very powerful lens- even showed some details I didn't really want to dwell on with the feeding sequence! I liked the shots showing the ravens socializing with each other, made them very human.

Ruth

Ken Diewert · March 24th, 2007, 01:07 AM

Per Johan,

Simply beautifully done!

Vidar Vedaa · March 24th, 2007, 02:10 AM

Wery fasinating film Per Johann,the sound was wery nice.

Per Johan Naesje · March 24th, 2007, 05:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kevin Railsback

The only negative I have to say about this film was I thought the titles didn't fit the beauty of the footage. I think maybe a more organic or simple look instead of the chrome look would have worked better, at least for me.

Thanks for your feedback Kevin, I was trying lots of different fonts and looks and I can agree that this maybe wasn't the best one! But the problem is that the picture is so tiny in the 428x240 mode, that I have to use some real large fonts and colors which differ from the background to get it readable.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ruth Happel

I didn't really want to dwell on with the feeding sequence!

I'm glad I had a black&white viewfinder on this shoot, didn't realise the colorness in the flesh before I was at home :-) By the way they are feeding on a carcass of an elk.

Thanks all for your feedback!

Mike Horrigan · March 24th, 2007, 02:22 PM

Absolutely agree with the first reply.

The footage was gorgeous and I really like this entry. The title seemed really out of place though. It just doesn't seem to fit.

Other than that... awesome work!

Mike

Mark Williams · March 24th, 2007, 04:13 PM

Per Johan,

Very nice entry. I actually liked it as good as the first.

Regards,

Chris Barcellos · March 25th, 2007, 12:24 AM

Heres my take. The footage was beautiful. It will impress the judge of this film contest, and is likely, from a technical standpoint, the winner.

The footage of the birds preening each other, and the actual feeling of concern the birds have for each other is spectacular.

My only issue with the film is whether it addresses the theme proposed in the contest.

Wonderfuld film... I have learned a lot from your two films !!!

Per Johan Naesje · March 25th, 2007, 03:48 AM

Chris, I might have misunderstood if the theme is more specific that I was aware of?

Before I started, I had to look it up in a dictonary, just to make sure that I was doing the right thing.
In the dictionary the word recreation means a lot: restoration, amusement, pastime, division, relaxtion, recuperation, rest, hobby, encouragement, incentive etc, etc...

What I have shown in the film is my encouragement, hobby, recreation, rest, what I do every so often in my sparetime to get away from my daily work.

Mat Thompson · March 25th, 2007, 06:02 AM

Well Per.....as I would expect visually stunning, great levels of detail and an interesting subject matter, informatively presented....I thought your voice over wasn't bad either. The crow family are some of the most intelligent birds in the world and you can really see that in them. I look foward to seeing your footage and you never seem to fail the impress and deliver.

For me you had a number of stunning sequences with good points to make however you didnt pull it together into a single story strongly enough. A premise or reason was missing I guess.

It was also a tenuously linked subject matter, however if you wanted to shoot wildlife it was a tough one I know

Overall fantastic ingredients but you could have baked a better cake. I think there is a film waiting here for you when you've finished with your musk ox !!

March 23rd, 2007, 05:13 PM	#1
Per Johan Naesje Trustee Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Akershus, Norway Posts: 1,413	UWOL #2: "Corvus Corax" by Per Johan Naesje The theme in this challenge was very wide, so I had in fact several ideas in the beginning. I decided to show my interest for birds, especially the bird of the Crow family. I hope this film has given you a more shaded view of these birds. Even though they are very shy I managed to get some real good close-up of them thanks to my long lenses. The largest lens used is the Canon 500mm f4.0 L, which give a focal length of 3600mm with the Canon XLH1. I was also using the Sigma 300mm f2.8 and the original 20x HD L lens. The distance to the bird from where I was hiding was approx. 30-30 meter on the close shoot and the White Tailed Eagle was sitting approx. 250-300 meter away. Some of the footage are shoot in snow and windy conditions which is a real challenge to get good qualityfootage. But I found that some of these footage are so beautiful by itself, example: where the Raven are taking care of each other, that I decided to go for it. I also hope that my narrating was understandable? English is not my native tongue, so I struggled a lot with this subject. Link to the film: Corvus Corax (40.3 MB) I have also provided a larger version at my website: Corvus Corax - large (64,8 MB) Enjoy! __________________ - Per Johan

March 23rd, 2007, 07:04 PM	#3
Steven Gotz Trustee Join Date: May 2002 Location: Clermont, FL Posts: 1,520	You have a wonderful eye for beauty. And a talent for getting that into the video. Well done. Very well done. __________________ Steven Gotz http://www.stevengotz.com

March 23rd, 2007, 07:13 PM	#4
Marco Wagner Trustee Join Date: May 2005 Location: Saint Cloud, Florida Posts: 1,043	That's my favorite bird and I loved the shots -great job! __________________ www.facebook.com/projectspecto

March 23rd, 2007, 07:14 PM	#5
Geir Inge Trustee Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Larsnes, Norway Posts: 1,342	I just got to have an EF adapter for my camera, Per Johan, and buy me some new lenses. Beautiful video! __________________ Geir Inge B. Brekke Visit me at: https://vimeo.com/gibbfilm

March 23rd, 2007, 07:22 PM	#6
James Hooey Major Player Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Bruce Pennisula, Canada Posts: 316	Per, Your entry from UWOL 1 was good...it didn't strike me as much as this one though! The use of different focal lenths really looked professional and just "right" I guess. It draws the eye into the subject and reveals levels of detail as you move closer and closer to it. You certainly have some excellent equipment and a keen eye to utilise it. All the best and congratulations on an excellent video! __________________ For Stock Footage http://www.revostock.com/ViewProfile.html?&ID=4811 My Website http://www.soundprostudios.com

March 23rd, 2007, 05:39 PM	#2
Kevin Railsback Trustee Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Posts: 1,544	Per, Incredible footage. You film was the first one I watched. Beautiful color, beautiful composition. Great job on getting the ravens audio too! The only negative I have to say about this film was I thought the titles didn't fit the beauty of the footage. I think maybe a more organic or simple look instead of the chrome look would have worked better, at least for me. Your VO was just fine, it was clear, concise and easily understandable. The driving snow, the wind all added to the beauty of the film. Once again, you've set the bar high. Congrats on a fine film. __________________ --==Kevin==-- http:naturephotostudios.com.com

March 23rd, 2007, 09:27 PM	#7
Ruth Happel Major Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Black Mountain, NC Posts: 488	Very nice footage, showing the ravens in their habitat and balanced with closeups of their behavior. You have a very powerful lens- even showed some details I didn't really want to dwell on with the feeding sequence! I liked the shots showing the ravens socializing with each other, made them very human. Ruth

March 24th, 2007, 01:07 AM	#8
Ken Diewert Trustee Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Vancouver Island, Canada Posts: 1,200	Per Johan, Simply beautifully done! __________________ C100, 5DMk2, FCPX

March 24th, 2007, 02:10 AM	#9
Vidar Vedaa Major Player Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: bergen norway Posts: 235	Inponerende. Wery fasinating film Per Johann,the sound was wery nice.

March 24th, 2007, 02:22 PM	#11
Mike Horrigan Major Player Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Ottawa Canada Posts: 755	Absolutely agree with the first reply. The footage was gorgeous and I really like this entry. The title seemed really out of place though. It just doesn't seem to fit. Other than that... awesome work! Mike __________________ My short films... The Interview & Calls From The Führerbunker

March 24th, 2007, 04:13 PM	#12
Mark Williams Trustee Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Deep South, U.S. Posts: 1,526	Per Johan, Very nice entry. I actually liked it as good as the first. Regards, __________________ Mark videos: http://vimeo.com/channels/3523 Stock: http://www.pond5.com/artist/mark29

March 25th, 2007, 12:24 AM	#13
Chris Barcellos Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Elk Grove CA Posts: 6,838	Heres my take. The footage was beautiful. It will impress the judge of this film contest, and is likely, from a technical standpoint, the winner. The footage of the birds preening each other, and the actual feeling of concern the birds have for each other is spectacular. My only issue with the film is whether it addresses the theme proposed in the contest. Wonderfuld film... I have learned a lot from your two films !!! __________________ Chris J. Barcellos

March 25th, 2007, 03:48 AM	#14
Per Johan Naesje Trustee Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Akershus, Norway Posts: 1,413	Chris, I might have misunderstood if the theme is more specific that I was aware of? Before I started, I had to look it up in a dictonary, just to make sure that I was doing the right thing. In the dictionary the word recreation means a lot: restoration, amusement, pastime, division, relaxtion, recuperation, rest, hobby, encouragement, incentive etc, etc... What I have shown in the film is my encouragement, hobby, recreation, rest, what I do every so often in my sparetime to get away from my daily work. __________________ - Per Johan

March 25th, 2007, 06:02 AM	#15
Mat Thompson Trustee Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Kent UK Posts: 1,397	Well Per.....as I would expect visually stunning, great levels of detail and an interesting subject matter, informatively presented....I thought your voice over wasn't bad either. The crow family are some of the most intelligent birds in the world and you can really see that in them. I look foward to seeing your footage and you never seem to fail the impress and deliver. For me you had a number of stunning sequences with good points to make however you didnt pull it together into a single story strongly enough. A premise or reason was missing I guess. It was also a tenuously linked subject matter, however if you wanted to shoot wildlife it was a tough one I know Overall fantastic ingredients but you could have baked a better cake. I think there is a film waiting here for you when you've finished with your musk ox !!