Showing posts with label gaffer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gaffer. Show all posts
12 July, 2014
Occupational Humor
I know I usually go on and on about ideals and practices and pretty professional stuff. I'm working on a couple of very nerdy and very specific technical posts, too. BUT, before I go ahead and publish those (finally!), I wanted to share a funny site I've recently discovered, called Sh**ty Rigs. It's a blog that features a variety of pictures of camera and lighting rigs that are sometime genius, mostly unorthodox, and all amusing. All you camera and lighting geeks would do well to check it out and follow for updates. Tons of fun!
15 January, 2014
More Christie's Videos
No insight or commentary here - just showing off some other Christie's videos I found.
I really like the style of the auction videos. The editorial team and producers at Christie's really do their best to inject life and excitement into the videos. Also, my role is almost always the roaming B-camera. It's me and one of the producers just running around and getting good content. I like the freedom and the creativity that particular duty allows and encourages. FWIW, DP on the auction video was Tom Giovanelli and sound was Kenny Chin.
Below the auction video are a couple of interview-heavy videos about specific works. I shot those alongside DP, Mead Hunt. Sound was Mark Mandler and John Zecca.
Wait, did I say "no commentary?" Oops...
I really like the style of the auction videos. The editorial team and producers at Christie's really do their best to inject life and excitement into the videos. Also, my role is almost always the roaming B-camera. It's me and one of the producers just running around and getting good content. I like the freedom and the creativity that particular duty allows and encourages. FWIW, DP on the auction video was Tom Giovanelli and sound was Kenny Chin.
Below the auction video are a couple of interview-heavy videos about specific works. I shot those alongside DP, Mead Hunt. Sound was Mark Mandler and John Zecca.
Wait, did I say "no commentary?" Oops...
19 May, 2013
Hi, my name is Dave. I'll be your [insert title here] today...
If you've been reading this blog, you'll have read "my clients this" and "my clients that." Every business around is about providing a service to a client, whether that service is a design or website or even a tall non-fat chai latte. Fast food customers are clients just as much as a brand is to an ad agency. Sometimes, however, the whole client relationship can get a bit confusing. Take my role as a freelance cameraman, for instance. My clients are usually the producers. Most of the time, the producers have clients as well. So that would be the client of my client. Sometimes there's even one more layer of clients... So who the heck are we serving? In the most ideal situation, my client, the producer, has his/her client's best interest in mind, so everything is in line. I'm lucky enough that all of the people I deal with are good enough at their jobs that there is no confusion. But, oh, I've heard horror stories...
For a freelancer in a crew position (cameraman, sound, gaffer, etc.) most of the time the client relationship is very simple. You're there to do something you're good at (that's why you were hired) and you really only have to do that job. When you're the producer on a shoot, though, everything is different. For the longest time, though, us crew folk never had to worry about the extras. Things, however, are rapidly changing in the industry.
About a year ago I was in Florida on a shoot. The sound guy was hired locally, so during a break, I casually asked how the industry was down there... boy, should I just have kept that curiosity to myself. It's rough, I was told. Less and less work for sound mixers with cameramen being expected to pull double duty. Even the camera guys are starting to struggle now that producers are learning how to shoot. One day soon, the editors will be struggling, after they coach the producers how to cut... Basically, it's getting to the point where if you want to survive in this industry in this market, you're going to soon have to know how to do EVERYTHING. Great...
Before you go and think me lazy, I'll remind you (in case you haven't read the "about me" section), I have a very well-rounded formal training in filmmaking. In addition to cinematography, I studied the ins and outs of editing, sound, producing, writing, and all of that. I spent a lot of time doing all of that stuff in and out of school. My B.F.A. was all about becoming a good all around filmmaker. I know how to record and edit sound and I know how to cut on all major digital editing systems, and even on an analog 16mm flatbed system. After college, though, one of the biggest accomplishments I was working towards (and was proud to achieve) was becoming a specialist. It was a sign of professionalism, I thought, to be just a great cameraman. Avoid that whole jack of all trades stigma... I shoot for a living, I told people. I didn't mention the editing or writing or anything like that. It avoided a lot of eyerolls that I saw my colleagues do when encountering excited interns who were "cinematographers and directors and editors and writers and..." - you get the point.
I think a lot of what has changed as of late is the accessibility of it all and the economics. Video cameras and editing systems are easier to use than ever before, so many producers of corporate and industrial video shoot and edit for themselves. Often, they do very good jobs at it and, being able to do it all, they can keep their costs low and price their services more competitively. However, for the freelance cameramen (and women) who do a lot of corporate work, this means fewer gigs in that world. So the specialists, if they want to keep working, need to open up a bit.
So where does one draw the line in defining themselves professionally? For me, it's been (until recently) easy to keep my experience in one department. My IMDb page has credits as cameraman, director of photography, camera operator and gaffer throughout. All of those, you can argue, are within the realm of image acquisition, and in a lot of ways, they all support each other. The gaffer work illustrates that I've got a command of lighting, which is certainly a boost when I'm being considered for a DP gig. The operating credits say that I understand composition (also good to think about in other types of work). I've even recently done a number of days as Technical Director on a multi-cam talkshow (too recent to appear on my IMDb just yet), which encompasses a lot of the skills I use in other crew roles; being able to communicate with the show's Lighting Director and the camera operators and handling the engineering aspects of the job (which I'm comfortable with having spent so much time on the other side of the headset as an operator on multi-cam things). That's pretty consistent in terms of branding my skillset as a camera & lighting professional. But wait, there's more...
One of my better clients a few years ago was a startup marketing/ad/consulting company that was still defining itself. A very big part of their work was video storytelling, so they had a producer, director and editors on staff. For the smaller things, the producer or director would grab a camera and shoot. For the larger, more complex stuff, they hired a DP (me). It was a very comfortable relationship and very much within my advertised skillset. A couple of years into this particular client-vendor relationship, however, the company took a shift to the somewhat more cerebral stuff. They began to spend more time in design and less in the conventional marketing elements. Shooting jobs with them all but dried up for almost a year. In that time, there was some internal restructuring there and the staff video guys moved on to other things. As luck would have it, about a year ago, one of the design gigs morphed for them. A very large client of this company needed a video and, as I understand it, knew of the quality and style they turned out back when video was big for them. Suddenly, I was in a meeting, discussing the project as - get this - a producer. You see, having shifted their staff around, there was no longer any full-timers to handle the producing and editing, so knowing the quality I had always delivered as a shooter, they approached me first to discuss a new relationship. Eager to rekindle the fire with a company that was, at one time, an excellent client of mine, I obliged and sat down to meet. It was a very successful get-together and a gentleman's agreement was made at the end of it. Going forward, I would be their go-to video vendor. They'd give me the budgets and the directives and I'd make it happen. Now I can add bona fide producer to my list of credits... It's been a trip taking on this new roll. I'm still shooting (yes, now I'm one of those producers who also shoots), although I hire very very competent 2nd shooters for all of the shoots that call for it. I try to hire a sound mixer whenever budget allows, although sometimes I do have to mic up the interviewees and worry about sound all by myself (so yes, now I'm one of those shooters that does their own sound). I also usually edit these videos, because it makes the most sense with the budgets I'm getting (sigh, a producer/shooter who edits).
Yep... I did it... I'm that guy, the one who does it all.
In my defense, this new role only takes up a small portion of my workload. For the most part, I'm still a camera/lighting specialist, but the variety does keep life interesting. I mean, hell, isn't that why I chose to freelance in the first place?
For a freelancer in a crew position (cameraman, sound, gaffer, etc.) most of the time the client relationship is very simple. You're there to do something you're good at (that's why you were hired) and you really only have to do that job. When you're the producer on a shoot, though, everything is different. For the longest time, though, us crew folk never had to worry about the extras. Things, however, are rapidly changing in the industry.
About a year ago I was in Florida on a shoot. The sound guy was hired locally, so during a break, I casually asked how the industry was down there... boy, should I just have kept that curiosity to myself. It's rough, I was told. Less and less work for sound mixers with cameramen being expected to pull double duty. Even the camera guys are starting to struggle now that producers are learning how to shoot. One day soon, the editors will be struggling, after they coach the producers how to cut... Basically, it's getting to the point where if you want to survive in this industry in this market, you're going to soon have to know how to do EVERYTHING. Great...
Before you go and think me lazy, I'll remind you (in case you haven't read the "about me" section), I have a very well-rounded formal training in filmmaking. In addition to cinematography, I studied the ins and outs of editing, sound, producing, writing, and all of that. I spent a lot of time doing all of that stuff in and out of school. My B.F.A. was all about becoming a good all around filmmaker. I know how to record and edit sound and I know how to cut on all major digital editing systems, and even on an analog 16mm flatbed system. After college, though, one of the biggest accomplishments I was working towards (and was proud to achieve) was becoming a specialist. It was a sign of professionalism, I thought, to be just a great cameraman. Avoid that whole jack of all trades stigma... I shoot for a living, I told people. I didn't mention the editing or writing or anything like that. It avoided a lot of eyerolls that I saw my colleagues do when encountering excited interns who were "cinematographers and directors and editors and writers and..." - you get the point.
I think a lot of what has changed as of late is the accessibility of it all and the economics. Video cameras and editing systems are easier to use than ever before, so many producers of corporate and industrial video shoot and edit for themselves. Often, they do very good jobs at it and, being able to do it all, they can keep their costs low and price their services more competitively. However, for the freelance cameramen (and women) who do a lot of corporate work, this means fewer gigs in that world. So the specialists, if they want to keep working, need to open up a bit.
So where does one draw the line in defining themselves professionally? For me, it's been (until recently) easy to keep my experience in one department. My IMDb page has credits as cameraman, director of photography, camera operator and gaffer throughout. All of those, you can argue, are within the realm of image acquisition, and in a lot of ways, they all support each other. The gaffer work illustrates that I've got a command of lighting, which is certainly a boost when I'm being considered for a DP gig. The operating credits say that I understand composition (also good to think about in other types of work). I've even recently done a number of days as Technical Director on a multi-cam talkshow (too recent to appear on my IMDb just yet), which encompasses a lot of the skills I use in other crew roles; being able to communicate with the show's Lighting Director and the camera operators and handling the engineering aspects of the job (which I'm comfortable with having spent so much time on the other side of the headset as an operator on multi-cam things). That's pretty consistent in terms of branding my skillset as a camera & lighting professional. But wait, there's more...
One of my better clients a few years ago was a startup marketing/ad/consulting company that was still defining itself. A very big part of their work was video storytelling, so they had a producer, director and editors on staff. For the smaller things, the producer or director would grab a camera and shoot. For the larger, more complex stuff, they hired a DP (me). It was a very comfortable relationship and very much within my advertised skillset. A couple of years into this particular client-vendor relationship, however, the company took a shift to the somewhat more cerebral stuff. They began to spend more time in design and less in the conventional marketing elements. Shooting jobs with them all but dried up for almost a year. In that time, there was some internal restructuring there and the staff video guys moved on to other things. As luck would have it, about a year ago, one of the design gigs morphed for them. A very large client of this company needed a video and, as I understand it, knew of the quality and style they turned out back when video was big for them. Suddenly, I was in a meeting, discussing the project as - get this - a producer. You see, having shifted their staff around, there was no longer any full-timers to handle the producing and editing, so knowing the quality I had always delivered as a shooter, they approached me first to discuss a new relationship. Eager to rekindle the fire with a company that was, at one time, an excellent client of mine, I obliged and sat down to meet. It was a very successful get-together and a gentleman's agreement was made at the end of it. Going forward, I would be their go-to video vendor. They'd give me the budgets and the directives and I'd make it happen. Now I can add bona fide producer to my list of credits... It's been a trip taking on this new roll. I'm still shooting (yes, now I'm one of those producers who also shoots), although I hire very very competent 2nd shooters for all of the shoots that call for it. I try to hire a sound mixer whenever budget allows, although sometimes I do have to mic up the interviewees and worry about sound all by myself (so yes, now I'm one of those shooters that does their own sound). I also usually edit these videos, because it makes the most sense with the budgets I'm getting (sigh, a producer/shooter who edits).
Yep... I did it... I'm that guy, the one who does it all.
In my defense, this new role only takes up a small portion of my workload. For the most part, I'm still a camera/lighting specialist, but the variety does keep life interesting. I mean, hell, isn't that why I chose to freelance in the first place?
16 November, 2011
Different Is The New Normal
A documentary I shot for, "Different Is The New Normal" (see "Flip Flop Gorilla"), aired to resounding acclaim on PBS earlier this fall. It is currently available for online viewing at watch.thirteen.org and below. It is a truly honest account of a young man with Tourette's Syndrome and his quest to suppress, overcome, and eventually accept all that comes with the disorder. It's a great film. Take a watch, and enjoy!
Watch Different is the New Normal on PBS. See more from THIRTEEN SPECIALS.
22 September, 2011
Jaguar/Land Rover USA
A few months ago, my frequent colleague, DP, Roger Grange, called me to gaff a series of videos for him for Jaguar/Land Rover USA. It was a fun, productive 2-day shoot at the US headquarters of the company. It was varying sizes of talking-head shots in front of and inside these very nice - and very expensive - cars. We had a relatively small crew for this - Director, DP/Operator, AC, Gaffer (me), Key Grip, PA, Hair/MU, Art Director and some brand reps - but we managed to make it work. Take a look at the final product(s) below (click the pic).
The most fun we had was lighting the cars right. Lighting talent for this sort of thing is pretty straight-forward, but on top of that, we had to work hard to capture the unique style of these vehicles. We had to, of course, get exposure, but beyond that we had to accentuate the contours of the bodies while at the same time managing reflections and glares. It took time, but in the end we got what the client desired. Below are some snapshots of the set and some of our lighting setups.
Side note: we regularly made use of 2 of my favorite lighting tools on this shoot. Blondes (2kw open-faced fixtures) and "The Whale" (a 3'x4' white softbox with removable black skirts which allow you to use it traditionally or, with the skirts removed, as a large space-light).
 |
| Roger and Me in front of a Range Rover we were working with. |
22 June, 2011
Recent stuff...
Been a busy few weeks:
-Shot an interview in NYC for an NHK Japan Special Documentary regarding the nuclear crisis over there. Had to light and shoot according to a formula they use - basically matching the look of their pieces. Also encountered one of the first really good reasons not to bring on a sound mixer. "Oh, it's going to be dubbed into Japanese, so it's really not worth it."
-Gaffed a video for Bayer (Aspirin co.) for DP, Roger Grange. Another situation where we had to match a look, except this was even more precise. The client (a great, top-tier marketing co.) had a swatch for the color of blue on the background that we had to replicate. The result was great, though, and it was a short, relatively easy short with some great people I like to work with.
-[Almost] shot a spectacular interview with former NHL star, Sheldon Kennedy for "Coached Into Silence." We arrived, loaded in, set up a wonderful shot and then found out that of the 12 different people the producer confirmed with at the location (to remain nameless), none of them really had any say in the matter. Kennedy and his friend/colleague Wayne McNeil gunned so hard for us at the location, but ultimately the location didn't budge and none of the aforementioned 12 answered their phones that day... Ultimately, the crew got to sit down with Sheldon and Wayne a bit to figure out what was next. The situation really seemed to set Kennedy and McNeil on fire and they offered to secure us location in Toronto that would be even better (and more relevant) than the pompous, elitist one that had ignored our efforts here in NY. Air Canada Centre, here we come!
-Shot a music video in Tribecca for local artist, Andrew Watt. Kinetic Fin got me involved with this one and though it was a lot of work, I think something cool will come of it. Also got to meet a couple of really great people in the process. AND on top of it all, 2 hours before wrapping on the last day (and leaving Tribecca for a very long spell - I don't make it down there much), I ran into a friend I haven't seen in 10 years. So random...
That's it so far. This Sunday, I'm headed off to Phoenix with Matt Johnston from Kinetic Fin for the PDMA Conference on Social Product Development & Co-Creation. Should be a good time.
More good stuff on the horizon... keep checking in...
-Shot an interview in NYC for an NHK Japan Special Documentary regarding the nuclear crisis over there. Had to light and shoot according to a formula they use - basically matching the look of their pieces. Also encountered one of the first really good reasons not to bring on a sound mixer. "Oh, it's going to be dubbed into Japanese, so it's really not worth it."
-Gaffed a video for Bayer (Aspirin co.) for DP, Roger Grange. Another situation where we had to match a look, except this was even more precise. The client (a great, top-tier marketing co.) had a swatch for the color of blue on the background that we had to replicate. The result was great, though, and it was a short, relatively easy short with some great people I like to work with.
-[Almost] shot a spectacular interview with former NHL star, Sheldon Kennedy for "Coached Into Silence." We arrived, loaded in, set up a wonderful shot and then found out that of the 12 different people the producer confirmed with at the location (to remain nameless), none of them really had any say in the matter. Kennedy and his friend/colleague Wayne McNeil gunned so hard for us at the location, but ultimately the location didn't budge and none of the aforementioned 12 answered their phones that day... Ultimately, the crew got to sit down with Sheldon and Wayne a bit to figure out what was next. The situation really seemed to set Kennedy and McNeil on fire and they offered to secure us location in Toronto that would be even better (and more relevant) than the pompous, elitist one that had ignored our efforts here in NY. Air Canada Centre, here we come!
-Shot a music video in Tribecca for local artist, Andrew Watt. Kinetic Fin got me involved with this one and though it was a lot of work, I think something cool will come of it. Also got to meet a couple of really great people in the process. AND on top of it all, 2 hours before wrapping on the last day (and leaving Tribecca for a very long spell - I don't make it down there much), I ran into a friend I haven't seen in 10 years. So random...
That's it so far. This Sunday, I'm headed off to Phoenix with Matt Johnston from Kinetic Fin for the PDMA Conference on Social Product Development & Co-Creation. Should be a good time.
More good stuff on the horizon... keep checking in...
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