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Let's go !!
Lots of fun things to talk about in this case. This week, on the podcast, we broken down a commercial that I shot during the COVID lockdown.
With a remote director / production company this was so many notes that could only be taken away in that department.
Enjoy the look behind the scenes!
Low Con is fun. You like it. I like this.
This week at Patreon, we're taking a look at some great low-contrast looks and talking about some techniques that can help create shape when working in a low-contrast environment.
You can find this week's Patreon content by clicking the link below:
The Greenscreen DP Patreon Group
If you're a fan of the podcast and want more video content, the Patreon group is for you. Every week I publish an exclusive podcast, video or live stream just for Patreon members.
Patreon members also get access to the private Facebook community for the show. The podcast couldn't exist without Patreon's support and I'm doing my best to take care of the supporters.
Camera equipment:
We shot on the Alexa Mini LF together with the Arri Signature Primes. Almost everything was shot wide open at T1.9.
We had a number of locations to shoot and only a single 12 hour day to get it all done. Finding a street that had both the shops and the aspect and feel that we needed was the biggest hurdle for this job.
Shot 1 – Steadicam fun
The shot
The person enters the frame and buys something at an external booth.
The lighting
We had to balance the daily levels in the background with the level we wanted for the talent in the foreground.
We used every light on the truck to get enough light in our action area. We had an Arri M90, 2 x Arri M40, 1 x Arri M18 and some Skypanels inside to raise the level of the interior.
Once we dimmed the light, it was level just enough to keep the BG buildings from being cut off.
The result
Set Up # 2 – Oysters
The shot
Old buddy walks out of the building on the BG and into the middle of the street.
The lighting
We had to shoot this at a less than ideal time, but it worked with a 12×12 jump and some negative fill box.
The result
The storyboard
Set Up # 3 – The Haze
The shot
The old buddy goes to the counter.
The lighting
For this shot we switched off all the lights again. Fortunately, the location was about 200 feet from the day's first setup.
Outside is an Arri M90 plus 2 Arri M40s pushing through some 12×12. Inside is a negative fill frame on the right, and then a pile of haze rounds it all off.
The result
Set Up # 4 – The Reverse
The shot
Back of the previous shot.
The lighting
We swapped everything up a bit more and used a 4×4 piece of diffusion and some floppy disks to bring the desired contrast into the foreground.
The result
Set Up # 5 – The Lurker
The shot
Ark watches the old buddy through the window.
The lighting
As with the previous setup, except that all of the light is now directed towards the woman instead of the inside. Despite all this level, we barely got there to be able to hold the background and the building illuminated from the front.
Inside there are some skypanels for the area.
The result
The storyboard
Shot No. 6 – The walk and the conversation
The shot
Old pal is walking down a busy street.
The lighting
This was the last shot of day 1 and it was supposed to be in the soft light of the magical hour, but when we got here it was completely night.
We used the M90 and M40 to create the daytime environment and just recorded them.
The result
Set up location
Shot No. 7 – The home
The shot
The camera dollies past the gate to reveal our hero have finally made it home.
The lighting
The schedule was reversed and we had to cover this entire scene with a 12×20. This turned off the front light of the house and we added some contrast to the scene with the Arri M90 using a series of diffusion layers as keys.
Throw a neg fill frame to the right and we were done.
The result
The storyboard
Shot No. 9 – Closer
The shot
Same as before.
The lighting
See previous shot and bring the negative and diffusion closer to the edge of the frame.
The result
The storyboard
