Hello James. You recently shot and edited two short films. First there is “We Were Wanderers on a Prehistoric Earth” and secondly there is “The Isle of Langkawi”. Can you start by telling us a little more about how you got these two projects off the ground?

Through Vimeo, Tourism Malaysia approached 5 different filmmakers to make a selection of films to promote Malaysia. They approached me because they had enjoyed a film I made called called Splitscreen: A Love Story. Each filmmaker was given $12000 and commissioned to make two films on different subjects, we were given Nature and History. The briefs were wide open so we could do whatever we wanted.

Let’s go into a bit more detail on your film “We Were Wanderers”. Here is the short film (below):

What fonts are you using in your opening title sequence?

Gill Sans and Edwardian Script.

Your opening shot (above) is amazing ! Did you add anything to any of the shots, or are all of the atmospheric qualities and visuals real? Did you use any special effects beyond basic post production work?

I worked a lot in post to get each shot exactly as I wanted it. The whole film has been colour graded which means not only enhancing and adjusting the colour, saturation and contrast but also darkening and brightening specific parts of the image to lead the eye to specific areas. I also changed the speed of some shots. The first two shots have been increased in speed so that you see the mist moving through the trees. Also some shots were slowed down using Twixtor. Apart from that, everything is real, there were no special effects involved.

Your sound design is incredible. Did you use real recorded sounds from your trip or did you build the soundscape from the ground up in post production using library sounds?

I did take a Tascam sound recorder with me to Malaysia, but we could only really take the bare minimum with us into the jungle due to the weight of our bags, so unfortunalty we couldn’t record any jungle sounds. So all the sound you hear was designed by our sound designer Mauricio d’Orey, who did a fantastic job.

It seems like you would have had such a small window of opportunity to capture those atmospheric images. Everything seems “just right”. Am I wrong in assuming this? Did you feel pressured to move quickly before the atmosphere or lighting changed?

For some shots we had to make sure we were in the right place at the right time, for example the two opening shots were taken very early in the morning so we would see the mist. Also occasionally we would set up a great shot only for the sun to go behind a cloud at the wrong moment. However, Malaysia is such a beautiful place that its hard not to get great shots. We were shooting every single day and almost every daylight hour so we had a lot of footage, editing was easy because it was a matter of ‘cherry picking’ the best shots.

Beautiful movement at :24 (above). How are you stabilizing your camera for these long movement shots?

We hired a boat to take us along a river through the jungle. We just set up the camera on the tripod and shot everything that looked good. It was a very calm river so we managed to get some great shots, that was one of them.

:38 looks slow motion to me. How are you slowing down these shots?

We planned to shoot slow motion right from the start but we had to be wise in what we could take while trekking through he jungle, so obviously we couldn’t take a specialised high speed camera. So we shot at 50 fps then slowed it down even more using Twixtor.

You used Excerpts from Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness”. Did you find this text after you shot the film or were you inspired to shoot the film because of this text?

I knew I wanted to use some kind of poetic voiceover throughout the film but I didn’t settle on Heart of Darkness until I was editing. For a long time I was planning on using excerpts from ‘The Malay Archipelago’ by Alfred Russel Wallace. Its a book chronicling the scientific exploration of Russel Wallace around Malaysia and the surround area from 1854 to 1862. It has some very interesting writing but just wasn’t ‘poetic’ enough. I had been aware of Heart of Darkness but was wary that it would be too negative towards the jungle, when I decided against The Malay Archipelago I reread Conrad’s book and found the excerpts that I finally used.

Is “Heart of Darkness” now in the public domain?

Yes it is. Heart of Darkness is in the public domain because the author died more than 70 years ago. I was aware of that law but I also double checked with various copyright agencies and the publisher of the book. Anyone planning on doing something similar with another book should always check before they use it.

The narrator’s voice is fantastic. How did you go about looking for a narrator?

Finding a voiceover artist can be an annoying subject for a young filmmaker with a small budget. If you go through a specialised voiceover agency they’ll not only charge you the artists fee but you also have to purchase a license to use the recording for a limited amount of time. So I decided to put up an ad on Casting Call Pro, thats were I found Terry Burns, who has an incredible voice and actually much better than the VO artists I was looking at on VO agency websites.

What microphones were used to record narration?

I dont know exactly what microphone but it was recorded digitally in a professional recording studio. The old analogue quality of the voice was added later in Logic Express.

Okay, now a few technical questions. What camera did you shoot on?

Canon 1D Mark IV

What lenses did you use?

Canon 24-70mm
Canon 70-200mm
macro lens
Canon 2x extender

What was the total budget for this project?

$12000

How long from idea conceptualizing to final edit did this project take?

About 1 month

Thank you greatly for sharing your work and insight with our Lights Film School blog readers James. We really appreciate it!

It seems like only months before DSLR’s came onto the scene, that there was an “adapter revolution” where we were all rushing to attach adapters to our video cameras. One of the most common setups for indie filmmakers was the HVX200 with a lens adapter and a few lenses.The HVX200 was fairly affordable, and for the first time indie filmmakers working with video were starting to capture images with a cinematic aesthetic. For the first time, these adapters allowed us to use interchangeable lenses to better express our cinematic ideas. It seemed almost too good to be true. However, an even more exciting technology was waiting just around the corner. The adapter revolution was short lived.  In what seemed like only a few months later, DSLRs burst onto the scene wiping out the need for most lens adapters.

However, at first, filmmakers were skeptical of using DSLR cameras for video purposes. The cameras seemed too small and their aesthetic seemed to cater to photographers rather than filmmakers (Pardon me! No XLR inputs?).

Filmmakers proved the DSLR critics both right and wrong. It really depended on whose hands the camera was in. Camera operation amongst DSLR filmmakers varies greatly. On the one hand, a quick youtube search provides countless examples of sloppy handheld camera work where you can see the coffee jitters from the morning coffee in the camera operator’s movement.

On the other hand however, some filmmakers studied the limitations of these DSLRs and then found ways to creatively work around these issues.

Cameras such as the Canon 550D (T2i), Canon 600D (t3i) and the Canon 60D have found their way into some very talented hands and the footage being captured with these cameras is nothing short of spectacular (take at  look at the videos at the end of this article for example).

All three of these cameras are great cameras. Your budget, the projects you’re interested in shooting and your ergonomic preferences will determine which camera is right for you. The T2i is the most affordable of the bunch while the 60D is the most expensive. However, with the increase in price comes extra battery life, a bigger and brighter viewfinder as well as an articulated LCD screen. Each of these cameras share an 18 megapixel sensor and, 24p capabilities and they all have an ISO range from 100-6400 making them great cameras for low light shooting.

That being said, the camera you choose won’t make you a better or worse filmmaker. The image quality from each camera is more or less the same. All of these cameras are capable of capturing beautiful video if the filmmaker understands how to use lighting, sound, composition, movement, blocking, design, color psychology, casting, location scouting and all of the many other elements that go into the creation of a strong film or documentary.

Arguably, even more important than the camera, are the lenses you’ll decide to put on the camera. So what are best lenses for the Canon 550D (T2i), Canon 600D (t3i) and the Canon 60D?

In short, there is no one right answer. A while ago we wrote an article about this topic for the Canon 7D and 5D. The information is the same, but now we’ll use sample footage from the 550D, 600D and the 60D to help us illustrate our point.

Best Lenses For The Canon 550D (T2i) / 600D (T3i) or 60D?

In our opinion, your first lenses should be lenses that don’t quickly become redundant. It’s also helpful to have a “normal”, telephoto and wide angle lens. You’ll be looking for quality, speed and adaptability. But of course lens preference is subjective. What works for one filmmaker may not be ideal for another. For example a fiction filmmaker looking for a moody, textured and shadowed look will want to shoot in dark environments which means lens speed would be a priority. On the other hand a documentary filmmaker working on a project about animals in the wild would likely place more emphasis on the telephoto capabilities of a lens rather than just its speed.

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And of course, price is always and issue for documentary and fiction filmmakers alike. Some filmmakers will be able to spend $2500 while other filmmakers will only be able to spend $300. Some filmmakers will like the colors and contrast of the Carl Zeiss lenses and others will prefer the colors and contrast of Nikon lenses. The point is there is no “one size fits all” answer. Different lenses have their own “character”. The world of filmmaking would be in a tragic state if we could mathematically deduct what the “best” or “perfect” lens was.

So where do we start then? Well, if you’re looking to start an adaptable lens kit that will allow you to work in both indoor and outdoor environments, with landscapes and portraits, during both night and day and lenses that won’t break the bank, then the lens choices below will serve as great starting point.

Canon owners looking for lenses may become quickly confused when starting their search for compatible lenses. Let us help clear the air. Just because you have a Canon body that does not limit you to only using Canon lenses. New adapters are being created that allow you to attach Nikon and other lenses to your Canon body. In fact recently a new adapter was built that would allow you to attach your older FD lenses to your EOS body (Called an FD to EOS adapter).

There has also been the development of the PL adapter which allows DSLR filmmakers to attach older cinema lenses to their Canon body. This is all leading towards some pretty exciting times!

Similarly, there are “independent” lens manufacturers such as Carl Zeiss and Sigma who manufacture lenses that fit directly on to the Canon 550D (T2i), 600D (T3i) and the 60D. These manufactures make lenses with “mounts” that will fit different camera bodies. For instance Sigma makes lenses with different mounts to fit Canon, Nikon and Pentax bodies.

The point being is that the options are slowly working their way towards limitless. As a filmmaker you’ll work on different projects and hopefully get the opportunity to work with different lenses along the way. Through this process you’ll discover your own aesthetic preferences. A good place to start would be to rent lenses. The cost of renting a $1500 lens is often only $35 – $50 / day.

That being said let us guide you with some ideas and suggestions that would help you start building your own lens kit.

You’ll need to start somewhere. One of the most important first lenses to buy would be a 50mm prime lens. Prime lenses are lenses with a fixed focal length which means that they don’t have telephoto capabilities. A 50mm lens is also roughly comparable to how the human eye sees which is why you sometimes hear them called a “normal” lens. They are neither too wide nor too narrow. They are also relatively inexpensive, generally costing anywhere from $200 – $500. You should consider a fast lens for your “normal” lens. I’ve used many but I really like the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4.

Next, I would buy a telephoto lens. Canon makes some really great telephoto lenses but they are more expensive than some of the independent brands available. Carl Zeiss isn’t making telephoto lenses anymore but you can get used, as well as older (never been used) Zeiss lenses at camera equipment stores.

In fact, I was just in a camera store this morning. I myself use the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 which is a great lens but it also costs around $1600 to buy new. While in the camera store I looked through their used section and I found a little Nikon 80-200mm f/4 lens for $200. With an adapter I could attach this to the 550D (T2i), 600D (T3i) or the 60D and I’d save $1500. The lens was in great shape. The only down side is that it wouldn’t shoot as well in low light and it requires manual focus.

Another option in this range was a new Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 lens for $1059. It has almost the same specs as the Canon EF 70-200mm (mentioned above), but it’s roughly $500 cheaper.

Given these options, if I didn’t already have my Canon telephoto lens I would have gone with the $200 Nikon lens and used an adapter to put it on my Canon. It would be a great lens if you are on a tight budget.

Next, I would buy a wide angle lens. I really like Zeiss lenses. I love the color and contrast they offer. True, they can be a little expensive, but you can get them built with a Canon mount so they’ll fit right on your 550D, 600D or 60D body. That being said, if you have a limited budget I would recommend getting the Tokina 11-16mm. It’s a popular lens amongst DSLR indie filmmakers and it’s been used in some of the most breathtaking work I’ve seen. Best of all… it only costs around $600.

Now let’s look at some short films shot on these cameras:

Short film shot on the 550D (T2i)
Lens used: Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM

Short film shot on the 600D (T3i)
Lenses used: Canon EF 16-35 f/2.8 II USM, Canon EF S18-135mm f/3.5 -5.6 IS, Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM, EF S17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM, EF 35mm f/2 + macro lenses.

Short Film shot on the 60D (used the following
Lenses used: Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6, Canon 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6, Canon 50mm f/1.8)

In short, our answer is yes. However, we do have a few concerns about the camera. There is no doubt that the camera captures a beautiful image. With its full-frame 24x36mm CMOS sensor (many times larger than even the highest quality video cameras in the next highest price bracket) you can be sure your image will be crystal clear and handle incredibly well in low light conditions. To see how beautiful the image is you can watch the sample footage below:

The other camera feature that filmmakers are in awe over is the ability to shoot using interchangeable lenses. The options are virtually endless as you can use any of the 60 Canon EF lenses. You’ll not only have full control over your depth of field, but you’ll also have the ability to change your lenses, from 50mm “regular” lenses to wide angle or telephoto lenses.

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In short, the camera captures a stunning image. There is no debating that point. Test footage from this camera is running rampant on sites like Vimeo and Youtube and the results are nothing short of breathtaking.

From a filmmaking standpoint however, this camera imposes too many technical limitations. For starters, filmmakers must remember that this is a still camera developed for photographers with SOME video capabilities. This camera was not designed for filmmakers. The fact that the camera doesn’t even have XLR inputs for professional sound (one of the most important elements to any film) is a telling point of this camera’s priorities.

UPDATE: Beach Tek has released an XLR adapter to fix this issue

UPDATE: We were disappointed in the camera before a recent firmware update which lifted restrictions on ISO settings and exposure levels. You now have full manual control over these settings.

UPDATE: Canon has also announced there will be another firmware update in January 2010 that allows the Canon 5D Mark II to shoot 24p.

The last downside to the camera that we’ll mention is not with the camera’s software or settings, but by with the hardware of the camera and the fact that it’s a small still camera and not a heavy video camera. The Canon 5D Mark II is very light as far as filmmaking cameras go. In independent feature films, when larger cameras such as the Panasonic HVX200, Sony Z7U or Red camera are used, there is a weight to the camera that expresses itself through the moving image. The weight of the camera and the fact that the camera is often shoulder mounted give the moving image a “feathered” and gentle look. Smaller camera’s on the other hand often have a shaky hand-held look and pick up every heartbeat and hiccup of the camera operator.

However, this isn’t to say that the camera shouldn’t be used by filmmakers. Some of the commercial work (especially commercials or music videos) have been spectacular. Photographers and filmmakers who have learned to work around the technical limitations of the camera are doing some really interesting work. Similarly the camera has been on numberous T.V. and film shoots now. There will also likely be many independent films using the camera in the near future.

If you’re still skeptical of this new little Canon camera then you might want to explore other options such as the Panasonic HVX200, which has a smaller sensor size, but films are being released in theaters that use this camera. Some of the scenes from blockbusters such as “Cloverfield” and the entire film “November” starring Courteney Cox were shot on the Panasonic HVX200 and both had theatrical releases. You can watch a trailer for November below.

The downside to using pro-sumer video cameras is that they don’t allow you to control your depth of field unless you use a depth of field adapter such as Redrock, Letus or Brevis Adapter. Not only are these adapters expensive (most cost over $1000) but these adapters also cut the light coming into the camera which can cause problems especially in low light shooting circumstances.

Independent filmmakers interested in the best image quality possible should look into any of the following cameras (in no particular order):

Canon 5D Mark II
Panasonic AG-HVX200
JVC GY-HM100U
Sony HVR-Z7U
Canon XH A1

The Sony HVR-Z7U is an interesting option because it allows you to attach lenses to your video camera. It’s the first pro-sumer video camera to allow filmmakers to do this. The rest require depth of field adapters.

The Sony HDR-FX1 is another option, but without basic XLR inputs you loose sound quality which is why it didn’t make our list.

However, the video camera that we’re most excited about is the Red Scarlet camera (Soon to be released). The camera will be modular and therefore you can scale not only the hardware of the camera (i.e. “brain”, lenses etc) but also the price of the camera. It’s slated for release this year (2009) and is rumored to be out either later this summer or fall. But this is all speculation and the camera will simply be released once it’s stable.

This all being said we still find the Canon 5D Mark II an exciting camera. It undoubtedly has practical uses (as discussed above). Its compact nature could also make it a great camera for use in documentary environments where subjects are more comfortable around smaller cameras and audiences are more forgiving about things like sound or accidental soft focus.

Overall, it’s a great piece of equipment and its technology is exciting. We can’t wait to see what Canon comes out with next.

For those of you who don’t already know, a 35mm depth of field adapter is an attachment you put on your video camera and it allows you to attach 35mm lenses from still cameras onto your video camera. The difference this has on your final video product is massive and impressive. Attaching a 35mm lens to your video camera allows you to control the focal length and most importantly the depth of field within your shot. You will also now be able to use wide angle lenses, telephoto lenses and so on to control the look of your film.

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IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR EXPOSURE, RECOGNITION & EVALUATION THEN CONSIDER IMPROVING YOUR FILMMAKING SKILLS BY SIGNING UP FOR OUR INTENSIVE 4 MONTH ONLINE FILMMAKING COURSE HERE.

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This is exciting because up until fairly recently this possibility has not existed for filmmakers. Large Hollywood productions have always had this ability. However, independent filmmakers using consumer or pro-sumer level video cameras have not had this option.

There are a few major players in the 35mm Depth of Field (DOP) adapters industry. Redrock M2 and Brevis 35  are the two biggest names. The problem is that although their products are great, they cost independent filmmakers upwards of $1300 for the attachment alone. Once you start buying lenses and flip adapters, this price will increase dramatically.

The reason we wanted to review the Jag35pro was because the price tag is only $275. This makes a 35mm Depth of Field adapter considerably more reasonable for independent filmmakers. Best of all you can get the adapter made to fit old Canon FD lenses. These lenses are great and can often be picked up for $25 – $100 each on Ebay or in your local used camera shops. You can also get the adapter made to fit Canon EF lenses. These lenses are newer and often more expensive, but we recommend keeping your costs down by getting FD lenses unless you already have fast EF lenses ( f1.2- f2.8).

You can watch some test footage with the Jag35pro below

Best Images of 2008 from jehu Garcia on Vimeo.

Overall this product is fantastic. We have been using this product for a week now and we are incredibly impressed with the capabilities of the Jag35pro.

The most impressive features of this product are obviously its technical ability to help create a shallow depth of field in your video footage. Before adapters became available, this option was only available to video cameras that cost upwards of $4000. Now you can attach a Depth of Field adapter to a $100 camera and you get great control over your depth of field. Overall, the Jag35 pro is a great product for filmmakers on a tight budget.

Another great and unexpected feature of this product is that it adds weight to smaller camcorders. In the past we’ve liked shooting with heavier cameras because they don’t have the some high levels of noticeable shake as lighter cameras. Once you’ve attached the Jag35 lens adapter and lens you’ll have added quite a bit of weight to the camcorder which produces more stable footage.

We also thought that the vignetting within the image would be worse on an inexpensive producuct. For those of you who don’t know, vignetting is the change in brightness or saturation around the periphery of the image. You’ll notice in some of the test footage above that the 4 edges of the frame where slightly darker than in the center. However, the vignetting was not terrible at all and some cases people find this effect desirable. Of course it existed slightly within our footage, but all we needed to do was zoom in very slightly to get rid of the darkness around the corners of the image.

We also knew that because the light would need to go through a few more layers of glass that the camcorder would need to have its exposure adjusted in order to avoid underexposure. However, this was not as bad as we anticipated. While we definitely needed to manually increase our exposure a couple of notches to achieve our desired level of exposure, the darkening of the image was not of considerable consequence. That being said, on cameras with 1 small CCD chip you might experience troubles shooting in low light conditions with this adapter.

The quality of the image is also not degraded at all. We expected increased graininess or pixilation but the image remained clear and clean. Of course high quality lenses which don’t have scratches or dust in them are important in achieving a clean image as well.

The only downsides to this adapter is that without the flip hack, it reverses the image. This means you’ll see the image in your LCD screen upside down and backwards. This can obviously be easily fixed in post production. However, shooting this way can take some getting used to. After practicing for a week I am already much better at composing each shot. You can also order a flip hack if you don’t like shooting upside-down.

We also lost our ability to zoom using our camera’s zoom control. We could zoom very slightly which also helped get rid of the vignetting, but after a certain point the image becomes completely blurred. This means you’ll need to reposition yourself closer to your subject rather than using your camera’s zoom to do the work for you. This however, is of little importance to us in most of our shots.

The biggest upside to the product is its ability to maintain a great image quality and obviously the price point is incredibly attractive as well. The biggest downfall is that you’ll need to adjust both the manual focus on your camera and the focus on the lens that is attached to the adapter. This makes “run and gun’ shooting very difficult. This may make the adapter more difficult to use on documentaries or in situations where there are a lot of unknowns in terms of movement. However, as we stated above, as time goes on we get more and more confident with the flipped image and trust in our abilities more and more each day to compose beautiful images using the Jag35pro.

You can order this product from their website at:
http://www.jag35.com/