So, I’m just going to take a break for writing about the reflections. After being out there and filming using the EX3, I’ve managed to capture a few interesting shots. A couple of weeks ago, I had my proposal pitch presentation where I talked about what I’ll be attempting to do for the upcoming weeks. And the point I made, which was very simple and straightforward, was that I’d be open to work with any of my colleagues. Whatever project they wanted to work on, I’d volunteer to be the DOP/Cinematographer.
The next day after my presentation, I was so motivated to go out there and film anything, literally, ANYTHING. Picked up a Sony EX3, a tripod and a H2N audio recorder. That same morning when I woke up, I had no clue what to film, all I knew was that I wanted to fit a concept I have done before. Hence, I decided to do ” a day in the city of Melbourne”. Although this does not match the concept I had mentioned during my presentation, I figured this would give me good practice on using the ever so challenging ex3.
What I wanted to achieve was to try and capture beautiful images by manipulating camera techniques and applying my limited knowledge on white balance and exposure. I have filmed using the EX3 many times. However, the challenge I always face is how slow I am when it comes to setting up the camera to the right options. Setting up the brightness/contrast on the viewfinder, int & ext sound options and white balance presets are few things I tend to struggle with. With this experiment, I mainly focused on these technical aspects. Moreover, when it came to editing the final product, I was very happy with the way I exposed my scenes. Especially the night time scenes where I had to work with city lights and lights being emitted from pop up stores in the city. To me, the music I used played a very important role in the film. I used it as a guide to help me edit. Watching the first draft of the film again, I realised the way I cut all the scenes were very sudden and abrupt. So, I used the kicks and synths in the background music as a cue to jump cut from scene to scene. The one sound effect I used was the sound of thunder, using that as an audio fade to contribute to the rain scene.
This exercise really did benefit me in terms of practice and to prep me up for the next projects i’ll be doing. I’ll be working on more technical styles of filming and try to get creative with coverage. Looking forward to what I have to do next!!
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