Film Student Camera Questions - Q&A exchange

Film Student:  Hey Mitch, what are your thoughts on the Sony HXR NX5U? Im pretty sure this is the camera I want.

Martinez:  Honestly, based on what's out there and what is coming out soon, I think the Sony HXR NX5U camera is already dated technologically. It's a solid camera and can perform for years and years but there are aspects to that camera that are not present that I would not go for as a "new purchase" unle...ss you got a really sweet deal and found it used or something.

However, if you did buy it, I'm sure it would serve you well... Sony makes a great camera that can really take a beating and perform for as long as possible. My Sony cameras are doing great... I just think that there are better cameras available for comparable pricing (or right around the corner). Buying cameras are generally not a good investment unless you have paying work to help recoup those expenses. It's easy to lose money on equipment (ask any professional who's invested a lot of $ into gear) - the way technology goes, it's a losing battle.

Lighting and lenses have the best longevity. Camera bodies have the shortest.

Food for thought...

Film Student: Hmm. You make some good points. I need to get a camera in about a month or so for my summer semester. I've been a big fan of Sony cameras for years, thats all I ever owned. I wouldn't mind buying one of your Z1U's but I really want to go tapeless.. I have to do some more research I guess to make sure i get a good deal. I need to take a road trip up to B&H so I can play around a little.

Martinez: The school doesn't have cameras you can use during your semesters? That's what a lot of students do (use the school cams). If it's just for a semester, you could always rent or borrow from a friend when you need to shoot...

A camera like the Sony Z7U can do both (solid state tapeless and shooting tape).

Also, there are times when shooting tape is highly desirable. I'm putting together a ten person multi-cam shoot where off-loading data is far less practical or... desirable than simply shooting to tape and having all the tapes handed in at the end of the shoot. It all depends on your circumstance but I truly value the ability to hand over the tapes once I'm done shooting and be in the position to split after the shoot is done without worrying about data transfers. In the case of the ten person multi-cam shoot, we would be backlogged for hours transferring each camera's footage at the end of the shoot if the majority of cameras weren't going to tape...

Film Student:   I need to get a camera for the next 2 years of school and for also any freelance work I end up doing in the future. I can rent cameras from my school, but I hate the rules and regulations that come with them (if the equipment is even available). The convenience to have your own set up must help out a lot. The Z7U seems to be a great camera with its interchangeable lenses. It's a little out of my price range but if i could find one cheap that would be great. Thanks for your input and advice Mitch I appreciate it.   

Martinez:  Renting from schools usually comes with those rules and regulations... not surprising but if it can save you money it's sometimes worth it. It all depends on how much you have to invest and how much income you expect to bring in from using the camera.

Ask questions anytime. I've been doing this a long time and I'm happy to share my experiences and opinions. 

Jungles and Pyramids - Body Painting Video

Showcasing the bodypainting artistry of Jennifer Montgomery and models Arielle Johnson and Leanna, I shot an incredible promotional art video on RED One MX - supported by Stephen Tucker, Jake Czepiel, and David Kappler. The location was supplied by Harmonic Distortion Productions in Philadelphia, PA and art supplied by Antonio Puri. These visuals are not to be missed!

Still photos below by David Kappler

"Grace in Motion" Ballet Dance Video

Christine Fisler is a dance instructor at Philadelphia's University of the Arts. I had the pleasure of shooting an artistic ballet promotional video with her on the RED One MX.  This was done at Lansdale, Pennsylvania's Historic Third and Walnut Bar and Club - which has a pretty cool history.  Despite some logistical issues with power supply and other small problems, we created some stunning visuals with Christine - my favorite being in front of a moving blue silk fabric.

In addition to standard ballet, we captured her at 120 fps at 2K resolution and threw in some cool jib shots in the mix.

Crew support: AC Dan Sinisi, Korey Constable, David Kappler, Steve Laramie, Schwa Rox, PJ DiMuzio, and Alan Fenstermaker.

JaQuinley Kerr

Actress... Model... Designer... Make up Artist...   JaQuinley Kerr.  What can I say?  She's great.  Keep an eye out for her. 

Supported by David Kappler and Marvin Burwell, we shot a promotional art/modeling video with JaQuinley in an incredible artist studio in New Hope, PA.  JaQuinley created her own outfit for the shoot in addition to doing her own make up and hair.  The visuals are distinct and play off her pale and almost vampiric look created for the video.  Shot on RED One MX at 4K resolution and 3K for 60fps overcranking.

Calle Luna Salsa Dancers

If you've ever seen salsa dancing done right, you've been blown away by the skill of the dancers.  I had the great pleasure of shooting a promotional video for the Calle Luna Dance Studio salsa dance team.  Shot on RED One MX and supported by the crew: AC Jake Czepiel, Erik Lu, Burke Pushman, Marvin Burwell, Steve Laramie, and Davita Pray, we pulled an all night shoot with a load-in time of 8:30pm.  All in all, it was a short shoot day (less than four hours of shooting) with load out at 3am but the specific hours themselves were taxing.

We kicked up about 9,000 watts of tungsten light so we were able to shoot at a very high shutter speed to capture how electric their movement was.  The salsa team blasted out an action packed two-minute routine and we shot it with jib, dolly and sticks.  For good measure, we got some slow motion at 2K (120 fps)

Boys and Girls Club of America

This recent shoot brought the RED One MX to shoot a promotional fundraising video for the Boys and Girls Club of America.  Assisted by Marvin Burwell (lighting) and David Kappler (sound), we taped about a dozen talking head interviews with youth attendees of the Boys and Girls Club as well as public officials speaking about the importance of the non-profit organization.

Welcome Home, Charlie Valentine

I shot and directed this short film starring Bruce Clifford, Sarah Dewey and Frank Thon.  It's a quick section from a larger script from writer, Jason Lauer.  Crime stories are always fun to do and this one is no exception...  We got to stick actor Bruce Clifford in a trunk for the opening scene, goof around with blank-firing prop guns, and do some great jib shots including the opening shot which had the RED One MX on an EZFX Jib at full 16 foot extension.  I generally don't really care for shooting in uncontrolled environments (lighting, sound, wind, etc...) but this was a cool project.  Shot on RED One MX at 4K.

Drop Anchor Music Video

Drop Anchor is a Philadelphia area rock band and I shot and directed their debut music video for the song, "Always Tempting Fate".  Shot on RED One MX, the music video was low budget but stepped up to the plate for a challenge.  In addition to a full day's shoot for the band's performance - we pulled together four days of narrative shooting for a twilight zone-esque storyline.  The actors starring in the music video are Tony Slade, Paul Monte, Jennifer Snyder and Christopher Dalbey.

Drop Anchor

 

The first day of shooting for the narrative was about 10 degrees.  There was one shot we were doing involving a mirror that day and we literally couldn't clean it very well because the Windex froze instantly after spraying...  Power was sparse and heat was only in a room two floors about where we were shooting.  Yuck!  On the upside, I did my first wiring of an LED lighting project for that day (it's easier than you might think - I'll post notes, shots and details soon).  I created a mock-computer screen frame and used the custom wired LEDs to act as tracking points since the scene was very dark in it's general lighting.

Actor Tony Slade

Day Two: Office Scene...  We had a TON of extras that day and pulled off one of the coolest dolly shots starting with a reveal, tracking the lead actor as he walked toward the camera, trucking forward through a doorway, following the actor with a pan as he crosses the line, dollying past him while keeping him tracked for a second line cross and ending the shot with a green screen action.  All at the same time, the extras buzzed about the office including a conference, handshake deal, receptionist area and background workers.  AC Dan Sinisi had about 4 or 5 focus pulls to do all in that one shot.  Pretty cool!

Actor Tony Slade

Day Three: Public Transportation.  Red tape is a funny thing and I'll definitely blog about our experiences arranging permission to shoot on a train - but why not get to the funny part?  After several months of back and forth e-mails, we get written authorization to shoot on a SEPTA train (South Eastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority).  I honestly would have rather had shot on a local bus but we take what we can get...  So we get everything prepped for shooting on the train - we board the train - we're promptly informed by the train attendant that he has no idea who the authorizing public relations person is and we're not allowed to shoot on the train.  About 70 percent of the first of two rides was wasted trying to work out the details before we could get the shots we needed.  Long story short, we shot the footage the best we could in the situation and I think it should be fine for the final edit.  After the train ride, we had the lead actor run around the local town in a panicked state (it's part of the narrative, I swear).

Day Four: Home Scene.  We finished up the narrative.  We broke some coffee cups (on purpose - and in slow motion).  The day of shooting was pretty easy and we still got to rock out a couple choice shots - my favorite was a dolly/jib combination shot in the bedroom with a low angle reveal that jibs above a couple in bed while tracking on them and looking almost straight down above them.  Still shots don't really do it justice so you'll just have to see the shot.

Actors Tony Slade and Jennifer Snyder