INTRODUCTION TO CINEMATOGRAPHY

In this module we will introduce the students to the professional cinematography craft. We will go through the all stages of production from pre-production, production till the post-production and describe the role of cinematographer in them. The special focus will be given on the communication within the film crew and collaboration of the cinematographer with other departments. Also we will present many sorts of shooting equipment and present how to use it in various circumstances.

Be Prepared - Preproduction for cinematographers: part 1 of 3 Introduction to preproduction

  • That guy with a camera: What cinematographer really does?
  • What do you need to know before camera starts rolling?
  • Director – Cinematographer. Relationship status: It’s complicated.
  • Understanding the story: analysis of the script.
  • Looking for the inspiration: research of references.

Be Prepared - Preproduction for cinematographers: part 2 of 3 Visual style

  • Human perception: understanding the theory of affinity and contrast.
  • Visual style toolbox:
    • Tone
    • Line
    • Movement
    • Color
    • Rythm
    • Shape
    • Space
  • Creating the visual style of your film.

Be Prepared - Preproduction for cinematographers: part 3 of 3 Welcome to my office

  • Location, location, location: how to choose your space?
    • Sun position apps (Helios, SunSeeker)
  • Where to put the camera? Creating a shotlist:
    • Storyboards
    • Director’s viewfinder app (Artemis)
    • Frameforge (software)
  • Rehearsals with actors.
  • Get your crew:
    • Cinematography department key positions.
    • Understanding your role as a leader.
  • Teamwork: cooperating with other departments.
  • Test your equipment, effects, ideas.

Know your lenses - Lenses and Cameras (maybe with EO)

  • Creating camera equipment list.
  • Technical requirements.
  • What to look for when choosing a camera?
  • Key features of different cameras:
    • Arri Alexa
    • Sonny Venice
    • RED
    • Black Magic
  • What are camera filters? Few examples:
    • Soft FX
    • White Pro Mist
    • Black Pro Mist
    • Hollywood Blackmagic
    • Blue Strike
  • Choosing lenses: Difference between anamorphic and spherical lenses.
    • Test of SPHERICAL lenses: vintage vs modern:
      • Vintage:
        • Zeiss Standard Speed (box full of lenses)
        • Cooke Panchro (beauty of macro)
      • Modern:
        • Zeiss Master Prime (can’t get more perfect than this)
        • PV Primo (el classico)
        • Leica Summicron-C (good lens for decent money)
      • Test of ANAMORPHIC lenses: vintage vs modern vs Panavision:
        • Vintage:
          • Kowa (get ready for some distortions)
          • Cooke X-tal (hmm… interesting)
          • Lomo Anamorphic (crazy or beautiful)
        • Modern:
          • Arri Zeiss Master Anamorphic (perfect quality for big money)
          • Cooke Anamorphic (stylish)
        • Panavision Anamorphic:
          • PV Primo Anamorphic (big guns)
          • PV Serie C (Michael Bay style)
          • PV Serie T (lenses that I love)
        • Mixing lenses.
        • Special task lenses:
          • Zoom
          • Macro
          • Tilt-shift
        • Create your LUT.
          • LUT creation with Da Vinci Resolve

Know your light - Lighting Equipment (with EO)

  • How to measure and test light?
    • Metering light
      • Show lux
    • Qualities of light
      • Sharp / diffused
      • CCT
      • Beam diameter (spot / flood)
      • Beam aesthetic (Par 64 / Spot ETC)
    • Pros & Cons of Tungsten vs HMI vs LED:
      • Tungsten
        • Cheap
        • Hot
        • Low CCT
        • Dimmer
        • Takes lots of power
      • HMI
        • Expensive
        • Powerful
        • CCT of sun
        • Almost no dimmer
      • LED
        • Price fluctuates
        • Low power consumption
        • Any CCT you want (quick workflow)
        • Dimmer without loss of CCT
        • Can be green or magenta tint
      • Most common lights on the market, presentation and health & safety:
        • Arri M1.8 (HMI) vs 2K tungsten
        • Arri M9 (HMI) vs DINO tungsten
        • Arri Skypanel 120 (LED) vs LED matte (LED) vs KinoFlo
        • Astera titan tubes (LED) vs cheaper LED tubes vs small LED
        • Practicals: Astera bulbs vs cheaper LED bulbs vs tungsten bulbs
        • Tungsten light: 800watts, 2Kw
        • Small LED panels
        • Shape lights: DEDO, DEDO 400
        • Cheap lighting ideas:
          • China ball
          • DIY light diffusions
          • The Sun J
            • Mirrors, butterfly and bounce boards

Common setup: interior, day (with EO)

  • Interior day (Clouds passing) (Low contrast)
  • Interior day (Water caustics) (High contrast)
  • Interior evening (Television)  (Low contrast)

Common setup: interior, night (with EO)

  • Interior evening (Rain on windows) (High contrast)
  • Interior night (Passing cars and Police) (Low contrast)
  • Interior night (Candle and lighting) (High contrast)

Common setup: exterior, day (with EO)

  • Weather awareness.
  • Exterior with no lights: how to make the most of natural sunlight.
  • Exterior with light: don’t fight with sun, enhance it.
  • When weather doesn’t work as you’ve planned.

Common setup: exterior, night (with EO)

  • Exterior with streetlights.
  • Exterior with moon light.

Dialog blocking (with EO)

  • Two-people table dialog. No movement.
  • Introduce character movement.
  • When things get complicated: introducing a third character.
  • Dialog with multiple characters.