No lights were used in these photos. Most architectural interiors have a contrast range that is too wide for the CMOS sensors to capture in a single exposure. Extensive lighting equipment has been used for years. The new technique, called HDR (High Dynamic Range), uses digital technology and software to create the images, not lighting equipment. Now we bracket the exposures, taking as many as 11 photos to cover the brightness range of the interior scene. These photos are composited into one image that holds detail in all areas. However the image is flat and lacks saturation. This image is brought into Photoshop and enhanced using 7 – 10 adjustment layers to achieve the results you see here, a natural looking photograph. This technique is less intrusive on the property since there are no lights to set up and no cords for your customers/employees to trip over. It is the most cost effective way to standardize your brand across multiple markets. These are 2 of the 28 HDR images recently completed for Ashton Woods Homes in Austin, Texas.

THE “31 YEARS” VIDEO

When Apple released it’s latest editing software, Final Cut Pro X, a few months ago I knew that it couldn’t handle several of the editing tasks that I frequently use such as multi-clip editing and multiple audio tracks. Apple is a great company and is already adding important features to FCPX, but some upcoming jobs will require more than it can deliver today. What do we do now? Adobe will never abandon their pro customers.

Switching to Adobe is easier for a photographer than it is for a video professional. Many of the tools that I use in Photoshop are in Production Premium’s editing programs. The key to switching to Adobe was their motion graphics program, After Effects. I’ve used Apples Motion in the past but it only took a month working with a trial version of After Effects to get hooked on this software. I did tutorials on Adobe’s web site, videocopilot.com, Creativecow.com and Lynda.com. Then I dove into my first AE project.

After a week of tutorials, my first After Effects project took 5 weeks to complete, learning as I crept along. Armed with more than 30 pages of notes, and frequent return visits to the above mentioned web sites, I created a 4 minute video showcasing my 31 years in photography (and video). I learned as I stumbled along, and I do mean stumble. I used many of the basic animation techniques, a few advanced techniques, and set most of the keyframes manually. There are a few gotchas in AE, and rendering is like watching paint dry. This is the worst part of working in AE. The solution is to set your work area to each 12 second part of the composition and render at 1/2 resolution. The quality is good enough to judge the motion and timing of the composition. The light comes on when you finally get your head into 3D space and see your layers, text and backgrounds like you are right there inside the monitor. Then you move layers in Z space, add a couple lights, cast shadows, and move your camera in X, Y, and Z space. If you are lucky and the phone doesn’t ring while your head is in 3D space you can finish the 5 second section of video in about an hour (for a rookie). This video has 167 layers! I exported a Quick Time movie at full res (1920 x 1080) in the Apple Pro Res 422 codec so that I could mix the 10 audio tracks in Final Cut 7 because I was already familiar with this program and AE is not a good audio editor.  (no time to learn Premiere Pro yet). Sound effects were picked from Soundtrack Pro and the music, Unlucky,  was purchased from Footagefirm.com.

It took 3 days to locate, scan, copy and re size old tear sheets to make digital files and maybe another day to locate digital files of photos and video on a few archived hard drives. And, since I’ve kept at least one of each model camera that I’ve ever owned (except for the 4×5 view camera), I included most of them in the video. I will be exploring many more special effects in After Effects for future videos.

Watch the video.

Are you looking for a solution to archiving and retrieving your video files?

I found a docking station that solves many of my media backup problems. The Voyager Q from Newer Technology is a flexible, easy to use docking solution that will save you time and money. You can get it from Other World Computing (OWC) for $84. It’s as easy to use as a CF or SD card reader and it will hold 2.5″ or 3.5″ SATA drives. The Voyager Q connects to your computer via USB2, FW400, FW800 or eSATA.

Simply plug in your new SATA drive and it will prompt you to erase/format the drive which I did to Mac OS Extended (Journaled), named it and started copying files to it. Now I can replace the filled drives in my Mac Pro (Bay 3 and 4) with new ones. When I need to access the videos stored on the original SATA drives I will simply plug the drive into the Voyager Q and I can edit directly through the Voyager as it is connected through a FW 800 cable. No need to install the drive into an enclosure.

Pic up a few anti static bags where you buy your hard drives and store your original and backup drives in different locations.

Newer Tech also makes a docking station for USB3.0.

Apple’s Final Cut X is not a professional editing system. I will give them 6 months to see what improvements are made to FCX or if they reintroduce, and continue to support, final Cut Studio 3. I have too much time and $s invested in FC, Motion, Color, Compressor and DVD Studio Pro to jump ship. That said, I am fully committed to learning Adobe’s Premiere Pro and After Effects so that I can make the best decision in January of 2012. Since I am an advanced user of Photoshop CS5 Extended I may find that moving to Adobe’s Production Premium will not be as hard as the first go- round learning Final Cut Studio 3.

When you shoot video with your DSLR camera you should use 1/50 (for 24P) or 1/60 (for 30P) second shutter speeds. You can vary that slightly but fast shutter speeds will give your motion a strobing effect; slower than 1/40 will give you too much blur when you pan. When shooting in full sun use a neutral density filter (ND) to achieve the shallow depth of field look. I use the Heliopan 82mm screw-on filters in 1, 2 and 3 stop increments, (Grey ND 0,3 – 0,6 and 0,9 respectfully). The ND 0,9 will bring you from F16 to F5.6. With a few step-up rings they will fit all of my Canon lenses which are 67, 77 and 82 mm filter size. There are many other options for ND filters if you prefer to use a matt box on your lens but this size also fits my Panasonic HVX200 lens. I have used the 1 stop ND filter indoors by a bright window to get the exact F stop for that subject.

Lighter materials plus a focus wheel make this DIY “Fig-Rig” a good tool for documentary videos. The benefits are;

1) Steadier hand-held camera
2) Option for external mic for better sound.
3) Focus with one finger by distance or Marshall monitor.

For the smoothest footage while walking I stretch a light rubber resistance band around the back of my neck to the hand grips. I focus with one finger by either estimating the distance and rotating the wheel till marks on the elastic band line up with the top of the lens; or I use the Marshal monitor. I don’t take credit for the design of the basic rig but I used much lighter materials than the steel used in previous designs. The materials are as follows:

1) 1/2 x 1″ channel aluminum for top and bottom, about 17-18″ long.
2) 1/2 x 12″ sprinkler PVC pipes cut down to 10″ length. filed to fit into channels.
3) Bicycle tape for grips.
4) Four 1/4-5″ bolts joined with a rod coupling nut (2) and 4 washers.
5) One pipe clamp to hold focusing gear.
6) One autorotation tail drive gear (helicopter) from a hobby shop. held by 1/4″ nuts and 1/4″ brass collars.
7) 3/4″ black elastic from fabric store to turn lens barrel.
Pearstone Line-In transformer to connect XLR mic to 5D 1/8″ miniplug.
9) Cold shoe mount to secure Marshal monitor.
10) Velcro to hold HDMI and audio cables.
11) Giottos camera mount with sliding plate, elevated to access locking lever.

When you need to shift quickly from shooting stills to recording video it is easier to just change the mode dial and have your favorite settings dialed in. Before a shoot, set up the camera for video in the “M”, manual mode using the “Live View/Movie func set” in the Tool 2 menu. Be sure to set your shutter speed to about 1/50 or 1/60. Then go to the “Camera user setting” in the Tool 3 menu and register (save) the settings to one of the custom modes on the mode dial (C1 or C2). Then when you need to capture a video clip you can just change the mode dial. It is important to remember that if you change any setting, say you change the aperture from F4 to F5.6, and then turn off the camera, when you turn it back on the C1 mode dial will not show the new F stop. So, I recommend that when you change any settings, you re-save your settings to the C3 mode dial. This can be done more quickly if you save your favorite menu items to the “My Menu” (star menu) and set it to open first when the Menu button is pressed. You can check your settings while recording video by pressing the “Info” button once to see the current aperture, shutter speed, ISO, etc. Now for the easy part, when you need a raw photo just press the shutter button. I prefer to stop recording video first to avoid the 1 second still frame.

The “look” of your video is personal and can be obtained in post but if you start with all your footage looking similar it will save time in editing. First, I set the 5D Mark II to the Neutral picture style and I left the contrast and saturation at zero (default). I saved this setting to the “User Def. 1″ setting in the picture style menu.  Then I saved all the camera settings, shutter speed, ISO, WB, etc. to the C1 mode dial.  Now, no matter what I’ve been using the camera for I can turn to the C1 mode dial and be ready to shoot video, and, match another 5D to my footage by saving the same settings on the second camera. After a few tests I thought that the HVX200 looked similar with the Scene File dial set to “Cine V”. Rich colors matched well but more subtle colors like the dark beige stucco on the outside of my home shifted toward magenta. Magenta and green are accented for the “Cinelike” scene file on the HVX200. So, I reset the scene file dial to Scene file 1, normal, and, in the Scene File menu I increased the chroma level slightly for more saturation and decreased the Master Pedestal slightly for richer blacks. After much testing, my gray card, primary colors, skin tones and stucco matched well. Adjustments to saturation and contrast can be done in post for both cameras to suit the subject matter. Now, there’s still that depth of field thing.

When using the Live view/Movie mode on the 5D mkII, I started with the Letus Hawk viewfinder . I wear glasses but I had to remove them to get my eye closer to the eye piece. With or without glasses I could not focus the lens with the diopter. The Zacuto Z-Finder 2.5X has a larger eye cup so I can leave my glasses on which helps when working the buttons and menus. It also comes with 3 extension rings that fit around the Z-Finder between it and the LCD monitor. If you rack the diopter all the way and still can’t get a sharp focus then add the rings. I used 2 for a perfectly sharp image. Achieving sharp focus is easier with the Marshall 5″ monitor. I’ll get to that in a later blog.

Nikon, Thanks for a wonderful 30 year career! You have been the most dependable things that I’ve ever owned. However, as I begin my 4th year in video production the right choice was to invest in Canon cameras and lenses. This one system will produce top quality photographs as well as 1080 P HD video. The Canon 5D Mark II has a 21 megapixel CMOS censor. This is sharper than film! And, the incredible video quality has rocked the industry. It has been used in feature films and for HD television broadcasts like the Fox network’s House. This is a creative rebirth for me in both photography and video.