BlogBloghttp://beltwaygraphics.com/blog/2011-12-01T08:33:09ZSquarespaceA Walk in Your Shoes Interview: Marcus J. Moorehttp://beltwaygraphics.com/blog/2011/11/14/a-walk-in-your-shoes-interview-marcus-j-moore.htmlBeltway2011-11-14T21:01:35Z2011-11-14T21:01:35Z
We sit down with Marcus J. Moore, music critic for the BBC in London, The Washington City Paper in D.C., OkayPlayer & Potholes In My Blog, among other publications. Grammy Academy member.
This is a recent commercial I finished with a friend of mine for Eat Fresh Maryland. Eat Fresh Maryland is a program that provides low income families with healthy and affordable food options at local Farmer's markets. It was a great project to work on.
My role was to create animated sequences to educate viewers on the program. I used a hand drawn approach for the animation. I drew on paper then scanned the work in using my iPhone( works like a charm and better than a scanner for this work) then I brought the work into Photoshop. All the animation was done using Apple's Motion.
I made the opening animation in Motion using vector artwork I created in Illustrator. This was a fun piece because it allowed me to add a different texture to video and really provide the energy needed to get the commercial started.
Besides the animation, I consulted on the editing side as well. It was a great opportunity to show some range animation wise. Enjoy the work.
]]>Shoot Dayhttp://beltwaygraphics.com/blog/2011/10/8/shoot-day.htmlBeltway2011-10-08T20:57:12Z2011-10-08T20:57:12ZToday we'll be Interviewing our friend writer Marcus Moore. It should be fun. Here is what I'm shooting with: T3i 10-22mm 50mm Rode Stereo Video Mic W718 Fluid Head tripod ZoomH1
I'll let you know how it goes. The goal today is to get movement in the storyline. Rather than our usual sit down and talk style I want to reframe after questions and use b roll early to break up the format a little. Wish me luck!
]]>A Walk In Your Shoes Interview: Jeanine Hayshttp://beltwaygraphics.com/blog/2011/9/7/a-walk-in-your-shoes-interview-jeanine-hays.htmlBeltway2011-09-08T03:47:20Z2011-09-08T03:47:20Z
(Had to repost because of some Squarespace nonsense. Originally posted 5 September 2011)
We sit down with Jeanine Hays Creative Director and Founder of AphroChic a modern and very soulful designer accessories shop that started as a humble blog. Today, AphroChic's pillows, wallpaper, and style have lead to an upcoming book, an exhibit at the Maison Home & Object show in Paris, and much more on the horizon.
We shot with a Canon T3i, 50mm 1.8, Zoom H1 and the Rode VideoMic Pro.
This is the same gear as the first shoot. I borrowed another T3i from a friend in order to shoot A CAM and B CAM footage.
This microphone was the REAL step up in production value. I attached the feet from my flash in order to position the microphone closer to the interviewee. It works in pinch without a boom or even better a lapel microphone.
For the graphics shots, I used Apple's Motion to add energy and context to the the interviewee's words. This was a lot of fun. All the titles were done in Motion as well. I like After Effects, but for this kind of quick turnaround Motion was the right tool.
What I learned from this shoot:
I am going to have the interviewee look into the camera and have the interviewer sit directly to the left of the camera. The will provide a better connection with the audience. Having a second camera allows me more flexibility in post and even better allows me to emphasize what the interviewee is saying.
Audio, audio, audio. Great audio can help shots blend. The worse the audio the worse your cuts feel even if they flow visually.
On the photography side, it can be a real challenge to keep your model poised in the hot sun. It helped to take breaks and setup shots while she was waiting in the shade. Technically, I used my 18% gray card for calibration and a Reflector for fill light.
Honestly, I'm gonna need a bigger reflector.
The one I have is great for medium shots and interviews but junk for full body portraits. Also, I need a reflector stand to get a soft hair light or just to keep me from McGyvering a setup to keep light on the model. Don't put the reflector on the ground and aim it under the chin of your subject. It leads to shadows across the body if they move their hands and doesn't flatter their jaw line.
All in all, I had fun on this shoot and that was the whole point. Next time I will rent a lapel microphone and add some lower thirds animations to remind people of who is talking during the video. Their is a rental shop in town that rents camera sliders. I'd rather rent right now then buy as the gear is really secondary to storyline.
That said, I just picked up the cheapo CowboyStudio shoulder rig on Amazon and a LCDEVF so keeping my headroom on handhelf shots should a little bit less work. Hope you enjoyed the piece!
]]>Technique of the Weekhttp://beltwaygraphics.com/blog/2011/8/27/technique-of-the-week.htmlBeltway2011-08-28T00:25:52Z2011-08-28T00:25:52Z
DIY White Seamless Product Photos with the Canon 320EX II Speedlite
I went out and bought Canon's new 320EX II Speedlite in order to shoot basic product photo-style shots of items for the web and to experiment with off camera flash techniques. Here are the results from my shoot. I can tell you that this took a lot of experimenting. I took full advantage of the 320ex's ability to trigger the camera's shutter. This allowed me to reposition the flash without moving the camera. Now the difficulty with small spaces and smaller products is that it can be hard to reduce shadows on your backdrop without blowing out your subject,
I found that placing my objects on a white seamless background (on top of my dresser) and a reflector the right with my flash to the left, I could balance my exposure without the need for too much post production.
I stood over the flower arrangement with the flash at a downward 45 degree angle cheated toward the background. In the future, I'll use a light stand because this method is a bit imprecise.
I played around with using both the on camera and external flash units to try and focus light from the on camera flash on the subject and the external flash on the background, but could not find the right mix to get a good exposure. The best result and the one on this page was with just the external flash.
The inspiration for this at-home shoot was this post on Zack Arias' blog. Check it out here.
]]>Behind The Scenes: A Walk In Your Shoes Interviewshttp://beltwaygraphics.com/blog/2011/8/15/behind-the-scenes-a-walk-in-your-shoes-interviews.htmlBeltway2011-08-16T00:59:19Z2011-08-16T00:59:19ZTravelin' Manhttp://beltwaygraphics.com/blog/2011/7/1/travelin-man.htmlBeltway2011-07-01T19:10:08Z2011-07-01T19:10:08Z
This is a personal project I edited together from public domain footage found on archive.org. It's an old commercial for Chevy Corvair and a Blues Track. I loved the rhythm of the guitar and used it to time my edits. I'm planning on doing a few more experiments with found footage after this one. It's a good way to try new technical tricks and play around with different genres.
This video became a loose journey into high profile DJs and the sponsor, Crown Royale, that keep the party going well into the night. All in all it was good chance to test out the low light performance of my T3i and 50mm 1.8 and the Technicolor Cinestyle. The video was edited with FCP and location sounds were recorded with the Zoom H1. My Goal was to tell a simple story with the available footage that highlighted the sponsor.
