DSLR Cinematography & Lighting Intensive

Many DSLR shooters know a nice shot when they see it, but most are not able to create a natural look from scratch or stylize an unattractive scene. These skills come from understanding the fundamentals of the camera’s imaging sensor, the lens, composition, color, texture, light quality and the way light reflects off of objects. These are the fundamentals that this one week, hands-on course will focus on and what will help you stand out and be an effective Director of Photography. You’ll learn how to get spectacular images from your inexpensive DSLR camera in a way that’s repeatable - not just lucky.

What will be covered?

We’ll get into the camera’s menu settings, spend time learning to tweak color and how to control dynamic range. I’ll show you how use the lens, its settings, the histogram and waveform monitor and how to evaluate and create low key, mid key and high key images. We’ll break out the pro-lights; including lite panels, kino flo and arri hmi’s. I’ll show you how to achieve more natural results with these and a $150 home made lighting kit. You’ll learn about lighting instruments and how lenses, diffusion panels, flags, nets and other tools control and affect the quality of the light cast upon the talent and the environment. You’ll also learn about the qualities of soft and hard light, color temperature, techniques for tricking white balance and how to evaluate location needs. I’ll show you which lighting instruments to use for hard “film noir” lighting, soft “Revlon model” lighting and how to create subject/background separation. Finally, we’ll cover how to measure, control and add and subtract light, as well as how to evaluate existing lamps and windows, your tools and your crew’s strengths and limitations. Most importantly, you’ll learn how light and cameras work together to support the needs of your story.

Who should take this workshop?

This workshop is designed for independent, documentary and corporate film-makers working on a small or nonexistent budget. It’s designed for the motivated DSLR shooter who wants to replace happy accidents with repeatable results. As a beginning shooter you’ll gain confidence as you work with the fundamentals. Veterans will also discover new ways to express themselves through scenes you’ll shoot during the class. If you’re tired of the “point and hope” approach to lighting and want to learn what it takes to master your DSLR camera – this workshop is definitely for you. It will take the guesswork out of lighting and image control so you can save time and take your next production up ten notches. This workshop is for anyone who wants to work faster and get better results. No-budget and low-budget film-making is not only about being creative, going guerrilla, or thinking out-of-the-box. It’s also about recognizing that there are limitations to what you and your crew can accomplish. Working with friends and volunteers can be fun for your first couple of productions, but when “been there and done that” gets old, your expectations will rise, and you’ll want to spend more time shooting quality footage and less time solving lighting problems.