DSLR's
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you are so behind the times.. T2i is soo last year 
Search these boards for more informaiton then you can eat in a week!
Had one it works great. My advice?:
Use a tripod
Hack it
Love it
Make a movie
Search these boards for more informaiton then you can eat in a week!
Had one it works great. My advice?:
Use a tripod
Hack it
Love it
Make a movie
They're incredible, versatile and if you shoot/edit right, it can even look like film.
Try to shoot at the highest resolution possible, and don't shake too much, the DSLRs suffer from the horrible Jello effect. (things bend when the camera swipes across the screen).
Try to shoot at the highest resolution possible, and don't shake too much, the DSLRs suffer from the horrible Jello effect. (things bend when the camera swipes across the screen).
mmmmm... well... anything in particular?
Like most things, it can be done well or done terribly.
Fwiw, we had a film playing at the Lake Arrowhead Film Fest recently. It was shot on a DSLR. With the exception of one film, all the other films in our short-film block were also shot on a DSLR.
The film that wasn't? It was shot on a iPhone.
Get a good story. Learn how to take a good image, both composition & lighting. Probably pay some attention to sound... or sumthin'. Know how to pace the edit.
Or if you can't master any of those yourself, get someone who can.
And have fun makin' movies!
Really do not shake this.
The shaking of a DSLR is the worst possible shake. Really ugly and troublesome, even when you try to stabilize it on a software.
Get a tripod and/or any kind of steady.
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There is a lot of DIY tutorials on Youtube. Look for a slider too.
I recently purchased a T3i to get into DSLR filmmaking. I still own my Canon HV40 that I've had for two years. It's a good camera but for image quality, the T3i absolutely blows it away for about the same price. The main thing that's different about DSLR filmmaking as opposed to making films with a more traditional video camera is that it requires more attention to detail with certain things. I don't want to say it's "easier" to shoot with a video camera because obviously it takes a lot of skill and practice to make a good film with a video camera just as it takes skill and practice to create art in any medium, but with prosumer and pro camcorders you're going to have XLR inputs, so you can record audio directly with your mic to the camera as opposed to using an external recorder, which you're going to want to do with your T2i. Also, there's a lot more to learn about lenses and their uses with the DSLR's, plus the stability issues, etc. However I think learning to use the DSLR's is worth it, because it's going to give you the best image for the price.
A relatively cheap tool which can help you accomplish your vision.
What Ewan said. And editing only makes them look more like film
I read somewhere that you should treat the camera like a big-ass feature film camera, because of the jello effect. So obviously it's best not to go overboard on panning.
Saying that though, I've only had one proper experience with a DSLR so I could be wrong. I plan to use one for an upcoming short.
Saying that though, I've only had one proper experience with a DSLR so I could be wrong. I plan to use one for an upcoming short.
this was honestly what somebody said about it... the question was "Should I use this DSLR to shoot an independent feature film?"
His reply was: "If you're going to judge a DSLR on it's ability to make a movie, why don't you also judge a CARROT on it's ability to take pictures?"
His reply was: "If you're going to judge a DSLR on it's ability to make a movie, why don't you also judge a CARROT on it's ability to take pictures?"
The camera you're using is rather unimportant in the overall scheme of things. There is an abundance of equipment that'll get the job done these days. Right now your biggest task is to outwit a carrot and make a film that will awe us all.
Good luck.
A DSLR is a tool that can get the job done.
It's really simple: if something can shoot video, it can shoot a movie.
But not all equipment have the same imagequality or control over the image.
So your cellphone is less usable to pull that job.
To me the big plus of a DSLR is the ability to shoot in lower light conditions than a lot of 'camcorders'. When my EX1R is blind, a 5D can still produce an usable image.
The downside is that rolling shutter in DSLRs is really bad and that in certain situations the image is either soft or suffers from moire.
(I must tell you that I make videos for a living; I prefer a C300 over any DSLR for shallow DoF or lowlight shots. But in my case the client pays for the camera. I just can't say to a client: "sorry about the jello effect; that normal with DSLRs" )
Having said that: yes, you can make a (good) short with a DSLR.
Beware of the big pitfall: unfocussed shot because you use very shallow DoF.
BTW, your first ultrashort should be a video of a camera taking a picture when pressed by a carrot. Just to piss that one person off
It's really simple: if something can shoot video, it can shoot a movie.
But not all equipment have the same imagequality or control over the image.
So your cellphone is less usable to pull that job.
To me the big plus of a DSLR is the ability to shoot in lower light conditions than a lot of 'camcorders'. When my EX1R is blind, a 5D can still produce an usable image.
The downside is that rolling shutter in DSLRs is really bad and that in certain situations the image is either soft or suffers from moire.
(I must tell you that I make videos for a living; I prefer a C300 over any DSLR for shallow DoF or lowlight shots. But in my case the client pays for the camera. I just can't say to a client: "sorry about the jello effect; that normal with DSLRs"
)Having said that: yes, you can make a (good) short with a DSLR.
Beware of the big pitfall: unfocussed shot because you use very shallow DoF.
BTW, your first ultrashort should be a video of a camera taking a picture when pressed by a carrot. Just to piss that one person off
for me, small SHARP movements (like a bonk on the tripod) produce the worse jello. The Jittery Jello is the most atrocious to my eye. Smooth fast pans produce a strange slanting but it can be hidden in the movement. For example if your panning fast to follow a subject the background trees, telephone polls and vertical elements will lean .. just adding to the wow thats fast effect.. (thats a bit of a joke)
Hand held with out mass = a lot of small SHARP movements = A LOT OF JELLO.
Hand held WITH mass (shoulder rig with weights, or just the "bag o' rice" trick) allows for fast movement without so much jittery jello..
OIS (optical Image Stabilization) lenses (often the Kit chepos) will come with OIS because the public DOES notice jittery jello.. good option for quick\dirty handheld.
Hand held with out mass = a lot of small SHARP movements = A LOT OF JELLO.
Hand held WITH mass (shoulder rig with weights, or just the "bag o' rice" trick) allows for fast movement without so much jittery jello..
OIS (optical Image Stabilization) lenses (often the Kit chepos) will come with OIS because the public DOES notice jittery jello.. good option for quick\dirty handheld.
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