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Need to brain storm idea for Monthly Challeenge

W

wheatgrinder

Hi all,
Im stumped, unmotivated, whatever with this months IT challenge ..

  • Challenge Name: Night Shoot
  • Challenge Description: Shoot a scene at "night" using your preferred method, either Day for Night, actual night shot with available lighting, or a night shot you light but make it look natural.
  • Challenge Limitations: No longer than a minute, no dialogue.
Click to expand...


See this thread for details.. http://www.indietalk.com/showthread.php?t=29382

Last weekend I went outside, setup lights and just sat there looking at a black car on a black road on a black night.. yawn..

I NEED STORY, I NEED MOTIVATION, I NEED REASON..

My resources: One actor. I have access to lots of back roads and some flares for practical lighting effects.

Possible rebel style stealing locaitons in industrial\urban setting.

any starters?
 
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I'm planning on doing a London cityscape timelapse.

Two problems:

1.) The roof of my house is quite high up, but not that high up in 'London terms'. I may have to utilise my Dad's apartment for this one. Actually that's a good idea. I'll do that, he has a nice, iconic view.

2.) I don't know how to set up an automatic timelapse with my T2i/550D without buying one of those fiddly add on timer thingys.

3.) I don't know how to edit a timelapse. Do I simply import the photos into FCP and make them show for like 0.25 of a second each? Or is there a specific setting for timelapse?

Why don't you do a nightime timelapse Wheat?
 
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shit... i just got two ideas right away

one... send the car down the road slowly... and then have some one in the woods next to the car... (far enough out to not be seen... but close enough that the lights from the flare shine on the car...

and have them both going down the road...

as the driver notices... he freaks out at the light.. then stops... the light stops too...

he goes forward a little... then stops... so does the light... he then panics and freaks out... and hawls ass off out of there...

then show something that isnt that big of a deal... like a dog walking in the woods with a light up dog tag... or a tiny little ufo ... that so small... and they freak out at the same time the car freaks out because of the white lights and head off in the other direction...



to get the light effect to work... you will probably need to get a piece of lexan or plastic glass... and roughen it up so it diffuses the light so that it doesnt look like a flare

and the ufo... can be done with a small toy ... and you can dress the same actor up in a costume for the alien... and speed up the sound of his scream to make him seem tiny

hahahahahahaahha

see i get bored to much at work
 
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NickClapper said:
I'm planning on doing a London cityscape timelapse.

Two problems:

1.) The roof of my house is quite high up, but not that high up in 'London terms'. I may have to utilise my Dad's apartment for this one. Actually that's a good idea. I'll do that, he has a nice, iconic view.

2.) I don't know how to set up an automatic timelapse with my T2i/550D without buying one of those fiddly add on timer thingys.

3.) I don't know how to edit a timelapse. Do I simply import the photos into FCP and make them show for like 0.25 of a second each? Or is there a specific setting for timelapse?

Why don't you do a nightime timelapse Wheat?
Click to expand...

if you cant get your hands on a "fiddly add on timer thingys" ahhaahahahahaha just use a stop watch and or just count...

and then as for editing... i would say make each one about 2 frames... or 1/12 of a second... i do some at 1/8 and 1/4... but those dont turn out as good as the 1/12... heck if you can do 1/24... do it

just test it and see how it renders... then change it up and see what you like
 
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The trouble is is that if I'm manually taking the photos then for me to play them back in a sequence for one minute at 1/12 I'll need to take almost 700 photos! I'll be up all night! :D

But thanks for that, I wasn't sure what sort of length I should give them. Good to know.

@wheat: How about a mysterious night time car chase thing? A man stands on the side of a road with a briefcase when suddenly the headlights of a car appear. He scrambles off the road into a ditch and the car pulls up alongside. A man gets out of the car and pulls out a gun, looking around. Slowly he gets back into the car and drives off. The man gets out of the ditch looking relieved.

What does it mean? Who knows.
 
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wheatgrinder said:
Thanks licenseless, not quite what Im looking for. Something dramatic, gritty, maybe criminal...
Click to expand...

ok... you can always do road flares on the street... leading up to an accident... were some is lying against the hood of a car... or heck... just lying on the ground... and bullet casing and blood... and then you can do those fake bullet stickers on the car... or if you got a car that is parked in your yard... you might be a red neck

but... you could use it and actually shoot it hahahahha great prop...

then once the view is curious as to what just happened... you coudl lead them off with some guy or gal... walking off in the distance with car lights making a silohette of him or her... I prefer a her... its more fucked up that way... cause its not the normal cleche thing to see...
 
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NickClapper said:
The trouble is is that if I'm manually taking the photos then for me to play them back in a sequence for one minute at 1/12 I'll need to take almost 700 photos! I'll be up all night! :D

But thanks for that, I wasn't sure what sort of length I should give them. Good to know.

@wheat: How about a mysterious night time car chase thing? A man stands on the side of a road with a briefcase when suddenly the headlights of a car appear. He scrambles off the road into a ditch and the car pulls up alongside. A man gets out of the car and pulls out a gun, looking around. Slowly he gets back into the car and drives off. The man gets out of the ditch looking relieved.

What does it mean? Who knows.
Click to expand...

yes you will... i have a good string of 800 photos... hahahahahaha

i have plenty of 400 photo shots too... but they just dont look good if you try spreading the photos out...

i have tried it... doing a full minute of timelapse is very difficult...

and remember the timeline is under a minute... you dont have to make it a full minute
 
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NickClapper said:
What I'd really like to do with the timelapse is a very slow 180 degree pan at the same time. But will that make it look terrible?
Click to expand...

yes

i tried doing this by hand... not going to work...

you need a motorized set up to do this...

i came up with another way to do this... but still haven't followed threw with it because it sounded like to much work...

basically set up a wheel of fortune style plate that will mount to the tripod were the head mounts... then mount the head directly above that... or threw it... to sandwich a flat piece of plywood in between the two...

then at ever degree from 0 to 360 you would need to put notches in the board and place nails... and if you wanted to make it look really good... do it in the seconds between the degrees also... and then under your camera you would need a small plate with a rod going at an angle towards the outer edge of the board were the notches are so that you can move the camera at a precise degree between every shot....

or again... spend the money on a motorized set up hahahahahhah
 
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3kybGK1zVM

this is how crappy it looks doing it by hand... the last few seconds of the video i wanted to see if panning by hand would work... and it looks pretty rough...
 
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Yep, you're right, that does look a wee bit rough...

I like the shots before that though...hmmm... dilemmas, dilemmas. I've no desire to install Magic Lantern simply because I am, by nature, risk averse and don't want to void my warrantee. But perhaps that's the only way to go...
 
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wheatgrinder said:
any starters?
Click to expand...

Guy walks up to his car at night, has had a couple. Puts his key in the door, but it doesn't work.

Fusses around for a bit, then notices the window is open a little. Disappears, then returns with a coat hanger.

Manages to open the door (making the entire scenario fiction) and gets in relieved. Puts key in the ignition. Of course it doesn't work.

More fussing. Pulls the key out and realizes he has the push button key fob.

Pushes the Panic button and his car starts beeping... from across the road.
 
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Some sort of shady criminal-type is sneaking around, peaking through windows, looking nefarious. We can hear a family inside, and this guy looks like he's got bad ideas. He has a couple obstacles to get past, but is finally able to sneak in through a rear bedroom window. But then he steps on a toy, makes some noise.

Footsteps creak down the hallway towards the room he hides in, as he looks for something to duck behind. The door opens, light shines in from the hallway, piercing the darkness of the room, and he freezes, like a deer caught in headlights.

DAD (O.S.)
Son, aren't you a little too old to be sneaking in? If you're gonna be late, just call me.

SON
Sorry. It was Jason. I tried to tell him I...

DAD (O.S.)
You're still grounded. Now, wash up and hit the sack, you've got a long day ahead of you tomorrow.
 
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ah.. no dialogue is very specific... what about monologue, or VO? Im thinking a SIN CITY riff...

I scouted odd locations on the way home, there is this sorta dirty gravel pit full of crap, might look good with car head lights...
 
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