photographer transitioning to motion picture on limited budget; help?!

marko mijailovic

marko mijailovic

hi everyone,

first post here.

a little about me... i'm a 24 year old toronto-based fashion + portrait photographer who's looking to make the transition into motion picture. film is something i've always been very passionate about, but also equally intimidated by; i guess i still am to an extent.

the other day at one of my fashion shoots for a magazine i decided to shoot some video. the idea was to just create some supplementary footage for the still editorial. sure enough, i fell in love with it (shooting video) and the response has been terrific, encouraging me to invest myself more into the world of film.

you can see my first attempt here- again, keep in mind this was just shot as supplementary footage to a photo editorial so there's no storyline present (nsfw):

https://vimeo.com/86027274

before i go on, i guess i should mention what gear i currently have/am using: nikon d800, sigma 50mm f/1.4, nikon 28mm f/1.8, nikon 85mm f/1.8, and manfrotto 504hd + 546b (bought the other day).

i've got several ideas for films i'd like to create- i've been burning up with inspiration lately after almost a year off-, but don't really know where to start. that's where i was hoping you knowledgable lot could help me out.

i'm mainly looking to create short fashion films (sub-five minutes) with very little to no dialogue, so don't want to focus much on audio gear. what little dialogue there will be, i will record with my music recording gear (condenser mic-> interface-> logic) and dub over the visuals + music. my films will- 90% of the time- focus on visuals.

in terms of lighting, i'd prefer to stick to natural light as the costs of film lighting just plain scares me (and my sad wallet). i guess this kind of ties into my next bit... i'd like to stick to prime lenses only due to ability to shoot in lower light- that and i just don't like zooms much.

specifically, i was hoping you guys could help me decide on what pieces of gear to get next (read: which are most needed)... my very next purchase will most likely be a slider (thinking kessler or cinevate), but what after that?
do i need a matte box, follow focus, rod/rail system, external monitor, shoulder rig, etc. etc.?

before i started reading up much, i thought a shoulder rig was all i'd need, but then i searched up footage done with shoulder rigs (which is i guess the majority of footage) and i found it to be only slightly less jittery than hand holding the camera... so then i looked into steadi/glidecams, but the disadvantage there was inability to focus while moving... i love the effortless fluidity they provide in longer tracking shots, but i could only see myself using the with a very wide lens. is there any rig that will give me steadicam smoothness with shoulder rig control over focus?

in terms of lenses, what are some you'd recommend? i've heard good things about the zeiss line of lenses for nikon. a friend who works in film recommended the 1.4/55 otus, but that thing costs more than what i'm looking to spend on the entire rig!

back to audio for a bit... i do have one (documentary) project where i'll be interviewing people on the streets that'll require some clean and crisp audio. would something like a zoom h4 + lav mic do the trick or should i look elsewhere? would also like to be able to record environment/atmosphere sounds.

i'll leave it at that for now since i feel i've already gone on more than i should.

any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

marko m.
 
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I come from a photography background, and it pays the bills. But I would note that maybe salacious's comments were removed, because I thought FFP's comments were really harsh for little reason. He disagrees, but as a photographer, I was taken back. The op said, essentially, here's some b.roll footage set to music. What do I need to take this to the next level? FFP's response was, essentially, stop filming whores. I was offended, and I would've reacted the same way he did.

Shooting fashion is difficult, and you have to deal with all sorts of personalities from all angles. It's as bad as shooting a film, except that everyone in management is a prima donna. He will already have the wherewithal to deal with that.

As far as advice to the poster, when doing a shoot you'll need to choose either film or stills; I would not try to do both. Or hire a unit still photographer while you do the video. Obviously the lighting must be continuous, so that will reduce your options. Also, there is generally no cropping (although you can do it with some loss of resolution), so frame the entire scene appropriately, including all camera movements. Rule of thirds still applies, but with motion, foreground elements become more significant for depth. Your lenses should have as little distortion and good MTF at the edges, although corner dropoff is fine.
 
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FantasyFilmProductions said:
I could not decide if this was for a porno, a fashion mag, or a brothel advert.

That is not good. It means that the shots do not tell us the story properly. Before you go further you need to understand that with film, it is the footage that tells the story, there is no writing underneath to clarify, there is no magazine cover that is within a defined genre. The footage must tell the entire story and this footage, was confusing as I had no idea what I was watching.

The first woman walking down the hall toward camera would suggest a model shoot, but the lady in the leggings sitting on the bed looked like a hooker that had no customers.

The empty chair shot also added to the feel of a brothel waiting for me to come and visit.

Please tell me the genre that this video is for and I will explain what I would have done to have sold that story.
Click to expand...


Here is the comment that I am now catching flack for.

Please show me where exactly I implied that the guy should "stop shooting whores"

Because A: I didn't say that...
and B: I didn't imply that...
and C: Whores??? you clearly have a dim view of women in those jobs. A view I do not share.


What I DID say and stand by, is exactly what I said...It needs a Story and it needs to decide what it is. Period.

twisting words to be able to debate the twisted version is something people generally only do when debating what was said would make their argument weaker...If you want to debate me, put on your big boy pants and debate what I actually said, not your reinterpreted version. I will not defend something I did not say in the first place.
 
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If you can't deal with a different perspective, it is you who fail.

As a fashion photographer, I gave you some insight on how what you said woyldve been interpreted by a fashion photographer because you didn't understand why it was offensive. You, instead ignorantly maintain that it was not. That's okay, you keep saying that to yourself.

I have been in internet arguments since it was the Arpanet, and if I choose to be nice it's because I choose it. I have chosen to do so and will continue. And while you seem to have this huge fascination with underwear, you don't want to see me in mine.
 
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stef said:
If you can't deal with a different perspective, it is you who fail.

As a fashion photographer, I gave you some insight on how what you said woyldve been interpreted by a fashion photographer because you didn't understand why it was offensive. You, instead ignorantly maintain that it was not. That's okay, you keep saying that to yourself.

I have been in internet arguments since it was the Arpanet, and if I choose to be nice it's because I choose it. I have chosen to do so and will continue. And while you seem to have this huge fascination with underwear, you don't want to see me in mine.
Click to expand...

Different perspective I can deal with. But twisting my words I will not.

anyway, you are right, I have no desire to see you in your underwear. Um I really don't have an underwear fascination...big boy pants for me would be a pair of mens jeans for instance.

Anyway, I have not been around since arpanet, I first accessed the internet when windows 95 came into play.
If you have been around that long then that would make sense to me that you have the view of prostitution and porn workers as whores but I grew up in a generation and in a country where to us they are just women, we don't have any social stigma attached to these people. Perhaps that is why you would take such offense to my comment. No offense was intended so I apologize that you have taken offence to it.
 
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FantasyFilmProductions said:
If you have been around that long then that would make sense to me that you have the view of prostitution and porn workers as whores but I grew up in a generation and in a country where to us they are just women, we don't have any social stigma attached to these people. Perhaps that is why you would take such offense to my comment. No offense was intended so I apologize that you have taken offence to it.
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Interesting. Actually, I don't have such a view of the sex trade, but the USA and most of North America does, and from my side of the pond it sounded very much insulting. Personally, I have no issue with the sex trade provided it isn't trafficking people and is safe for all involved but that view is by far the minority. I honestly hope you see how that could've been taken from a different perspective.

Other than some of the privacy issues, NZ sounds like it would fit me far better than here.
 
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stef said:
Interesting. Actually, I don't have such a view of the sex trade, but the USA and most of North America does, and from my side of the pond it sounded very much insulting. Personally, I have no issue with the sex trade provided it isn't trafficking people and is safe for all involved but that view is by far the minority. I honestly hope you see how that could've been taken from a different perspective.

Other than some of the privacy issues, NZ sounds like it would fit me far better than here.
Click to expand...

We are an open minded bunch indeed.
 
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