New Wave Film-Final Product

New Wave film from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

This is my "New Wave" film that I created from the footage we had gathered over the various different shooting sessions over the course of this unit, I tried to use various different New Wave techniques within this like quick cuts, innovative camera movements and lighting.

Shutter Speed:Footage

During the course of filming we realised that we could most likely get some good looking tracking shots for use in our New Wave films so we decided to film from a car window whilst it was moving around various locations, although this presented a problem as we would need to first alter the cameras shutter speed before filming otherwise the footage would be too out of focus due to motion blur, so the first thing that was needed was to alter the cameras settings.



This footage shows a tracking shot from a moving car with the shutter speed set at 1/100s which is too slow as while the car is moving everything becomes distorted and blurred, the aperture was set at f/22 while the ISO was set at 1200 so everything was in focus, and the shutter speed was set at a speed that would allow an appropriate amount of light into the camera, however this caused the camera to capture the car movement at a slower rate causing this motion blur to occur.



This footage however shows the movement from the car more clearly, this is due to the cameras shutter speed being changed to a quicker rate of about 1/500s which captured the movement more clearly, also the other settings had not been altered so the ISO was still at about 1200, and the aperture at f/22 so everything was captured in focus and enough light was able to be absorbed by the camera to provide a bright look o the footage.

This footage could also be seen as new wave since it is using innovative camera movements to establish a tracking shot, using a cheap inexpensive and moderately effective method that requires almost no budget and it does show the local area where most of our footage takes place.

Innovative Camera Movements

One aspect of New Wave films that made them separate from mainstream cinema during their time was with the use of innovative and creative camera angles and movements using anything they could to move the camera in different ways, such as in Godard's "Breathless" where the camera is placed on the top of an escalator to film the woman as she ascends. The use of innovative camera movements can alter the way in which an audience views a film.

This is a few examples of how we have tried to use innovative camera movement within our process of filming.

Spinning Shot test 1 from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

For this shot we tried to use a local parks "merry go round" as a way of making the camera spin whilst a subject was in the foreground, giving the appearance that the background was moving while the subject remained motionless. We used a setting of Aperture of f/22 to make the subject in the foreground in sharp focus however the background became blurry and out of focus which would be due to the spinning of the camera, we also used an ISO of between 600-800 so that the footage would be brighter as on the day we filmed this it was very dark and overcast.



escalator footage from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

This footage was done to try and imitate the scene from Godards "Breathless" where a woman ascends on an escalator and the camera is placed in front of her during the ride upward as if the camera is moving with her as an innovative and cheap alternative to a tracking shot, also we tried to shoot the footage in black and white to further imitate the scene from Godards film. This footage was done to be New Wave as it was using a single camera being handheld in a public area, and also we have no budget to film with so innovative use of the camera is needed.

Oxford Location - Turf Tavern

One of the last locations we visited whilst in Oxford was a local bar which we had heard a rumour about which was famous for the people who had visited it in the past, so we decided to investigate it for one of our final locations. Finding the location actually proved rather difficult as it was supposedly hidden behind a building and the only access to it was through a narrow alleyway, so it took a while for us to actually discover it, but once we did it proved to be quite a useful location as it lead out into a very open area but with many twisting paths leading to the streets outside, and the tavern itself was located next to a part of a medieval wall that ran through Oxford. Whilst in the location we managed o get a few panning shots of the surrounding building and also some cutaway shots which would most likely prove useful during editing, so the location seemed to offer some decent footage.



Filming location-Turf Tavern footage from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

For this location we decided to keep the same settings from the last location, using an aperture of f/22 to get everything in focus while using an ISO of 800 to ensure that enough light entered the camera, while since it was outside and there was a lot of natural light we kept our white balance at 5000 as well as keeping the shutter speed at 500/1

Release form signed by staff of the Turf Tavern

As with the previous locations we were required to obtain permission to shoot on the premises, so we explained the situation to hem and they were cooperative and friendly and gave us permission to film both outside and inside the building, although we tried to be careful as there were a few customers that were dotted around the location and we attempted to try and avoid filming anyone without their permission.

OH&S: Occupational Health and Safety
As with the previous locations there were a few health and safety issues that needed to be addressed before we began filming in this location, as there would be other people around and we would need to be cautious about how we handled the equipment as the ground was uneven. some of the other issues include:

• Risk of falling due to uneven ground
• Risk of damaging equipment 
• Risk of injuring oneself or others
• Possibility of equipment being stolen
• Risk of fire

These issues could be easily resolved by following simple measures to prevent any injury to ourselves or others, especially as we were on someone else's property and they would be held responsible otherwise.

• Be cautious while moving around the location due to uneven ground
• Ensure that all equipment is secured before filming
• Ensure that all equipment is kept safely out of the way and in a visible location
• Be careful around others to avoid injury to crew members or patrons
• Ensure that no customers are filmed without their permission

Oxford Location - Record Shop

Another location we decided to film in was a local independent record store, we thought that as well as filming in the location we could ask about the local area and any social problems affecting Oxford at the current time which would provide us with some insight into any issues concerning the local area. We managed to get some decent footage from the record store and as the organised shelves and angular objects like cd and record casings made for some good compositional potential in our footage, it was also appropriate as it had many aspects of youth culture which is often shown in New Wave films so that was an added advantage since most of the customers were either young adults or students.

This is a montage of some of the footage we gained from the record shop.


Record shop footage from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

For this location our camera settings were set at an ISO of 800 with an Aperture that changed from f/22 whilst filming around the shop to an aperture of  f/2.4 whilst conducting the interview with one of the employees. The white balance needed to be changed to 5000 instead of 8000 like in the sweet shop since there was a lot of natural light in this location.

Release form signed by staff of "Truck Store" Record shop

Again we were required to obtain the manager of the stores signature in order for us to be allowed to film anything on the premises, so we explained our task to the employees and they were very friendly and cooperative so the process of obtaining permission went rather smoothly. One of the employees was even willing to give an interview where we could ask them questions about the shop and if there were any issues they were concerned about in the local area such as the music scene in Oxford. They were very willing and we were able to obtain an interview with them which turned into a documentary styled piece of footage.

OH&S:Occupational Health and Safety
As with any location there were a few health and safety concerns we needed to deal with before we began any filming in this location, as it is someone else's property extra care must be taken when moving around and operating any equipment.

• Ensure that all equipment is stored away safely while not in use to avoid creating an obstacle for any customers
• Ensure that whilst walking around the shop extra care is taken to avoid falling and injury/damaging any of the displays or products/ crating an obstacle for staff or customers
• Make sure not to film any customers or staff without their permission
• Don't use or carry equipment in an improper manner to avoid risk of damaging it.
• Don't damage any products or furniture in the shop
• Ensure that all equipment is kept safe and secure whilst using/carrying it to avoid theft and damage.

Following these simple measures it was easier to operate the camera equipment in this location in a safe manner that wouldn't disturb customers or staff and we were able to manoeuvre around the location without much trouble as we kept all of the equipment while not in use with one member of the crew who was in an isolated area of the shop well out of the way of other customers, and we ensured that we took care whilst moving between the shelves in the shop to a void any unintended damage to the items stored not them.

Oxford: Location - Simms Sweet Shop

Whilst we were in Oxford we decided it would be productive to film in a few of the local shops in order to gain some footage of a part of the busy street scene in oxford but also to gain some insight into the local area and anything that what kind of shops most people would frequent, one such shop we decided to visit was "Mr Simms Traditional Sweet Shop", this seemed like a good idea to film in as locals of all ages would visit it at some point and the range of colours that would be present would prove a useful experiment for the cameras settings and various ranges of saturation of colour, also the neatly organised shelves would provide us with some good composition for our shots.

This is a montage of some of the footage we gained whilst filming in this location.

Filming on Location-Sweet shop from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

For this footage we used a range of different camera settings, the Aperture was set at f/22 in order to get everything in focus including the background, The ISO was set at 800 while we used a shutter speed of 500/1, a;so we needed to turn the white balance up to at least 8000 due to the lighting within the store otherwise the footage would of had an orange tint to it.

The release form signed by staff of Simms Sweet Shop

Before filming in this location however it was necessary to obtain a signature from the manager of the store on a release form explaining our task to give us permission to film on the premises as a requirement for us to be allowed to film anything. So of course we were polite and explained the situation to the shop staff and they were kind enough to allow us to use their premises to film in, although they mentioned that they would feel uncomfortable if we filmed any customers so we tried not to accidentally capture anything unnecessary on film incase a customer was in the frame, which would require us to get a release form signed by them as well.

OH&S: Occupational Health and Safety
During the time that we were filming in this location there were a few health and safety concerns that needed to be addressed as we were filming on someone else's property so we needed to ensure that there were no safety concerns before we began filming.

• Ensure all Equipment is safety placed in a location that is out of the way and doesn't become an obstacle to anyone in the shop
• Ensure that all Equipment is safely secured while in use to avoid damage to it and possible injury to oneself or others
• Take caution not to film any customers without their permission
• Do not get in the way of customers or staff to avoid injury
• Take caution when walking around the shop to avoid falling and injury to yourself or others.

These issues would need to be considered when filming in a location such as this, as it was such a small space that extra caution would be needed when walking around the shop especially whilst carrying equipment, as we needed to ensure we didn't unintentionally injure anyone around us or damage anything. Simple measures were taken to ensure that none of these concerns became an issue, by ensuring that we moved carefully through the shop and took care to keep the equipment in a safe and secure manner whilst filming to avoid any injury to anyone else around us.

Oxford: External Mic

During our time in Oxford we managed to have the opportunity to perform a vox pop interview with an employee in one of the locations we visited. We decided that one of the yes ways to go about this would be to use the external boom mic which would pick up the sound more clearly on the camera, so we set up everything we needed such as the camera and tripod, then one of us set up and operated the boom mic while another person was assigned to ask the employee questions about the local area or the culture.

This is the interview we had with the employee of the record shop we visited as one of our locations in Oxford.


Oxford - Interview from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

During the time we were filming there didn't seem to be any problems with this footage however after being reviewed once we returned we found that due to an awkward positioning of the boom mic it had been placed next to a radio speaker and the music being played distorted the audio of the interview so it is quite difficult to hear what is being said. However this type of footage is useful as it bears similarities to New Wave films, such as Godards "Breathless" that features a scene where a man is being interviewed at an airport but the sound of planes drowns out their voice and distorts the audio. This shows signs of being New Wave as since they are filmed on a budget they couldn't afford to reshoot and the background noise is natural anyways so they needed to just use what they got even if the audio was distorted, similar to the footage that we got and since we didn't realise what had happened until after we left Oxford we couldn't reshoot it. So through this we have captured some footage that is similar to New Wave due to the background noise of the location and the positioning of the boom mic.

Oxford: Problems

During the trip to Oxford, whilst filming we came across a vast array of problems over the course of the trip, as we were in an unfamiliar area some problems were expected but there were many that were unforeseen and most likely couldn't be prevented, including problems with navigation,timekeeping and the equipment we brought along as well. Many of the problems that occurred were relatively quick to resolve but some managed to cause us some trouble time and again during the trip although we were able to find solutions to all of them in the end.

One of the problems that first occurred to us was that for the fluid head tripod a vital component was missing from it as it had been left behind, the part of the tripod that connected to the camera was missing so it was very unstable for us to use a camera with it, although we did eventually come up with a temporary solution by having two people operating the camera at the same time one to hold the camera and the other to operate the tripod, we also tried to tie the camera to the tripod when we filmed to make it more stable although his was very time consuming as we needed to tie the camera, then when we had finished untie the camera in order to disassemble the tripod so we could move to a new location easier, and we did this for every location we visited that required the tripod so it cost us a lot of valuable time because of the loss of one piece of the tripod, even though eventually we made it workable.

Another problem we were sure we would face was the lack of memory cards for the cameras and sure enough eventually some of the memory cards were at full capacity and we could no longer film using them, and the memory cards ran out of storage at inconvenient times such as when we were in the middle of shooting a scene or trying to capture a certain shot. However we had fortunately brought along with us more than enough spare memory cards to replace the ones that ran out of storage space, including some that were of a higher memory capacity which would make it last longer.

One of the major problems we found was overall navigation, as there was constant disputes among the group as to which direction or street our set locations were and we often had to stop and consult either a compass or map, which caused us to waste a lot of time and sometimes led us in the wrong direction, however along the way there were many areas which provided the chance for some decent footage on the way to our locations so overall the loss of direction helped in a way.

A major problem however, one which we didn't even realise until after the trip was over was a problem concerning the external boom mic. As it would turn out whilst it was in use during a vox pop interview with an employee of a record shop, during the interview the boom mic was placed near a stereo speaker  with music playing through it so after we reviewed the footage we realised that the sound of the music was drowning out and distorting the sound of the interview. We realised that this was going to cause a problem as most of the sound coming from the person being questioned is somewhat inaudible, although a problem such as this should of been expected as it was our first use of the external boom mic so handling it was a new experience for us. Although later we realised that the footage while it had distorted audio was similar to New Wave footage which used almost inaudible sound also, so we thought that the footage may have been some use after all, however the footage still didn't seem right due to the poor audio even though we found a use for it.

Overall there were a lot of problems during the trip and they caused a lot of stress and wasted a lot of time during the course of filming although we eventually managed to resolve most of them they were still nuisance wether unavoidable or not, some of the problems may have been caused by poor planning and some were spontaneous so in future these problems must be ensured not to occur again.

Oxford: Evaluation

During our time in Oxford we managed to obtain a rather large quantity of footage from a vast array of locations within the area and I believe that the trip was overall a success. Although during our time there we experienced a lot of problems that wasted time and effort to correct and at times we needed to improvise on the spot, although it was our first time filming in a location unfamiliar to us so problems were expected. The amount of footage we obtained was also quite a surprise as we managed to film a variety of different shots during our visit, we initially planned to use a set shot list so during the time we were there we planned exactly what shots to perform and chose appropriate locations for each one which helped speed up our progress.

One of the things that had the most likely possibility of going wrong was using the external boom mic as it was a piece of equipment none of us had previous experience with, save for a quick tutorial the day prior to the trip, although the person chosen to operate it performed rather well, since we used it during a Vox pop interview with a shop employee the use of the external mic was needed, however when reviewing the footage we found there was a large amount of background noise that distorted the sound, so the first use of the external mic did not go to plan however the footage is still usable.

These images show us operating the external boom mic for the first time whilst filming. This was during our time in our second location within a small record shop.

Another new experience for the group was filming within location such as shops where we would need the owner/mangers permission to film anything on the premises, and we needed a release form signed, dated an with the address of the location clearly visible as evidence that we were given permission to film in that location. This was something we had never done before so it was nerve racking at first, but in all the locations we politely explained the situation and what our task was and they seems very cooperative and friendly and gave us permission, we did this in three different locations and each time the employees were very accepting in allowing us to film on the premises. During the time we were using the external boom mic we were in our second location and one of the employees was kind enough to allow us to interview him, which would prove useful, so the process of using release forms and obtaining permission to film in locations seemed to be fairly easy and would help improve our people skills and communicating, which proved very useful during our time in Oxford.

These are some shots of our group performing various shots during the time we were moving to and from our set locations, as during the commute between areas we were often distracted by certain places of interest that we thought would provide some useful footage and also we needed to perform specific shots that we needed and some of the locations we found seemed to be appropriate.

Among all the problems we encountered the trip was in essence a very productive day for us as we obtained a vast amount of different shots and locations which will provide decent footage for use in editing later. Not only was the trip productive but it was also entertaining and provided us with many new experiences and most likely helped to improve our work in the future as we gained some knowledge of using an external mic and developed our communication skills to some level.

Oxford: Trip Summary

On the 23rd October 2012 our group visited the city of Oxford in order to shoot more film footage for our new wave project that would contrast to what we had previously shot, we decided that we would require certain types of shots and know exactly what locations we were going to visit before the trip so the previous day was spent planning everything we would need in other to fulfil our task, such as what equipment and shots we would need and what roles everyone would fill. The trip involved a great deal of planning as there were many things to consider beforehand including working out a schedule that we  would follow to keep us all on task during the trip, also including equipment lists, shot types and also the handling of release forms for in case we needed to film inside a building and needed the owners permission.

The overall time we would spend in Oxford would amount to approximately five hours in total excluding time spent travelling to and from Oxford so we had a reasonable amount of time to get all of the shots we required so a schedule had to be put in place to ensure we moved on to new locations periodically to get all the footage we needed. Another requirement was a set shot list so that we knew exactly hat we needed to shoot to ensure that we didn't capture anything unnecessary that would waste time, energy and memory card space on the cameras, this would help in the fact that when we shoot in a location we immediately know what to shoot and this will help save time during the process. One other requirement we needed to complete was the use of the cameras internal mic and an external boom mic so during the visit we needed to perform a Vox Pop interview with a few of the local residents, however the external boom mic was another piece of new equipment for us so a tutorial was needed the day before to ensure that at least one member knew how to operate it when we arrived.

OH&S: Occupational Health and Safety

Of course whilst in Oxford there are the Health and Safety issues that need to be analysed and resolved before commencing filming in order to keep all crew members safe at all times throughout the visit, As it is a new area that none of us were familiar with there is the possibility of many high risks that needed to be taken into account. These risks include the following:-

• Risk of getting lost as it is a new area
• Risk of being hit by a car/other motor vehicle
• Risk of damaging equipment
• Risk of theft of equipment by means of either leaving unattended/robbery
• Risk of being mugged 
• Risk of injury by means of falling/misuse of equipment/accident/other
• Risk of injury to other people due to misuse of equipment/accidental circumstances

These risks should all be taken into account whilst we are in Oxford and measures should be taken to avoid and/or minimise the chance of them becoming a problem by taking appropriate actions e.g.

• Avoid speaking to strangers
• Always move in a group
• Always have at least one person attending the equipment at all times
• Use caution when crossing roads and busy streets
• Ensure equipment is handled appropriately and safely to avoid risk of injury to oneself or others
• Ensure that a method of navigating is being used e.g. local map, compass, GPS etc. 

3rd Outing: Tracking Shots

On the 3rd time we went out filming we realised we needed tracking shots that could capture some of the conventions of new wave, so we decided to choose a location that could capture the essence of a social issue affecting the local area such as unemployment. We decided to capture some static tracking shots initially just to determine if the way we were shooting the footage and the location would work out the way we hoped. The footage is new wave in the fact it is filmed in a location that reflects a social issue and we were using only one camera, as we have no budget similar to French New Wave films that are filmed with little or no budget at all.



static tracking shots from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

The footage is comprised of shots from two different viewpoints and angles, and I edited it together to give it the appearance of a quick cut, a technique often used in New Wave films, the footage is also shot in high contrast monochrome, another convention of French New Wave, also because the footage was shot in a local area with real peoples reactions to the camera being captured. the footage shows a subject walking through an area that has many rundown shops that have gone out of business to highlight the possible social issue of unemployment in the area.

OH&S: Occupational Health and Safety

During this outing we would be out in public filming shots for our New Wave project and there would be a various amount of safety concerns that we would need to address before we commenced filming as we would be carrying expensive filming equipment and would be in a high traffic area with a large amount of people in the vicinity so we would need to be aware of the various hazard that could occur during the shoot.

• High volume of traffic that could prove dangerous 
• Be aware of the locations reputation e.g. is it known to have high crime rates
• Risk of injury due to falling/dropping equipment/being knocked by passers by/ being hit by traffic/misconduct
• Risk of being hit by traffic as it was a busy area built up area
• Risk of being mugged/robbed
• Risk of dropping/damaging equipment
• Risk of injuring other people through dropping equipment/misconduct

These risks could most likely be avoided and dealt with by taking simple precautions to prevent any of these dangers from becoming a problem such as:

• Always travelling in groups to avoid being mugged/robbed in public
• Share the equipment equally so no one person is over encumbered and risks dropping the equipment and damaging it
• Take caution whilst travelling directly next to the road to avoid falling and being hit by oncoming  traffic
• Ensure that the camera and equipment is never left unattended
• Ensure that whilst filming no passers by accidentally knock over or damage any equipment
• Ensure that whilst filming you are in a relatively open area and easily visible to avoid getting in the way of other people trying to get past
• If and wherever possible film from a location that is out of the way and will cause the least disruption to other people around you
• Ensure that all equipment is secured in a safe manner before commencing filming and packed away whilst travelling to a new posit or location

These precautions will help make sure that no injury or damage is caused to either crew members,equipment or members of the public whilst out filming in the chosen location.

2nd Outing: Camera Movements

During the time that we were filming on location for the second time, we decided to take some shots from an escalator to try and get some interesting camera movements, we had a subject go up and down on as set of escalators and had the camera placed either in front of or behind them, to capture the movement of the subject whilst remaining in focus, and to create a simple, interesting tracking shot.


escalator footage from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

This technique is considered a New Wave camera movement because it is using innovative use of the environment to create a tracking shot of the subject in an interesting way, and also because this technique requires no other special equipment and simply uses modes of transport already present in the environment to its advantage.

This footage is similar to a scene in Jean-Luc Godard's film "Breathless" where the camera is placed on an escalator facing a woman who is travelling up them which then turns to a tracking shot, so we were trying to recreate that in our footage by using a new wave technique.

OH&S: Occupational Health and Safety

     During the filming of this scene and  while practicing this technique there were a few health and safety concerns that needed to be addressed as both the subject and the person operating the camera would be on a moving platform, and there would be other people around them as they were in a public area. These hazards include:

• Both the subject and camera operator would be on a moving surface and could slip/fall and/or injure others nearby
• They would be holding expensive equipment and would be at risk of damaging it 
• Risk of falling on the escalator
• Risk of injuring themselves and/or others

These issues could be easily resolved by taking precautions before shooting, by ensuring that simple measures are taken to prevent any injury that might occur such as:

• Behaving appropriately whilst on the escalators
• Ensure that the subject and camera operator are standing firmly on the escalator
• Ensure that either the subject or camera operator has one hand on the railing for support to avoid loss of balance whilst either ascending or descending
• Ensure that no other people are in very close proximity to the subject/ camera operator whilst filming.
• Consider that other people will be around during filming and that crew members should stay a safe distance from them whilst on the escalators.

These precautions should be enough to prevent any unnecessary injuries that might occur whilst filming in this location, here safety measure will be followed to ensure that no accidental injury to crew members or damage to equipment occurs during filming and also any injury to passers by in the location.

Camera Testing 1st Outing: Camera Movements

Summary

For our first time out filming once we were adjusted to operating the cameras we decided to get creative with certain camera movements, so using objects and structures we had available at the time in our location seemed a good idea. We placed the camera on a tripod and then placed it on a small merry go round and we placed a subject in front of the camera and had it spun around, this proved to create a very interesting way of how the camera moved as while the background was moving and out of focus the subject remained clear and in focus, this generated an interesting effect that we should consider utilising again.



Spinning Shot test 1 from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

New Wave
We tried to perform a series of innovative camera movements during this test to relate it in some way to the techniques of New Wave films, we did this as an attempt to imitate the camera movements or at least create a similar effect as the waltzer scene in Jean Luc Godards " the 400 Blows". We attempted to create a similar effect to that scene by using what was available at the time such as the parks merry go round to create the spinning effect, the use of such innovative methods of camera movements is a New Wave technique of filmmaking as it uses objects in the environment or whatever is available to move the camera in interesting ways without the use of expensive equipment such as a rage to move the camera.

3rd Outing: Light Reflector Tests, Footage

Summary

During this session of filming we were using a new piece of equipment that was unfamiliar to us, what we were using was a portable light reflector that could amplify a light source. On location it was an overcast day so there was not much sunlight, the silver side of the reflector was for use with hard light so a small light source would be required however, as it was during the day that we were filming the light source was too vast so we decided to try the other gold side which generated soft light and we practised using it with a subject while shooting. The result was that our subject was cast in soft light that highlighted their facial features a good feature to use for high contrast lighting, such as in French new wave genre films.


Reflector Tracking Shot Test from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

The camera settings we had to use with this footage was a wide aperture of at least f/1.6 to ensure enough light was absorbed by the cameras sensors and the ISO was set at least 800 with a shutter speed of 1/500s in order to ensure that there was enough light to show the effects of the reflector int he footage, also because with a wide aperture only the subject in the foreground would be in focus during the tracking shot.

The use of a light reflector is considered to be a New Wave technique as it is making use of a cheap, inexpensive form of lighting that is easily portable and can even be homemade if making a low or non budget film. Using a reflector enables the use of light manipulation to create different effects on a subject for very little cost, and it is highly portable and easy to use which makes it a very efficient and cheap alternative to studio lighting.

3rd Outing: Test Footage - Depth of Field

Summary

One of the techniques we experimented with whilst filming was the use of depth of field and focus to add interesting effects to the footage, we were shooting with Canon 5D cameras at an aperture of F/5 a wide aperture that would have sharp focus on objects near the camera lens and shallow focus on objects further away. So we decided to experiment with this aperture to try and create some interesting shots such as with tracking shots, establishing shots and static shots of a subject.


Depth of Field test from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

For this shot we used a wide aperture of f/2.6 on a static tripod so that the background to the shot was out of focus and blurred, so that when the subject approached the camera they would gradually come into focus, as well as an ISO of at least 800 and white balance of 8000k since also whilst filming this we were working in overcast weather conditions. This footage can be seen as new wave as it is using an innovative use of camera to track a subject and uses an inventive use of camera settings and depth of field to track the subject.

3rd Outing: Test Footage - Cutaways

Summary

Another technique we decided to try whilst filming was the use of cutaways on a subject to create a wider variety of interesting shots that would divert the audiences attention from the main subject. We decided to shoot some cutaways to try and show influence to New Wave filming techniques as sometimes the film would suddenly jump cut to something else during a sequence wether it was related to the previous shot or not.



Cutaway Test from Lewis Mercer on Vimeo.

For this footage we intended to use an apertures of f/2.6 with an ISO of 800 to ensure that enough light entered the camera as when we filmed this it was a very overcast day so there was not  a great deal of light we also needed to alter the white balance to at least 8000k due to the over cats conditions during filming. This footage is new wave because we intended to use cutaways and jump cuts in our footage similar to films such as "Breathless" which uses a vast amount of cutaways and jump cuts.

3rd Outing: Evaluation

After this third session of filming, We have found that each time we learn a new technique or use a new piece of equipment, it opens up a wide range of new possibilities for us whilst we're filming. In this case it is the use of the reflector and different uses for depth of field, also we attempted to try to add the use of cutaways into some of the shots, which we found made our shots look more interesting, as experimenting with different things allowed us to be more creative and improve how we filmed each shot. The light reflector was a new piece of equipment for us so were unsure how to properly utilise it until after a few practice shots, and while experimenting with depth of field it also took a while for us to get used to it, as we needed to manually adjust the focus during shots where either the subject or camera were moving. Overall however we managed to obtain some interesting footage that uses new techniques which we had never attempted before and some shots which were greatly improved by using a new piece of equipment.

Light Reflector/Depth of Field testing

Light Reflector Shot

Depth of Field Shot 1

Depth of Field Shot 2

                                                

     

Depth of Field Shot 3

These shots show the effects of our experimentations with the depth of field and the light reflector, the depth of field shots were done by using placing the camera on a tripod with a wide aperture so only the foreground would be in focus, then the subject would be in the background out of focus and would gradually move towards the camera and slowly come into full focus while the background remained in shallow focus. The light reflector shot demonstrates that we learned how it can improve the lighting on a subject even if there is little or no light source which could help us improve if we are to use high contrast lighting in our final edit. 

  
Light Reflector Practice

These shots are examples of how we used the light reflector whilst shooting, and it shows how we needed to adjust the reflector in different ways in order to try and use it properly. we needed to use the reflector in a way so that it wasn't in the shot whilst filming and for that we needed a few practice shoots and we also need to determine how it would move with the camera if we were to do tracking shots, although overall the results seemed appropriate.