Whilst having an excellent narrative, representation and potential audience appeal is all very important, you have to be able to use the technology to show this. This is why use of hardwares and softwares was very important for us. If we were unable to use the hardware well, we would not get good shots. If we were unable to use the software well, we would not have been able to edit them well.
Hardware
We used a Canon 550D. Below is a tutorial explaining how we used it. The main reason for shooting on this camera was the 50fps setting that was unavailable on the DV-30.
We did not use the the Canon Legria DV-30 because it did not enable us to shoot in higher fps. We also preferred the quality of the shots on the 550D. However, the DV-30 can record better audio so we used it to record back up audio in all of our dialogue shots. We were originally only going to use the 550D for the POV shot and the DV-30 for all shots there after. However, the frame size was differed between the two. I learnt that even though two cameras may be on similar settings, the cinematographic effects can be vastly different, and this is why we decided to film all of our footage on the 550D.
We used 650 and 750 Arri Redheads. For most shots we used the two 650 lights because the light was not as strong and gave softer shadows, that made it less obvious that we were using artificial lighting. In the final shot were Eve smiles, we bounced the light off the wall and onto her face, giving the impression that she is standing under a street light.
The problem with the redheads was that they became hot very quickly, and heated up an already stuffy and small room with around 15 cast and crew inside. To make conditions as desirable as possible for us and the actors, we had multiple fans in the room, opened the window when not shooting and allowed the actors to leave when they were not the next few shots. Also the heat meant that we had to wear protective gloves when handling the lights. We warned actors not to touch them and also alerted them to the many cables due to the various pieces of equipment.
At the beginning we lit Rakhi directly with two lights. This resulted in a very weird nose shadow as you can see above! To combat this problem, we researched lighting tutorials (below) and then lit shots with funny shadows by bouncing light off a wall or the ceiling. Lighting was very important for our group as we used specific lighting to create various connotations. For example, there is a very large contrast in lighting between the beginning POV shot in which there is a strobe and the light is quite soft, in comparison to the harsh,high-key lighting of the overdose scene. The lighting in the shot of Eve walking up the stairs created a silhouette, connoting mystery and enigma, because we cannot see her face or find out who she is. I personally learnt a lot about the significance of lighting, and how much it can effect mise-en-scene among other things. Good lighting is a necessity for a good shot, and the importance of lighting and the variety of effects it can create are something I am far more aware of since the beginning of this process.
A used a basic tripod. This prevented shake on our static shots. We learnt that getting the tripod at the correct angle. For example, for a normal shot for which the tripod is not at any angle, it must be deadly straight. Any minor error was magnified on the camera, especially when there are straight lines in the shot.
We used a PAGlight to light our first (POV) shot, so that the camera could see clearly everything in the foreground. Because it was so light, we were able to attach it to the camera with tape, which avoided a second person following the camera and having to try and synchronise where both the camera and PAGlight were pointed. It was through this shot that we learnt the importance of lighting with regards to grain. If I was to do this again I would have used the camera settings further to our advantage to try and capture more light, and if this had not worked I would have lit grainy shots more, but indirectly, such as bouncing light from the ceiling.
We used a strobe light for our first scene. Whilst it was possible to put this in via after effects, we chose to use an actual strobe because it created a better atmosphere in which the actors were more comfortable dancing in. We were also able to enhance this through grading.
We had the option of using filters to create a light effect for shots. Below is a powerpoint presentation with photographs of the effects that the filters we tested created. We eventually decided against using one, because also we liked some of the effects, it added extra complication that would not necessarily be consistent, and we realised that we would be able to create a similar effect by our grading.
We were able to transport all of our hardware from school to location and back by getting the bus or a lift from Alice's parents (we borrowed it all the equipment from the media department). Especially when getting the bus, it was important that all of the equipment was portable and that we were able to transport it without help from members outside of our group. This portability ensured that our creativity did not rely on portability issues.
Software
Below there are two voiceover videos. These demonstrate the basic techniques that we used on the following softwares which were key in enabling us to be able to put together to our final project.
Adobe Premiere Pro Voiceover Walk-Through
We chose to use Adobe Premiere Pro because it was the most advanced editing software we had available, and this meant that it gave us maximum creative freedom; we did not have to think of ways around editing, because we were able to do pretty much everything we needed to. Below there is a video and voiceover outlining the details of how we used Premiere Pro.
We also used Premiere Pro grading to edit a background video to create our wave-like title background.
Adobe After Effects Voiceover Walk-Through
After Effects was our savoir because it meant we didn't have to re-shoot due to grain! In this video I have talked about how we used the "remove grain" effect.
To create our titles we used Livetype. Livetype enabled us to put effects onto the titles such as the ghosting effect by which our titles disappear. We learnt that it was important that the effects were seamless and fitted in with the rest of the the shot rather that detract from it.
We got our font from dafont.com. We learnt that the wrong font can have completely unwanted connotations, and so we were careful when choosing ours: we wanted it to be rather basic but still slightly quirky and trippy.
We used audition to record background audio to give the overdose scene more atmosphere. We also recorded lines of dialogue such as "What's going on?" to make it clear that not everyone realised what happened at the exact same time, which something we discovered through feedback.
Overall we learnt that technologies should be much more of help than they are a hindrance, and that if used to their full potential they should not be the main concern; they should be used as a means to get the effect desired. Creativity should be able to be demonstrated through use of technologies: they are the means to an end.
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