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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

cheap people

Hardware is overrated ( in todays age anyway ) Wetware is where the profit is at.
 
My motto is - never, ever purchase a camera hoping to make your money back on it. Purchase it for personal projects, for an entry level way to make contacts, and as a learning tool.

Even as a professional shooter, if you let everyone know you have a camera, they will expect you to bring it on for free or a ridiculously cut rate. It's almost better to not go with a camera and have the production rent it out on their own and cover their own insurance.
 
Jason Rudd said:
Even as a professional shooter, if you let everyone know you have a camera, they will expect you to bring it on for free or a ridiculously cut rate. It's almost better to not go with a camera and have the production rent it out on their own and cover their own insurance.
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So true!!! As soon as they know, they expect it. Happened couple of times.
 
Jason Rudd said:
My motto is - never, ever purchase a camera hoping to make your money back on it. Purchase it for personal projects, for an entry level way to make contacts, and as a learning tool.

Even as a professional shooter, if you let everyone know you have a camera, they will expect you to bring it on for free or a ridiculously cut rate. It's almost better to not go with a camera and have the production rent it out on their own and cover their own insurance.
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Definitely agree with all of this.

When we usually hire a freelancer for a larger production, we often will hire the gear for them for this very reason.
 
Just want to say, I think you're just down on luck. Your work is pretty damn nice. Maybe you're just looking in the wrong place for clients?
 
Clients want to see that you've shot exactly what they want to produce, even if it's as pedestrian as a talking head for a local ad or a corporate shoot or straight videography. The catch 22, especially for DPs and directors, is you can't do anything until you've already done it. Even if you have a great wildlife reel, am I going to hire you over someone who has a mediocre narrative reel for narrative? No. It's not about quality in any objective terms, it's about supply and demand. Personally I think the mid-tier owner/op market is dying. The FS100/C100/Scarlet owners are in an eroding no man's land unless they've established a client base around their work and not their gear, as the market is flooded with that gear. Lenses or lights are a better investment unless you find yourself working so often that buying, rather than renting, a camera body, would increase your net income. Few people fall into that camp... most of us just enjoy having a cool camera. Fwiw, toward the high end the F5/F55 seem to be gaining a lot of traction and the Alexa is well-established as being reliable and easy to post with for quick turnaround corporate and commercial gigs, and toward the low end dSLRs will continue to dominate for some time. The mid-range (FS100/C100/Scarlet) is a bad place to be unless you are marketing yourself as a b-camera operator or something. Those cameras aren't worth much more to a production than a dSLR, but when you charge a dSLR rate with one the implication is that you undervalue your own skills. The market has changed incredibly quickly. If you do all your work in-house and are just selling the result, use whatever the hell you want.

Either look at what the market wants and shoot some of that on spec (corporate work is nice, high end local ads and mid-budget ads are great if you can get them, apparently there's money in narrative and shorts, though I've yet to find it) or find a network, either by applying specifically to work as a camera op for what you already do well (the little I saw of your work is excellent, but it gives me no idea how you light a face, for instance) or build a network by starting over as an AC or something. I strongly recommend against the owner/op route at this point as a career move unless you're already well-established and have a network of clients offering you steady work onto which you want to add a rental bill.

Most of all, don't let you get you down. It's what's wrong with the market, not you.
 
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camera investments are no longer what they use to be..

everyone has a scarlet or equivalent, and ive seen people hocking their cameras out for next to nothing and going along FREE as a "DIT"
 
AlexJones said:
Hey everyone so I've had the Scarlet for about a year and I have only had 3 clients. I'm posting on craigslist, reduser, mandy, la411, i've cold called and cold emailed too many people. My prices are ridiculously low and even then, I need to take it lower for those few clients I'm getting. My usual price is $500/day for the full red camera package, Zeiss CP.2 lenses and me as the operator. My client for tomorrow wants to take that to $400 because he can't afford an extra 1. Some emails and calls are free gigs! it's ridiculous! What's going on? I feel like i'm the only red owner who has had this much bad luck. I feel like i've exhausted my options. any suggestions would be amazing thanks!
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Alex... I used to shoot a long time ago, out of film school and then I transitioned to directing and editing, foregoing "film" because I hated dealing with it. I basically stopped shooting for a while so I found a DP who's AMAZING. How did I find him? Through a friend who found him... through a recommendation. All word of mouth. He's amazingly talented and fun to work with, never undermining you as a director on set, always cordial with the talent (even when they're being a bit 'difficult'). I still use him to this day, eight years now? Only when I have a real budget though because, like the article said, I'm not being a "grinder"... he's worth what he's worth so I can focus on my directing. However, when it's lower-budgets, I just shoot myself (learned a LOT from him over the years) but it's just hard to direct and shoot at the same time.

Just my one cent... here's how he did it;

-- He found QUALIFY "low budget" projects with true up-and-coming directors, not all of these posers out here in LA. When he did my first gig, we did it for pennies and three people in the "crew" -- him, a PA, and myself... and we made a solid video, I think (and the artist is now HUGE).
-- He handled his business and didn't undercut himself. This is KEY I think. I remember when I was working as an editor for one of the three main networks and I thought they were underpaying me but I didn't know... then a buddy of mine recommended me to someone and he said to ask for double -- DOUBLE? When asked my rate... I said it and the guy didn't flinch. Why? Because there's a certain level of assurance with a guy who charges a decent rate vs. someone charging "out of college" rates. Personally, I wouldn't trust a DP who'd be willing to do all of that work for a couple hundred a day.
-- The directors he's worked with all turned into legit directors (hopefully I'm one of them, haha) but they were professional enough back then to understand that a "freebie" or cheap rate back then means that's a ONE TIME rate... if someone's professional, all parties will understand this. When these directors take off, they'll come back with real money.

Basically, what I'm saying is that you have to obviously be great at your job. Get your reel developed... shoot spec stuff that's great, cinematic. Then, take that reel to GOOD bands and shoot the a music video - but not just anyone, legit bands. Or, do short films that are GOOD. Don't do anything for cheap or free unless you get a GREAT piece for your reel. Most of the productions who can't afford to pay you also can't pay the actors and they get awful acting, awful scripting -- not worth your time. Or, hell, if you can't find anything you like, write and shoot something on spec, that'll show off your skills.

Don't get frustrated though... think of it like this... if you have kids, would you randomly pick a babysitter out of a phonebook or Craigslist? Of course not. You ask around. With film, just make sure that you know people in those circles who, when asked, will refer you.
 
AlexJones said:
I have 2 great showreels and a website good enough.

LINK - https://vimeo.com/49202914
LINK - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoBW6Q0DfLo

Everyone loves them and my work but no one seems to want to pay for anything and expects the best.
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Your stuff looks solid man. Have you checked with production companies that get hired by Nat Geo and Discovery Channel? You'd be great with that, as well as reality programming "b-roll", like I had on a show I produced. I think if you work your way into a number of these companies. When you get into one company, the other will trust you for that reason alone and now you work for two companies... then you start ping-ponging. Check IMDB Pro for the various Field Producers as well, especially for the material you seem to enjoy. Find the kind of show you want to work on and find the crew. I'm telling you, as a former producer, I would have given you a shot on my show... so find the lower producer who will be out and about with you, the Field or Segment Producers.

I know how frustrated you are, trust me. I stayed in another state for four years building my reel and skills, then when I got to LA it was more harsh than I expected... I worked my way in without "knowing anyone" and I'm so fortunate that for the last 12 years, I literally haven't sent a single resume or credit list for work... all word of mouth. With so much money on the line, it's about trust, skill and great attitude on set.
 
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