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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 :)

Group huddle (personal advice)

Holosynthetic said:
You guys are slowly becoming a new family for me. I'm tired of my real family telling me I'm wasting money on expensive "toys". Thanks for just "getting it".

I have to be the biggest tech nerd / actor alive
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Words I live by...

I'd rather try and fail then fail to try.

Your family's job is discourage you from doing things that make THEM uncomfortable.

However, I feel that if it's not scary and it can't potentially hurt you then you're probably not pushing the envelope. Only when facing fear and destruction will most people know what it's like to live and ultimately learn what we're made of.
 
Failure is just one of the many steps that one has to encounter in order to succeed.

I am sure a lot of successful people has failed before, but most importantly is to learn from our mistake so that we can learn from it.

As long as we have not give up on our path, the battle continues. We may lose a battle but we have not lost the war.
 
I don't post a lot. But I had to in this case. Holosynthetic you are where I was, one year ago. Starting a business has been a learning experiance for me to say the least. If you want to know more about that PM me. One piece of advice I can give is "Make Friends" the addage that "it's all in who you know" is 150% true. Develop a relationship with the sound guys, the gaffers, the grips, the rental house staff, make friends easy and often. You can obtain your goals on your own but the fight is much shorter if you share your vision with a dedicated team of industry professionals. I recently wrapped on an indie picture that we shot on a limited budget. The whole thing came together with some of the best guys in our area ( our sound guy had 35 feature and short projects, our light guy lights for everybody in the state it seems, our fx guy has movies like batman and startrek under his belt ) because of the directors connections and him sharing his vision.

None of the "big" names in hollywood got there on their own.
 
Very true Chris. Networking and forming alliances are the core of any business...but especially the motion media business. Experienced pros will readily mentor a new worker with a good attitude and a hunger to learn. The guy you mentor today may be the one who contracts your services tomorrow! People tend to work with people they like, all things being equal. Online tech forums like RED User are a great way to network. That's what we're doing here...learning about products, but also networking, forming alliances, and getting ideas.

There is no point in your career that you can get lazy, and quit networking. It is the kiss of death for your business. If you think you've arrived and don't need to network...you've just stepped out onto the thinnest ice possible and in for a cold dose of reality.

We are family here in a sense...a big worldwide networking family!
 
insanityfw said:
Your family's job is discourage you from doing things that make THEM uncomfortable.
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I just recently got my motorcycle license...I decided to put off the purchase because I'd rather purchase a couple Xserves and an Xserve RAID, but my family freaked and told me to not get a motorcycle because I would die. gotta love em' :cool:
 
I just saw this and I had to respond... WOW (LOL)

CamDiver said:
I have no house

I have a wreck of a Jeep

I have no debt (now thats a bonus)

I have no wife

I have no Kids

I have no Plasma TV

I have no distractions

I have no vices (don't drink, don't smoke)

I am happy because.........

I do have vision

I do have ambition

I do have a (small) reputation

I do have belief

I do have the Ocean

I do have inner peace

My goal to achieve drives me above all other necessities.
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Holosynthetic said:
I just recently got my motorcycle license...I decided to put off the purchase because I'd rather purchase a couple Xserves and an Xserve RAID, but my family freaked and told me to not get a motorcycle because I would die. gotta love em' :cool:
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That's the way to do it. Tests your passion. Every film related gadget or gizmo I have as well as any project I make respresents somthing else that I've given up.

The same can be said of time. Networking is really key, but you wont find me hanging out at the bar watching sports all the time. I'd rather be using that time with my family or working on my story ideas.

The sacrifices we bring to quiet the voices define who we become.

Continued luck,

Jason
 
Rion,

Yeah...I'd say CamDiver definitely has is priorities well figured out...

Life is full of choices...

You'll remember James Thurber's story of Walter Mitty. No matter what he was doing, he always dreamed of doing something else. My philosophy is to figure out what you would love to do most...and then go figure out how to make a living at it. I made that decision almost 3 decades ago, and I'm still loving my work...

I share most of those same traits that CamDiver listed, but I also have a wife and kids, and its all good...

By the way Rion, I see that was your first post...welcome to RED User!
 
Gibby said:
Just me and my camera
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honestly, it doesn't really matter what camera,
if it is still or moving,
digital or film
high or low res,
expensive or cheap,
on a difficult job or just for fun,
there is something in this experience that is just different,
like focusing ones attention,
and it makes it better to live somehow
 
insanityfw said:
The same can be said of time. Networking is really key, but you wont find me hanging out at the bar watching sports all the time. I'd rather be using that time with my family or working on my story ideas.

The sacrifices we bring to quiet the voices define who we become.

Continued luck,

Jason
Click to expand...

Capital post, Jason. Capital.

This certainly is a fascinating thread.
 
Hi Holo and Gibby,

Right I think I've figured this out, I've put a few pictures on my google
page.

http://philbecque.googlepages.com/betweencreationanddestruction

The first photo is a frame from the VX9000 panning right and upwards to the sky and this was my 'Gibby' moment in Yosemite. This was my first field trip to see what I could get, so expectations were low. But as soon as I saw this in the view finder - BINGO - I knew I was going to finish the project. My limited camera skills, as poor as they were, would be 'good enough'.

The second one is about limited editing skills. I had a nice shot of Bridal Veil Falls and a stock shot (Art Beats) of light coming through the trees. I mixed the images on the timeline so that the falls appear through the trees - lovely! Now my editing skills were 'good enough'.

The third one is about limited Illustrator CS2 skills. I had ten lovely works of art (by Errol le Cain) digitally transfered and I needed a composite of all ten. I can't tell you how many permutations and combinations there are of ten images in ten positions - I lost count - but this one was like the 15th attempt. Again for my purposes 'good enough'.

So my point Holo is that if you are going to be a one man band - like Gibby says you'll need courage and tenacity to get you through. Some patience with your own limitations can help as well.

All the best, Phil
 
Nice images Phil...ethereal, moody, and though-invoking...they speak for themselves...

I don't mean to sound like John Muir or Ansel Adams, but I've stood right in those same locations several times...it's breathtaking...

Nature is the greatest artist…all we can do when we shoot the natural world is try to accurately document what is already there…

Thanks for sharing those!

A camera is an inanimate tech device that only comes to life when a mind uses it to record an image. The images we record are extensions and impressions of the mind that saw them and was moved to record them. When it's an accurate representation of what the shooter saw, then it's such a good feeling! - like "Yeah...that's what I saw and envisioned!".

Images are everywhere. Every shooter I know, whether they shoot stills, motion media, or both, constantly sees framings and images everywhere around them. It's something that can't be "shut off" (as if you'd want to). No matter where I am, my brain has a subtext of seeing the framings, analyzing the lighting, textures, colors, etc.

Holosynthetic, in order to work you need tools. If the tools you choose can be cost-effective, but at the same time provide you a lot of room for professional and aesthetic growth, then that is definitely the way to go. That's RED One. At RED One's projected specs, the performance-to-cost ratio is off the scale compared to your outlay for other camera systems. You still need to add in talent, pay dues to get more experience, and have tenacity, but at least the tech end of your production world will not be full of limitations. In my opinion, with RED One the biggest challenge for everyone will be getting our skill sets broad enough and deep enough to really be able to explore and use all the capability that is being built into RED One.
 
If you had ever read a book and imagined filming it
If you ever felt unexplainable creative urge of any kind
If technology is your toy
If your mind absorbs inspiration like a sponge and erupts ideas like a geyser


If you ever stopped and admired the sky...


that makes two at least here.


now between 2 and 1000.....I wonder how many more
 
Well said Omen...

Like bees to honey...there are undoubtedly many more out there...
 
Hi Gibby - Omen and anyone else out there!

Many thanks for the comments Gibby I can't tell you what that means to me coming from a pro like yourself - I've gone all goose bumps! That's good BTW in case that one doesn't translate!

This is the first time I've talked about my creative process to anyone! And I have to say there's something very pleasant about that.

And it looks like we've all been cast out of the same mould Omen elucidates so well.

It's funny, I remember going into the office one day, I walked down to end where there was a large window. There were some very unusual clouds - there was a whole series of them - they looked a bit like enourmous jelly fish - I stopped and goggled - 'Wow look at that I says' to the folk in the office - 'that's incredible' - they peer out the window and look at each other as if to say 'what' ??

'that's really very beautiful' I says - their reply - 'What have you been smoking?' (I do have a bit of a reputation to live down as I worked in the music biz in the 70's) 'Nothing' I protest. They just couldn't see it . . . . .

I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that but I felt a bit sorry for them. I was able to derive real pleasure from some simple clouds - to them it was just the threat of rain.

"A camera is an inanimate tech device that only comes to life when a mind uses it to record an image. The images we record are extensions and impressions of the mind that saw them and was moved to record them. When it's an accurate representation of what the shooter saw, then it's such a good feeling! - like "Yeah...that's what I saw and envisioned!".

This really hits the spot for me mate!! While we are on clouds - apart from a circular polarizing filter have you got any other suggestings - Gibby, Omen?

Warm regards, Phil
 
Tranquil_Light said:
Hi Gibby - Omen and anyone else out there!

Many thanks for the comments Gibby I can't tell you what that means to me coming from a pro like yourself - I've gone all goose bumps! That's good BTW in case that one doesn't translate!

This is the first time I've talked about my creative process to anyone! And I have to say there's something very pleasant about that.

And it looks like we've all been cast out of the same mould Omen elucidates so well.

It's funny, I remember going into the office one day, I walked down to end where there was a large window. There were some very unusual clouds - there was a whole series of them - they looked a bit like enourmous jelly fish - I stopped and goggled - 'Wow look at that I says' to the folk in the office - 'that's incredible' - they peer out the window and look at each other as if to say 'what' ??

'that's really very beautiful' I says - their reply - 'What have you been smoking?' (I do have a bit of a reputation to live down as I worked in the music biz in the 70's) 'Nothing' I protest. They just couldn't see it . . . . .

I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that but I felt a bit sorry for them. I was able to derive real pleasure from some simple clouds - to them it was just the threat of rain.

"A camera is an inanimate tech device that only comes to life when a mind uses it to record an image. The images we record are extensions and impressions of the mind that saw them and was moved to record them. When it's an accurate representation of what the shooter saw, then it's such a good feeling! - like "Yeah...that's what I saw and envisioned!".

This really hits the spot for me mate!! While we are on clouds - apart from a circular polarizing filter have you got any other suggestings - Gibby, Omen?

Warm regards, Phil
Click to expand...

Phil, I've done the same thing. Very well put, man.
 
Drinking the Kool-aid

Drinking the Kool-aid

Cheers to all my mates out there - reading this thread is like an elixir.

Through the years I have created media at many levels, for many reasons with varying degrees of satisfaction. I have even felt good about making boring but technically excellent pieces just to pay the bills - it sharpened my skills and with the bills under control I knew I could take on projects with little or no pay that I really wanted to do.

As long as you are learning its rarely a bad choice.

For obvious finanacial reasons most of my work since film school has been video. Some of the technical limitations of the video acquisition tools that have been at my disposal (even the expensive rented ones) have always been a frustration to the artist in me. I have learned how to mitigate the impact of limited dynamic range, limited color gamut, limited DoF control, etc but the perfectionist in me always gnawed away.

Jim has given us all a great gift by making a truly amazing imaging device available at a price that makes ownership, rather than rental, a real possiblity for many artists. The ability to mount still lenses of excellent quality on the RedOne opens up so many creative possibilites.

Whatever it is that we all have inside us that makes us willing to even talk about sacrificing "x" or "y" for our art is the starting point. The steps we must take to manifest that art is the journey. Having the technology to make that a dramatically more satisfying experience is intoxicating.

Damn I want that camera in my hands.
 
Hi Blair - what was it like going to film school?

Did they cover all aspects of film/movie creation? When you had finished the course did you feel confident you could make your first film?

Did they teach you about lens's? I don't know anything about them - do you know of a beginners guide to professional lens usage ?

As things stand I'm going to get my RED ONE and not have anything to stick on the business end of things. Any helpful tips about what I should be looking out for? I only do docs and I love natural landscapes. If you do make any suggestions can say why a particular lens would be useful?

Thanks a million, Phil
 
Keep learning always

Keep learning always

Phil - film school is like a lot of things in life, you get out what you put in to it. I was was one of only 3 students out of 30+ that actually finished their final (16mm) film.

Lens usage is a pretty broad subject that got short shift in my program. Obviously it has a big impact in presenting relationships but there are many other factors involved too numerous to go into here.

In terms of finding lenses that suit your taste and needs I strongly recommend that you borrow and rent before you buy. I know that may be very difficult if you are in a remote location so when you travel try and schedule a couple of days where there are many lenses available so you can test your brains out. Also read all of Evin's stuff, I learn a lot there myself.
 
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