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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 :)

Insane Cinematography

Christian Munoz D

Christian Munoz D

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Jun 26, 2007
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Age
58
Location
USA-Chile-Worldwide ----Red One & Epic Owner----
Website
www.christianmunozdonoso.com
I was scavenging my old VHS tapes and I found a video from the mid nineties with a music video recorded from TV….. I had forgotten how insane was the cinematography on some MJ music videos… great memories!
So, I searched for it online to see if I can share with you guys. Here it is!

 
I remember that vid, a real gem. Beautiful, well-crafted and heartfelt.
 
Hi Christian,

The DP/Director on that video was Nick Brandt. He did a number of well know music videos and was being thrown directing jobs for features as well. I think they got stuck in development hell, and with a hatred of florescent lights he quit the industry after finding Africa. He is now the number one wildlife photographer doing incredible stills. When Nick Brandt takes a photo he captures a moment that few people have ever been capable of... Anasel Adams comes to mind. He has several books that I would highly recommend. I've been fortunate to trade a few email with him regarding a project that I'm working on.

http://www.nickbrandt.com/

BCas+ycK7fEHh+nyPf5K5MbPyAUgbsRrHHPREV0sJz3_Yj6hMYdjZFvi++qQeEpK.jpg
 
Hi Michael,

As a wildlife filmmaker I am very aware of his work. I had been following the development of his trilogy books about the nature of East Africa. To me his greatest accomplish is been able to capture images of wild animals without telephoto lenses. Like the lion you just posted….just great!
 
I've seen your site, you do some nice wildlife work too. How have you found working with Epic. I'll be taking my new scarlet to the Serengeti next month... hopefully it come by then.

A friend of mine has taken Nick out on safari and said that he takes very few photos. It's incredible patience and timing to get those images. I love the new Lake Natron series he has. Rather morbid, but incredible.

NB.%2BCape%2BDove.jpg
 
Great thread. Thanks guys.
That lion photo... I just couldn't move for staring for a good minute.
I'm going back to it now...

Best
Lliam
 
Michael Dalton said:
I've seen your site, you do some nice wildlife work too. How have you found working with Epic. I'll be taking my new scarlet to the Serengeti next month... hopefully it come by then.
Click to expand...

Ooh Thanks! Actually I think Epic is a great camera, but per some reason took me some time to habituate to her. Maybe it is the ergonometric? Something similar happened with my Bolex H16 SBM, took me some time to get into her. With my Red One we fell in love the first 5 minutes, same with my Arri SR II in the past.
I would love to know how Scarlet behaves in the Serengeti. PM me with details.
 
I'd love for you and Gibby to start a thread with your thoughts on experiences shooting on epic in bush. Because of technical constraints (power, small crew, data management) the Red work flow is more of a challenge for us. For the past year I have been shooting a series on volcanos, and in some cases in extremely tough environments from the Danakil in Ethiopia to remote Islands in the indian Ocean. There has been a lot of climbing and kept on thinking I may have died carrying all the gear needed (I don't have any crew). I have specifically chosen my next series so that we can work more from land rover fully kited out with power and comfort. I'll need time to figure out my workflow before taking it to the extreme. A 2lb Swit battery may not seem like much, but try carrying it up 17,000 ft. Especially if you need 6 of them or more.

It was nice to see the 3D rig in Dallol Ethiopia, but I suspect that stuff was brought in by chopper. Carrying it in... even if using camels etc is a challenge. At a place called Erta Ale I arranged for 2 camels to carry camera gear, but in the end when they arrived a couple of days later, we had just enough for personal gear. I had a 1/2 a camel for stuff and had to hike in all my camera gear myself in 45 degree Celsius heat.

Will send a report next month.
 
Totally agree. But the technical part and workflow with Red cameras haven’t been a big issue for me. I remember the days shooting with super 16 in the Atacama desert and the Altiplano in the Andes mountains… 40C during the day -10C at night, trying to keep the film barrels and magazines to a decent temperature. NICA Batteries were a pain in the ass, traveling with 500 pounds of equipment, climbing mountains no once or twice, 10 times or more to bring the necessary equipment to the shooting location.. uff!! And forget with reviewing your footage until weeks later to just find out if you did the work right or not.
Nowadays we do have similar problems with weight, with the difference we have more options per pound, more battery life, more footage storage, less worries about issues with temperature. No matter if you are in middle of Africa, Patagonia or Alaska, today we can charge computer, sound and camera batteries with a small light weight solar panel, and review your footage on site… Great times indeed.
Although generally I work as a one band shooter on my wildlife projects, if the budget allow it I will rather move everything in a chopper, horses (camels in your case) or having PAs on the field. But my regular kit for wildlife is a backpack with the camera, a few batteries, a couple of lenses, a blind and a tripod. If I want to shoot scenery I add a jib, a slider and a few other goodies, of course I need to split the walk in order to bring everything to the location.
 
Interesting thread.

Do you have a preferred solar panel charger Christian?
 
Christian Munoz D said:
I was scavenging my old VHS tapes and I found a video from the mid nineties with a music video recorded from TV….. I had forgotten how insane was the cinematography on some MJ music videos… great memories!
So, I searched for it online to see if I can share with you guys. Here it is!

Click to expand...

Review all the Madonna vids from that same period. I did one night . . . fucking amazing what was going on like 15 years ago. Madonna was way before her time with concept, team selection and production value in her visual art. She is, and will forever be, the WOman! Katy, Gaga and Britt are just wee little girls by comparison.
 
Christian Munoz D said:
Eric,

I do own a 2’x2’ rigid panel specially made for me by a Chilean engineer/company 10-15 years ago, looks similar to this one, just one piece it can charge a car battery in a few hours.

http://www.yonofoco.com/zamp-rv-marine-camper-portable-solar-power-kit-80-watts.html


Now I am looking to the foldable ones specially made for military use like this one

http://www.affordable-solar.com/sto...i-pac15-15-watt-foldable-flexible-solar-panel
Click to expand...

Nice - thanks very much for the information Christian!
 
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