Our Video Production Blog
I've been out filming on the new kit today; I decided to use only one lens each time I produce these series of videos so you can see the direct difference between them, as well as how you can use them in a variety of ways. The 5DmkIII was mounted onto the MODA rig in micro-rig mode as for a couple of the shots I would be filming low angle, out of windows etc.
The video will be up soon!
Sunday is always a hectic day for me, and yesterday encompassed helping Glen with his dissertation; he interviewed me about getting jobs in the broadcasting industry after university. He filmed it on the 5DmkIII, Samyang 85mm T1.5 Cine, Lilliput field monitor, Zoom H6 & Sennheiser ENG-100, Manfrotto 055CX and my new MODA RIG - in studio production mode.
It was a great opportunity for me to test out all of the new equipment on a video shoot together, and being on the other side of the camera was definitely interesting form me!
We then took a trip up to Epsom Downs, it was a really clear day so from the viewpoint I could see London on the horizon, with the Shard gleaming in the winter sunlight. This was taken on the 5D with the Sigma 70-200.
I got some pictures of the MODA rig in action, we were using it in two setups for the various shoots that day; the production mode for a large DSLR body and lens with cage and shoulder mount, as well as micro rig mode for a Canon 60D and cage. This shows how flexible the MODA rig really is in different shooting scenarios!
We then jetted off to Nutfield Priory near Redhill for the last video shoot of the day, for Steve from Partytime entertainment. He has an awesome new setup with white speakers, moving heads, star cloth, light up dance floor and now a dry ice machine!
Using the MODA rig with the Canon 5DmkIII, and a combination of lenses from Samyang 14mm T3.1 to Tamron 24-70 to a GoPro, myself and Glen captured the night. The dry ice was used for the couples first dance which looked great!
The footage from this shoot will go to John Harris Media, as part of a bigger project with Partytime, so I am looking forward to seeing the results!
I have also been working on the behind the scenes videos for the SWPP conference, showing how you can use Canon, Manfrotto and Elinchrom products to produce fantastic video on DSLR. I've been experimenting with beauty looks for one of the models...
Grading test for Canon/MF/Elinchrom BTS
There will be lots more coming over the next few days, I am currently buried under lots of post production work as well as developing Camsmarts new products too. Tonight I am out filming and taking photos for a new florist at Epsom RAC, so look forward to some new beauty snaps!
Happy New Year to you!
I have the pleasure of working with the footage I shot down in Falmouth last weekend with Bjorn Thomassen we are both sponsored by Manfrotto so we took the opportunity to film new products and features, as well as how to shoot video on a DSLR! These videos will be available online, as well as on major suppliers websites. It will also be shown at The Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers conference in Jan! I filmed the Behind The Scenes of the production, showing how photographic styles, techniques and equipment can be used to transist from photo into video with Canon cameras, Manfrotto grip gear and Elinchrom lights.
This is my view for the day, not bad aye :P I do love my job!
The results are incredible. After using my Canon 60D for the last two years, stepping up to the Canon 5DmkIII has dramatically improved the picture quality that I capture. Teamed up with Samyang (Rokinon) VDSLR cine lenses and you have an awesome camera setup for cinematic visuals. Yes, I captured the video in ALL-I compression (the lowest compression available), as Magic Lantern does not have a firmware upgrade for the new 5D 1.2.3 firmware :( I hope that comes out soon!
I've been busy over the last couple of days, working on both John Sinclair videos, as well as the arrival of the professional camera rig I designed. It is still a prototype so some changes will be made, but so far it is a great fabrication of my design I proposed 18 months ago!!
I've since been working on the John Sinclair documentary, which I've titled 'Behind The Smoke' in Adobe Premiere, which has been going very smoothly. I've also finished the title sequence using footage from the Amsterdam gig rehearsal, as well as using outstanding quotes from John, it is accompanied by the track Mohawk of his new album with Steve Fly.
I used the layers blending modes to merge the layers together, as well as distorting the text (in a bold font like the 70's John Sinclair posters) and animating them in a style that conveys the subject.
I will post the video up later!
Definitely agree with Vox here, especially as I've done the research into hiring vs buying. Check out my post later today for my thoughts :)
The job today.. Photographing the funeral of the father of one of my dads friends. Never done this before, so the good old internet helped me out there - http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-photograph-a-funeral-4-tips-i-hope-you-never-have-to-use
So far, I know I only need to photograph the end of the ceremony at the crematorium with the flowers, so being non-intrusive and invisible will be a key point to me. I have already spoken to the client beforehand to discuss the requirements, which is doubly important than just turning up and snapping away, as you would assume.
I'll be on a 17-50 and a 50 f/1.4 predominantly, nothing fancy or on a large scale, and definitely no flash.
I'm off later on so you shall hear how it went later this afternoon!
I left for Amsterdam at 4am on Friday 23rd, heading for Gatwick with Sam who really kindly drove me there! Having taken some equipment with me when I went to Amsterdam for the first time for IBC, however this time I would be covering a music event with multiple cameras so the kit list looked something like the following..
3 x DSLR bodies (2 Canon 60D, 1 Nikon D5000)
6 x lenses ranging from 17mm to 85mm
2 x Manfrotto ML360 LED lights
2 x Superclamp + magic arms
1 x Zoom H2
A load of extra things to cover my back just in case!
![BZrcW6DCEAEX73b[1]](http://ajp1991.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/bzrcw6dceaex73b1.jpg)
Copyright Adam Plowden 2013.
I got to Amsterdam at around 9am and headed for breakfast. Knowing how busy the Damrak is, I headed West and found a little cafe to chow down on breakfast. Like England, Amsterdam suffers from grim weather, so rain it was.
Copyright Adam Plowden 2013.
Now re-charghed, I headed to 420 Cafe, where Steven 'fly' works; the guy I met while I was over here in Sept, and offered me the job to come over and film the gig he is playing drums at; John Sinclair & His Vipers, on the opening night of the 2013 Cannabis Cup. For those unfamiliar with John Sinclair, he inspired John Lennon, writes amazing poetry and produces podcasts for Radio Free Amsterdam. With a huge following and message, capturing his performance was key to promoting John and moving his message forward into the age of video!
After dropping off my bags at Stevens, we had a look at the venue 'Arkhnaton' just round the corner from 420. It is a small venue with a corner stage, dark and faded which added to the aesthetic of jazzy, smoke filled Amsterdam gigs.
Copyright Adam Plowden 2013.
I then got to meet Mark from Iron Man records, and Claire, a producer back in 420 and got chatting about ourselves, the anticipation for that nights performance and how we can get the best material to push John Sinclair into the limelight. Through the cloudy room appeared John and Nick fresh off the train from England! We had a great time talking and relaxing in the great ambiance of 420.
After 26 hours of traveling, walking and getting settled back into Dam life, it was time for me to crash.
Up at 4pm the next day, recovered from the day before I was ready for a meal and to get on with the production that night. Steven and myself headed to John's favorite Indian restaurant on Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal and tucked into the best chicken madras I've ever eaten. Followed by a short walk across the road, we arrived at The Arkhnaton and began setting up for the gig later.
Copyright Adam Plowden 2013.
Naively, I forgot to pack the power cable for the field monitor, so I had to suffice with the on camera screen and viewfinder. I had a 60D on a tripod central to the stage with the 85mm F/1.8, with another 60D to my left a couple of feet higher than myself for a wide shot (with a superclamp and magic arm). Over to the right I had a D5000 with a 35mm F/1.8 for an extra cutaway shot.
Ready for the gig, I chilled while the band set up and rehearsed. I got some snaps and shots of John and his Vipers performing to build up a collective of promo material.
Copyright Adam Plowden 2013.
The blues and poetry were in full swing, Steve Fly on drums, Vince on guitar, accompanied by a last minute sax and horn player to add a touch of brassy class. Having Magic Lantern on the cameras eliminated the restart issue, so syncing up in post would be easier. It was a fantastic gig, and great to hear Johns poems in person.
Knackered from another late one, I turned around the memory cards and equipment the next day, racking up 70Gb of footage over 3 hours or so! It was enough of work, and time to enjoy Amsterdam.
I had a fab time with the 420 guys Janne, Eli and Tias when we went on a trip around town for a Cannabis Refugee's project, I accompanied with my camera, capturing the nights events in a number of hotspots around the city; Grey Area, Greenhouse, ending back at 420 for some more giggles and fun.
It was my 22nd birthday on the 27th Nov, so in true celebratory style, cake for breakfast! Followed quickly by Wok To Walk, which is like a Chinese version of McDonands which they have brought to Soho!! Thanks to Steven and the guys I had myself an exhibitor pass to the Cannabis Cup 2013, so the rest of the Cannabis Refugee filming went on the road! As a tourist, it was create to experience this new open culture and lifestyle!
There's Annika! Stevens flatmate and my new found seed genius!
After that, I got to see The Wailers (minus Bob of course) at The Melkweg, a local gig venue to the Leidsplein, which was awesome!! They played all the best tunes, a great end to the day.
![1474556_10153515152950510_1702651799_n[1]](http://ajp1991.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/1474556_10153515152950510_1702651799_n1.jpg)
Copyright Adam Plowden 2013
Being a techie, its a bad habit of mine to check up on what the guys working are up to..
It was soon my last day in Amsterdam, it always comes around too quickly as I never get around to do all the things I wanted; museums, canal boat tour etc.. But it is winter and I was there for work so that is my excuse!
Now back home, I'm in the edit suite working on the multi-camera edit of the video!
I'm working on my laptop, so progress is a little slower than if I was working on a full powered machine, however I have got through most of it over the last couple of days, spending most of my time re-syncing the clips together.. Working with 3 cameras in post on a 1 man live crew is certainly interesting!
If you haven't already, check out some of my other stills I took, including a performance from Steven and Vince in a Squat house!
Thanks to Steven Fly for the job and for letting me stay at your place for my stay, thanks to Mark and Claire for your help with the video, as well as the guys from 420; Janne, Eli, Tias, Laura, Claire, Francesca, Annika, John and Caleb and anyone else who I've missed out!
Do you want video for your business, event or organization? Video is a powerful and vast marketing tool, get in touch at info@adamplowden.co.uk for more on what I can do for you!
Check out my snaps, all are copyright Adam Plowden Videography 2013. Places include various sights from walking around the city of diamonds! [gallery ids="594,595,596,597,598,599,600,601,602,603,604,605,606,607,608,609,610,611,612,613,614,615"]
Hello all! Here is the anticipated review of the new Manfrotto Backpack50, the flagship range of professional photography and videography bags for cameras and equipment.
The new range comes in a variety of sizes depending on the equipment and lenses you use. If you are going to be shooting for ENG, or know you will need fast access to your camera and lens kit then the Holster range may be for you, or if you're looking for a perma-home for a vast range of bodies, lenses and accessories then a Roller Bag or Backpack will be for you.
I got a great surprise through the post a couple of weeks ago, it was the Backpack50, which I have been using out on photo and video shoots, testing it to the extreme in a wide range of shooting situations such as weddings, on location video and corporate events.
First things first, as you can see the bag is BIG! Not too big that it is laborious to carry around, as the support straps provide great comfort for a fully packed bag. Having a bigger bag eliminates the need to bring extra sling bags if you take laptops and tablets on shoots, as there two separate zip pockets for both, and also allows me (predominantly shooting video) to keep all of my essentials in one place. For example, the bag is currently full with my kit needed for a shoot for Tesco on Friday, so a 7" HD field monitor, clamps, Rode VideoMic, 2x DSLR bodies and 6 lenses sit snugly in the protective separators. I have all I need in one convenient place, a perfect solution especially as I am a SINGLE shooter.
Overview of the Backpack50's features:
Unlike other camera bags which open from the side or the back, the Backpack50 opens from the top, which allowed me to quickly grab my camera (with lens attached) almost immediately with ease. If you've got the waist support done up then this is even quicker as you can swing the bag from your back to front and grab the camera that way. The other handy feature of this is that you can have a telephoto lens attached to the camera and still take it out with ease, as the support pads can be customized to fit your individual kit needs.
Here you can see the bag open, the top flap unzips all the way down revealing many side pockets, 3 zip pockets on the flap (which I use for little bits that I can grab quickly such as batteries, SD cards, hot shoe adapters etc). There is even a protected zip pocket for a tablet if you have one too!
The capacity of the Backpack50 is fantastic! As I mentioned before I filled it up with various accessories for shooting video, but it will comfortably hold a large DSLR body and telephoto lens attached in the middle section, up to 8 standard lenses in the side sections, as well as two ideally large and deep side pockets. These would be great for clamps and arms, but I use mine for my microphone and a little tool box for emergencies!
A small but memorable Manfrotto logo on the main flap of the bag, the branding is not in your face which keeps the bag discrete.
With a fully packed bag (including a laptop, EVF) it is heavy as you would expect, however the inclusion of a very comfortable, padded waist strap distributes the weight evenly through the body, rather than putting the pressure on your shoulders, reducing fatigue, and it was a welcome relief for me to see too! All the straps are padded, and are very heavy duty for a camera bag which is fantastic when shooting in rugged and fast paced environments, or for a very long time.
The Backpack50 also includes a waterproof cover, essential for protecting your beloved kit in times of heavy downpour, however it would have been better to see this built into the bag rather than a separate part, as this reduces the risk of forgetting it!! It also has a side strap for tripods which is a welcoming sight. Previously I used a Lowepro bag and simply strapped my Manfrotto 055B tripod and 701 head to the main straps, which is heavy and also puts lots of strain on the bags fastenings (i don't recommend this). The external strap loops through a heavy duty fabricated patch on the side of the bag, and the strap can be secured around the head of the tripod. It is quick release too, so you can get the tripod off the bag and set up quickly. A great improvement.
Overall, I am delighted with Manfrotto's new Backpack50 as it caters for the pro photographer AND videographer, protecting our livelihood (equipment) with fantastically engineered bag sections, as well as providing flexibility when out shooting which many backpacks restrict due to their bulky and un-ergonomic design. Manfrotto have overcome this by designing a bag with the pro in mind, and have produced a very successful and ergonomic addition to the growing kit list of photographers and videographers alike.
Check out the new range on Manfrotto's website here - http://www.manfrotto.co.uk/collection/8615.1065.17520.0.0/Professional
Another snap from the shoot today for Manfrotto's new professional bag for photographers and videographers "Backpack50".
Manfrotto's all new Backpack50. [gallery ids="557,558,559,560,561,562,563,564,565,566,567,568,569,570,571,572,573,574" orderby="rand"]
There will be much more later, its been a long day! I took the photos on my Canon 60D and Nikkor 50mm F/1.4 manual for a beautiful soft background to complement the autumn colour tone, landscape and chilly weather at Epsom Downs!
If you follow me on Twitter (twitter.com/Plowman91) you will have seen I've been busy keeping up #Indiefilm as well as doing some filming and photography for Manfrotto and Josh! There will be more soon, looking forward to Glen coming back and doing some more awesome work tomorrow!
Prepping for tomorrows workshop at Glyn, getting art students to think out of the box and get more creative with their photography and graphics work! I was searching for some new photos of my work and came across this little gem from the Surrey Wedding Show at Sandown Park!
For those that don't know, I'm a Manfrotto local hero, and get to test out, review and video various pieces of equipment. Today I got the Backpack 50 through the post, here are a couple of box shots as I am currently working on the CC of the GLF video!
More to come, photos and videos later!
For those that are unfamiliar with my work, I'm a Manfrotto Ambassador for Videography! Look at this picture...
Can you see the Manfrotto tripod and video head?
I do not know I would do without them, and without a doubt Manfrotto equipment provides photographers and videographers alike a quality, reliable and affordable priced equipment that can be used in more than a variety of situations.
I'm a videographer, and growing up with Vinten legs and heads made me realize the difference in useability and functionality that Manfrotto provides for me. I use the 055PROXB Tripod and Mini video fluid head, and for the package price of £150 it provides the perfect solution.
I've used the above kit for a couple of years now, and only now am I finding the need to change my legs to a lighter option; not even changing the type. I am going to buy exactly the same legs in a carbon fiber model. That's how good these legs are.
The functionality of a ball head is useful for every tripod without one, but the extension column provides a unique 90 degree angle view with is essential for tabletop animations for a versatile producer like myself.
Is that a superclamp I see? Ye it is! The Manfrotto superclamp is one of those pieces of kit that should never leave your bag. Need I say more? The superclamp can hold up to 17Kg and includes a winch screw for micro-adjustment, as well as a stand adapter socket if you are using a lighting stand or lighting adapter to add more fixtures to the clamp. I use it with a magic arm and Lilliput 7" HD LCD monitor with it, allowing multi angle viewing for many different camera angles.
I hope you have seen my adoration for Manfrotto gear, and I will be working with Bjorn Thomassen on more Manfrotto and Canon sponsored shoots, and I am looking forward to trying out new gear Mr Dave Beck!
My previous work with Manfrotto includes the production of the ML240 LED Light advert - http://vimeo.com/41688532
DIT, Digital Imaging Technician, Camera Operator, Camera Assistant, TV Crew, TV Production, Film Production, Film Crew, UKTV, BBC Studios, Channel 4, Channel 5
