Camera Lesson : 18.09.2015

We had our very first camera lesson in the studio on the 18^th of September, 2015. As we will be creating our own thrillers throughout the AS/A1 year of Hurtwood, having this lesson was very helpful, and also very important. 

Since most students had never used a proper film camera before, listening to Matt was very important to make sure that we would exactly know what we are going to be doing, and how we're going to be doing it when filming to achieve the desired look.

First of all, we were introduced to the tripod, a stand which we can then mount the camera on to steady it. This comes in very useful when trying to film something like an extreme close up, where the expression in the eyes can only be read if the camera is completely still, and only the actor moves. 

The tripod has a type of handle that attaches to it, and makes things like panning or tilting much easier, as the person behind the camera then has more control of how the camera is moving on the tripod. It also helps to make a smooth pan or tilt happen as it is part of the tripod and is standing still.

We were then introduced to the cameras after we had made ourselves familiar with the tripod. The studio showed us the Canon EOS 5D, the Sony NX5 and the Sony FS100 (Left to right: FS100, NX5, and 5D). The Sony NX5 is a very good handheld camera, small enough to take with you when going to film somewhere where large equipment would be out of place – an example would be a riot; it is small enough to carry around and the quality is good enough to film clear pictures. The Sony FS100 is very good for when having to zoom when filming, and according to the reviews on „B&H Photo – Video – Pro Audio“, this camera is easy to use, has great picture quality, and is also very good in low light. The Canon EOS 5D is the only camera out of the three that does not have the ability to zoom, but it's specialty is to shoot amazing high-quality videos.

Left to right: FS100, 5D, NX5

The camera my group worked most with was the Canon EOS 5D.

We were then taught how to to change the lens on a camera; this gives the ability to shoot even higher quality videos, or to focus, or in most instances to zoom. For the 5D, to place the lens on the camera, an adapter is needed (otherwise it won't fit). When putting the lens on the camera, there are red/white dots that you have to look out for, showing you exactly how the lens will fit on the camera, and how they interact with one another.

The Canon EOS 5D without and with a lens.

The Sony FS100 with a lens.

Next, we were taught how to put the battery in the camera. Pretty self-explanatory – You open the flap in the bottom, check that the arrow on the battery is facing the correct way, and then place it into the slot the battery goes into, and close the flap. When in doubt, look at the sensors at the bottom of the battery, and you will definitely know which way the battery fits into the camera.

After that, we were allowed to turn the camera on for the first time. We got a pretty nice view of Matt and Mike through the camera. Something that I noticed was that the camera screen has four lines on it, creating a grid called "The Rule of Thirds". This is useful in any instance when trying to take a picture or film a video, as "The Rule of Thirds" will make any picture look more interesting. 

Then, it was time to focus the camera on a wall with a lot of drawings on it. The FS100 and NX5 have a simple way to focus, and that is by zooming in all the way, then focusing, and then zooming out. Because the 5D does not have the ability to zoom, focusing is pretty interesting. There is a specific sign on the camera that the tape measure has to be held to, and then the distance from the camera to the desired object has to be measured. After that, the camera can be focused accordingly - there are labels on the lens indicating feet/metres, which are then used to focus the camera. If the subject is 8 feet and 6 inches away, the lens will be turned to the point where it says 8 feet ___. This will then focus the camera.

Measuring the distance from the camera to the wall.

Afterwards, we were taught how to level the camera – there is a leveler included in the tripod to make it even with the ground, so that when the video is filmed the shot won't be oblique.

Afterwards, we were taught how to level the camera – there is a leveler included in the tripod to make it even with the ground, so that when the video is filmed the shot won't be oblique.

Lastly, we were taught how to balance the whiteness in a shot. This important so that the light in the shot won't have a strange colour; inside, the lighting is different than outside, so the whiteness always has to be balanced, so that when shooting outside, the trees and atmosphere won't have a strange colour, whereas inside there won't be a strange yellow hue in the shot.

I found this camera lesson very helpful and very interesting, as it did teach me things that I didn't know were necessary to do in the first place (an example would be white balance when switching from inside to outside). I will apply what I have learnt in this lesson to when I actually start filming, as it will increase the quality of my videos by a lot, and will make the over all outcome even more impressive.