Just in Time

As we've seen over the past few months, motion cameras have been involved on magazine covers. To date Esquire (photographer Greg Williams), W (photographer Steven Klein) and Time magazines have published images created with the RED camera. Esquire UK (April 2009) was the first to publish a cover image shot with the RED of Megan Fox, and this past December Time published the year ending cover shot with the RED (photographer Finlay MacKay).

While many shooters are hedging their bets, and shooting their covers with a Canon or a medium format digital back, others are breaking new ground and shooting their covers with the RED. RED when shot properly, will produce amazing images, and at 24 frames per second, you have so much content to chose from.

In a future installment, I will reveal some amazing RED still captures, and show prints over 16X20 that rival digital still, stay tuned.

Von

Element Technica 3D

Technology is moving faster than most of us can learn it. We raced to learn digital capture after a life of learning how to shoot and expose film. In the past 12 months we've seen another big change in our industry.

Print advertising has scaled back, ad agencies have cut their workforce (some by half) and their need for what once was our bread and butter, the delivery of the still image. They are looking at the new ways in which to capture the public attention. The web, outdoor advertising, indoor advertising, Vimeo, YouTube, Facebook, Hulu and more are now outlets for advertising, movies, and television.

As we start to gaze into the crystal ball to look into the future we also see that 3D is making a strong push, and companies like Element Technica are developing equipment in which to help create content for this emerging technology. Many of the current movies in production are 3D. All the major TV makers have 3D units (Phillips, Toshiba, Sony, Samsung, LG, Panasonic) and with broadcast starting to air 3D this summer (ESPN 3D Sports Network) the game is again changing. No longer will we need to don our silly glasses in a theater, we will be wearing our designer 3D glasses at home.

The rig pictured above (named Quazar) is set to handle large camera such as RED, Genesis or Arri. ET has at least two other models which will accommodate cameras such as the Canon 5D or 7D, and the much anticipated RED Scarlet and Epic.

If you like the photo, thanks, I shot it.

Von

Canon Commercial shot with Canon 5D MK 2

This past week Canon (Japan, not USA) shot a commercial using their own Canon 5D MKII as capture device. The shoot was headed up by Director of Photography Gale Tattersall of House fame.

Gale contacted Von Thomas of Image Mechanics to assist in prep for the shoot. Images Mechanics has been at the fore of motion with both RED and 5D MKII. Gale had many questions he wanted answered before he committed to the 5D (RED was the other option). Even though the shoot were not complicated, Gale needed to know it's strengths and weaknesses. We tested the 5D two weeks leading up to the actual shoot. Extensive tests in shutter speed range, ISO rating, camera panning, blue and green screen and color temperature were performed.

After the initial tests the content was taken to Encore Hollywood post facility to analyze the test. After viewing all the info, the 5D was given the thumbs up. The ability to shoot a major ad campaign with the 5D MKII is a game changer. Shortly Canon will roll out it's firmware for 24 and 25P, this will give the camera greater latitude, and acceptance with established filmmakers.

Von

Image Mechanics NEW for 2010

As this year comes to a close, we at Image Mechanics are gearing up for the new year. We've updated our business, added new digital gear for both still and motion capture, a new location vehicle, new services including studio rental, added new key personnel to begin 2010.

Beginning immediately we now offer the Hasselblad H3DII-50, with 50 mega pixels and one of the largests sensor in the business, twice the size of the DSLR sensors. The coolest thing about the Hassy digital is that is has a Hassy on the front end, the new H3 series body. Together with an impeccable array of lenses, this camera will allow you to have fun, and make beautiful pictures, Merry Xmas (and Happy Holidays). Along with Canon, Leaf and Phase One we offer a complete line of digital gear to fulfill your shooting needs.

Add to that our new RED One Digital Cinema camera, it's the camera everyone is talking about, it is the future. At 24FPS (it actually shoots from 1FPS to 120FPS), you can shoot beautiful cinematic footage and pull gorgeous still frames that can be printed beautifully well over 20X30. That means stills can be pulled for magazine print covers advertising, and more. If you did not know this, RED has been used to film a few of the latests feature movies, Knowing, The Informant, Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, Avatar, Labor Pains, Gamer, and too many to list. Fact is the RED is becoming a camera for both cinematic and still work, in part due to it's RAW file workflow. Call Von 213.258.5274 (RED / 5D MKII guru) at IM, he will get your motion project up and going.

IM has also introduced a host of new services including studio and strobe equipment rental. As a SPECIAL, we are offering our slightly smaller than 1000 sq ft studio with a lite strobe package for $400 per 10 hour day.

With the giant shift in how advertising images are being delivered now and in the future, we have reorganized our business to fit that model. Our feet are firmly planted in digital capture just as before, but we plant them in a forward direction toward motion, from production through to workflow. We have acquired talent to help you our clients achieve their objective, and stay with or ahead of the technological curve.

Please feel free to comment and contribute, we welcome your input.

Image Mechanics / VT

Big Foot Carts

For those of you that are capture techs for still or motion, you will at some point need a place for your computer (laptop or tower), monitors, hard drives, battery backup, power strip, and so on. On location you can use a table (thats lame), but if you are professional and table will not cut it, and you'll need a cart to both be organized and mobile. I've tried many carts over the years, and it is a personal decision, as a cart for my needs may not be a cart to fit your needs. There are the carts by Magliner, Remin's HD 500 and the more custom carts by Backstage, Filmtools and Bigfoot Mobile Carts.

I recently tested a custom built Bigfoot cart, and I'm addicted to it, this cart is the Cadillac of carts. It is a beautiful piece of equipment, and is very functional. Doug Solis at BigFoot can custom make a cart to your personal specifications. The unit I tested was built to house a Mac Pro on it's lower slide out tray, and can handle rack 2U drives and RAIDs as well as a rack mount UPS. It's outfitted with a side arm that holds perfectly a 15" or 17" MacBook Pro in the right position, and solid top platform for monitor and a flip up side door (on the other side) that holds most everything else. If it gets a bit hot inside with all your gear humming away, just pop off the sides for complete cool ventilation.

One of the BIG deals about this cart are the BIG WHEELS. They glide over rough surfaces without jarring your precious computers and hard drives. Bigfoot also sits tall, so you will need a tall directors chair to comfortably work your keyboard. So whether you're on a still photo shoot or a feature film, you will be looking good and organized with this awesome custom cart.

The Future of Print Advertising..."The Sky is Falling"

This week while I listened to NPR radio, I heard the news that Conde Nast was closing Gourmet, Cooki, Modern Bride and Elegant Bride magazines. Other magazines closed this year were Nickelodeon, Travel and Leisure Golf, Blender, Teen, PC Magazine, Men's Vogue, Home, Cosmo Girl, Playgirl and at least 7 others. This is a trend that is only getting worse. Along with the magazines, many newspapers are on the chopping block. So what does this mean, as photographers we need to start making changes in how we do business, and now.

Not many are looking at this seriously, but this I feel is a end game scenario in the making. I've already prepared myself for the future, rebranding myself in a new technology, digital motion. This is no different than the change that began over 12 years ago when digital began to over take film for the still photographers, and we know how that turned out.

The future has so many technological advances and I am totally excited what with the smart paper, digital out of home advertising (DOOH), and motion advertising. Stop, hear the silence, now start to begin your journey toward motion advertising.

Here are some solutions for the future. The following courtesy of Alexx Henry,

I demo'ed the RED in vertical orientation at the Image Mechanics, Collision Conference in August. Here is a practical application, and a glimpse into the future of how you as a still photographer will work with this new technology. The sky has just opened up.

A lot of traditional digital still capture firms are investing in RED and Canon 5D Mark 2 because they see it coming. Just this past week, I was contacted by a very well know car shooter to bring RED in on his first commercial shoot. Not only will this technology open the door for new types of still work, it will move you up the ladder into the directors chair for commercials, even features.

Von

RED Epic is almost here, and fall is heating up

It's seems I've been asleep at the wheel, and while I dozed, the RED Epic (5K digital cinema camera) was unleashed at IBC in Amsterdam last month. Below are some tasty photos of the Epic, and along with that some even tastier images of Kate Beckinsale made with the Epic 5K sensor in a RED One body for Esquire Magazine, by Greg Williams. If you remember Greg Williams was the first shooter to have RED still images (of beautiful Megan Fox) published in a print magazine, and Esquire no less (June 2009 issue). These current images of Ms. Beckinsale, will be in the November issue of Esquire, fall is heating up. Here is the link to "The Sexiest Woman Alive Video"

So nice, I had to do it twice.

Oh, that leaves me with the Epic itself, here are some photos taken at IBC, last month.