Gear Acquisition Syndrome—Are You Afflicted?

Think about gear strategically, not emotionally

Daniel Brockett

The EOS C200 is a piece of gear that has been a financially intelligent acquisition for my company. Have you ever heard of Gear Acquisition Syndrome? It’s also referred to on discussion boards as “GAS,” which makes for a nifty metaphor as well as an abbreviation. What exactly is GAS? It’s the never-ending, seemingly ongoing pursuit of always... Read more

Camera Test With The Fujifilm X-T3—Morning In Morro Bay

Hands on with the Fujifilm X-T3 in California's Morro Bay

Daniel Brockett

I spent some time shooting in Central California’s Morro Bay, grabbing shots of Morro Bay Harbor coming to life in the morning and also shooting footage of the local birds and sea otters to see how Fujifilm’s X-T3, paired with the Fujinon XF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 OIS, rendered the scenes when shot with Fuji’s F-Log profile. The resulting... Read more

Accell Thunderbolt 3 Docking Station

A tuck-under dock for your laptop

Michael Guncheon

If you’re looking for a dock with a different approach to physical design, look no further than the Accell Thunderbolt 3 Docking Station. And if you’re not sure why you need a dock, read this. I have had a chance to try out the Accell dock for several weeks, both at a stationary desk and also on location. I put it through its paces connecting... Read more

Tune In To The Oscars This Weekend

On Sunday at the 91st Academy Awards, the best cinematographers, directors, movies and others in the movie industry will be honored

By Terry Sullivan

2018 was another interesting year in movie making. So, be sure to check out all the winners in this year’s Academy Awards ceremony, this Sunday, Feb. 24 at 8pm on ABC. And while the show doesn’t have a host–at least for the moment–here are the names of those nominated in specific areas that will be of particular interest to DPs,... Read more

Why A Dock?

Making sense of laptop docks

Michael Guncheon

I have been testing some laptop docks and will post my experiences soon. But with apologies to the Marx Brothers, I thought I might talk a little about docks and why you might need them. Laptop docks were originally actual docks— you slid your laptop into one. There was a special “dock” connector on the back of the laptop that fit a matching connector... Read more

CES 2019, Part 3

Making room for more

Michael Guncheon

While large 8K displays, 4K with HDR and the odd intelligent toilet seemed to capture all the attention at CES, if you took the time you could find something special. To capture footage for 8K and 4K that can be displayed in HDR, cinematographers often shoot in raw. (Shooting with log works, too.) Those raw files can take up a lot of hard drive space.... Read more

To Gimbal Or Not To Gimbal, That Is The Question

How important is moving your camera to you? More importantly, how important is moving your camera well to you?

Dan Brockett

The Arri Alexa Mini On A Freefly Movi 15 gimbal is used in high-end film and television. How important is moving your camera to you? More importantly, how important is moving your camera well to you? I guess a good context to place these questions into is where do you come from with your shooting? Have you studied the language of cinema and are pursuing... Read more

CES 2019, Part 2

Real Production Is Still Big And Heavy!

The 3.4-pound Panasonic EVA 1 rides on a Fisher 10 Dolly. I recently shot on a few days for a feature documentary. I was not the DP for the production; I was merely a camera operator. It was a fun and interesting shoot with an iconic musician performing with their band for the production’s cameras. Read more…

Dan Brockett

CES 2019, Part 1

Does CES predict the future?

Michael Guncheon

Every year, I head out to the desert to look at technology. Why the desert? That’s where Las Vegas is, and that’s where the Consumer Technology Association holds its annual CES show. CES used to stand for Consumer Electronics Show, but the CTA wants us all to call it simply CES. I guess that’s because some of the innovations over the years haven’t... Read more

Is Green Screen Creative Or A Cop-Out?

Is green screen always the best way to capture your shot?

Dan Brockett

Is green screen always the best way to capture your shot? I shoot green screen. Quite a lot of green screen at times. As a cinematographer, I have to be honest, having to utilize green screen isn’t my favorite type of shooting. It’s my job to help a director visualize a scene, scenario or environment. If you think about it, most scenes can be broken... Read more

Sundance 2019: Power of Story—Pushing Boundaries

The Sundance Film Festival also entertained audiences over the past 10 days with dozens of offscreen events, including conversations with the next wave of storytellers.

By Simon Wakelin

The 2019 installment of the longstanding “Power of Story” series rolled at Sundance with some great conversations, including the “Power of Story: Pushing Boundaries,” an insightful lecture that gathered filmmakers Rick Alverson (“The Mountain”), Mads Brügger (“Cold Case Hammarskjöld”), Kitty Green (“Casting JonBenet”),... Read more