For the last 12 years I’ve had the privilege of working on an EPIC series of commercials.
It started when I hit up a fellow DP and friend to see if he needed any assistance for gigs he’s working on. Luckily, he was starting a new gig that would be with one of the better producers in town.
This series of commercials has particular challenges, mainly in sheer volume. For every commercial we produce there are two in English and one in Spanish for every version, and depending on the length and complexity, we will shoot as many as 6-8 commercials a day in a jam-packed schedule. That’s as many as 24 versions in a day. It sounds ridiculously impossible, but the schedule is a true science to get the numbers out.
We’ve been lucky enough to essentially keep the same crew throughout the years, which to me is pretty incredible.
We have become quite the well-oiled machine, while all of us keep up with new techniques and technology over the years.
If I remember correctly, we started off using the Sony FS7. The camera department has used over the years for this series RED, Arri, Sony, and Canon. Pretty much the gamut.
Personally, I’m in the world of Sony. Not as much as a fanboy though. I would say I’m a fan of Fujifilm. Sony makes sense for me right now. I have shot, owned and operated Nikon, Canon, Panasonic, Leica, Mamiya, Arri, Sony, RED, etc. I have 2 A7Riii, A7ii converted to full spectrum, 2 FX3, and 2 FX30, so lenses, form factor, backend processing and editing all works well for me and my process. That’s not to say that other camera manufacturers aren’t doing incredible things! They all make a great image. Your decisions need to be based on your style of work, budget, client needs, and what works for you intuitively. A lot goes into camera choice.
It's pretty mind boggling to think of how far we have come in the technology of cameras, LUTS, audio, lighting, and more.
It’s a lot of fun to catch up with fellow crew members and talk about these things along with projects they’ve been working on and personal projects/goals.
We all go out “into the wild” have our own experiences and learn from others, then come back together every couple of years and share what we’ve learned.
Getting time around your “film family” is literally a reunion of people you want to see, share with, and learn from. I’m extremely grateful for this.
On to the next one!