Happy New Year!

2015 is here, but a blog post from CineMoti earlier last week (long ago in 2014) called "Top 5 New Filmmaking Tools of 2014" is definitely worth a read.

The tools discussed are primarily geared towards indie filmmakers and there are some great ones in the list - I especially like #2 and #1.

Read the full post here.

What tools helped your filmmaking endeavors in 2014?

-Blake

I have founded a new start-up media company that I'd like to initially share with the readers of my blog...

It's called CineMoti and the company produces original "2nd Unit" style footage for filmmakers to use in features, shorts, commercials, digital (web) series, PSAs, corporate video and more.

Our flagship collection is called CineMoti 2nd Unit™, and we currently have three categories within it:

1. 2nd Unit™ EXTRAS
2. 2nd Unit™ PLATES
3. 2nd Unit™ ELEMENTS



There are LOTS of "stock footage" resources on the web these days, but virtually all take a shotgun approach to their content through crowd-sourcing.

CineMoti is different.

We produce our own content and cater it to filmmakers who care not only about the quality and craft of the footage they work with, but also some of the finer technical aspects that can really make a difference in post-production and ultimately enhance the story they want to tell.

So what do we mean by this?

We offer post-friendly, flexible, high-quality footage in HD to 4K and beyond. This includes RED RAW .R3D and/or Log or "Flat" versions of footage. This allows for the most creative choices in post-production (specifically color grading), and it can make it much easier to match a stock shot into an existing edit. 

It also means that the footage is original and EXCLUSIVE to our site. So you won't find this on every other stock site out there as is often the case with crowd-sourcing.

And FYI... beyond the 2nd Unit collection, we also offer traditional stock and timelapse footage.

Right now we're a Beta site - primarily because we're uploading our inventory - and so we're calling this current phase a "soft launch".  By January 2015 we plan to have a lot more content online and we'll begin a full marketing campaign and do a "grand opening" event.  

But in the meantime, we are open for business and so please check out the new site and see what you think. 

I hope you like it.

Thank you!
Blake

Howdy, been a while since I posted here! Been slammed with the post-production on MORGANVILLE and other various commercial work I've had going on.

The editing is going well and we're getting closer to sending the episodes off for the next phase of sound work, score and visual FX - not quite there, but getting there.

 I'll have big news on the release of Morganville soon, along with some other digital series news for another show of mine (announcing a cool new partnership).

And, one other note on new things - another business venture of mine will be launching a public beta soon, too. So look for that news in July.

 Basically, I've got a lot of stuff going on BUT CAN'T SAY MUCH ABOUT IT right now. :)

 But, I will very soon... Lol.

 Talk to you later.

- BC

I've been having a good time shooting with the new BMPCC and just learned today that the latest firmware update includes the elusive RAW recording setting...

This is good news, however, I gotta say that the ProRes HQ recording option looks REALLY GREAT and so I was actually not missing RAW like I might on the big brother camera to this one, the Blackmagic Cinema Camera, as the RAW there is for it's 2.5k shooting mode - which makes a big difference over 1080 HD, I find (you can't record ProRes in the 2.5k mode - although it would be nice if you could... Rumor has it you will be able to on the 4k camera they're releasing - one day).

So long story short, the Pocket shoots 1080 only in both ProRes or RAW and looks amazing. I don't say that lightly either. It really does look great. Hard to believe coming from a $1000 camera.... But, glass makes a big impact on this rig (and on most I guess), so using good lenses is imperative.

I've been using a Metabones adapter with vintage Nikon F mount glass that looks nice and creamy, but I seem to get a decent amount of smearing or motion blur - more than I'm used to, even back when I shot 16mm film and used lenses with no image stabilization.  So, I bought a Panasonic MFT zoom with IS and I must say, it looks NICE.  The images are smoother and surprisingly sharp.

I will post some footage from this camera soon. But in the meantime, if you'd like to see a book trailer I directed that was shot on the full BMCC, here it is...



PRINCE OF SHADOWS Book Trailer (Shot on BMCC 2.5k with Rokinon Cine Primes) from Blake Calhoun on Vimeo.

Oh, and here's a cool blurb on none other than io9 about the above trailer. Very cool. :)

Talk soon.
-Blake

A lot has been written about this camera, but just a few folks have actually gotten to shoot with it... I happen to be one of the lucky ones who have.

I pre-ordered my camera the day it was announced at NAB back in April.

I got the camera two weeks ago.

Funny thing is I didn't even have a lens that would work with it. It's a MFT (micro four-thirds) mount and I mainly own Canon EF mount lenses. So, when I got it I had to order a lens! That took a week... then when it arrived, it actually didn't fit correctly on the mount.  Bummer. I'm not sure if it was the camera or the lens, but I have read some folks are having trouble with a few select lenses mounting correctly. A flange/machining issue of some kind.  So I sent it back.

Then inspiration struck.

I remembered I had a set of prime Nikon F mount lenses. I bought them off eBay years ago for a Letus adapter (remember those?) to use on my Canon XH-A1. They are vintage manual lenses from the 1960s.

So instead of buying another MFT lens, I bought a Metabones MFT to Nikon F Mount adapter.  I just got it today and I must say, it is really nice. Very well built. Solid.  And it fits on the camera perfectly. And then the Nikon glass fits perfectly on it. I love it.

I've shot some test stuff, but nothing I'm ready to post on Vimeo. But I'll just say, this camera really reminds me of an ARRI SR2 or SR3. Not the handling of it. The image. It is very Super 16mm in look and texture.  Blackmagic calls it a "Super 16 Digital Film Camera" and I actually think that is correct.

I will post some footage once I get something I think looks good. And I'm going to do my best to not just post a string of random test shots cut to a funky music track. :)

-Blake