There were lots of clouds in the sky all day today, which is pretty unusual for Southern California, and I just knew a great sunset was going to come out of it. So I went down to the beach by my house and waited. And I noticed this girl doing the same thing. Contemplative, serene, peaceful.
As a Director of Photography just starting a new project, most times I read the script and have creative meetings with the Director about the look of the film and how to best capture that look. I try to do as much camera/lens testing as possible, have more meetings, and finally come up with a camera package that fits the look of the film as well as the budget. In the case of Passport, as I was reading the script, the only camera that was going through my mind was the Digital Bolex D16.
Continue reading “Why I chose Digital Bolex D16 to shoot “Passport””
I recently shot a few models in the fields of the Key Creek Lavender Farm as part of a fund raiser to create awareness for the honey bees that help make this beautiful farm and it’s flowers possible.
Researchers are racing to find the cause of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) which has been killing off Honeybees in much of the U.S. and Europe. CCD threatens not just the bees, but entire economies and the World’s food supply. Honeybees pollinate about a third of crops worldwide and as much as 80% of U.S. crops.
Bastakyia is the old, historic part of Dubai right on the Dubai Canal. Last night a couple of us went out for dinner and a walk around the place.
I Had a chance to take a stroll around one of the oldest part of Dubai today, Bastakiya. Here are just a few of the photos I took on that walk.
The man in gold spoke to me in the kind of English that gave away the fact he was educated. When I told him I liked Dubai, he said “You like Dubai? I hate Dubai.” And then he just walked away.
The Souk is the original marketplace in Dubai and there are different ones for different goods, such as the famous Gold Souk where you can purchase gold without paying tax, or electronics, fish, meat, vegetable, perfume and spice souks, as well as the ancient Covered Souk.
Abra is the traditional water ferry, but it is soon to be a thing of the past, relegated to the pages of history as the shiny, new new Water Taxi’s start to take over on Dubai Creek.
Bastakiya is an engaging place with lot’s of narrow lanes between buildings to walk in. It was established by textile and pearl traders from Iran and today it has a lively nightlife with little cafes and shows in the evening, after the heat settles down a bit.
More images from Dubai. Today we shot a Desert Oasis scene complete with camels, Dancers and musicians and Horse Riders. And it all ended with a spectacular sunset. Daydreams of Dubai is a magical journey through some of the most picturesque areas of the United Arab Emirate of Dubai and is being produced by Filmation 3D in Dubai with production support from 21st Century 3D and AeroCine.
I get the feeling that Dubai is the epitome of desert Oasis. In what would seem a terribly hard and unforgiving land, they have built gleaming edifices, Palaces to opulence, magnificent resorts and spa’s to cater to any and all luxurious pleasure. Today our little production company was at the only 7-star hotel in the world, the incomparable Burj Al Arab which has a staff of 8 for every patron staying in the hotel and a butler for each floor. The resort is so exclusive there is no check-in desk, all of the arrangements take place in the privacy of your own suite (oh, I forgot to mention, there are no “rooms”, only suites). Here are a few of the images I made today.
I am in the UAE with 21st Century 3D and AeroCine to make the film Daydreams of Dubai for Producers Lulu Mahaini and Humaid Mohamed Humaid of Filmation Film Production in Dubai.
It’s a terrible camera. The lens is tiny, the resolution stinks, you have no creative control over shutter speed, sensitivity, aperture, and it’s ergonomically a nightmare, not to mention, sometimes it’s a really bad phone too. But it’s always there. I’ve always got it handy when I see something I would really like to photograph and don’t have my DSLR on hand. As a result, I have a lot of photos taken with my iPhone that I wished I had a better camera for. But having taken so many photos with it, I’ve discovered something about the iCamera, or maybe I’ve discovered something about myself, because I’ve started to like the images I can create with it. Continue reading “Using the iPhone as a camera”
Last week I was at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival for the Premiere screening of a short documentary film I shot for Director/Producer Pia Clemente called Mabel. The film chronicles the life of Mabel Sawhill who, at 99 years old, and with a little help from her niece, who is deaf, still runs her own catering business, doing the shopping, cooking and serving for as many as 100 people several times a week.
Not unlike Mabel herself, the film is charming and delightful, and had audiences at SBIFF laughing and inspired. The film was edited by Geoffrey O’Brien, and features a wonderfully playful soundtrack by Aiko Fukushima.
Mabel is likely to be playing more festivals in the near future, so keep in touch and I’ll let you know where you find her.
There were a lot of other films at the festival worth talking about, but I just wanted to mention two features that are standouts, and oddly both have musical themes to them: Ragnar Bragason’s film Metalhead is a striking film from Iceland, a darkly comic drama about a grief stricken young woman who turns to Heavy Metal music after she witnesses her older brother die in a farm accident. And a beuatiful film by Felix Van Groeningen called The Broken Circle Breakdown which uses Bluegrass music to help tell the story of an unlikely couple who fall instantly and deeply in love.
Tech Scout day on Longboat Key in Florida, the afternoon was overcast and at one point it started to rain pretty hard. As the day waned the rain had moved on, but the clouds that had been left behind foretold of a bleak sunset. Most of the crew left but I stayed behind hoping something interesting might happen, and right at the tail end of sunset, the clouds started to break apart and this beautiful scene presented itself.
They named it Magic Hour for a reason.
