DIY Movie Making With Your DSLR

If your still photography is in a creative rut, maybe you should consider flipping your DSLR camera over to video mode. While it may not be the reason you bought your camera, film makers the world over are embracing DSLR cameras for their video abilities.  Entire TV episodes have been shot with the Canon 5D Mark II while the Canon 7D was used in portions of the movie Black Swan.

Once you enter the world of SLR film making, you will soon discover that the downside  is the cost of the gear involved.  If you thought photography was an expensive hobby, the sticker shock involved with film making will blow you away.  Fortunately, there is a growing community of SLR film makers who are devising DIY video tools.

For our Halloween video shoot, we were inspired by this tutorial on making a table dolly out of PVC pipe and rollerblade wheels. For a creepy fog effect, there is this set of instructions on how to make a fog machine out of a household iron. Put them together and you have all the tools necessary for a Halloween shoot out. So get out your directors chair and check out what your camera is capable of…

Canon 7D Halloween Shootout from Camera Technica on Vimeo.

Here is a short list of video tips to get you started:

• Forget your autofocus and exposure settings.  Your autofocus will likely not work and you don’t want the exposure changing during the course of your shot.
• There are two common frame rates for movies, 24fps and 30 fps.  There are proponents of each but you’ll have to decide for yourself.  24fps clips are said to look more “filmic” although you may be hard pressed to see the difference at first.
• Your video exposure settings are not as flexible as image settings.  A good rule of thumb is that your shutter speed should be double the frame rate of your final film (e.g. shoot at 1/50 for a 24 fps movie).  If you intend on applying slow motion effects, double it again (e.g. shoot 1/100 for a 24 fps movie).  Your aperture will most likely be an artistic decision based on the depth of field you want.  This leaves ISO for modifying exposure. If you cannot get there with ISO alone, you will be forced to add or subtract light yourself with filters or lighting rigs.
• Nothing is more boring than a stationary camera filming moving subjects.  For interesting movies, you’ll need to move your camera around a bit.  The Hollywood guys use thousands of dollars worth of gear for smooth movement, but with some ingenuity, you can do it on the cheap.

Keep on Rolling with These Articles:

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Canon Introduces EOS 1D-X

The Science of Polarizing Filters

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