Production Skills #6

This weeks session was divided into two halves; morning and afternoon. Both sessions were focused on something similar in context but with a different focus. In both sessions we had a further focus on the super 8 cameras. In the first session we gathered an extra 10 seconds of footage to add to our me myself and I projects. This was another opportunity to experiment with lighting. This was proven to be a task and a test of our abilities and knowledge. Another student had forgotten to return the lighting meter which we were previously so reliant on, meaning we had to work out the f stop ourselves depending on how much lighting there was coming into the lens. For higher amounts of light a higher f stop, and for small amounts of light a small f stop. This becomes easier to understand once you get your head around everything working backwards in film. The easiest way to understand it I believe is to simply imagine a low aperture level such as 1.4 being very open, therefore letting in a lot of light which is ideal in a low light setting. In comparison an aperture level of 8 is rather small and enclosed opposed to the open 1.4, meaning that it lets very little light in. This is ideal for high key lighting or daylight settings. In our morning exercise of our production skills session we were working with low levels of light as the blinds were shut and we were experimenting with the three point lighting. Others used the lighting equipment to create a very naturalistic visual effect illuminating the image completely. I wanted something low key, sinister and very visually dark. With the use of only two redheads and a dark blue lens gel the lighting was reduced to a minimum. This then meant the f stop of the super 8 had to be very low I believe to be around 2. This meant the lens was very open to let in as much light as it could to capture the image in frame clearly. 

In the afternoon session a level 6 student visited to give us a talk on processing film. Gavin, is a mature student who had previously taken it upon himself to learn the ins and outs of processing your own film reels as a project for University. The session was extremely interesting to me, and it was enlightening to see how someone could save a lot of money by doing what a gigantic machine could do, with some chemicals and their hands. The process is heavily reliant on improvisation of containers and all kinds of weird and wonderful contraptions which proved very effective. Gavin demonstrated the large container which acted as a dark room which the film is left inside to process away from light. The large black container was your average box really, with holes cut in the sides and sleeves sewn into them so that Gavin could reach in and turn the film reels. The chemicals used all serve a different purpose, and are acquired independently by Gavin. This reduces a lot of the time and cost you would certainly face when sending off your film reels for processing. All the chemicals were strictly legal, Gavin ensured. 

Below is an image of Gavin's setup in the class for his demonstration.