Studio Experience

My favorite studio role has been working as a camera man. I really thought that I would enjoy some "bigger" positions, but being behind a camera (still or video) is so natural to me that I feel too comfortable to leave. I would assume that I would feel the same way about editing, but we're not there in our studio process, yet. Editing and camera work (along with lighting) are things that I really like to have control over. Yes, I'm that guy. Sound is so important, as well, but it's not my favorite place to be. I opt to be the sound person if nobody else can do it better or as well as me, but - in general - my favorite experiences are in the realms of working with light, the camera, and in post production.

As a camera man, I went through the standard white balance, back focusing, framing, and exposing. I noticed that the cameras don't seem to have a way to control ISO (ASA). It seems to only allow partial exposure control that is manual (which is a bit confusing when trying to match settings on multiple cameras), but the director should be able to match the two (because he/she can see the two images side by side).

Being a director is definitely harder than I imagined. When you have two camera operators thinking that they are camera one and they both have the same first name, it really leaves a first time director with a bad taste in his/her mouth. It was definitely a humorous experience. I think that I would have gotten the hang of it and enjoyed it more without all of the confusion. It is straightforward, but surprisingly difficult to set up a shot and gauge when a person will speak without the luxury of three or more cameras. (I can see and appreciate why our teacher wanted only two cameras. We will never be lazy in a production environment when we learn on a setup that requires constant movement of both cameras.)

I've been learning about the importance of communication and familiarity with a crew. I forgot the terminology for directing cameras and switchers, and I think that, if we all committed the standard set of terms, we could be much more efficient.