Depth of Field

Okay Filmmakers, let's talk camera.  Yes, I know many of us don't have any budget to speak of and you have to either shoot with whatever camcorder drops in your lap or choose not to shoot at all.  So what can you do?

The biggest problem with cameras, is not necessarily the resolution, which is where everyone focuses (pardon the pun).  Most prosumer cameras have enough for your quirky no-budget indie film.  If you have a few dollars, don't upgrade to a higher quality camera-- instead, spend it on getting better glass (lenses). 

For instance, I just got finished watching a small budget indie movie recently and it was shot with a decent prosumer HD camcorder.  There was a shot in a school hallway and four class rooms down, you could still read the pep rally sign hanging on the back wall.  That's a HUGE depth of field-- one that screams "home movie" instead of "cinema."

And the camera they use does have a third party platform for putting cinematic lenses in front of it.  Makes a huge difference.  I'm talking about the Letus or Redrock adapters.  Of course, they do cause you to lose some f stops (especially the Red Rock), but it pays off in the look of your movie.

For "The Imposter," I had the budgetary choice of upgrading my camera, or having two lower resolution cameras, but with prime lenses.  I chose the two camera option.  I don't regret that.  (For the newest film "Rising Star", coming out in theaters on October 22, we used to Reds).

Okay, so what do you do if you have no money and a consumer camcorder?  I bet you could beg or borrow to at least upgrade to something like the HVX200-- you can't throw a rock without hitting someone who owns one.  Except most HVX 200 users are selling there's to get the 5D or 7D from Canon.  Even better if you borrow one of these.  I shot with a 7D recently and I'll blog about that soon.

Okay, so you've struck out and all you've got is this lowly camcorder.  What can you do to get a more cinematic look with it?  You need to narrow the depth of field.  Depth of Field is affected by several factors.  One of the easiest is the f stop (a wider, or more open aperture will shallow your depth of field).  So use an ND (neutral density) filter inside and light so that you can get that iris as open as possible.  There are other factors for shallowing your depth of field, but that's enough to get started.

Resourcefulness

For low budget indie filmmakers, the key to making a good movie is *resourcefulness.*  This begins with the Idea and continues with the Script.

What I mean is this: if you know Hollywood's not going to swoop down and wave their magic fairy wand over your project, blessing it with 20 million golden bucks 'o pixie dust, then you need to have an idea that can make the most of what resources you have.

One of the keys is available locations.  If you're best friends with the director of the county hospital and he's willing to give you a floor for three weeks, then a medical movie makes a lot of sense.  You can get lots of production value out of that.

Maybe it's a run down municipal airport.  Or a large warehouse.  Or a golf course.  Look around you and figure out what you have.  For those writing the political thriller taking place all over the White House, it's going to be difficult to pull that off on a small budget.  Building sets is expensive.  Try to stay away from that.  Also, limiting the locations is a great idea.  Ideally, try to have your story in a place that gives you multiple looks without having to move the company.

On my last film "Rising Stars," I accomplished this by setting the location on a college campus.  Only one day out of the whole shoot was somewhere else.

Other areas of resourcefulness is equipment.  If you can get a great deal on cranes, jobs, and dollies, it can make a huge difference.  Same thing for HMI lighting, high quality mics, and high quality cameras.

These are just a few ideas to help you maximize production value on your film project.