Do you ever watch a car commercial and ever wonder how they got that shot. Now that I have been doing video a lot more I have been curious to how they get some of those aerial shots, but with the magic of google and Youtube I now know how. Here is a look into how they get the rolling shots in commercials, movies, and TV shows that we all like or take interest to.

Side note: One day I will get to that point in my career where I can have a budget big enough to use the “Pursuit cars” for a commercial ad.

Big Thanks to David Grau a buddy of mine for putting these fresh new logos together that I will use for photos and video.

I can’t say I am huge on fashion but I can tell you what looks good on me or someone else. I watched this video and very inspired by his dedication to the art of photography and fashion and his firm knowledge of both worlds. Enjoy!

People ask me all of the time how I get the rolling shots that people have on the covers of magazines and Im gonna give a short breakdown of how to do so.

First and foremost you will need a DSLR and a wide angle lens. If you are a Canon owner like myself I suggest if you have a 5D to use either a 16-35L lens or 17-40L so you don’t get that fisheye look. Now if you own a cropped sensor camera like a 7D, 50D, or 60D etc.. I would suggest you purchase something like the 16-35L or the 10-22. Again, these are just my suggestions I understand not everyone has the the money to afford more camera hardware.

Second, you are going to need a automotive rig that attaches to the vehicle and also allows the camera to basically go with the car while its in motion. I personally got a custom rig a few years ago from a friend and they actually sell them retail at www.automotiverigs.com . Once you have the rig there is 2 ways of mounting it by either 2 suction cups attached to the car which then hold the pole or you can use magnets which go underneath the vehicle.

Suction Cups

Third, to achieve the blur you want the settings to be atleast 2.5-5 seconds on the shutter so you can get more motion in the backround and set your aperture to your surroundings. Once the settings are done the main thing about getting the right shot is making sure the camera doesn’t bounce too much. Now the last step of part 3 is that you can either drive the car at 10mph’s or you can push the car. After you are done check the results on the LCD screen and you’re done.

Fourth, Photoshop out the rig with the clone tool or even the patch tool and the results should look similar to this.

A while back I got call from the Nikon mothership which put the very first HDdSLR–the Nikon D90–into my hands months before the world had seen that technology. I won’t ever forget that experience. That little camera kicked off this whole craze of photo and video convergence that we’re swimming in today.

Well…low and behold, a few months ago I got another one of those calls from Nikon. “Chase-san. We have a new camera…” I love those calls. And so today I’m again excited to share with you another new camera that will get its moment in the spotlight next week at Photokina: the Nikon D7000.

There’s a feature list a mile long after the jump below, but the only data I cared about heading into this can be summed up in 4 lines:

_16.2 Megapixels. (CMOS sensor, DX format, 6fps)
_1080p full HD video. (24fps)
_ISO up to 6400 (pushable to 25,600)
_Magnesium alloy construction (read “pro quality”)

When an automaker rolls a new car off the assembly line, the first thing they do is call in a professional driver to “road test” that car. They’re armed with the basic tech specs, but the drivers aren’t overly saddled with capturing data and providing computer-style analysis. In reality they don’t care about that stuff. The care how the car feels.

In the very same way, I got to “road test” the Nikon D7000. This behind the scenes video (above), this short film Benevolent Mischief I got to make with the new 1080p HD video (below), and the still photos I shot after the jump tell my story of getting to play with this cool new camera

Beyond what you see herein, there was nothing formal about my road test. In fact, I carried this concept throughout my experience. There was no bloated production, no official script, not even a definitive shot list to be honest. It was absolutely back to basics. Simply making pictures. Nikon gave me several cameras, creative freedom, and a budget to rally my staff and a handful of friends out on the road to make some images for my portfolio, as well as a short film I’ve had in my mind for quite some time.

So that’s what we did. And we had a blast. I hope you dig some of the results.

D7000 Test Image Gallery

Images of Nikon D7000

My “road” test revealed:
1. The camera feels great. I had fun using it. It was effortless to make great pictures.

2. It’s beefier than D90. Faster. Better. Kicks more ass.

3. Will do well for lots of markets. The photojournalist, the wedding shooter, the pro-sumer, the video crowd, backup body for pros. Pretty much everybody wins.

4. It feels great in your hand. Personally I think ergonomics are waaay underrated on cameras in general. Nikon usually does great in this department, and this is on the mark. It feels dreamy in my palm. I used it almost entirely with the optional vertical grip because it feels more pro in my hand and the extra battery life is important for video.

5. Nice Price. = It’s not confirmable yet, but it will be around $1000 USD. Given that the top of the line flagship Nikon cameras I use everyday for my commercial work are several times that price, this is a sweet spot.

Reminder, if you’re looking for official specs or 3rd party “testing”, I’m not your guy. I’m an opinionated photographer and a filmmaker, and these are my gut responses. Nikon didn’t review this post and they didn’t tell me what to shoot. They didn’t pay me for a technical analysis. They did pay for me to go out and make pictures and make a short film – and I had a blast doing it. They were cool and generous, and I’m thankful for the opportunity. And the camera rocked.

—- UPDATE ! Tons of folks were asking for some full resolution JPEGs to take a look at. I’ve tossed them up on this page here D7000 Preview Images, for everyone to look at download. These are right off the SD cards. —-

Since I’m the only photog on the planet who’s actually shot this thing for any length of time, I’m guessing there are gonna be questions. I’m happy to answer any that I can. In fact, Scott and Dartanyon and Erik are also around to answer questions too – they’ve spent as much time as I have with the D7000 and even more time with the files. Let’s let the comment section below act as sort of a forum. Collectively we’ll try to keep up with the questions that pour in.

If you dig this sort of stuff and wanna see more behind the scenes photography/video stuff, please subscribe to this blog here. “Like” me on Facebook. Follow @chasejarvis on Twitter. I’ll surely be following up this post with more info–and other similar stuff–regularly. Hope to see you again.

In the mean time, here’s a more complete spec list:
_16.2 megapixels with new Nikon DX-format CMOS sensor (4,928 x 3,264 pixels)
_ISO sensitivity range from 100 to 6400 at normal setting; can be raised to ISO 25600
_Full HD (1080p) D-Movie
_H.264/mpeg-4 video compression
_Makes .mov files at 24fps in 1080 (30fps at 720HD)
_Movie has built in mono, but stereo sound recording capability with optional external mic via stereo mini jack
_20 minute movie recording times
_High durability magnesium alloy body (dust and water resistant)
_6 frames per second still image capture
_9, 21, 39 point AF systems
_Double SD card slots
_12 or 14 bit color depth
_HDMI out display port
_Nikon Creative Lighting System (CLS) capabilities onboard
and if you really need more info than that, I can’t be of much help, but the Nikon site here might be…

September 8, 2008 apple released the 4.1 software update with updated functionality. 1 of the firmware updates includes a HDR function on the camera. Typically I hate HDR when phptographers use it as a clutch and use it incorrectly and the photo looks fake. Anyway, I decided to test out the function and here are the results.

Non HDR

HDR

Non HDR

HDR

I caught wind of this on twitter and found it very interested especially since I own both cameras. It gives you a little insight to the difference between a cropped camera and a full framed camera.

5Dmk2/7D lens comparison test from Mike Collins on Vimeo.

I shot a music video for the first time this past weekend and it is a bit challenging as a 1 man operation but thankfully my nephew was able to assist me. We shot the video in Downtown LA next to the 6th street bridge where many movies, tv shows, and music videos have been shot. Here are a few stills from the shoot.

Lately I have been looking at my Canon “L” lenses and a bit bored with the matte black so I decided to take it to another level. I purchased a 12″x12″ carbon fiber vinyl on ebay for $10 and I received it in 2 days since I am local to the wholesaler. The process wasn’t very hard but it wasnt easy.
First, you take your CF vinyl and measure it up to the lens hood to see how much needs to be cut.

I had to cut the pieces in half to get everything to fit correctly


Once you place the vinyl on the lens hood do not place it fully on so you can heat it up and stretch everything accordingly. The best advice I can give on getting the bubbles out is use a squeegee and pull the vinyl tight. Once you are done it should look very similar to this

Rhys Millen a well known rally driver and drifter attempted to break his dads record at the well known Pikes Peak in Colorado. As much as I am a fan of motorsports I am a huge fan on the Canon 5D MKII and the 5D was used in Rhys’s attempt. I give it a few more months that more people in the industry catch on to the capabilities of the 5D and I think we will see more work being shot with it.

Since I have been getting into video I have been collecting alot more equipment and no way to carry it efficiently so I took measures. I went on ebay and found this Pelican 1560 case with foam inserts to carry about my Jag35 Shoulder rig and also the Secondary Cage. I ordered the case on thursday and it showed up at my doorstep a day later with ground shipping. Once I received it I immediately starting taking out the foam inserts to accommodate all of my shoulder rig gear and accessories. Everything took about an hour to configure and makes things alot simpler to carry and transport around especially since it has wheels. Here are some before and after pictures of the setup.

Well that didn’t take long! I was on a blog I visit almost everyday and stumbled upon this video. As many of you know unless you have been living under a rock, the iPhone4 was released last thursday June 24th. The phone is equipped with alot more goodies and has set a new standard for smartphones. The phone has better screen resolution, faster processing speeds, and a front facing camera which is able to shoot 720p. I don’t know how far people will go filming with the iPhone but I feel its a great start.

continue reading "Short film shot with a iPhone4"

I’ve been searching high and low for a shoulder rig to accommodate both my 7D and 5D MK II and all of the solutions were pretty expensive. I randomly found out about Jag35 a company that is dedicated to the budget cinematographer. After waiting for only 2 weeks on pre-order the rig came in and I couldn’t be happier. Originally all of the rods are Zacuto Rods in silver but I needed a little more room because of the follow focus so I used my rods from my other Jag35 cage.

Small test I did with my video and Audio equipment.

Finally found a nice affordable cage and shoulder rig system that I can use for both my Canon 7D and 5D MKII. I’d been searching the net day and night for this system and place my order last week and got about 60% of everything mailed to me. In the next 2 weeks I should be getting the full shoulder rig, both follow focuses, and the gears for the follow focus. So after putting everything together I really like the DSLR cage and Im anxiously waiting for the shoulder rig to come in.

I got the opportunity to attend bimmerfest this year and I took the liberty of doing some video and pictures. Here is a short clip of the event I put together with my Canon 5D MKII