Adventures in videography

After making a few silly mistakes in the past I have learned to go through a mental checklist before shooting, it goes something like this…

• Set the camera to the appropriate format, 1080p/25 or 720/25p normally for me.
• Check white balance setting (my picture profile is set at 5600 so I just selected PRST on the WB switch) when shooting outside or dial it down in the picture profile for electric lighting.
• Check audio levels (if using mics)
• Set the shutter (I use 180 degrees most of the time but switch the shutter off when using S&Q motion & the Brevis)
• Select a picture profile

If I’m using the Brevis I also do the following… 

• Zoom to z61 on the EX1 (Please see my brevis cropping post for more info)
• Focus the EX1 on the Brevis ground glass by closing down the aperture on the nikon lens, pointing the camera at something bright and using the peaking function of the camera to get best focus coverage.
• Set desired f stop on the nikon (usually fully open or 1 stop down).
• Switch on the Brevis.
• Double check the zoom. Nothing is more annoying than getting back to the edit suite to find that you zoomed outside the frame by mistake!