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Capturing Sequences

Lesson 15 from: The Art of Wedding Filmmaking

Alfio Stuto

Capturing Sequences

Lesson 15 from: The Art of Wedding Filmmaking

Alfio Stuto

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Lesson Info

15. Capturing Sequences

Next Lesson: Shoot: Groomsmen

Lesson Info

Capturing Sequences

We spoke about few techniques aspects you know to get those killers shot on dh to enhance you know, the telling of the story aspect we're going to talk about here is, um you know, isolating the action it's so important to draw your your viewer to what you want to show them you need to show what you want to show you the world in the lens is different to what you see outside the lens and that's what inspired me that's actually how I got motivated to do motion picture because I am I've always been a bit of a dreamer all right like when I was little iced tea oh dressed up like batman, right? Yeah so you mentioned christian bad and, you know, it's funny, but when I was little like dress off his batman and hiding my in my parent's restaurants like like on the name of the stairs and I always wanted to have an escape like I wanted to like remove myself from the rule world and dream of like this fantasy world and while we're dealing with real people, you're in control you need to be in control ...

what you're showing and that really like excited me because you can show anything you want, you know, I mean you can show something that is really specific as a really emotional moment, something that is like got a lot of intensity you have the power I know that kind of sounds a bit corny like you got the power you know, like like captain planet when these powers combined I am captain planet so your childhood our cover did that hold it against me but you know a man like that really excites me because you have the power to control to go right? I want to isolate the action that I want to show and you can do that with obviously with your your lens selection you're framing everything we spoke about you need to use all those tools right t show what you want to show you know, for example we're going to do this shortly we're going to get you guys all right up here and you're going to pretend that you're doing some sort of like grouper okay andi idea is it's going to be like a tight spot and we're going to show I'm gonna show you how we could just capture, you know cern isolated like shots that put together that create this sequence and that's what it's all about creating sequences and that's what I'll be demonstrating through the chute and some examples where you know what capturing like the whole just the one aspect you're capturing many different elements close ups, different movements, different things that are happening like, you know we'll show you a clip where it's some some egyptian dancing they've got drums going they've got they've got three so the guy with the flute gone nuts and you've got the broad ng room doing there like you know like you know they're they're crazy dancing like awesome cultural dancing which reflects who they are which is another important thing you know you're doing this you're capturing this in this way because that is going to intensify and enhance what you're showing what you're showing something important to them which goes back to storytelling right on dh being very specific in what you're doing it's so important andi just makes it more exciting yeah like you know like like I said, I've been like a mother it was actually recently and I'll show you and I actually have some shots I've got someone to do behind the scenes a couple is a couple of shots of actually you see that actual space and I was like this tight blue room it was like six guys in there I'm like I walk in there like all right, I have to do this you know? I just thought I'm just going to show what I need to show and they're very simply there just there getting ready, you know they're getting ready and they're preparing themselves for you know they're getting suited up for for the ceremony sounds like a very simple saying right? But you can make it look interesting by your composition we've touched on this before your framing the type of lens that you use and remember well what I mentioned that you don't it's not about choosing like a wide angle lens because you want to fit more in the picture you know because you find it it's kind of like type but what you need to do is find the right land so it could be like a thirty five thirty five so it's kind of known as a towards slightly towards a wide angle lens but sometimes that's coolants to use to get multiple shots but I love the fifty and I use the fifty with this thing seen and I was very specific okay close up of this and another shot of this and then I move the door and I kind of like created like a frame within frame you know? So you just constantly, you know, changing it all up and just being super creative by isolating the action lance selection is huge yeah, you really need to know your lenses because different lenses give different looks and we looked at that we touched on that yesterday and I can't stress enough that like sure you don't on the day you not like over assessing what lengths he's only seen there alright, wait thirty five well do I get the fifty or hanging together thirty five and then I can just chill and you just think about what you want to show you just assess the situation ugo is actually what I'll do is I don't have it here but I'll show later on when we were shooting there's an app that you can get that you can actually see the frame or the point of view off the particular france if for example of fifty mil is you know crops in a certain amount from a certain distance and at the same distance like a two hundred it's a lot tighter so this app who show you like the frame size for each for each lens kind of cool but over time you know you will you'll develop this is second nature you just look at something you think okay look fifty closest to the field of view off your your eye so then it gives you an idea in terms of like how close you should be and then you need to think about focal length certain lenses have different focal lengths, you know? So for example the eighty five mil you can get really close with the eighty five mil it's a beautiful portrait lens eso between the fifty and the eighty five very appealing lenses to make people look look naturally and good all right so we looked at the twenty four mil we looked at little vincent you know, I was like there's big crazy high but that was that was something that was deliberate right? Because that accentuated his he's crazy face cute dog like well that the doing like the grooming or washing the dog and man that hug was like moving all over the place it was really fun so you know you want accentuate that fun and that craziness with your lens on dh then we looked at, you know, the macro lens and how you bring the viewer like deep into the what you're showing you know I mean because that detail for example of the ring is something important to the story but it doesn't have to be just the ring because the rain look let's be frank it's it's quite a common part of the day so while it's important to capture that and be creative in how you you you set up here your detail shot like room is sandra and fire aj I put the ring on on the bible right on the arabic bible because they're egyptian they called the background his egyptian and the super religious like their faith is really important to them so it made sense and they came together through their faith that's how them and make them medically viable conference so these are things you need to think about to isolate the action and shoot with a purpose think about the lens that you want to use that's appropriate to execute what you're trying to communicate and then think of how you khun tyler so instead of like even though it's kind of cool like with the right lands and you make the image look pretty, if you just have it like, for example, on everyday bench, okay, you could make it look pretty good when I slide a shot, but is it really like you really enhancing? What you trying to communicate? Are you are you communicating this story? You maximizing that that's what you think about, how can I maximize telling their story, showing what they're all about? Look at different little details, sometimes I'm not so obvious, right? But because you've spent the time getting to know them, then things kind of like, fall into place, you look around and look, you know, sometimes you just don't find something that you think, oh, how can I make this look interesting? You know what I say to those situations? Move on if something's not working, if a shot is not working, you you find you're not isolating the action and not creating what you need for that specific thing move on that's my rule because you know what you're creating more than just that one thing it's a big is a bigger picture. I know there are people out there that you know, and I was at this stage as well that's why I'm mentioning this that people get a little bit of a little bit carried away with a specific thing they're trying to shoot you think I'm gonna get this but then I spent so much time getting this detail shot it's not working it's just not working because the elements are not there the with the space that they're working with the apparatus like with slider it's not working move on and that's what I do and then what happens maybe like as we're like in the for example of the bridal prep things just kind of come back at all I've got an idea now you know it's like when you brainstorming for an idea sometimes when you kind of like stuff just leave it and that's what I do want to shoot sometime like in a bridal prep something like is common and seen a shooting the detail of the ring and I'm trying to find the way I'm constantly looking around like heck and I I'm gonna show this that it's like for them you know, I don't want a coven copy you know, bring shot, otherwise they will look the same and I don't always shoot the ring shot this point that out because that could be some other detail that is more important I had a couple where they you know that grandma had, you know, passed away recently she had these beautiful wooden plaque of her name have photo and little note and it said have a have a bourbon and coke or some sort of rum thing was running coke for for grandma because they also favorite drink, so that was a detail that I made sure that I, you know, took the time to make it creative and and I could do like a pull focus from I'm talking about he don't try and pull out tomorrow, but and show you but you know, I pull focus from the photo too you know, the plaque with a note simple shot, yeah, it's a lot of these shots actually very simple to do that it's we're not talking about these huge cranes and he's like epic, you know, hollywood apparatus and know it's the keys what's in here and what's in here you put these things together and you got a and awesome and unstoppable approach to your your your wedding filmmaking, you know, maybe put some heart into it. You know, that's what I do, man, when I go in there, I put my heart into it, you know, because that's see anyway, I see this is gonna happen is gonna work for me because let me tell you and you know this houston and who's done for talking fish both the photography like, you know, capturing a winning is hard work like, you know, when we're dealing with, you know, cinema where we've got different apparatus and I've touched we looked at this yesterday, but we got all this equipment and it is overwhelming so is a lot of hard work, but if you put all these constant concept together, you think about lynn selection for that particular purpose, that particular shot to get that shot and you isolate the action, everything just is worthwhile, okay, but of a philosophical way of looking at things, but you know what you need that you need that drive so important? Um so you know how how do the's capturing sequences as opposed to just capturing like one or two shots of the overrule actions? How is that going to enhance a story? And in a moment I'll show you an example ofthe ah siri's of shots that demonstrate a sequence as opposed to just shooting something that unfolds and shooting something that unfolds there's not not much interesting that, like you're at the risk pretty much what's going to happen is the audience the viewers is going to get bored, you know, and what you trying to do is create a mini story that's the key you create these little mini stories and then you use these minister many stories in your head it to create that overall story that that big picture right and by having these many stories think of them as these building blocks yeah you needle these you're like a buddha you need a ll these building blocks to form this awesome story right now if you don't like get your bricks together properly with your cement and put him nicely together then you can't make your your house that's like analogy can think of right so you need to like create you structure you little components you know to make your house and then the overall picture that the little house overall story it's so important so that's all that many stories many stories like for example you know the bride reading aleta you know um one that is an example in the slide the clipping about to show you something so simple them just arriving at the venue with their boxes and then I'm packing staff and you know they're getting all their deep you know, there's like details stuffs and the decorations put together and you thinking a lot of people might think oh what's what's so interesting about that but they're they're putting a lot of heart and soul in doing that you know? I mean and you know this their brides are all about the details right now this clear one that shows got sierra's like there's a sequence of sierra and her bridesmaids coming in the venue and a ll these boxes that had all these things and she's like like socials like super into and I like cannot hey do do you have like the bridesmaids to it that you want like kind of just chill means up to you I suspect was were on friendly terms it's not I'm good I'm going to do these front of five minutes and okay cool so I check you know because you know you should just relax you know, because collected bridesmaids it's on the control and they were kind of like a busy and I'll show you like putting things in order and placing their little details for the for the ceremony so you crazy little many stories so I'll show you this clip and this is coming in and I made a phone call to the moms and when is she coming coming since I was there ready to go and I kept like just getting different but a variety of different shots too to create these many stories this is a tight room super tight so I just thought, ok, just be very selective reveal, you know, different framing and then there I am tony, but you know if you if you use the right lands you think about what you shooting created many story dance sequences, you don't have to capture dance sequence as one single shot make it interesting boy looking at close ups, different angles cuts really well create an overall feel off the dance experience it's an experience right? You know what just capturing you don't doing surveillance this is not surveillance this is cinema that's what cinema is right we looked at like cinema versus video let's get back there cinema is doing this creating me stories and that will make it more interesting it adds dynamics you incorporating mohr element how many elements were in that dance like sequence and pretty straightforward shots I mean it's just about kind of just mixing it up you know? But you had the saxophone player you had the army I had so much fun there just that I had so much fun that they do there's a big pickle and all these like crazy greek dancing is awesome um for any talent actually do a pretty good civic you go but I can't do it like a live eh? No probably no, they gave me a weird look so let's forget about it but you know, like you got the guy I'd kind of like leaning back and he's going crazy so I got a close up of that and hands because with the greek dancing you know, it's signifying and they form a circle from a circular formation because it's like together so you kind of accentuate that I get a close up off the hands together and I use a twenty for meal well there's a few twenty four meals and some fifty mil shots there and with the twenty four obviously to exaggerate the movement there's a lot of movement happening and um different angles to create a mini story you know, to really um make make the hole what you know to communicate your arm your shots in a more dynamic way when you were in a dark spaces do you have artificial lighting that's amounted to your camera or is a position specifically in a certain area of the room and then you just find the light is your shooting definitely I would never have light on the camera because what that what happens is you're you're capturing your creating flat lighting so lying should always come from a certain angle way from the camera tio have shape so it's similar to how we did the interview set up right? I didn't have the you know you never shoot in the same direction as your uk source of life because you're and you mess you know this like you know you've noticed between your photography you create shape in the subject same applies when you're doing film making you will create shape and that makes the shot look interesting and it's like, you know it's dynamic it's you know it's it's a lot more impact, you know? So I never have I never had you should never have ah light on the camera and to answer your question um I by introducing a little light panel if it's like super doc and you know I can't use any natural light or the light available that is you know, part of the room is not great, but sometimes you get these down lines we worked with down lights down lined so like he's like this circular life ended just like super harsh and they shine right down safe your if someone's on the navy's down lines it's like an extreme version of the godfather going wrong and we made a lot of cameras and so we were going into an impression yeah, I kind of hate is actually quite it is better but I just thought, you know, I don't want it coming on intention there, but you know and what I do with that so I I incorporate like a little early day panel um, which I showed yesterday they they actually like that that that size in from the thickness and about that wide and the battery runs so you don't need like cable than people tripping on a city in a tight space what you can do, you just use that to bounce the switch with the lights off put in a corner, bounce it and then you got this nice soft light and obviously you have the light slightly you're shooting slightly away from the light even though it's bouncing because if it's bouncing, if you're shooting way close to where it's bouncing from, then you more prone for the shots to be flat. But generally, we were bouncing a light it's, just sending a nice, soft light onto the onto the subject. But I usually don't have to do that. You know, if it's, um it's, more like if there's mixed lighting and with the broad old cripple show you like, you know, if we have some tunks and what's happening, we want to kind of minimize that neutralized in a balanced story, balanced a light color of the light and just have one sort one one color. But, yeah, just anti christian, and we can incorporate some sort of led panel.

Class Materials

bonus material with purchase

4 aspects to killer shots.pdf
Bon Journo_pricing guide.pdf
Ceremony floor plan-one cam op.pdf
Ceremony floor plan_2 cam.pdf
Couple Questionnaire.pdf
Interview shoot-floor plan.pdf

Ratings and Reviews

user 62b97f
 

Excellent workshop! Worth every penny! Alfio really knows his stuff and is very inspiring. This class made my work look MUCH better. I would recommend this class to all my freinds. Cheers!

Trish Lloyd
 

This "class" is AMAZING. So much information packed into the hours! Alfio is a relaxed and fun "instructor" that you can tell has a lot of passion for what he does. Worth watching for sure!

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