Please critique my grade

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joechiazza

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Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 6:26 am

Can you guys please take a look at my grade and give me suggestions on how I can improve it?

Thank you!




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João Gomes

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 12:13 pm

I like it.

Natural skintones vs bluish background looks really good. Maybe i would have desaturated the hole thing and used hand held to fit the tense environment of the scene. I also think it´s lacking some close-ups of the man and woment sitting at the desk, some reactions to what the main carachter was saying, but i digress... You asked about the grade and i really like it.

Congrats!
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joechiazza

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 2:45 pm

Thanks man! I really appreciate it. I have close ups shot of the guy at the desk but the only reason I didn't use them is that his acting fell apart during the close ups and I just couldn't get the performance out of him.
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David Dearing

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 3:01 pm

I like the grade a lot. The lighting isn't even, which is distracting. The dude standing up is overlit in the face IMO, and of the three sitting, the left and center guys are getting most of the light. It looks like the guy standing up almost has a flashlight (torch) in his face. :shock:

That being said- since you asked for critique on your grade, I was paying particular attention to the image- so the uneven lighting stuck out. If I wasn't looking to critique anything and just enjoy the clip, I probably wouldn't have noticed. lol :)
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joechiazza

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 3:17 pm

c131frdave wrote:I like the grade a lot. The lighting isn't even, which is distracting. The dude standing up is overlit in the face IMO, and of the three sitting, the left and center guys are getting most of the light. It looks like the guy standing up almost has a flashlight (torch) in his face. :shock:

That being said- since you asked for critique on your grade, I was paying particular attention to the image- so the uneven lighting stuck out. If I wasn't looking to critique anything and just enjoy the clip, I probably wouldn't have noticed. lol :)

The light on his face is even, its just a power window that kind of makes it more lit in one area, so that is fixable. As far as the 3 people, nothing I can do really about the lighting there. Just is what it is.
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Scott Stacy

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 5:04 pm

This kinda has the commonly used teal/orange grade. I would consider desaturating the whole look a bit to not get pinned into the overused "look" and perhaps adding some fine grain to offset the video-ness of the grade. Would you consider a 2:35.1 Panavision format? Other than these suggestions, I like it!
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joechiazza

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 5:09 pm

Scott Stacy wrote:This kinda has the commonly used teal/orange grade. I would consider desaturating the whole look a bit to not get pinned into the overused "look" and perhaps adding some fine grain to offset the video-ness of the grade. Would you consider a 2:35.1 Panavision format? Other than these suggestions, I like it!

I'm not sure what you mean by panavision format. I thought I was using a 2:35.1 crop with the black bars. I will for sure make the other adjustments. Thank you!
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Scott Stacy

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 6:08 pm

joechiazza wrote:
Scott Stacy wrote:This kinda has the commonly used teal/orange grade. I would consider desaturating the whole look a bit to not get pinned into the overused "look" and perhaps adding some fine grain to offset the video-ness of the grade. Would you consider a 2:35.1 Panavision format? Other than these suggestions, I like it!

I'm not sure what you mean by panavision format. I thought I was using a 2:35.1 crop with the black bars. I will for sure make the other adjustments. Thank you!


If you like, you can use Compressor to get rid of the black bars and just have the 2:35.1 format. Looks spiffy that way. Some NLEs allow you to omit black bars and export a file free of black bars.

example:
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Rob Ford

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 7:00 pm

I like it overall. I think you should remove a bit of red from the skin tones.

ps-2.35:1
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Chris.O

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 7:05 pm

I'd second some things here, like pulling a little red out of the skin, and maybe pulling the teal out of the background.

There were some lighting inconsistencies; The man sitting at the desk on the left is a good example. His left side of his face is a little bright in the wide (there are some specular highlights on the forehead), but the lighting looks flat in the medium, when you pan across the seated characters - as though that light (or power window) was shut off.

Very nice, crisp look, though all told. Great work :)
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Matthew_Lawrence

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostThu Mar 27, 2014 7:52 pm

Nice job! Personally I really love the orange and teal look. I think it's used often cos it works and nobody other than filmmakers seems to mention it being over used. I think it helps raise perceived production values (probably on a subconcious level). Just my opinion
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joechiazza

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 12:13 pm

Well I took some of your suggestions and updated the grade. Here is the link to the final product.
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David Dearing

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 2:01 pm

I just realized what I didn't like about the lighting. When he walks into the room, he is in shadow. So obviously you are using a spotlight to light his face when he reaches his position. It just doesn't look natural. If the people are going to be so bright, the whole room needs to be bright- OR you need to establish that the conference room is lit by some sort of spotlight. When you see old cop movies and it is lit like that, they show an obvious lonely spotlight on the suspect with the cops in the background shadows giving him the fifth degree.

Anyway, I realize you wanted a grade critique and not a lighting critique, so I think the grade is spot on for the environment. Next time, light the whole room evenly. Even if you want to set a "dark" mood, the spotlights are distracting.

But then again- I've been in a lot of meetings in rooms like this, so most people might not be distracted by what I am. :)
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Alexander Arndt

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 5:09 pm

yeah the only thing so far is the face light in his mid and close shots and even in the opend.,

I just realized what I didn't like about the lighting. When he walks into the room, he is in shadow. So obviously you are using a spotlight to light his face when he reaches his position. It just doesn't look natural. If the people are going to be so bright, the whole room needs to be bright- OR you need to establish that the conference room is lit by some sort of spotlight.
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joechiazza

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Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 5:12 pm

Alexander Arndt wrote:yeah the only thing so far is the face light in his mid and close shots and even in the opend.,

I just realized what I didn't like about the lighting. When he walks into the room, he is in shadow. So obviously you are using a spotlight to light his face when he reaches his position. It just doesn't look natural. If the people are going to be so bright, the whole room needs to be bright- OR you need to establish that the conference room is lit by some sort of spotlight.

Is this fixable at this point? I'm not 100% clear on what you mean. There is a strong overhead light pointed directly at the table they are sitting that was my motivation. To light his face I bounce that exact light off of a whiteboard. Are you suggesting that I should darken it and post? I don't want lighten the whole room, I want it to be a more dramatic looking darker scene.

I really appreciate the feedback guys.
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bhook

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 5:40 pm

joechiazza wrote:Are you suggesting that I should darken it and post? I don't want lighten the whole room, I want it to be a more dramatic looking darker scene.


That's what you were saying before you shot it. Trouble is I think most everyone knows what a conference room looks like...lots of light from overhead. The strong bounce from the table is what we used to call "Bella Lugosi lighting"...keylight on the floor sort of thing. It doesn't look like anything any of us ever saw in a conference room. It does give your main character a Frankenstein look so if that was what you were after, then you nailed it.
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joechiazza

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Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 6:42 pm

Image

This is my motivation for why I shot with that. Scene from "Boiler Room"


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bhook

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 6:54 pm

That shadow on the wall behind the guy at the head of the table really bothers me. I mean where did it come from? I do think your "dark" scene might have been better served in a board room with some dark wood paneling. Board rooms often have dramatic can lighting...and the chairs are always bigger for some reason.
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joechiazza

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 8:26 pm

This is from a movie called "boiler room". Ben Affleck and a few other "a list" actors in it.


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bhook

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 8:32 pm

joechiazza wrote:This is from a movie called "boiler room". Ben Affleck and a few other "a list" actors in it.


Yea, you said that. Sorry but the shadow on the wall from nowhere still bugs me as does the shadow on the wall from nowhere as your main talent walks into the conference room. Of course, there's no accounting for taste though...if it doesn't bother you, that's what really counts isn't it? :lol:

Blaine Russom

Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 10:48 pm

The first thing i saw when opened the link to play the video was the red.. I would tone it down because it looks unnatural for the skin tones to me personally. Everything else I liked!

I noticed some sudden changes in lighting with the man standing, while he was talking.. look at 1:25 then skip to 1:45
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joechiazza

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 01, 2014 10:49 pm

Blien wrote:The first thing i saw when opened the link to play the video was the red.. I would tone it down because it looks unnatural for the skin tones to me personally. Everything else I liked!

I noticed some sudden changes in lighting with the man standing, while he was talking.. look at 1:25 then skip to 1:45

Thank you! I'll check that out
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Alexander Arndt

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostMon Apr 07, 2014 5:43 pm

i just watched it again...to say. you could also used the motion camera to him, not only on the 3 on the table, i record that in first szene they all seem very well lit, like they have all the same appearance rights :) haha, no way, u could have lit them a little darker so there wouldnt be so much bounce on the table after in the szene when you show the last 2 they seemd a bit darker so why so bright at the start...for the overall drama the cam angle is to straight for him...at least you could have shot from downangle and move to him or so when he speaks up the case ...the main guy that walks in ...

when you build the table like down your angle of view you may shoot an overshoulder movement behind your guys to him...etc ...

overall looking good tho
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Benton Collins

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Re: Please critique my grade

PostTue Apr 08, 2014 2:38 am

Like many have said before, the skin is too red/magenta. Don't be afraid to get heavy handed just to see where the limits are. Then dial in the skin to a pleasing even tone. Unless your subject is a drunk, you almost always want to avoid red/ magenta in skin.

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