The Wills Eye Institute

I've often mention that one of the greatest appreciations I have had for my career in both photography and film has been the access allowed to behind-the-scenes.  Few professions touch so many people, places and events in this way.

A few weeks back, Evan, one of our clients at Sony asked us to travel down to Philadelphia to do some filming at the Wills Eyes Institute, a non-profit clinic, hospital and research center dedicated exclusively to the care of eyes.  Since 1990, Wills Eye Institute has consistently been ranked as one of the best ophthalmology hospitals in the United States.


Our assignment was to film and photograph a small, HD camera that is integrated into the microscope system used during eye surgery and we were asked to capture some of our images while a surgery was in progress.


After a few painless interviews in the executive boardroom, my assistant, Arion Doerr and I suited up in sterile garb and with the guidance of one of the hospital's directors, quietly walked into the operating room. 

The room was anything but silent.  Aside from the normal beeping and whirring of heart monitors and machinery, there was music playing loudly in the background and between the request for surgical instruments, informal chit chat about the weather or the price of gas.  We could have been in Starbucks.

The lead surgeon and her assistant were both viewing the operation thru a large, dual microscope, hovering over the patients head.  The camera we needed to film was mounted on top of it. 


Although the immediate vicinity of the operation was extremely bright, the room itself was fairly dim.  No problem for my Nikon D3, but less friendly to Sony's EX3.  Fortunately, the camera was white and there was just enough light to pull off the shots.  When surgery ended and everyone left the room, it was easy to move in for some closeups.

In recent years, surgeons at the Wills Eye Institute have successfully planted artificial retinas in patients that have been totally blind since birth, allowing them to experience shades of light and to distinguish basic shapes, such as a door or a table.  Pretty incredible.  
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Something Old Something New

There is a certain joy and empowerment attached to a piece of gear with karma and such has been the case with a lens I received from my dear friend and fellow DP, Roberta Findlay.

I use a Sony PMW-F3 for much of my work.  The F3 is a large sensor, state-of-the-art digital camera and I am currently mating it with a lens that is over 40 years old.  The lens, an Angenieux 25-250 3.2 zoom lens, was also state-of-the-art, somewhere around 1970, right around the time it was used to create a string of low budget horror flicks including the cult classic "Snuff".

When I first received the lens, it was a bit stiff and I immediately brought it over Du-All camera in Manhattan for service. A place you just have to visit if you've ever, seriously used a super-8 camera,  Although my lens was certainly, no longer state-of-the-art, the crew at Du-All treated it with the utmost respect and within a couple of days, they had cleaned, lubricated and collimated the lens to properly work with my camera.  It was like new.

I took it out to my favorite spot overlooking Manhattan for a test drive and the results where no less than amazing.

Like classic guitars and microphones, lenses, each have a personality all of there own.

In the days when I used to shoot with 4x5 and 8x10 cameras, it was not uncommon to own three of the same focal length lens, each from a different manufacturer and use each for a different, desired result.  For example, Nikon lenses were cold and clinical, while Schneider lenses had a bit more warmth  and roundness.  Warmer still were lenses from Goertz or Kodak.

If I was photographing a new bottle for Clinique, I would use the Schneider, but if it was a beauty shot of a model's face, I would definitely use the Goertz.  No need proving how sharp a lens could be there.

And although a lens might not be critically sharp, that doesn't mean the image is soft, either.  When you are speaking in terms like "roundness" or "creaminess", it's not just about technical accuracy.  Many shooters are finding the quality of older lenses from Cooke, Zeiss, Nikon, Pentax and others are giving them the look they desire.

Now, I know that there are issues with using older technology.  At T4.0, this lens is very slow, especially considering I have to stop down to at least 5.6 to get a decent image.  (Fortunately, the F3's low light sensitivity works in my favor there).  The lens "breathes", which means the focal length might appear to slightly change when focusing, but for most of my NYC filming, this is not an issue.  And finally, it is heavy, which necessitates rails and lens support provided by a rig from Genus.

Still, all of this becomes secondary after seeing the stunning images the lens delivers.

If you ask The Edge or any other well known guitarist why they travel with 20 different guitars, they will tell you that each has a unique sound and personality and so it goes with lenses.  There will also be an added boost if one of those guitars was owned by some legendary character making it special to the artist and so it is with Roberta's lens.

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Taking Time To Make TIme

The last few months have been the busiest ever for Crazy Duck Productions and for this both Sarah and I are extremely grateful.   The work we have produced for our existing clientele, as well as the exciting projects from our newest clients, VIP Community Services, Acatel-Lucent and Clear Channel have all been very well received and we're excited that much more is on the way.

In the last six months we've been able to completely upgraded our camera and lighting packages, greatly expanded our editing capabilities and we're in the process of launching a brand new duckyou.com web site.

Most importantly, we have taken time to spend time with each other and our family and to say thanks.  Without this time, what would be the point of being so busy?

Unfortunately, many personal side projects, including my NYC filming and this blog have had to take a back seat while we finish up our current productions.   I miss them both and I've begun winding the gears of my filming mindset as well as writing new blog stories to correspond with the release of our new site.

There's so much ahead of us, just down the pike and I hope you'll stay with us as we explore it all.

All the best
Chuck

Journey to the New (3rd) Dimension

About a year ago I was honored with an invitation to join Sony's elite ICE team.  ICE, an acronym for Independent Certified Expert, is a small group of working professionals from across the United States.  Most are specialists in some form of broadcast or cable television, while others are involved in producing corporate or event video.

After providing training, Sony often calls on members of the ICE team to test out preproduction cameras and other gear for the purpose of receiving realistic feedback from those actually using the stuff in the field.
In some cases, our input is incorporated into the final production design of a camera or influences the design of future models.

At dinner, after my first night of training, one of Sony's product managers asked me what I thought about 3D video?

I must admit my response was not very positive.  I thought of 3D as another marketing push to sell more DVDs and players.  Another fad or gimmick.  After all, what possible use could it have in everyday production?

About a month later, my opinion would turn about 180 degrees.  As I have previously written, Sony sent me to St. Louis to document the use of 3D laparoscopic surgery.  There in a darkened operating room, stood a surgeon and an assistant, performing an operation using images appearing in 3D using a microscopic camera inserted into the patient, with the results appearing on a 48" monitor.

The incision was minimal, yet the accuracy achieved was far greater than any 2D image could provide.

Up until this time, my only experience with 3D had been some cheesy horror flicks and Michael Jackson's 3D Captain EO at Disney.   I wanted to know more.

At the NAB trade show in Vegas this year, Robin Berg, a producer/director of several adventure reality shows (and a fellow ICE member) was demonstrating several new Sony 3D cameras and the images were spectacular.

After the show closed to the public, Robin walked me through the camera systems, educating me with knowledge he acquired taking an intense, 3 day, 3D course, at the Sony Studios in Culver City, CA.

I was zapped and immediately starting thinking of ways I could use this technology with my clients.

Now, hold on there Tex. 3D technology is finally coming of age, but, creating bad 3D is very easy.

So now, I'm heading off to Culver City, to learn professional 3D from scratch, from the same folks that have taught feature film and major sports crews the magic.   My goal:   Learn how to make good 3D


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The Manhattanhenge

I had filmed it twice before, but, until now, I hadn't realized that there was actually a name for it.

The Manhattanhenge occurs semi-annually around the summer and winter solstice and it is the only time that the setting sun is in alignment with the streets of NYC.   Meaning, that on a few specific days, when the sun sets over the Jersey palisades, there is an unusual opportunity to film and photograph sunsets in Manhattan.

This is a very blessed occasion, because even with a half dozen IPhone apps, and all the cosmic info available on the net, tracking exactly where the sun will rise and set can be tricky business.  Yeah, you can calculate where it will occur, but finding the right place to put down your tripod, so that the shot looks decent is another thing.

Last year I filmed the sun down 13th Street, near the Gansevort Hotel, just as it was setting over the High Line.  Stunning!   I was using a 300mm lens on my EX3 which with an MTF adaptor, which magnifies the image by a factor of 5.4.  So, in essence, it became a 1,600mm lens.

This year I put the same lens on my Sony F3 and recorded into a Nanoflash external recorder.  Although the lens was not as extreme,  the results were still excellent and the low-light capability of the F3's large sensor allowed me to catch the last bits of golden light, long after the sun had dropped.

One important suggestion when using any type of telephoto lens is to have a solid tripod.  The tiniest amount of vibration will show up when using a long lens and having a decent foundation is crucial.
As of late, I have been using the new 509 fluid head and the 536 carbon fiber legs from Manfrotto.  This gives me the firm foundation I'm looking for while still remaining an amazingly lightweight package.

Aside from being very easy to balance, it has a light-up bubble which is essential for low-light shooting.
An important feature when you are huffing around Manhattan with a camera over your shoulder.

July 12th is the next time Manhattanhenge will occur so, be ready!

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The Green Lantern

Last we Sarah and I helped launch another new coaster at Six Flags: The Green Lantern!

This ride has two minutes of the usual spine-chilling climbs, loops and corkscrews, all performed at a lightning speed.  The difference here, is that the rider is standing.

Our job was to work with Kristin, the park's PR manager to film the ride, create and duplicate a video press kit in a time frame of less than 48 hours.  

Weather was not on our side, either.  It had been pouring for the last few days and we had a limited window of opportunity to pull this off, the press launch could not be moved and was now or never.
     
A local weather report indicated some clearing was heading our way, but, for now, it was still raining.

We arrived a 9:00 am.  Our first task was to mount a POV (point of view) camera on the front of the ride.  After which, we would need to reverse the camera and film a crew of brave riders.

We've mounted cameras on dozens of coasters over the years and still our deepest concern is safety.  Rigging used to take hours and often required mounting large cameras and portable tape decks.   Everything had to be taped and bungeed into place.  A loose part becomes a missile at 60-80 mph, endangering riders and anyone on the ground.  We also take into consideration that this is a multi-million dollar ride that they are letting us play with and we want to leave it just as we found it.

Although mounting a POV camera has become a much easier affair with the introduction of miniature, light-weight cameras like the Go Pro, everything must be secured and safety checked by the ride park's engineers before we proceed.

Carefully covering the ride with gaffer tape to prevent scratching the paint, Sarah and I used a Manfrotto maffer clamp and Magic Arm to secure the camera to the front panel of the ride.  Amazingly, we were able to immediately view the test results, get our client's OK on both angles and move on to our ground shots.

I was fortunate to have the loan of a Genus shoulder mount for this shoot.  In the past, I found it difficult filming rides using my Sony EX1 and EX3 cameras.  The EX1's LCD viewer sucks in daylight and the EX3's shoulder mount is both clutzy and difficult to hand-hold, especially when you are trying to follow a high speed coaster car around a steel pretzel.

The Genus consists of a hot-plate,  rails, a shoulder pad and counter-weight was quick and easy to balance and it fit very comfortably on my shoulder.  That's pretty much all you want to say about a shoulder rig, except this one was designed to be used on my tripod as well, so with a simple click, it was in place and no time was lost changing mounts.  Simple, perfect, sweet.

The rain cleared long enough for us to shoot, but, care had to be taken to properly show off the ride against the bright white skies.  The best camera's can be pretty dumb at times and seeing all that brightness, the camera's internal metering system would change that white sky to 18% grey for very unpleasant results.

After a late night edit and a few online approvals the job was delivered with 18 hours to spare and the Green Lantern press event (this time with sunny skies) was very successful.  Go Kristin!  

Check out the ride:  The Green Lantern Ride film
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Chuck featured on Sony's VideOn site

The Genus Rig

Getting Back to Business

I've received dozens of inquiries as to why I had not been keeping my blog up to date.  In fact, I heard from people all over the globe that I had no idea were following my ramblings and often, reading all the way back to my first entries.  I was chuffed.

Well here's the deal...

I put away my writer's cap for a few months, because I began to feel that I was talking more and doing less.

It's not true, really.  I'm just kind of tough on myself, which is the result of being self-employed for 30 years.  None the less, I felt I had to stop writing for a while and get out into the field and do more doing.

Fortunately, in the last five months the studio has been jammed with new projects, acquired several new clients and purchased a state-of-the-art camera.  Sarah and I are moving forward and making significant progress in a very sluggish economy and I am truly thankful for the blessings bestowed upon us.

Best of all, we have found a great deal of joy and artistic direction in filming New York City.   Getty Images has proven to be a decent stock footage partner.  We now have hundreds of video clips online and our images have been seen on everything from CSI to CNN to SNL.

Even more important than finding the time to do all this new work, Sarah and I have gone out of our way to find the time to enjoy each other and our beautiful daughter, Ellie, who just last week, celebrated her 2nd birthday.  What an amazing thing that is!

                      (Sorry Eric... I couldn't help myself.)

At a time when most workers and business owners are looking toward retirement, I am more stoked than ever about the type of work we do, the people we work with and some of the brilliant and talented professionals that I have had the great honor of swapping industry stories with.

I look forward to more!

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