Authors — Michael Murie
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Alex Buono: Shooting for Saturday Night Live
Alex Buono is perhaps best known for his work with the Saturday Night Live Film Unit. He shot the current opening for SNL, as well as many of the fake commercials seen on the show, but his passion is documentary and making independent films. “I’m always trying to get the next one off the ground,” says Buono, “and SNL, as much as I like it, it’s a lot of fun and I really like who I’m working with, [but] it’s this great day job I do while I’m trying to get a movie [going].” Most recently, Alex worked on the […]
by Michael Murie on Aug 16, 2012 -
The Week in Cameras: Canon Goes Mirrorless, BDCC Accessories And A New Sony Camera
The Canon EOS M Canon this week announced the Canon EOS M, a small camera that takes an APS-C sensor and stuffs it into a smaller body by doing away with the DSLR mirrorbox and using a new lens mount. The EOS M follows a trail blazed by Canon’s competitors — namely Panasonic and Sony. Sony has had a hit with their NEX- series cameras, and obviously Canon has been watching. What does it mean for video? Well for one thing, it does away with the mirrorbox, which for video shooters is a mostly useless piece of equipment. This shrinks […]
by Michael Murie on Jul 27, 2012 -
DP Brandon Vincent: Shooting with the NEX-FS100
Brandon Vincent is a Massachusetts-based freelance videographer and editor and a Sony NEX-FS100 owner. He’s had the camera for almost a year, and I recently talked to him about his experience using it. Filmmaker: What kind of work are you shooting? Vincent: I do pretty much whatever comes to me really, but I do a lot of interviews, highlight videos of events, and I do a lot of my own personal stuff. I shot some comedy things. I don’t shoot a lot of documentary work, but it’s something I would like to get into. Filmmaker: When did you get the […]
by Michael Murie on Jul 23, 2012 -
Inside a Three-Minute Film Competition
On the first Sunday of July, a group of filmmakers gathered at the Salem Willows Park in Massachusetts to participate in a Three-Minute Film Challenge. The brainchild of local d.p.s Rick Macomber and Paul Antico, the event was as much a gathering of enthusiasts as it was a competition. “I was watching a 48-hour film fest,” says Rick, “and I had an idea that maybe we could do something like this, with a group of people, and [a film length limit of] three minutes. I’d never tried anything like this, and it was my first narrative attempt.” “We’d talked about […]
by Michael Murie on Jul 18, 2012 -
The Solar Odyssey: Shooting with the Sony NEX-FS100, Part Two
Todd Mahoney recently spent ten days shooting a documentary project using the Sony NEX-FS100. It was his first experience with the camera. He was documenting the pre-voyage progress of the Solar Odyssey Project, the voyage of a solar powered boat that will be traveling The Great Loop. You can read more about that in the first half of this series [“THE SOLAR ODYSSEY”: TAKING PART IN A DOCUMENTARY, PART ONE] In this interview, conducted after he had returned, Todd talks about his experiences shooting with the Sony NEX-FS100, the Sony NEX-7 and a GoPro Hero. So what happened? The boat […]
by Michael Murie on Jul 17, 2012 -
A Look at the Sony NEX-FS700
The Sony NEX-FS700 has been in the hands of a lucky few for the past month, but now it’s starting to arrive at U.S. stores and dealers. Quantities are constrained, but if you ordered one when it was first announced, you should have it in your hands soon. I got to see one in the flesh for the first time this week at Rule Boston Camera, where Sony Sales Support Engineer Tom Cubby gave a presentation and demonstration on the new cameras capabilities. I arrived late to the presentation, just as they were demoing the Super Slow-Mo feature, so I […]
by Michael Murie on Jul 12, 2012 -
The Solar Odyssey: Taking Part in a Documentary, Part One
You never know where an interesting project can come from — a friend, a client or even from Twitter. Such was the case for Boston-based d.p. Todd Mahoney, who spent ten days documenting the progress of The Solar Odyssey Project after seeing a tweet looking for someone to sub for their regular d.p. The Solar Odyssey is an attempt to cover the waterways of “The Great Loop” in a solar-powered boat. The project is led by skipper and adventurer Jim Greer, and technologist and host Philip Hodgetts. In part 1 of this interview, I spoke to Todd the day after […]
by Michael Murie on Jul 9, 2012 -
Unusual Camera Moves With the Alexa M
At NAB this year, ARRI revealed that, at least for the coming year, they’ll be concentrating on anamorphic imaging and the dynamic range of the Alexa rather than trying to compete with high frame rates or 4K. But they did have some interesting new additions to the product line, particularly if you want to get the camera closer to the action. The Alexa M, which will start shipping this month, is essentially an Alexa that’s been cut in two. You have a 12.1 lb body connected to a 6.4 lb head by a cable up to 20 feet long. That […]
by Michael Murie on May 16, 2012 -
Using R/C Helicopters to Fly Your Camera: Part Two
In this second part of an interview with Eric Austin of HeliVideo, Eric talks about camera control, future cameras, and the most amazing sequence he’s shot so far: What camera control are you doing remotely? We have remote record-on, off from the ground, and we can also punch-in. The lens we are currently using on the Sony is actually the kit lens, usually the 18 to 55. Are you using that because of the image stabilization? Yes, in part. The gimbal is stabilized, and with the extra little stabilization in the lens it just takes out the little nicks […]
by Michael Murie on May 1, 2012 -
Using R/C Helicopters To Fly Your Camera : Part 1
Eric Austin of HeliVideo has been flying RC aircraft and helicopters for about ten years, but it was two years ago that he first put a DSLR camera on a helicopter and started shooting aerial footage. Two years on and his company is shooting material for the Discovery Channel, ABC and others, primarily using the Sony NEX-FS100. I spoke to Eric recently about how he got into the business, and what’s involved in using RC helicopters. The first half of the interview covers his beginning, the cameras he’s been using, and operating considerations. The second half of the interview covers […]
by Michael Murie on Apr 30, 2012
