Breathless' Nominated for BSC Award - 27/10/14

'Breathless' nominated for Best Cinematography in a Television Drama in the British Society of Cinematography 2014 awards.

Bye Bye Studio - Critical Wrapped 21/10/14

'Critical' has been an extraordinary experience. We are all very sad to leave this wonderful set though I'm sure it has much to do with becoming completely instutionalised over the course of the last ten months. You mean we have to go outside now? Into the world??

Stragglers from Night Exterior - Critical 20/10/14

A couple more setups from the big night shoot on the test track. First up is C camera operator Tony Kay with a versatile underslung on a slider Cartoni Lambda setup. Then these amazing battery powered flashing blue LEDs. I wish I knew who made them! They are magnetic so can be attached to any metal surface. They are rubberised and used by the emergency services who throw them on the ground wherever needed. For our purposes they came into their own for close ups. The gaffer could hand hold them close to the actors' faces and they could be stuck to myriad metal objects around camera. Finally a moment of peace during the apocalyptic deluge that passed over in late August.

Rear Projection - Critical 20/10/14

A very successful rear projection sequence courtesy of Lester Dunton's expertise in setting up the right environment to achieve astonishingly good results from what some might consider a rather old fashioned technique. Lester shot all the plates, graded the footage to match our lighting and set up all the projectors and screens. His method is more complex than a simple screen behind the vehicle. Lester positions a screen above the car to create moving reflections in the windscreen. He will also project moving footage from the plates directly through the windscreen onto the actors' faces. The combination of projected material and lighting effects enabled us to shoot a fifteen minute driving sequence in three days. The scene comprises two drivers in two separate cars having a (hands free) phone conversation with one another on a journey that begins in the city, progresses through the suburbs and finishes in open country. Much coverage was needed on each driver in each car. Can you imagine how long this might have taken if shot for real on a low loader or how soulless it would have been if shot agains a greenscreen. Rear projection allowed the drivers to 'see' exactly where they were going and feel like they were on the road. Unquestionably this benefited the performances. Furthermore the lighting could be timed perfectly to reflect the changing levels of illumination caused by passing traffic, shopfronts and street light/moonlight.

Who's Been a Naughty Boy then - Critical 20/10/14

So this is how you make a dog snarl. I should add that no animals were injured during the filming of this production. Anyway this was part of an extended sequence that takes place in the back of an ambulance. The dog did not cooperate so a jerry rigged greenscreen was hastily installed and out of nowhere conventional coverage mutated into a full on visual effects scene in the tiniest space imaginable. Be prepared for anything!

Homage to Irving Penn - Critical 17/09/14

Jon Howard and I found ourselves in this hidden corner of the set waiting for the A camera to pass by on its master shot before emerging to capture close ups without being in A camera's shot. The position we had taken up brought to mind Irving Penn's famous series of corner photographs. Here's his portrait of Truman Capote - much better lighting Mr Penn.

 

A New Way to Hand Hold - 'Critical' 16/09/14

I've had my Easi Rig for twelve years now and must thank camera operator Tony Kay for introducing me to a new way of handholding the camera. What a revelation! It has made those awkward over the shoulder shots when the camera has to be lower than your shoulder but higher than an underarm cradle, easy and relaxing to accomplish. Sling the cinesaddle around your shoulder and rest the camera on top of it. Now why didn't I ever think of that? Thank you Tony.

Three Amigos - 'Critical' 16/09/14

Or the three stooges. Brothers in arms, saddled up and ready to go. From left to right: Tim Palmer, Dop; Jon Howard, C Camera Operator; Martin Foley, A Camera Operator.

BIG Night Exterior - 'Critical' 09/10/14

This might be the largest area I've ever had to light at night. Three ways up, down and across Canal St in Manchester comes a close second. The Longcross test track provided the perfect opportunity to try another thing that I've always wanted to do since reading in American Cinematographer about Emmanuel Lubezki's magnificent work on Sleepy Hollow. He fashioned giant 'Moon boxes' out of Wendy lights encased in a framework of silks and hung them off construction cranes to impart a big soft light to a large area.

We couldn't afford Wendy lights or construction cranes so gaffer Tom Hyde's resourceful solution was a remote controlled 18K HMI built into a half silk box perched atop a 70m cherry picker. The height was necessary to get over the tall trees. I was thrilled. Our moonbox really did impart a beautiful quality of light - soft enough to feel naturalistic but sufficiently punchy to gain a decent exposure.

As you can see from the clip below there is a fair bit of lighting - the Moonbox, another 18K on a picker, the 18K behind the brow of the hill, a fourth 18K lighting trees in the distance, 2 x 6Ks lighting trees in very far distance, one 4K, 4 x 2.5K and 4 more 1.2K HMIs all hidden in the trees uplighting the branches. That's just for the 'moonlight'. After that there was all the tungsten for the roadworks and the crash site. The fire engine bowser delivered the wet down extremely quickly and efficiently.

Monster Snorkel Rig Rides Again - 'Critical' 20/09/14

Steve's done it once, he can do it again - this time in periscope mode. A complicated sequence involving a trapped passenger after the firemen have cut the roof off the car to gain access. The camera tracked from front to back remaining at or just below the eyeline. This would have been impossible with any kind of camera paraphernalia near the actors' faces. The slim profile of the periscope was the only tool for the job.

Here's Where It Can Fit - 'Critical' 20/09/14

We couldn't fit the periscope in the ambulance but managed to shoehorn it onto the dashboard of a car. How does that work? In preproduction we tested the periscope attachment set laterally. The internal optics can be reorientated to suit the position of the lens so that at a right angle the picture is not on its side. We hadn't used it in such a way before but this seemed like the ideal opportunity. It took operator Martin Foley and grip Steve Weightman's ingenuity with the camera and a Cine Saddle to get this fantastic shot from the pov of an airbag deploying.

The Humble Prism - 'Critical' 20/09/14

Haven't used one of these for quite some time. The probe/periscope lens has made the low angle prism somewhat redundant and I don't miss the refractions and secondary reflections that occur with the prism. However in this instance we were defeated by the complete and utter lack of space inside an ambulance with a patient and five principals all crowding around. We tried and tried but couldn't get the periscope to fit. As usual every close up is shot from a very low camera position. The prism combined with a set of small form old Zeiss T2.1 standard primes got us the angles we needed.

Periscope on Crane - 'Critical' 20/09/14

Mounting the periscope on a crane was a first - for me at least. It slotted very nicely onto a Scorpio head. The entire scene took place on the back of a flatbed truck which meant working at elevated camera positions hence the crane. The extreme low angles that had to include detailed close ups in foreground demanded the periscope. It was certainly a first for grip Steve Weightman but you can see below how proud he is of his handiwork.

Dramatic Moonlight - The Shot

The cavalry arriving.

Dramatic Moonlight - 'Critical' 20/09/14

I've always wanted to do this kind of lighting but the right location has never presented itself. You need a big hump in the road with a long hill sloping away behind. The Longcross test track provided just such an opportunity though the hump is usually used to demonstrate a Ferrari's airborne capabilities. Anyway, even better, the high pressure system from the continent that has been sitting over us for the past two weeks delivered cloudless, windless and, critically, humid nights. The humididity created moisture that hung like gossamer in the air above ground level. It was the same EVERY night for two weeks - unbelievable. No amount of money could buy a haze effect like this. Anyway the steepish slope behind allowed for an 18kw HMI to be positioned low down and far enough away to be hidden by the brow of the hill. The lamp back lit the haze which silhouetted the convoy of vehicles appearing over the top.

Spoilt for Focus Pullers - 'Critical' 01/09/14

More great focus pulling, this time from B Camera 1st AC Jon Howard. An incredibly difficult shot which BEGAN, as the cinetape indicates, at 5'10" and finished at 2". The track in was too fast for the cinetape to keep up! Even on a 14mm lens at T6.3, depth of field at this distance is microscopic. Congratulations Jon for keeping it sharp all the way.

Monster Probe Rig - 'Critical' 29/08/14

Grip Steve Weightman quite rightly admiring his handiwork constructing this behemoth of a camera rig. The camera had to track an actor and then reach over a table to find a big close up of an object the actor was picking up. Operating the shot required great dexterity on the part of Martin Foley. Usually this type of shot could be more easily achieved with a small jib arm and remote head but we do not carry that equipment as part of our standard grips package so a little improvisation was required. From left to right in the photo: B Camera Grip - Ben Lowe, A Camera loader - Johnny English, A Camera Grip - Steve Weightman and A Camera Focus Puller - Richard Brierley. In the clip you can see a rehearsal of the shot taking shape.

Focus Pulling - 'Critical' 29/08/14

The focus pulling demands on this show are like no other. Takes lasting upwards of ten minutes with a continually moving camera that tracks from wide into extreme close up and back numerous times, requires a focus puller with extraordinary skill and powers of concentration. Putting any focus marks down is a pointless exercise as the shot will shift in so many different ways. Expert judgement of distance and the intuition to anticipate what the camera and actors are going to do and then be able to react in time singles out the virtuoso focus puller. Richard Brierley is that craftsman. Here he is handling a shot on the probe lens. Depth of field on the fingers in foreground is minimal yet the focus puller still has to decide where along the finger the story is best being told and then to put the focus there. The shot continues to develop out wide and then move back into big close ups on the faces followed by a track back into the procedure. Needless to say focus was pin sharp from start to finish.

  

'Breathless' - Masterpiece Theatre USA

Breathless is being broadcast in three parts starting this Sunday 24th August at 9.00 pm on PBS Masterpiece Theatre.

Filming a Tracheotomy - 'Critical' 16/08/14

The periscope lens proves itself once again as the only tool for the job. The director wanted to see the procedure being performed in  foreground close up with the surgeon's face visible behind. The periscope allows access to the action with close focus literally millimetres from the front element of the lens.

Hide the Light - 'Critical' 16/08/14

An unusual place to hide an LED brick light but it fit perfectly.

St George's Helipad - 'Critical' 25/07/14

Filming on the brand new HEMS helipad at St. George's hospital Tooting. Director, Philippa Langdale lining up a shot and that old rogue Alf Tramontin, Steadicam operator extraordinaire, being personally attended to by THE most senior nurse consultant at St George's.

Hawaiian Shirt Friday - 'Critical' 25/07/14

Was this summer's last blast? Hope not but things are not looking promising. From left to right: Tom Hyde - Gaffer, Tim Palmer - DoP, Martin Foley - Camera Operator, Steve Weightman - Grip, Jon Howard - B Cam Focus Puller. So who's got the best shirt? I have to admit to the fact that mine is a true Hawaiian original with regulation coconut buttons.

GoPro PoV - 'Critical' 01/07/14

Used for the direct point of view of a patient when things start to go horribly wrong in the resuscitation ward. The headstrap mount is a great GoPro accessory and proved its worth by keeping the camera rock steady despite the violent action that ensued.

Lens Baby Fisheye Adapter - 'Critical' 01/07/14

We used the Lens Baby with its fisheye adapter on a 5D mk 3 for a slightly surreal view of proceedings and mounted it on my new Limelite Comodo DSLR rig. It worked very well though the setup needs a little fettling to balance the camera and fix the monitor in the right position for optimum viewing. By the way, that is not my bad tattoo.

 

Pot Black on 'Critical' 20/06/14

If only they'd had this lens at the Crucible in 1986, watching Steve Davis succumb to 150/1 rank outsider Joe Johnson would have been even more exciting.

Robocop Homage - 'Critical' 20/06/14

Been looking for an opportune moment to emulate this superb shot from 'Robocop'. The time came last week. The clip shows Robocop followed by our version. We didn't quite nail it. The camera is too low down and there wasn't the time to do another take with the camera raised. The lens needed to be closer to the bed of the trolley in order to open up the view towards the medics working above. Hopefully there will be another opportunity.

Le Tricolour - 'Critical' 12/06/14

The actor is ostensibly being lit by a monitor displaying a rather unsavoury and very bloody operation in progress. There's a bit of blue moonlight and white strip light intermingling. Voilå, le Tricolour. Vive la France.

Vintage Friday - Critical 29/05/14

Focus puller Jon Howard made an effort. Not sure about loader, Darren Johnson.

Hutcho's Love Tubes - Critical 29/05/14

First of all it's not what you think. Pioneered by triple Bafta Wales winning gaffer Mark 'Hutcho' Hutchings, these units were designed to fit between the consoles in the Doctor Who Tardis set. I was first introduced to them when filming Doctor Who with Mark in 2011 and 2012 and, true to their name, they do give a 'lovely' soft but directional fill light and are easily hidden. Sorry Mark, I've given away your trade secrets to gaffer Chris 'Sparrow' Bird. Now I do know that Barry Ackroyd is equally partial to a kino tube in a cardboard tube but his are much bigger so they don't count. In the picture below are Chris and current gaffer Tom Hyde. After that a live demo of the love tube in action on the rogueish Richard Brierley.

Reflections, Reflections - Critical 28/05/14

Reflections...the bane of cinematographers, camera operators and boom swingers. So what can you do? Here's the situation. A 10mm lens on a periscope three inches away from a surgeon wearing a clear plastic parabolic visor that reflects everything within a 270 degree radius. The answer is quite simple. Drape the lens with a bloodstained cloth similar in tone to the bloody innards exposed during a laparatomy. From left to right: Martin Foley, Steve Weightman, Richard Brierley.

Two Cameras on the Dolly - Critical 28/05/14

A great way to get wide and tight coverage at the same time with perfect continuity on a circular track. This was a 10 MINUTE SCENE with fifteen speaking parts. We shot the first pass on an 18mm and 32mm lens and the second pass on a 65mm and 100mm. Two entire takes on each pass and the bulk of the scene was in the can by lunchtime. Once again all credit to the grips department: Steve Weightman and Ben Lowe and camera operators Martin Foley and Tony Kay. Of course none of this would be possible without the experience and intuition of focus pullers Richard Brierley and Jon Howard. From left to right Richard Brierley (something or somebody has tickled his fancy), Martin Foley and Tony Kaye. Below: Jon Howard on the left and Steve Weightman steering.

Zed Plate Rig - Critical 28/05/14

It started out as a simple idea. The camera starts looking up at the doctors attending to the patient as he is being wheeled into theatre. It then tilts down to reveal the extent of the patient's leg wound and his point of view of the operating theatre. I thought that we could achieve the shot with the Optex Excellence in periscope mode. Due to my complete lack of mechanical engineering skills, that was the extent of my input. What followed proved in no uncertain terms why a good grips department and camera operator are worth their weight in gold. Grips Steve Weightman and Ben Lowe and camera operator Martin Foley devised this, the mother of all rigs, to achieve the shot. The move had to be nodal otherwise the arc of the lens would start the shot too high and because the lens on the periscope is so far from the nodal point of the camera, finding the nodal point required a great deal of adjusting and re-adjusting The lens had to finish microns above the patient's leg without injuring the actor. It also had to be dead centre. The list goes on. Needless to say the grips and camera department did an amazing job and the shot is fantastic. Here's a proud Ben Lowe with his meccano set, followed by the shot's opening frame and then some views of the rig.

Poor Man's Anamorphic - Critical 07/05/14

I'm sure I'm the last in a long line of DoPs who have made good use of the Vantage Blue Visions but these filters do make a surprisingly good fist of creating the old anamorphic flares. On our JJ Abrams Star Trek inspired set how could we not deliver the signature point source blue streaks. Sadly the budget would not extend to shooting anamorphic so the Blue Visions are the next best thing. It's been a lot of fun looking for any opportunity to blast bare lamps down the bottle - the only way to get the look.

'Molebeams' - 07/05/14

Those perfect beams of light. The faintest hint of smoke and Molebeams deliver every time. When setting them up, gaffer Chris Bird and I were wondering why they were not of equal brightness. After all a 5kw tungsten bulb is the same as the next one, unlike an HMI globe. Not that I would lay claim to finding an answer but after asking to have a look inside it became immediately apparent that the reflectors and glass were coated in grime. The HMI molebeams are much more commonly used so these humble tungsten units must have been sitting unused on the shelf for quite some time. Anyway this seemed like a good opportunity to put best boy Toby Flesher on cleaning duty. He relished the opportunity reminding us that his main job as a trainee for the late great Michael Samuelson was to clean and polish the innards of all the Brutes.

 

'Attack on the Death Star' - 18/04/14

Look familiar?

Fondly called our 'Death Star' shot, this is one that has been in the planning since my very first meeting with the 'Critical' production team. It is very gratifying to see it finally brought to life in the capable hands of 2nd Unit DoP Nic Lawson. Visual effects house Millennium constructed an oversized prosthetic of the thorax that would accomodate the probe lens for this portion of the 'incision' sequence. A CGI scalpel blade will be added later. Pars A and B of the storyboard have already been shot. Over now to post facility Lipsync who will work their magic and meld it all together seamlessly.

'Critical' Teaser Trailer - 11/04/14

Just launched on Sky One.

Blustery Day HEMS Helipad - 'Critical' 10/04/14

Some of the most incredible changing light conditions I've ever seen and how lucky to be on the roof of the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel to witness nature at its finest. The purpose of the day's filming was to record a scene of the air ambulance landing and unloading a critically ill patient. This comprised steadicam and hand held on the helipad as well as helicopter to helicopter coverage of the helicopter's approach and landing. All in all a very exciting day and made more dramatic by the weather. If I'm not mistaken we filmed the day before Budget day. Was the rainbow over Canary Wharf an apocryphal harbinger for George Osborne's promise of a pot of gold for City fat cats?

Still, it would have been criminal not to get a crew photo in even though it was five to seven with a scene yet to shoot. Even Jon East, the director, agreed. That's Jon kneeling at the front and from left to right: Sandra Coulson; Clapper Loader, myself with board, Dave Morgan; Steadicam, Martin Foley; Camera Operator, Jon East; Director (kneeling), Jon Howard; B Cam Focus Puller, Richard Brierley; A Cam Focus Puller, Steve Weightman; Grip, Andrew Sissons; Sound Recordist, JJ Benson; Sound Assistant, Darren Johnson; B Cam Clapper Loader.

Finally...at last after the warmest mildest winter on record following on from the coldest most bitter winter on record; a winter that resulted in a very expensive Canada Goose jacket which has only been worn once since, the JACKET enjoyed its SECOND outing on this day. Needless to say, the subject of great envy, it proved its worth in no uncertain terms and kept me nice and toasty with just a thin shirt underneath. Here discussing a setup with Jon East and Martin Foley. They don't look too impressed with my idea. Must be because they're feeling the cold.

Tracking Top Shot - 'Critical' 10/04/14

How would one usually make this shot? Dolly, pots, twin tube paddle mount, underslung F7 yada yada yada... Then what happens? Not enough ceiling clearance, not quite high enough after all the rigging yada yada yada.... Well how about this? The Optex Excellence in pericscope mode with the module inverted. Yes indeed, you still need the dolly and pots but after that the rig is SO easy. You can tell by how happy Steve and Martin look.

Bloodbath - 'Critical' 18/03/14

So this is what happens to camera assistants when they can't keep the lens clean. The incredible versatility of the Arri Alexa becomes time savingly evident in this 100fps shot of blood pooling. The set as standard is lit to T6.3 at 800 asa. Need two more stops for 100fps. That's T11.5. Instead of increasing the light levels four fold, dial in a 360 degree shutter and switch to 1600 asa. Presto, you've got your stop and the footage intercuts seamlessly with the standard 800 asa/180 degree shutter material. Can you imagine the pain of having to use film for this shot?

Intubation Anyone? - 'Critical' 18/03/14

The shot begins wide and tracks into the patient's mouth as he is being intubated. In order to ensure pinpoint accuracy of the end frame the shot was filmed in reverse with the camera starting inside the mouth (only possible with the probe lens) and tracking back/jibbing up. Considering the awkward and precarious rig required to accomplish the shot - see picture below - grip Steve Weightman and camera operator Martin Foley made the move look effortless. The cast performed their actions in reverse and the footage will be flipped.

Thoracotomies - 'Critical' 18/03/14

Director Jon East approving thoracotomy procedure before insertion of a chest drain. It's a blunt dissection. A screwdriver will do.

Chip Bounce: 'Critical' 18/03/14

The hot food selection provided some excellent bounce material. When it was too much, the chips were removed leaving the baked potatoes and beans.

The Old vs The New: Arri L7 vs 1.2 HMI Shootout

We have 55 of Arri's new L7 LED units on 'Critical'. Fifty are rigged on the grid and five float around on the floor. Gaffer Chris Bird and I have been getting to grips with the new technology. On one set we had run out of the floor units so had to pull out ye olde 1.2KW HMI and, heaven forbid, actually had to put some ye olde CTB on it to achieve the desired colour. Full blue with the L7 however is a quick twist of the dial to 10,000 degrees Kelvin. Tungsten? Turn the other way to 3200, or 2800 if you want to go warmer still. These lamps are revolutionary and an enormous cost saving. Is there a downside? There has to be - and yes there is. They are not that bright. Despite what the publicity blurb might state, their output is the same as a 200w HMI. This meant that in our shootout the 1.2kw HMI with full blue put out the same amount of light as the L7. Ok in a studio but not much good on location especially when considering their physical size. The other aspect of the lamp that takes some getting used to is the bulb/fresnel design. I'd like to look inside the lamp itself but it's like Fort Knox. There's no way in. The LED array is definitely larger than a conventional HMI arc which means that the point source at full flood is never small enough to create the crisp shadows of a conventional fresnel. Consequently this makes controlling the light with spot/flood and flags/nets less accurate and predictable than old fashioned frezzies. The jury is out.

Four Camera Setup - 22/02/14

With complex surgical procedures to film we have to concentrate our minds on how to utilise as many cameras as possible in order to limit the number of retakes. The prosthetics supplied by Millennium are stunningly realistic but the reset times between takes are in the order of 15-20 minutes. Here's a typical camera setup. I took delivery of a new 5D Mark 3 last week and have been very impressed with its capabilities. Both 5Ds use Technicolor's Cinestyle gamma profile which makes a pretty good fist of emulating the Alexa's Log C curve.

Optex Excellence - More Info

During preproduction on 'Critical' we considered several different probe lens systems: the Frazier Lens, the Innovision Probe and the Revolution Modular. The Optex Excellence came out tops for ease of use, image quality at shallower stops and all around versatility. It is very quick to rig and intuitive to use. Because the intention was to make substantial use of this optic throughout the production we set about lighting the set to a base stop of T6.3 at 800 asa so as not to have to relight to a higher stop every time the lens came on. It's 'plug and play'. The maximum stop on the Excellence is T5.6 but it looks best at T6.3-T8. What this means is that to achieve a nice workable stop of T3.5 in conventional shooting mode, we're working at 200 asa. It's just like the good old days of shooting 5217 200T. The slightly unexpected side effect of all this is the discovery that the Alexa behaves beautifully at 200 asa - much better contrast and punch than 800 asa with a .6ND! Your humble scribe below with the 'proboscis'.

'Critical' - Probe/Periscope Lens - 16/02/14

We have been making very good use of the Optex Excellence Probe/Periscope Lens. One of several makes of probe lens available this one comes with a selection of focal lengths from 10mm up to 28mm. It enables the camera to focus as close as the front element of the lens, which allows for some stunning wide angle close ups, and the physical length of the 'proboscis' allows the camera to 'reach the parts that other cameras cannot reach'. Heineken anybody? In the clip below you can see how camera operator Martin Foley and grip Steve Weightman set up the camera on a 6' slider to track back through a narrow glass partition.

'Critical' In Production - 11/02/14

Into week 2 of filming on 'Critical' for Sky/Hat Trick. Please don't quote me on this as it requires verification but as far as I know 'Critical' is the first UK television production to be lit entirely with LED lighting. Production designer Malcolm Thornton has designed a phenomenal looking set that is truly a dream to photograph. Every single RGB LED chip is fed back to a central desk which is remotely controlled via an ipad on set. The freedom to choose any brightness, any kelvin colour temperature and, amazingly, any colour of the spectrum in an instant, is astonishing and is a testament to the real advances in lighting technology that our industry affords us right now. Malcolm and I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to LED Flex who supplied and installed the rig. On set we have been using Arri GB's new 'Versatile' slimline LED panels to supplement the practical lighting. They certainly live up to their name - wafer thin, dimmable to zero with no flicker, a CRI count of 95 and a perfect 5600K colour temperature. There is a tungsten version which I haven't tried yet. Here they are in action stacked one above the other to create a larger softer source. Standing on the left is a pensive Richard Brierley, A camera focus puller.