Thursday 3 April 2014

Turning Digital into Film

How to make digital video look more like film using final cut.
I researched into.... These are the few tips that i found the most important;

1, Depth of Field - This refers to the the distance between which the closest and farthest images in the frame remain in focus. A narrow depth of field means that anything just slightly in front of, or behind, the subject of the frame will appear out of focus to give more attention to the subject. A deep depth of field  is where everything in shot is in focus.
A tip for making digital footage look like film is to try really hard for a narrow depth of field, and this involves the aperture being wide open. This should provide more emphasis on the subject.

2, Frame Rate - The average frame rate of digital is 30fps. Which is good, as it gives a good smooth video, but that is all it is good for. The default for a film camera is 24fps. The 24fps will give you an original traditional film look.

3, Shutter Speed - Make sure the 180 degree rule is in play when setting shutter speed. This means when you set the shutter speed of your camera, you need to make sure it is double that of your frame rate. So for example, if you are shooting 24fps, the best option for shutter speed would be 1/48.

4, Camera Movement - Not all filmmakers take much notice of this, but camera movement can be one of the most important aspects of getting the film look. There isn't a specific movement that would make your film more cinematic, as it can be anything from having the camera on a tripod to it being handheld, to putting you camera on a jib and getting a crane shot. The more importance that is placed on camera movement, the more cinematic the footage will look.

5, Blown Out Highlights - This is a big giveaway for digital film, and since digital cameras are less dynamic than film cameras, they are very prone to clipping or blowing out bright areas in the frame. When this happens on film it is much more pleasant to look at, and some directors even choose to let it happen, for example Stephen Spielberg, who intentionally blows out some shots to get a stylised effect.

6, Framing - in cinematic image there is an extremity of importance for framing. If framing isn't right in a shot, everything else you have worked on gets thrown out the window. So, if you have a well lit shot with good DOF, but the subject isn't framed right, everything else is diminished. Not only will great framing make your video look more filmic, but it will make your film better as a whole. A great example of this would be this frame from The Kings Speech, where an unusual framing has been used to  create a sense of emptiness int he character life.


7, Lighting - its a make-or-break situation when it comes to lighting, no matter what kind of medium you are shooting on. 


8, And finally... Although there is no exact formula to get the “film look”, by following all of the above steps you will be headed in the right direction. Watching a movie shot on film feels like you’re looking into a parallel universe. It almost looks the same as real life, but there are these subtle differences that allow it to feel more surreal, dreamier and pull you as the audience member into it. Doing this digitally is achieved by a combination of many factors, starting with how you set up your camera and finishing in the edit suite

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