Thursday, September 2, 2010

Return to Tortuga ... adventures with the 3D camera






Two pirates meet in the street, in the Port of Tortuga, circa 1700 ... a few years before Jack Sparrow's time, I do believe, but nothing would have changed by the time Jack arrived. I don't suppose the would even have changed the muck on the walls! It's just the costumes here that tip you off to the earlier year. These guys are doing something like the Men in Tights routine, and by the time Jack Sparrow happens along, the dress code has changes. Not that Johnny Depp wouldn't look a treat in tights --!

If I'm rambling, please forgive. I haven't posted in a few days ... been sick. And before I got even halfway well, work had piled up and I had to find a way to cope, which wasn't easy. Something had to go o the back burner, and blogging was it.

This is what I was doing when I fell face down, and this post is actually about camera positions. It was only the other day when I noticed that a couple of the buildings in the Port of Tortuga set have actual balconies, and you can get the characters and the camera up there.

This is terrific when you're working with two or more characters, because the range of shots you can set up is virtually unlimited. Driving (and flying) the camera around creates all its own challenges, one of which is setting up the lights. You really are the movie director, in this kind of shoot. You can really imagine setting up the shot and having the actors stand on their big chalk X-marks ... then shifting the camera and resetting the lights for the next take. Loads of fun.

Sorry about the long delay in this post. Believe it or not, this is Post 349! The big three-five-oh comes up with the next one. I really want to do something special for that one, but I have to confess, my mind is a blank. Got to thing of something!

And if you're interested in the difference between the raw renders right out of Studio, and the enhanced versions -- this is worth a look:



Jade, 2 September

***Posted by MK: my connection is intermittent, too slow for this. Seriously, guys, I've got dialup speeds. How are you expected to do anything these days, at 1990 dialup speeds?!!!