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Home: Video University Forums: Canon All Camcorders:
couple questions about filming a training vid

stonecutter
Novice

Oct 20, 2005, 12:07 AM

Post #1 of 6 (1410 views)
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couple questions about filming a training vid	Can't Post

i have a canon XL1. i'm going to be shooting a training video of a chef teaching servers about meat, cheese, wine, etc.

first i don't know what to charge my company. is there an industry standard rate? the number $800 was thrown around, but i don't know if that's per day, or what that includes - (they were going to use a different company, then found out i had my camera and offered me the project)

second- lighting and sound. i know that's big, but i just got my camera and am a complete newbie with sound/lighting.
it'll be inside the restaurant.

i've got about two weeks to figure out how to pull this off!
thanks for any tips.

RatVega
Enthusiast

Oct 20, 2005, 3:30 PM

Post #2 of 6 (1389 views)
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Re: [stonecutter] couple questions about filming a training vid [In reply to]	Can't Post

Rates vary by area, but the $800 is likely a "day rate" to shoot. you'd use a "half day rate" if the shoot was only going to last a few hours. The half day rate is typically more than half the cost.

You'll need to quote the post production costs also. Things to consider here are not just the cutting (editing) but also titling, any effects, audio work, etc.

For sure you'll want to have a wireless mic on the Chef, you may need other audio sources as well. Hopefully the restaurant won't be in operation, they tend to be noisy. If you are shooting in a work area, the lighting may be basically reasonable but you'll still want to be able to fill to get good facials since the lights will probably overhead.

Using a diffused on-camera light might work for fill lighting, depending on your distance. Any lighting you use should be soft, especially since it's likely you'll have a lot of white in the area. Make sure you white balance carefully to minimize your color correction in post.

Good Luck.

______________________________________________________________
Currently on a loaded 2.5GHz G5 dualie/5GB/1TB internal RAID/dual 19" monitors. Final Cut Studio, Adobe Suite, Boris RED. Shooting with Canon.

VU California Crew, Inland Empire Sub-Chapter (paragraph?)

stonecutter
Novice

Oct 21, 2005, 3:14 PM

Post #3 of 6 (1367 views)
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Re: [RatVega] couple questions about filming a training vid [In reply to]	Can't Post

thanks for the reply, ratvega-

the restaurant won't be operational when we do the vid.
do you have a suggestion for the best wireless mic? i don't mind spending money on quality, since this ongoing gig will pay for it.
for lighting- what about the photo lighting kit i see on ebay? is that any good and/or for my purpose?

RatVega
Enthusiast

Oct 21, 2005, 6:05 PM

Post #4 of 6 (1365 views)
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Re: [stonecutter] couple questions about filming a training vid [In reply to]	Can't Post

The Sennheiser G2 systems are generally considered to be a good value/cost offering. I have their previous generation (the new units are smaller/better) and it's my primary audio. Expect to pay about $550 at B&H for the kit with a lavalier mic, and a second transmitter to plug into any XLR mic for a pass-around. I really like this kit.

I don't know what you've seen on eBay, but most any lighting will work, quality is what keeps it working. The big deal, as I said, is soft light (which isn't just dimmed hard light.)

There is a thing called a "soft box" that is good for this kind of thing. The "box" is a fabric box-like diffuser, and the light is softened so it doesn't glare off faces and other light things like all those chef's uniforms. In general, soft light is desirable because most DV cameras use 4:1:1 color space and are prone to blowing out the whites.

If what you've seen is primarily soft/diffused lighting, consider it. if it looks like a bunch of track lighting cans on a pole, think twice - you'll be spending a lot of time getting the distance from the subject right and filling well.

______________________________________________________________
Currently on a loaded 2.5GHz G5 dualie/5GB/1TB internal RAID/dual 19" monitors. Final Cut Studio, Adobe Suite, Boris RED. Shooting with Canon.

VU California Crew, Inland Empire Sub-Chapter (paragraph?)

stonecutter
Novice

Oct 22, 2005, 1:37 AM

Post #5 of 6 (1359 views)
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Re: [RatVega] couple questions about filming a training vid [In reply to]	Can't Post

yeah, those sennheiser's pack a nice price!

maybe i'll post a link to the lighting kits and you can tell me what you think, if you don't mind.

-stonecutter

RatVega
Enthusiast

Oct 22, 2005, 8:32 PM

Post #6 of 6 (1345 views)
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Re: [stonecutter] couple questions about filming a training vid [In reply to]	Can't Post

No problem... send it

______________________________________________________________
Currently on a loaded 2.5GHz G5 dualie/5GB/1TB internal RAID/dual 19" monitors. Final Cut Studio, Adobe Suite, Boris RED. Shooting with Canon.

VU California Crew, Inland Empire Sub-Chapter (paragraph?)