FrameDiscreet.com transfers // cinematography

Blog has MOVED!

2010-12-13T15:42:00.002-05:00

Blog has moved!

All new updates/samples can be found here:

http://framediscreet.com/about/

Thanks and have a wonderful day :)

Justin

Belladonna- Our 2k/HD raw data scanner

2010-04-11T14:39:00.003-04:00

Codenamed Belladonna, our 2k/HD raw data scanner is just about complete. She's incredible. Running at 24fps for reg8/sup8/max8/16/super16.. The scanner head is controlled by microprocessers and genlock commands to only scan in rock solid single frames. The X,Y positioning of the 2K scanner is controlled by a WII controller (feels like we're playing video games when we setup for each transfer).

She goes well beyond HD. Scanning in RAW data files. What's that mean? Means she's able to hold more detail in the highlights and shadows during the scan. In fact she holds more detail that the film neg even has to begin with - we have to add contrast to the image during the color grading. So with Belladonna at Frame Discreet you are assured to get all the information off your film, shadows, highlights, everything! No lost information, so sacrifices like a typical transfer.

Currently we are the first to offer this service in all of Canada, and.. quite possibly the world for 2k raw data in the small format.

If you can't tell... we're really stoked about this major upgrade. Being able to support small format filmmakers (like ourselves) and archiving old films in the highest resolution we can provide.. so cool.

Belladonna- Our 2k/HD raw data scanner

2010-04-11T14:30:00.002-04:00

Our 2k raw data scanner - codenamed Belladonna, is just about complete. Here's some of our test scans. Thanks to Jordana Aarons and Iris Ng for the film.
You're looking at: Super 16 7222 (tri-x) 2k Raw data scan + Super 8 Tri-x (cross processed - underexposed 1 1/2 stops)
Both Shots were graded to feel like an old nosferatu style silent film. High contrast.

We're pumped about the scanner.. she's beautiful...

On Location- "Silver Starling - Closer" Music Video

2010-03-01T08:25:00.003-05:00

Innocent, simple 35mm music video shot by Frame Discreet cinematographer Michael Leblanc with FD Key crew -myself- 1st AC and our good friend Mick Reynolds gaffing. We used as much natural light as possible working around the schedule of the sun and where it was falling in the abandoned loft space. It got frigidly cold as the night progressed on without heat in the old building. The love and good times with the crew and talent kept everyone cheerful and rollin' through the sillyness of the makeshift fort. Did I mention you can rent the 35mm Konvas camera for $45/day from LIFT and the filmstock was 1Cent/foot at Media Distributors? Better and cheaper than a Red package with technicians....

Music Video: "Silver Starling - Closer"
Camera: Konvas
Stock: 35mm Kodak 5219 (500T) 5205 (250D)
Director: Ante Kovac
Cinematographer: Michael Leblanc

On Location - Tegan and Sara

2010-02-24T11:37:00.003-05:00

Latest Tegan and Sara 'Alligator' music video, shot by our own Frame Discreet Cinematographer Mike Leblanc! Cool little project, we shot on 2 Canon 7D cameras using our jib arm for a couple dynamic shots. Simple concept, well directed by Marc De Pape. Interested tid-bit - a lot of the out of focus snow flakes were shot as a separate element and composited in afterwards :) Final Color correction done here at Frame Discreet. The 7d held up pretty well for color grading, only really fell apart when trying to brighten up a shot that was intentionally shot underexposed.

Enjoy!

Music Video: "Tegan and Sara - Alligator"
Camera: Canon 7D
Format: 1920 x 1080, h.264
Director: Marc De Pape
Cinematographer: Michael Leblanc

On Location - POV snowboarding 2K

2010-02-22T20:09:00.002-05:00

Shooting some 2k/HD stock footage POV style of snowboarding. Later on we rigged up the camera to our helmet cam and went 'handsfree' :) Also shot some footage on the GH1 DSLR to compare the 60fps high speed capabilities. The RAW on the si2k camera was awesome for holding detail in the bright snow, and dark shadows. Silicon Imaging really is amazing with their si2k camera... geez, shooting 2k with something that small!!

On Location Music Video - "Ina Unt Ina"

2010-02-11T12:59:00.006-05:00

Shot by our own Frame Discreet Cinematographer John Price, camera assisted by me, Justin!

Fun little project for the girls Ina Unt Ina (Celina Carroll and Christina Zeidler. They run the beautiful Gladstone Hotel in Toronto. We took advantage of this awesome space and with a limited budget and a little ingenuity, got some great shots! Not to mention the amazing lunch we had with them after the shoot in the Hotel... thanks girls, lookin' forward to the next video!

Music Video: "Ina Unt Ina "
Camera: XAH-1 Canon
Cinematographer: John Price

On Location - Harry Jerome

2010-02-10T18:20:00.011-05:00

A National Film Board (NFB) feature doc shot with help from our Frame Discreet crew, headed by Cinematographer John Price. Charles Officer has done a great job in picking his locations and sculpting them to give character to the interviews. We shot all the re-inactments on 16mm high contrast b/w and it looks stunning. Interviews shot using the RED cam on a jib arm from our pal Felipe Rodriguez. Made friends with the actor- Nykeem Provo- and now he's playing on our indoor soccer team! Love this job.

Short Doc: "Harry Jerome"
Camera: Red, Bolex 16mm, 5d mkII
Stock: high con 3374, 7218 (500t kodak)
Director: Charles Officer
Cinematographer: John Price

On location -"Spec Commercial Tests POV Helmet Cam"

2010-01-28T16:28:00.004-05:00

Testing configurations for helmet cam rigs for the si2k for an upcoming commercial project. Was a wicked time running around hooked up to video goggles so I can see the perspective of the camera to match the perspective of .. oops.. almost gave it away.. project is super hush, hush right now..

Eyes peeled, planning on shooting the full project in April.
Thanks fellas at CQB Paintball for hookin' us up!

Commercial: "Spec Commercial Tests"
Camera: SI2K Mini, 5.9 angenieux lens, mvyu video goggles
Stock: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Director: Jeff Chan
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- "Boonaa Mohammed - Green Card" - Music Video

2009-11-06T23:20:00.007-05:00

Shot with our SI2K mini package, and small slighting kit. Double diffused the light source giving a very soft wrap around the artist and popped his eyes with a little catch light. Boonaa is an incredible artists and kept this approach very simple to let his presence shine through. The video posted does not have the final color correction applied to it.

Commercial: "Boonaa Mohammed - Green Card"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Stock: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Director: Hassan Jama
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- "Nokia Surge" - Commercial

2009-11-06T23:03:00.004-05:00

Great time working with Rob Piltchowski and Frame Discreet Cinematographer John Price. I was camera assisting on the job and had an fun time laying out the circular dolly track and rigging the camera for some high angle shots. Commercial can be seen here.. and I even made a cameo :D

Nokia Surge

Commercial: "Nokia"
Camera: Sony V1U
Stock: 1920x1080
Director: Robert Pilichowski
Cinematographer: John Price

On Location- "Unity Charity"

2009-11-01T00:36:00.004-04:00

Some more behind the scenes from the Unity Charity video that I'm working on.
Runnin' around with the SI2k mini camera following around one of the craziest creative power bboys in Canada.

These kids are so lucky to have him as a mentor and a friend.

Promotional Video: "Unity Charity"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Format: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Director: Mike Prosserman/Justin Lovell
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- "The Bay"

2009-11-01T00:17:00.003-04:00

Internal video for "The Bay". Thanks to Storymasters for getting me involved. They're a progressive company doing documentary and corporate films. I've worked with these guys a number of times and am always impressed with their approach to corporate videos. They leave me with a lot of creative freedom to attack it with a more cinematic approach to lighting and movement. Owner Randy Woolgar is fantastic with his directing and just.. well.. he just gets it.

Project: "The Bay"
Camera: XD HDCAM
Format: 1920x1080 30P
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Yukon Breakdancing - on location

2009-10-31T23:27:00.006-04:00

Having a background in breakdancing, shooting dance films and traveling around the globe for documentaries led me into this wicked project... I was flown up North to find myself shooting breakdancing on helicopter landing pads in the mountains.

The project was to document the 'Klondike Heat Bboy Battle'. There was also an intensive 1 week breakin'/popping/locking/hip hop workshop happening. My job was to document the event and help create a promo video for the Yukon based GWS bboy crew.

Shot on the SI2k camera, with a skeleton crew it was a real challenge. I also taught a photography workshop and the girls I taught came out to help with the shoot and learn about lighting and cinematography. Thanks girls, you were awesome!

Thank you Andrea Simpson-Fowler for getting me involved in this project.. you rock!

Project: "Yukon Breakdancing"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Format: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Super 8 shirts - Limited Edition

2009-10-24T03:25:00.005-04:00

Custom Design by artist Mark Cabeuna
Limited run.
For the low low price of $15
(I'm not making anything on these, done just for the love of it).

All kinds of crazy color combinations available, including red, blue, black, grey, white, cream & neon green.

Email info@framediscreet.com with the size you want and I'll let you what colors are still available. Going like hot cakes!

New World Samurai - Promo Spot #1

2009-10-12T03:48:00.008-04:00

Click to download MP4

Profiles 1 v.1 Promotional spot #1 for New World Samurai/Karma Studios. Shot on location in Canmore, Alberta. Fun project to work on, being allowed to explore the inner workings of an impressive tattoo studio & gallery. The artists at NWS are awesome. Really pumped about the images I was able to create with the T-0.95 lens, beautifully shallow depth of field and soft vignette. Lit by sculpting the natural and existing lighting with an instinctive documentary approach. Thanks to Steve Cosens for the inspiration to shoot this style.

Music Composition by the talented Byron Wong.

Camera: Panasonic GH-1, Schneider Xenon 25mm 0.95

Format: 720p, 59.94 AVCHD - interpreted to 23.98 Cineform

Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Super 8 Transfer Samples- 500T 7219

2009-10-04T19:49:00.007-04:00

Super 8 500t (7219) - Shot in Toronto at Troublez bboy Jam @ Ryerson Campus

Transfer: Frame Discreet

Camera: Canon 1014xls MODIFIED to Super duper 8 (aka Max 8) with c-8 wide angle adapter - hence the vignette. Unmatted, full frame

Super 8 Transfer Samples - 200t 7217

2009-10-04T19:34:00.006-04:00

Super 8 200t (7217) looking beautiful as always...

Transferred here for Mimmo & Naz

Shot on a Canon 1014XLS

Cinematography Workshops- Yukon

2009-10-01T17:28:00.007-04:00

After a crazy turn of events, I was invited to teach a Frame Discreet cinematography/lighting workshop in the Yukon this summer. The workshop was for younger students interested in learning more about filmmaking. The workshop focused on natural lighting, lenses and basic photography concepts.

The images above are from some of the practical lessons, evaluating bounced lighting/no lighting and the different feelings you can evoke simply based on lens selection.

The gals taking the workshop were super keen and I'm looking forward to our follow up workshop to see what they create with their new knowledge!

On Location- "Unbearable Prospect" Performance

2009-10-01T17:06:00.007-04:00

Teamed up to shoot the Gadfly dance crew on their acclaimed performance of Unbearable Prospect. It's an amazing showcase of the crew's versatility and combination of street dance styles. This was a special sold out one night only comeback performance after the show's success last year.

We shot the dress rehearsal on our SI2k Mini with our EZFX jib arm. The allowed me to be right in front of the stage without any restrictions on blocking viewers. Stuck to the 5.9mm wide Angenieux lens and drifted around the front of the stage capturing some really gorgeous movement.

I love shooting dance movement and working the flow of the camera movements to speak with the choreography. I was a operating the remote head while jib operator Tony Del Rio guided movement of the jib up/down/left/right. Another awesome time for the FD crew!

Project: "Unbearable Prospect"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Format: 2048x856 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Transfer Samples - super 8 / super 16

2009-09-26T15:28:00.007-04:00

Montage of footage from Kelly + Maya's visit to Toronto. The super 8 footage has a soft glow and diffused effect to it. Shot at 18 fps super 8, transferred at 15fps for a slight slo-mo feel. 16mm was shot at 24fps, transferred at 18fps to also have slight slo-mo. Nice for a 'memory feeling'.

I rate the 3374 b/w high contrast at 150 ASA for best results. If I want it a little more contrasty (blow out the highlights a little more, bleaching the skin tones, I'll rate it at 100-125).

Camera: Beaulieu 4008 ZMII 6-66 schneider zoom, Bolex super 16 - 16-100 Switar zoom
Stock: Ektachrome 64T, 250d V3 (7207), 3374 high con
Processing: Exclusive Film and Video, Niagara Custom Lab
Transfer: Frame Discreet - colourist Justin Lovell
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Transfer Samples - super 8 64t

2009-09-26T15:01:00.006-04:00

Pass the Cart II
A project put together by the members of the filmshooting.com forum.

Consists of 5 E64t Cartridges that have toured the world. I was fortunate enough to be involved, and this is CART #2. I shot the last film with 2 fellas in Toronto.

Had big goals for the project, but ran out of time... In the end I bucked down, set a date and convinced myself I was going to shoot it that day, make or break, no matter what. We had it all planned out, storyboarded on DSLR, and last minute the actress had to pull out as we ran out of time to shoot.

In comes plan B, shot rehearsal tests on a sony EX-1, 6 times for timing review; then rolls in the beaulieu 4008 to shoot it for real. We cut out a lot of shots which would have rounded out the toronto landscape a little better, but I was worried about it being at the end of the cart and losing a shot because I might not have the full 10'.

Ours is the last film of the 4.

On Location- "This Movie is Broken" Short Film - Bruce McDonald

2009-09-24T15:39:00.006-04:00

A few more behind the scenes shots from Bruce Mcdonald's latest film. I was loading the 35mm Konvas for fellow Frame Discreet Cinematographer John Price. Micheal Leblanc came in to operate 2nd camera on a few days and Misha Petrenko even made it out as a key electric. Always a pleasure working with the FD crew.

Photos courtesy of Leah Barley- thanks :)

On Location- "ZEN STRETCH" Fitness Video

2009-09-09T14:06:00.004-04:00

Got a call looking for a Jib Operator/Owner to help shoot a fitness video on ZEN STRETCHING a technique shown by Chris "Bodhi" Batista. I had no idea what I was getting into when I got the gig. Check the link, it's pretty impressive how this technique can really affect your body.

We shot with 2 cameras covering 10, 20 and 40 minute versions of the video. One camera on our dolly on a longer lens, the other camera our Jib arm with 10' extension and Remote Head. I monitored the camera movements with the joystick control and video goggles while Tony Del Rio operated the jib arm movements. Constant communication between all three of us was important to ensure that we weren't shooting similar frames and more importantly so that we weren't overlapping our zooms to change framing (makes for a happy editor).

Got a great tan hangin' out on the beach, and got a free instructional from Chris (using Tony as an example) on how to stop an attacker coming at you. Hillarious and scary watching that little demonstration.

Fitness Video: "Zen Stretch"
Cameras: Sony HD XDCAM
Format: 1080p, 29.97
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell / Chris Langenzarde

On Location- "GADFLY" Short Film

2009-09-03T10:50:00.005-04:00

Another great project that we're pitching for funding. Collaborating with the super talented dance group Gadfly. The short delves into the minds of each dancer in their rehearsal space 30 floors up from the city core. Covers a mix of street dance, breaking, house, hip hop, and contemporary. Dance style changes are hidden by strongly motivated by camera movement and sound design. I love collaborating with dancers. The creative possibilities choreographing dance and camera movement together gets my heart thumpin'.

Short Film: "Gadfly"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Format: 2048x856 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Director: Justin Lovell/Mikkel Zall
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

SI2K Camera Package for Rental

2009-09-03T10:26:00.006-04:00

Justin Lovell's new SI2k mini Setup at Frame Discreet (same camera used to shoot Slumdog, and inserts on Ironman 2, Sherlock Holmes.. etc..) Alternative solution to shooting RED cam.

Rental Packages start at $400-$1000 depending on your needs.
Package only rents with a Frame Discreet Cinematographer on set (insures no technical issues).

Arri Matte box, Petroff DV cameras Universal Support, Dv Multirig, Cinearm Noga arm, Xenarc LCD Touchscreen 702TSV.
Records to a solidstate 12" touch screen Toshiba Laptop. 40gig = 1 hour of 2k in cineform RAW QT or AVI.
Not bad, lightweight. :)
Backpack with lenses and batteries for ultra portability in 2k.
Currently supporting cmount lenses 5.9mm t1.8, 25mm t-0.95, 50mm t-0.95, 16-100 t-1.9 Zoom + others... Nikon or PL Lenses can be adapted.

Sound- H4N Zoom recorder -separate system SD OR straight to Hard Drive married to video file.

Contact us for info. info@framediscreet.com 416.803.1101

Enjoying another sunny day...

On Location- "Unity Charity"

2009-08-30T17:21:00.005-04:00

Helping to create a new introduction video for Unity Charity. An awesome group that travels to high schools promoting 'hip hop against violence'... which is all about striving to create positive influences for kids who might otherwise end of drifting along, or stuck in the wrong crowd.

Shot all documentary style handheld, we followed around TK - 2008 Funk Fo Yo Feet popping champion and 30 second rubex cube master. He can also be seen on last year's "So You Think You Can Dance Canada."

Thanks to The Fantastic Poppers for letting us in to light the jam and film the battles!
Got some really sexy shots inside of the venue, which was the old Trinity Church on Bloor. Hard natural sunlight was shining through the giant windows as the sun was setting, giving off a beautiful warm glow. Got some amazing flares and sillhouette shots off my 5.9mm wide angle angenieux lens as two dancers battled it out... gorgeous!

Promotional Video: "Unity Charity"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Format: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Director: Mike Prosserman/Justin Lovell
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- "Josh Reichman- Our Whole Life" - Music Video

2009-07-13T19:33:00.007-04:00

Very cool concept video by Frame Discreet Cinematographer Michael Leblanc. Based on the painterly, poetic photography by Edward Steichen, Leblanc is compositing Josh into his still photographs. In some cases, his head will be replacing the heads in the photographs. Also to be inserted is a dancer, some walking shots and some recreated images to have slight 3d drifts. A very interesting bit of textural work involved to pull it all off, however we have an excellent VFX artist on board to give it some real life. FD cinematograper Guy Godfree was gaffing this job, helping out tremendously in matching the lighting from the photos to our live set. This SI2k not only does live reference keying, but it also allows you to 'onion skin' or 'overlay images' so we could match the exact framing with the reference images... super handy!

Music Video: "Josh Reichman"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Format: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 23.98
Director: Michael Leblanc
Cinematographer: Michael Leblanc

On Location- "Nokia" - Commercial

2009-07-13T16:01:00.006-04:00

Fun little Nokia commercial spot directed by the talented Rob Pilichowski - soon to be known for his "all out war" bboy documentary. We shot the spot all on green screen with the SI2k mini. Having the spot meter on the camera interface is awesome for keeping a constant even exposure on the green screen. Also nice to have this feature when you're playing with variable frame rates and shutter speeds because it allows you to keep the exposure bang on no matter what variable you change. It tells you the exact IRE level wherever you tap on the screen. Post guys and colorists will love ya for that one.

Managed to get in a fun little game of footy after the shoot when fellow Frame Discreet cinematographer, Barry Cheong, dropped by to say hello.

Commercial: "Nokia"
Camera: SI2K Mini
Stock: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 29.97
Director: Robert Pilichowski
Cinematographer: John Price

On Location- "This Movie is Broken" Short Film - Bruce McDonald

2009-07-13T03:28:00.008-04:00

Ever been onstage at the Harbourfront in Toronto for Broken Social Scene with 6 red cameras filming the event? I have.. and it was awwweesoommee! Grateful for the experience to work again with Bruce and a very talented group of cinematographers and focus pullers. FD crew Mikhail Petrenko, John Price, Michael Leblanc and myself were all on hand lighting the after party and rockin out on the main cameras on the main stage. Afterparty was all rigged with china balls with 60W bulbs which barely gave enough exposure. They were immediately swapped out to 40W bulbs as soon as we wrapped shooting to maintain a darker enviroment for the guests. We also had a few 1k lights bouncing light around off walls and heavily diffused, to bring up the ambient light.

Video: "This Movie is Broken" - Short Film
Camera: 6 Red Cameras, 35mm Konvas, Canon 814XLS Super 8 & HVX-200 (for the afterparty)
Format: Red Raw 4k 23.98
Director: Bruce McDonald
Cinematographers: Mike Leblanc & John Price

On Location- "Tomasi" Music Video

2009-07-13T02:34:00.007-04:00

Shot in the beautiful Gladstone Hotel in Toronto, Mikhail Petrenko did another gorgeous job lighting these tight spaces. We chose to shoot SI2k over the Red Camera for its small size and ability to be moved around quickly and easily. In one case - being tight for time - we had to get an over the shoulder shot of the model as she sat on the bed watching TV. We simply gripped a Cstand with a magic arm and armed it out behind the model with the SI2k on the end. Quick stable and easy setup that could have taken much longer with any other camera capable of 2k resolution! The shoot ran a little longer than usual, but we had the FD crew rockin' it with a great team enjoying every minute of it (even as standins for the performers...haha)!

Music Video: "Tomasi"
Camera: SI2k Mini- Angenieux 12-120mm, Switar 10mm/25mm, Schneider Xenon 50mm t-0.95. Recording to Solid State Toshiba Portege M750
Format: 2048x1080 Cineform raw
Director: Jeff Chan & Ludovic Chovino
Cinematographer: Mikhail Petrenko

On Location- "Beautiful Monster" short film

2009-07-13T01:59:00.005-04:00

An interesting short film where we combined 16mm 3374 high contrast film (for a 70's documentary feel) and 35mm 5218 for a slicker contemporary feel as the film evolves at the end. Had a great time on set with the FD crew, Michael Leblanc and Misha Petrenko. Attached frames are from the film stock/camera test showing the 3374 film stock rated at 160ASA cross-processed at Niagara Custom Lab. Transferred here at Frame Discreet. 3374 is an awesome black and white film stock that can be purchased from Kodak in 2000' minimum orders for under $200! That's 1 hour of shooting time, an affordable REAL film look!

Video: "Beautiful Monster" Short Film
Camera: Eclair NPR 16mm & Konvas 35mm
Format: 16mm 3374 / 35mm 5229
Director: Tony Romano
Cinematographer: Michael Leblanc

On Location- "In The Woodworks" Pilot for Comedy Channel

2009-07-13T01:33:00.007-04:00

Pilot episode for a tv series with comedian Daniel Woodwork. Challenging to shoot with limited crew and budget, but was a blast once we got it all going. We were following the comedian around as he pulled pranks on people on the street. His standup work is stellar, and this was his first kick at doing filmed street comedy. Below is a quote from the director`s email to me:

Good majority of this stuff will be man-on-the-street. Obviously, from a logisitical standpoint, the shooting will have to have somewhat of an ENG approach, but stylistically I'm thinking dirty, verité, mostly handheld. Lots of snaps and whips. Kuras' work on Dave Chappelle's Block Party is a great template.

l made great use of my DVRIG Pro stabilizer and handgrips. I love that rig, makes walking handheld so much smoother and no sore joints at the end of the day!

Video: "In The Woodworks" Pilot Episode
Camera: HVX-200
Format: 720p 23.98
Director: Zach Derhodge
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location - "Body CSI" Olympic spot

2009-06-02T22:13:00.006-04:00

Continuing from our RED/SI2k Shootout... We sent the Cineform RAW footage to BIG for a VFX compositing test. They loved the footage! Said it was beautiful, and super easy to work with. They were able to use the raw footage with the look applied (which puts it into a non destructive 'normal' color space for an easier key). We shot today and everything went flawlessly. It was a super relaxed shoot with Mikhal (Misha), Leblanc and myself, all from the Frame Discreet cinematographer collective hangin out. The VFX fellas from BIG were on set to oversee the setups and they were stoked to see how easy the SI2K mini is to work with. I'm looking forward to working on personal projects with these talented guys!

Commercial: "Body CSI" Olympic Spot
Camera: SI2K Mini
Stock: 1920x1080 Cineform Raw, 29.97
Director: John Turner
Cinematographer: Mike Leblanc

On Location - "Timber Timbre"

2009-05-29T19:37:00.006-04:00

Music video for super talented Timber Timbre. Shot on short ends of 35mm with the beautifully loud Konvas 35mm. Great little camera, a little cumbersome getting used to the viewfinder - it doesn't orient itself when tilted so the image turns sideways... try walking handheld super slow wrapping around someone with everything sideways.. yeesh! All poetic natural lighting, with 2 mirror boards to help us out as the light was failing towards the end of the day.

Video: Timber Timbre - Demon Host
Camera: 35mm Konvas
Stock: 5218 500t Vision 2
Director: Scott Cudmore
Cinematographer: Mike Leblanc

Red / SI2k Comparison

2009-05-29T19:03:00.005-04:00

We recently invested in a SI2k mini camera- same one used on Slumdog Millionaire. We're bidding to shoot a commercial project for the Olympics. A comparison between the RED one and the SI2k was eminent. We were kindly loaned Toronto based Ben Goldenberg's RED ONE and had our footage processed by the friendly fellas at RED LAB Toronto. Walt @ Red Lab had us in and colored the footage with his technical eye. The Si2k has a slight bit more latitude, finer grained noise in the shadows and most importantly a easier workflow on set and in post. Though to be honest, the images from both cameras were quite comparable, but not film.

Currently in development to use the SI2k mini for film scans of super 8 and 16 to 2k.. shhhhh...
Can you spot the Si2k mini in the pictures?

On Location - "The Path to Shaolin"

2009-05-29T18:22:00.005-04:00

An awesome project to be on. I learned a lot from the them about training, spirituality and willpower. A story about one man's journey from Saskatchewan to become accepted in China as a non-Chinese Shaolin Master. Truly an incredible journey that Tim has undertaken. Just found out Equator HD bought the doc and is currently airing it so watch out for it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PO8dF4aZmc0
http://www.equatorhd.ca/may09_pathtoshaolin.php

Video: Path to Shaolin
Cameras: Sony Ex-3
Director: Leif Kaldor

Scout Leader - RED Music Video

2009-04-26T11:07:00.003-04:00

Click to Play

Interesting video shot by our own Michael Leblanc. Another great concept by Scotty has some dramatic slow paced wire work involved. Dreamy and wierd. Supervised color correction session held @ Frame Discreet to handle the RAW files. Slight film grain applied to help take the edge off the slick video feel.

Director: Scott Cudmore
Cinematographer: Michael Leblanc
Camera: Red One
Colorist: Justin Lovell @ Frame Discreet

Cinematographer Collective - New Member - Mikhail Petrenko

2009-03-25T08:45:00.007-04:00

Most recent addition to our Cinematographer Collective - Mikhail Petrenko (usually going by what he calls his friendly name, Misha). Super guy with a very passionate approach to cinematography. When he's not shooting films, he's honing his eye with still photography, trudging around in natural landscapes studying the light. He often tells me about his dreams to create a free cinematography based school where people can learn and teach in an open environment flourishing with new ideas. http://mpetrenko.com/

On Location - Footy (SI2k Mini)

2009-03-21T23:26:00.009-04:00

Another cool project headed up by Frame Discreet. I was cinematographer on the shoot with fellow Frame Discreet cinematographer, Mike Leblanc operating. Everything was shot POV style mounted onto a helmet (except for a couple stylized jib/dolly shots). Tony Del Rio directed the spot and it was shot on our SI2k Mini head recording direct to a touchscreen tablet laptop. I had the VGA port off the laptop cloning the monitor which was then converted to a wireless composite signal. The composite signal was rigged into our MYVU video goggles for Mikey to compose his shots. I monitored the laptop running alongside him. Only had a couple of hickups. One being battery power for the laptop (we had two batteries, however we were only able to charge them on the recording laptop). The other hickup was with a loose connection on an RCA cable that lost us 30mins in troubleshooting. Besides that, everything went great! Kept with the natural flourescent lighting, having a few bulbs off to create pools of light and accented it with our kit of 3 1k LED lights (www.flolight.com). Fantastic because each 1k only draws 100W of power. Power outlets were scarce, so we actually had batteries charging, and 3 lights all running off the same circuit, no problem :)
Shout out to production photographer Sam Grant for his stills. Thanks to Aalis @ Tiger Direct for his magical rush orders on components and laptop.... and Special thanks to Ari and Steve at Silicon Imaging for the ongoing support and skyping to make this shoot a success!

Justin

Camera: SI2k Mini - Toshiba m750 12" tablet laptop - Switar 10mm, 25mm, Angenieux 5.9mm, Schneider Xenon 50mm, MYVU Shades 301 (w/ VGA>RCA adapter)
Format: 1920x1080 HD
Stock: QT Cineform RAW to internal 120gb Solid State HD
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Super 8 Transfer Samples- "Sheila's Day Off"

2009-03-12T18:45:00.004-04:00

Super 8/RED Short "Sheila's Day Off".

A great little short film shot on both RED camera and super 8. Seasoned actress' Heidi Tan and Amanda Lewis co-produced this project-- Amanda Lewis' directorial debut. Taking a challenging approach Richard Fiander shot all the super 8 on ektachrome 64t. A tough stock to use for interiors because of its slow speed. Most people would choose to shoot this with the negative 200/500 ASA film stocks for the extra latitude and speed. Richard ended up pushing the processing in certain shots to be able to maintain exposure. Good on 'ya for taking a less conventional approach!

Camera: Rollei SL85 & RED
Format: Super 8mm
Stock: Ektachrome 64t
Cinematographer: Richard Fiander

On Location- Swagger of a Rockstar

2009-03-12T11:34:00.007-04:00

Music Video collaboration with Director Jason Gosbee & RED Camera Package from Toronto local Ben Goldstein (redshorts@rocketmail.com).
Shot most of this in 4k, except for the sections we wanted at higher frame rates. Having to keep in mind that when you shoot at 3k or 2k you are cropping in on the sensor and losing some of your field of view. Lots of help from 1st AC Mike Dawson made the day fly by smoothly. Another tip of advice, when exposing for darker skinned people your green screen ratios may have to be adjusted. I was often opening up nearly 2 stops from incident readings to get a healthy exposure on the darker skin tones. A little extra fill light also helped to maintain detail. I'll post the video once it is released!

Video: Quinn-Maybach - Swagger of a Rockstar
Camera: RED 4k, nikon primes
Director: Jason Gosbee
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On location- Greenhouse

2009-03-02T09:30:00.004-05:00

Greenhouse - an inspirational short film that looks at greening Toronto's social housing community. from SHSC GLOBE on Vimeo. (sorry, squeezed 4:3 ratio)

On location shooting with Director Christy Garland and Producer Kathleen Smith (not in photo). Thankfully I had some of our cinematographer collective helping out with lighting - Barry Cheong and Misha Petrenko. Was a great time working with the crew over the 7 day shoot. Made great use of Barry's Kino-Flo package and my EZFX Jib arm for some cinematic intro shots around Toronto.

super 8 transfer stills

2009-02-20T20:07:00.005-05:00

More recent transfer samples from filmmakers Deniz Berkin (ektachrome 64t and frame discreet frequenter David Mason (200t negative).
All super 8 transfers to 720 x 486 8 bit uncompressed blackmagic codec.

Thanks for getting us involved in your projects!

Frame Discreet on Location in Guyana

2009-01-19T08:01:00.003-05:00

I'm working on a fantastic documentary in Guyana right now with Christy Garland and Kathleen Smith. We are travelling through the Interior and Georgetown following the life of the songbirds used in songbird racing/fighting. It's an interesting project where you'll find a mix of macho men carrying around tiny cages competing their birds against eachother in 'singing battles'. Lots of money is on the line in these races leaving many locals quite happy, or quite angry. So far I've been able to visit some beautiful villages in the interior and met some incredible people. I'm here till the 29th of January and look forward to every minute of it. Frame Discreet's transfer studio is still open working away (seceretly finalizing some HD/2k scan testing in talks with Silicon Imaging, Iridas and Digital Vision for a RAW DI workflow.. shhh)...

Super 8 Transfer - CERVELO AD

2008-12-12T01:04:00.003-05:00

Click to Play

An homage to a movie named, "La Course en Tete" a documentary about the Belgian cyclist Eddy Merckx mace in 1974, this spot was shot in the town of Altdorf for the Tour de Suisse Time trial to Klausenpass. The race is each cyclist against the clock, it takes approx. an hour and is 25 km long from 400m above sea level to 1948m above sea level. 25km an hour average speed, I can barely do that on my bike in Toronto, let alone these guys going up hill the entire way. Driving down from the mountain after the race seemed to take longer than these cyclist take to go up.

The de-saturated and grainy look is a reference to the original 1974 documentary. Hairs in the gate, dirt, scratches were all kept in as this was the goal. A great example of a look that can not be faked any other way. Best way is by shooting the original 8mm format.

-"Guy Godfree" Frame Discreet Cinematographer

Camera: Super 8 Beaulieu 4008 ZMII

Stock: 7217 (200t), 64T

Cinematographer: Guy Godfree

Music Video- Sloan

2008-12-01T17:26:00.004-05:00

Recent music video for Sloan shot by frame discreet cinematographer Michael Leblanc. Originally shot in colour neg, then crunched down and stripped to black and white for a grittier more contrasty feel.

Cinematographer: Michael Leblanc
Format: Super 8
Stock: Super 8, 500t 7218
Camera: 1014xls, C8 wide adapter
Transfer: Frame Discreet
Processing: Niagara Custom Lab

Transfer Samples -Super 8

2008-11-27T00:19:00.003-05:00

A few more sample frames from Jeff Moneo's recent transfer with us. Super 8 200T and 500T (7217/7218). Get your exposure right, and it can look saaah-weeeet!

Transfer Samples - Super 8

2008-11-26T10:54:00.004-05:00

Some recent footage shot by Jeffrey Moneo for Cherry Blossom Season. Mix of Super 8 200T and 500T. Especially impressed by the resolution on the last image. Click to enlarge. Some really slick footage...

2006 Cinematographer Demo Reel

2008-11-25T16:11:00.002-05:00

Click to Play

My demo reel from 2006. Stumbled across it in my archives, figured I'd share it with you guys. All film originated. Mix of super 8 and 16mm.

Cinematographer: Justin Lovell
Format: Super 8, 16mm

Transfer Samples -Super 8

2008-11-17T10:19:00.007-05:00

Super 8 sample transfers for recent clients (in order- 2x 64T reversal, 2x 200T 7217 neg, 2x 500T 7218 neg). Just giving you more of an idea of what is possible with super 8, and the different looks that the stocks can provide. Thanks for choosing us!

Emily Haines "Our Hell"

2008-11-17T09:31:00.002-05:00

Click to Play

Video shot by our super talented cinematographer Mike Leblanc. Shot with a military issue infra-red camera. Nominated for the UK Music Video Award. Currently up for best music video in Poland's CAMERIMAGE. Recent award winners include Sven Nykvist, Vilmos Zigmond, Owen Roizmen, etc. He has also been requested to speak on a panel about his work as a cinematographer. Pumped for Leblanc and his recognition by this esteemed festival.

super 8 transfer comparison

2008-11-06T14:10:00.007-05:00

A client bring us footage to have re-transferred after having it done at a different transfer house. The image looks muddy and flat, like a VHS dub. The problem was the equipment that the other transfer house was using. Take a look at the detail in the watch and the overall color rendition in our transfer on the right. (click to enlarge)

We take pride in the custom work we do here. If you think you're getting a wicked deal somewhere else, it may be too good to be true. Do your research, as we have!

super 8 transfer stills

2008-11-06T11:38:00.006-05:00

Some stills from a recent transfer for Homegrown skateboards. Wicked group of guys producing their own custom skates and videos out of Nova Scotia.

Stock: 7218 500T + 64t Cross-processed
Format: Super 8mm
Processing: Niagara Custom Lab
Transfer: 8 bit upcompresed QT files

Super 16 - Gadfly Trailer

2008-10-30T15:02:00.003-04:00

Click to Play

Trailer for "Unbearable Prospect".

A super talented group of dancers from Gadfly Dance Company Toronto. Shot their performance on Super 16. Edited by Ofilio Coto Portillo. Features Jesse 'Jester' Caitbog from So You Think You Can Dance Canada. Watch out for them...

Camera: Eclair NPR s16mm
Format: S16mm
Stock: Fuji Eterna 500T (expired stock)
Cinematographers: Justin Lovell

Super 8 -64T cross processed

2008-10-29T12:28:00.001-04:00

Click to Play

Behind the scenes on the short film Becoming. Kindly cross-processed at Niagara Custom lab. Knew there was going to be a lot of greens and yellows in the image and was dying for a chance to see those colours pop from the cross-processing. Adds more texture and grain to the image as well. Added a soft glow to the highlights/shadows in the transfer. Could be a cool look for your next project...

Camera: Canon 1014xls (max 8)
Stock: Ektachrome 64T
Processing: Niagara Custom Lab
Transfer: Frame Discreet - colourist Justin Lovell
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Transfer stills- Super 16

2008-10-13T13:42:00.004-04:00

Recent short film titled "Spores". Directed by Peter Huang. Dark and bloody. Has a great look to it created by frame discreet cinematographer Barry Cheong. Peter came and hung out here supervising the transfer and the look of the images. Note to all camera assistants- be sure the lens/lens mount is seated correctly. The slightest fraction of a loose mount can throw the focus out completely.

Camera: Eclair NPR, Zeiss 11.5-115
Stock: Kodak 7219 500t
Cinematographer: Barry Cheong

Transfer stills- Super 16

2008-10-13T13:38:00.004-04:00

Overcast rainy day held back a lot of the bboys from showin' up. Between the rain, these raw dancers were throwin down representing Toronto to the fullest. I love the tonal range that this stock has on skin tones, super sexy when exposed correctly. Did I mention you can get 1000' of this stock for under $200 direct from Kodak...?

Cinematographer: Justin Lovell
Stock: 3374 High con (processed as neg)
Camera: Eclair NPR, canon 25-100, Kinoptik 5.7

Transfer stills- Super 16

2008-10-13T13:32:00.003-04:00

Dean and Lena Vargas' wedding day. Super couple, super day. Colored to have a vintage 16mm look.

Camera: Eclair NPR S16, Ziess 10.5-115, Canon 25-100, Kinoptik 5.7
Stock: Fuji 500D
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Transfer stills- Super 16 music video

2008-10-13T12:53:00.002-04:00

Transfer Samples from a recent music video shot by frame discreet cinematographer Michael Leblanc.

On Location- RED one BRAVO! short "Becoming"

2008-10-02T10:25:00.007-04:00

7 days of putting the RED one to a real field test. Some great features on this camera including 'false color' which maps out the your IRE values (clipping/shadows/midtones) on the screen in a color scheme. Anything overexposed/clipping goes RED, Midtones are shades of yellow and underexposure is shades of blue. Fantastic tool.

We recorded 4k images to a Compact Flash (CF) card at times to save weight on our 10' EZFX jib arm.

90% of the footage was a beautifully choreographed dance between the actress, the dolly, the jib and the remote head's movement. Required 3 operators working together in harmony to pull it together. Keep your eyes out for this short... the visuals are stunning...

Visual effects by internationally renound Carlos Lascano.

Production Company: Wandering Eye Productions
Camera: RED ONE 4k, PL Mount, Zeiss Primes
Cinematographer: Guy Godfree

On Location- METRIC - Documentary

2008-09-10T01:07:00.006-04:00

Got pulled on board with talented Toronto cinematographer John Price to work on a music series to be aired on IFC. We shot the recording of the new Acustic Album that Jimmy Shaw and Emily Haines are working on. Sounded amazing and looked beautiful. Lit with 100W diffused practical lights with no fill. Director Bruce MacDonald had us shooting some very powerful tight shots of couple as they subtly interacted during their recordings. Going to be an awesome album. I remember Jimmy stating something about how if people can't listen to their music around a campfire then really what good are they...?

Camera: (3) HVX-200 720p,
Cinematographer: John Price, (B cam) Justin Lovell

On Location- NYC, Sonya Kitchell Music Video

2008-09-03T15:53:00.007-04:00

Frame Discreet cinematographers Guy Godfree and Justin Lovell got out for an awesome time out with the CHOP WOOD CARRY WATER crew in NYC. Shooting Sonya Kitchell in "here to there", fresh off her European tour with Herbie Hancock. 2 days of shooting, 3 days of prep and scouting. RedRock adapter can produce some great results, however I wasn't totally impressed by it. Seemed to have a lack of sharpness at the edges of frame, and knocks the light level down to an equivalent of 80ASA. Made use of our newest tool, the LED 1000 from Flolight. Was a real asset. 1000W output, 100w power draw. Excellent for car interiors.

Production Company: Chop Wood Carry Water
Camera: HVX-200 720p, RedRock Micro Adapter, Nikon Primes
Cinematographer: Guy Godfree

Parkscapers- short version (5min)

2008-09-01T23:39:00.003-04:00

Click to Play

Short Edit Version

Sept 1 2008

Transfer: Frame Discreet / Notch

Camera: Eclair NPR s16mm , Bolex rex-4 S16mm, Konvas 35mm"
Format: S16mm/35mm
Stock: Kodak Vision 1 250D, Vision 1 200T, Vision 2 500T
Cinematographers: Justin Lovell / Guy Godfree

Parkscapers End Credits

2008-09-01T21:52:00.004-04:00

Click to Play

End credits

Sept 1 2008

Transfer: Frame Discreet / Notch

Camera: Eclair NPR s16mm , Bolex rex-4 S16mm, Konvas 35mm"
Format: S16mm/35mm
Stock: Kodak Vision 1 250D, Vision 1 200T, Vision 2 500T
Cinematographers: Justin Lovell / Guy Godfree

TRANSFER- 16mm 50D, Curtis Bouvier

2008-08-09T19:55:00.001-04:00

Click to Play

Recent transfer for Curtis Bouvier. He was doing some tests with gun shots and compositing. Gun was firing high powered gas blow backs and the muzzle flashes were added in post. Great results!

Camera: Krasnogorsk "K3"
Format: 16mm
Stock: Kodak 50D
Cinematographer: Curtis Bouvier

On Location- DIRTSURFER Colorado

2008-08-08T21:43:00.009-04:00

Just got back from Colorado @ Snowmass Resort. Working on a documentary 'unveiling' film for DIRTSURFER. Was shooting the pro team in Colorado at the US OPEN of Mountainboarding. Competitive boardercross and freestyle/big air. Awesome shoot, always stoked to get offered these opportunities. Met up with the boys from one5media who shot 'the shralpdown' another awesome production company working with Mountainboarders. Shot a ton of high speed super 16 on the riders ripping it around the hills. Going to make for some slick footage to really help promote the emerging sport. Will try and post some samples for you guys!

Stock: 7246 Kodak 250D
Format: Super 16mm
Camera: Bolex Super 16 (POE 16-100 zoom, 5.9mm Angenieux)
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- Mimmo+Naz Interview

2008-07-08T15:56:00.009-04:00

Watch Video

Interview shoot for Mimmo and Naz photo+video. Naz found this brilliant location and we just had to make use of it. Climbed over a stagnant river of sludge and crawled through a tiny busted in door to find this amazing warehouse space. As you can see, the photos couldn't handle the contrast ratio of the bright windows, nor could the DVX-100 that we shot the interview with. I look forward to seeing how the 250D super 16 footage will be able to handle the extreme contrast ratio. I travel off to Winnipeg for 3 days in August to follow up on the interview and shoot some more super 16/super 8.

*UPDATE* Stills from the Transfer

Stock: 7246 Kodak 250D
Format: Super 16mm, Mini-DV
Camera: DVX-100A, Bolex Super 16 (POE 16-100 zoom, 5.9mm Angenieux)
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

*UPDATE*

Flew out to Winnipeg to shoot their ceremony. Happy to say we hired a cinematographer who we'd been doing transfers for to operate our Super 8 2nd camera. Thanks Mike Maryniuk from the Winnipeg Film Group! View video here: Christine + Mark.

On Location- Team Ryouko

2008-07-03T15:26:00.006-04:00

Just got back in town, and went right back onto set. Shot a fight scene for the Team Ryouko boys, (recently stunt doubled on Jumper, WAR, The Mummy, 300). James and Chris Mark headed the production as the heroes and Directed by Mark David (Mayhem videos). We Shot with 2 Panasonic HVXs alongside my 2nd camera op Devon Burns. Story takes place in a night club- during the day. Two brothers who have been separated since birth, one chose the gang path of violence, the other a clean lifestyle. Both excelling in martial arts. They are reunited later in life. They both enter the club to fight off against a gang of thugs. Stylistically we chose to shoot the tough, troubled brother handheld long lenses and the 'good brother' was shot with steadicam, dolly and smooth jib shots. I cranked down the shutter to 90 degrees giving us crisper frenetic frames and let the action take control.

Format: 720P P2
Camera: 2 HVX-200
Director: Mark David
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- Dirtsurfer Roadtrip

2008-06-30T00:20:00.009-04:00

I've been touring around with 3 of the other Dirtsurfer Pro Team riders shooting a promo video. Just hit up Smuggler's Notch in Vermont, and now I'm in Sault Ste. Marie at Buttermilk Ski Resort. It's amazing at both resorts. They gave us free reign to ride whatever we want to and to do whatever we want to. Got to play in the on hill springs and water trampolines in our down time :) At Buttermilk, they started up the chair lift for just us 4 Riders to use all day long. No one else was on the hill. It was like a dream come true. Got one more day left in us, then back to Toronto.

*UPDATE* Stills from the transfer

Stock: 7246 Kodak 250D
Format: Super 16mm
Camera: Bolex Super 16 (POE 16-100 zoom, 10mm Switar, 5.9mm Angenieux)
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

New online TVSHOW for tv/film.

2008-06-19T21:03:00.003-04:00

http://www.reel-show.tv/

Awesome. Very technical for those interested in what's new with gear and equipment. Hardware/software reviews, tech notes from recent films.. etc. etc. Check it out.

On Location- Lighting Tricks

2008-06-19T20:35:00.004-04:00

Frame Discreet Cinematographer Guy Godfree devised this cool rig with his gaffer for their latest hip hop music video. Essentially a short 2', 4 bank Kino flo stripped apart and taped together. Creates a pleasing soft source 'ring light' effect, also gives off an interestingly shaped catch light in the eyes. As a note, be careful when rigging something like this so that the bulbs are flagged off from flaring the lens.

SHORT FILM - Picnic at Sea

2008-06-16T19:22:00.003-04:00

Click to Play

U.S. Director/Cinematographer Sam Kuhn contacted us to do some HD testing for some of his upcoming projects. Check out some more of his *really cool* work here: SAM KUHN

Stock: 7217 200T
Format: Super 8mm
Camera: Nizo S800 (ext. shot between f 11-22, int. shot @ f-2).
Director/Cinematographer: Sam Kuhn

Understanding HD / SD formats

2008-06-09T00:25:00.003-04:00

Found this excellent site that explains SD / HD aspect ratios, frame rates, interlaced vs. progressive and more.

Simple to understand yet still quite thorough. Worth checking out.

http://edu.moviola.com/rc_kzone_main

Super 8 - Corrected VS. Uncorrected

2008-05-20T10:17:00.006-04:00

Sample frames of 7217 Vision 2 Super 8 Corrected and Uncorrected (flat) in the transfer. It is essential to make sure that your transfer house has the controls to properly manage the colors, contrast and density of the new (fabulous!) negative film stocks. We've had to do a number of 'retransfers' for people who have had their films transferred elsewhere and were not satisfied with the results.
Stock: 7217 200t
Format: Super 8mm
Camera: Canon 1014xls
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Upgrading our Color Correction Management

2008-05-20T00:08:00.004-04:00

Check out some of the frame grabs from the new color corrector we're testing out (click to enlarge). It's pretty sweeeeeeet. Allows to load full 1D/3D LUTS. For those familiar with photoshop, we can now do color corrections in Curves. This is awesome for digging out information in the shadows. Also amazing for being able to selectively build a look by selectively modifying the gamma curves for each primary color. Each correction can be stored as a seperate scene file along with the histograms/RGB parade stored with a still frame. This allows us to technically and visually match up shots scene by scene. So much cool stuff in the new remote, I just can't get into it all in one post... exciting!

On Location- "ICON"

2008-05-10T00:25:00.007-04:00

I got a great opportunity to shoot a short film for Kathleen Smith last week. After many discussions, we decided to shoot on the HVX 720p and super 16mm. The film is a narrative piece influenced by the work of Werner Herzog. Shot over the course of a day, Smith walks 35kms from Bloor/Bathurst (toronto) to the Metro Zoo (5:30am-7:30pm).

I really wanted to steer clear of the typical handheld, reality tv, documentary feeling. So in taking a more cinematic approach to documentary storytelling, I shot 80% of the film on our Jib arm and dolly track. Fellow cinematographer Guy Godfree was on location and helped develop a solid workflow with the Jib that took us mere minutes to have it out of the wagon and ready to shoot.

A large portion of the film was shot at 30 -48fps to give a more poetic look and to allow the narrative to breathe. We would have shot more film, but unfortunately the spring snapped on our bolex during our first roll. Sad day, but worked out for the best as we really couldn't afford the reload time. Camera is back with our Pal, Jean-Louis, at Concordia University for repairs. He is the only guy I will trust with my camera (he did our super 16 modification).

Premiere screening June 5th at The Theatre Centre 1087 Queen St. West 8pm.

Stock: 7246 250D
Format: Super 16mm / 720P P2
Camera: Bolex Super 16 / HVX-200
Director: Kathleen Smith
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

Super 8 Timelapse- K40

2008-05-03T16:37:00.000-04:00

Click To Play

Some super 8 timelapses I shot across Canada for Tell Us the Truth Josephine: A Bitter Immigrant Story. First shot was done on the 1 frame every 5 seconds interval setting. The rest were shot on the Nizo variable interval settings. (Awesome camera for timelapse- has a B setting to keep the shutter open for night timelapses and a fully variable intervalometer).

Stock: Kodachrome 40
Format: Super 8mm
Camera: Canon 1014xls, Nizo S800
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- The Adrenaline Project- YTV

2008-05-03T16:16:00.005-04:00

Now that the show has aired on YTV, I can post some stills from the shoot. The show is called The Adrenaline Project- an extreme sports reality show for kids. I was hired on to teach the kids how to dirtsurf, and to also shoot some B camera ride along footage with Toronto DP Kevin Wong's HVX-200. Super fun time out with the guys. Frame Discreet cinematographer Barry Cheong was also shooting on 2nd unit.

On Location- Dundas Square Bboyin

2008-04-28T10:36:00.006-04:00

Hit up Dundas square this weekend. Shot super 16 of a bunch of bboys gettin loose in a fun 1 on 1 battle on stage. Afterwards got out and shot a little more street dance of Troy Feldman and Yukon Nick. Slapped on my 5.9 angenieux wide lens shooting low angle with Toronto's mini "times square buildings" towering up the background. Fired off some 64fps and a little bit of hand cranking of the boys dancin in the street. Got some wicked Udon Noodles after the show and did some scouting for parkour filming for the upcoming summer days.

UPDATE:
Rough Cut sampler of some of the footage (May 17/08).

Stock: 3374 (black and white High Con) + 7246 250D Vision 1
Format: Super 16mm
Camera: Bolex super 16mm with POE 16-100mm + angenieux 5.9mm, 24, 32, 48, 64fps and hand cranked.
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell

On Location- Wedding Proposal

2008-04-28T10:16:00.005-04:00

Had a strange request from Mimmo & Naz last week. Got to shoot a proposal for a wedding on super 8. Adam Caputo (soon to be groom) arranged the whole thing to be shot without her knowing. Felt kinda like a spy with myself and cinematograper Guy Godfree sneaking around filming the happy couple having coffees and exploring the distillery district in Toronto. Used a Nikon 80-200 t 2.8 (with c-mount adapter) on sticks for some telephoto work. Bright sunny day for the most part, until the rain came down right in the middle of their meal. (Adam arranged one romantic table outside the resaurant for the proposal). Unfortunately they had to move inside- where it was too dark for me to get a descent exposure. We rigged him up with a wireless mic in the washroom (recording digitally to a Jukebox 3), and decided to have him propose in the rain on the open cobblestone street after the meal. It was beautiful.

Stock: 7217 200T Negative (Processed at Niagara Custom Lab)
Format: Super 8mm
Camera: Beaulieu 4008ZMII + Nikon 80-200mm (c-mount adapter) + Schneider 6-66, B Camera- Canon 1014XLS- Superduper 8, 24fps- transfer at 18fps
Cinematographers: Justin Lovell & Guy Godfree

On Location- "Suck it Up Princess"

2008-04-26T23:33:00.004-04:00

I was on set today shooting Documentary style alongside Bongo (shoots So You Think You Can Dance). Project is Suck it up Princess. Headed by Hop To It Productions, the show will be airing on OMNI in Canada.

We shot inside a large banquet hall on the 33rd floor. Used 3 1200W HMIs bounced into foam core on a balcony to help create a nice even fill on the floor and to balance out all the window light pouring in. Little frustrating working with the DSR 570 because I couldn't set the ZEBRAS to 100IRE. I like to be able to see where my whites clip at 100, but this camera only does max 90IRE. Brought out our JIB arm and got a few dynamic shots when I was able to. It was tough to sneak in the jib shots because I had a wide angle lens, two boom poles and a second camera man that I had to try and keep out of the frame.

Camera: Sony DSR 570
Show: Suck It Up Princess

On Location- Dundas Square Bboyin- X-process 64T

2008-04-23T09:44:00.004-04:00

Absolutely love the colors and gritty grain that come out of having the film cross-processed. Samples above show normal exposures, overexposures and uncorrected with/without the 85 filter. Really helps to nail your exposure and to have the proper filtration in the camera. Vignetting from the C-8 wide angle adapter was unavoidable, Though could be cropped out with a tighter widescreen matte.

Stock: Ektachrome 64T (Cross-processed at Niagara Custom Lab)
Format: Superduper 8mm/Max 8mm
Camera: Canon 1014XLS- Superduper 8 + C8 Wide attachement, 24fps- transfer at 18fps
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell
Transfer: Justin Lovell @ Frame Discreet

On Location- Sony F900 on "Apollo's Pad"

2008-04-22T17:30:00.006-04:00

Frame Discreet Cinematographer Michael Leblanc just linked me with some production stills from "Apollo's Pad", a puppet show he is currently shooting. Leblanc is well respected for his 35mm and 16mm cinematography. Taking on a new challenge, he is shooting this all in HD with the Sony F900. The results have been stunning.

Camera: Sony F900
Filter: 1/4 black frost to help blowout the highlights a little bit and soften the blacks. Shot in 24p mode
Show: Apollo's Pad

On Location- Lens testing on Beaulieu

2008-04-22T00:25:00.004-04:00

I'll be shooting some long lens/telephoto work coming up and was looking for the best solution for super 8. Came up with a few options on our 4008ZMII package: Ang. 12-120mm, Sigma 28-300 with cmount-nikon adapter, + 2x tele extender or the original 6-66 schneider lens. The 300mm lens is meant for a 35mm still camera so 300mm becomes almost 1200mm + the 2x extender it becomes a crazy 2400mm lens! (I would normally be shooting at f-11 in this lighting, but with 300mm, the 2x extender and light loss from the zoom I ended up around f-3.5). Will be getting back results this week.

2006 VFX demo reel

2008-04-18T15:10:00.007-04:00

Click to play

Just dug this one up, thought I might post it. Showcasing a little of the older After Effects work that Justin Lovell has done.

Transfer Stills- "Real Street" - 500T Super 8

2008-04-18T15:06:00.007-04:00

Stills from recent transfer of Nick Norton's Super 8 colour negative. Just goes to show how much detail you really can get with the 7218 in low light situations. Even works well in Exterior day situations. Nice images Nick. The 220 deg. shutter gives you a slightly softer/motion blurred image but allows you to shoot in lower light situations.
Stock: 7218 500T
Format: Super 8, 24fps
Camera: Canon 514 SV Auto Zoom & Canon 1014xls with 220 deg. shutter
Cinematographer: Nick Norton
Transfer: Justin Lovell @ Frame Discreet

Frame Discreet- On Location "Latch- MTV"

2008-04-09T23:56:00.010-04:00

Click To Play

Frame Discreet team, Justin Lovell and Guy Godfree Co-DP'd a commercial spot for MTV and Panic and the Disco. Fun shoot, had a Reindeer, Emu, Peacock and over 40 screaming teenagers. Put to use our newly acquired EZFX JIB ARM. Used the extra undersling attachment and 6 foot extension. Shot at 720p on the HVX200 allowing us to do some 48fps shooting.
Shot most of it with longer lenses to compress the background and help hide that we didn't have a full crowd. More importantly, we made use of shutter speeds between 1/500 and 1/1000 to give a more frenetic and energetic feel. Had ordered 2 1200W HMI lights, but somehow the order was messed up and ended up with 2 575W HMIs. Guy took care of most of the lighting organizing the day to always have the sun backlighting our subjects. He also doubled as a great AD :) Justin dealt with camera operating and movements, utilizing a modified Arri shoulder bracket and a magic arm clamped to a T-Bar for low angle tracking shots. Working as a co-DP team really provided us with the freedom and time to focus on getting some rockin' images.

Frame Discreet- On Location "Nike/MTV"

2008-04-09T23:37:00.009-04:00

Click To Play

Frame Discreet Cinematographer Guy Godfree tackled a Nike commercial this week with a full on Motion Control Tracking shot. Shot on the HVX200 in 720p, the shot consisted of over 30 passes of the exact same camera move. Each take had different lighting elements, characters and explosions! They'll all be composited together for a crazy mash of two 'worlds' revolving around a runner. Justin Lovell dropped in to get a few behind the scenes shots and see how things were going. You should have seen the insanity happening outside trying to black out the windows... the wind and rain were causing havoc for the grips!

Frame Discreet- On location "Twilight"

2008-04-09T23:11:00.010-04:00

Frame Discreet Cinematographer Michael Leblanc created a very surreal look on Twilight, referencing the feeling of "The Polar Bear Express" and "The Saddest Music in the World". Shot on Super 16 with the Arri SR III & Fuji 500T (for a softer, grainier look). This film is a period piece. After some major testing, Leblanc settled on using a Soft FX 2 filter to create a diffused beautifully soft look (photographs above are without filters, just showing you our lighting setup for reference). Justin Lovell was shooting B Camera inserts with our Super 16 Bolex, 5.9 wide angle lens with Soft FX 1/2 filter. This camera was meant to capture a more jarring 'in your face' perspective of someone in the midst of the party happening on the train.

Wedding Doc - Superduper 8 & Super 16

2008-04-01T00:36:00.010-04:00

Shot by cinematographer Justin Lovell for Matt & Michelle Crowly. Mixed film formats, superduper 8 (max 8), super 16. Cross processed all black and white Tri-x as a negative. Cross processed some Ektachrome 64T on super 8 giving some crazy color shifts- also added a little more contrast in the xfer (hard to see in this version but this type of processing also makes the grain more pronounced). Custom processing carried out by Niagara Custom Lab.

The wedding ceremony and part of the reception was shot on 250D 7205 on super 16. Ceremony was fun to shoot, using our bolex S16 package. 1 man crew, Justin still managed to get 2 dolly shots off during the ceremony :) Stylistically I shot all the S8 handheld and all the 16mm on sticks. Didn't matte the widescreen, I liked the look of the frame lines composing the image. You can really see the vignette on certain focal lengths on the super duper 8 modification. This gives you a good chance to see the stability difference between Super 8 and 16mm. Oh and I shot portions of the reception at the end at 9fps with a 220 deg. shutter to get more light onto the image.

Editing has a rough, raw feel to it, asserting most of the edits in camera. Enjoy the collage of formats and processing techniques :)

Stock: Super 8- Kodak 7217 (200T), 7218 (500T), Ektachrome 64T, Tri-X 16mm - 7205 (250D).
Format: Max 8 (super duper 8), Super 16
Cameras: Canon 1014xls Superduper 8mm, Bolex Super 16 (POE 16-100 Zoom)
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell
Transfer: Justin Lovell @ Frame Discreet

Documentary- BBOY battle on Super 8

2008-03-28T01:13:00.004-04:00

Frame Discreet's Justin Lovell was at it again documenting a bboy battle at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto. Shot with the Canon 1014xls & C-8 wide angle attachment. Used 8 rolls of Kodak 7218 500T. Accented the lighting with a 1k Fresnel getting a t-4.0 in the highlights and 1.4 in the darker areas. Shot it all at 1.4, going to let the highlights blow out a little but will also print it down in the transfer to give me a slicker image with less grain in the shadows. Overexposure will also help as I was speed ramping to 36fps without compensating the iris. Will post some footage once its back from Niagara Custom Lab's processing.

Music Video- The National (Super 8)

2008-03-27T15:57:00.009-04:00

Click To Play

"Fake Empire"- The National

Transferred here @ Frame Discreet by Justin Lovell.

Technical:

Stock: Kodachrome 40, processed @ Dwaynes
Format: Super 8

production company: Scott Cudmore Film
photographed by: Lee Towndrow
styled by: Corrina Allen
edited by:Matt Hannam
produced: by Mike Smith

from The National's 2007 album, Boxer, on Begger's Banquet.

Music Video- Hayden (super 16)

2008-03-27T15:29:00.011-04:00

Click to play

"Where and When"- Hayden

Shot on location in stunning Brussels. It was an awesome experience shooting out there. Tried and true the bolex was great for this shoot as a lightweight workhorse. Little note, on super 16, daylight spools must be loaded in the dark to avoid light leaks.

Technical:

Camera: Bolex Rex 4, Super 16 (lens Switar POE 16-100, 10mm switar)
Stock: Kodak 250D 7205 & Fuji 500T

Director: Scott Cudmore
Producer: Mike Smith
Director of Photography: Michael LeBlanc (Frame Discreet)
Editor: Matthew Hannam
Camera Assistant: Justin Lovell (Frame Discreet)
Produced by The Field, 2007.

Super 16/Super 8/Max 8 Comparisons

2008-03-27T12:59:00.015-04:00

Nice test for you to see how the different formats compare when using the same stock. (Click images for larger versions). FYI Max 8 is a modification made to widen the gate of the camera allowing image to be recorded where sound used to be recorded. In the transfer you are able to 'zoom out' and see more of the image resulting in tighter grain and a 16x9 image area. There are some limitations to this modification though as you're not able to see the extra are in the viewfinder of the camera and certain focal lengths will vignette.

Stock: Kodak 7218 500T
Format: Super 8, Max 8 (super duper 8), Super 16
Cameras: Canon 1014xls S8, Eclair NPR 16mm (lens Zeiss 11.5-115)
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell
Transfer: Justin Lovell @ Frame Discreet

SALE- LIGHT PADS

2008-03-27T12:42:00.010-04:00

LED PADS for sale. Same thing ROSCO is selling at a fraction of the price. Various sizes, runs on 12v batteries, lightweight sweet little product. $80-$320 depending on the size. More info HERE: LED PANELS from Frame Discreet.

Stock: 7218
Format: Super 8
Camera: Canon 1014xls
Cinematographer: Justin Lovell
Transfer: Justin Lovell @ Frame Discreet

Frame Discreet on Location

2008-03-25T18:46:00.014-04:00

Guy Godfree and Justin Lovell teamed up to shoot a documentary on Super 16 and 35mm capturing the Parkscapers snowboard park rebuild at Devil's Glen. Was an awesome experience covering the complete reconstruction of the park into one of the best in Ontario. We had a jib arm setup and dolly track on hill getting some slick moves on the riders rippin it on the new features. Thanks to Chad, Chris, Doug and the rest of the team for all the wicked support. JTK photography was on site for the night photo shoot, alongside the quicksilver snowboard team.. it was craaaazy... some stills to come!

Frame Discreet on Location

2008-03-25T18:35:00.010-04:00

Frame Discreet Cinematographer Guy Godfree created some beautiful images for director Ada Vaughan in Toronto's Wallace Studios. Captured on 35mm using Vision 3 500t. Frame Discreet owner Justin Lovell was on set lending a hand and having a laugh. Its always a good time on set with us :)

Transfer Stills- Super 8 7217

2008-03-06T03:39:00.007-05:00

Stills from a recent transfer we did for Cinematographer Cabot Mcnemly. He captured some beautiful images taking full advantage of magic hour on Toronto Island. Shot with a Canon 1014E, pushed 1 stop in the processing at niagara custom lab.

Shooting a Jib Jam on Super 16mm- Bleach Bypass S16mm

2008-03-03T00:04:00.016-05:00

Cinematographer Justin Lovell got out to Osler Bluff's no Guff Snowboard Jib Jam this weekend. Shooting with our Super 16 Bolex package to capture some high speed and 45 Degree shutter angle shots of the event going down. Used Kodak 250D 7246 & Fuji 500T when the sun started to fail. Plan to have it processed with a bleach bypass at Niagara Custom Lab to give it a desaturated more snappy contrast. Doing this process will also push the film 1 stop to help with underexposure. If all goes well with the sound design and editing, it'll be screened at the Blue Mountain Multimedia Showcase this weekend.

UPDATE!
Stills from the transfer- Bleach bypass processing on 250D(7246) & Fuji 500T by Niagara Custom Lab, Transfered here at frame discreet. Top Sample is the 500T without 85 filter & corrected in transfer.

UPDATE!!
Here's the video, music composition courtesy of Adam "pink socks" Barnes.