videoshooting is same as photoshooting?

[rei1974]

Ok so maybe I found a model to shoot

I am considering to do videoshoot though. Can someone with good experience tell me if videoshooting should follow the same rules as photoshooting?

I am not sure since in general videos are different, models is moving on the scene, etc etc.

I have a sony DCR-HC14E, not the best but still a digital camera... I wonder if I would get good results with it... or maybe if is better to aim photoshoot only (with the canon eos).

[Nikki_Licks]

Originally posted by rei1974
Ok so maybe I found a model to shoot

I am considering to do videoshoot though. Can someone with good experience tell me if videoshooting should follow the same rules as photoshooting?

I am not sure since in general videos are different, models is moving on the scene, etc etc.

I have a sony DCR-HC14E, not the best but still a digital camera... I wonder if I would get good results with it... or maybe if is better to aim photoshoot only (with the canon eos).

Your question is confusing.
A still camera is different than a video camera.
You asked about the same rules and would they apply to each. What rules are you speaking of.
What type of video are you shooting? Hardcore? Hardcore B/G? Solo masturbation?

I would use the EOS to shoot the stills. While you are shooting the video, you can always have some one taking still of the actual scene (video)

[rei1974]

Sorry I meant, the girl is willing to do both photos or video (video more expensive though).
I didn't ask about doing both at once indeed, could be a good idea.

My question was, is easier to do videos or photos?

My very limited experience tells me that videos should be easier to make, since in general the accepted video quality is lower, right? the photos usually are more quality, AFAIK.

[Nikki_Licks]

Originally posted by rei1974
Sorry I meant, the girl is willing to do both photos or video (video more expensive though).
I didn't ask about doing both at once indeed, could be a good idea.

My question was, is easier to do videos or photos?

My very limited experience tells me that videos should be easier to make, since in general the accepted video quality is lower, right? the photos usually are more quality, AFAIK.

OK, I have a better understanding.

I would recommend shooting both at the same time. It will be easier to sell still sets with the video vs. just stills or video buy them selves.
Basically you are getting two for the price of one...so to speak.

Let’s say you hire the girl for solo video, it makes better sense to shoot the stills of the action while the video is running. Vid cam be set on a tripod and you can work the camera and the model.

I am sure someone will be in here soon to tell you that shooting porn is not just pointing the camera, nor is shooting video easy either. I will say they are right. It is not that easy but with constant practice you can shoot some good content.

You will also need to familiarize yourself with 2257 and local laws where you live.
The bottom line, before you shoot, you need to consult with an attorney to be sure you are adhering to all 2257 laws.

[wmewebmaster]

To expand on what Nikki said, and being a newly minted erotic photographer with plans to do video shoots soon. It sounds like you need to do more homework. Otherwise you are likely to get a poor return on the money spent. Shoots are fairly expensive, modeling fees, location, MUAs, assistants, catering, etc. I spent like $500 on my first one.

You should be totally familiar with your equipment, knowledgeable in the basics of photography, and expert with your particular camera, etc. Buy some books, another good book specific to Erotic photography but also applicable to video, is Photography For Perverts by Charles Gatewood. It includes excellent sections on finding models, negotiating shoots, handling the shoot, discusess legal issues, model releases etc.

Plus you will need to consider lighting equipment, props, renting shooting space, if your need to have any video processed etc. Also Model Releases, AIMS testing if you are doing anything hardcore or involving fluids.

In short, it sounds like you should study up more before you do your first shoot. IMO, and based on my so far limited experience.

[rei1974]

Thanks for the advice. No actually my shoot would be very soft, just nude/erotic but probably not even self-masturbation.

Right now the hard part is finding a good shooting place since they seem more expensive than the model herself

[Nikki_Licks]

Originally posted by wmewebmaster
To expand on what Nikki said, and being a newly minted erotic photographer with plans to do video shoots soon. It sounds like you need to do more homework. Otherwise you are likely to get a poor return on the money spent. Shoots are fairly expensive, modeling fees, location, MUAs, assistants, catering, etc. I spent like $500 on my first one.

You should be totally familiar with your equipment, knowledgeable in the basics of photography, and expert with your particular camera, etc. Buy some books, another good book specific to Erotic photography but also applicable to video, is Photography For Perverts by Charles Gatewood. It includes excellent sections on finding models, negotiating shoots, handling the shoot, discusess legal issues, model releases etc.

Plus you will need to consider lighting equipment, props, renting shooting space, if your need to have any video processed etc. Also Model Releases, AIMS testing if you are doing anything hardcore or involving fluids.

In short, it sounds like you should study up more before you do your first shoot. IMO, and based on my so far limited experience.

Daaaaamn, you pretty much hit allot of it.

And as mentioned several times, shooting content is not just point and shoot.....and it does take time, money.....and Camera skills

[Nikki_Licks]

Originally posted by rei1974
Thanks for the advice. No actually my shoot would be very soft, just nude/erotic but probably not even self-masturbation.

Right now the hard part is finding a good shooting place since they seem more expensive than the model herself

Shooting outdoors is reasonable
Find a nice setting somewhere. Some of the best content is shot outdoors.

[Charlies_Angel]

On the technical side, videography, just like photography, is all about light.

If you decide to shoot flat lit, you may be able to do video and photo with hot lights (or a more hip cold lighting system).

If you wanna make things pop and look high end pro, it's different lighting systems and techniques. Probably not appropriate for an am solo girl site and can get expensive fast.

Keep in mind some models may be better at striking poses (photos), while others act (video). It's whatever you AND the model do good with together as a whole. Your model may be the best person to ask. If she enjoys one more than the other, well, do that. It'll show in the final output.

Try 'em both and never give up. You'll always see improvements.

Gluck!

[pyratas]

Just to add to all this fantastic advice:

If you're on a budget, you can use floodlamps from HomeDepot, change the bulbs to TRUE white light and bounce the light off the walls.

Perfect idea is to shoot during daylight, but that is often unreasonable for amateurs (need to get their drink on, work during the day, etc...)

Shoot BOTH video and still! We work as three folks:

1: ME, Nikon d70S and multiple lenses
2: Roomate: Shoots additional digital WITHOUT flash to invade my shoots
3: My girlfriend: She works the lights and VIDEOTAPES EVERY SHOOT!

Get as much light as possible for photo and/or digital, and try to never use flash if possible, unless you get a good bounce (Paul Markham would be much better advice, but still, a newbie perspective is here)

Always shoot video at the same time:
Who knows, that footage can be edited to be a 12 minute short if you chop the flashes and the talking! 2 for 1 deal, and the model doesn't notice!

PS, I am a NEWBIE to this, but just thought I'd share what we're doing. Having a girl on the set is beneficial in so many ways as well, if you have that opportunity.

Hope this is helpful!

--Pyratas

[phuckbunny]

I haven't shot any porn yet, but I have worked in production and have shot and continue to shoot both still and video for non-porn content. I won't call myself a total pro, but I am experienced.

I use Canon 1D and a Rebel for stills with a normal or 70-200 lens, and Sony Vx2000 or Panasonic AG DVX100 for video.

I do suggest you read up on this stuff and do plenty of tests to get acquainted with the equipment and what you need to get good results. Since everything is digital now, your expenses are nil.

Charlies Angel is correct. Film & video is ALL about lighting. In the UK, the DP (that's director of photography, not double penetration) is called "Lighting Camerman" which shows the importance of lighting for production. The technology makes everything simpler now but you still need to know how to get the look you want.

You can probably get good results from your prosumer camera but you need to think about the look you're going for. Don't try to find out what kind of equipment they used - look at some styles of shooting for inspiration and try to replicate it yourself.

No offence to Pyratas but I would stay far away from any lighting you buy at Home Depot. Those floodlights are meant for industrial work, their tripods don't work half the time, they weigh a tonne, and you will have a bitch of a time fucking around with the correct color temperature. You can buy some hot lights and stands and umbrells from Lowell that will accomplish the same trick for both stills and video and they won't cost much more and save you many headaches. If you want good professional glam looking stills, you need to use a flash and hence need to buy or rent a strobe. Renting is cheaper since a basic Norman kit will set you back about $1,500. This is for stills, mind you. As said, you can use either tungsten or HMI hot lights (no flash) for both still and video, but you'll save yourself a lot of hassle by going to a pro photo place instead of Sears. I'm a big fan of kinoflos but for your purposes, they're expensive and big.

It all boils down to what kind of stuff you want to shoot. If you're looking to be the next Petter Hegre, I suggest enrolling in your local art school to at least learn more about the art & technology. If you want to shoot down and dirty amateur stuff, you can do it with cheap equipment but you also have to shoot knowing what you're doing.

Film & video love light - the more the better - you should keep this in mind at all times.

[pyratas]

No offence to Pyratas but I would stay far away from any lighting you buy at Home Depot.

I understand what you're saying, but we're talking about STARTERS!

I believe you can get good light from floodlamps on a budget--

This was shot at 8pm with true white flood lamps with the natural ambient lights of the city.







Don't get me wrong...I'm a Newb, and love Newb advice, but when I suggest something that has worked for me....well....it has...so far!

That's all. I'd like to see your work and hit you up for advice.

--Pyratas

[pyratas]

Here's another with flood lamps:









yes, we can create beauty with lamps!

--And from HOME DEPOT!

$30 and "True White" Bulbs


Gotcha! Deal with that!




--"Doc" Pyrata

[Lana]

We just went out on a shopping spree this week-end.
Bought a Nikon D80 to replace the Canon A610 and a DVX100b to replace the Panny GS400.
We haven't uploaded any new stuff yet but we have experimented.
I TOTALLY agree that lighting is key. We only use a key, fill and back light bounced flourecently out of some aluminium salad bowls.
BUT - the difference between our new gear compared to our old gear under the same lighting conditions is unbeleviable.
Both vid cams are 3ccd and both still cams are 6megpix plus but upgrrading just puts that extra quality edge on things.

But all that doesn't matter. Get a 3ccd camera (any one, it doesn't matter, just make sure it's 3ccd) Take your set and just shoot with no one there and fool around with lighting. You'll find a look you like. Then, be calm, cool, tell your model you've got tons of tape and tons of time and you are going to make her look super sexy and you'll know your getting a quality product.

What works best for me (I'm the model) is to figure out the theme of the shoot. Then go half way doing only stills. Then shoot the first half in video. Then stills for the second half - then video. I maybe lazy but it saves a lot of changing

That works for me but I'm a solo site.

[Charlies_Angel]

Hey Lana, congratulations. Getting new equipment always makes the day.. yea!

On the edge of drifting off-topic, but since we're talking about how to shoot or get good results:

Here's a tip if the D80's are anything like the D70's. Search for a custom profile to load into your camera. There's some made to make skin tones awesome.

By default, all settings and curves on all the camera profiles (flash, outdoor, flourescent, etc) are set to achieve good results for a wide range of subject types (landscape, portrait, sports, etc.). The custom curve profiles are meant to make a particular style really good (like ones meant for skin tone portraits).

There's two Custom settings you can set/load (Custom1 and Custom 2). Both are preloaded generic and can be overwrriten with your own custom profiles.

You could create your own profile in Nikon Camera Control Pro but it's unlikely you'd come anywhere close to a pro one. People that really understand color gamuts, tonal response curves, etc put together custom ones and make them available. The ones I used were offered free and I've used them when I used to shoot the D-70s I have here a couple/few years ago.

It's been a while since I did this, but if I come across where I got my profiles, I'll drop a link.

It may not make sense to do now, but if you ever find your skin tones need more latitude, color consistency or find the shadow skin tones look like dirt, then a custom curve could save you post work in Photoshop to eek out a better final photo.

Gluck and enjoy the new toys and hope anyone else that may be shootin' D70/D80 may find this useful.

[phuckbunny]

Great pics, Pyratas. If you can deal with the hassle of industrial lights, all the power to you. I don't have any porn flicks or pics yet but you can PM me for advice. I'm a bit hesitant to show my commercial work here that's not porn related - as you can probably understand.

How do those lights work for vids for you?

Lana, congrats on the new gear, sounds exciting. You went for the 24p cam huh? The Pannys are my fav, I also really like the little brother of the DVX , AG DVC 30. Everyone's gung-ho about HD but frankly I'm not that crazy about it. The old DV settings just feel warmer and more real.

[Lana]

It may not make sense to do now, but if you ever find your skin tones need more latitude, color consistency or find the shadow skin tones look like dirt, then a custom curve could save you post work in Photoshop to eek out a better final photo.

Nikon has a neat little (expensive) software called Capture NX. If you shoot in RAW you can tweak to your hearts content, then just save the settings and batch process.
It works well, a little tweaking and I was back to age 29 again.

Everyone's gung-ho about HD but frankly I'm not that crazy about it. The old DV settings just feel warmer and more real.

Yeah, we were thinking of going HD but for the net that just equals huge file/long downloads. Also unless you want to really pay big bucks, most HD only shoots in 60i which gives it that "video" look. Albeit a really nice video look.

[phuckbunny]

I think 1080i for internet streaming is a waste of money and bandwidth. There have been a few sites that promote that HD resolution but I find it pointless. Do you think it's worth it to go through the hassle of shooting/editing RAW instead of JPEG large for web? I've never found much of a difference once its up there. For print, of course, but for web?

[Lana]

Do you think it's worth it to go through the hassle of shooting/editing RAW instead of JPEG large for web?

No, not really. But until we find the best settings for the D80 it makes sense. If we shoot in RAW we can take just one pic, tweak it to our liking, then batch the rest at that setting and batch to jpg. If we shoot in jpg we're more or less stuck with what we get with no real way to change it. It's not that big of an intrusion. Like I said - we just have to tweak one pic.

[Charlies_Angel]

Nikon Capture - thumbs up!!!

And do you use D-Lighting? That's sometimes a nice boost.