Capturing Light – Episode 2 with Les Gaddis

In this episode, we get into detail about: The positions that are involved in an average film crew. Keeping up with technology and staying current in the industry. Balancing marriage and an aspiring film career. Maintaining a positive atmosphere on set. About The Featured Director of Photography: Les Gaddis has had a passion for cinematography since the age of 12, when he started working as an event camera operator for his family’s videography business in New Orleans, Louisiana. Les has filmed 2 feature films, 15 short films, 13 music videos, 19 commercials and promotional videos, worked on 3 TV shows and covered over 500 events. Let’s Set the Scene: This scene was done for a camera test to see how the Blackmagic Production 4k camera handled lights that i’m accustomed to using. Adriana Rodriguez walks to the window. She is waiting on her boyfriend to come home. She realizes after time passes, he’s not coming home. Equipment List: Cameras: Blackmagic Production 4k Lenses: Helios 44-2 58mm, Jupiter 85mm 1.2, Rokinon 14mm T3.1 Lights: 1 – 1k Mole Richardson, 2-750w Pars,  3 Location lights. Dolly, Dimmer Water hose for rain   The Why: I’m a huge fan of cooler tones in film.  I felt giving this scene a cool feel just made sense in the context that Adriana is waiting at home, disappointed that her boyfriend isn’t coming.  I wanted the rain at the window to roll off of her face.  I still wanted to give her a very soft key light.  The 1k with the shower curtain wrapped around her face beautifully.  I wanted to create depth within the lighting so I shaped the lights in the background to give a more 3 dimensional feel. Check out the video below: Behind the Scenes: Let’s set the scene This scene is from the music video “Against The Ropes.” A little girl’s internal struggle to forgive her mom leads to her feeling as though she has to fight for her place in the world. The tone of the overall music video needed to feel cold/neutral.  The little girl goes through a lot of trials in her life and we needed to visualize that in a compelling way. The How: Equipment List: Cameras: Canon 7d and Panasonic AF100 Lenses:Helios 44-2 58mm, Canon 17-40 f4. Lights: 4 – 650w Arri, 2-300w Arri, 2-750w Leiko,  approximately 20 camera phone flashes. Steadycam The Why: There was not a single ounce of diffusion in this scene.  All the lights we used had a very hard quality of light.  The little girl was having a hard time through life so hard lighting naturally fit. The camera movement was very calculated as well.  At the beginning, the shots have a little bit more structure.  By the time you get to the climax of the song, the girl has grown up and seems like she is fighting for her life.  This is when the camera goes crazy, Bourne Ultimatum style.  As she begins to forgive her mom at the end, you’ll notice that the camera movement starts to calm down.  Even with this being a music video, I think we’ve accomplished something great.  Giving this video a very filmic feel even with all the cutting back and forth between performances. Check out the full video below: Other Links and Resources: Thank you for listening: Please let me know what you learned or thought of the show today. Subscribe to the podcast.  You can ask me your questions at [email protected]. Support the Podcast – Become a Patron