Composing for Cutting

[JT]

David, How much cutting in Camera is there vs. Coverage? Do you write this into your shot list or is it a given?

Also, what's your guestimate on how long takes for a new setup to be made? I know this depends upon how elaborate the setup is, crew experience, tools on hand, etc... but there must be an average time for a setup for average type shots.

Are video 24P HD setups the same length, longer, shorter than 35mm?

 

[David Mullen ASC]

The amount of time lighting takes depends on what you are trying to accomplish, whether in film or HD. If you need to set-up four lights to create the look, then it takes the same time whether you are shooting in film or HD.

I have a general rule that one shouldn't have more than 20 shots planned for a shooting day with a single camera, unless you have some method of getting more shots done faster (I once shot a handheld fight scene outdoors in daytime and did something like 72 set-ups, but they were simple shots grabbed quickly.)

You have to take into account shooting time and rehearsal time, not just set-up time.

You can also figure it takes about ten minutes to bring a light in, set it up, add grip elements to it, etc. so if you had to set-up six lights and had enough crew people to be setting up two lights at the same time, that's thirty minutes total -- but that's not particularly accurate. You do what you can to be ahead, like having the lights ready to be brought in. You have to think a few lighting set-ups ahead.

As for coverage, it just depends on how far you can go through the scene in that particular angle versus whether it is easier to break it up into separate shots because you know you'll be cutting away at certain points to see something.

 

[JT]

David, your 20 set ups sound realistic to me..and that's a lot of work. I hear Spike Lee say, ...we do 60 setups a day... it must be run & gun.

I just read a Speilberg article where he says it's 40 to 50 set-ups per day with a shooting ratio of 4, 1/2:1

I understand he's fast but, he must must multiple sets pre-lit with plenty of grips & gaffers. It's impossible to proceed faster than the weakest/slowest link.

Something seems wrong here, any ideas? Maybe a setup is, take the camera off the head and shoot a few extra angles here & there throughout the day.

 

[David Mullen ASC]

It's just the difference between the number of set-ups you PLAN versus the number that you actually DO. During the course of a day, you always add little shots here and there that count as a new set-up, like after shooting a close-up, you say "let's swap the 75mm for a 100mm and do one more take a little tighter" -- and that counts as a new set-up. "Oh, after we get that insert of him picking up the pencil, let's just grab a shot of his hand picking up the phone right next to the pencil." There's another set-up not on the list.

Hence why I say that having no more than 20 shots on a list is a good idea because it's doable and you will probably add to it. 20 shots on a list may end up yielding more like 30 set-ups by the end of the day.

Plus some people count a two-camera set-up as two set-ups.

Or you can think of it as doing two lighting set-ups and shooting them within an hour is reasonable, so in a 12-hour day, that's 24 set-ups.

 

[JT]

Yes we need to be careful on how we interpret numbers, it reminds me of statistics. If you put one hand in a bucket of freezing ice & the other in a bucket of boiling water, statistically you should be fine! :shock:

Here's an interesting article I ran into about the working relationship of an editor and a cinematographer. Any thoughts?

http://www.editorsguild.com/newsletter/MarApr02/dav_mirk_one.html