Post on 14-Feb-2022
THE DIGITAL FILMMAKING
HANDBOOK
THIRD EDITION
BEN LONG
AND
SONJA SCHENK
C H A R L E S R I V E R M E D I A m
CHARLES RIVER MEDIA, INC.
Hingham, Massachusetts
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION I
Digital Video and the Independent Filmmaker 3
Digital Video in the Home and Office 4
What Type of Equipment Do I Need? 5
What Is Digital Video? 6
What Is Digitizing? 6
Why Digital Video? 8
What This Book Covers 10
Part I: Pre-Production 10
Part II: Production 10
Part III: Post-Production 11
Exercise 11
CHAPTER 2 WRITING AND SCHEDULING 13
Writing for Digital Video 14
Finding a Story 15
Structure 16
Writing Visually 18
Script Format 19
Writing for Corporate and Industrial Productions 22
Writing for Documentaries 24
Finishing Up 25
Scheduling 25
Breaking Down a Script 26
Choosing a Shooting Order 26
v
v i Contents
Production Boards 29
Scheduling for Documentaries 30
Exercises 31
Summary 33
CHAPTER 3 VIDEO TECHNOLOGY BASICS 35
What Is Video? 36
Tracks 36
Frames 38
Video Resolution 38
Scanning Methods 39
Native Aspect Ratio 41
Physical Characteristics of Videotape 42
Digital Video Primer 43
Color Sampling 43
Compression 45
Bit Depth 45
CODECS 46
Data Rate 50
Pixel Shape 50
Types of Digital Video Files 53
Video Broadcast Standards 53
Audio Basics 55
Mono, Stereo, and Surround Sound 56
Audio Sampling 56
Types of Digital Audio Files 57
High-Definition (HD) Video 58
Frame Rates and HD 60
HD Pros and Cons 60
Choosing a Format 61
Delivery Is Everything 63
Videotape Formats 65
Quality Isn't Everything 68
Exercise: Look at Some Video Quality Examples 68
Summary 69
CHAPTER 4 CHOOSING A CAMERA Evaluating a Camera
Image Quality Lenses
Camera Features Ergonomics Manual Override Frame Rate
Progressive Scan Aspect Ratio Audio Viewfinder Image Stabilization Direct-to-Disc Recording Special Effects Batteries Use Your Director of Photography
Accessorizing Tripods, Steadicams, and Dollies
What You Should Choose Summary
CHAPTER 5 PLANNING YOUR SHOOT Storyboarding
Shots and Coverage Less Is More Camera Diagrams and Shot Lists
Location Scouting Production Design
Art Directing Basics Building a Set
Effects Planning Exercises Summary
CHAPTER б LIGHTING
Lighting Basics Film-Style Lighting
Video Lighting
v i i i Contents
The Art of Lighting
Three-Point Lighting
Types of Light
Color Temperature
Wattage
Controlling the Quality of Light
Lighting Your Actors
Interior Lighting
Power Supply
Mixing Daylight and Interior Light
Using Household Lights
Exterior Lighting
Enhancing Existing Daylight
Video Lighting
Video and Low-Light Situations
Special Lighting Situations
Using Lights to Create a Scene
Lighting for Video-to-Film Transfers
Lighting for Blue and Green Screen
Exercises
Summary
CHAPTER 7 THE CAMERA
Using the Camera
The Lens
White Balance
Lens Filters
Other Camera Features
Know Thy Camera
Technical Tips
Preparing Your Equipment
Exercises
Summary
CHAPTER 8 SHOOTING DIGITAL VIDEO
Preparing to Shoot
Rehearsals
The Shooting Script
Putting Plans into Action
Contents ix
Managing the Set 182
The Protocol of Shooting 184
Respect for Acting 184
Shooting 185
Composition 185
Camera Movement 193
Exposure 196
Keeping On-Set Records 199
Script Supervising for Scripted Projects 200
Documentary Field Notes 201
Camera and Sound Logs 202
Exercises 202
In the Can 204
CHAPTER 9 PRODUCTION SOUND 205
What You Want to Record 206
Microphones 207
What a Mic Hears 207
How a Mic Hears 212
Mixing 216
Connecting It All Up 216
Double-System Recording 219
Setting Up 221
Placing Your Mies 221
Getting the Right Sound for the Picture 227
Testing Sound 228
Managing Your Set 229
Selecting an Audio Mode on Your Camera 230
Recording Your Sound 230
Room Tone 231
Run-and-Gun Audio 231
Exercise: Gear Checklist 233
Summary 233
CHAPTER 10 BUILDING A WORKSTATION 235
First Things First 236
Choosing a Platform 236
Macintosh OS 236
Windows 237
Contents
Choosing a Video Interface 238
Digital Video Interfaces 238
Analog Video Interfaces 241
Audio Interfaces 242
Choosing a Computer 244
CPU 246
RAM 246
Storage 246
Computer Monitors 249
Accessorizing 249
Building a Macintosh System 252
Building a Windows System 253
Portable Editing 255
Edit Controllers and Custom Keyboards 256
Backing Up 257
Archiving 258
Network Systems 259
Exercise: Know What You Need 260
Summary 261
CHAPTER 11 NON-LINEAR EDITING SOFTWARE 263
Editing Software Basics 264
The Interface 264
Editing Features 266
Other Features 270
Organizational Tools 272
Logging, Capturing, and Importing 274
Effects and Titles 277
Types of Effects 277
Titles 279
Audio Tools 281
The Final Product 282
Videotape Masters 282
Digital Video Files 283
EDLs 283
Film Cut Lists 283
Editing Applications Compared 284
Exercise: Know What You Need 287
Summary 288
Contents xi
CHAPTER 12 EDITING HARDWARE 289
Don't Panic! 290
Hardware Peripherals 291
Video Decks 293
Tape Format 293
SDI, FireWire, or Analog I/O 295
Frame Accuracy 296
Device Control 296
Audio Features 297
VTR Checklist 297
Audio Equipment 299
Audio CDs 299
DATandMiniDisc 299
Audio Mixers 300
Speakers 300
Video Monitors 301
Professional Video Monitor Features 302
Hardware Connectors 304
Exercise: Hardware Checklist Before You Start 305
Summary 306
CHAPTER 13 PREPARING TO EDIT 307
How to Organize Your Project 308
Create a Numbering System 308
Make Sure All Your Videotape Has Timecode 309
Keep a Database of All Your Media 309
Log Each Tape Thoroughly 310
Use the Organizational Tools of Your Editing Software 310
Timecode 311
Drop Frame and Non-Drop Frame Timecode 311
Timecode Standards 312
How Timecode Is Stored on Videotape 312
Keycode: Timecode for Film Sources 313
Logging 315
How to Log by Content 316
Capturing Quality 320
How Good Does Your Project Need to Look? 320
Digital Online and Offline 320
xii Contents
Audio Quality 322
Audio Levels 322
Clipping and Distortion 323
Equalization 324
Video Quality 326
Video Levels 327
Troubleshooting 337
Problems and Solutions 338
Importing Digital Files 340
Getting Audio from a CD 342
Media Management 342
Exercises 343
Summary 343
CHAPTER 14 EDITING 345
The Invisible Art 346
Building Blocks 346
Building a Rough Cut 350
Radio Cuts 350
Master Shot-Style Coverage 352
Refining Your Rough Cut 354
Cutaways and Reaction Shots 355
Matching Action 356
Matching Screen Position 358
Overlapping Edits 359
Matching Emotion and Tone 360
Pauses and Pull-Ups 360
Hard Sound Effects and Music 360
Transitions between Scenes 363
Hard Cuts 363
Dissolves, Fades, and Wipes 363
Establishing Shots 364
Clearing Frame and Natural "Wipes" 364
Solving Technical Problems 364
Missing Elements 365
Working with Temporary Elements 365
Working with Low-Res Footage 365
Fine Cutting 367
Editing for Style 368
Duration 368
Contents x i i i
The Big Picture 369
Exercise 369
Summary 369
CHAPTER 15 SOUND EDITING 371
Sounding Off 372
Setting Up 374
Editing Sound in Your NLE 374
Dedicated Sound Editing Apps 377
Audio Editing Hardware 382
Editing Sound 384
Unintelligible Dialog 384
Changes in Tone 385
Is There Extraneous Noise in the Shot? 385
Are There Bad Video Edits That Can Be Reinforced with Audio? 385
Is There Bad Audio? 386
Are There Vocal Problems You Need to Correct? 386
Dialog Editing 387
ADR 388
Non-Dialog Voice Recordings 389
EQ Is Your Friend 389
Special Filters 392
Sound Effects 393
Sound Effect Sources 394
Music 395
Editing Music 395
License to Play 397
Finding a Composer 398
Do It Yourself 399
Exercises 400
Fix It in the Mix? 401
CHAPTER 16 COLOR CORRECTION 403
To Compress, or Not to Compress 404
Color Correction 408
Safe Colors 409
Too Much of a Good Thing: When Color Correction Goes Too Far 410
Correcting Bad White Balance 413
Matching Footage from Different Cameras and Shoots 418
x i v Contents
Brightening Dark Video 420
Using Tracks and Layers to Adjust Color 420
Don't Expect Miracles 422
Correcting Color for Film 423
One More Thing 423
Exercise 423
Summary 424
CHAPTER 17 TITLING AND SIMPLE COMPOSITING 425
Titles and Simple Graphics 426
Making Titles in Your NLE 427
Titling Software 432
Creating Titles in Photoshop 434
Compositing 101 434
Keys 435
Mattes 448
Pixel Aspect Ratios 451
More Sophisticated Mattes 459
Moving Pictures 463
Basic Movement 463
Eliminating Camera Shake 470
Exercise 471
Summary 471
CHAPTER 18 ROTOSCOPING AND MORE COMPOSITING 473
Rotoscoping 474
Painting on Frames 475
Better Rotoscoping through Filters 481
Rotoscoping an Alpha Channel 484
Creating Animated Alpha Channels (or "You, Too, Can Make Travelling Mattes") 491
Building Effects with Multiple Layers 497
Special Effects 512
Fixing a Drop-Out 512
Fixing Lost Video 514
Compositing Elements from a 3D Animation Package 514
Contents x v
Making Your Video Look Like Film 515
Creating Film Texture 515
Creating Film Color 518
Changing Video Time 518
Plug-Ins 520
Summary 521
CHAPTER 19 OUTPUT 523
Mastering Your Outputs 524
The Best-Case Scenario 524
The Big Decision 526
Videotape Masters 526
Preparing for a Professional Online Edit 527
The Do-It-Yourself Digital Online 533
The Final Audio Mix 537
Preparing for a Professional Audio Mix 538
Do-lt-Yourself Final Mixes 539
DVD Output 540
OutputtingfortheWeb 546
Creating a Video CD 551
Getting Your 35mm Film Release Print 553
Film Editing and Cut Lists 554
The Film Printing Process 555
Getting Your Video Transferred to Film 556
Archiving and Backups 557
Exercises 558
Summary 559
ABOUT THE DVD 561
GLOSSARY 563
INDEX 583