How I Light Interviews in the Mountains // Flexlight Overview

How I Light Interviews in the Mountains // Flexlight Overview

Bringing gear for shooting interviews into the mountains is quite the task. I wasn't even planning on taking lights while shooting the slacklife series because all of the extra weight. That is until I found out about the flex light kit from westcott. This kit has made me fall in love with lighting interviews in the outdoors. I simply didn't consider bringing lights with me until this kit came along. 

On the series I used this gear as my lighting kit:

Flex 2-Light X-Bracket Kit - https://www.fjwestcott.com/flex-2-lig...
Flex Battery - https://www.fjwestcott.com/flex-porta...
 

You can check out the trailer for the series we shot here, the first episode will be coming out in March! So stoked.

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Pictured above is my ideal interview setup. I'm using the RODE filmmaker kit for my LAV audio, and the NTG3  over head for the best interview sound I can get. To the left I have the flexlight 1x1 set up as my key light, softening the light through a generic softbox I got on amazon. The Panasonic G7 is mounted on top the Kessler second shooter for some smooth interview pans. 

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And this is what it looks like with all the pieces in play. I'm monitoring audio, camera, and knocking out a fantastic interview. That's how you gotta roll as a solo filmmaker, and I honestly wouldn't have bothered taking lights at all if it wasn't for the extremely portable flexlight kit. 

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Pictured above I am adjusting the output of my keylight. Having a dimmer you can hold near your camera is extrememely handy for dialying in the lights just perfect. 

If you have any questions about this setup be sure to let me know. Make sure to subscribe to the Leftcoast TV newsletter so you don't miss any new videos!

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A Year with the Kessler Crane Second Shooter

Disclaimer: Right off the top, I need to let you know the Second Shooter I was using this past year was on loan. I purchased my first real slider (you know the kind I didn't make out of PVC pipe and skateboard wheels) from Kessler Crane in 2012, and since then i've been a proud customer.  Kessler lent me a Second Shooter to use while shooting Untethered. The opinions of this article and the video are my own, I have not received any payment from Kessler. 

This past year I've been testing out a new addition to my camera support kit. I finally got into the motion control game and have been extensively using the Kessler Crane Second Shooter along with my already owned Kessler sliders. I wanted to share my experience of putting this gear to test throughout  this past year and why I've come to love this piece of MOCO gear. 

An intro to Motion Control

The Second Shooter is essentially an addition of motors and a tiny computer to a Kessler slider. This system allows you to set keyframes for different positions on the slider, and then move the camera between your set positions automatically. You can use this for Timelapses moves over long durations of time, or you can use if for live motion setups with the looping feature. 

My favourite traveling timelapse set up. A 2 Foot carbon stealth paired with the slider motor. 

My Favorite Features

Modularity

The biggest feature I love about the Second Shooter is the modularity. The options for different configurations are endless, and yet you are never committed to one exact setup. Sometimes I would use the pan and tilt head, other times I would just use the slider motor.  You can use it dozens of combinations with all of Kessler's sliders. I often take a 2-Foot carbon stealth with me into the mountains and use a larger Cineslider when back at the studio or shooting time lapses where I want longer camera moves. 

A photo posted by L E V I A L L E N (@leviallen) on Oct 18, 2015 at 8:38am PDT

Straightforward timelapse setups

Using the keyframes and the controller to trigger your camera, adding motion to timelapses is a really straightforward process. I've used several systems previous to this that were extremely complex. The Second Shooter makes figuring out intervals and durations really easy. It has handy built in duration calculators and each parameter is flexible making it really easy to add additional frames, or extend the interval. It also has awesome shoot–move–shoot functions which allows you to capture long exposures and not have the camera move. 

Rock Solid Interview Looping

The looping feature of the Second Shooter is definitely the most frequently used when I am shooting.

It's amazing how much a controlled parallax slide can add to a very generic interview set up. With the pan and tilt head you can track your subject across an entire slide. This feature alone merits an investment into motion control. The ability to do complex timelapse moves is all just a bonus in my opinion. 

 

BUILD QUALITY

The build quality is another feature that I’ve really come to appreciate. I am super tough on my gear, I take it with me everywhere and I am using it constantly. Throughout this past year, my equipment has help up brilliantly and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. 

A photo posted by L E V I A L L E N (@leviallen) on Jul 19, 2016 at 7:17am PDT

Using THE Manfrotto Magic Arm

A helpful tool to use alongside the Second Shooter is the Manfrotto magic arm. Using this arm I was able to place the camera off axis from the slider. If that's looking down over my subject or doing timelapse moves low to the ground. 

I feel like I am just scratching the surface of what I can do when using an arm in combination with the slider.  

Supporting a Single Tripod

It is also helpful when shooting on tripod setups and you want to help support the other end of the slider to prevent weight sag. 

Shooting Untethered

When shooting Untethered I used the timelapse function of the second shooter to help capture these gorgeous transition moments. These time lapses were key to the edit and the way the storyline came to gather. The added movement helps give a sense of time passing and I used these shots to help separate the different scenes of the film. 

The Second Shooter is Dead Easy to Learn

Lastly, I have to say the Second Shooter is incredibly intuitive to use. I tend to avoid instruction manuals, and on my first day using the second shooter I had it up and going, getting fantastic shots, in under 15 minutes. I have definitely had experiences in the past with motion control equipment that needed a book to learn. I can teach someone else how to use it in under five minutes, this is huge for getting additional hands up to speed. 

What did I find challenging when using the second shooter?

1. Cable management
   • This is less a fault of the second shooter, and more a reality of motion control setups that are modular.    I don't like needing to remember more cables or have other cables to look after. That is just one of the pains that goes along with these kinds of setups. There newly released TLS seems to offer better cable management as the controller and battery travels on the same sled the camera is one. 
2. No way to set limits on the controller for slider length
   • The most common error I make when setting my keyframes is sliding the camera to far to the right or the left. I usually make this error because I am trying to set it up fast, or I am doing two tasks at once. When you hit the end of the slider track, the motor can sense there is something wrong and resets the controller. This is frustrating at times because you then loose the keyframes you just set and need to start over. 
   • I don't know if there is a solution to this, but it comes as a byproduct of the controller and motors being able to work with various different slider lengths. I wish there was a way to tell the controller which slider length you were using, and where the start and stop points are, and then have the computer remember it for all future keyframes you set. 

Would I Choose the Second Shooter again for My Next Big Project?

I like to use the best gear that is available for me to use. If there is a better option of any piece of gear that exists, I am often looking for it and trying to use that instead. As a principle I have a hard time settling for equipment that is "almost good enough" to do the job. 

So when I ask myself, "Would I chose to use this piece of gear again on my next big project?"

The answer is, yes. And in closing I can boil it down to two reasons for myself. 

1. LOOPING FEATURE: This system offers the most reliable interview looping feature I have been able to test out. 
   • It can be packed down into a bag I can travel with
   • It is quick to set up
   • It is reliable and does the job exactly how I would want it to
2. FLEXIBLE TIMELAPSE SETUPS: The second shooter can adapt to all of the slider products available from Kessler. I am never locked in to a certain setup, or by a slider length or style. If I want bigger I can go bigger. If I want to go timelapse only I can go timelapse only. 

I’ve really come to love and rely on my second shooter. From shooting on set to life int he mountains It really is a trusted  member of the Leftcoast team. 

I’m thankful knowing my investment in the Kessler Eco-System is going to bring value to my series for years to come. I want those to actually be tools that are going to last me and not be outdated.  

I want to say a huge thanks to Kessler for letting me test their gear while shooting my film, and creating tools that empower me as a filmmaker. 

Making a Film With Your Friends and Zero Budget : Podcast Interview

I had the opportunity to join my friend Caleb Wojcik on his podcast and talk about the making of my film UNTETHERED.

Here are some links we talked about.

• LEFTCOAST - Adventure Filmmaking

• Levi Allen - YouTube

• Levi's Film: UNTETHERED

• Transposition Films

• RJ Bruni

• Kessler Camera Sliders

• Kessler elektraDRIVE Slider Bundle

• devingraham - YouTube

• devinsupertramp - YouTube

• Amazon.com : DSLR Flycam Nano Camera Stabilizer with Free Quick Release

• Spencer Seabrooke | Facebook

• MindNode - Mindmapping App

• keithwhiteaudio | Post Production Sound Studio

• Brain Farm | Creators of Media and Entertainment

• We Are Blood | Short Film

• View from a Blue Moon on iTunes

• Musicbed

• Ryan Schroeder

• MOXLEY

• World Record Free Solo - Insane Slacklining! - YouTube

• BUILDER - Official Trailer - YouTube

You can also check the behind the scenes of my end of the podcast.

Case Study: Making of an iPhone 6 Music Video

"I had lots of people going out of their way to tell me how beautiful it was, let alone how well it encapsulated the whole record.” - Teen Daze

In this article I am going to share the details behind a project I worked on recently with Jamison from Teen Daze. I am going to open up the details of our creative process, how we pulled off a beautiful video on a small budget, and more importantly how it's not the specific tools you use, it's how you use them. 

A Still from the video. Shot on my iPhone

Jamison was in the process of releasing his latest album Morning World when he contacted me about what it would take to make an album trailer. We had talked previously about collaborating on something, and it felt great to find something that we might be able to pull off.

We opened up the discussion initially talking about the goals and the feel of what he was hoping the album trailer could encompass. In this scenario Jamison had a fixed budget to work with from the label and that was what we had to work with. It wasn't a big enough project to go out and shoot a tone of new content for, so I started to think creatively of how I could use some material I had already been shooting.

The Project Came At The Perfect Time

For the entire month before Jamison reached out, I had been shooting a timelapse everyday with my iPhone. As I went through life I would just set it up and capture these quick and beautiful shots. When we were brainstorming a concept for the piece it dawned on me that I could utilize all of the timelapses I had already been working hard to shoot.

Shooting it on an iPhone wasn't supposed to be a gimmick

We genuinely believe in this case that the footage I had shot with my phone was the best to use with the constraints we were working with.

IMG_0486

The entire video was shot with the above setup.

In my initial brainstorming with Jamison we uncovered that he wanted the piece to have an element of landscape transformations. This made timelapse a fantastic medium to use in order to reach these goals. Commissioning the shooting of an entire timelapse piece requires a significant investment due to the amount of time involved with such a piece. In this situation I considered all the shooting time that went into the timelapses as pro-bono, and the budget of the project was used to cover post production.

Building a Smooth flowing timelapse piece takes intentionality.

My goal was to have this piece feel like a natural journey. An experience that the viewer can go on paired with the beautiful music. This natural flow doesn't happen on accident. In this instance the ordering and timing of everything actually went through many revisions until it flowed just right.

I refined the piece over 16 different iterations until it was perfect

http://www.leftcoast.co/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Image0000077.jpg

The Technical Details

The key to getting the best out of the iPhones camera is actually to avoid the native time-lapse function altogether. It is crucial to use an app that takes a sequence of pictures at the highest quality the camera is capable. The app I used was called Lapse-It Pro. I would shoot sequences of about 300 images in the app and then transfer them over to my computer to be processed. It is important for whatever app you use, to make sure that for each sequence you lock the exposure for that shot. This way you don't get any flickering changes in the shot throughout.

Once the folders of images were on my computer, I would import them into premiere selected as an image sequence. I edited this piece for 1080p output so a lot of the shots were able to be downscaled allowing for small pans and zooms in post.

http://www.leftcoast.co/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/IMG_04861.jpg

Real world results

At the end of the day, non of this technical stuff maters if we did not reach the original goals of the project. I waited several months after the release of this video before writing this article. I wanted to have real world results and touch back with Jamison after the release to see if the video was a success. Here are some of the questions that I asked him.

Would you say that the album trailer was a success?

"Definitely. I had lots of people going out of their way to tell me how beautiful it was, let alone how well it encapsulated the whole record/project."

What was it like collaborating with Levi on this project?

"Levi has been a friend of mine for a long time, and though that can sometimes get in the way of a good working relationship, this project ran incredibly smoothly. In only a few short conversations, we were able to get on the same page about exactly what we both wanted the trailer to look like."

At what point do you let go of control trust the artist you are collaborating with bring the project to life?

"I'm definitely aware of my limitations when it comes to visual arts, and so I'm quick to hand the control over to a more experienced professional. I try to make sure I can vocalize exactly what it is I'm looking for, while still understanding that the collaborator have their own vision as well. Striking a balance between those two is pretty important."

You can order Jamisons new album here

http://www.leftcoast.co/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/IMG_0494.jpg

The Most Important Take Aways

It is vital to the health and quality of the final video for there to be a creative process that is outlined from the start. There are lots of different steps and stages along the way, it's important to keep the project moving along and the working relationship healthy, especially between friends. As the professional the final results are my responsibility. This doesn't mean that I just do my own thing and be stubborn, it means that I create a space of listening to the clients goals in the beginning. Once I have listened thoroughly and have gained an understanding, that's when a plan of attack is implemented. 

Tools Don't Matter

At the end of the day I am not paid based off the tools I use. I am paid because I am able to professionally execute on a creative process.

There are people out there who believe that videos should be cheap and easy because the tools are so accessible.

Yes, I am so passionate that the tools are available more than ever before. But an accessible tool does not make up for a poor creative process. One thing I am really passionate about as a creative professional is having a proven process to creating story telling content of the highest possible impact. I don't settle for lower quality, I don't settle for mediocre, I only take on projects that I know have the potential to be my next best work.

How to Move Forward

If you are just starting out, be encouraged. You most likely have a tool in your pocket that you can make something beautiful out of. The main way to get better and create more professional work, is to do just that, create. Create create create. Practice. Trial and error. These are the most essential steps, not which camera you have in you back pack.

http://www.leftcoast.co/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/IMG_6775.jpg

I wrote another article here on my timelapse film Beautiful British Columbia. I shot this film using only a 500$ dslr. I strongly suggest checking out out that post as well.

Written by: Levi Allen VanderKwaak

Levi Allen

I Started Vlogging Every Week - Leftcoast Life

I am super excited to share with you that the Leftcoast Life Vlog has started and is definitely sticking around. My original vlogging ideas started for me back in highschool, but I never had the courage to commit with doing it regularly. I have finally decided that waiting isn't going to help, and so this summer I mustered some courage and decided I was just going to go for it. Initially in my head I thought, yeah, I'll do it for just the summer and see how it goes. I have since decided that I love it, and it's not going anywhere any time soon.

Leftcoast Life is here, and it's here to stay.

Why Start a Weekly Vlog?

For me it had the most to do with wanting to grow my muscle of commitment. Earlier this year I started blogging and writing a newsletter every week, and I knew I was capable of creating more things on a regular basis. I read once in a book that people who are creative when they feel creative just do art for a hobby, those who create even when they don't feel like it are the professionals.

This resonated with me. I especially felt like someone who mostly created when I felt inspired or that it was convenient. I knew I could create more, but without the commitment, it simply just didnt happen.

Something Amazing Happened

For me the idea of vlogging, and even creating videos in general, has never been about the quantity of views. I  have always felt that the views only matter when they are connected with people that actually care. To be honest I have found it challenging to build an audience of people who want to see my most meaningful work. It has always been my fear that one day when I make something I am really proud of I will have no one to share it with. Yes I can share it with the internet, but I want to be able to share it with those who care about the process that went into it and are genuinely excited to see the final results.

Vlogging has been an amazing way to authenticaly connect personaly with those that might care about my work. The effects have been almost immediate. Sure someone can feel inspired when they see a beautiful video, but it is way easier to inspire people when you are building a relationship with them. For me, vlogging has become in even these short months, a genuine way to build a relationships with people. It gives me an opportunity to provide them with more value and inspire them to do more themselves.

Vlogging is now my primary way to authenticaly connect with people online, in vulnerable and honest way.

This is all just the beginning, but I am super excited for the response I have received from people so far. I really do enjoy creating them, and I love the challenge of making them regularly. Don't tell anyone, but I am thinking of making them twice a week soon. I hope you have enjoyed the Vlogs as well. Bellow you can find three more of my favourite vlogs so far, which ones are your favourite?

Let me know what you think of the vlogging on Twitter or Facebook.

How to Craft Real Stories with Great Interviews: Featuring the Kaléo 2015 Film

https://vimeo.com/127073088 This week I got asked a question from Alyssa, "Levi, I am just starting out with filmmaking and I wanted to learn how to conduct interviews, could you share some of your tips?"

I just created a film that was heavily driven by interviews (as seen above).  I thought it would be an excellent opportunity use this piece as a case study of sorts as I talk about my interview process. My goal in this post is to teach you how to go about creating better interviews for your next film! First I will share my approach to interviews, and then share some behind the scenes info on this Kaleo film.

How to Craft Real Life Stories with Great Interviews

This post is going to help you learn how to capture better real life stories. I am going to push into an important component of how I approach storytelling, getting great interviews with ordinary people.

Interviews as the Backbone of Story

The filmmaking style I am developing definitely relies heavily on using interviews to convey the story. In most cases I find that I am interviewing people who have sometimes never been on camera before in their entire life. But I have learned a few tricks to make the whole process a lot more natural and comfortable for everyone involved.

Once I have captured the interview I eventually end up cutting out the main best bits of their talking and using this audio drive a visual story. I don't include the audio of my questions being asked, I only use the visual and audio of the subject.

The Preparation

The nature of the interviews I normally conduct, do not allow for a whole lot of pre-production. If you are interviewing a public figure or an artist, you need to do your homework and study up on the subject. Yet most of the time you might be interviewing someone who has nothing about them on the internet. In this case there is not much that you will have prepared going into the interview. What I normally do for every interview anyhow, is sit down on my own before hand with a piece of paper and sketch down some thoughts or ideas I would like to cover. I don't use this as a formula I have to follow, rather just as an idea sheet for those moments in the interview where I feel stuck and don't know where to go. I find this small bit of prep helps a lot and makes me feel a lot less panicked about what I need to cover.

Learn About the Subject

Do you know much about subject you are going to be talking about with the person? If not you should definitely spend some time learning about the subject, are you going to talk about this persons massive Star Wars collection? Well then, you should probably know a thing or two ahead of time about Star Wars.

Chose a Location that is Distraction Free and Comfortable

Your goal as the interviewer is to get your subject into the most comfortable and natural state as possible. You want to get them talking as if  they were in a conversation with an age-old friend. This is hard to do in a location with lots of distractions or unwanted interruptions. I ask them to sit on the edge of the chair so they their body position naturally seems more interested in what they are talking about. This way they don't slouch their shoulders and lean back in the chair as well.

The Technical Gear

This could be an entire post in and of itself, but I will give a few tips that I use. When setting up your angle, try to have the camera at eye level with the subject or a little bit above. My goal with angles and lens choice, is to make it feel as if the viewer is sitting there with the subject. Use good composition and have the subject look slightly to either side of the camera. Having them look to the long side of the frame (as shown bellow) helps create a far more natural feel. You can get stylistic here if you are trying to convey a certain feeling, but this is usually my starting place with single camera interviews.

Don't Slack on the Audio

The biggest part of what will drive this interview is good clear audio. I use a wired lav connected to a Zoom H1 to  record my audio. It is strongly recommended to have two sources of audio such as a shotgun mic and Lav, but I currently have not invested in this. When setting audio levels I usually tend to get a conversation going with the subject trying to make them feel comfortable. I don't even let them know I am setting levels, I just try get them to talk about themselves or where they are from. While they are talking try set your levels and leave a little room so if they get excited it won't peak the audio

The Most Important Part: The Interview Itself

In order to conduct a great interview, you need to be a well-practiced conversationalist. This is by far the most important part of getting consistent results from a wide variety of people. Your goal is to get them comfortable and forget entirely that they are on camera. Most people are super nervous about the whole process and the quicker you can get them comfortable, the quicker you are going to start getting the audio bits you actually want to use. When first sitting down I tend to explain how the interview process will go, "It's going to be just like a conversation, don't worry about the camera, you can talk directly to me." I sometimes explain as well that I would like to have them include the question in their answer. For example, Q: "How do you like being interviewed?" A: "I really enjoy being interviewed."

Instead of

Q: "How do you like being interviewed?" A: "I really enjoy it."

You must be a fantastic listener

Once the interview starts and the technical components are rolling, your full-time job is being a fantastic listener. You need to make them feel as though you care immensely about what they are saying. You need to ask great questions that build off what they just said. You should ask questions that make them think, "Man i've never thought about that before."

The moment you look down at your paper for your next question, you have pretty much lost them.

This is so challenging, but you need to keep eye contact with them and avoid being distracted yourself. You can look at your questions from time-to-time, but if the interviewer starts to feel like you are following a script, you will get results as if you were following a script; forced and unnatural.

Editing Together your Interviews in Post

This step is incredibly important as well. Important enough that I decided to make an entire blog post about it next week. If you are not apart of the Leftcoast Collective already I strongly recommend getting on board so you can find out when my latest posts are released, you also get a free ebook which is pretty cool.

Some Behind the Scenes Info For the Kaléo Film

The Purpose of the film: This is a film that I created to document and share the story of an eight month leadership program on Vancouver island. This piece was driven by interviews that I conducted with ordinary people who had never been in front of a camera before. The format is a little long as it was not necessarily made to be viewed online.

The Filming Process: I gathered my footage throughout the year whenever I had the chance. My primary job was as a leader on the trips, so filming definitely was not a priority. For this reason my kit was usually really light. I rocked a top loading Tamrac bag so I could pull out a camera at any time and film. Using the Rode Video Mic Pro for Audio I shot primarily handheld or with my homemade stabilizer using mostly the Tokina 11-16 or my Rokinon 35mm f1.4

The interview shots were all done with my sigma 50mm 1.4

The Editing: I edited this piece in the few days coming up before their graduation. From the start of the editing to the time it was screened, I had just under a total of  36 hours. I cut all the interview selects, and then started to piece together a storyline. Then I went through and cut all my favourite BRoll and started adding that in over top.

The Grading: I only invested about an hour into grading as that was the only time I had. I did a basic color grade through lightroom using VSCO. I am not to happy with a few of the shots, but most of it turned out just fine.

All in all the project was heaps of fun. I always wish I had more time to edit, but It was literally right down to the deadline on this one. I literal just finished encoding the project 5 minutes before the grad ceremony started.

Woah, this ended up being a bit of a wordy post. I hope you got some value from it. As always if you have any questions connect with my on social media, or join the Leftcoast Collective and send me an email directly!

Download Free Guide

I have made this guide available to all current and future subscribers of the Leftcoast Collective. If you would like to receive a copy of it directly join the Leftcoast Collective bellow. I will continue to send free great content every Thursday and you can unsubscribe at any time. [yks-mailchimp-list id="e34efe9754" submit_text="SEND ME THE FREE EBOOK!"]

Written by: Levi Allen

Behind the Scenes Video of Mountain Bike Film: Freedom 🎬

https://youtu.be/FswOFko8cx4 Three weeks ago I released a biking film that I was super excited about. Turns out, a lot of others ended up being excited about it as well. It's been great to see it gather over 20 thousand views across Vimeo and Pinkbike.com in the past two weeks.

If you have not seen it yet you can view it here: http://Left.ly/freedom

As more and more people watched it, more and more questions poured in about the process of making it. Instead of just replying in the emails, I thought it would be great to create a behind the scenes video that showed some footage of making it, and also answer some questions.

In this Video I cover several things:

• I talk about the equipment used
• Sharing about the shooting process
• Giving a look at what it's like to shoot outdoors
• The editing process
• How I use Warp Stabalizer
• The flow of my editing

I love getting questions in from you guys about what you want to learn. Seriously anything. Join the Leftcoast Collective and you can send me an email, I will get every single question that I get. If you have time, I would love if you shared this article with a friend, help spread the Leftcoast Love!

I hope you enjoyed this Behind the Scenes Video! I share new content every Thursday.

Download Free Guide

I have made this guide available to all current and future subscribers of the Leftcoast Collective. If you would like to receive a copy of it directly join the Leftcoast Collective bellow. I will continue to send free great content every Thursday and you can unsubscribe at any time. [yks-mailchimp-list id="e34efe9754" submit_text="SEND ME THE FREE EBOOK!"]

Written by: Levi Allen

Video: Finding Two Wheeled Freedom in the Cowichan Valley

https://vimeo.com/124455320

The piece was shot with my trusty Canon 60d. The lenses were 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, and 11-16mm.

 UPDATE:

I made a behind the scenes video about the making of for this project, you can find it at the bottom of this post.

Where the Project Started

I have been living in one of the most beautiful places in BC for the past three years. That’s right, i’m claiming it as an absolute gem on Vancouver island. It’s called the Cowichan Valley and it is an amazing place of rolling hills, mountain peaks and ocean views. I've been inspired by the landscape ever since first stepping foot here.

I am moving off the island in just under a month and really wanted to create a short biking film as a tribute of sorts to my home of the past three years. Not knowing many riders in the area I sent out a text or two and eventually got in in touch with two racers in the area, Trevor Thew and Nic Rodgers.

Better Camera Movement

Strong camera direction and excellent framing is something I wanted to be very prevalent in this piece. Focusing on framing some really beautiful shots and having the whole edit move with a cinematic feel. I came into the project hoping to grow in my composition and also sharpen my eye for lens choice.

I wanted to chose every lens and angle for a reason, not just because it was the lens I already had on.

The choice was made to stay away from shooting everything on my homemade steadicam as I usually do in action sports sequences. Instead relying heavily on my Tripod and my Kessler Crane Pocket Dolly. I also avoided slo-mo for the entire piece, I wanted it to feel and look fast.

Locations Picked and it Was Time to Shoot

After some text’s back and forth we decided to try film during two mornings at the end of the week. We wanted great soft light, so we shot as early as we could in the day and ended both days when the light got too blown out.

The riders had a big say in the trails they wanted to shoot on, we tried our best not to re-shoot sections that have been heavily filmed before. When we begun the shooting the first day I definitely had to dig deep for all the hiking. Yeah yeah, embarrassing to say, but I definitely sill had my out of shape winter legs, and each step that first day was hard earned. All in all I was carrying around 50lbs of awkward gear in between shots. I definitely learned that a carbon fibre tripod is something worth investing in soon. I also decided not to cary as much gear in my backpack next time, only the stuff I knew was needed or helpful.

Why did I think I needed my chargers along?

Shooting on the first day went really well, initially being super excited with the results, I knew we would have a decent video on our hands. That’s always a good feeling to have.

The piece was shot with my trust Canon 60d. The lenses were 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, and 11-16mm.

Recently I purchased the 3 foot Pocket Dolly from a friend, and it really does not work very well just centre mounted on one tripod. I brought two tripods with me to keep the slider steady.

Second Day of Shooting

A great friend of mine Jeremy came along with me the second day helping take pictures, shooting behind the scenes video, and carrying gear where he could. It was a huge help having someone else along to assist with carrying things in between shots and I was really thankful for getting some behind the scenes footage.

That Stereo Audio

Audio often gets neglected when I am in the rush of shooting outdoor pieces. This time I knew for sure that getting some stereo sound of the bikers riding by the camera was a high priority. I wanted to use the audio to help tie the edit together and bring a more immersive feel to the edit.

Using a Zoom h1 and wired directly into the camera, I ran Magic Lantern on my 60d to help monitor and adjust the audio. I used this shock mount I had bought off amazon a few years ago to try minimize the amount of sound that would enter into the mic from camera movement; it worked really really well. In the future I want to spend more time EQ’ing the audio in post, but for this piece I just boosted the gain for most of the shots and then left them as is.

You Should Edit Your Footage as Soon as Possible

The piece was cut in premiere-pro right after shooting it. It is a joy cutting the material fresh after shooting it, I find it saves a lot of time as I am really familiar with what was shot and can usually remember which takes were good, and which ones are bad. I then sat on it for a day or two.

When I came back I began to cut even more aggressively. I wanted to cut anything that wasn't well shot. Deciding not to include any shot just for coverage sake. In this second pass I got the edit down from 6 minutes to 2:30! I also spent a half hour or so 3d compositing my tree logo into one of my slider shots. I wanted a simple intro with no text. The desire was to communicate my brand, but not in an obtrusive and in your face type of way.

The next couple days when there was time I continued to fine tune the edit and focus in on the details. In this piece I added Warp Stabilizer to about 80% of the shots. Setting it at about 12–22% and let it just do micro adjustments. This really helped make my smooth slider movements even smoother. Lots of my slider shots had focus pulls during the slider moves. This worked well, but I would occasionally wiggle or bump a little, warp stabilizer helped get rid of all of this.

Grading the Film in Lightroom

In this video I tried something I had never done before. After the edit was done, I imported all of my footage into Lightroom and applied a preset I had made based on one of the VSCO presets I bought. I love the look of these presets and I wanted to try it out on this piece. I made small white balance and exposure adjustments and then exported all the clips to a new folder. After I exported all the clips I re-linked the media in premiere to this new folder and now all my footage had the grade I had made in Lightroom.

Some of the other finishing touches I added was film grain, and a 1920x808 aspect ratio. I shot the piece framing for cinescope and so I felt that this aspect ratio really helped give the piece a solid feel.

All in all I was pretty stoked with how the piece turned out. It definitely has the best camera movement for any biking piece I have shot. I grew from making this piece and I am really excited for what I am going to make next! If you have any questions feel free to get in touch with me through the contact form and I would love to answer them! Join the Leftcoast Collective and gain exclusive access to all of the content I create.

UPDATE: Full Behind the Scenes Video Released

https://youtu.be/FswOFko8cx4

If you want to follow more BTS content, join the Leftcoast Collective or subscribe on YouTube

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MENTIONS: Huge shout out and thank you to Jeremy Fehr for taking all the BTS photos. You can find his instagram here.

The Story Behind My Film, Adventures Sailing Tall Ships

I love it when the creative process flows naturally out of human experience and community with others. Three years ago I shot a short film about a sailing trip I went on.

I had no plan right from the start, no agenda, simply living adventure and going from there.

The trip was this crazy opportunity to sail for 5 days with some of my closest friends aboard the Pacific Grace, a 138’ gaff rigged schooner run by a sail training organization called SALTS. My inspiration to capture our experience first came from walking down the dock towards the boat, I was walking with my buddy at the time and I knew this was one of those trips that I should start filming. I stopped on the dock while pulling out my camera and just started filming what was happening. “Where are we and what are we doing?” I asked my friend with excitement. Everything just unfolded from there.

You can view more of my films on Vimeo

I Fell in Love With Sailing

I love this film. Not because it is perfect, not because the story is fantastic, but purely because of the memories that go alone with the adventure. I am so thankful to have moments of it captured and now I can experience it again and again. In this post I wanted to share a bit of the story behind the piece and maybe shed a little more light on the project.

Working Within Limitations

I initially thought I had a lot of limitations with this project. It was challenging get any angles showing the larger perspective of the boat as it sailed through the water. Yet even though there were challenges, like breaking one of my main lenses on the trip, I have learned to love limitations because it forces you to adapt and overcome—initially what is seemingly a disadvantage, under the right light can work out to be your greatest advantage.

As our trip progressed I loved the movement of everyone working as a team to operate this whole boat. Every person on board working in unison under the guidance of the skipper to raise and handle sails. The collision of human hands working the skillfully crafted rigging of the ship was fascinating. Every nook of the boat, every rope, every sail, every time we hauled and lowered, all a fascinating movement of hands and boat.

 You Grow By Doing

This is another one of my films that once I was done, I wished there was many things I had done better. This can be frustrating at times, you create something you care about, only to wish the results could have been better. However I never would have found out those things I wish I had done better if I had not attempted to make something at all. If I want to keep improving I am going to have to keep making things and that is that.

My level of production is reaching a point that I am becoming satisfied with, but I know I have a long way to go with storytelling. I want to make videos that captivate people, and I know I have a lot yet to learn.

Something Much More Beautiful Than a Boat

At the beginning what I had thought most fascinating was the boat we were sailing on, yet when it came time for our trip to disembark I knew something much greater had been happening through the community aboard. The beautiful unison and harmony of a team of people working together, working for a common goal on this journey together.

Shared experience are a powerful thing and there is something priceless about memories you shared with others that you will take with you for a life time.

Should I be filming or living in the moment?

One of the challenges I faced was the balance between capturing and just living in the moment. Should I capture this or just experience it. There were many moments that we experienced together when no camera was rolling, and no pictures were taken. The moment came and went, and is now just for us to experience in our memories.

The Beauty When Something Connects

When I was finished the project I wasn’t even sure what I was going to do with it. I ended up releasing it online and sharing with some who i knew loved sailing. So many others who had fallen in love with sailing were moved by the piece and messages of poured in. Sharing of the times they went sailing, and the many days they had spent at sea with friends.

A story about a bunch of friends going sailing brought some to tears.

How is a response like this possible I wondered? I didn’t do a very good job telling an inspiring story, yet somehow it connected with people. The response to the film moved me greatly as an aspiring filmmaker. As a teenager I realized maybe there is value in sharing my voice. Drawing others into the world in the way that I see it, sharing stories that I love and desire to capture. This film and especially the response to it, has impacted the rest of my life as a creative, as someone who makes things.

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The Making of a Timelapse Film - Beautiful British Columbia

Beautiful British Columbia

British Columbia is my favourite place on earth. There is something about the amazing combination of beautiful snow capped mountains, unreal coastal landscapes, and acres of lush forest that leave me in awe through every adventure in the BC mountains.

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Four years ago I started shooting a project that to this day remains one of my absolute favourites. I want to share about that film today, from beginning to end and everything in between.

This project was monumental for me as a growing filmmaker. I realized that it was okay to be an aspiring storyteller and have some of my best work come later. That was the best realization I have ever had, it gave me the freedom to create from where my skills were at, knowing that my work will continue to improve as I create lots of stuff.

Levi Allen shooting with his Canon T2i

I will never forget starting to take those first few timelapses.

• “Do I set the interval to 2 seconds or 5 seconds?
• How many pictures do I actually need to make it look good?
• Where do I point the camera?
• What will this look like sped up?”

These and more, were all questions I had in my head as I began the adventure of shooting my first timelapses. I had no idea what I was doing, and that was the best part. Complete permission to just have fun and create stuff in response the the place I call my home.

I will never forget that morning after taking my first timelapses of the stars. I picked up my camera from its tripod like a nervous yet excited child, hit the preview button and began to flip through some pictures. Needless to say the level of stoke was incredibly high. I stared at frame after fame of the milky way galaxy slowly climbing over the northern western mountains, I captured it completely on accident, but I completely loved it. I had taped a rock to the cameras trigger as a make shift intravelometer and had just pointed it in a direction and hoped for the best.

A random assortment of the gear I used on the shoot

THE GEAR

My setup for shooting this film was pretty simple. I had a sketch tripod and I was off to the races.

• Modified Flycam Nano ( I extended the middle column so it could hold more weight • Canon t2i (still an excellent very useable camera) • Rokinon 35mm f1.4 lens (one of my favourite lenses) • Borrowed sigma 10–20mm (I wouldn't recommend purchasing this, I've upgraded to the tokina 11-16) • Manfrotto Monopod (MVM500A) (absolute favourite tool for run and gun shooting)

My favourite tool on this piece was the manfrotto Monopod

MY FAVOURITE TOOL

I experimented a lot on this piece and I wanted to try create something that was visually pleasing and inspiring. The mono pod proved to be one of my greatest assets. I used it constantly on this film. I would step on it with one foot and slowly move the camera forward. This was great for getting simulated slider shots, throw a little warp stabilizer on, and you are good to go.

Manfrotto MVM500A Aluminum Fluid Monopod with 500 Head (Black)

IMG_8989_Malibu_Possible-Duplicate_Archive_2012

WHERE IS THE STORY?

This is probably the most fundamental challenge I ran into with this project. Where is the story? I got into filmmaking because I loved those films that really tug at your heart, those films that show you a different way to look at life. I didn’t feel like what I was creating was doing either of those things. It felt like I was just putting together a really beautiful slide show, it felt like it was missing something huge.

I knew this piece wouldn’t be raved about and shared widely

Thats because it was, and still is missing something huge. Regardless I went forward with finishing the project even without a story. I was not going to be able to invent a story for it afterwards, I had missed it while making it. I toyed with the idea of doing a voice over with some inspirational monologue, but I quickly tossed out that idea. I wanted to get it out there and to the world, but I learned a valuable lesson of story and filmmaking with this project. I knew this piece wouldn’t be raved about and shared widely because it lacked that simple but powerful component of what makes something worth watching, the story.

BeautifulBritishColumbiaBehindTheScnese

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POST PRODUCTION

During post production I learned so much. This was definitely one of the most extensive productions I had done so far and every stage of the post had complications. Though with the help of google, and lots of trial and error I managed to pull the film together. I spent over 100 hours editing this project in total and took more than 100,000 stills.

I edited this film on my mid 2012 Mac Book Pro, it only has 8gb of memory, but the i7 intel chip handles things fairly well and is still my main editing machine.

• Premiere Pro
• Adobe After Affects
• Lightroom
• LrTimelapse

LRTimelapse

For the first months of editing I really struggled with getting the look I desired from my timelapses. After some research I discovered the countless timelapse artists were using a tool created to work alongside Lightroom called LRTimelapse. This was a breakthrough for me. Sure, I had to learn a new workflow and piece of software, but this tool really unlocked some editing potential that I really needed to bring my timelapses to life. It had the tools to get rid of the flicker that I so desperately hated.

From now on, all timelapses in RAW

I learned that from now on I wanted to shoot all my timelapse sequences in RAW format. I shot most of the timelapses in this film with jpeg sequences and that really caused my post production to suffer. I couldn’t rescue the shadows as much and white balance was a real challenge at times.

IMG_1416

Growing your skills takes 100’s of hours.

I spent most of my first months shooting running around the rocks with my modified Flycam Nano, exploring through the forests and waiting patiently as my next timelapse was captured. In one tidal wave of passion, I was hooked on nature timelapsing. I continued to shoot different landscapes across the next year and a half, and eventually came to the process of actually editing these things all together into a film that I could share with others.

How do i get better?

In order to grow your timelapsing skills you need to put in the hours. I still see so often that people are wanting their skills to improve at an impractical rate. With this project I spent hundreds of hours running around in the forest with my camera trying to get good glidcam shots. I took over 100,000 stills worth of timelapses learning on how to take them better. I spent countless hours researching how to properly edit timelapses and put together a film. If there are skills you want to improve you are going to have to start deliberately practicing them like you actually mean it.

There was quite the learning curve to figure out how to get these sequences of pictures to look exactly the way I wanted them too. My first cut of the film was actually over 10 minutes! I had to learn to cut things back as much as I could so that I was communicating more with less.

IMG_5051

My biggest take away

[mks_pullquote align="right" width="200" size="15" bg_color="#359848" txt_color="#ffffff"]The motivation behind your films is so important.[/mks_pullquote] My biggest take away from this entire project comes back to story. Story story story. The motivation behind your films is so important. I really wish I had put some effort forward in crafting a narrative that could have taken this film to a whole other level. As it stands it really is just an extensive show real, a nice slide show of sorts, but with a powerful story it really could have had a lot more impact.

BEAUTIFUL BRITISH COLUMBIA

What questions do you have from the making of this project?

Send me an email through my contact form, I would love to hear from you.

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