Tag: film

100w LED Studio Flood Light with 18x Fresnel Spot Lens

Posted on by Ogo Eze

The 100w LED studio flood light with 18x fresnel spot lens is an effective tool in providing both film and photographic solutions. This light gives you full control over its brightness level, flood and spot focus through its digital control panel and adjustable (rotating) lens. This light also comes with a diffusion dome to produce a broader flood light effect. It is power efficient, with a power consumption rate of a 100 watt, and it emits a colour temperature of 56ook daylight. This Light can be mount on any Bowens’ mount and works with Bowen’s accessories. You also get free shipping on this item anywhere in Canada.

 

Nanguang Canada LED Flex Panel Kit

Posted on by Matt Lagrosa

Flex LED’s are arguably the most versatile and durable lights on any set in today’s ever evolving age of filmmaking. Having the flexibility (no pun intended) to place these small but powerful light sources virtually anywhere, is such an amazing asset to have. With our Nanguang Canada LED Flex Panel Kit, you’ll be getting an amazing quality light, that’s long lasting, powerful, versatile, and unbelievably portable.

Inside of the carrying case, you’ll find: 2 Bi-Colour LED Panels, 2 Frames, 2 diffusion sheets, 2 black backing sheets, 1 ballast with v mount battery adapter, 1 AC power cable, ,1 NP series adapter, and a light stand. This incredible deal is a no brainer if you’re in the market for a flexible bi-colour LED panel kit.

The lights are incredibly powerful, and have a great output. At a reasonable power consumption of about 57.6 watts, having the ability to run off a battery for a decent amount of time, is definitely a nice luxury to have. A CRI value of 95 will ensure that the quality of light is sufficient for all types of shoots, and scenarios. The diffusion sheets and ability to dim really give you a great soft light option. Also, it’s worth pointing out that the lights are waterproof, so if you’re someone who’d be working in those conditions, that is good news for you.

For a complete overview of our Nanguang Canada LED Flex Panel Kit, please check out the video below!!

Nanguang Canada – 2 Bi-Colour LED Flex Panel Kit

 

 

CGI

Posted on by Big City

CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) in film has been used for decades in the film industry. It started getting to the point of realism in the early 2000s. From large space battles to generating an entire person – it can get a little bit crazy. CGI is a good thing in general. It can add on and enhance film a lot. Nowadays most films can have a large portion of the film completely computer generated. A lot of the films we see today follow that trend. Sometimes actors are only needed for an in-studio shoot for a couple of days, then the rest of the film will be completed on computers for the next couple of months.

 

Sometimes studio can over do CGI to the point where it is almost confusing to the viewers. CGI can sometimes take over 90% of the shot with the actor’s faces added onto a generated body. We’ve advanced a lot with how CGI looks and feels but its not always going to be perfect. Back then, lousy CGI was considered the norm as it was a brand new tool being used and hasn’t been mastered completely. Studios would often use a large amount of their budget on set design and costumes to help replicate what CGI cannot. A good example is The Lord of The Rings film series which were produced in the 2000s during the sprawl of CGI. A lot of the film was done in CGI with large amounts of detail and large scale environments. Although a large amount of the film series was done with CGI they still kept practical and smart ideas with them. For example, some characters in the film are supposed to be around 3 feet tall while the actors are above 5 feet. The directors and set co-ordinators made two separate sets and filmed each different actor in their corresponding set based on height. Once both sides were filmed, they were combined together into one shot. This is a good example of how filmmakers can still use practical and creative ideas to enhance the film without using too many effects.

 

Sometimes little is a lot and thats what some films excel in with the usage of CGI. A one on one conversation sometimes doesn’t need a lot of visual effects to make it a spectacular shot. Although recent films have made that statement a little less true. ———- Some films do not follow that suit, they may have a focused shot on a conversation with too many background events happening. Visually the eye can focus only on so much, having all these background details can be disorientating for viewers and can leave a negative impact on the mind. Simplicity can sometimes be better for the eyes. A gunfight with multiple explosions and things swinging by might be too disorientating. This can be great for post-editing as it allows the team to focus on key details than leaving some out. An example of simple filmmaking in action movies is the John Wick series. In the films, most of the action scenes were recorded with one camera in a smooth and slow pan effect. The video below shows the difference in filmmaking between two action movies.

 

 

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The GoPro Hero5

Posted on by Carlos Jochico

As technology becomes much more advanced every year, it helps companies such as Go Pro to create better action cameras.

Introducing, the Go Pro Hero 5, with it’s release on early October 2016. The Go Pro Hero 5 is a much more improved upgrade comparing to it’s older model, the Go Pro Hero 4. With a similar model to the Hero 4, The Hero 5 has much more features to offer.

First, let’s compare the Hero 4 Black to the Hero 5 Black.

Action Camera, Blog, Camera, Canada, film, go pro, GoPro, gopro hero, GoPro Hero 4, GoPro Hero 5, photo, photographic, photography, technology, Toronto, video

The Hero 5 has it’s own waterproof casing, meaning you don’t need to buy an extra case and it comes with a little more reinforcement. This means, with both cameras naked, the Hero 5 is quite bigger comparing to the Hero 4 without the waterproof case. The waterproof housing can allow the Hero 5 to be submerged unto 33 feet underwater, and can protect the camera against dust and sand. But comparing to the old waterproof case on the Hero 4 (which can go up to 131 feet) it’s relatively better. If you are planning on going below 33 feet with your Hero 5, then you can purchase a “Super Suit Housing” for your Hero 5. This also means that the Hero 5 will weigh a little bit more than the Hero 4 without the waterproof casing:
Hero 5: 4.2 oz (118 grams)

Hero 4 (without case): 3.1 oz (87 grams)

Hero 4 (with case): 5.3 oz (150 grams)

But what makes the Hero 5 a major improvement, is it’s new built in LCD touch screen display. But comparing it to the Hero 4 Silver (which also had an LCD display) the Hero 5 has a much more sharper, brighter and easier display. Also, as it is waterproof without a case, you don’t have that back door panel, which makes it more responsive. This makes it much better when trying to control and adjust your camera’s settings.

The way to control the two cameras are still roughly the same, with three customizable buttons and an LED display in-front (which was improved on the newer model), but now on the Hero 5, you also have a voice activation feature which can be very helpful depending on what you are doing. So if both your hands are occupied, with the voice activation feature of the Hero 5, you can say simple commands such as: “GoPro start recording” or “GoPro take a photo” to control you camera. There is also a waterproof remote that you can purchase to control your camera from a far distance.

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The Hero 5 has also a much more improved video shooting features compared to the Hero 4 Black, even though both can record 4K at 30 fps, 1080p at 120 fps and 720p at 240 fps, the Hero 5 won’t eat up all that memory card space compared to the Hero 4. Also with it’s new video stabilization feature, which can reduce the shakiness of your video. It also comes with more linear FOV, which removes the fish-eyed view of the camera. Both shoot in NTSC or PAL formats and both produce H.264 MP4 videos.

The Hero5 also adds three new options that can be useful:

  • manual exposure where you can set the shutter speed
  • a raw audio track option which creates a higher-quality WAV file
  • an auto mode option that lets you put it in a mode that reduces the effects of wind noise

Both models have an image size of 12MP (4000 x 3000 pixels) and can take similar images, but the Hero 5 can produce much more clearer images and can be seen when viewed at 100%. The Hero 5 comes with HDR, GoPro calls it WDR for Wide Dynamic Range and it aims to capture extra details in shadows and highlights. Another thing is; RAW image format. Shooting in RAW mode have pros and cons. The main reason why, is for the for better image quality. The downside of shooting in the GoPro’s RAW format is that the images need to process and convert to JPG before sharing.

Like the older models, the Hero 5 has the ability to take time lapse of images and video. The first is old way of shooting a sequence of images, downloading those images from the memory card, and bringing them together on your computer using a separate software. Like previous models, the available intervals are 0.5, 1, 2, 5, 10, 30, and 60 seconds. You can also have the camera compile the video to create a time-lapse video. The new model adds a new option, and it’s a lower resolution which is 1080p. The reason for this, is it has been added is to make it easier to share the time-lapse video without dealing with the massive files from 2.7K or 4K video. With the smaller 1080p video it’s much quicker to take the footage from your camera, to your phone then upload straight to social media.

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The Hero 5 can also take external microphones, but  unlike the old model you’ll need the new USB-C mic adapter.

The battery life on the Hero 5 has improved and is using a higher capacity battery at (1220mAh vs. 1160mAh). With the new USB-C  port, the Hero 5 allows fast charging. There is a slight problem though, the new USB-C port isn’t USB 3.0 it still uses a USB 2.0 for data transferring. Which means, you can’t have that fast transferring speed. If you’re using an external microphone, you’ll need a new mic adapter. It also has a micro HDMI (Type D) socket to connect to a TV or display device.

There are a bunch of things that have also been tweaked and improved, which are:

It automatically detects which way is up.

You can turn off the LEDs selectively.

The longest auto-off setting is now 15 minutes rather than 5 minutes.

In the end, the GoPro Hero 5 can do what the previous models can do, but with a lot  more features and higher quality camera. As for now, the Hero 5 is still very limited to new accessories, unlike the Hero 4. Overtime though, that will change because of how advanced technology can become.

If you’re looking to buy a GoPro Hero 5, you can find them at various different websites and stores such as Amazon, Sport Chek, Best Buy etc.  with a price of: $530.00 CAD

– Carlos Jochico, Big City Lights

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Make your own steadycam rig

Posted on by Big City

This video from Miguel Vicente show you how to make your own steadycam from standard hardware parts. looks fairly simple for those who are mechanically inclined.

For the rest of us who aren’t you can always rent a glidecam 1000 HERE

 

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Detail of home steady cam

 

Don’t want to make your own?  You can also RENT our dolly track system.
Big City Lights offers affordable lights and lighting for parties party events stage dolly track system Projector rent custom RGB LED DMX par fresnel laser rental film, video, tv, and photography.  RGBA as well. We carry LED and Flo lighting including ring lights and light banks and light panels.  We sell in Canada and the USA, with locations in Calgary and Toronto, but we ship to Montreal, Vancouver, Halifax, Ottawa, Hamilton, Edmonton, St. Johns, Regina, Victoria, Winnipeg and more.

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HTC’s RE camera re-thinks camera technology

Posted on by Big City

HTC revealed its ‘handy’ new  camera today, which is expected to release next month in the U.S, U.K and Canada. The periscope like camera is 9.7 centimeters tall, with a weight of only 66.5 grams. Said to be a competitor to GoPro, the RE cameras target audience of the everyday photographer looking for an easy way to capture the right image.

HTC’s unique design allows for a one hand operation of the device film, htc, photo, photographic, photography, resolution

The tiny titan comes with grip sensor technology which instantly turns on the device when picked up, which makes it convenient for HTC’s on the go customers. It comes with 1080p resolution, with 30 fps in FHD, and 720p 120fps slow motion. It also comes with a time lapse function, which is controllable via. smartphone.  It is iOS compatible, making it seamlessly integrate with your Android and iPhone’s photo gallery, making it have easy access to view all your photos and videos. It is also waterproof, making your underwater adventures even better, and helping you get a longer and better time lapse video even when it is raining.

I believe that the RE camera is a really unique and interesting hands on camera, however i am curious to see whether the resolution really steps up to its expectations. When its released, I am sure that I will check it out!

film, panoramic, photo, photographic, photography, technology

Panono On the Ball With New Panoramic Camera

Posted on by Big City

Camera company Panono released its new design today for their unique panoramic camera which will be available in spring 2015. The company and idea started in 2011 with the help of fundraising website indiego, where they raised over 1.25 million dollars from backers and companies. The camera works by tossing it into the air as high as you want, and with high tech sensors, it is able to sense when the ball is at the maximum height, and snaps the 360×360 photo.

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The ball shaped camera has 36 fixed focus cameras that are triggered at the maximum height of your throw and instantly catches a 360 degree picture. Resolution on the camera is quite impressive, with 108 megapixels being the final resolution, it knocks the iPhone 6 plus out of the park by being 13.5 times more powerful. The camera weighs only 440 grams, and has a diemeter of 11cm’s, making it convenient for on the go photography and how high you can than throw it! It connects to any Android or Apple device, Android 4 and iOS7+, using their free app which  makes it easy to view and upload your pictures. You can store up to 400 pictures on the device, and you can also take still photos when you need a more precise shot.

The camera looks like a great new invention for the world of photography, and I will definitely  be eager to try it out when it comes out next year for $549 USD.

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Kodak Sets New Standards With SP360 Action Camera

Posted on by Big City

Kodak recently released their most advanced and versatile action camera yet: the SP360 Action Camera. Kodak announced the camera on Oct. 28th 2014 in L.A, and was later released on Nov.3rd 2014 starting at $349. Whats incredibly cool about this camera is the fact that it has a 360 degree viewing range, meaning that the camera can literally see everything around it. The camera comes with 6 different camera angles to shoot from: front, ring, dome, front 180 rear 180, 360 panorama and globe. The camera can either shoot these modes in still photo or 1080 video. It also comes with burst shot for still photos and time lapse video.

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The camera comes with a durable case that is shock, water and dust proof

The camera features a wide load of impressive features, including a 16 Mega pixel  MO sensor, which is double the power of the GoPro Hero 4, making the quality of the photos and videos outstanding. It comes with full HD 1080p video, and 10 fps still photo, making it that much easier to capture the perfect shot. The camera is Wi-Fi accessible, and can be controlled wirelessly with iOS or Android devices on the mobile app. The camera only weighs a mere 103 grams, while the GoPro 4 weighs 73 grams, so there is barely any difference in weight (30 grams).

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Globe mode for still photo and video

This camera looks  like the best action camera released this year, with complex and revolutionary features, there are endless possibilities on the creativity the Kodak could make on what you are shooting. I would definitely spend $349 for this camera, because it looks like a huge game changer to the first person action camera industry, and I would like to own a piece of history!

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front 180 back 180 for still photo and video