Workshop 1 - setting up the camera

 Today we had a technical workshop where we were shown the cameras we will be using for our opening sequence and learnt how to set them up and the basics of how to use them. 

The name of the camera we still be using is 'Black magic 4k mini URSA' camera. 

Firstly we took out the tripod and set it up, there are 6 catches to adjust the height of it. We were told that it is better to fully extend the bottom adjustors first as otherwise the tripod would be very top heavy when trying to adjust it. 

You then attach the handle onto the right hand side of the tripod.

To put the camera on it there is a button and a lever to lock it into place. It slides on so you need to be careful that the lock isn't out as there will be a piece of metal blocking the track. 

After the Camera is on the tripod you need to level it (also known as bubbling). You do this by turning the knob on the bottom of the tripod and adjusting the camera until the bubble is in the middle of the spirit level. 

The pan and tilt locks are on the tripod, the tilt one is on the bottom and the pan one is on the left hand side. 

We talked about a rule called the 'mine' and 'yours' rule which is used when passing a camera from one person to another. When you pass it to someone you say 'yours' so the other person knows they now have responsibility over it, and when they feel they are holding it, they say mine. It is to prevent any dropping by misunderstanding who is holding the camera. 

The focus and zoom rings are on the lens, and before you start shooting you should focus the camera by zooming all the way in, focusing on small detail (for example an eye), and then zooming out to the shot. 

We discussed white balance and how we would need to change it depending on being inside or outside. White balance is basically the colour of the light, and the camera doesn't automatically adjust to it so we need to do it.

Another thing we need to adjust is the exposure, which is how bright the picture is. We do this by turning a blue switch on the side up and down.