Cinematography

Welcome back to The Cinematographer’s Process – Small Bites Edition!

In Part 1, we explored the creative foundation of pre-production, like understanding the story and setting the tone. Today, we’re diving into the practical side of prep: the on-the-ground steps that help a shoot run smoothly from day one.

Picking up where we left off:

6. Scout Your Locations

Before you shoot, visit each location with your team (especially your assistant director, lighting team, and location manager). While you're there, check:

• Where the sun will be at different times of day

• Where you can safely plug in or hang lights

• If the space is too tight, too dark, or has any surprises

Catching problems early can save a ton of time later.

7. Meet with the Art and Wardrobe Teams

Check in with the people designing sets and costumes to make sure:

• Their color and style choices will look good on camera

• Nothing will cause weird lighting issues (like shiny fabric or patterns that “flicker” on video)

When every department is visually aligned, your footage looks more polished.

8. Create Shot Lists, Diagrams & Lighting Plans

Work with the director to plan your shots, especially those that are emotionally or logistically challenging.

Then sketch out simple lighting diagrams and overhead maps to show where your lights and camera will go. Share this with your crew so everyone knows what to expect on set.

9. Test Your Gear

Once you've picked your camera, lenses, and lights:

• Build your camera rig ahead of time

• Make sure your cards, batteries, and backups are ready

• Label things clearly to avoid mix-ups on the day

For example, our team color codes and coordinates lights and C-Stands and blocks where each light needs to live in a given scene, well ahead of production, so our team members can easily move lights, scene-by-scene. Even on small shoots, a little prep here prevents a lot of stress later.

10. Plan How You'll Back Up Your Footage

Who’s managing your footage? How many memory cards do you have? Where will backups live?

Set up a system before you roll the camera—whether it's a pro DIT or a crew member following a checklist. Losing footage = worst case scenario.

11. Attend Rehearsals (If You Can)

Watching rehearsals or table reads gives you a feel for pacing, blocking, and performance energy.

It helps you prep your coverage and lighting to support the tone of each scene.

12. Wrap Up Pre-Pro with Clear Communication

Before day one, make sure everyone has:

• A copy of your lookbook and shot list

• Confirmed crew schedules and call times

• Notes on any setup or pre-lighting needs

Over-communicate here. A strong start sets the tone for a smooth shoot.

The Bottom Line:

The more you solve in prep, the more creative freedom you’ll have once the cameras roll. Effective communication on Day 1 prevents confusion. Start strong, and the whole team benefits.

Next week, we’ll explore what a DP does on set—how to lead your team, adjust to the unexpected, and keep the shoot visually focused (even when chaos hits). Stay tuned!

If you’ve been watching arthouse films or music videos lately and thought, “What’s that swirling, dreamy bokeh around the edges?” — you’re not alone. That unique visual isn’t a post-production trick. It’s thanks to a nearly 200-year-old lens design: the Petzval lens.

Originally invented in 1840 for portrait photography, this lens was once considered flawed due to its field curvature and optical aberrations. Today? Those so-called flaws have become the reason filmmakers seek it out. The Petzval look is romantic, painterly, and unmistakably analog, combining sharp central focus with a smearing, ethereal periphery that feels almost like a visual memory.

This video breaks down why the Petzval lens has found a new home in modern cinema, how it differs from today’s precision glass, and how you can incorporate it into your own toolkit, even if you’re working on a budget:

Watch here >> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0S-XlvhqLY

Have you used a Petzval or similar lens on any of your shoots? What’s your go-to lens when you want to add a little character to your frame?

Hiya fellow cinematogs, I need some advice. I'm shooting 6k full frame (open gate) Blackmagic raw and uploading to a dirt-side prod-co. Needless to say, the files are humongous. The need for footage is far greater than satellite uplink can handle. I am sending up the camera proxies first but the raw is a requirement. Sure they can start cutting and grading in LA with the proxies, but they need the raw files.

So here's the question: does anyone know how to reduce the file size of *.braw without reducing the colour gamut or losing quality? Someone suggested that I transcode it to ProRes 422 with DaVinci Resolve before uploading. Anyone try that? What were your results? Any other workarounds you've come up with or heard of?

Thanks muchly, my friends.

Welcome back to The Cinematographer’s Process – Small Bites Edition!

Today, we’re starting our journey with a high-level tour of a DP’s role in pre-production, the creative foundation. While these steps apply across nearly all budget levels, this breakdown is especially geared toward indie filmmakers and newer cinematographers who want a clear, actionable starting point, without the overwhelm.

1. Read the Script — Three Times

Every good DP begins here:

• First read: Focus only on the story—what’s the tone, atmosphere, and emotional arc? In cinematography, tone refers to how the film makes the audience feel—whether it is suspenseful, warm, anxious, or comedic. It’s not just the subject matter, but how it’s visually presented.

• Second read: Look for visual moments, lighting challenges, transitions, or camera movement opportunities.

• Third read: Highlight the time of day, key locations, emotional beats, and any technical considerations, such as VFX moments, stunts, or gear needs that may affect coverage or planning.

2. Meet with the Director

Once you’ve made notes, schedule a creative meeting with the director to align on:

• Tone & Theme – What’s the emotional heart of the story?

• Visual References – Share film stills, photography, or paintings that express mood, palette, or texture.

• Language Check – Terms like “gritty” or “elevated” can mean different things to different people—define them together.

• Key Questions – What should this feel like? What should this not look like?

3. Build a Look Reference Package

After that meeting, begin gathering your visual references, such as:

• Color palettes

• Lighting inspiration

• Shot style examples

• Aspect ratio and format decisions

Think of this as your visual blueprint—it helps every department stay aligned, from production design to wardrobe. Use ShotDeck, Milanote, Canva, or Google Slides to create a shareable, cloud-based lookbook.

4. Make Gear Decisions Based on Story Budget

Once the look and feel are finalized, select the gear that best fits your vision and budget. On indie projects, I often shoot with my mirrorless DSLR and my lens kit (16–500mm). Your gear doesn’t have to be expensive—it just needs to serve the story.

Can’t afford a Sony Venice or Alexa? No problem. You can still create beautiful, cinematic images with what you already have.

Make purposeful choices, not trendy ones.

If possible, run lens tests—try different focal lengths and study how they affect emotion, depth, and spatial relationships. These small tests help you plan intentional coverage and stronger composition.

Remember: The gear serves the story, not the other way around.

5. Establish a Color Strategy (LUTs & Tone Arc)

If you’re working with a colorist, bring them in early to help establish:

• Custom LUTs (Look-Up Tables)

• A color arc that supports the story’s emotional progression

For example, a story that begins full of life but grows bleak might start with warm, saturated tones and gradually shift toward cool, desaturated shadows.

No colorist or DIT? That’s okay. You can build your LUTs using available tools, and there are excellent tutorials from creators like Film Riot or CineMatch to guide you through the basics.

Coming Up in Part 2: Practical Prep

Next week, we’ll continue with Part 2 of this pre-production breakdown, diving into the practical planning side—from tech scouts and lighting diagrams to shot lists, data workflows, and final prep before cameras roll.

This week’s Coffee & Content comes with explosions—both onscreen and behind the scenes.

RB shares a wild breakdown from It Was A Sht Show* about the chaos behind Independence Day. This film nearly fell apart due to studio politics, recasting, and VFX nightmares… despite becoming a cultural icon.

But the real lesson? Even blockbusters almost don’t get made—and as indie creators, protecting your projects is everything. RB tackles a great AMA question:

What do you do when a producer adds your project to their slate… but there’s no contract, no payment, and no movement?

RB’s answer is gold: “No payment? No exclusivity.”

When was the last time you shot with film? 8mm, Super 8, 16, 35, 65mm? Can you remember?

I started my career using 16 & 35. I trained on the Arri BL1 and SR series of 16mm cameras, but regretfully, it has been years since I have gone beyond digital to reconnect with my celluloid roots. In the world of indie production, it is often challenging to justify the expense and impact on production, despite the final aesthetic results often being superior to those of most digitally produced films (yes, this is a subjective statement).

If you were allowed to shoot your next project using film... would you?

https://youtu.be/SPOLxZfVB-o

Here’s the Week 2 Blog: “Strategies for Creating Cross-Cultural Films”

https://www.stage32.com/blog/july-filmmakers-club-week-2-strategies-for-...

Week 2 Challenges for Members:

Post in the Filmmaking Lounge: Share what it’s like to create films in your part of the world. Cultural influences, resource gaps, and unique industry norms, what should others know?

Comment on 3 Lounge posts: Choose members from different countries than your own. Ask questions, show support, and learn from each other’s process.

Invite 5 new creatives to Stage 32: Whether they’re producers, crew, or creative peers from other countries, use the Invite System and help them dive into the Lounges!

You can email Success@Stage32.com or Edu@Stage32.com for curated support if you’re feeling stuck or unsure where to start.

My company does a fair amount of ad agency work. Big, small, mid-range production, and sometimes... even free for those long-term clients who need a quick favor. I love the agency work because it's always different, challenging, and on occasion, makes me go... "You want what?"

This latest project was up there in the "You want what?" category. A set of :15 sec and 30 sec spots about donations to charity. The idea was to pack all these spaces in the house with goods you tend to keep but never use. So, why not donate them to someone who will?

We spent about 8 days in pre-pro, and two days with a production designer, buying and staging each set up (time well-spent). But that isn't the "You want what?" part.

What made me tilt my head and say "come again" was when the client said they wanted each scene to look "romantic." Now, don't get me wrong. This client is a seasoned television pro. They have done this for years, and I place them in high regard. But... when I first read the brief, I was thinking "How in the hell do I make a bunch of junk look romantic?" It's tougher than it sounds.

To tackle this problem, I realized that the first step was to reframe my thinking. The spots weren't focused on "junk." I was tasked with highlighting personal treasures. Things that are attached to memories, and fun! I know it sounds weird, but as soon as I redirected how I was thinking about the subject of each frame, I was able to see the frame in a different way. Suddenly, the lighting schematic became clear, and I knew how to work with my gaffer to achieve the desired results.

The day came off without a hitch, and by the time the director said "That's a wrap!" the client was thrilled with how everything looked. That's all great, I love a happy client. What I appreciate just as much is the reminder that, for me, every scene has an emotion attached to it. Be it a big feature with actors pouring their everything into a believable performance, or a house full of old sports equipment, furniture, and stuffed toys, part of my job is to make a believable connection between what is in front of my lens and the eyeballs that see it once it hits the screen.

So, how do you think about your subjects? Do you see the emotion? Do you prefer to just see the technical challenge? There's no right or wrong. I just wanna know.

I'm going through raw footage, disposing of anything unusable. And it's an interesting exercise in learning what not to do. For instance, I'm cringing at shots I've taken with a zoom lens. Pretty much all of those shots where I seem to think it was a good idea to zoom during the take, I am deleting. I think what I've learned is that simply having a zoom lens does not mean one has to use it. I am also learning that when I'm shooting action, I really ought to set the ISO high so I can close the iris and have more stuff in focus.

These lessons seem rather basic, I'm sure, but when the camera is in your hands and the action is taking place it's easy to forget. Anybody want to share lessons they learned about what not to do? I would sure find that helpful.

Welcome to the July Filmmakers Club, team!

Ready to light up your July slate? Check out the blog that kicks off the 2025, July Filmmakers Club with a goal-setting jump-start—complete with weekly challenges, community accountability, and giveaways—all designed to move your indie projects from wish-list to “in the can.” From finishing a script draft to locking a festival plan, this first week is about nailing one clear, practical objective and sharing it in the Lounge so we can cheer (and push) each other forward. Dive into the post, drop your goal, and comment on three fellow filmmakers’ threads to snag a shot at a free Stage 32 Pitch Session—then let’s keep the momentum rolling together:

https://www.stage32.com/blog/july-filmmakers-club-week-1-setting-your-in...

Hi cinematographers!

I came across this article and I thought I would pull an RB and share this with you. Would love to hear your thoughts/impressions. I for one, would never have guessed it was done on a soundstage.