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Jan
24
In November, Matt and I had the pleasure of photographing New Zealand musician – Lydia Cole – for her new EP “Love Will Find a Way”. Not only did we fall in love with Lydia, we fell in love with her beautiful music.
Now that Lydia’s EP has been officially released – we can share the [...]
Jan
14
A couple of days before he was scheduled to shoot Ben and Sally’s wedding, my good mate and photographer James Day received his new 5D Mark II. Katie and I were in Armidale with him at the time and helped James test out the camera during Samuel and Olivia’s engagement shoot.
To cut a long story short, on Thursday the 8th, Katie and I drove the 4.5 hours back to our home in Toowoomba. That night I chatted to James and he suggested that I shoot Ben and Sally’s wedding with the 5D Mark II. He’d actually suggested it while we were in Armidale but for some reason I didn’t really think about it. Silly me.
So, on the 9th (day before the wedding) I jumped in my car for a 12 hour round-trip to Coffs Harbour, NSW in an attempt to be (one of) the first in Australia to shoot a wedding video using only the 5D Mark II.
James and I picked up some ND filters on the way to the wedding and I basically learned how to use the camera as I shot the groom (Ben) getting ready. Unfortunately the ND filters weren’t the correct thread size so I resorted to blu-tacking the filters to the lens. Watching MacGyver every Friday night during my teens paid off.
To say this camera has totally blown me away is a huge understatement. It’s not without its issues but working around them isn’t too difficult. I was so impressed that I ordered one today.
Onto the video. I’m not sure if I am the first in Australia to do this, but I’m definitely the first person in Shadowplay to do it ;)
Please leave a comment with your thoughts!
Ben and Sally – a 5D Mark II wedding – HD from Matt E on Vimeo.
Jan
12
For the uninitiated, the Canon 5D Mark II is one of the first DSLR cameras on the market that also shoots high definition video. The introduction of this camera (and the Nikon D90) certainly presents some interesting challenges and unique opportunities for photographers and videographers alike.
There are a few examples on the net showcasing the awesome video potential of the Canon 5D Mark II.
These examples are certainly impressive, that’s for sure. The issue that I have with them is that they seem to have been shot by a team of people, in a controlled environment with gorgeous models, over an extended period of time – i.e. 48 hours – and then edited using high end computers and software.
Now, that’s all well and good. But what about how it performs in the hands of a photographer on a real shoot with a real couple – shooting both stills and video at the same time – and then edited on a laptop using free software.
Enter James Day and his newly purchased Canon 5D Mark II.
Katie and I were in Armidale visiting with James the day he received the camera. It arrived about 30 minutes before his scheduled engagement shoot with Samuel and Olivia. I had a quick play with the 5D, showed James a couple of things and then it was time for the shoot. Katie and I tagged along to 2nd shoot.
After the shoot I edited James’ footage using my Macbook Pro and iMovie HD – software that comes free with most Apple computers.
To say we were blown away with the end result would be an understatement. Check out the video and please leave a comment with your thoughts. Head over to James Day’s blog to read about his experience.
Special thanks to Lydia Cole for giving us permission to use her music in the video. Lydia’s new EP has just been released – Katie and I did the album photography! We’ll blog some of the photos soon!
We’re thinking of offering some form of one-on-one tutoring for photographers interested in learning the ins and outs of the 5D’s video mode, editing the footage with iMovie, adding video to your business etc … If you’re a photographer and you are interested in this please e-mail us or leave a comment.
Ok, with all of that out of the way, here’s the video:
Samuel and Olivia – eShoot – 5D Mark II – HD from Matt E on Vimeo.
Stay tuned later in the week something even more amazing … a wedding video shot and edited by me (Matt) using only the Canon 5D Mark II.
Here are some of Katie’s photos from the shoot:
Jan
8
Shadowplay + James Day – What did we do?
To be released Monday 12.01.09….
Stay tuned!
