IN[FOCUS]

With DSLRs, getting the right lenses are an important investment. And naturally, it can get expensive fast! In this video, I dissect how it’s possible to go off the beaten path and purchase some great lenses without breaking the bank. Of course, everyone knows Canon L lenses are the best, but not everyone (including Life Stage w/ 3 teams!) can afford ALL the best. This video breaks down what lenses you might find in our gear bag and WHY we use certain lenses in specific situations. 

I mention…

Tokina 11-16

Canon 100-400L

Sigma 85mm

and the staples such as Canon 24-70L, Canon 70-200L IS and Canon 50mm

Matt Davis

Matt Davis (coaching at lifestagefilms.com) of Life Stage Films has been described as the “head coach of wedding videography,” providing one-on-one business coaching as well as group coaching webinars. A featured speaker at both WEVA 2009-10 and IN[FOCUS] 2010-11, as well as a multiple CEA award winner and 2009-10 EventDV 25 All-Star, he is based in Wilmington, N.C.

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So, there are cinematographers that spend their whole careers mastering the art of taking flawless video in helicopters and airplanes. I, am not one of them. So when I ventured into uncharted territory of using a helicopter to get b-roll for a recent wedding film, I began to research. Sure I could have rented a gyro for quite a chunk of change, but that would have eaten into my profits big time for this wedding, as I didn’t add that cost in (or know about the helicopter) when I booked the wedding. 

The video above is what you might call my “poor man’s guide” to shooting great video in a helicopter with the tools that you already have. Enjoy. And don’t worry, although I did throw up after I got out of the helicopter at this wedding, I refrained from any vomiting during and after the recording of this blog post.  

P.S. Wanna see the end result and how I used it in the film? Check out the blog post here, or view the embedded video below! 

Matt Davis

Matt Davis (coaching at lifestagefilms.com) of Life Stage Films has been described as the “head coach of wedding videography,” providing one-on-one business coaching as well as group coaching webinars. A featured speaker at both WEVA 2009-10 and IN[FOCUS] 2010-11, as well as a multiple CEA award winner and 2009-10 EventDV 25 All-Star, he is based in Wilmington, N.C.

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In this video, I want to share with you all one simple thing we changed in our sales process LAST FALL that allowed us to really shape our 2011 season with the clients that we really wanted to serve. By having our clients do what I suggest in the video, we were able to not only get more quality time with our potential couples, but we were able to get better quality couples, which in turn allowed us to produce better quality films and enjoy our jobs a little bit more.  

I mention ShootQ in this video and how using ShootQ helps me implement this tip A LOT easier. You can learn more about ShootQ for videographers and filmmakers by watching this tutorial I made that shows you a glimpse into my system set up with ShootQ from the back end, so you can have a better idea on if ShootQ is a solution for your business. Watch the video tutorial here. With that said, you DO NOT NEED ShootQ to implement my advice in this video. Enjoy!

Click here to see my tutorial on ShootQ for videographers

Matt Davis

Matt Davis (coaching at lifestagefilms.com) of Life Stage Films has been described as the “head coach of wedding videography,” providing one-on-one business coaching as well as group coaching webinars. A featured speaker at both WEVA 2009-10 and IN[FOCUS] 2010-11, as well as a multiple CEA award winner and 2009-10 EventDV 25 All-Star, he is based in Wilmington, N.C.

More Posts - Website - Twitter