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Art is the imitation of life. Humans have strived to emulate nature’s working wonders through technology. One of the most perfect examples is the video camera’s ability to capture waves of light in order for these to be translated into images, like the eye.

During the fourth independent filmmaking discussion meeting, the members become familiar with Cinematography/Videography by getting to understand the principles that make the craft work.

The Sony VX2000 digital film camera was introduced as the model. This second generation 3CCD professional film camera has been used in many independent film productions both locally and worldwide. This camera is presently the “main cannon” of the SineBuano group’s arsenal in filmmaking.

While presenting the Sony VX2000’s general features, the following aspects of cinematography was also introduced:

(A lot of these terms were passed on from photography, a craft which is predecessor to cinematography/videography)

• Charge Coupled Device (CCD) : An integrated circuit light sensor that absorbs light and translate it to images. The heart of every modern camcorder.

• Exposure: The total amount of light allowed to fall on the camera’s image sensor.

• Shutter speed: Length of time a camera’s shutter is open/exposed; the total exposure is proportional to this time, or duration of light reaching the image sensor. (There is no shutter in the digital camera but this function/setting serves a purpose). The Sony VX2000 shutter speed range is 1/60sec min. to 1/10000 max.

• Scene luminance: The natural density of light present in the scene from a certain angle or emitted through a certain direction. It can also be the monochrome portion of a video signal.

• Depth of field (DOF) : A portion of a scene that appears sharp in the image.

• Focus: In most digital camcorders, there is an auto focus system which determines the subject of the shot and focuses only on that subject. Factors that can affect the accuracy is luminance. There is a manual override that allow adjustment of focus by hand.

• White Balance: a camera function which determines how much RED, GREEN and BLUE being emitted in a particular scene/location is needed to acquire a regular WHITE.

The Sony VX2000 has an automatic white balance function but it is required to point its lens while recording or in stand by mode at a clean white object (such a thick white board or paper) when there’s a change in lighting conditions to maintain a correct white balance adjustment.

• Zoom: the variance in focal length, allowing any subject to appear nearer or farther away. Most digital camcorders possess both optical and digital zoom capabilities.

Optical zoom occurs when the focal length of the camera’s lens are changed. Through such, 10 to 20 times the magnification of a certain subject can be achieved. For the Sony VX2000, its optical zoom is 12x.

Digital Zoom magnifies subject images by increasing the number of pixels for each point in an image. Digital zoom can range from 30, 300 times the magnification and trends are gearing up to even higher magnification.

General Characteristics of the Sony DCR-VX2000

• Width:4.5 in
  Depth:13.5 in
  Height:5.7 in
  Weight:3.1 lbs
  Audio input: built in stereo microphone, electret condenser
  Lens System Type : Zoom lens - 6 mm - 72 mm - F/1.6-2.4
  Focal Length: 6 mm - 72 mm
  Lens Aperture: F/1.6-2.4
  Full Range Auto Focus: Yes
  Optical Zoom: 12 x
  Min focal length : 6 mm
  Max focal length : 72 mm
  Auto Focus: TTL contrast detection
  Features : Aspherical lens, Built-in 1/4 neutral density filter, Built-in 1/32 neutral density filter
  Filter Size: 58 mm
  Focus Adjustment : Manual, Automatic
  Zoom Adjustment : Manual, Motorized drive
  Digital Zoom : 48 x
  Optical Sensor Size : 1/3 in
  Optical Sensor Type: 3CCD
  Min Illumination: 2 lux
  Special Effects: Slim, Sepia, Still, Trail, Stretch, Monotone, Old Movie, Flash Motion, Negative Art, Solarization, Black & White, Luminance Key
  Image Stabilizer: Optical
  Video Head Quantity: 2
  PCM Digital Sound: 16bit (48KHz / 2 channels), 12bit (32KHz / 4 channels simultaneously)
  Digital Scene Transition: Random, Black fader, Overlap fader, Monotone fader
  Min Shutter Speed: 1/60 sec, Max Shutter Speed: 1/10000 sec
  Camcorder Slow Shutter Modes: 1/4sec, 1/8sec, 1/15sec, 1/30sec
  Shooting Modes: Normal movie mode, Digital photo mode
  Shooting Programs: Night mode, Lesson mode, Sports mode, Sunset & moon, Shutter-priority, Aperture-priority
  White Balance: Presets, Automatic
  White Balance Presets: Indoor, Outdoor
  Exposure Modes: Manual, Program, Automatic

Next meeting, basic and advanced rules and techniques in cinematography/videography such as framing a shot, 180 rule, rule of three, proper handling and panning of the camera,image stabilization, chrominance level adjustment to get a desired effect will be discussed.

Prepared by DM Judilla. This article is a part of an ongoing series of discussions on aspects of independent filmmaking based on the education, experience and expertise of SineBuano and its members.