6 ms·

This is incredible. Normally just one or two of these techniques would represent a pretty impressive feat. This used 3d printing, freelensing, pixelstick lightw

This is incredible. Normally just one or two of these techniques would represent a pretty impressive feat. This used 3d printing, freelensing, pixelstick lightwriting, and a custom bokeh cutout -- in addition to the cool, but more common helicopter shots, timelapse, tilt-shift, and steady cam work. Being willing to (or maybe having the budget to) use all these techniques AND getting a consistent result is SUPER impressive.

fragmede 12y ago
> cool, but more common helicopter shots, I'm glad they pointed out that a similar shot could have been done via drone. I've been told that drones have made cool aerial sequences available to directors who don't have the budget of SNL's 40th though I'd be interested in learning more.
- mikraft 12y ago
  My company uses a drone to "scope" land before we build. My first reaction to seeing the video is that we wasted money on a helicopter ride for a 30 sec clip.
- bennesvig 12y ago
  A DJI Phantom 2 with the Zenmuse H3-3D and a GoPro 3+ or 4 can take amazingly smooth and high quality footage (example - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRC-8pCCCys https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRC-8pCCCys ). There are also drones that can fly with DSLRs.
- dlgeek 12y ago
  He mentioned this in the article: "There are a lot of ways to shoot aerial footage these days; we could fly a DJI Phantom with a GoPro, mount a Dragon to a Freefly Cinestar drone, handhold a MoVI out an open chopper door…or we could just hire the best aerial pilot in New York – Al Cerullo – which is what we did."
- thrownaway2424 12y ago
  Photographers were using RC helicopters long before multicopter thingies that people like to call drones for some reason became trendy. These are still around and they have the lift capacity to hoist your 5D or your Red Epic on a pan/tilt rig, unlike most multicopters that can hardly lift a go pro.
  - raverbashing 12y ago
    That's the issue, this equipment is heavy! Sure, digital is usually "lighter" but get a DSLR in your hands and you see that even that is not something any drone can carry
- dsl 12y ago
  Commercial use of drones is generally illegal. If you want to use it for TV or film production, you have to contract with one of six FAA blessed companies. http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=17194 http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId... The MPAA is actually doing a lot of good work to help free up restrictive laws on drone use.
- masklinn 12y ago
  OK Go's "I Won't Let You Go" was filmed entirely using a drone. And as they are wont to do, as a single take.
foomoo 12y ago
Thanks for the hint, eventually i stumbled upon the note about Pixelstick in the article, never heard of it before. They had a successful Kickstarter last year, the video briefly introduces the tech and shows many more applications: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bitbangerlabs/pixelstick-light-painting-evolved https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bitbangerlabs/pixelstic... Now I want one!

fragmede 12y ago

> cool, but more common helicopter shots, I'm glad they pointed out that a similar shot could have been done via drone. I've been told that drones have made cool aerial sequences available to directors who don't have the budget of SNL's 40th though I'd be interested in learning more.

mikraft 12y ago
My company uses a drone to "scope" land before we build. My first reaction to seeing the video is that we wasted money on a helicopter ride for a 30 sec clip.
bennesvig 12y ago
A DJI Phantom 2 with the Zenmuse H3-3D and a GoPro 3+ or 4 can take amazingly smooth and high quality footage (example - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRC-8pCCCys https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRC-8pCCCys ). There are also drones that can fly with DSLRs.
dlgeek 12y ago
He mentioned this in the article: "There are a lot of ways to shoot aerial footage these days; we could fly a DJI Phantom with a GoPro, mount a Dragon to a Freefly Cinestar drone, handhold a MoVI out an open chopper door…or we could just hire the best aerial pilot in New York – Al Cerullo – which is what we did."
thrownaway2424 12y ago
Photographers were using RC helicopters long before multicopter thingies that people like to call drones for some reason became trendy. These are still around and they have the lift capacity to hoist your 5D or your Red Epic on a pan/tilt rig, unlike most multicopters that can hardly lift a go pro.
- raverbashing 12y ago
  That's the issue, this equipment is heavy! Sure, digital is usually "lighter" but get a DSLR in your hands and you see that even that is not something any drone can carry
dsl 12y ago
Commercial use of drones is generally illegal. If you want to use it for TV or film production, you have to contract with one of six FAA blessed companies. http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=17194 http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId... The MPAA is actually doing a lot of good work to help free up restrictive laws on drone use.
masklinn 12y ago
OK Go's "I Won't Let You Go" was filmed entirely using a drone. And as they are wont to do, as a single take.

foomoo 12y ago

Thanks for the hint, eventually i stumbled upon the note about Pixelstick in the article, never heard of it before. They had a successful Kickstarter last year, the video briefly introduces the tech and shows many more applications: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bitbangerlabs/pixelstick-light-painting-evolved https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bitbangerlabs/pixelstic... Now I want one!