How to Shoot a Low-Budget 4K Music Video on the Canon 1D C with Philip Bloom
You might know him from his excellent camera reviews, but Philip Bloom also has a large body of work online that consists of music videos, documentaries, and narratives. For his most recent project, Philip has joined forces with one of his frequent collaborators, Olly Knights, to shoot a music video for the main single off Olly’s new album Bitten By the Frost. The piece was shot in two days on the Canon 1D C DSLR, and a few great behind the scenes videos have been posted online in addition to the music video. Check out all of them below.
Here was Philip’s idea behind the video:
Playing on the mundanity of everyday life that song plays on I wanted the video to show this. My idea that his life is so mundane that we are literally passengers in it and we drift through day with little changing until the whole thing just becomes an endless cycle.
To show this I wanted Olly to stay in the frame in the same position in every single shot. Only the background would change and I needed his performance to be quietly intense but without too much expression as we are going for a mundane life type feel. I also needed real everyday things for hi to drift through. Bed, breakfast, tube, work etc. But with a twist being that things go a little differently on one day…
With Olly being in each frame the sense I wanted to feel like life was passing him by without even noticing it and especially without moving! He would sing the song and as he does it his we run through his whole week . To emphasise this the edits wouldn’t be on line breaks but during words at times creating a really fluid feel as we run through the 7 days.
Here are the terrific behind the scenes videos:
If you look at the way the crew had to move and some of the shots they needed to steal, the 1D C is certainly a logical choice based on the image quality. Philip wanted some room to crop if he needed it, so that’s part of the reason for choosing to shoot 4K — and if you’re looking for a small and compact 4K camera that shoots to CF cards — the 1D C is pretty much your only option.
Canon 1D C Inside the Refrigerator Sitting on Philip’s V-Bag
Since it was a low-budget music video, Philip acted as most of the main roles, which is quite difficult when you consider the number of shots they were doing per day. It’s always great to have separate people operating in different positions, but sometimes it’s just impossible to have more crew members and you have to make do with what you have. It’s great to see how much organization was involved to pull off the production, and for anyone who is going to attempt their own low-budget music video, head on over to Philip’s website for an in-depth post about his process and the pre-production involved with the shoot.
You can find a link to the song and album below.
Links:
- In depth blog post with video BTS on new music video “Bitten by the frost” shot on the 1DC — Philip Bloom
- Olly Knights — Bitten By the Frost — iTunes
Related Posts
- Philip Bloom Reviews the Canon 1D X, Big Brother of the Mark III. Is It Worth the Money Just for Video?
- Philip Bloom Braves the Weather for His In-Depth Canon 1D C Review, Plus More Sample Footage
- Philip Bloom Reviews the Canon C300 and Releases Short Test
130 COMMENTS
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Joe Marine on 03.11.13 @ 1:21PM
The rentals for those items are pretty cheap, probably around $400-$500 total for those two items. Even a few thousand dollars would be considered low-budget for a music video.
But the gear is really beside the point. His process and the way they shot it could produce similar results regardless of the equipment.
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Joe Marine on 03.11.13 @ 1:33PM
Well Philip called it no-budget on his website, because he owns all the gear, but I’ve never been a huge fan of the term no-budget, because you’re spending money somewhere on something.
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It was actually no budget. Everything was done for favours…. unless you count the curry i bought us at the end of the day, then it’s low but tasty budget. :)
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Joe Marine on 03.11.13 @ 8:39PM
Haha I’m not disagreeing with the no-budgetness – just saying I prefer the other terms.
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Yeah, and micro-budget, which is between the two, seems to always get lost in the mix.
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Tyler on 03.11.13 @ 5:43PM
I just say micro-budget now because I know low budget can be anywhere under like $50,000
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Micro is smaller then low, that was my point. In Hollywood terms $50k and under is no-budget, for features. In internet/short/music video terms Phillip is definitely correct in saying this is a low or no-budget piece
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it’s low budget if it’s my gear and i am not getting paid nor are any of us but doing it for a mate. Just think of it as a rental house gave it to me for free for 2 days except the rental house is me. There we go. Free! :)
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john jeffreys on 03.11.13 @ 8:15PM
The term is relative and it gets thrown around way too much these days. In hollywood terms, “low budget” is anything under, like, 25 million. Drive, for example, was a “low budget” film. So was Black Swan. But in online film blog terms, low budget can refer to something made in 1 weekend on a few hundred dollars of rented gear and copy/credit/meal crew and talent.
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fiftybob on 03.11.13 @ 1:26PM
Really love Philip’s passion for sharing. I have followed him since I 1st picked up a DSLR. It’s a pity that he often has to deal with trolls too. Keep up the good work Bloom Boy, and that is a very cool video too. : )
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Tyler on 03.11.13 @ 5:44PM
When I started I ran into an interview on youtube with him about DSLR filmmaking and I was sold.
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Sergey on 03.11.13 @ 2:30PM
I love alost all Philip’s shots.. But I do not like in this video the singer all the time in the center of the frame…
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Kendrick on 03.11.13 @ 2:32PM
If you read you’ll see that this was done on purpose….he wouldn’t have done it If wasn’t a reason for it
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that’s the whole point…he is matched in every frame…please read my blog post if you want to know more
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Kendrick on 03.11.13 @ 2:30PM
Mr. Bloom is GREAT!!!….so glad to see him sticking with Canon and not being a ship jumper to the “RAW” madness that’s going around…..lmao we still haven’t seen a steady flow of the new RAW cam that I won’t name….but Canon and Nikon just deliver…..remember it’s just a tool…..the artist does the painting, the tool doesn’t do it
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Clayton Arnall on 03.11.13 @ 4:36PM
Ship jumping RAW madness huh? Seing as he just shot one of his recent projects on the EPIC, and another on the BMCC, I’d say the only madness around here is this comment.
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These comments are getting odder and odder. Look, who gives a crap what camera you shoot on.
The last time I shot EPIC was in late 2011 BTW
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Clayton Arnall on 03.11.13 @ 6:55PM
woops… sorry I saw your tweet entitled “Host My first drama shot on the RED Epic now online” and thought that meant you were shooting EPIC again. Missed the date on that.
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thats ok Clayton…that was shot ages ago. Director Danny Lacey only just put it online. Miss that camera. Did lovely stuff!
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Voltaire on 03.11.13 @ 4:58PM
“The artists does the painting, the tool doesn’t do it.”
This argument has got to be the most incorrect cliche when it comes to discussing filmmaking, and in particular, cinematography.
There is a reason the world’s best cinematographers choose to shoot on Alexa’s and 35mm film. The tool IS IMPORTANT. I’m sick of people writing off the importance of the camera/film-stock. Further, it is also equally important to choose an “inferior” camera in order to generate mood and atmosphere, i.e. Canon XL1s on “28 Days Later”.
And you’re glad Bloom is “sticking to Canon”? Way do be vendor agnostic…
So long as Canon charges $10,000+ for 8-bit cameras, financially sensible filmmakers everywhere will not take them seriously. The skintones and overall gradation in this video alone is enough to make any financially sensible filmmaker turn away from Canon. $12,000…give me a break.
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Cheryll on 03.11.13 @ 5:47PM
thats your opinion….you’re mad cause he makes his work look nice on Canon
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It’s called grading. If you don’t like my very stylised look then I am sorry for that and for the compression you have to see whilst watching it.
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nerdo on 03.11.13 @ 7:14PM
You should watch more Kendy videos, he uses a cheap Canon and a simple sigma lens. Everything else is skill and talent. One of the main reasons to use Alexa’s is time. “They use such and such because” is assuming far too many things, you either know from personal experience or you don’t. If you don’t know, don’t pretend you do by pointing at others. Alexa’s are very forgiving and you can spend less time lighting, it’s great because it fits all the 35mm stuff most crews are used to. But it is just as easy to screw up a shoot with an Alexa.
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MartinK on 03.11.13 @ 8:55PM
I agree with everything you’re saying. Actually it’s quite easy to make 35mm or an Arri Alexa look terrible if you don’t know know how to light the set. It’s all about light really. If you’re good on that you really can make any camera look good. It’s not really about 8-bit or 12-bit. A light sensitive sensor (like 1DC) makes it possible to use less light and that can be a real good thing. And sometimes it’s better to use more light and that works better with film or, for exemple, Red.
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Content is king mate – Searching for Sugarman is partly shot on an iphone yet won an oscar. Many people make awful films with great cameras. Yes the tool is important, but just like any other piece of hardware or technology, the person/people using it will determine the outcome, you can’t deny that pal.
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Daniel Mimura on 03.27.13 @ 2:58PM
Big fat “WHATEVER”. Tools are bullshit and are secondary. I would rather see Deakins or Khondji shoot something on a phone than most amateurs shooting in 15-perf 65mm. And Picasso and just about every other famous painter did amazing sketches with pieces of charcoal.
The top cinematographers have access and budgets to the best materials (cameras, higher wattages for more light control with better lighting instruments…blahblahblah)…but this is not what makes their work great. And this is why good up and coming cinematographers always can make their crappy compressed h.264 8-bit whatever look pretty damned good (& make the other side of the Internet bitchers claim, man, screw the $85k cameras…so and so did this amazing thing on a hacked GH2…etc…).
Good cinematography is good cinematography, regardless of format.
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Daniel Mimura on 03.27.13 @ 3:05PM
Professional race car drivers drive very expensive cars…that’s a field where the top professionals are in an even more technical field than filmmaking is (or has become). I remember my dad taking a racing class when I was a kid and most of the people had 911′s and other higher end cars…and the race instructor drove an old automatic station wagon and beat every single one of them. Never confuse the skills with the tools.
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Voltaire on 03.11.13 @ 4:27PM
Cool concept and well shot.
8-bit unfortunately rears its ugly head yet again though, especially in the skin-tones. That’s what kills me about the 1DC – minus the resolution, anything shot on it looks like it could have been done with virtually any other DSLR on the market at the moment.
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Swested on 03.11.13 @ 5:57PM
ummm…no one is saying it isn’t. And for 4 the price, it better damn well be far ahead of the 5D.
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Robert on 03.11.13 @ 5:46PM
Looks a bit too video-ish to me. Anyone agree? Maybe I’ve been watching too much BMCC footage…
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Get over that whole “film” BS. The footage looks better than film considering the modern day environment.
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james on 03.11.13 @ 5:50PM
lmao…..have they ever started shipping in a decent scale yet….nope so watch is all you might do while u can go get this now….and edit in 2 days…do that with that bmc
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Robert on 03.11.13 @ 5:53PM
There’s plenty of BMCCs out there. And I’d rather wait to shoot on something decent, rather than a Canon. I’m not alone on this.
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marklondon on 03.11.13 @ 6:03PM
I love the 1DC but this isn’t its best work. I agree you could have shot this with other DSLRs.
And I’ve not liked any of the clips he’s made on whatever he shot them on.
As a micro budget clip its ok though. And its good he’s passionate about it.The key takeout – there’s no reason not to just get out there and do it.
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One thing I don’t entirely understand — when you shoot in 4K intending to reframe in post, does that mean that, at time of shootng, you’re intentionally composing with extra space bordering the image you really want? Are there frame lines (or gaffer tape) on your monitor to help you?
I suspect some people actually do do this! Dimly recall reading something about Girl With A Dragon Tattoo in ASC Magazine to this effect.
If Philip is not doing this, then does shooting 4K really give him any reframing ability, given the strict framing requirements of this project?
Haven’t inspected the video closely, but reframing could be useful in the train shots (for stabilisation) and in the fridge shot (in case you can’t quite get that thing level on the bag).
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because Olly had to be exactly matched in frame and even though we had film over the monitor with an outline i needed a bit of leeway hence the ability to crop in without loss of resolution could have been useful. In the end I needed to crop in by around just 5-6%. James got it pretty damn close.
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Loved the video by the way, and very much admire the logistics efforts.
Trying to think of the famous music video that may have inspired it. Anyone here know? U2 or something. Some guy’s face in frame, getting random things done to it, people putting their feet on it, etc, while he continues impassively singing.
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That’s U2 Numb – a great video for sure, but the idea and the feel in this one is different.
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amateur? blimey. that’s harsh but you are of course entitled to your opinion. tougher crowd on here than youtube1
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Robert B. on 03.11.13 @ 6:54PM
Of, course it is amateur. It’s PRO only when you get paid for it ;)
I really like your amateur work on this video, especially the BTS with planning and stuff described well.
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mferrara on 03.11.13 @ 7:00PM
Relax man. Your stuff is good. Don’t let these hacks get you down. You still need to learn how to lighten up. Last time I gave your slider constructive criticism you about blew your top.
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i am relaxed! having fun reading this. Amateur doest imply not getting paid though. I have actually done a few pro jobs where client defaulted…does that mean that was amateur too? ;)
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sammy on 03.12.13 @ 6:55PM
yes…it does. Because working with clients who default….is by definition working
with amateurs. Indeed is so hard to work pro nowadays…just because the pro
clients are mostly gone leaving only amateur clients who know nothing and pay nothing. -
Jules on 03.13.13 @ 9:59PM
Loved the music video. I recently stuck my GH2 in a fridge for a TV promo. I also put it in a rain bag and buried it in an ice bin for someone to scoop ice out of in the foreground. Both shots looked great and had a higher production value look because traditionally they would have required some pretty serious props to make work with larger cameras, though I will say it made me a bit nervous since the GH2 is not as well protected against the elements as the 1D C.
Kudos, looking forward to your next project!
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HVisuals on 03.11.13 @ 6:59PM
Good work Mr. Bloom, your work is amazing, as is your positive attitude. Keep at it looking forward to more
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Drew Davis on 03.11.13 @ 7:03PM
Hey, loved the video. Nice little Hitchcock style cameo on the underground too :D
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Superb.
Audience (apart from pixel peepers) doesn’t give a shit about ‘skin tones’, they are hooked by storyline and that’s what’s working magically here.
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Peter Kelly on 03.11.13 @ 7:22PM
really like this video, its mesmorising, deceivingly simply looking and a great concept, although i must agree with comments on the picture quality being less then i would expect from the 1DC, thats a little disappointing
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cheers Peter
actually i degraded image. way to sharp. made it more organic
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Accidentally my player keep looping this clip and I didn’t notice until the third round, I wonder if Philip intent to make it looping like that, Monday to Monday, like no end!!!
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yep..that was the plan i talk about it in my blog post….the eternal week
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Mr. Bloom, my subjective opinion is this was very good. I liked the unique center framing and as a DSLR shooter myself, I thought the footage looked great.
Honestly, I don’t understand the rather unnecessary comments on this video given all the insight and knowledge you have provided for free over the years. It doesn’t mean people should be bias, but at least be constructive rather then just plain rude.
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Very good. Videos made for slow, sad songs are often boring but this one kept me watching until the end. There’s nothing really special about any of these shots and yet I keep wondering what will be in the next one. A great idea and execution.
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I found it very engaging, and I have a YouTube attention span these days — can go off a video after watching for 30 seconds.
The idea of cutting mid-word is brilliant. (In TV and film in general, you’ll find that, sure, there are J-cuts and L-cuts, but almost there is cutting on grammar/sense break.)
I disagree about the shots not being special though. I think they’re deceptively unspecial. Feels “in medias res”, if that makes sense.
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Steve V on 03.11.13 @ 8:33PM
Must have been a fun project to make. I loved the cameo’s and the smiley face in the beer foil.
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jesuan on 03.11.13 @ 8:57PM
I’ve been visiting this website for a long time…I’ve been posting things…some good some bad, and even with some bad maners but today the post : ” i can take “low budget” seriously when seeing Bloom with his hipster friends around him” was deleted…..I just can’t believe how this can be banned!!! I really don’t…I hope this is just a Joe Marine decision and not some “advicing” from Bloom, that would be just disrespectfull to freedom of speech, since I dind’t say anything to be deletted. I would like to know what this is all about!!
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Joe Marine on 03.11.13 @ 9:02PM
There is a respectful way to talk about work or the person making it, and that’s not what is going on in this thread. Pretty simple.
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jesuan on 03.11.13 @ 9:11PM
First comment in this post is:
Sico on 03.11.13 @ 1:12PM
I can’t take a ‘low budget’ serious, when you see gear like TVLogic and a 1DC.So…what’s the difference?? I don’t mean to delete sico’s post since I don’t find it offensive as I don’t find offesive mine aswell, and I never talk about Bloom’s work, even in some comments later I say I think his popularitty is well deserved since he has a long carrer in the industry. So…
What I have seen is Bloom bitchin (like a 5 year old spoiled child ) on Twitter/Facebook about someone talking and saying that I didn’t like his works because he was with his hipsters friends , and that it’s totally false since I never said I didn’t like the work he does, and not even like/not like a job because of the people involved. I really don’t care how famous Bloom is, he has to be mature enough to get through all this stuff and not bitching on social network and demanding to delete comments about him or his job. I’ve seen more disrespectfull comments that have not been deleted. Bloom is never active in this site, and he only comments when you guys talk about him, and he even comes here asking to delete things he doesn’t like to hear?? I just can’t believe this is not the independent/amateur/professional/community website it was… I’m really dissapointed. You guys who rule NFS should tell Bloom to take it easy instead of being a Diva.
I’m sorry because I really liked this website and comments and keep learning from the great job you guys are doing.
Jesus.
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Joe Marine on 03.11.13 @ 9:20PM
No one has ever asked us to delete anything, it’s completely our decision. This, like other threads, has gotten totally off topic and is just disrespectful, and I’ve done what I’ve done in plenty of other threads. Of course it’s a judgment call, that’s always the issue with moderating. But it reflects poorly on those of us who run the site and write here.
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jesuan on 03.11.13 @ 9:26PM
I keep saying I didn’t say anything disrespectfull to be deleted. Just that. Now life goes on…there are more important things out there…
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Sam Vun on 03.11.13 @ 9:36PM
Philip, great work as usual !! And thanks for providing the BTS.. that and the inclusion of your cats was a great addition!! Thanks for educating the community (you amateur) I mean… for free… :)
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Joe Marine on 03.11.13 @ 9:41PM
Ok, let’s move on, I’m leaving jesuan’s there to show people why we’re doing what we’re doing.
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Will on 03.12.13 @ 3:33AM
Love the site but do find that you guys seem to have picked up some extremely (and consistently) negative people on the message board. We’re all supposed to be here to help each other.
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john jeffreys on 03.11.13 @ 9:29PM
Joe pretty much deletes any comment that doesn’t, at the least, constructively criticize the topic of the article. I know this, because 3/4ths of my comments get deleted now within 8 hours. I like the policy and I totally understand that they have an image of credibility to keep up (something that goes down the drain when you have a rapidly growing userbase and tons of camera fanboyism going on), but honestly, the site is not as fun now.
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Jesuan on 03.11.13 @ 9:44PM
I know what moderating is, and I aprecciate it aswell as i aprecciate the effort to run NFS. But i’m just saying that what I said wasn’t disrespectfull and right after Bloom is talking bout that on twitter and facebook my comments gets deletted, that’s all. I don’t like this kind of discussion but I was just pointed out something that has pissed me off. That’s all. :)
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Brian on 03.12.13 @ 9:25AM
What you wrote was disrespectful to Philip as a person, and that is unacceptable. If you can have the decency to bridle your untempered emotions and refrain from personal attack, perhaps you will find that your comments stay online a little longer.
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Daniel Mimura on 03.27.13 @ 3:12PM
And it clearly works pretty well b/c John Jeffreys doesn’t say jackass comments anymore and is a constructive part of the community now (seriously!).
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Marc B on 03.11.13 @ 9:05PM
Excellent music video in terms of accomplishing the feeling. mood and look you wanted to establish. It worked. Some scenes looked filmic, others more like video, but all of them had composition I’d be proud of if it was my project. The music wasn’t my thing, but I chalk that up to UK vs. US pop sensibilities. It’s very high concept and looks like anything but a no budget music video.
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Actually, one surprising feature of this video — if you’re watching it on an iPad, and it gets to the cut-to-black at the end, you suddenly see your own face reflected, and it’s a bit of a shock.
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Blimey indeed! I think the misconception is that we thread commenters believe we simply MUST share every opinion we have… Try that with your wife; you’ll learn better very quickly.
Thank you, Philip, for your work! Thank you for your efforts! Thank you for your fridged shot and your freezing cold 1DC review!
I read a quote from someone (can’t remember who) saying that basically putting your work out there for others to judge is the hardest part of making a film. As a YouTube partner, I believe this to be absolutely spot on! So, thank you, Philip!
3 pingbacks
- How to Shoot a Low-Budget 4K Music Video on the Canon 1D C with Philip Bloom | VideoDrome | Scoop.it on 03.12.13 @ 6:00AM
- How to Shoot a Low-Budget 4K Music Video on the Canon 1D C with Philip Bloom | Creativity Challenge | Scoop.it on 03.12.13 @ 12:37PM
- A Bit Of Everything | CanonWatch CanonWatch on 03.14.13 @ 5:47AM
I can’t take a ‘low budget’ serious, when you see gear like TVLogic and a 1DC.