February 7, 2012

Millions of Potatoes, Potatoes for Me

I shot a documentary at a potato packaging factory the other day as part of a larger piece about farming, and during filming I was presented with a unique challenge.  It seems that the millions of potatoes running along conveyor belts cause the floors of the factory to vibrate.

My initial plan for b-roll in the factory was to shoot on my slider with my DSLR.  However, this caused a weird jello effect on certain shots due to the rapid small vibrations.  To combat this I decided to go handheld and keep on a wide lens.  This worked amazingly well at eliminating the vibrations, and with a steady hand I was also able to keep my shots moving as if shooting on a slider.

Just a reminder, that even though you may have a ton of gear, sometimes a good handheld shot will accomplish the job just as well.

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