Pro Moviemaker Summer 2018

CASE STUDY AFFORDABLE TV CAMERAS

surveillance attempt to track them down. Viewers root for the ‘fugitives’ to evade detection, and the atmosphere of suspense and excitement is stoked by the use of a dynamic run-and-gun filmmaking style. One of those involved on the latest series is camera operator Anna Collins, a veteran of this gruelling style of energetic filmmaking. “Run-and-gun TV is my favourite style to film,” she says. “I love being able to relay the feelings of a raw and impulsive situation onto a TV screen. Luckily it’s a style that’s part and parcel of the career path I chose, which is predominantly adventure TV. I have filmed in many challenging environments from fishing trawlers, to the desert, the jungle, the arctic, and mountains for shows like SAS: Who Dares Wins , Bear Grylls: Mission Survive , Steve Backshall & the Vertical Mile , Rocky Mountain Railroad and Gold Rush . “For Hunted I was a second camera on the fugitive side supporting the Producer/ Director (PD), and this was how each team was set up. I had actually worked on the pilot three years prior, but this was my first full series. I was assigned a fugitive,

to wide open – perhaps at f/1.4 with the Voigtlanders – with a heavy ND filter if I’m looking to achieve a shallow depth- of-field,” says Jon. “They’re all excellent lenses and perfectly suited for use with the GH5s.” Flexible and versatile With the vogue in TV now for reality programmes rather than high-budget drama, equipment requirements have likewise evolved, and once again the need will often be for cameras that are lightweight, adaptable and easy to carry around and set up. It’s not so much a question of economics, more one of necessity, although the fact that consumer-level products are now so capable has definitely made programmes of this ilk more viable than ever before. The hugely popular Hunted series, produced by Shine TV for Channel 4 in the UK, is a case in point. The premise is delightfully simple: ordinary people are challenged to go underground and to evade capture, while a team of experts using all the modern methods of

to get my hands on a camera such as this, which is everything we were looking for. In particular, like the GH4 it features a rigid sensor, which takes us back to a state where we can achieve steady footage at speed, while it also has greater low light capabilities. “The benefit of this is that it enables us to use a less distracting level of light inside the car, which is safer for the drivers but also means that the contrast between the light inside the car and outside is less. This means that everything outside doesn’t automatically go black and you can see what’s going on, which is a huge improvement. We’ve also changed the position of the in-car light so that it’s now almost above them rather than shining directly in their face through the windscreen, and again that’s made a big difference.” Lenses used in tandemwith the GH5s are Voigtlander 10.5mm, 17.5mm and 25mm super-fast f/0.95s and a line-up of Veydra 12mm, 16mm, 25mm, 35mm and 50mm T2.2 mini primes, along with a 19mm T2.6. “I usually use them close

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PRO MOVIEMAKER SUMMER 2018

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