With this project John and are trying out a number of innovative ideas. Besides open sourcing our thought process we are looking at filming the documentary with some cutting edge technology. Traditionally films are made with camcorders specifically designed for video. We are looking at cameras that where designed for still photography.
Photo by v8media
In the past digital cameras have not been as good as film camera because of the sensors they use. The sensors in digital camera are usually smaller than 35mm film and are not as sensitive to light. As the technology has improved so has the image quality. Now sensors are very close to reproducing film quality and one day could be better.
One feature that journalist and professionals had been asking for was the ability to record video. To satify their best customers camera manufactures added the ability to record high definition video. This had an unexpected effect.
Since the cameras had high quality lenses and sensors it was possible to produce professional looking video for a drastically lower price. The combination of lower cost and impressive looking video caught the eye of Hollywood. These cameras are just starting to be used in feature length films.
There are still some drawbacks to using these camera’s because the technology is so new. However, there is also a lot of potential. John and I are excited about the possibilities. Stay tuned for part 2 where I’ll be talking about which camera’s we are looking at and why.
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