Week 1 – Portraits, equipment & lighting
Cinematography has always been arguably my favourite aspect in filmmaking, the versatility in creating large scale images and extreme colour palettes helps enhance the narrative that allows the audience to focus on the details that camera shot has to offer. To be able to access the photography studio and numerous equipment will broaden my understanding and evolve my love for the camerawork, which will assist me greatly in eventually creating a story-driven visual effect.
My favourite photos taken from my phone
I’m often moved and in awe by the sense of scale, using a smart phone like the iPhone 13 Pro Max might not give you a definitive image quality but I loved using the wide lense/zoom out feature, which provides a more natural vignette style and displaying the image as a spectacle.
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- A panorama shot of my home, Hong Kong at 2AM
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- 0.5 Zoom of Gunnersbury Park, 7AM
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- 0.5 Zoom of Gunnersbury Park, 7AM
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- Sunrise portrait of Gunnersbury Park, 8AM
Key inspiration for this module’s work moving forward
Roger A. Deakins
2-time Oscar winner and English cinematographer, long time collaborator with director Denis Villeneuve, which is my favourite pairing of any filmmakers in the industry.
Often quiet images that presents itself as grand but also elegant, dark and suspenseful.
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- Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
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- Sicario (2015)
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- Prisoners (2013)
Studio equipment setup
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- Extensive camera mount for height, pan and tilt adjustments.s
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- A beauty dish to provide a catchlight in the models’ eyes.
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- Softbox that provides continuous lighting. (Attached with coloured gels & honeycomb grids)
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- Strobe Light for different intensity of flashes
Week 2 – Introduction to Photography Part 1
As we familiarise ourselves with the basic understanding of photography, we acknowledge the 3 key factors to capturing different types of images, which forms the ‘Exposure Triangle’:
Exposure triangle technique showcase
An easy process to rent out a high quality camera like the Panasonic Lumix S1R has allowed me to start putting my learning into actual image campturing.
*CAPTURED ON PANASONIC LUMIX S1R
- Low shutter speed and ISO settings during the night, indoors & outdoors.
- High ISO, Low Aperture
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- This is one of my favourites as it resembles multiple shots from the film Prisoners, a simple close up combined with the blurred nature thats slightly positioned to the side focuses on the uneven, monotone and cracked textures bares so much detail in the theme of brutality.
Week 3 – Introduction to Photography Part 2
After familirising with the settings within the camera, we now move on to the angles and depth shots using our lenses. This includes a range from extreme wide shot to extreme close-up.
Week 5 – Visual Storytelling
To create a cinematic frame, I had to reference the world of cinematography, these masterful cinematographers has inspired my love for capturing the very essence of each frame, in which very much enhances the viewing experience with their vision spread across the entire shot.
Their techniques and philosophy in approaching top quality visual storytelling has enabled me to comfortably decide the purpose of any image I capture and my preferences in certain settings, which will aid me greatly in completing my first assignment.
Addtional cinematographers on the top of my list
Hoyte Van Hoytema
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- Tenet (2020)
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- Interstellar (2014)
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- Her (2013)
Robert Yeoman
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- The French Dispatch (2021)
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- The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
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- The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
Assignment 1 – Artefact – Narrative Through Imagery
Title – SHUANG
- Model – Orna Costello
- Location – Gunnersbury Park, South Ealing
- Camera – Panasonic Lumix S1R DC
The story revolves around Shuang, as she explores the woods and breathes in the nature that might answer who she is. She is confused, intrigued but also paranoid at times. She senses overwhelming feelings when coming in contact with the objects she’s touched and location she’s been to. A message or a memory?
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- Establishing close-up of the location and reflection to signify the duality of the story.
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- First look at Shuang, seeking for answers.
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- A remnant she finds with curiosity, does it jog a memory?
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- A close-up of the can, its damaged form suggests a troubled past… or future?
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- Shuang arrives to an open area as nature takes over the scenery.
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- She touches the tree log in hopes for any response.
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- She becomes conflicted, as confusion pulses through her and visions are piling up in her head.
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- A sunset, wide shot of the same forest is shown, indicating this is some sort of memory or timeline.
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- We see a silouette of another girl walking in peace.
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- We jump to the same timeline but a few hours into nighttime, an industrial part of the location is presented.
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- We see this mystery girl walking again. Who is she? Is she dangerous? Does she know you’re watching?
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- She looks at Shuang from her timeline, revealing it’s someone that looks just like Shuang. This is Winona, Shuang’s twin sister.
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- She might not be at the same place, but the presence of them both allows them to look at each other. Shuang is shocked, she thought she was an only child.
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- Winona starts to communicate with Shuang, exchanging history and the importance of their connection and how the tree log and can in this forest plays a big part in all this.
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- After gathering the information she desperately needed, Shuang smiles for the first time in years.
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- Winona has been trapped in the same timeline for decades, living the same age over and over. But also knowing that she has someone to trust, she’s relieved for now.
Storyboard drafts
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- This first storyboard only featured 6 shots before I went on to improve and update my story. But it’s initial idea of this draft that kickstarted moving forward to creating a different approach. This story relied more on the significance of a flower and its ability to relive memories or create new ones.
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- This 12 shot draft had a similar idea to the first, but inspired by multiple mediums from philosophy and the mixture of photographic and cinematic approach in each shot composition. This time using a necklace as the focal point of the story.
Film / Cinematography inspirations
Sicario (2015) & Prisoners (2013)
DoP – Roger A. Deakins
Dir. – Denis Villeneuve
Sicario and Prisoners gave me meanings from objects and place that doesn’t involves humans, cinematographer Roger Deakins captures the raw detail of even the most basic everyday things we see and most likely wouldn’t pay attention to it.
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- Sicario (2015)
Sicario focuses on the scale and tone as a form of artistic communication from the landscapes and how the streets have becomed ruins that haunts the city of Juarez. Showing the soldiers and citizens go on about their day in what seems to be a normal city filled with other citizens, exchanging words, taking their kids for football. But when we look at these locations at an unusual time, things start to feel intense, tensions are rising and all hell breaks loose.
This influenced my decision to shoot Winona shots in a different time, which also allows me to showcase my photography skills that I’ve developed over the past 8 weeks of this module.
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- Prisoners (2013)
Prisoners heavily emphasises on symbolism with trees, human-worn items and mazes that implies how everything we walk pass can also act as a witness if we allow it. The film knows what exactly to show that even the simplest things in the world that barely relates to us can still tell us much more because of their perspective. Like standing in a bus stop and standing behind the bus, there’s so little you can see when you’re behind it, but you’ll know the bus number and know where it’s headed. In contrary, standing in the bus stop lets you see how many people are in the bus, so you can decide to go in or not if it’s full, which will also decide if you get to go to the destination or not. It’s all about how perspectives give you a different interpretation of the story.
This influenced my decision to include many close-up shots, to capture the detail while allowing some space to remind ourselves where Shuang and Winona are.
Final statement / reflection for A1
I was fortunate enough to have my friend, Orna to be the model and Gunnersbury Park in South Ealing to be almost the perfect location to shoot all these images for A1, the options to shoot with both close-up and wide shots gives me the ability to be versatile in my shot compositions. By using a high quality camera that provides high quality images, I always felt relaxed and glad I get to use my photography skills I’ve developed in the module to capture a series of some of the best photos I’ve ever taken and I’m very proud of this journey. Having watched the films that changed my life and viewing cinematography as my favourite element in filmmaking, I was able to set a foundation in all my decision making relatively easy, especially the setup of the story, sci-fi and psychology has been my favourite genres since my love for film towards the late 2010s, the idea of a person’s mind and how it influences others fascinates, as well as the brutality and horror that simplicity can present itself to be. With this thought process, I can justify each shot’s angle and setting, which makes for a concise approach in the storytelling for my sequence images. I can’t wait to see what I’ll be able to do behind the camera in both within the module and in my own work.
Week 9 & 10 – Studio Lighting setups & Adobe software learning
It was good to be back and start our next learning on studio lighting and the editing process on Adobe Lightroom Classic, we start to realise and refine our understanding on the neccesity and enhancements we can bring to the portraits we took as a group in the photography studio. We used a Panasonic Lumix S1R digital camera for these images and we had a lot of fun changing the colours, as well as switching in between the 7 lighting setups we were taught.
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- The warm yellow tone makes the image feel ancient and filled with history, the split lighting boosting the texture enhances the rich details of the portrait.
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- Another split lighting setup as I tone down the original yellow light that shines on his left side, I was able to achieve a realistic skin tone and accurate reflection of the cold subtle light blue hue.
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- Similar to the previous image, a colder setting is applied on the overall atmosphere of the light hue, it does remind of a quiet underground factory.
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- A much harsher and brutal approach, by turning up the presence parameters, a pink hue depicts a different mood for a villain.
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- Inspired by The Matrix and In The Mood for Love, the top light shines for a more dramatic and sinister tone.
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- Originally, the shadows were imminent and a normal warm white light was shined upon him. By adjusting exposure and temperature of the white light, it brings up many of the dust from the background, almost as if he has a certain aura around him or if he’s about to get beamed up.
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- Dialing down the dehaze setting, the brighter backlight shines through even stronger and makes him like a force ghost from Star Wars.
Photographer research
Cinematographer Greg Fraiser for his work on Dune (2021).
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- Timothée Chalamet as Paul Atreides
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- Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica
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- Oscar Isaac as Duke Leto Atreides
Steve McCurry capturing the raw details of human nature itself through captivating eye contact.
Herb Ritts incapsulates the natural occurance of human expression as long as they have a story to tell by either their movement or lighting reflections.
Week 11 – Preparing for A2: Portrait Storytelling
As we now get closer to starting our second assignment, which is to use portraits to tell our story, we are limited to using the studio and fewer amount of images, I’m determined to make each portrait as distinct but also interconnected.
My A2 wil be called ‘OUR OWN MASTERS‘. Heavily inspired by Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049, through my portraits we will witness a person’s journey finding their own identity as well as questioning their existence. 
Shot compositions from Blade Runner 2049
My composition will not have the model look directly at the camera, as I believe not ‘telling’ the viewer their thoughts will leave them with questions and come up with their own interpretation with the basis of the story that I will provide.
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- DD1 – Basis of the my shot composition, the model will not look into the camera. Multiple bright colours & heavy editing in LrC. (Split & Rembrandt lighting) Using long/double exposure.
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- DD2 – During the double/long exposure, I will remove the gel as the model uses another specific expression that reflects the different identities the character desires.
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- BBN1 – A different setting with softer and warmer lighting that acts as the natural source. This double shows dread and despair.
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- BBN2 – Rembrandt lighting shining upon the face on a diagonal direction
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- WCI1
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- WCI2 – The model will position themselves tilted up, through editing in LrC, I will enhance the texture and dehaze to show the paleness of the skins to mimic an underwater shot.
Notes for prepping for the photoshoot on 18/05/23
Techniques demonstrated from public portrait photography
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- Tom Fecht
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- Pedro Beja
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- Alex Bulgakov
Final Results
* ALL CAPTURED USING PANASONIC LUMIX S1R & EDITED VIA ADOBE LIGHTROOM CLASSIC
- Aspect ratio – Custom, 16 x 8
- Camera settings – f4 / 1/100 sec / ISO 100
1 – ‘WITHIN CELLS’
He has been through endless conflict with the world and within himself. The neon lights shine to reveal his battle scars and he is ready to find something worth fighting for. For the sake of his life and identity, he is determined with rage.
2 – ‘INTERLINKED’
3 – ‘DREADFULLY’
4 – ‘DISTINCT’ 
5 – ‘BLOOD-BLACK’
6 – ‘NOTHINGNESS’
A2 Showcase in Ealing Project
I was very happy to hear our work being displayed in Ealing Project, a small cinema near our university for two weeks. With the subtle blue hue and big wall I was able to put them in the grid of pairs I wanted for people to see. None of my work has been put out to the public in physical form before so I felt very privileged and lucky for this to happen.
Stop motion Animation
- Genre – Comedy
- Location – My room in student accomodation
- iMotion app / 12 Frames per Second
- Min. 30 secs
Script
Final video