Spooky Surprise

A cup of tea, and a spooky surprise

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This scene idea came from Christina, who also played our spooked-out tea drinker.

Shot on the Canon R5 and entirely with the Irix 45mm T1.5 cine lens – which is absolutely amazing. I think the biggest challenge was trying to film myself while wearing a sheet with the eyes blacked out, while also trying to avoid accidentally starting a fire.

Lighting

  • 1 Aputure 300d II w/ lantern
  • 1 Aputure 300x w/ Light Dome II
  • 2 Aputure MT Pros
  • 2 Aputure PB6 Infinibars
  • 4 Aputure MCs
  • 1 amaran P60c w/ softbox

Camera

  • Canon R5
  • Irix 45mm T1.5 Cine Lens
  • Tilta Mirage Matte Box w/ Vaxis Black Mist 1/8
  • Tilta Nucleus-M
  • Atomos Ninja V

Before & After comparisons

I use an app called Cadrage to help frame up shots before shooting. It makes it really easy to start deciding on angles and lenses.

Comparison between the original image and the final shot

Sometimes the initial framing matches pretty closely to the final shot, but sometimes it takes some tweaking. In the image below I had originally planned to use a 70-200mm zoom lens, but ended up being able to stick with a 45mm prime. Not having to change lenses saved me time, and I think I ended up with a better angle anyway.

Comparison between the original image and the final shot

Other times you can get really, really close to the final shot though. That's always satisfying. The shot of the sink dripping came out almost exactly as it was planned.

Comparison between the original image and the final shot

The tea cup on the table was another shot that didn't require any major changes.

Comparison between the original image and the final shot

Other times you still have to use your imagination. I wasn't sure this angle was going to work, especially with the window directly opposite the camera. I knew I was going to have to hide a big lantern light somewhere to raise the exposure (which you can see in the time lapse part of the video). It can be hard to plan for something like that during the initial framing, but not having to whip out the entire camera rig to frame up a few options is really helpful.

Comparison between the original image and the final shot

And finally, sometimes the initial framing doesn't work at all and you have to fix it while shooting. Normally this isn't a huge problem, but in this instance I was wearing a sheet over my head with black duvetyne over my eyes while candles were burning about an arm's length away. I had to stop the camera after every take, review, adjust the camera, hit record, put the sheet back on, and get back into place.

Comparison between the original image and the final shot

There's still lots to learn and improve upon, but overall I was happy with how this one turned out.