When director Ross Partridge and cinematographer Doug Emmett were in pre-production on their nine-episode web series Wedlock, they knew that a cinematic, shallow depth of field look would be essential to make their show stand out. They also knew they'd need a highly mobile, lightweight camera package for stealthy shooting in practical locations, great low-light capabilities to control the size of their lighting package, and a broad choice of lenses to help maximize their creative options. The solution to all their needs was obvious: Canon EOS C300 digital cinema cameras and Cinema prime and zoom lenses from Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions.A behind-the-scenes image showing Wedlock actors Mark Duplass and Jennifer Lafleur being filmed by director of photography Doug Emmett (left, plaid shirt) using a Canon EOS C300 camera outfitted with a Canon CN-E30-105mm T2.8 LS compact cinema zoom lens.
We didn't want Wedlock to look like video, Emmett said. We needed a really high-quality image that looked as cinematic as possible. That's what we got with the combination of our three Canon EOS C300 cameras and Canon cinema lenses.
Executive-produced by the indie-pioneering Duplass brothers, Wedlock is a comedy about a Type-A couple transitioning from friends to romantic partners and visiting a renowned therapist along the way. Like many indie films and webisodes, the series was independently financed and produced. We took the ball into our own hands to see if we could produce it and then sell it to content providers or distributors, Partridge explained. We can package it and sell it as a series and then create a whole other season if we wish to.
The production schedule was hectic. Wedlock was shot in a private residence in the Silver Lake section of Los Angeles over the course of four days. Emmett was happily surprised at how the camera operators needed no learning curve in their first use of Canon EOS C300 digital cinema cameras. In a world in which digital cameras are used heavily in TV production, the jump to the EOS C300 camera was very easy, he said. In fact, it wasn't much of a stretch for any of us, so that was exciting. I was impressed.
Form and Features
On a tight schedule, the filmmakers had to be as efficient as possible in every aspect of production to avoid delays. The form factor of the Canon EOS C300 cameras was very helpful in streamlining production, Emmett noted. The compact size and light weight of the EOS C300 enabled our operators to set the cameras up themselves and pull their own focus. It's also very easy to change lenses, which meant that we weren't wasting time as we moved from set-up to set-up. We shot about eight and a half pages a day with three camera operators and two production assistants, so we were able to move fast.
Emmett also appreciated the intuitive features and assignable buttons of the Canon EOS C300 digital cinema camera. These included a magnify function for checking focus and a built-in waveform monitor for checking exposure. The camera's form factor benefits the DP when the budget necessitates working with a smaller crew, he said. The Canon EOS C300 camera enables you to snap-in really quickly to get your focus. The built-in waveform monitors are also great, absolutely perfect for what we needed. The waveform acts almost as a little personal DIT [digital imaging technician] in the corner of your screen telling you if you've clipped any highlights or you've lost any shadows. So, for these reasons, we were able to work a lot faster without having to run back into the video tent and look at our images in a dark space.
I'm not saying we don't need a gaffer anymore, Emmett advised. But if you need to work quickly, it's great to have all those tools at your fingertips because it provides one more level of reassurance. I was really happy to have these tools on the EOS C300 camera.
Partridge also noted that at least some of the acting was improvisational, which made it ideal to have three Canon EOS C300 digital cinema cameras on-set. Going back and trying to re-create things in improv can be really hard to do, but in scenes where the cameras were looking in one direction, capturing coverage from three EOS C300 cameras was key for us. The cameras are affordable and they record to CF cards, so we could have three cameras and just keep on shooting.
Creating the Esthetic
The low-light capabilities of the Canon EOS C300 digital cinema cameras also delivered creative and production advantages for Wedlock, the filmmakers noted. The private residence in which they filmed was tucked away in a hillside, which limited the availability of light coming into the house. Fortunately, the Canon EOS C300 camera is equipped with the Emmy Award winning high-sensitivity Canon Super 35mm CMOS sensor, advanced Canon DIGIC DV III image processor, and a 50 Mbps 4:2:2 MPEG-2 codec for capture of full 1920 x 1080 HD at a selectable ISO range of up to 80,000 for outstanding low-light performance.
I would never say that any camera is a replacement for using lights, but these new cameras are way more sensitive to light, Emmett said. That makes it easier when you're in a smaller space and you need to use smaller lights, or if you don't have the on-set power or a generator for the huge lights you'd typically use on a bigger movie. In this regard, the Canon EOS C300 camera is perfect because you can just crank up the ISO and you really can't even see the difference. It's quite remarkable now.
We were losing light all day long, adds Partridge. The EOS C300 camera let us be resourceful. We didn't have to saturate the set with light so much, which made us able to move quickly from set-up to set-up. It was nice that we didn't have to make huge sacrifices a
