Random photos and commentary from artist and photographer Robert Giordano. An eclectic collection of images that may or may not have any relevance to anything. Use only as directed.
On Friday, November 2, 2012, people of all ages painted their faces like skeletons and descended on Fat Village Arts District in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. There was a skeleton procession down Andrews Ave., art exhibitions, live music, circus performers, custom cars, food trucks, and more. To see more of my photos, visit my Facebook album, Day of the Dead 2012.
Tonight I went to Club Cinema in Pompano Beach, FL and filmed DJ Steve Aoki jumping from the second level balcony into an inflatable kiddie pool held up by the crowd!! This was the second time I've done video of Steve Aoki and he always puts on a good show. Last time, I didn't get any good footage of his balcony jump because I was behind the stage. This time I positioned myself on the opposite balcony so I could have a good view of the action. It still wasn't easy. The club was so packed that I sandwiched between people that were constantly jumping up and down and pushing against the railings. I have no idea how I managed to hold the camera as steady as I did.
Nikon D7000 camera with Nikkor 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G DX lens. ISO 1600. Zoom Digital Recorder.
Tonight I decided to make a music video. I was inspired by Ajapai's track, Incoming (Taku Remix) and thought it would be perfect for time lapse. You can purchase the music track here.
I shot the "intro" part of the video with a Nikon D7000 and several manual focus lenses. I shot it all at f/2.8, ISO 1600. If you look closely and pause the video in the right spot, you can see my custom camera mount I installed in my 2012 Scion xD. Yes, its a slightly modified tripod. I tried a number of different ways to mount a camera but mounting a DSLR and having it remain in position while driving around, over speed bumbs, etc., was a bit of a challenge. Filming the intro was fairly straightforward. I already had a list of shots that I wanted. I waited until the parking lot was empty, and I positioned the car exactly where I wanted it. I shot 3 times as much footage as I needed and I must have at least a dozen clips of myself getting into my car. In the end, I didn't use all of the shots from my original list. They just didn't fit with the flow of the music. Maybe I'll include these "deleted scenes" on the special edition DVD, lol.
I used a Nikon D90 for the time lapse. The moon was out and there were just enough clouds in the sky to make it interesting. I also thought Saturday night would be the best time to drive around South Beach. I connected the D90, filled up at a gas station, and started the time lapse controller. I had already figured out my route and for the next couple of hours, I just drove around and listened to my camera click every few seconds. My camera took more than 4700 pictures before I ended up back at my house. The video ends just as I'm getting back on I-95 to return home but I wanted more footage than I needed so I could play around with stretching parts of the time lapse to match some of the breaks in the track.
If you like this video, please share it on your page and consider buying the track from Ajapai. Do you need a time lapse film? Contact me at www.Design215.com.
Equipment used for the video:
- Nikon D7000 camera
- Nikon D90 camera
- Nikon AF DX 10.5mm f/2.8 fisheye lens
- Nikkor 24mm f/2.8 manual focus lens
- Nikon AF-S DX Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 lens
- Nikkor 105mm f/2.5 manual focus lens
- Manfrotto 3021BN tripod
- custom Manfrotto camera mount for 2012 Scion xD
- custom time lapse controller
- modified Nikon EH-5a power supply
- 2012 Scion xD, 5 speed manual, TRD suspension
Route:
1. I-95 South to Miami / 395 East.
2. Right on Alton Road.
3. Left on S Point Drive.
4. Left on Ocean Drive.
5. Left on 5th Street.
6. Right on Collins Ave.
7. Left on Lincoln Road.
8. Left on Washington Ave.
9. Right on 2nd St.
10. Right on Alton Rd.
11. Exit to I-195 West.
12. Left on Biscayne Blvd.
13. Right on SE 2nd St.
14. Left on Brickell Ave.
15. U-Turn on Brickell Ave at 14th Terr.
16. Right on Biscayne Blvd.
17. Left on 82nd St.
18. Right on I-95 North ramp
Wandering around downtown Fort Lauderdale, I ended up at Revolution Live for the 12th Planet show. I took this shot with my Nikon D7000 and 10.5mm fisheye lens. This fisheye is becoming one of my favorite lenses. It has a much wider field of view than my 12-24mm f/4.0 and I have several aftermarket plugins for Photoshop that can correct the distortion inherent with fisheye lenses, if I want to do so. The fact that this an f/2.8 lens makes it quite versatile.
Nikon D7000 with Nikon 10.5mm f/2.8 fisheye lens. Exposure: f/2.8 1/4s ISO 800.
Here's my friend Sheyenne Rivers at Bull Bar in Delray Beach, singing "Zombie" by the Cranberries. Homero Gallardo is on guitar. I used my Nikon D7000 with a Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 lens and a Zoom H2 recorder for the sound. Exposure was f1.8 1/30 @ ISO 1600. Considering how loud the crowd in the bar was, I'm actually surprised at how well the sound came out. I had the rear mics on the H2 turned off. I think the video quality of the D7000 is excellent, especially at ISO 1600. Watch any of my other videos and you'll see what I'm talking about. I'm usually shooting at night, in some poorly lit venue. Everyone raves about using the Canon 7D for video but I think the D7000 surpasses it for low light capability.
Tonight I went to Monterey Club in Fort Lauderdale to shoot my friend's metal band, The Shovel and the Fury. My friend Dee Mulligan is on the left, playing lead guitar. Watch as I try to hold my Nikon D7000 steady in a mosh pit, lol. Personally, I think I did a pretty good job of holding the camera steady with no tripod. I used my old school 24mm f/2.8 prime lens for a wider view than my 35mm f/1.8. I knew I wasn't gonna have much room to move around. I used my Zoom H2 to record the sound. The built in mic on the D7000 would have been WAY overpowered by the sound at this show!
Wednesday, I was invited to shoot Steve Aoki at Club Cinema. I photographed DJ Aoki at the Ultra Music Festival earlier this year. Club Cinema in Pompano Beach used to be a multi-screen movie theater before it was converted into a club several years ago. As you can see, its a fairly large venue. For this video, I used my Nikon D7000 with a Nikon 35mm f/1.8 lens. I also used a Zoom H2 digital recorder for the sound. Unless its been a big, multi-camera production for television or film, I haven't seen anyone else capture the live sound at these events. This is probably because the music is so loud, it overpowers most built-in mics. After a little trial and error, I learned how to set the levels on the H2 and I think the live sound is so much better than simply adding some random music track to the video later.
Tonight, I went to see my friend's band, The Necrophiles, at Monterey, a small bar in Fort Lauderdale. I brought my Nikon D7000 and Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 lens. I really think the D7000 is superior to the Canon 7D for shooting video in low light. I've been a professional still photographer for over 10 years but I'm just getting started with video. I shot some video with my D90 but I wasn't impressed. With the D7000, I can shoot in situations like this dimly lit bar and it looks like something from a movie set. Take a look at the establishing shots of the bar at the beginning of the video and see if you don't agree. I just started learning how to edit video in Adobe Premiere so my skills are very basic. My lesson for this video was adding titles and fading them in and out. I'll get better. You have to start somewhere.
I recorded the audio using the D7000's built in microphone. While it isn't horrible, its a good thing the band wasn't very loud. The D7000 has a stereo input jack so I definitely need to look into an external recorder like a Zoom H2 or H4N.
I went on a road trip to Baltimore, Maryland for Edgar Allan Poe's 200th birthday and I stopped to visit my friend Kellen. Among other things, she is quite an awesome pianist. She's also a Poe fan. =)
Saturday night I stopped by O'Hara's Pub on Las Olas in Fort Lauderdale to hear my friend Sheyenne Rivers sing. The band was great. Sheyenne was great. Everyone had a good time. Unfortunately I heard that O'Hara's is closing and Sunday (today) is their last day. I'll ask Shy where's she's playing next.
I was invited to shoot the "Techno Sluts" show at Voodoo Lounge in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, September 26. I've been to these shows before but this one was amazing. In a few days I'll have a gallery of photos from the event on my myspace.
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