Hello and welcome to my blog.
In this post, I'm going to be explaining 'How I Shot It', with 'It' referring to this corporate headshot interview I shot recently.
I will be describing the kit used, how I decided on the background/space to shoot in and where I decided to position lighting.
If you are wondering how to shoot these types of corporate interviews, then this is the post for you!
So let's dive right in!
The very first thing I had to do with this interview shoot, and like most shoots, is to determine where to position the subject for the interview. Which background is the best? Where is there the most depth, and will lend itself well to the interview?
I felt that with the background I chose, we had a perfect balance between having enough interest and depth without looking too cluttered.
-I felt that having the wooden slatted wall offered an interesting dynamic to the shot.
-The people working at their desks behind the wall gave a subtle hint of movement.
-The yellow chairs gave a lovely pop of colour, but weren't too distracting.
-The company logo on a sign in the background topped the shot off!
What I always think about when lining up an interview shot is something a director said to me a long time ago:
"Set your background and then place your subject in front of it."
Obviously the background can change and be tweaked after the subject is added, but I always find it to be a good starting point, especially if you're stuck!
I used my trusty Sony FS7 camera for this interview. I've had this camera for a few years now, and even though it's by no means Sony's most high end or most expensive camera these days, if you use it right (and you are aware of the necessities of your footage) you can still establish the stunning results you're after.
Shooting in XAVC-I Codec with SLog3 gamma SGamut3.cine gamut at 4K resolution allowed me to push the FS7 to its limits, in terms of bitrate, resolution and gamma curve.
There are many occasions where I wouldn't necessarily shoot in these camera settings- for example if I was more concerned about run time on my cards, or I knew that the footage needed to be turned around quickly and I didn't have time to colour grade the rushes. But thankfully, in this instance I had the luxury of not having to worry about these things! I knew that all I had to shoot was a single interview that wouldn't take long, and I would have plenty of space to record onto my XQD cards. Also, the footage was being sent off to be edited properly by an editor who knew what they were doing when it comes to handling footage of large file sizes in need of colour grading.
TOP TIP: I always make sure that if I'm not editing the footage myself, I touch base with the editor beforehand and discuss the camera settings to ensure that everyone is happy with how it will be shot!
I made the decision to shoot in 4K, though I knew that it would be delivered in 1080p. This is because the interview would only be shot once, from one angle, single camera. Ideally, I'd always love to have two cameras to shoot an interview, to have a second angle to cut to in the edit. But in this case, due to budget, I could only shoot with one camera. Therefore, shooting in 4K allowed the editor the ability to 'punch in' to a tighter shot, from the same footage. Therefore rescuing the interview from any sticky situations in the edit, which may not have been noticed on the shoot!
The lens that I used for this interview is a 50mm Sigma Prime lens, and thanks to the internal ND's on the FS7, I was able to shoot wide open at f/1.7 aperture. Its a lovely lens that I often try to use for interviews. Wide open at f/1.7, it gives a super shallow depth of field, which I feel is helpful during interviews, as you want your main focus to be on the subject, listening to what it is they're saying.
Finally, I had to light!
I had to establish my key light, and for this I used the Amaran F22x. A brilliant and powerful for it's size panel light, ranging from 2,500K to 7,500K. I set it to 5600K, as there was daylight spilling into the background and from behind the light, so I wanted it to match the natural daylight in the room as much as possible. I added an eggcrate to ensure a more directional light, and not too much unwanted overspill.
Now you may be wondering why I put a large black drape over those booths to the right of the image. These booth doors essentially created a big glass wall. I didn't want any weird reflections and/or colours bouncing off the glass onto the subject, especially as I was directing our key light right at the glass! So the best solution was to cover it up completely. (If you don't have a large black drape in your kit, get one! You never know when you'll need it!)
This did mean, however, that it sucked all light out of the left side of the subject's face. For a more dramatic shoot, like a hard hitting documentary interview, I probably would have embraced this. However, I wanted the footage to be bright and clean. So I added a small polyboard to give a little bit of fill on the subject's left side, but didn't want over do it with another light, as I liked a little bit of shape to the lighting on the subjects face.
Next, as a backlight, I added a SmallRig panel, which was clamped to the metal light fixture on the ceiling. That was some luck having a light fixture like that directly above the subject!
I was really happy with the outcome of this shoot, as was the client. The footage was clean, and of a high standard.
And, as always, my trusty FS7 had delivered!
I hope that you enjoyed reading this post, and that if you're just starting in the world of shooting interviews, some of the techniques and ideas outlined in this post may be useful to you on your next shoot!
Stick around for more blog posts soon, and as always, please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions, or if you need something shot for yourself.
In the meantime, enjoy this still frame of me standing in for myself whilst lighting the shot...
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