What does a guy have to do to find a high quality, informative BTSV around here? Apparently I have to start looking at videos that were released years ago. Here is a quick BTS Chase made over 2 years ago. We haven't ever posted it but if you have seen it, don't get mad at us; good BTSVs are hard to come by these days. ><
If you have ever watched an action movie or fantasy movie, you have probably heard people taking about how anything can be done with CGI. But how many times have you stopped to consider what was actually real and what was computer graphics? In today's movies, the line between reality and computer animation is more blurred than ever and that's why I enjoyed watching this short film about the movie Underworld Evolution. It's always crazy to me to see how creative camera angles and complex stunt rigging can be combined with computer graphics to produce these shots we are so used to seeing on the big screen.
Underworld Evolution - Behind The Scenes from Jeff Castelluccio on Vimeo.
I am a huge fan of the technology behind movie special effects. Here is a quick look behind the scenes of the movie John Adams. It's amazing what is possible these days. <
You may not be one of the 1% of Americans who owns a Visa Black card but that does not mean you cannot enjoy their marketing. This video was sent in by Grant Lankford and features Curt Morgan and his team at Brain Farm as they work on the current ad campaign for the Visa Black Card. Everything about this video is sick from the choppers, the model in black leather, the one of a kind black yacht, and of course the cinematography. This video shows just how much creativity you can have with a simple concept like "back in black". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqtAd6rG0c8<
Rich Legg is a successful stock photographer, and he goes all out in this video as he tries to make the prefect stock photo of a movie theater audience. If you haven't checked out stock photography, I highly encourage you to sign up and test your skills. Nothing proves whether your photography is marketable or not like putting it up on a site like shutterstock or istockphoto. This video is great on how to light large groups and also how to efficiently gather model releases from a large pool of model.
Annie Leibovitz is perhaps the most well known photographer in the world and her work always stands out from the crowded world of photography. While her Louis Vuitton campaign with Sean Connery is a few years old now, there is still a lot of great information to be gained from the beach shoot. Using nothing more than a Photek Softlighter, Annie balances her ambient light well with her soft broad lighting to create a really awesome series of images. ><
Here is a very simple but totally informative video about splash photography. I cannot figure out who this photographer is, if you happen to know please post it in the comments below. <
Dave, Jono, and Braden are some fun lads from Australia who like to sling around burning metal during their photoshoots. Luckily for our readers they decided to participate in the behind the scenes video contest and show everyone how they too can get this wild effect. Check out this interesting video and feel free to leave comments for the guys below! <
Andrew Roshka doesn't like to shoot the average portrait. Instead Andrew begins with an idea and a drawing. He then brings this concept to life no matter how complicated that may be. Check out this great BTSV on his very in depth shoot.
fstoppers.com bts Andrew Roshka - high res from Andrew Roshka on Vimeo.
I was just introduced to Freddie's youtube channel and I am blown away. Freddie and his friends keep creating fantastic videos with some impressive homemade CGI and then they explain how they did it. Watch this BTS below and the finished product in the full post. <
Philip Bloom is an amazing British DP, Director, and Film Maker who also works hard to bring us some neat gadget to use out in the field when filming DSLR video. When I saw this timelapse video of Monument Valley out in Utah, I knew this BTS video/audio would appeal to our landscape photographers who are often stuck watching fashion and commercial videos. So in an effort to change it up a bit, go ahead and load both the audio and video tracks (hit play and then pause) and start with the audio track. Philip also outlines a lot of the gear used in this timelapse over at his blog so check that out too. Enjoy Monument Valley commentary by PhilipBloom
As Lee has posted earlier, this week we are going to continue to feature some of our favorite BTS videos from the FS Contest. Austin, TX based photographer Sans Talbot really raised the bar on the contest when he filmed the shooting of his visual concept "Spitfire". This video is great on many levels but what I really love is the effort Sans puts into educating other photographers on how they too can get other creative professionals involved in their photoshoots. Sans also goes into great detail about how he combined multiple images to create one large file for his final rendering. Enjoy. <
Some of you may remember Keith Bradshaw and his DIY Steadicam Merlin. Well Keith is at it again with a few DIY techniques and some very creative video ideas. I think Keith's music video and BTS video are probably the most involved video of all of the contest submissions. Even if you are not shooting music videos I think there is something to take away from this video. Keith also knocks out a great photograph in the middle of the BTS video as well. I'm sure you guys will have lots of questions about this so feel free to leave a comment below and be sure to click the full post to watch the full music video.
The Making of "Mr. Wonderful" from Keith Bradshaw on Vimeo.
We were first introduced to Tom Guilmette's work last week when he showed us how to shoot slow motion video at 718 fps. This next video is even better! Tom takes us behind the scenes of a Big East college basketball game. Cox Sports shows us everything that goes into producing a sports program at the event and piping it to your television at home. After watching the last 3 minutes or so of real time action, I think I would have a nervous breakdown if I had to work on something like this day in and day out. Tom has more information on his blog; hope you guys enjoy! <
Mark Lebryk decided to try something a bit different for his BTS contest entry and we are glad he did! Mark worked together with his client Ultrasun USA to show what goes into shooting product photos for a website. In a nutshell, Mark takes over 100 photographs of each tanning bed, retouches each one, and then renders them into an interactive 360 degree web presentation. Check out Mark's video and be sure to head over to Ultrasun USA to view the final products online.
The bar has officially been raised. Thomas Woodson and Grant Lankford just submitted an amazing BTSV for the contest. This video has it all; it is fun to watch, it is informative, and it has fantastic final images. The most exciting part to me though is that they did all of this with just 1 strobe and a bed sheet! These guys are both in College (Thomas looks like he may be in 5th grade) with minimum gear and yet they managed to created one of the most compelling BTSVs I have seen in a very long time. Feel free to ask them questions below and check out Thomas' detailed forum post about car photography here.
Behind The Scenes Corvette Photo Shoot from Grant Lankford on Vimeo.
Let me begin by saying that this BTSV is not very informative. I usually only post videos that will help others learn but I must make an exception. This video is the most beautiful behind the scenes video I have ever seen. As creative professionals this video should be inspiring to us all on so many levels. Who would have thought that you could turn a simple photoshoot into a work of art. Thank you Richie Thomassen, you have given me something to aspire to. It is time to step up the video production of our BTSVs. Oh, and I almost forgot; the photographer is Wynn Ruji and his car portfolio is fantastic.
Jaguar XJ | Behind the Scenes from Richie Thomassen on Vimeo.
A few days ago I posted a video this duo created to help all the haters understand that expensive gear does not equal quality pictures. Well Zach And Corinne are back at it again with their contest entry. I was hoping for something a bit more in depth from these guys but they packed some quality into 3 minutes.
Ok, not REALLY, but that was the concept for the shoot. I like this BTSV for 2 reasons. First, he has a concept. So many photographers just take headshots of girls and forget about coming up with any sort of idea or theme for the pictures. Lorand Peli planned this shoot out before he ever started and it shows. The second reason I really like this video is because the finished pictures are high quality. I have seen a few contest submissions where the concept is fantastic but the finished product falls short. Enjoy this BTSV while trying not to feel dirty with all of the "interesting camera angles." <
This week we are featuring a few standout BTS videos created by our readers for the Fstoppers Behind the Scenes Contest ending this Saturday. If you want to see all of the submissions jump on over to the forum and see how the competition is shaping up. In the meantime, you have to check out what Parker Smith and his [jr]high school friends created for the contest. While the photography itself is nothing ground breaking, seeing young photographers like Luke and Trent work with other teenagers is nothing short of inspiring. It just goes to show what a little initiative and some creativity can do.
BTS - Poolside Photo Shoot from Parker Smith on Vimeo.
On the heals of Isaiah Mustafa, we were sent this already viral video on a parody of the old spice commercial for the Harold B. Lee Library at BYU. Unfortunately, Old Spice does not film behind the scenes videos of their commercials so you are left only hearing about how it was shot after the fact (which is great nevertheless). Watch this fun video by Stephen Jones and Scott Winn over at http://www.scottdavidwinn.com/ on how they created a spoof of the original for their alma mater. Click the full post to watch the full version; it's almost as good as the Old Spice versions. <
This week we are going to be featuring some of our favorite BTS videos submitted to our Behind the Scenes Contest that ends this Saturday! When this video from photographer Klaus (if he really even is a photographer) was posted on our Forum, it sparked up a lot of dialog. It may not be the most complicated photoshoot or even the most educational but it is the most fun and entertaining photoshoot of all of the contest entries. Photography and photographers need a sense of humor and this video accomplishes just that. Hope you guys enjoy and make sure you have your videos completed and posted by Saturday night! <
Everybody likes the old spice towel guy and his single take commercials right? Well they are some of the most popular commercials of all time because nobody can figure out how they were shot. It kills me that they don't film complete BTSVs of the whole process but we have the next best thing below. Isiah Mustafa, the towel guy himself, will walk you through it. Video Game - E3 2011 - Movies and TV
Want to know what goes into creating a few seconds of a Domino's Pizza commercial? How often do you screw your pizza into the table? By the way, I think their hand model may be a serial killer when she isn't pulling cheese. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stzmHm6eF-0<
Doug Howell just submitted his BTSV for the contest. This video is short but it packs in the technical details! It's great to see the making of a real advertisement from start to finish. Please remember to give Doug some feedback below. ><
Benjamin "Von Wong" just submitted his BTS contest entry that was shot by Eric Bindman. This is our first large production entry and is defiantly an inspiring watch. The pictures can be seen here and I must say, they are quite stunning. I think Benjamin may have easily won this contest if he had given more technical detail about the shoot itself but hey, I am not going to be the judge. Please remember to give Ben some feedback by commenting below, he made this video to help all of us. <
Jeff Calbom just sent this amazing video over to us. This group of guys decides to travel across the US in 14 days while creating one of the most complicated stop motion videos I've ever seen. Nothing will ever be more complicated than this stop motion video though. You can view the BTSV below and the final product in the full post. <
As you all know The iPhone Fashion Shoot created a heated debate on the internet. I responded to all of the haters but according to my scientific tests, 95% of internet trolls are illiterate so they never read it. I have been getting tons of emails from people who want me to do the shoot again with only lights from Lowes but I am not really interested. The shoot was fun to do once, I proved my point, and I don't want to be known as "the iPhone photographer" so I am going back to only using my camera phone to take pictures of my drunk friends. Thankfully there are others out there that have my back. Zach Andrews and Corinne Alexandra created a quick video in which they take a beautiful portrait with a lamp, a window, a sheet, and a point and shoot. Once again talent trumps gear. Photoshoot for DIY-ers from Zach Andrews on Vimeo.
I'm always interested in underwater photoshoots because I've failed miserably trying to do my own underwater shoots in the past. I was happy when I came across this video created by Speedo where they show you exactly how they came up for their new 2010 print ad campaign. It's a shame they don't showcase photographer Martin Brent more than they do but they do a great job showing how the idea was first created and the process of going from idea to final rendering. <
Nathan Smith and Chris David had a shoot lined up with the Rydell Belles, a local roller Derby team. Nathan didn't have a video camera or professional editing software but he managed to create a BTS video anyway. The final images may not blow your mind but the video should be a huge inspiration because Nathan created this with his iPhone 3gs and iMovie. Half way through this thing I realized that I was captivated by a totally informative video with no audio and terrible video quality. This is a great example of how good editing can make up for a lack of gear. Great job guys. >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPnurfSOJ08<
Mike Sisk of FX Studios just sent this video over to us. He used falling paper to make his background a bit more interesting and appeared to tether his camera to his iPad to review his shots. Cool idea!
As a photographer, I really enjoy seeing how the film guys approach their filming and there is no better way to learn than to watch behind the scenes of some larger productions. Check out what Sam Nicholson and his team of videographers did with the new ARRI Alexa Camera in their short film called "World Cup". Click the full post to see the final product. <
When I first saw this video it put a big smile on my face. I really wish the photographer had shared some insight on this video since it seems like such a unique situation but we are just left with this short clip. You can see the final photos here but I'm not sure why they did not use a more interesting shot of the bear.
It's rare that I watch a BTS video that gets me all excited but Cole Barash has done it. This video reminds me of what Fstoppers is all about because I am once again inspired. When you think that it has all been done before it's nice to be reminded how wrong you are. Check out the final shots from this fantastic shoot here. Please remember to comment below and give this photographer some love. ><
Love her or hate her, you have to admit Lada Gaga is a breath of fresh air when it comes to being creative with her music videos and photoshoots. When it comes to going all out in both production and creative thinking, Lada Gaga is always an inspiration. In this video you can see just how many looks she goes through to find a compelling image for the cover. And I'm sure the "throw away" images made some pretty good article photos as well.
Go behind the scenes with beauty photographer Scott Wright as he creates a print ad for McCann. There is no talking unfortunately but you can see that the lighting is fairly straight forward and I'm sure lots of work goes into the retouching afterwards. Check out the final image as Scott combines all the elements which make a typical ad you may find in a women's magazine.
I have been on Vimeo for probably an hour going through one terrible BTS video after another. There is so much talent out there but so many of these videos have no details and are so boring. That all changed when I ran across Patrick Boivin's "AT-AT Day Afternoon." The BTS video has no talking but it is still totally informative. The finished video is in the full post and it is AMAZING.
Our website is finally working again as the traffic from the iPhone video slows down. We are going to get back to releasing 1 BTS video every day. Friday night we had an Fstoppers get together in NYC and it was a big hit. About 22 photographers showed up including Tkae Mendez. Tkae just sent this great BTS video over to me. Enjoy...
A few weeks ago I did a full fashion photo shoot with my iPhone 3gs. I posted a few of the images and asked people to critique them (never exposing that they were shot on my cell phone). I couldn't help but laugh when a few of our readers claimed that these were "the best images I had ever taken." Nobody ever claimed that they were too grainy, too soft, or lacked detail. View this full post to read the full story and see the high res shots from this photoshoot. ><
Hope everyone in America is having a happy 4th of July. Thought you guys might get a kick out of the latest Dodge Challenger Behind the Scenes commercial. Thanks to Thomas on the forum for sharing this with us! Click the full post to watch the final commercial. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLa6NGduJ_c<
George Chatzakis is an advertising and fashion photographer based out of Greece. For the last Porcelana ad campaign, George used a bunch of small point and shoot cameras to get that "matrix" style effect where multiple camera angles are capturing in the exact same moment in time. It's a really cool, and expensive, trick you have probably seen on MTV or on the big screen. The little bit of talking in this video is in another language but I think there is still a lot to be taken from watching this short video. Hope all our American readers are having a good holiday weekend!
Porcelana - Making Of from Real Creations on Vimeo.
Tobi, one of our readers, just pointed me to this video. This is a fantastic example of a great concept for a photo shoot. After you check out the video you can see Scott's website here. ><
Joseph just sent this BTS video over to me. The video is lacking but the images are so good that I wanted to post this anyway. It is pretty amazing what you can do with a small softbox on a stick. You can view more details about this shoot and the final images here. ><
Earlier in the week we posted a quick video from Annie's photoshoot with Keith Richards. Today I thought I'd share an interview Time Magazine did with Leibovitz where she talks about some of her work, what it's like running a photoshoot, how she used to work with her assistants, and the whole Miley Cyrus controversy. There are no cameras or crazy lighting in this video but I think all of that stuff becomes secondary in comparison to being a confident photographer, having great ideas, and executing a productive photoshoot. Hope you enjoy <
I'm a big fan of Annie Leibovitz's photography (who isn't), and a few weeks ago I was admiring this photograph she did of Keith Richards for Louis Vuitton. I was really happy when I found a short behind the scenes video of it via Strobist even though the quality is really poor. Click the post to view the final image and hopefully you can see how relatively simple this photoshoot was in lighting. It's the overall production and attention to detail that really makes this image so awesome.
I was just chatting with some people from Atlanta about which photographer to feature for the next FS video and Zack Arias seemed to be the hands down favorite. Well Chase Jarvis beat us to it so I'll pass this along to you. I have no idea how you can have a 2 hour video on youtube but if you have time to watch this check it out; they cover quite a bit of interesting topics that are sure to help you with your own photography and business. Enjoy <
Zak Shelhamer has just submitted his contest entry; a behind the scenes video of him shooting his buddy on a motorcycle. The shoot isn't complicated at all and that is why I love it. Zak uses a van, 2 lights, and a stick to create very compelling images. You can join the dialog about this video below in the comments or head over to his forum post here.
The first time I clicked on Paul Ripke's website and saw the images on it, I knew I had found something special. Fstoppers reader Thomas send us this video and Tobi helped translate what is going on this video. It maybe a little long for some of you especially if you only understand English but it's still pretty awesome. Check out the full post to see the images and a simple translation of how Paul is shooting this watch ad.
Douglas Sonders is an amazing photographer out of Washington DC, and his work is very stylized with studio lighting and exotic action themes. Check out this behind the scenes video as he brings out the weapons, poker chips, and Bond characters during his Secret Agent shoot. Also check out his website for more inspiring work!
Secret Agent Photoshoot - Douglas Sonders Photography from Douglas Sonders on Vimeo.
