Stunning Good Looks
Cinematographer Art Adams has worked in the film industry for 25 years. He shoots spots as well as corporate marketing, visual effects, web and interactive/mobile projects. He also consults for a variety of motion picture equipment vendors in the areas of usability and interface design, equipment training, and scientific comparative testing of products.
Art likes to write articles that explore the hidden side of the tools and techniques many take for granted. He's been published in HD Video Pro, American Cinematographer, Australian Cinematogra...
Read More
One more chapter in my "It's not the camera, it's the creativity behind the camera" series.
By Art Adams | September 19, 2011
One of the best things about this business is that greatness lurks around every corner. If you are resourceful and creative you'll find it well enough.
Read More
7 Comments
Yup, I got interviewed. If you have an hour to spare, here's where to find it.
By Art Adams | July 13, 2011
Izzy Hyman, of the website Izzy Video, interviewed me yesterday for his "Meet the Shooter" series.
Read More
0 Comments
What's the best camera to use when shooting in an elevator? A small one. Hellooooo Canon 5D...
By Art Adams | June 19, 2011
Over time I've come to respect the Canon 5D. It's not the most user friendly of cameras, and it has some fairly serious faults, but if you can avoid the pitfalls it can make very pretty images.
Read More
1 Comments
Wouldn't it be great if someone designed an easy-to-use color chart that could be quickly and easily used in the field? Well, someone did. And they call it The Hawk.
By Art Adams | June 17, 2011
It wasn't until I worked at the DSC Labs booth at NAB that I discovered The Hawk... and it blew me away. It's a very simple chart, but it offers a colorist (professional or amateur) the most critical information necessary to accurately neutralize your raw, log, or even WYSIWYG images.
Read More
15 Comments
The project started out as a web-only teaser. When the client saw it they added another shoot day and turned it into a national spot. Here's why, and how.
By Art Adams | June 11, 2011
Originally slated to be a web-only spot, the first shoot day went so well that when the client saw the results they ordered a second shoot day, added an actor and made a $1m+ national ad buy.
Read More
0 Comments
If you've always wanted to find out if I present on video as well as I write... click here to find out!
By Art Adams | April 20, 2011
I spent a lot of time in the DSC Labs booth at NAB, giving Chroma Du Monde demonstrations and teaching basic waveform/vectorscope tricks. PVC's Scott Gentry stopped by and asked me to say a few words on video, and this is the result. Enjoy!
Read More
0 Comments
By Art Adams | April 18, 2011
The client wanted contrasty toplight against seamless white, and then they wanted to intercut that with stock footage shot on film. Thanks to Arri's Alexa, what the client wants--the client gets. In spades.
Read More
2 Comments
In case you want to play "meet the troublemaker," here's how to find me.
By Art Adams | April 08, 2011
I'm constantly amazed at how many readers I have, and if you'd like to amaze me more by stopping by and saying hi I'll be in the DSC Labs booth (C10215, near Band Pro, Tiffen and Abel Cine) on Monday and Tuesday, with shorter appearances Wednesday and Thursday as I'll be wandering around a bit more. I'm also on a DP Track panel with Geoff Boyle, FBKS, Roberto Schafer, ASC and Michael Bravin on Sunday in room 258, which I'm told is to the rear of the north hall, second floor.And for those of you who are on the Cinematography Mailing List, I'll be at the CML Party Tuesday night--although I'll probably stop by the latest camera assessment screening first.See you at NAB!
Read More
2 Comments
Take these to heart and become the editor's best friend.
By Art Adams | February 28, 2011
Slate training was my introduction to one of the most important tenets of filmmaking: always think of the next person down the production line. In the case of slating, this means taking care of the poor assistant editor who has to sync and track dailies based on your notes and your slating technique.
Read More
6 Comments
Of all the apps I've found, these are the most helpful.
By Art Adams | February 18, 2011
It seems everyone and their sister's friend's cousin has made a list of indispensable cinematography iPhone apps. Now it's my turn. Let's see how original I am.
Read More
1 Comments
Director Ian McCamey, Adam Wilt and myself take the AF-100 out for a spin in real world conditions.
By Art Adams | February 08, 2011
The Panasonic AF-100 is getting a lot of buzz as a possible HDSLR killer. We used it in the real world in place of an HDSLR, and now we know. And soon, so will you. Read on...
Read More
13 Comments
The true barrier to cinematography success isn't youth-it's experience. Here's what a budding DP needs to know about building a career.
By Art Adams | January 09, 2011
This is my response to a question posted to the Cinematography Mailing List by a young film student who is chafing at the bit to be a director of photography as soon as possible.
Read More
1 Comments
A $250,000 camera, 60,000w of tungsten lighting, 1000fps, kids, animals… what could go wrong? Not much, as it turns out.
By Art Adams | December 14, 2010
A while back I wrote this article about some high speed tests I did in preparation for an upcoming regional spot. The results convinced the client, Rambus, that the extra expense of shooting their upcoming spots at 1000fps was well worth it.
Read More
0 Comments
Changing an HD camera's ISO has a greater impact on an image than simply affecting exposure. Learn what's really happening... and take advantage of it!
By Art Adams | October 08, 2010
My previous Arri Alexa article showed you how the camera's dynamic range responds to different ISO settings. In this shorter article I'll show you why that's useful and practical information.
Read More
10 Comments
Always push exposure to the limits. But learn where the limits are first!
By Art Adams | September 28, 2010
Knowing that the Arri Alexa has 15 or so stops of dynamic range is nice, but it's hardly useful information unless you know how those stops are arranged at different ISO settings. Fortunately I've done the hard work for you.
Read More
26 Comments
A directory of my best articles, sorted by topic.
By Art Adams | August 30, 2010
This entry is a guide to my best articles, sorted by topic. Enjoy!
Read More
0 Comments
The DSC 102db chart doesn't lie: This is what it tells us about how the 5D sees the world.
By Art Adams | August 30, 2010
The Canon 5D does a remarkable job of making HD images, considering that it was originally never intended to do so. So how much dynamic range can it really capture? Thanks to the DSC 102db (17-stop) latitude chart, we now have an objective answer.
Read More
25 Comments
When the camera sees more than my light meter does, it's time to acknowledge that the game has truly changed.
By Art Adams | August 20, 2010
My dream HD camera records footage with log-encoded gamma to ProRes for a fast, easy and accessible post workflow and cost-effective color grading. It has the simplest control interface ever. It sees in the dark. And it's built by a company whose gear I learned to trust early in my career when I started out as a camera assistant. The company is ARRI, and the camera is Alexa.
Read More
14 Comments
An 18-stop test chart, a tunnel made of showcard and a dozen yards of black plastic ground cover later, we have a pretty good idea of the RED MX's exposure latitude.
By Art Adams | July 31, 2010
When DSC Labs offered to send me a 102db (translation: 18-stop) exposure latitude chart, I just couldn't bring myself to say no. And, naturally, the first camera I wanted to test was the RED ONE MX. How much better is the new sensor? Let's take a look...
Read More
2 Comments
Get the right filter for the right camera!
By Art Adams | July 28, 2010
At long last, an update to my fabled IR Filter Cheat Sheet. Not every camera responds the same way to IR; make sure you have the right filter for the right job.
Read More
0 Comments
DBA Createasphere