Hurlbut Visuals » Contests

A Charity Poker Meet Up At NAB For Filmmakers

Shane — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 00:23:06 +0000

I am not a great poker player so I was surprised when Benjamin emailed to ask me to be a part of this event allinfilm.org/ALL-INfilm.html on Monday evening 4/12 in Las Vegas at The Hard Rock Cafe during the week of NAB. Then, I learned the details that a portion of the proceeds benefit the American Red Cross for the Haitian earthquake relief effort. It will be an evening of great fun that helps a fantastic cause.

The event will be held in a way to give players of all skill levels an opportunity to win a few awesome prizes. You can absolutely stink at poker and still win a prize worth hundreds of dollars! This is about meeting up with some fun people and giving out great prizes.

The current prize list (which keeps growing) is as follows:

-1 Steadicam Merlin
-1 Letus Mantis System
-1 Redrock Micro Ultraport DSLR Bundle
-1 Blackmagic Designs Intensity Pro
-1 Cinevate UNO DSLR Rig
-1 Zacuto Z-finder
-2 Zacuto Z-grips
-4 SmallHD monitors
-1 Schneider Optics 5-filter 4×4 pack
-1 Jag35 DSLR Cage
-1 Jag35 Follow Focus
-1 Glidetrack HDm1
-1 Kessler CineSlider
-15 CRAM Compressor plug-in licenses
-15 Schneider Optics Lens Cleaning Kits

See you in Vegas!

Vincent LaForet, Canon and Vimeo Video Contest

Shane — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 04:25:14 +0000

Vincent LaForet recently announced an exiting video contest where he is collaborating with Canon and Vimeo. I am excited to be one of the judges because I know the creative product will be amazing!

Here is an excerpt from Vincent:

“There is A LOT OF POTENTIAL here for something very special to come out at the end… each video chapter will start with and end with a still image… you need to interpret the previous photographer/filmmaker’s still to start the (your) subsequent chapter (those are pretty much the ONLY rules/guidelines (outside of the obvious))… should make for a pretty unique series of chapters in the end!

So watch the video above and find out more! I’m on vacation with family and I’ll get rolling with regular updates and much much more information early next week! For now – start charging those batteries… it’s your turn!

The Story Beyond the Still – Behind The Scenes from Vincent Laforet on Vimeo.

Judges for the contest include:

Philip Bloom - Director/DP

Russell Carpenter - DP – “Titanic”

Rodney Charters – Director/DP – “24”

Nick Childs – Director/Producer /VP Grey Advertising

Shane Hurlbut – DP – “Terminator Salvation”

Stu Maschwitz – Senior Visual FX Supervisor – “The Spirit”

Rick McCallum – Producer – “Star Wars”

Blake Whitman – Director/Editor – Mr. Vimeo himself.

I’ll be a judge as well of course.”

Tim’s Visit To Bandito Brothers

Shane — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:27:12 +0000

Tim was the second place winner for our “Where’s the 5D” online contest. He came to Bandito Brothers this week to meet me for lunch. It was an amazing experience for both of us! Tim is very bright with a vast knowledge of still photography.

Tim checking out the lights used on "Terminator:Salvation"

The day started out with Tim meeting Scotty Waugh, one of the directors of the untitled Navy SEAL movie. Then, Tim and I viewed a variety of scenes from the movie that have not yet been color corrected and we analyzed the shots for lighting and how well the Canon 5D held up to big screen projection. The footage held up very well!

Tim and Shane screen scenes from the movie

Then, we discussed the difference between the sensors in the Canon 5D and 7D cameras, as well as the depth of field. Tim is a huge fan of the 5D and I share his love of the big sensor.

Tim and Shane discussing the Canon 5D Mark II

Tim and I also discussed the nuances of lighting. He was shocked to learn that most of my films are practically lit with lights that come from Home Depot and Grainger.

Shane talks about the power of a 1500 watt metal hallide fixture from Grainger

The day ended with Tim examining our Hurlbut Visuals “Movie Maker in a Pelican” that will be available for rent in early 2010. He was there when our equipment came back from a Marine commercial and helped with the checking in process and organizing. Tim even offered to do lens testing over the holidays!

Tim checking out the pelican

Shane and Tim discuss lens choice

Thank-you Tim for spending the day with us and for your valuable contribution.

“Where’s The 5D” Winner Josh’s Visit To The Set

Shane — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:46:49 +0000

Josh came down to San Diego on Wednesday to join the me and the Elite Team for a 5am call. He stayed at the Indigo Hotel with us (my treat) the night before because I didn’t want him to have to drive all night for such an early shoot.

Josh behind the camera making movie magic.

In the morning, we lit a late afternoon day interior and talked about the different lighting options. Then, we moved to the cemetery to set up 9 cameras for the funeral shot. Josh operated a 5D with a 70-200 Canon zoom for the close-up shots of the Navy SEALS at a funeral. He also stayed on the same camera with the zoom to shoot a profile shot of the F18 flyover.

Josh in the zone feeling the shot.

Setting up for the next shot.

Josh and one of the Elite Team getting ready.

Josh surveying the next shot.

Making magic happen!

It was great to have Josh on the set with us and to get to know him better. Josh sent me a thank-you note which sums it all up in his words.

“Hi Shane,
I just wanted to say thanks again for having me on the set yesterday. I had
a great time, and it was cool to see a movie making such innovative use of
affordable new technology. I didn’t get to see that new 5d sizzle reel you
mentioned, but I’m sure I will be seeing it soon on your blog. I look
forward to seeing the film in the theater and trying to spot any footage
that came from the camera I was operating. Anyway, good luck with the rest
of the shoot, and let me know if you ever need anyone to help out again on
anything you do. I’m pretty much up for anything. Thanks again.”
Sincerely,
Josh

We Have A Winner To Our “Where’s the 5D” Contest

Shane — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:38:32 +0000

The “Where’s the 5D” contest was so close that the winner Josh beat our runner up Tim by a single shot. Josh will claim his prize this Wednesday when he visits me on the set for the day.

Where's the 5D winner announced!

We decided to add a runner up prize for Tim because he just only missed 2 shots of the entire sequence. Tim will have one hour of phone time to ask me any questions he would like.

Congratulations to both Josh and Tim!

A huge thank-you to everyone that participated for taking the time, giving your expertise in breaking down this sequence and making the contest so competitive. Don’t be discouraged if you didn’t win this time because we will have more contests in the future. I want to know your ideas for the grand prize!

Now, here are the answers:

Where’s the 5D?

00:00:00 – 00:00:14 // Wide shots of Yacht// Sony F950

00:00:15 – 00:1:00 // Girls on Yacht, underwater, girl next bell, girl walking down stairs with drink outside, girl walking down stairs in side yacht, girl walking into salon in yacht, guy getting shot from inside POV // Arri 235-Film

00:01:00 – 00:01:04 //Seals shoot bad guy from boat// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:04 – 00:01:06 //Wide shot of assault/ Overhead Helo// Sony F-950

00:01:06 – 00:01:10 //Seals assault yacht on boats// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:10 – 00:01:11 // Wide shot of Yacht and all the boats// Sony F950

00:01:11 – 00:01:18 // Seals approach yacht on boats and Helo// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:18 – 00:01:21 // Profile shot of Mark V going by Yacht// Sony F-950

00:01:21 – 00:01:24 //Seals in Boat, in Helo pushing rope out// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:24 – 00:01:25 // Helo to Helo shot of Seals fast roping// Sony F-950

00:01:25 – 00:01:27 // Looking up at Seal fast roping onto Yacht// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:27 – 00:01:30 // Wide shot from Helo watching Seals fast roping// Sony F950

00:01:30 – 00:01:31 //Seal lands on Yacht from Helo// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:31 – 00:01:32 //Profile of Mark V boat tracking on water// Sony F-950

00:01:32 – 00:01:38 // Seals move onto Yacht, moving with them// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:38 – 00:01:40 // Overhead shot of Zodiac off loading Seals// Sony F-950

00:01:40 – 00:01:50 // Seals assault the Yacht, they head down the side// Canon 5D MK II

00:01:50 – 00:01:51 // Wide Helo shot of 3 Seals heading down side of boat// Sony F-950

00:01:51 – 00:01:58 // Seals track down side of boat and shoot bad guy in head// Canon 5D MK II

Where’s the 5D?

Shane — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 18:36:52 +0000

Remember reading Where’s Waldo when you were a kid? We had so much fun playing a similar game to test your vision and your response was overwhelming! Thank-you for taking the time to play and making it so hard to choose a winner!

MIO

In this Mio sequence from our current Navy SEAL film project, we used two HD cameras the Canon 5D Mark II and the Sony 950. We also shot some of it with the Arri 235. There are subtle differences between 10 Bit HD with the Sony 950 and 8 Bit color space with the Canon 5D!

The Navy asked as to scrub the footage, so the contest is now over. However, the person who guessed it correctly will receive a prize from Hurlbut Visuals.

We will announce the winner on Monday November 2, 2009. Thank-you for participating!