Tag Archives: workshop

Everything Else, Tours, Travel

Northern Lights Photo and Video Tours Back On.

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Captured on the first night at the cabins in 2018.

 

After having to skip a year my Northern Lights tours are back on again starting January 2022. These trips are made for those that appreciate the beauty of nature. The arctic is a spectacular place in so many ways. Especially in winter when the low arctic sun skims along the horizon providing golden hour light all day.

During the long nights when the sky is clear the Northern Lights come out to play. The cold air provides very clear viewing and most guests are blown away by the numbers of stars visible. It’s a photographers paradise.

For more information take a look at the tour page. If you are interested, send me a message. 

Northern lights Expeditions.

PXW-FX9, Travel, Workshops and Events

PXW-FX9 Launch Event In Dubai. This Is Going To Be Fun!

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Really excited about this PXW-FX9 event in Dubai on the 14th of January at 5pm. Garage Studios are  building us 3 amazing film sets full of props, great actors with great period costumes. This won’t be a PowerPoint presentation, we will shoot a short film, grade the material, showing all the FX9’s key features. It will challenge the camera. It will probably challenge me! It will be fun, you will be surprised. I’m not going to reveal the film subject yet, so come join us if you can.

For a little insight into what we are planning – it won’t be this but it’s similar – Here’s a video of a previous Sony event at Garage Studio: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=716820215493428

Travel, Workshops and Events

Aurora Tours winter 2018/2019 – Now better value than ever!

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Bookings are now open for my winter 2018/2019 Aurora hunting adventure tours. Click here for the full details.

I’ve been running my Aurora adventure tours for 11 years and so far every trip has seen the Northern Lights. This year I had a couple of guests that had already travelled to Iceland and Finland in search of the Aurora, but had not seen it. So it was wonderful to see their faces when the Northern Lights came out to play for us most nights.

2018 was yet another great year for my Aurora tours. This picture taken on January 20th.

For the last couple of years I have been basing the tours out of Alta in Northern Norway, travelling from Alta to some cabins far off the beaten track at very special place just outside of the very small town of Karasjok. We stay at the cabins for several reasons.

1: It’s very different – only accessible by snow scooter.

2: It’s truly beautiful – a chance to get back to a slower way of life for a few days.

3: Clear skies – this location seems to deliver clear skies when many other areas are cloud covered.

4: Adventure – where else can you stand on the top of a hill and not see anything else man made from horizon to horizon.

We always try to get up onto the plateaux at some point. This view taken from a drone shows how desolate yet beautiful it is. Nothing man made from horizon to horizon.

Another Aurora picture from January 2018. This time Jan 19th.

So why not come and join me for an adventure you’ll remember forever? I’ll help you take your own photos or video of the Aurora if that’s what you want to do. Or just come and enjoy a bit of Sami culture as our host Oskar cooks traditional meals of reindeer, elk and salmon before we enjoy a traditional Sauna. During the day we go ice fishing, head out up on to the arctic plateaux by snow scooter or go dog sledding through the snow covered trees of the forest.

I’ve worked hard this winter to get the very best deals on the hotel and cabins that we stay at. As a result the cost of the tours is now lower than the past couple of years and I am even able to offer a really amazing early bird deal for those that book and pay 6 months before the tour. Full details here.

Workshops and Events

Digital Film Making Workshop – Dubai.

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I’m running a digital film making workshop in Dubai, December 15/16th 2017.

This 1.5 day course will take you through composition, lighting, and exposure (including color, gamma and exposure index) as well as post production including different grading techniques including LUT’s, S-Curves and color managed workflows. It will focus on how to create high quality, film-like images using the latest digital techniques. It will also cover one of the hotest topics right now which is HDR.

Day 2 will include practical sessions where different shooting techniques can be tested to compare how they effect the end result.

Full details of the workshop can be found here: http://www.amt.tv/event/Digital_Filmmaking_Workshop_Dubai/

Workshops and Events

Sony European Workshop Tour.

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The PXW-FS7, Sony best selling pro video camera.

Just to let you know that from next month Sony we will be holding a tour in selected European countries to showcase their Handheld camcorder range,  and as a result starting from November they will visit 4 locations across the UK, as detailed below. I will be in attendance at the UK events offering free advice and info, so if there is anything you are struggling with why not drop in and see me:

07/11/17              KitPlus Show, MediaCityUK Studios, Manchester, M50 2HQ

14/11/17              Vanilla, Great Titchfield Street, London, W1W 5BB

21/11/17              Principality Stadium, Cardiff, CF10 1NS

07/12/17              Glasgow Science Centre, Glasgow,G51 1EA

Sony will be exhibiting kit and I will be holding “HDR for All” seminars in all the above. The registration page can be found here:

http://m.info.pro.sony.eu/webApp/SonyProTourUK

4  different product areas will be on show as follows:

Large Format Sensor

Showing PXW-FS7 II, FS7 & FS5

4K HDR Production

Showing PXW-Z90, PXW-Z150 & HXR-NX80 (TBC)

HD Production

Showing PXW-X70, PXW-X200, HXR-NX100

Live Event Production

Showing MCX-500, RM-30BP, HXR-NX5R, SRG-360, RM-IP10 and possibly an RX0 (TBC)

 

shoots, Travel

Norway and the Northern Lights 2018.

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After a test run starting and finishing in Alta last year I have decided to run the trips from Alta again next year. The hotel is nicer and the itinerary more relaxed. Starting and finishing at Alta gives us more time at the cabins.

2017/2018 Northern Lights Expeditions to Norway, travelling by road and snow scooter, staying in mountain cabins. Including food for 4 days, ice fishing, snow scooter use and optional photo/video tuition. You must book your own flights to Alta, Norway.

2018 Tour 1: Arctic Dawn. On this tour we will see the very first sunrise of the year. The moon will be absent during the night, so best suited for shooting and viewing faint Aurora.  Arrive Friday 12th January 2018, depart Thursday 18th January 2018.   £1,350 per person. Max 8 people. (cost of flights NOT included).  You must arrange your own transport to and from Alta, Norway.

2018 Tour 2: Moonrise Tour. On this tour we will have a rising moon (after new moon) The moon will start at 18% illumination and increase to 53% illumination over the course of the tour. This will provide interesting possibilities for moonlit landscapes, but if the Aurora is very, very faint it will be harder to see. The days will be longer during this tour than the first tour. Arrive Thursday 18th of January 2018, Depart Wednesday 24th of January 2018. £1350 per person max 8 guests.

These really are amazing adventures. Not just a chance to see the Northern Lights but also a chance to experience some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet. Full details can be found by clicking here.

Workshops and Events

Canada Workshops.

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I’m running workshops across Canada in the next couple of weeks. Tomorrows workshop at Fusion Cine in Vancouver is sold out. But there is space in Calgary on Thursday: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/pxw-fs5-and-pxw-fs7m2k-tour-with-alister-chapman-calgary-tickets-34889128322

From Calgary I travel to Montreal for a workshop on the 20th: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/pxw-fs5-and-pxw-fs7m2k-tour-with-alister-chapman-montreal-tickets-34890635831

And finish up in Toronto on June 22nd: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/pxw-fs5-and-pxw-fs7m2k-tour-with-alister-chapman-toronto-tickets-34891259697

The workshops are sponsored by Sony and are free. I’ll be covering a full end to end workflow from composition, to lighting, exposure with different gammas, workflow and post production as well as HDR.

Workshops and Events

Upcoming workshops.

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A busy couple of weeks coming up with several FS7 and FS7 II workshops in the USA. I’ll be covering all the essential stuff including gamma curves, log, CineEI, Rec2020 and HDR.

Austin Texas, Omega Broadcast, Tuesday 28th Feb. http://www.omegabroadcast.com/product-p/event-sonyfs7iimasterclass.htm

Dallas Texas – VideoTex systems, Wednesday 1st March. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sony-fs7-m2-master-class-with-alister-chapman-tickets-31938387577

Minneapolis – Z-Systems. Thursday 2nd March. http://zsyst.com/2017/02/event-alister-chapman-3-2-17/

San Francisco/Bay Area private full day workshop Saturday 4th March. Use the contact form for full details.

Boston – Rule Camera. Tuesday 7th March. http://www.rule.com/

At the end of March I’ll be in Dublin for the Camerakit event.

Workshops and Events

Creative Composition and Digital Cinematography Workshops – Singapore.

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Alister Chapman providing a workshop.

I’m running some workshops for Singapore Media Academy in September. Spaces are limited and I don’t get to visit Asia as much as I used to. So if you are interested in attending one of my highly regarded and popular workshops here is a great opportunity.

CREATIVE COMPOSITION:
The first is on Creative Composition. Good shot composition can make or break a production. In the workshop I will guide you through ways to achieve images that will draw the audience in, focus the viewers attention or create different emotional reactions.  I will show you how to deal with composition in moving shots, something that can be difficult. We will use case studies of well known movies to see clever use of classic techniques such as the rule of thirds, vanishing lines or Fibonacci curves. We will see how subtle lighting changes can be used to direct the audiences gaze. From the framing of a simple interview to the staging of a complex scene the workshop will help you develop engaging and interesting images. Understanding basic composition is one of the keys to great productions whether it’s for TV news or the cinema.
DIGITAL CINEMATOGRAPHY, LOG AND RAW (Plus HDR).
The second workshop is on Digital Cinematography, Log and Raw. This is an essential workshop for those serious about obtaining the best possible images with a modern electronic video camera. I will explain the differences between standard gammas, log and raw in a way that’s easy to understand but will give you all the information you need to be able to make informed decisions about which to use and when. Next I will teach you how to expose Log and Raw looking closely at how to use exposure offsets for the best results in differing lighting conditions. Then we will look at Look Up Tables. I’ll show you how and when to use them and how to easily create your own. We will finish with some practical end to end workflow sessions where you will develop your own LUT’s, shoot with log or raw and then perform a basic grade on your content. This will include how to use color managed grading tools such as the Academy of Motion Pictures workflow “ACES”. There’s no hard to understand mathematics, no complex formula’s, just easy to understand explanations and great practical tips and advice that will make log and raw easy to understand and use. I will also include how to expose and shoot for HDR and what you need to consider for HDR productions. More details can be found with the links below:
 
 
Workshops and Events

Free Webinar Day – July 26th 2016.

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On Tuesday the 26th of July I will be hosting a series of free live webinars giving you the chance to ask me questions about many of the things I write about here. This is a trial run, I’ve done webinars for many people in the past and they have always gone down well, but these webinars are going to come live from xdcam-user HQ.

If they are a success I will make this a regular event with a webinar day once a month with new subjects covered each time as well as an open Q&A session.  This will give you the chance to ask questions on any aspect of video production, so start thinking about what you want to ask.

If you haven’t attended a webinar before here is how it works: You log in online to the webinar using the link provided. You will hear me and any guest presenters and see any pre-prepared information slides that I have on your computer/tablet/phone screen.  You ask questions by typing them into a question box, nobody will see or hear you. I will try to respond to as many questions as I can within the one hour time limit. The session will also be recorded and can be downloaded later if you wish. There are dedicated online versions of the webinar page for computers, tablets and smart phones, so you should be able to log in almost anywhere where you have an internet connection.

There will be 2 webinars where I will take questions on any of the Sony large sensor cameras, including the FS5, FS7, F5 and F55.  If you want to know about settings, exposure, LUT’s, slow mo, lenses or anything else you can ask me on the 26th. These are timed so that there is an opportunity for people in most countries around the world  to join one or the other at a sensible time of day.

Click on the appropriate link below to register.  Please only register for sessions you will actually attend as numbers are restricted.

Session 1: Ask anything about the FS5, FS7, F5 and F55. Tuesday July 26th, 8am – 9am GMT. (9:00 BST, 10:00 CET,  12:00 Dubai, 13:30 Delhi, 16:00 Singapore, 18:00 Sydney).

Session 2: Ask anything about the FS5, FS7, F5 and F55. Tuesday July 26th, 18:00 – 19:00 GMT. (19:00 BST, 20:00 CET, 14:00 NYC, 11:00 LA).

HDR Session 1: What is HDR and what do I need to know? Tuesday July 26th,  10am – 11am GMT. (11:00 BST, 12:00 CET,  14:00 Dubai, 15:30 Delhi, 18:00 Singapore, 20:00 Sydney).

HDR Session 2: What is HDR and what do I need to know? Tuesday July 26th,  16:00 – 17:00 GMT. (17:00 BST, 18:00 CET, 12:00 NYC, 09:00 LA).

If you can’t attend I will make the recordings available after the day. If you think this is a good idea then please share this page so others can also join in.