Shaky camera shots are not pretty
Mar. 25th, 2008 04:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
raloriaI wouldn't normally write about a soap opera (which I don't normally watch), but I was bored and channel-hopping this afternoon and came across Guiding Light on CBS. What I saw was so disturbing and awful, I just had to talk about it.
To briefly inform those who don't know...I'm an aspiring filmmaker. I recently graduated from a local college with my degree in Making Movies, have been on several student film productions as a Camera Operator, Script Supervisor, and Editor. I've learned about the correct techniques, the history of film, different styles, direction, lighting, and cinematography.
Having taken the time (and not to mention a great amount of money) to learn the process of filmmaking and the correct way to do it, I tend to get a little pissed at the recent trend of every yahoo with a video camera shooting a production in their backyard and thinking they know how to make a film. At the very least, get some books and learn about lighting and cinematography. Don't get the impression that you can make a film just because you've watched 100 plus movies.
Now...back to Guiding Light. What I saw was awful, amateurish camera work coupled with bad audio. It was like watching video shot by a 5 year old. Quick cuts, extreme close ups (when they weren't needed), a shaky hand held camera, and shots that often went in and and out of focus. The audio was all over the place, quiet on the dialog and too loud and distracting for the sound effects. Disgraceful. If I had turned in a film like this in one of my classes I would have gotten a failing grade.
I did some googling and found out this is the new look for the show. Guiding Light, the longest running soap opera on TV, and struggling with ratings decided to make a new approach. Here's what Wikipedia has to say about it...
In the daytime drama's 71st season the show will change it's look to a more "realistic" experience. On February 29, 2008 a new opening replaced the current anniversary opening which many fans have not been pleased with. The new look of Guiding Light means free hand camera work and less time in traditional studio sets. Producer Ellen Wheeler has introduced a "shaky-cam" style present in a number of feature films featuring extreme-closeups and frequent cuts, including those that "break the axis," which may prove disorienting to viewers accustomed to the traditional "soap opera look." Also new are the shooting of outdoor scenes that take place in actual outdoor settings. Even many indoor scenes will have a more "on location" feel, utilizing real locations such as CBS board rooms and offices. CBS and the show's producers are wagering that the new look can help reinvent the show and raise ratings, making the longest-running program in daytime history a model for the future of daytime.
Source
If throwing out all the rules of proper camera and filmmaking technique is going to be a "model for the future of daytime" then I don't have much hope for TV anymore. The rules of proper filmmaking have been around for years and still exist today for a reason....they work. I'm all for bending the rules a little for a certain look and to be experimental and arty, but this goes way beyond that. If you heard someone singing a song off key you wouldn't call it good. Bad camera work is just that....bad. In trying to be "fresh, contemporary and provocative" Guilding Light has missed the mark and become an ugly mess that doesn't deserve air time. I've seen enough soap operas off and on over the years (and lots of clips, thank you Jensen for being on DOOL!) to know what they normally look like. They have their own style (interior sets, some soft focus, warm lighting) and it seems to have worked all these years. But apparently people thought Guiding Light didn't look "real" enough anymore. Huh? So a bad "Blair Witch Project" look is more real? Not in my book. It's just a shoddy and cheap way of shooing a TV show.
Enough of my ranting. I found some good links about the changes on Guiding Light. The articles are good, but even better are reading some of the viewers comments. Sounds like most are not happy with the show's new style.
Buzzfocus.com: Guiding Light Switches To Hand Camera -- Has some good video clips of an episode to show the new "look".
NY Daily News: Guiding Light goes hi-tech & some fans get ticked
TV Squad: Guiding Light to get younger, hipper, hand-held camera-ish
Review: GUIDING LIGHT - NEW PRODUCTION FORMAT - February 29, 2007 episode
The Hollywood Reporter: Seeing the 'Light' in a new way -- This article is two pages.
To briefly inform those who don't know...I'm an aspiring filmmaker. I recently graduated from a local college with my degree in Making Movies, have been on several student film productions as a Camera Operator, Script Supervisor, and Editor. I've learned about the correct techniques, the history of film, different styles, direction, lighting, and cinematography.
Having taken the time (and not to mention a great amount of money) to learn the process of filmmaking and the correct way to do it, I tend to get a little pissed at the recent trend of every yahoo with a video camera shooting a production in their backyard and thinking they know how to make a film. At the very least, get some books and learn about lighting and cinematography. Don't get the impression that you can make a film just because you've watched 100 plus movies.
Now...back to Guiding Light. What I saw was awful, amateurish camera work coupled with bad audio. It was like watching video shot by a 5 year old. Quick cuts, extreme close ups (when they weren't needed), a shaky hand held camera, and shots that often went in and and out of focus. The audio was all over the place, quiet on the dialog and too loud and distracting for the sound effects. Disgraceful. If I had turned in a film like this in one of my classes I would have gotten a failing grade.
I did some googling and found out this is the new look for the show. Guiding Light, the longest running soap opera on TV, and struggling with ratings decided to make a new approach. Here's what Wikipedia has to say about it...
In the daytime drama's 71st season the show will change it's look to a more "realistic" experience. On February 29, 2008 a new opening replaced the current anniversary opening which many fans have not been pleased with. The new look of Guiding Light means free hand camera work and less time in traditional studio sets. Producer Ellen Wheeler has introduced a "shaky-cam" style present in a number of feature films featuring extreme-closeups and frequent cuts, including those that "break the axis," which may prove disorienting to viewers accustomed to the traditional "soap opera look." Also new are the shooting of outdoor scenes that take place in actual outdoor settings. Even many indoor scenes will have a more "on location" feel, utilizing real locations such as CBS board rooms and offices. CBS and the show's producers are wagering that the new look can help reinvent the show and raise ratings, making the longest-running program in daytime history a model for the future of daytime.
Source
If throwing out all the rules of proper camera and filmmaking technique is going to be a "model for the future of daytime" then I don't have much hope for TV anymore. The rules of proper filmmaking have been around for years and still exist today for a reason....they work. I'm all for bending the rules a little for a certain look and to be experimental and arty, but this goes way beyond that. If you heard someone singing a song off key you wouldn't call it good. Bad camera work is just that....bad. In trying to be "fresh, contemporary and provocative" Guilding Light has missed the mark and become an ugly mess that doesn't deserve air time. I've seen enough soap operas off and on over the years (and lots of clips, thank you Jensen for being on DOOL!) to know what they normally look like. They have their own style (interior sets, some soft focus, warm lighting) and it seems to have worked all these years. But apparently people thought Guiding Light didn't look "real" enough anymore. Huh? So a bad "Blair Witch Project" look is more real? Not in my book. It's just a shoddy and cheap way of shooing a TV show.
Enough of my ranting. I found some good links about the changes on Guiding Light. The articles are good, but even better are reading some of the viewers comments. Sounds like most are not happy with the show's new style.
Buzzfocus.com: Guiding Light Switches To Hand Camera -- Has some good video clips of an episode to show the new "look".
NY Daily News: Guiding Light goes hi-tech & some fans get ticked
TV Squad: Guiding Light to get younger, hipper, hand-held camera-ish
Review: GUIDING LIGHT - NEW PRODUCTION FORMAT - February 29, 2007 episode
The Hollywood Reporter: Seeing the 'Light' in a new way -- This article is two pages.
