SteadiOp Blog

Teaser trailer for 'Charlie'

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 14:00:39 +0100

The finished version one teaser trailer for the recent production Directed by Mike Ogden on which I was the Cinematographer. Shot over two days with Alderley Edge and Salford doubling for Italy in 1943.

The Germans Invade Italy via Salford

Thu, 5 Apr 2012 12:29:26 +0100

So.... a trip up to Manchester to shoot in Salford and Alderley Edge (both doubling for Italy!)
An intense schedule but some great work done by all. The look, the mood, the talent and the crew all contributed to this being a great project with what is shaping up to be a stunning deliverable.
Couple of BTS stills below (including me shooting a scene using a go pro on my forehead).

Ballet and Ballads

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 16:28:41 +0000

Great crew and working with some old friends again on this heady mix of high end Ballet with a cracking Ballad by a very talented artist. More to follow when the work is complete.

3 Scenes of Steadicam & 14 Handheld....

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 16:30:39 +0000

...what is the cine world coming to?
OK, at least I shot three scenes on Steadicam. Real challenge here was lighting a mostly day for night interior with a dedo set! Bring on the Quarter blue and an orange gel to give us the wonderful street light ‘sodium’ lighting look.

AR RED and anamorphic glass on a feature

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:24:50 +0000

Preparing a typical RED payload with the untypical Hawk Lite anamorphic glass. Second time I have used a Terradek Cube recently and again we had interference with the Preston FIZ (this time with an HU2 and microwave receiver). The only solution was to elbow the Terradek again.
Otherwise, this was a tried and tested and ultimately faultless configuration.

Season’s Greetings from Team SteadiOp 2011

Sun, 25 Dec 2011 16:16:11 +0000

To all of my clients, contacts, friends and family, hope your year has been good and lets hope 2011 is a great one.

All the best for a great Holiday Season

Sad times for my family and I

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 15:50:18 +0000

Some of my closest friends and colleagues will know how my world was turned upside down this year with my mother being diagnosed with inoperable multi-organ cancer.
Sadly, my mother passed away a few days after her 67th birthday. It never really felt like we had enough time to prepare for the inevitable. She will be missed by all of us and not least by my two youngest little girls. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the end of our run of bad luck.
En route to the hospital the day my mother passed away, my father was involved in a major road traffic accident when his car collided with a tanker and another car which resulted in him spending many days in Intensive Care, initially in a coma whilst they stabilised him. This meant a short term relocation to live out of a hotel next to the hospital some two hours drive from our home.
We held the funeral service this week as my father was well enough to attend, albeit in a wheel chair. Thanks to all my friends and colleagues for the help and support they provided and the work they covered off for me in my absence. It was very much appreciated.
RIP Veronica Forrest, 6 November 1944 - 11 November 2011, you’ll be missed by those you loved.

Down time

Thu, 13 Oct 2011 15:40:43 +0100

.... but I have had to have more treatment to get it sorted out after a mammoth fall with my knee impacting solid concrete in the last month resulting in my knee being dislodged, a twisted ankle, damaged wrist and a handful of cracked ribs from falling onto the battery rack of the rig. Hey ho.
On the road to recovery so light duties only.

Time to Go ~ With the Alexa

Sun, 4 Sep 2011 15:34:44 +0100

This shot was taken from a recent Alexa shoot for Sony Music. Useful to have the custom designed and machined Alexa plate to speed up rigging and it came in equally handy for use with the AR.
The Alexa is a sweet camera with an exceptionally aesthetic look to the images but as usual, it seemed a little power hungry. I will have to spend more time looking at solutions to minimise the number of batteries it eats!
More shots from this shoot to appear in the gallery soon.

Quad work on Nectar Race Fuel

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 15:34:21 +0100

Steadicam Quad work: Another trip out on Simon Wood’s specially tricked out Quad. Its custom designed for Steadicam work with fore and aft platforms for the operator and a counter balance system designed to work even when shooting with the MK-V AR.
Great fun working with the guys and an interesting concept of ‘racing yourself’. Finished spot below.
Want to know more about working with a Quad or Segway, or general assistance with your production, give me a shout via the contact page.