Jun 14
27
Focus… In Focus
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If you have ever shot with a DSLR, or any other handheld small-form camera, you are intimately aware of the difficulty of the rack focus. Typically the work of two people (an operator and a focus puller) the classic Hollywood rack focus is tough to hit without expensive follow focus rigs, good monitoring, a seasoned operator, and no small measure of luck. I’ve worked with veteran, highly-skilled shooters who struggle with the rack focus. It’s a difficult move, and the role of focus puller is a highly specialized skill on Hollywood productions.
During a podcast one veteran DP can be quoted as saying, “… I was never a good focus puller, so I became a DP instead.”
When it comes to DSLR shooting, it’s monitoring that is the main problem. The screens on a DSLR are not designed to be used in complex camera techniques like the rack focus. The built-in monitors are LCD-powered and have glossy screens that do wonders at reflecting light, but offer little in critical picture detail. This means if you want to hit a rack focus on a DSLR, you have to add an eyepiece or breakout monitor to your rig.
So add together follow focus, cage, eyepiece, monitor, by the time you strap all of that onto your DSLR you have an odd-looking contraption that is difficult for one person to operate, let alone operate with the dexterity needed to pull a good rack focus.
This another area where the Blackmagic 4K shines. It comes with a built in focus peaking system that makes rack focusing far easier. The readout displays bright green lines over whatever elements of your shot are in focus.
This is something DSLR shooters have been asking for since the DSLR’s birth, yet neither Canon nor Nikon have delivered on their $3,000- $5,000 dollar DSLR models.
Attached are two sample images of mid-take focus points I was able to hit as a one-man operator, with no focus puller, no third-party monitor, and no added follow focus rig…. while shooting in a parking garage with no additional lighting.
Granted, I know what I am doing, but this added focus technology will make it easier for a less seasoned operator to hit a good rack focus, and you can never have too many weapons in your arsenal.
Here are two more example shots from Catharsis where the actors stepped into crystal clear focus.
-Brad Schreiber
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