Bonus episode: “You’re shooting video, not film”

A YouTube commenter suggests Griffin is wrong to call himself a “filmmaker,” because he doesn’t shoot on celluloid film. But most of the last 10 Best Cinematography Academy Award winners were shot with digital ARRI ALEXA cameras:

• There Will Be Blood (2007) shot on Panavision XL, all in 35mm

• Slumdog Millionaire (2008) shot on 35mm and Silicon Imaging SI-2K Digital Camera

• Avatar (2009) shot on Fusion Camera System

• Inception (2010) shot on 35mm and 65mm film

• Hugo (2011) shot on ARRI ALEXA

• Life of Pi (2012) shot on 6 ARRI ALEXAs

• Gravity (2013) used ARRI ALEXA and ARRIFLEX 765

• Birdman (2014) used ARRI ALEXA

• The Revenant (2015) was shot with ARRI ALEXA LT and ALEXA 6

• La La Land (2016) shot on film

Nick found this photo from 2010, when he and I shared a Panasonic GH1 camera, 14-140mm lens, Zoom H4n audio recorder, ULTRAcompact shoulder rig, and Azden wireless mic system.

Patrick Gavin shared this photo on Twitter—using an A1 Steak Sauce bottle plus Pedco Ultra Clamp as a makeshift mic stand.

Episode 48: Shooting HDR in Final Cut Pro X 10.4

Version 10.4 of Final Cut Pro X has been released—Griffin’s 2018 resolution is to shoot HDR (high-dynamic range) video. Plus, your questions about protecting a camera in the snow, losing YouTube subscribers, and when to replace SD cards.

Apple: How to work with HDR in Final Cut Pro X 10.4

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Squarespace. Try it for free, then save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain—visit squarespace.com/griffin

Nick doesn’t want me to promote his YouTube channel, but you should subscribe for videos about hard drive shucking or the time he won a match of Playerunknown Battlegrounds.

Episode 47: Licensing Tracks from Music Libraries

Featuring 11 of his favorite stock music tracks, Griffin compares six music libraries and how to find the best, most affordable tracks. Plus, your questions about slow motion, noise in your audio recorder, and when to use exposure compensation.

Audio Libraries discussed on today’s show:

• Audio Network

• Artlist*

• Jingle Punks

• Incompetech (Kevin MacLeod)

• Free Music Archive

• Noisely

*Artlist is the library I use. If you sign up for a $200 annual Artlist subscription at griffinhammond.com/music, you get two free months, and I receive $20.

Music tracks featured on today’s show:

• Red Dwarf by Terry Devine-King

• Crack Nutter by Simon Porter

• Wonderland (Instrumental) by Rex Banner

• The Peruvian Protest by Maxime Herve

• Timeout (Instrumental) by ANNALIA

• Doing the Right Thing (Instrumental) by Adi Goldstein

• Points North by Ben Winwood

• Singing Oh by Blending Colors

• Clarity (Just Piano) by Ian Post

• Impact Moderato by Kevin MacLeod

• Divider by Chris Zabriskie

Episode 46: Documentary Production Workflow

Griffin’s step-by-step documentary filmmaking process. Plus, your questions about interviewing subjects, focal lengths for crop sensors, and how to trick your Atomos recorder.

For 7 hours of documentary filmmaking lessons, watch my CreativeLive class.

Daniel asked about my short film about landscape photographer Ben Grunow.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid.

Anyone know how to achieve white balance for infrared photography in the new Adobe Lightroom CC? 
*Even though Lightroom CC can't use my custom infrared camera profile I created for Lightroom Classic, I did learn I can save those settings as a user preset. Now my photos display properly on the desktop Lightroom CC app, but still turn red on mobile.

Episode 45: I Crashed my Drone Again

Griffin’s DJI Spark goes down during difficult conditions in Brooklyn. Plus, your questions about lenses for cityscapes, how to read a waveform monitor, and why you’re seeing black bars when you export your video.

Watch the footage Griffin shot inside the factory.

This episode of Hey Indie Filmmakers edited by John Luna. Check out his YouTube channel.

New York Public Library, 8mm

Griffin in Central Park, 25mm

Griffin, mirrored

One of the three axes on my Zhiyun Tech Crane v2 became disconnected, exposing one of the electro-magnetic motors.

Episode 44: Broken Zhiyun 3-Axis Gimbal

Can Griffin salvage a shoot after breaking his Zhiyun Tech 3-axis gimbal? Plus, your questions about proper exposure, lenses with a 2x crop factor, and how to know if your video is breaking copyright.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid.

Episode 43: Cyber Week Filmmaking Deals

More Cyber Week filmmaking deals, and Nick goes behind-the-scenes on Griffin's latest video. Plus, your questions about lens whacking, the new Lumix G9 camera, and if you should build a hackintosh.

Find all the Cyber Week deals I’m talking about at griffinhammond.com/cyber

View the Cyber Monday deals list at griffinhammond.com/cyber

Episode 42: Syncing Audio On-The-Go

With family for Thanksgiving, Griffin and Nick share their audio syncing workflow. Plus, your questions about storyboarding, tripods, and whether you need an infrared neutral density filter.

Pictured on the right, Nick and Griffin met in eighth grade at Gregory Middle School. 1998, Naperville, Illinois.

Normally $599, Nick bought a Dell 27” gaming monitor this week for $350.

*As you online shop over Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, I recommend a browser plug-in called Invisible Hand, to double check for the best price.

I bought a USB-C dongle to connect my Nintendo Switch to HDMI. Turns out, it also works for my new MacBook Pro, and is $40 cheaper than Apple’s adapter.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid.

Episode 41: Is the iPhone X a professional camera?

Is the iPhone X a professional video camera? Plus, we solve your filmmaking math problems, what causes moire, and whether it’s fair use to film a sporting event.

This week, Nick shared Lee Morris’ iPhone X camera review with me, as well as The Verge’s infrared footage.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid.

Tom shared his cool First Person Santa Claus animation with us.

As we discussed licensing content, Nick remembered Mike Monteiro’s talk, F*ck You, Pay Me.

Bonus episode: I dropped a microphone in water

Griffin accidentally sends his lavalier microphone underwater. Nick starts editing video game content in Adobe Premiere.

Watch Griffin’s microphone comparison video—Can you hear a $500 difference?

Watch Channel One 11:30am November 12

For our Australian fans, watch Channel Ten ONE this Sunday, November 12. Griffin is on the second episode of this season’s Snap Happy TV, airing 11:30am.

Episode 40: Shooting Anamorphic

Shooting with an anamorphic adapter for the first time, Griffin shares his experience with Nick. Plus, your questions about underwater photography, capturing a nine-hour time lapse, and what ever became of my DIY teleprompter.

Thank you to our listener Kyle for letting me borrow his SLR Magic 1.33x anamorphic adapter!

Alex Gollner writes about new VR features coming to Final Cut Pro X v10.4, and has several tweets about support for HEVC (H.265), HDR and LUTs.

Upcoming Film Festival Screenings
Hand-cut screens Thursday, November 2, at the Big Apple Film Festival (9:00pm)
and Friday, November 3, on opening night of the 5th Annual Yonkers Film Festival* (7:30pm)
*Tickets include access to the red-carpet reception and opening night after party.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid.

Watch: How to Shoot a Time Lapse

Episode 39: Scary Camera Danger

Griffin and Nick have each needed liability insurance for their video projects—luckily never needed camera insurance for damage or theft. Plus, your questions about the hidden mic technique, interlaced video, and putting Nikon lenses on a Panasonic camera.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid. More details at Tongal.com/Projects

Episode 38: Masking Out Mistakes

In his latest tutorial video about masking out mistakes, Griffin actually made several mistakes. We go behind-the-scenes. Plus, your questions about cheap prime lenses, the difference between .M4V and .MOV, and what decibel level to edit your audio.

Watch Griffin’s masking tutorial, Hiding a Mic in Plain Sight

Griffin’s documentary filmmaking class is 25% off through October 22.

Episode 37: White Balance & Kelvin

Griffin and Nick answer Kelvin questions and share white balance techniques, then get a surprise medical prescription for voiceover. Plus your questions about finding clients in your small town, which drone to buy, and if you really need an external recorder.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid. More details at Tongal.com/Projects

Listen to Dr. Mark Vaughan’s full recording about “accumulation of mucus on the vocal chords."

Nick would like his hard drive “shucking” video get over 10,000 views.

To help synchronize video file backups to multiple drives, Nick recommends arRsync for Mac.

Special thanks to John Luna who’s been helping produce this show. Subscribe to his YouTube channel.

John also helped me shoot and edit this video about the SpiderLight camera holster.

Watch my latest short film, about Alaskan bears and wildlife photographer Daniel J. Cox.

Episode 36: Panasonic GH5 v2.0 Firmware

Panasonic updated the GH5 firmware—Nick and Griffin take a look at this camera’s powerful new features. Plus, your questions about color correcting, why framerates come in weird numbers, and filming flood rescue at night, without lights.

Download the new v2.0 Lumix GH5 firmware—or check other bodies and lenses for updates—on Panasonic’s website.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid. More details at Tongal.com/Projects

Episode 35: Tricks for Slow Motion

Nick and Griffin share their tricks for shooting slow motion, and handling the edit. Plus, your questions about recording audio, filming wildlife, and avoiding flicker during time lapses.

Interviewing Ben Grunow in Grindelwald, Switzerland.

Close audio always sounds best, so when I lock down an interview shot on a tripod, I don’t mind placing myself and the microphone blatantly in the shot. All I need is one clean backplate to mask over the video.

#UnitedForPuertoRico
If you’d like to help Puerto Ricans recover from Hurricane Maria’s devastation, donate at UnitedForPuertoRico.com.
For other ways to help, check out this PBS article.

Watch my latest short film about lifestyle photographer Jennifer Maring.

Episode 34: Recording Great Voiceover

Voiceover artist Matt Shivers helps Nick and Griffin record better vocal tracks. Plus, your questions about exposure blending, what to do when your video content is stolen, and if it’s legal to film in a national park.

Thank you to our friend Matt for sharing his voiceover tips!
*Matt uses these mics: Neumann TLM-103 and a Sennheiser MKH 416

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid. More details at Tongal.com/Projects

If someone steals your video work, and uploads to Facebook, here’s where you can request a DMCA takedown.

National Park Service—when you need a commercial filming permit

Watch my short film about wedding photographer William Innes:

Episode 33: Mystery of the Light Leaks

Nick unravels the mystery of light leaks hitting Griffin’s Panasonic GH4 sensor. Shooting time lapses and infrared at Zion National Park. Episode recorded in St. George, Utah at the DOCUTAH film festival. Plus, your questions about green screen problems, editing short films, and entering film festivals.

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My film Hand-cut played this year at DOCUTAH—so did Sriracha in 2014. For more on festivals I’ve entered, been rejected by, and their costs, view Griffin’s film festival spreadsheet from 2013–2014. I also use the website Film Freeway to find film fests.

Hey Indie Filmmakers is brought to you by Tongal—a creative network where anyone, anywhere has the opportunity to make content for brands and get paid. More details at Tongal.com/Projects

Watch Griffin’s latest film from Grindelwald, Switzerland—profiling landscape photographer Ben Grunow.

Infrared light waves penetrate skin enough to soften features—notice my missing freckles.

Bonus episode: Converting My Camera to Infrared

Before their next full episode on September 13, Griffin decides to convert his Panasonic GH4 to shoot infrared, instead of visible light. Nick joins Griffin in St. George, Utah next week for the DOCUTAH film festival.

The two most popular infrared conversion services are Life Pixel in Texas and Kolari Vision in New Jersey.