Research - Color Grading and Shots

So before moving onto my story, I want to do a little bit more research into art direction and how I can achieve the kind of look I want. The two major places I want to focus on are color grading and shots.

Color grading

I didn't really know where I wanted to start with my color grading, given I use a relatively unknown software, but I figured the best place to start would be the FAQ section. I use hitfilm express, so I went back to the original website to do some research.

There didn't really seem to be a lot of options for color grading without having to shell out a ton of money, so I decided to poke around online to see if I could find some free software that gave me the tools I needed. 

Aftere scrolling through a couple of sites, I finally found the jackpot. Yay!!! Even though the website does list some cons to DaVinci Resolve Lite, most of them seem like cons for professional artists, not for humble media students like me, which makes it the perfect program for this project!! Yay!!! I'll probably do another post later of me trying to figure out how it works, but for now, let's move onto shots. 

Shots

For every project I've ever done, I've always had the same shot in mind for a every scene. A wide, eye-level shot, with little contrast and the feel of a bleak, but artistic message behind the shot. Unfortunately, I was never really able to replicate the idea in my head (either because I wasn't behind the camera or because the location simply wouldn't allow for it.) BUT, this is my last project, and I absolutely refuse to sacrifice my artistic vision this time around. So with two goals in mine (naming the technique and figuring out how to do it), I set off for today!

The first thing I did was look up movies that reminded me of this technique, namely Wes Andersen. And that's kind of where the search ended honestly. The article I found explained his style really well, and the symmetry, clarity, and precision that made a Wes Andersen shot. I'll link it somewhere because honestly, I feel like they did a much better job explaining it than I ever could. I think I'm going to try and mimic his shot styles, but make it less cheery, more bleak, to suit the tone of my film. Below are some screenshots of some of the really important stuff I liked from the article I read. I've also added some of my favorite shots from his movies that I grabbed from a different article. 

That's all for now,

-Isa Ollie Mason