2. Studio and Remote Shooting16
Studio and Remote Shooting

3. Objectives
Recall the specific characteristics of both studio and remote shooting.
Identify the types of monitors set up in the control room and the function of each.
Explain the differences between ENG and EFP.
Identify the items to be evaluated during a location survey.
Summarize the advantages and challenges of both studio and remote shooting.

4. Production Meeting Attended by entire crew
Director explains message and vision of show
Crew tasks are assigned
Production dates discussed
Master production calendar is set
Production calendar distributed to entire team

5. Studio Ceiling High—10’-20’ best for lighting and heat dissipation
If ceiling is too low:
Lighting instruments may appear in shot
Talent standing under instrument may be too hot
Air conditioning must work harder to keep heat levels down

6. Studio Walls Sound treated Microphone jacks located around room
Keep outside sounds from entering
Keep studio sounds from echoing in large studio
Microphone jacks located around room

7. Curtains May be any color; need to cover at least two walls
For max flexibility, curtains should cover 3-4 walls
May hang in attractive folds or be pulled tight
Never touch front side of curtain
Fingerprints leave greasy stain that attracts dirt
Significant cost to clean
If you must touch curtain, grasp from back side

8. Curtains (Cont.)

9. Studio Floor Flat Non-reflective—do NOT wax or polish!
Reflective floor causes loss of lighting control

10. Discussion
What do hard concrete walls in studio and highly polished floors in studio have in common?
Both cause the loss of a major production element:
Hard walls cause a loss of audio control because sound will bounce around in the studio, possibly even echoing
Polished floors cause loss of lighting control because light will bounce everywhere off the floor, destroying any creative lighting design

11. Scenery Units Flat and jack
Mask seams between flats with painted masking tape or drywall tape

12. Studio Cameras
For identical picture quality, all studio cameras should:
Be same brand, model, and age
Never be taken outside of studio on location
Be permanently cabled in studio to control room

13. Control Room Director stationed here
Communicates with studio production teams via headsets
Positioned near special effects generator and faces wall of monitors
Small facility control rooms also house audio mixer, other audio sources, light board, recorders, and CCU

14. Control Room Monitors Camera monitor Program monitor Preview monitor
Confidence monitor
CG b/w monitor and color monitor

15. Audio Booth Audio console
Music and sound effects library usually is here if it is CD type of library

16. Master Control Room
Processing equipment for audio and video creates heat and noise, so they are kept in their own room together

17. Specialized Areas Carpentry shop to build sets and props
Editing suites
Dressing rooms
Make-up area

18. Remote Shoot ENG (Electronic News Gathering)
Often requires only one or two people
Video crew is NOT in control of shoot or environs
EFP (Electronic Field Production)
May require large crew
Video crew is in control of shoot and environs

19. Location Survey Required for EFP for each shooting location
Do location survey on same day and same time as shoot will be scheduled
Note noises and traffic that will be happening when you shoot

20. Location Survey (Cont.)

21. Advantages of Studio Shoot
Transportation unnecessary
Unaffected by weather
All equipment and cables are readily available
Major equipment set up is unnecessary
Crowd control is easy
Precise lighting control is easy
Extraneous sounds do not disrupt
Video switcher severely decreases editing time

22. Disadvantages of Studio Shoot
Building set can be expensive and time consuming
“Outdoors” sound difficult to recreate
Sun and shadow movement difficult to recreate
Video equipment is expensive and extensive
More personnel are needed to operate studio

23. Advantages of Remote Shoot
Often no set needs to be built—the location is chosen because set already exists
Natural light can often be used
Everything about set is realistic because it is real
Less equipment needed for remote
Usually requires fewer personnel

24. Disadvantages of Remote Shooting
Murphy’s Law
Spares of everything must be brought along
Possibility of inclement weather
Power supply may be insufficient
Property releases must be obtained
Terrain often not suitable for camera movement
Everyone and everything must be transported
No switcher means extensive editing time required

25. Career Page
National Press Photographers Association

26. Discussion
If you are trying to shoot something with limbo lighting, what color of curtain would be best in background?
Actually, any solid color will work for limbo lighting since limbo shooting merely requires that the talent be on a set with no definition. However, the most common colors used for curtains in limbo shooting are black or white. Singers often have black behind them and car commercials often are shot on white limbo sets.

27. Review Question
What are the differences between EFP and ENG? ENG is usually for news coverage, uses single camera, has small crew, and is brief. EFP is usually for longer pieces—documentary or entertainment—has larger crew, and is much more expensive production.

28. Review Question
Why is a high ceiling preferable in a studio? Lights are high and out of picture, the head of talent standing under instrument is not glowing with too much light, and heat created by instruments rises and dissipates.

29. Review Question
What are the monitors used in a control room? Camera monitors, program monitors, confidence monitors, preview monitors

30. Review Question
What should you be aware of when doing location survey? Noises and traffic that will be happening when you shoot.

31. Review Question
What are advantages and disadvantages to shooting in studio? Advantages: Transportation not necessary, no worries about weather, equipment readily available and no need for set up, no public crowds, sound control. Disadvantages: Costly to build set, difficult to recreate sound and natural scenery effects, video equipment is expensive and extensive.

32. Review Question
What are advantages and disadvantages of shooting remotely? Advantages: No set building, natural light often can be used, set looks real because it is, requires less equipment and people. Disadvantages: Possible bad weather, requires property releases, difficult for camera movement, possible power supply issues, requires more people and equipment.

33. Glossary
audio booth: A room in the studio that contains all of the equipment capable of adding sound to the program.
audio console: A unit that includes many different pieces of audio gear, including the microphone mixer, audio cassette players, CD players, and turntables.
camera monitor: A monitor that displays the image shot by the corresponding camera.

34. Glossary
confidence monitor: A monitor connected to the output of the video recorder. Seeing the image on this monitor ensures that the video recorder received the signal.
control room: A room in the studio containing several monitors and the special effects generator. In smaller facilities, the control room also houses the audio mixer, all of the sound equipment, video recorders, the CG, CCUs, and even the light board.

35. Glossary
editing suite: A cubicle or small room where the program is put through postproduction processing, such as video and audio editing, voice over, music and sound effects recording, and graphics recording.
EFP (electronic field production): A shoot in which the video crew and production staff are in total control of the events and action.

36. Glossary
ENG (electronic news gathering): The process of shooting information, events, or activity that would have happened whether a reporting/production team was there with a camera or not.
flat: A scenery unit that is usually a simple wood frame with a painted plywood shell.

37. Glossary
jack: A triangle-shaped brace that is fastened to the back of a flat to provide stable, upright support.
location: Any place, other than the studio, where production shooting is planned.
location survey: An assessment of a proposed shoot location that includes placement of cameras and lights, available power supply, equipment necessary, and accommodations needed for the talent and crew.

38. Glossary
master control room: A room in a production facility where all the hardware is located, including video recorders and other equipment needed to improve and process the video and audio signals.
preview monitor: A monitor that allows the director to set up an effect on the SEG before the audience sees it.

39. Glossary
production meeting: A meeting with the entire crew in which the director lays out the program’s main message and either the director or producer assigns each task involved in the production to members of the crew.
program monitor: A monitor that displays the image going to the recorder.
remote shoot: Any production shooting that takes place outside of the studio.