FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G | Capture versatile shots | Review by Park Insu
Insu is a “digital nomad videomaker” who travels the world to film videos. He is deeply rooted in the world of filmmaking and production – producing commercial videos for brands, while also lecturing and conducting seminars on the art of videography.
Filming dance and choreography
I enjoy meeting people and telling their stories through videos. When I record, I like to think of a compelling message for the video, then convey it in a way that's interesting and memorable. This is especially true for dance videos, as the unique choreography makes each video unique and captivating in its own way.
A particularly memorable video series from my portfolio is “Paris Groove”, a collection of eight videos involving 11 artistes. Earlier, I had produced a series titled “Seoul Groove”, and I wanted to extend this concept to other countries.
Selecting the ideal camera and lens
When shooting commercial videos, I'm often a lone videographer – so equipment selection is very important. For the “Paris Groove” shoot, the FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G zoom lens was my first pick – followed by the FE 85mm F1.4 GM prime lens. The FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G zoom lens features an outstanding power zoom and inner zoom – and thanks to its versatility, allows me to get shots that usually require three or more people.
For cameras, I chose my FX9 and FX3. My plan was to use the FX9 to capture the entire landscape and subject. Meanwhile, the FX3 was mounted on a gimbal and used to shoot moving scenes. This was useful for low-angle shots.
Considerations for dance shoots
Be mindful of the noise you're creating
For dance videos, we often need to use speakers, and this can cause disturbances, especially in certain environments. For instance, one of the scenes was along a shopping arcade. As there were many stores in the arcade and it was an indoor space with a lot of echoing, I made sure to ask for everyone's understanding in advance.
Plan, plan, plan
In “Paris Groove”, it was essential that we captured the movement of the dancers perfectly – this meant checking out the areas and planning accordingly. I planned where to place the subject, checked if there was enough depth for the shot, made sure structures were either incorporated into the shot or framed out, and more.
I also had to plan my camera movements and vary what I did according to the space, the camera, and my lens. All this planning was necessary to ensure all elements came together seamlessly in the final videos.
Paris Groove: Deconstructing selected scenes
Dancing amidst vertical columns
An interesting element in this video, was a set of vertical structures in the background. To capture these structures and the sky appropriately, I used low angle shots. To ensure that the shots didn't look unreasonably low, I cut the shots around the height of the model's knee to belly area and filled the rest of the screen with the structures and sky. The result was an interesting harmony between all three key elements – the dancer, structures, and sky.
360 degrees of movement
To fully capture the depth of these environments, I filmed these scenes with a gimbal that allowed for a flowing 360 degrees of movement. The FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G's 16mm wide angle of view was used to decompress the space as much as possible, and the distance from the camera to the background perfectly conveyed the freedom of movement that the dancers were expressing with their bodies.
A dance tag team
This scene involved two dancers, which brought interesting challenges. Specifically, having to focus on both subjects as they interacted with one another – while also frequently shifting focus from one to the other, quickly and seamlessly. This is where the excellent autofocus and XD linear motors on the FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G stood out.
It was easy to shift focus between the dancers – swiftly and smoothly, making the audience feel like they are a part of the dance. When watching the performance on the monitor, I was absolutely mesmerised by the performance.
Advice for newcomers
If you're aspiring to shoot dance videos, whether as a hobby or professionally, I would advise collecting a lot of references. Whenever I watch a documentary, advertisement, or dance-related video, I archive the videos I feel are well-directed. Then, I analyse every cut, and think about the movements of the camera and other details.
I believe that it's always important to shoot videos with your own signature style – but sometimes, filming videos the way others do, can help you to think out of the box.
Looking ahead, I'm planning on producing “Seoul Groove 2”. I'm excited about creating more videos with the Alpha 1 and 8K series of cameras from Sony, and would like to hold my own exhibition one day.
