Brian Hamilton on Working With Bill Rolland

Brian Hamilton, Editor of The Union newspaper (online at www.theunion.com), on the experience of being interviewed by Bill Rolland, especially setting the speaker at ease.

Hutnuggers

I get that skinny jeans are popular with the youngish set, especially in colors found nowhere in nature. But what I don’t get is 1. how do you not come down with DVT every time you squeeze into a pair and 2. fergawdsakes, how do you squeeze into a pair? Serious question – do you wet them first, hope they expand a bit, then blow-dry snug? Please – I really want to know.

More Face Care, Less Place Care

This might be a sort of longish post but bear with me – there’s some pretty good info at the end.

I just returned from capturing a video interview in Portland, Oregon in 4K (as opposed to the more standard 1080p – also too, h/t to the day’s Director of Photography, Luke Buckley). I was applying some pretty heavy concealer on the speaker’s prominent cheekbone where Luke was seeing some over-exposed patches in the viewfinder. As I sponged on the pancake, I was constantly checking with Luke to find that perfect “sweet spot” where the shine was gone but the man’s face wasn’t smothered in cake.

And that’s the thing. Shooting in 4K can render amazingly sharp and detailed images, but that also means it picks up every inflamed blemish, enlarged pore, and loose collar thread. Or makeup spackled on carelessly. You have been warned.

It wasn’t always like that. A couple of months ago the fam took an all-too-brief Seattle vacation where we checked out the Museum of Pop Culture. On display were fragile and aging sets from the original Star Trek series, cardboard and plywood held together by gaffers tape and a lot of wishful thinking. For the technologies of the day, of course, that was sufficient. But not a thing you’re going to get away with today. At the same time, today’s large-sensor 4K cameras mean that we can create a look where the main focus of the image is in sharp relief but the background is super blurry. It’s a very popular look at the moment:

So here’s your takeaway – take extreme care with the images that will be in sharp focus: get a haircut; shave cleanly, be sure you’re wearing crisp, freshly-pressed clothing. Worry less about the details of the background: the pictures on the wall, the furniture stacked against the wall, the dark smear on the back wall.

Tiny Bottles

This is one of my must-have travel accessories, tiny bottles of Tabasco sauce (though they’re also available in more convenient packets, I vastly prefer these cute little bottles). Sometimes dining on the road can be less than inspiring and Tabasco adds a needed kick. But when I fly (and assuming I don’t need to climb into a rental car after arrival) I often try to squeeze in an early morning Bloody Mary, turbo-charged by a few shakes of this tiny treasure.

Amster, Amster, Dam Dam Damn!

 Lovely photo from one of the world’s most photogenic cities, taken earlier this year. Posting this, though, sort of breaks one of my cardinal rules about travel photography: don’t take photos that have already been taken, like, a billion times and are instantly available on Google Images.

Roll Baby Roll

I was on a location shoot in late May, I think. Between scenes, the client burst into the room to announce that custodians were using Number 2 pencils to hold the rolls of toilet paper in place. Yup. In every stall.

New Gear I Got, Part The Second: DJIä OSMO

This is the second of six brief videos showing some of the new gear I’ve acquired since the end of last year; this one is about the DJI OSMO, a 4K camera mounted on a 3-axis gimbal – essentially a drone mounted on a handle. Plus horsies!

That About Nails It

 Coffee last Thursday with documentary filmmaker Mike Bloebaum who used to work with such legends as Irwin Rosten and Nicolas Noxon. Like me, he approaches every project with amazing enthusiasm and devotion – but the moment it’s over it’s completely forgotten, almost like it didn’t happen. Bloebaum says that Noxon called it “temporary enthusiasm”, which is a perfect description of every day of every job I’ve ever done.

In Which I Manage To Embarrass Not Only Myself But My Wife Also Too As Well

Lisa was able to join me recently on a job near Walnut Creek, CA. – later we joined friends for dinner downtown. While waiting for them to arrive, we relaxed in the lounge with a cocktail. She ordered a Cosmo while I asked for an Old Fashioned. The bartender insisted I try using boogers in my drink. Boogers. Now I’m pretty open minded, and when it comes to cocktails, always ready to try something new. But dude, seriously, boogers? BOOGERS? Not happening. Uh-uh, no way/no how, never, never, never…

(bartender shows me bottle) Oh. Never mind.

 

Where’s a Good Dike When You Need One?

This is what it looks like when you’re working in The Netherlands and you want to check in on the weather back home: