Filmed over the course of 3 months during the 2021 Covid Lockdown in Sydney Australia, ‘The Powerful Owl’ is a 1-hour documentary about filmmaker David Luff documenting the lives of a family of Powerful Owls and their two Owlets.
As he discovers and films their habits, learned behaviour and accomplishments, parallels are found within his own personal life.
The following trailer provides a glimpse of what to expect from the complete film that is due out in around 3-6 months hopefully.
The entire documentary was shot on Sony gear, see further details in the Q&A below.
Q&As
David kindly provided some further details on shooting the firm during this short Q&A session.
Q1. What gear did you use for your shoot?
For principal photography of the Owls and Animals, I shot with a Sony a7S III, 200-600mm and a Sony 400mm GM. I had an Atomos Ninja V attached for ProRes recording. I had my camera rigged to a VCT for easy attachment and transport, as well as a pinch plate where I mounted a v-lock battery to power the camera, monitor and the occasional follow focus accessories.
We shot the interview with an FX6 and a7SIII, with a 24-70mm GM and 70-200mm GM. The re-enacted BTS was shot on an a7SIII with an assortment of GM primes and a 24-70mm GM, attached to a DJI RS2 gimbal.
Q2. What did you like about shooting with Sony equipment and what did you dislike?
Definitely one of my favourite things about shooting with Sony is the weight (or lack thereof) when using a rigged-out kit. Super-telephoto lens’ are often a bit heavy when shooting for an extended period, but when using the G and GM lens’ I had no issues at all. And of course, the low-light capabilities of the a7SIII sensor are just astounding.
As far things that I disliked, there really isn’t much! The only nuisance is how pricey CF Express Type A cards are. Now, almost all codecs can be filmed on a standard V90 UHS-II card, however, there is one format which can’t and that’s 4K 120p XAVC S-I in S&Q mode. This is one of those things where as a wildlife shooter, I need and want it. But alas, on low budget productions you need to work with what you have!
Q3. What scene posed the most technical challenges to shoot?
I filmed a sequence about a swarm of bees that had gathered nearby. When filming them departing in mass, it was half luck and half skill that allowed me to capture the event so well. I had actually practiced the shot about 4 times before they all departed. The swarm was hanging from some tree leaves blowing in the wind. My idea was to arc around the hive in a circular motion with the a7siii attached to the 24-70 GM on a DJI RS2 gimbal. But with the wind blowing, the hive was constantly moving forwards and backwards. Not only did I have to adjust the arc of my circle constantly, but also, I had to ensure the hive stayed relatively centre frame.
I played with a few AF settings before settling on a wide focus area with the fastest AF transition speed and subject shift sensitivity. This worked best when I kept the swarm of bees’ centre framed, but it had a few issues if the swarm left frame entirely. It was the lesser of two evils, as the other AF modes were not so accurate, and after 4 practice arcs I was ready to shoot the main event. Which I then did with success.
Q4. What did you learn from shooting this film that you think could help other film makers?
When filming nocturnal animals in very low light conditions, try to work with the full moon if possible. The added level of light helps tremendously.
Also, while Image quality is very important, story triumphs. I was shooting a lot at 51,200 ISO with a 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 at 600mm in the night time. But this only worked when the owls were on the edge of the tree line with ambient light touching them. As soon as they went deeper into forest, I had to bump up the ISO to102,400 and very occasionally – 204,800. Of course, this added a lot of noise into the shots, but it allowed me to frame up and focus on the owls and capture footage that would have been otherwise impossible. It’s better to have the footage than to not!
Q5. What’s next?
The Powerful Owl is in distribution talks currently and is about to start its rounds on the Film Festival Circuit. I have very recently moved over to Bristol in the UK to continue and grow my career in Natural History Filmmaking. I have a few wildlife series ideas churning away at the back of my mind, but primarily for now I’m working on getting a foot in the door here in the UK.
Q6. How can we keep up to date with what you’re doing?
The Powerful Owl has its own Instagram and Facebook page where we will be updating our audience with where and how to view the film when it is released.
www.facebook.com/thepowerfulowldocumentary
www.instagram.com/thepowerfulowl
I’m active on Instagram and LinkedIn primarily. Otherwise, if anyone wants to ask anything further about The Powerful Owl or my Cinematography, I am contactable via my website www.davidluff.com.au
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