March 05, 2012
Underwater Filmmaking Workflow Part 1: Before the Dive
For the past several months, I've been heads down on writing, filming and editing two short films -- one about camouflage, and the other about Blue Heron Bridge. Now that it's clear why I've been M.I.A. since Oct., lets get to the point of this blog post: workflow.
Where to start? Without question, the story! Never ever press play on your camcorder/DSLR until you have a story. But a story isn't enough. It must be different and unique. I'm getting sick and tired of watching underwater films that simply tell viewers about the creatures that inhabit a reef. I think the saying goes... been there, done that.
The Dilemma by Pete Fowler is a great example of a film with a unique angle. I wish I had a sample clip, but I don't. The Dilemma was screened at last year's San Diego Undersea Film Exhibition. The film answers a simple question: What is the plural of octopus? The film poked fun at octopuses versus octopi and included beautiful octopi (pun intended if you've seen the film) footage. The film's unique story drew laughter and applause from the audience.
I think drafting the story is the most challenging step in the workflow. I spend countless hours writing and just when I think the story is done, I write some more. At some point though, you've got to call it quits and move onto the next step: identifying shots to accompany each sentence in your story. The shots must tell the story visually. Well known underwater filmmaker Mike Boom recently taught me a valuable lesson. I sent him a short film for review and he replied saying, "I like your opening shot, but it has nothing to do with the story." He was right... the opening shot had nothing to do with the story, but I included it anyway because I thought it was pretty. Big mistake.
If one of your sentences says, "the octopus is a master of camoflauge," then you need to visually show the octopus being a master of camouflage. While you may have gotten a great shot of an octopus crawling across the sea floor, your unproperly exposed shot of the octopus blending in with the reef is the most appropriate footage to use.
I spend a lot of time thinking about how to tell each sentence of the story visually. Then, I plagiarize. It's not what you think though. I go to VIMEO.com and watch films from profesional filmmakers like Howard Hall, Steve De Neef, Mike Elliott, Tony Wu and Rafa Herrero Massieu. When I find cool shots, I identify what makes them cool and think about how to incorporate them into my short film. Howard Hall once told me that he learned by watching other people's films. While it seems obvious, a lot of people overlook the lessons that can be learned simply by watching a film and taking notes.
Once I have all my shots outlined, I seperate them into two categories -- macro and wide-angle shots (I shoot with a Canon 7D, so I don't have the luxury of switching from wide angle to macro during a dive). Finally, I shrink them down to the smallest font I can read, print them out on a half a sheet of paper and laminate it; that way, I can reference the card during my dives to ensure I get all the shots I need.
The next step: the dive. But we'll save that for part two.
Posted by jroualdes at 11:18 PM | Comments (0)
October 20, 2011
Despite Humidity & Mosquitos, Florida Rocks
I just returned from Florida, where I dove Blue Heron Bridge and Blue Spring. Long story short, mantees are playful and inquisitive, scorpion fish are extremely well camouflaged, squid are dazzling and the Atlantic Ocean is a jacuzzi compared to the Pacific. I'll post dive profiles of both sites soon. In the meantime, here is a rough cut video of my dive at Blue Heron Bridge.
PS -- If you haven't visited Blue Heron Bridge, book a trip now. It's worth every penny.
Posted by jroualdes at 06:21 PM | Comments (0)
September 12, 2011
San Diego UnderSea Film Exhibition Recap
Having never attended or participated in a previous San Diego UnderSea Film Exhibition, I didn’t know what to expect from this year’s exhibition. What will the venue be like? How many people will attend? What will the quality of the short films exhibited be? Will the professional filmmakers attend? These are all questions I asked myself beforehand.
Full disclosure -- I was fortunate enough to have my first short film, “Peace & Quiet,” screened at this year’s exhibition, so I’m admittedly biased. That said, from the venue, to the number of attendees, to the quality of the films screened, to the professional filmmakers in attendance, this year’s SDUFEX blew my mind.
The exhibition was founded in 2000 by several divers/underwater filmmakers -- including Mary Lynn Price, Chuck Nicklin and Karen Straus -- to showcase the world’s best underwater short films. This year's SDUFEX, held at Irwin M. Jacobs Qualcomm Hall Sept. 9-10, featured 34 short films from professional filmmakers like Howard and Michelle Hall, J.D. Duff, Mary Lynn Price, and amateurs like me. Michael Gates also presented the winning film from its "Capture the World" competition.
When I arrived at the exhibition on Friday night, I was immediately impressed by Qualcomm Hall--it's a spectacular, state-of-the-art 534-seat hall intended to be used by non-profit organizations. Undulating blue and green lights and underwater still photos projected on the 22x30 foot screen made it feel like Qualcomm Hall was underwater.
Qualcomm Hall
One of the biggest questions I had leading up to the exhibition was "How many people would attend?" The hall was filling up quickly, with only a handful of empty chairs remaining. After taking our seats, my girlfriend Carolina and I noticed a line forming on the isle to our right. My eyes started at the end of the line, backtracking to its source—Howard and Michelle Hall sitting directly behind me. Being the Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie of underwater filmmaking, everyone was taking the opportunity to say hello. I knew that the Hall's film, "100 Miles," was the last film being shown at the exhibition, but I honestly didn't expect them to be in attendance. The pressure was on--my film screened two films before the Hall's.
A few minutes later, the lights dimmed and the exhibition’s hosts -– Karen Straus and Ken Given –- took the stage. Karen sported a white t-shirt with a BCD and scuba tank imprinted on it. She exuded excitement. Ken wore a tuxedo shirt with matching purple Converse. He was noticeably more nervous than Karen, but his critique of his occasional fumbling of lines was endearing. The duo worked well off each other and kept the attendees entertained.
While Simon Spear's "Circle of Life” kicked off the exhibition, I was floored by Nannette Van Antwerp's “Pacific Drifters." She was in attendance, but elected not to personally introduce her film. Her second film, “Crustaceans of Ambon," screened Saturday night and was equally impressive.
Around 9:30 pm, the exhibition's first night ended and we headed to P.F. Chang's to eat, drink and recap the exhibition. We concluded that Friday night’s films fell into two categories -- films with music and films with music and narration. Being a writer, I naturally gravitate towards the latter category. I personally think the biggest opportunity for amateur underwater filmmakers lies in their ability to shoot stellar video, write a compelling narrative and choose music that amplifies emotions.
Carolina kept me busy Saturday. She knew that if she brought me back to our hotel room too early, I’d bounce off the walls with nervous energy and drive her nuts. We jogged around La Jolla Cove and enviously gawked at the divers entering the water. One diver told us that the cove was a great place to see leopard sharks, which I badly need footage of. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough time to dive and attend the exhibition.
When we arrived at Qualcomm Hall that evening, a line had already formed from the hall’s back door stretching out across the lobby. Petrified, I walked up to the front desk to get our tickets. Since my film was being screened that night, I was given a badge that said “Filmmaker” in bold black letters. It should have said “Lucky to Be Here.” The badge was like tucking my shirt into my underwear -- it drew stares. The doors opened and Carolina and I made a b-line for the seats we sat in the previous night. The seats quickly filled up and people kept streaming in -- it was a packed house.
The lights dimmed, Karen and Ken again greeted attendees. This time, Karen wore a shirt featuring glow-in-the-dark fish that didn’t glow. Not to be outdone, Ken sported an orange tuxedo shirt with matching Converse.
Karen and Ken
Saturday's films were as impressive as Friday's. Before long, it was my turn to introduce “Peace & Quiet.” As instructed, I walked to stage under the cover of dark while the film before mine played. I worked my way up the staircase to the right of the stage and sat in an empty chair next to Ken. I was comfortable the entire night. But now my underwear was riding up my butt and my socks were bunching up in my shoes. I was quickly losing my cool.
These past two nights, I’d paid particularly close attention to what people said during their introductions. Like the films, Carolina and I broke the introductions down into two categories -- nonchalant introductions and serious introductions. I don’t take myself too seriously, but I was really excited to be at the exhibition, so I decided to take a different route with my introduction. My game plan solidified meer minutes before I found myself sitting next to Ken, growing increasingly nervous, counting down the seconds until I was introduced. I whipped out my iPhone and took a photo of the audience to ease my nerves.
Photo of the audience from the left side of the stage
Then I realized Karen was at the podium introducing me. Two weeks prior, Karen had emailed me to ask how to pronounce my name. I told her that everyone mispronounces my name. To emphasize the point, I shared that an announcer once called me Joe Rolaids during a baseball game. Karen found it so ammusing that she recounted the story to the audience. I thought to myself, “Not a bad start, thanks Karen.”
As I made my way to the stage, Karen extended her hand. I awkwardly shook her hand, took a few steps to the podium, began anxiously rubbing my hands together and launched into my introduction...
My introduction, filmed by Carolina
The photo I took during my introduction
After my introduction, I walked off the stage where I was hugged by Karen and given a blue mug with the SDUFEX etched into it. I stopped in the isle against the right wall and watched my film.
I thought I’d be nervous seeing my film projected on a screen a few hundred times larger than my living-room TV in front of more than 500 people. I wasn’t. I felt a sense of accomplishment.
Three minutes and thirty five seconds later, it was over. J.D. Duff introduced his film shortly thereafter, followed by Howard Hall. Naturally, both were stunning. Howard’s ended with, “Everything in this film was shot within 100 miles of where you sit.” The audience errupted.
While the exhibition was over, SDUFEX was holding a dinner for the filmmakers at the nearby Hyatt. I wasn’t at the dinner to eat and drink. I was there to network with other filmmakers. Grasping a Manhattan in one hand, I ask questions like, “What is your workflow,” to anyone who would listen. Midway through a conversation with Mary Lynn Price, who is an extremely genuine person, not to mention a great filmmaker, Howard Hall sat down across the table from me and Michelle Hall sat to my right. Mary immediately turned to him and said, “Howard, have you met Joe? You should answer his question.” For the next 45 minutes, Howard, Michelle and Mary took turns answering all my questions.
I learned a lot in 45 minutes. But one thing stood out. When I asked Howard and Michelle to describe their workflow, Howard put both hands face down on the table, leaned forward and shot me a stare reminiscent of Dirty Harry. He emphasized the importance of writing the narrative and then identifying the shots needed to visually tell the story before starting to film. While he’s perhaps best known for his footage, his passion for writing was evident.
Around midnight, everyone got up, pushed in their chairs, said their goodbyes and headed home. I'd been riding an emotional roller coaster all weekend. While the ride, SDUFEX, was over, adrenaline was still coursing through my veins. Back at our hotel, I couldn't sleep so Carolina and I recapped the exhibition. Surprised best summed it up. Surprised by the beauty of the venue, quality of the films and number of attendees.
What surprised us most though were the filmmakers -- they were unbeievably friendly, thoughtful and generous. Howard, Michelle, Mary and every other filmmaker could have ignored us at dinner, and I wouldn't have blamed them. But they didn't. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday and can't wait for next year's SDUFEX.
Posted by jroualdes at 06:55 PM | Comments (0)
August 24, 2011
San Diego UnderSea Film Exhibition Serves Up Best Birthday Ever!
Sept. 10 is going to be a great day. Not because it's my 30th birthday, but because my first underwater short film--"Peace & Quiet"--has been selected to be shown at this year's San Diego UnderSea Film Exhibition on Sept. 10.
Many of the exhibition's organizers and judges are professional underwater filmmakers, like Mary Lynn Price, whose work I greatly admire and follow. What's also humbling is that my amatuer film is included in the same program as Howard Hall's "100 Miles" and J.D. Duff's "Cocos Island, Costa Rica." Can you believe that? I feel very fortunate to be able to say that.
I'm attending the exhibition and will tweet live from my Twitter handle @jroualdes Sept. 9-10. The week after, I'll post a blog recapping my experiences.
Posted by jroualdes at 04:45 AM | Comments (0)
Two Shark Attacks Perplex Russians
There hasn't been a single recorded shark attack in Primorsky Krai--a region in far East Russia along the Sea of Japan--until now. Denis Udovenko, 25, was attacked on Wednesday, followed by Valery Sidorovich, 16, on Thursday. Both survived, but Udovenko lost both arms below the elbows. Authorities have temporarily banned swimming at several nearby beaches.
For the full story, read Michael Schwirtz's New York Times article here.
Posted by jroualdes at 01:04 AM | Comments (0)
August 19, 2011
The One That Didn't Get Away
Fisherman John Goldfinch had a big one on his line. But it wasn't a mackerel. It was a diver. Goldfinch's hook caught him right between the legs. "The funniest thing was that his girlfriend then surfaced, helped him remove my tackle from his tackle and nonchalantly handed the hook back to me and apologised," he said.
Click here for the full story.
Posted by jroualdes at 10:21 PM | Comments (0)
August 15, 2011
Contraversial SHARK WEEK Footage Creating a Frenzy
An interesting conversation has popped up on Wetpixel. Adam Hanlon reports that Discovery Channel’s show How Shark Hunt, which aired as part of SHARK WEEK, included “controversial footage.” In the footage, the famous tiger shark Emma “is baited and when she takes the bait, is pulled by the crew up towards the surface. The shark resists and the line holding the bait parts, causing the gantry arm to which it was attached to swing round and strike the crew.”
The footage prompted Hanlon to ask Wetpixel forum members if “this sort of activity really acceptable for people's entertainment and does this do any good for shark or marine conservation?” In response, one person said, “Discovery & Shark Week are BOGUS, moronic & destructive.” Another said, “I haven’t watched a Shark Week program in over a decade. This shows I’ve made the right decision.” I searched for positive responses, but was unable to find any.
As I’ve said before, I’m not a fan of SHARK WEEK. Sadly, this video pretty much sums up why. I’m doubtful the Discovery Channel will learn its lesson though because SHARK WEEK opened to 3.3 million viewers its first hour, which was one of the annual programming event's best Sunday night numbers ever.
Do you think SHARK WEEK does anything good for shark conservation?
Posted by jroualdes at 07:10 PM | Comments (0)
August 12, 2011
What About Bob?
Ten minutes into our boat ride from Lahaina to Molokai, our dive master shepherded me and 12 other divers into the boat’s cabin for our pre-dive brief. One person remained—a man appearing to be in his sixties, sporting white stubble, tattered tan shorts and a blue shirt. “Should I grab him,” I asked. “Nah, that’s just Bob,” the dive master replied before drawing circles on a whiteboard representing two pinnacles that jutted from the ocean two miles off Molokai’s East shore. “Here is where the scalloped hammerheads are,” he said while drawing a big X.
My attention immediately shifted from Bob to the hammerheads. They’re the reason I woke up at 5 a.m. on my vacation and braved a 45-minute boat ride in six-foot swells. About those swells—the Pailolo Channel separating Maui and Molokai is one of the roughest channels in the world, and it was living up to its reputation. The six-foot swells tossed the boat side-to-side like a pendulum making it difficult to focus on the brief and stay dry.
Suddenly, a loud thud rang from the back of the boat. Everyone spun around, fearing a tank had fallen from a rack and crushed their gear. Bob was in the middle of the boat’s deck, wearing a camouflage wetsuit, wrestling with a rebreather. Despite the swells and waves that littered spray across the boat, Bob had managed to gear up. But he wasn’t done. He waved over our dive master, who quickly clipped a bright yellow tank to his waist, and then handed him a camcorder in a large Gates housing. With all his gear, Bob looked more like an astronaut than a diver. Just then, the boat pulled up to the pinnacles and idled. One giant stride later, Bob was gone. The boat’s crew shouted, “Bob’s away!”
Who the hell is Bob? Unsatisfied by the answer the diver master had given me earlier, I scrambled up the ladder to the captain. “Bob is Bob,” he said. I was beginning to think the crew had something against me. “He’s been diving this sight twice a week for the past year,” he said. “He’ll meet up with you guys at the end of your dive. You can interrogate him then.” Pleased that I’d uncovered some info about Bob, I headed down the staircase to prep for my dive.
One hour later, I was back on the boat, without Bob. “I thought you said Bob would meet up with us at the end of our dive,” I said to the captain. “Yeah, your second dive.” Bob’s rebreather didn’t expel bubbles that frighten hammerheads and it allowed him to stay down for hours at a time.
Nearing the end our second dive, Bob appeared. He was hovering behind a ledge preparing to ambush a camera-shy, five-foot-long barracuda. As we boarder the boat, I overheard Bob talking to a dive master. “I’ve never been so close to a hammerhead,” he said, sporting a grin from ear-to-ear.
“He likes chocolate chip cookies,” a dive master said. “I’m sorry,” I replied. “Bob, he likes cookies.” I immediately made a b-line for the cookie jar, snatched two and then approached Bob. “Would you like a cookie,” I asked. He looked up and said nothing. “Would you like a cookie,” I repeated. “You’ll have to speak up,” he replied. I thrust the cookie towards him. “Oh, thanks!”
With my peace offering accepted, I began hurling questions at Bob: How close did you get to the hammerhead? Are you an underwater filmmaker? Why do you dive the site so frequently?
“The shark got so close it almost swallowed my camera lens,” he said, cracking a smile. Slowly but surely, Bob opened up.
At one point, he casually mentioned that he’d been a black coral diver “a long time ago.” A jewelry store owner had told me earlier in my vacation that black coral is rare and extremely difficult to harvest. It grows at depths exceeding 200 ft.—exposing divers to several potentially deadly hazards like nitrogen narcosis and tiger sharks. To say that black coral diving is dangerous is an understatement, and back then Bob didn’t even have the benefit of modern dive technology and mixed gases.
Then I asked the inevitable question: What was your most dangerous dive? Bob took a bite of his cookie, seemingly reluctant to indulge me. Perhaps he didn’t want to talk about close calls or maybe he’d had so many that he needed time to choose which story to tell me. Bob swallowed, and then dove into his story.
He was 45 minutes or so into a dive around 180 ft. when he went to flip the J valve to access his reserve. But when he reached back, he couldn’t feel the hanger. He removed the tanks from his back to take a closer look and discovered the hanger was gone. 180 ft. down, 45 minutes into his dive with an empty tank and no way to access his reserve, Bob removed his belt and bolted for the surface. When he porpoised, the boat crew immediately tossed him a tank with a regulator attached to it. Bob descended to 100 ft. to decompress. At that point, it became clear to me why Bob was hard of hearing. He should have died that day, but he didn’t. “Someone was looking out for me,” he said.
Some of his friends weren’t so lucky. Some were killed by decompression sickness and air embolisms, one was attacked by a tiger shark and others simply didn’t return from dives.
The next day, I stopped by Bob’s Front St. shop, Whaler’s Locker. The store offers sun burnt, tropical shirt sporting tourists jewelry, most of which comes from the sea. It’s as much a museum as it is a jewelry store. Bob’s daughter was working behind the counter. Making small talk, my girlfriend Carolina mentioned that I’d been on a dive boat with her father. She said divers frequent Whaler’s locker boasting that they’d dove with Bob, which annoyed her. “They didn’t dive with my dad, they were on a boat with him,” she said.
Since we passed her test, she began to tell us more about Bob. Surprisingly, he’d stopped diving altogether several years ago. It wasn’t until she invited him to “tag along” for an open water course that he got back into diving. After completing the open water course, Bob took several more courses and eventually purchased a rebreather. His daughter had considered purchasing one too, but decided against it when she read the manual that accompanied it. “Every other word was WARNING,” she said. “That thing has 100 ways to kill you.”
Two days later, I left Maui and a crew of filmmakers arrived. They were putting the final touches on a documentary about black coral divers and needed to interview Bob. He told me that he was apprehensive about the film because he hadn’t told his family much about his experiences black coral diving. “I guess they’ll know now,” he said.
Posted by jroualdes at 09:20 PM | Comments (0)
March 28, 2011
Sea Lions at Breakwater Wall!
If you live in Northern California and long to dive with sea lions, head to Breakwater Wall in Monterey. More sea lions than you can shake a stick at have returned from breeding in Southern California and Baja and are jostling for space along the rocky wall. Yesterday, several friends and I headed down to dive Breakwater Wall. While visibility was poor -- only 15 feet -- the sea lions didn't disappoint. See for yourself:
Sea Lions @ Breakwater Wall from Joe Roualdes on Vimeo.
Posted by jroualdes at 04:00 PM | Comments (0)
March 17, 2011
The Frugal Photographer: UW Tripod
This is the first video in a new series we're calling "The Frugal Photographer." So what inspired this series? My macro videos we’re shaky, and as a result, unappealing to view. When I began researching underwater tripods to stabilize them, I was shocked by how expensive they were—$400 and up. After some deliberation, I decided not to purchase a tripod since I’d already spent a lot on a Canon 7D, Ikelite housing, multiple lenses and ports and an Ultralight arm and SOLA1200 video light. Inspired by Tony Wu, I made one myself for just $60.
Next video, we'll illustrate how to build an inexpensive snoot. Let us know if you have any questions or requests for future Frugal Photographer videos.
ScubaDiverInfo, The Frugal Photographer: UW Tripod from Joe Roualdes on Vimeo.
Posted by jroualdes at 04:56 PM | Comments (0)
March 10, 2011
Only 219 Great Whites Live Off California's North Coast
That's according to a recently published, first-ever census conducted by post-doctoral students at UC Davis over the three years.
"The number seems incredibly low--it was very surprising for us," said Taylor Chapple, who published the report in this week's journal Biology Letters. "If you look at other protected marine mammals such as polar bears or killer whales, their populations are far bigger than white sharks."
Chapple's team floated seal decoys between Bodega Bay and Monterey. When the sharks surfaced to explore the decoys, his team took photos of the shark's distinctive fins, which were used to help tell the sharks apart and calculate the total population.
Unfortunately, this study is the first-of-its kind, so it is still uncertain whether or not great white shark populations are rising, falling or stable. On the bright side though, this is a step in the right direction.
Posted by jroualdes at 10:49 PM | Comments (0)
March 03, 2011
We're Going to the San Francisco Ocean Film Festival!
ScubaDiverInfo is attending the San Francisco Ocean Film Festival--a volunteer-driven non-profit dedicated to using film to increase public understanding of the environmental, social and cultural importance of marine ecosystems and foster a spirit of ocean stewardship.
We're attending "Program 7: Sharks & Vanishing Marine Life" Saturday starting at 1:00 pm PT. If you're interested in attending the festival, but can't, don't worry--we're tweeting live throughout. My Twitter handel is @jroualdes if you're interested in following the conversation online. I'll also post an article shortly thereafter summarizing key takeaways.
While all of Program 7 looks promising, I'm personally most excited about the "Sharks, Fins and Sustainability" panel starting at 3:15 pm PT.
Posted by jroualdes at 01:37 AM | Comments (0)
