Originally Posted by mcp_catman

AMP, Upon reading your original post I just had to throw my 2 cents in here... Now, I intentionally didn't look @ anyone's replies, so hopefully someone will get some enlightenment from mine.

Yes, any jerk-off can press the red button and point it at the pretty pink pussy, but quite frankly shooting takes a lot more than that. There's a vast difference between GWC's (guys with cams) and content providers, and there's an even bigger difference between content providers and directors. You just need to figure out which one are you. In 2004, I got out of the adult content biz, and stopped directing content because of GWC's underselling our market and polluting the net with absolute trash!! What pissed me off even worse is that the webmasters were buying this crap-content (craptent) over true providers that we shooting quality... For me, quality and true entertainment is where it's at. Know your viewer, and know what the viewer doesn't even know... What they wanna see....

Yes, it all sounds like flowered shite, but honestly there's a thought process in the world of shooting. Well... If you're going to shoot something worth viewing!! Shooting is not all about pointing and shooting... You need to think the basics as well... Angles, framing (what are you showcasing, can you get it all in one frame), panning vs zooming and knowing the difference of when to do what. Lighting and the balance of lighting will make or break a shoot. You need to know how to balance perfectly your outdoor lighting with indoor to make the frame look natural. have you crossed the lighting to cancel out shadows? Is there enough blue in your lighting? Does the lights show in the frame off a mirror, window or knick-knack in the room?? Are the positions you're putting your models in lighting friendly? Can you balance lighting and color on spec during a shoot in the event your models move? Doesn't your set have good colors that will bring out the models? Are your models properly made up for film? (makes a big difference).... Are the models wearing HD-Cam friendly attire? (stripes and polka-dots will give your viewer a seizure). Speaking of viewing, who's this for? web viewers? DVD viewers? This can be 2 different animals... Remember web viewers are an average of 14" - 28" from the monitor... DVD viewers are 5' - 12' feet from the TV.... dont wanna make eyes water...

You need to know blocking of not only the models, but you... Where are you going to go while shooting? Nothing looks crappier than seeing some donkey-face GWC shooting himself in a mirror, or the reflection of a window, or seeing his shadow constantly in and out of the frame.

Oh and visual senses aren't your only base to cover.. Now you must think audio... I wanna give a serious bollocking to CP's and GWC's who's sound is like a fucking wind-tunnel... there's nothing more distracting to the viewer than hearing that empty house echo during a shoot... And even worse (I've seen this a lot) that the sound and video aren't properly synched up....

The talent... Yeah, you can be the big ass-hole director, but if you're shooting long term, that will get old fast, and word will get out that you're difficult to work with. (models talk). So you have to know how to draw the talent in. Make them happy and comfortable that they're there while getting everything you need from them. Most Directors and CP's know that "The client" (webmaster) is a picky lil baby, but knows little to nothing about what goes on with the set. So not only do you have to get out of the talent what he/she wants you have to know better than your "The client" (webmaster) what they need. Now you must asses the personality of your talent... So while they're filling out their 2257's you take that 10-15 mins to get to know them... Type cast them so you can figure out a pulse, rhythm, and character for your production... Also, remember they're human beings... They have problems, dramas, and issues like anyone else. So you need to show a bit of care as well without disrupting the flow of your shoot. I tend to empathize... We've all been down and out before... we've all been nervous before... Also, you must know the biggest pussies, babies and divas are your male talent... And if you're working with new male talent like a couple you must be patient so they can get mr. wiggly to work right... Otherwise your shoot is gone!! Yes, you can give them viagara and without knowing their medical history kill them on your set and violate FATA laws. Without Viagara all my talent had a 96% success rate due to my methods of making talent feel at ease.... Tired yet???

CP's and GWC's shoot and say, "We'll fix it in post". But once it's shot... It's shot... Get what you get and don't get upset... A good director shoots to and for the edits... Yes... Post production, the boards... This is where we can get real picky... whether it be 24, 30, 60 and so on you should always cut to the frame... Use creativity in your cuts and transitions (wipe out to a butt hole and open to a mouth in the next scene, etc). You must know how to tweak sound, balance it out, fix lighting issues if needed (I hate seeing people shooting stills in my videos DONT DO IT!!!!), then color corrections if you need to do so as well.... You should be going frame by frame, not just playing it through... Cut out "house sounds" you should be able to cut video to the frame and sound to the 100th of a frame... Oh, now you render for DVD, or WEB, do you know what compressions to use? Frame rate? etc?

I can go on, and perhaps one day I will go on and write a book on the subject... So yes, AMP, there's a bit more to it...