ACS France: Shooting in the nature

by ACS France - 3 November 2014 - Updated : 6/05 AFC newsletter n°247

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Since the end of last year, we have made several shootings in the fauna and flora for two French Directors’ next documentary... Hedgehogs, blackbirds, wolfs, ponies... So wildlife shootings!

Super G head mounted on a pick-up car - DR — **Super G head mounted on a pick-up car**

DR

Un tour de France en août?
ACS France worked this summer with an American team to make a 4K documentary about the adventure of a cycling fan Phil Keoghan. Phil is an iconic character of the American TV and a presenter for more than 15 years of the show "Amazing Race". He decided to run in the footsteps of the first New Zealander who participated in the Tour de France cycling in 1928. He followed the exact route of the 1928 edition during summer 2013 with a bicycle of that time. It would be wholly shot in 4K for a TV broadcast and maybe for a few theatres in USA. The goal is to donate funds to a foundation for neurological diseases research.

Some words from the chief cameraman, who was excited at the idea of using the latest factory made lens that Angénieux Company provided for the occasion:

"Le Ride aerials - lens choice
An essential element of Le Ride the landscape of France. So we went all out to shoot aerials and landscapes in the French Alps and the Pyrenees. ACS France provided the helicopter and Super G mount, and we were using a Sony F55 shooting 4K RAW, with Angenieux Optimo lenses.
We had a selection of Optimo lenses to choose from; the 19.5- 4 f/2.4, the 28 - 340 f/2.9, and the new Optimo Style 25-250 f/3.2.
The 19.5-94 became our favorite for the helicopter shots. The 4.7x zoom range gave us the ability to start on a broad sweeping mountainscape and then push in to the riders on Col d’Aubisque with virtually no aperture ramping. The combination of optical performance and mechanical precision makes for combination shots that would otherwise be impossible.
The 28 - 340 was the ultimate lens for long shots on the ground. Even at it’s maximum focal length it has no apparent artifacts, and can pull in crispy sharp images out of hazy landscape.
However my personal favorite was the new Optimo Style 25-250 because it produced similar results to the 28-340 in a much shorter and lighter package. This was an advantage on this project as were on a tight schedule and working short handed. With no physical constraints the 28-340 is the best choice, but in a real-world documentary shoot the 25-250 is what a I want in my kit."

Scott Shelley