I was lucky enough to serve as the technical advisor on AbelCine’s Behind the Lens project, a web series looking at 11 professional zoom lenses covering the indispensable 3x wide-to-tight range, perfect for handheld shooting in run-and-gun documentary situations. New York-based cinematographer Matt Porwoll graciously agreed to helm Behind the Lens: A Look at Documentary Zooms, which launched in April. We just posted the final episode in the series and wanted to look back and highlight some key findings about each lens.

by Matt Thames For the very early stage of the race, Sony outfitted five sheep with its latest AS100VR Action Cams, complete with waterproof features and image stabilization capacity. Sony then handed over the keys to local shepherd, Ian Hammond, to remotely control the cameras atop his flock. Attached using a modified dog harness, Sony hopes to catch a very unorthodox perspective of the Yorkshire leg of the Tour de France.

by featured blog contributor, Jeremy PinckertSometimes when I’m in the thick of pre-production on a new television advertising spot, I’m tempted to put all of my emphasis on the obvious questions: Who will be the cinematographer? What camera system will we use? What casting decisions need to be made? Who the hell can convert my scribbles into a real storyboard?There’s a step often left out of the above question process, but one that, as a Director or Producer, does have a significant effect on your picture. In fact, this step is the first point of contact between the enigma of a performance and the camera.