Cinematography reel 2023 - Nichelle Alexander - ID# 157

Homewood-Flossmoor
Cinematography
Entry Description

A compilation of beautiful shots I've taken from the many films that I've completed.

Copyright Info

Recent Teacher Comments

  • 4/25 9:03 am - Excellent camera work and shots overall. Lots of effective stabilizer/gimbal work, but could have included more diversity of camera angles on sticks - without camera movement. Solid compositions overall and good use of match cuts in the edit. The editing showcases lots of shooting and lighting strengths - the heart of this category - and the use of bokeh and lens flare is well done and beautiful. On a side note, it's impressive you have an NLE workflow to support full 4K.
  • 4/19 1:46 pm - PROS - Nice compositions and moving camerawork, overall. The shot at 0:12 does a nice job of letting the movement help develop the subject of the shot. This is also present in the shot at 0:27; the intention of the composition is very strong and the movement gives a very dynamic nature to the shot, in spite of the focus issues. Great moment at 0:46 with the actor; the visible breath adds nice texture to the frame. Strong parking lot sequence beginning at 0:51. The two shots cut together nicely and you did a great job exposing your subject's darker skin tone in a night exterior, which is particularly challenging for a cinematographer. Strong compositions at 1:03, 1:12, and 1:39. Another strong, dynamic shot design at 1:27. Your B&W work is the strongest part of your reel; solid shot designs, smooth movement, and your lighting and frame designs are very evocative. CONS - You have several shots (:02, :24, :48) that would have benefitted from the use of a tripod and better matched the visual style of your other stationary wide shots, like the woman in the chair, the train station, and the woman in the theater seats. Start experimenting more with your lighting in order to consistently create depth in your images, like in your B&W shots and the shot at 1:38. Your exposure was a little inconsistent throughout. Some shots were right on the money while one was over and bloomed your highlights (:02) and some were under (:59, 1:41) causing the actions of your subjects to not be clearly defined. Overall strong work!
  • 4/17 4:49 pm - Great variety of shots, movement, and lighting conditions. Good follow of the action, moving the audience's eyes to different parts of your framing. Could be even better if you do that in a shallower depth of field with your work since it's mostly narrative, planned work. The use of additional lighting could help you access details with your strong sensor and lensing.
Judge 1

Positives: Good lighting in all scenes. Mostly super steady shots. Creative. Standout - clothing rustling in the wind.

Improvements: Subjects getting up and turning their back to the camera could have been cut

Judge 2

Positives: 1. Your medium and wide shots all look beautiful and you have the fundamental knowledge of how camera movements and framing work. The dolly shot in the library stood out to me especially, as the framing and movements were smooth. 2. You used natural lighting to your advantage in most of these, and seem to have knowledge of color correction as well. Well done.

Improvements: 1. You seem to lose sight of framing and focus when doing close up shots. In the third shot 9B&W) where the person squats down to pick up the Kendrick Lamar album, I am not entirely sure what I was supposed to be looking at. There is also a lot of negative space here. You should focus on the subject of the scene, because every part of the subject is being lost partially out of frame. This happens in a few shots. 2. You seem to rely on wide shots in this reel. It may be due to the shortcomings of the close ups, but I wish I could see more variety of shots and blocking than wide shots where the subject sits at the center of the frame. Remember to use your rule of thirds and experiment with it.

Judge 3

Positives: You had a great variety of shots here. :15 I really like the camera movement here. It was fairly steady. At :58 the tracking LS of the person running is solid. It was properly exposed and the framing was on point. You allowed enough space in front of the subject and kept that pace flawlessly. It also was a great match cut from side to front. Good work. My favorite frame 1:15.

Improvements: I understand that the guidelines say 2 minute max length. You don't always need that. I would rather have one minute of all your solid footage rather than two minutes of footage that isn't as strong comparatively. :15 One thing would be widen out the frame a little- It's great movement but I'm feeling like we are not seeing everything. When the talent picks up the album you have a great lead but you don't get enough of their face before they stand up and head to the couch. Talent is always unpredictable so you wanna be prepared to make those micro-adjustments. 1:20 I see you. I would say be aware of yourself in frame too. It will take someone out of the story if they see something that shouldn't be there.

Judge 4

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Judge 5

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