Make Movies Without Money: Microbudget Filmmaking for Students, Photographers and Other Starving Artists

My goal in writing this book was simple: explain everything I wish I had known, when I was starting out! Maybe you're in film school, maybe you're getting into video production for fun, or maybe you're trying to make money with video. Whatever your circumstances, if you have big ideas and empty pockets, this book is for you! As a film school grad myself, and a commercial video producer and director for over 15 years now, I've learned lot of ways to save not only money, but also time and energy. What I've put into this book are the tips, tricks and techniques that I - and many of my professional colleagues - use on a daily basis, to make the absolute most out of whatever we're working with.

"Make Movies Without Money: Microbudget Filmmaking for Students, Photographers and Other Starving Artists" is a complete guide to doing the best video work possible on a shoestring budget. You don't need a ton of expensive gear to do great work, you just need to know what you're doing!

Fully illustrated with photographs and screenshots demonstrating every aspect of the text, this book doesn't waste your time with abstract theory or techniques that only work on big-budget productions. Instead, you'll learn:

- An easy-to-follow system for preproduction: the most important - and most frequently overlooked - part of any project.

- A shortcut to "thinking in shots" that will allow you to instantly grasp the vital concept of shot selection.

- Detailed recipes for cinema-style lighting, including how to use (and not use!) three-point lighting, and how to work with available light.

- A crash-course in field audio engineering: one of the most problematic areas for rookie filmmakers.

- Five techniques to get attention-grabbing shots using no more than a tripod..

- Everything you need to know about DSLR video production, including an overview of depth-of-field considerations, dual-system sound, and pulling focus without a follow-focus.

- A detailed understanding of the three exposure variables, and how to use them in the cinematic style.

- How to achieve professional results even if you don't have most of the gear you've been told you need.

- A plain-English explanation of codecs, resolution, framerates, pixel aspect ratios and other technical gremlins.

- Clear recommendations on equipment that offers the best bang for your buck.

- And much, much more!