Professional Photography and Video Merge into Hybrid
Posted: August 31st, 2009 | Author: Lee White | Filed under: Canon, Education, video | Tags: 5d Mark II, advertising photographer, CA, California, California advertising photographer, california photographers, Canon, Canon 5d, college class in video, college instructor, commercial photographers, dramatic lighting, editorial photographer, Lee White, location photographer, Los Angeles, Los Angeles advertising photographer, narrative, people photography, photography, photography educator, portrait, Redrock Micro, video | No Comments »As a professional advertising photographer in Los Angeles, video production was a craft that has been around me daily. I photographed the print side of commercials and shot specials on set working closely with the crew. Then almost a decade ago, I saw the desirability of shooting video to extend my creative range and supply clients with more creative services along with my photography. I first shot in standard definition and now shoot in high definition with incredible tools such as the very cinematic Canon 5d Mark II. As the internet was starting to become fast enough to play clips and cable had a growing need for material, my clients have increasingly asked for video shot with my “photographer’s eyeâ€.
I have taken my skills in lighting, composition and mise-en-scene and applied them to the continuous narrative that is video. I first sought out video editors to learn what was needed to join clips together to tell a flowing story. If you know where you want to end up, it is much easier to get there. As I learned editing, it allowed me to understand what needs to be shot and how it needs to edit together. From there it has been practice, shooting for clients and watching the trends in films, commercials and on the web. It has come to a point where I teach a college course for professional photographers who want to learn video.
I’m using a Canon 5d Mark II on a rig by Redrock Mirco. Photo by the well known retoucher Dennis Dunbar.

Lee White using Canon 5d in video mode with Redrock Micro gear.