Filming the last scenes of 'Homeless Guitar'

On Monday 29th April 2013, we filmed the last scene of 'Homeless Guitar', four of us met at the Forge underpass at about 11am with the actor Shazam Johnson:

Whilst we were filming, hobos started to appear in the tunnels, a hobo even came up to us to ask for change.

I found this interesting because we were filming at the right place, where usually stabbings/muggings happen at night.

An eerie reality, filmic space imitation and offscreen reality, Baudrillard's simulacra

Unfortunately, the boom mic. was not used much because of a broken lead that made crackling sounds. The INT camera sound will have to do

Eventually, a bunch of curious drunken 'chavs' interrupted our film shoot asking why we're using fake actors, and Joe told them we had to use people from the drama apartment:

"You should film us, we're real homeless people... We're just trying to give you some advice, you should do it with a real person."

One of the 'chavs' was singing "Shiny shiny, shiny piece of leather..." when he walked away.
It's the song Venus in furs by Velvet Underground:

After the film shoot at the forge, we didn't get the coffee shop we initially wanted but found a record shop:

Shazam (actor) and I

Unfortunately, we didn't manage to film at the record store, so Gino ran next door to a pub called 'Fox and Duck' and we filmed the last scene there.

Finally, it was a good last minute change because the bar staff of Fox and Duck was kind enough to let us use the space to film. It was a really fun filled day with encounters of strange people. 

Vale of York Polo Club (VYPC) in Doncaster

On facebook'sSHU Creative Filmmakers Society

Evelyn Rooney, a 3rd third year film and media production student posted:

"Any chance any of you would wanna take some photo's for SHU Equestrian, this saturday. Transport covered and a free BBQ thrown in.. I have a 5D out with some lens. So if you don't have a camera we can provide one. would be meeting at 9.15 am hubs and then returning to sheffield at 8. Your welcome to bring drink and get pissed as long as you take some photos..."

I decided to message Eve as the Canon 5D Mark series are one of my favourite cameras which I'll probably be getting a Mark II soon. I've heard from a few professionals at the Film Pool which told me these cameras have larger sensors, therefore allowing more light into the camera. This means that you can easily capture footage/images in dark places and it still looks good. Plus, the lack of depth of field seems to convey a more 'expensive' look that audiences crave.
Of course, it's all about the creative eye of the cinema/photographer, but it makes it even better if you have such an amazing camera. Personally, I'd like to be a cinematographer, I just think Z1s are too heavy to carry and limiting it on tripods makes it difficult to get more close or more dynamic around characters, which is what I'm used to.
So getting a 5D Canon Mark II will be the best thing ever.

Standing outside the stables of Vale of York Polo Club in Doncaster

Taking photographs at the stable

Anyway, I got the volunteering job and used the Canon 5D Mark II with my own 75-300mm Canon lens, which I used to capture these lovely images taken at the Vale of York Polo Club in Doncaster on Saturday 27th of April:

A teapot and a pipe, not sure if this was for theatrical purposes or not

SHU Polo Team

Behind the scenes: I was using Canon 75-300mm lens behind a tractor, managed to capture people playing Polo from a far distance

 This spot I was situated at, this is the first time I've used my 75-300mm, and it's really effective for sports, or whenever you want mid to close-up shots from a distance.

SHU Polo Team

University of Sheffield Polo Team

I managed to take about 600+ photos and it was an extremely cold day, it felt like I was hiking 80km in a snow blizzard. The wind was horrendous but will wear warmer clothes next time if I decide to film/photograph in a field. (Abu Dhabi sunny beaches). I've learned that the settings on the 5D Mark II is similar to my 1000D which was easy to figure out how to change the ISO, Aperture, shutter speed, focus and etc. I also used to be the photographer for drama plays in my old school.
It was a great experience and I'd probably do it again if the weather was better. The response to my photography was:

Some of these pictures will appear on the Hallam union website.