Reduce stress at the shooting site with real-time remote confirmation and comfortable proxy editing.

ATOMOS Mr. Ren Takeuchi interview explanation photo

Contents

Files can be Sent Immediately After Stopping Recording
Easy confirmation work and reduced production stress
Even during a trip far away from base, you can send and edit the proxy files immediately.

Mr. Ren Takeuchi of GLAS Co., Ltd. used the ATOMOS NINJA V+ and ATOMOS CONNECT on location in Okinawa. He used a new workflow as advocated by ATOMOS while on location away from his base in Tokyo. For example, he used Camera to Cloud, which shares images during shooting with clients in distant locations such as Tokyo, and video editing using proxies. I had the opportunity to hear more about the experience.

Files can be Sent Immediately After Stopping Recording

――Please tell us about the concept of your new work “Never enough.” Also, please tell us why you chose Okinawa as the location.

Mr. Takeuchi:

The seas surrounding Okinawa are so beautiful, with their color and texture. I decided to shoot on the sandy beach of Okinawa, looking for a location that resembles white sandy beaches from overseas. I wanted to combine ATOMOS NINJA V+ and ATOMOS CONNECT to make the colors look more beautiful.
For example, I used a LUMIX S5 II and ATOMOS CONNECT, 1.8 series single focus lens, LUMIX S 24-105mm F4 MACRO OIS, LUMIX S 14-28mm F4-5.6 MACRO. I mainly shot beautiful colors and of ballet dancers using a single focus.
The reason I chose a ballet dancer is the depiction. We believed that the combination of the S5 II and the Atomos, which has a reputation for wide dynamic range, would enable shooting and editing that maximizes sharpness and color.

“Never enough” main story

――ATOMOS CONNECT has a lineup of NINJA V, NINJA V+, SHOGUN, and ZATO. What made you choose NINJA V?

Mr. Takeuchi:

Because for me NINJA V is the best for what I need it to do. The NINJA V is indispensable for my production style of taking pictures of beautiful things and making sure that they are completed as beautiful works later. I feel safe on site.
Also, the reception of the client is good. For example, the SHOGUN has a full range of interfaces such as SDI input/output functions, and is well received by clients. It’s going to be a story about the site, but you can get a rough idea of the budget by the equipment you bring. Even if you have a low budget, you can create an atmosphere of “doing your best” by using excellent equipment.
For the camera, I used the S5 II on the rig with the top handle and the TILTA Advanced Ring Grip for RS 2 in combination with the DJI RS 2. The style is also cool, and the clients seem to be doing a large-scale shoot, which has been highly evaluated.

――What kind of thoughts did you put into the story of “Never enough” BTS, which was produced again this time?

Mr. Takeuchi:

In order to convey the characteristics of the new solution called ATOMOS CONNECT, I thought, “Isn’t it distance?” The production staff and the director go to Okinawa, and the producer stays in Tokyo due to work. The theme of this video work is that you can check the shooting scene in real time.

“Never enough” behind-the-scenes video

――Takeuchi-san, what methods have you used to check with producers and clients?

Mr. Takeuchi:

Basically, if you can’t come to the shoot directly, you should create a storyboard in advance and shoot according to the storyboard. For anxious clients, I sometimes send the shooting data into a computer and send it as data from the shooting site.
By the way, although it’s a rare example, there was a time when I received instructions from the client by relaying from the site via video call.

Easy confirmation work and reduced production stress

――What was your first impression of using ATOMOS CONNECT?

Mr. Takeuchi:

I thought that ATOMOS CONNECT was innovative. When I found out about the ability of ATOMOS CONNECT to instantly send footage over the cloud once the Record button was pressed, I thought, “Are you serious?” I could not believe it. I created a project on Frame.io, and the things I recorded were sent there immediately as I needed them.
ATOMOS CONNECT has a function called dual record, which allows simultaneous recording of proxy files in addition to original files. If you use this proxy file, even a poor laptop computer at the shooting site can preview it as if you were watching YouTube.
Also, you can check the material on your computer or smartphone even when you are moving, even if the equipment is temporarily unavailable. The shooting schedule is generally divided into morning and afternoon, but you can reflect on the morning shoot and use that reflection in the afternoon shoot, or have the producer check the material even during a short lunch break, the workflow can very much be smoothed out. I have the impression that it can really reduce the stresses of production.

――The shooting environment in Okinawa this time was the seaside. What kind of communication environment did you use ATOMOS CONNECT in?

Mr. Takeuchi:

I was able to send it without problems with Internet sharing on my smartphone. I set the Wi-Fi information to ATOMOS CONNECT with the tethering function, and every time I pressed REC on the camera, the shooting material flowed seamlessly over the internet.

Even during a trip far away from base, you can send and edit the proxy files immediately.

――Please tell us if there are any merits of using NINJA in the editing process.

Mr. Takeuchi:

As for my editing style, when I edit master data, I go back to the office and edit on my desktop. However, in the case of a business trip for 2-3 days on location, the current situation is that you have to go back to the office after shooting. It is impossible to edit master data with a poor laptop computer. I can’t advance clips even if I press the play button. However, if you skip using ATOMOS CONNECT and download all the proxy data in Frame.io, and then edit it in Premiere Pro as it is, you can edit it lightly.
After returning to the office, just by replacing the proxy file link and the master data link on the desktop PC, the editing is almost fixed. In other words, it is possible to finish the work ahead of business trip shooting.

Download proxy data from Frame.io and edit directly in Premiere Pro.

Mr. Takeuchi:

Also, one of the reasons I use ATOMOS products is the accident I experienced in the past when shooting with a green screen. This happened with monitors other than ATOMOS, but when I checked the green screen on the monitor and brought back the material from the site and checked it, it was not missing. I ended up having problems with the accuracy of my monitor.
When I consulted with my friends as well as the director about how to deal with this problem, I was advised that “ATOMOS is definitely the way to go.” That was the impetus for me to borrow an actual machine from ATOMOS, and when I actually brought it to the site, I felt that it was a highly reliable piece of equipment that I could never make a mistake with, and I continue to use it to this day.

――Finally, what kind of people would you recommend ATOMOS CONNECT to?

Mr. Takeuchi:

If anything, I think I’m in the position of the middle class in the film industry. I think that the upper level is the site where there are DITs such as movies and TV commercials. These sites have a workflow base that DIT people have created in the past, so I think it would be quite difficult to recreate it from scratch. Conversely, ATOMOS CONNECT targets the middle class creators and below, and I think it will probably become a standard solution for videographers and the like.
I believe that ATOMOS CONNECT will become an industry-standard solution that realizes collaborative work even if the budget and number of members are small.