Using physics to get a perfect overhead shot

My Site - www.jessesenko.com
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This is the ball head I have EVERYWHERE - geni.us/spcbfEV
A really helpful mounting arm - geni.us/RBnCRO
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BUT this with a softbox might be all you need to save some $$ - geni.us/hjUI1JJ
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Let’s talk through a few ways to get a camera overhead based on my on-set experience. And one tip I am embarrassed to say I never picked up along the way for a geometrically, mathematically perfect overhead camera angle.

Пікірлер: 62

  • @mattih
    @mattih6 ай бұрын

    Get readyyyyy for your channel to blow up 😊 very much enjoy this

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Thanks Matti!!!!!!!

  • @MattyDCCollins

    @MattyDCCollins

    6 ай бұрын

    Jesse already implementing strategies from the channel roast 😂Love to see it!

  • @tarotducheneblanc
    @tarotducheneblanc2 ай бұрын

    Usually I cannot spend 10 minutes on a video for a tip that could be explained in 20 sec. but this?! Oh man... I was hooked... Hypnotized even! Marvelous!!

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    2 ай бұрын

    Thank you!

  • @TomKaszuba
    @TomKaszuba2 ай бұрын

    Your channel is straight up genius. Full stop.

  • @Thedavematthew
    @ThedavematthewАй бұрын

    I’ve been a filmmaker for a long time and I have watched a lot of your videos. I’ve learned a lot from you. So much for the college education, I should’ve just listened to you from the start. Thank you!!!

  • @mijiolnir
    @mijiolnir6 ай бұрын

    I love this channel so much.

  • @joenicklo
    @joenicklo3 ай бұрын

    Fiziks is great.

  • @driaan_louw
    @driaan_louw6 ай бұрын

    Was convinced the whole way through you were gonna tell me to mount a big mirror at 45 degrees to my camera like some kind of overhead shot periscope. The final answer makes more sense lol. I love and hate these shots because off all the rigging and fidgeting. Great video.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Yeah, when i read the comment mentioning this to me in my last video, it was a bit of head-smack moment for how simple it is. Takes a bit of the stress out of the equation!

  • @lukasvanderlende
    @lukasvanderlende6 ай бұрын

    I think I just found my new favorite channel. Thank you

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Thanks Lukas!

  • @MattyDCCollins
    @MattyDCCollins6 ай бұрын

    Derogatory british slang got me hahah - "Flat Lay"

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Nobody wants to be called that!

  • @BowenMoreno
    @BowenMoreno6 ай бұрын

    yeahhhh you about to blow up fs

  • @aj2009ification
    @aj2009ification25 күн бұрын

    With all that mirror foreshadowing I was 100% expecting the solution to be shooting into a mirror to change the angle of view of the camera... That would probably pose all sorts of lighting issues and you'd need a clean, warp free mirror but I'm going to try it. I will also use the mirror technique in this video for good measure. Love the channel, I've been combing through the backlog! Edit: I have discovered I am not the first to think this, haha.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    25 күн бұрын

    Yeah, this method is no joke. I have the little vanity mirror from my grandma’s old Renault in my pen holder and it’s just perfect for top down at my workbench. Thanks for watching!

  • @Kidhollywood
    @Kidhollywood6 ай бұрын

    Yeah this is about to do numbers. You have solved a headache i will never have to deal with again. Thank you for your service!

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Thanks Chris!

  • @Mraz75
    @Mraz753 ай бұрын

    Hahaha i love this idea and your style presenting it 😂

  • @muriloyamanaka
    @muriloyamanaka3 ай бұрын

    I didn't know it either , thanks to your subscriber and to you

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    3 ай бұрын

    Love learning new stuff like this. Thanks for watching!

  • @AnandaGarden
    @AnandaGarden3 ай бұрын

    Ah, all square now, seriously plumb, a delight.

  • @normaoraliaortiz
    @normaoraliaortiz2 ай бұрын

    Angulls...Jometry 😅 agreed.

  • @chris_sparrows
    @chris_sparrows6 ай бұрын

    I used to use a surface level on the back of my camera, but as you say, that doesn't account for any discrepancy in the surface you're filming. This is a very simple, easy way to do it. But honestly though, I just eyeball it these days.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Yeah! through experience I've found I can get it super close... and usually my camera's way too high and it's annoying to put a level on top. I did a handheld overhead shoot recently and a double-sided taped bubble level really helped grab quick shots.

  • @Guatemango
    @GuatemangoАй бұрын

    Sos un genio boludo!!

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    Ай бұрын

    I like this translation to English :) I’ll take it!

  • @coszec
    @coszec3 ай бұрын

    Hey man can you elaborate on the goals post. Thanks for the tips

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    3 ай бұрын

    Hey man. Essentially just two stands and a crossbar. A beefier version of a backdrop stand. At home, I usually use two c-stands with mafer/super clamps on top holding an 8’ piece of speed rail or aluminum pipe. On set, crew will use some beefy combo stands and special clamps to hold it on if it’s supporting a big camera. Just don’t forget to sandbag your stands :)

  • @coszec

    @coszec

    3 ай бұрын

    @@jessesenko I really appreciate the breakdown.

  • @coszec

    @coszec

    3 ай бұрын

    @@jessesenko Thanks

  • @StephenHildreth
    @StephenHildreth6 ай бұрын

    On the C-Stand bounce issue, were you using just one arm? There's a video that... I wanna say Indy Mogul did (during the brief run where it was resurrected by Ted from Aperture) where they add a second arm linking from the first grip arm back to the C-Stand...um... trunk? (questionable tree metaphor here.) and it locks into a cardellini there.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Yes! make a little triangle with it ... i was just being lazy and working alone and just waited for the bounce to settle to get my shot. Before using the magic arm to do what you're talking about. But yes, less laziness, and a magic arm or extra grip arm would be used next time... When i'm doing a KZread vid i usually rush and then by the end think "why didn't i just do this right"

  • @jemlang
    @jemlang6 ай бұрын

    Something so simple, but makes so much sense. I just know my partner is going to come looking for her mirror any minute now.

  • @martybeyer
    @martybeyer6 ай бұрын

    "Every God Damn, Mother Fucken Time!". That right there is why I come here, and not somewhere else!! 🙃👍

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    I don’t know what you’re talking about!! :)

  • @martybeyer
    @martybeyer6 ай бұрын

    I did a flat lay photo shoot for a local pizza shop of their products for their menu and website. Was an awesome experience for me, but I must admit, lining up the camera over the pizza's was hellish hard and took too long for my liking (I felt like my client was thinking I was an amateur). When your mirror tip dropped I stood up and put my hands in the air. This is why I love the internet. And you Jesse, very cool video, thank you ❤ I'm off to buy a $5 mirror that will save me and hour of fucking around every time I flat lay 👍

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Do it! And I still feel like an amateur!

  • @chriscard6544
    @chriscard65446 ай бұрын

    my life will never be the same

  • @MrIantodd
    @MrIantodd2 ай бұрын

    I’m British. Flat lay does indeed sound like slang for something

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    2 ай бұрын

    Don't want to get called that!

  • @MrIantodd

    @MrIantodd

    2 ай бұрын

    @@jessesenko any other slang you’re familiar with? Is there a US one you can teach me please?

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    2 ай бұрын

    I’m Canadian, and we’re too polite to call you a hoser or anything like that.

  • @MrIantodd

    @MrIantodd

    2 ай бұрын

    @@jessesenko 🤣 so a quick google shows it’s an insult to Canadians?

  • @bowenisland100
    @bowenisland1006 ай бұрын

    Paralax

  • @kennyobrien
    @kennyobrien6 ай бұрын

    Wawa, hu? Look at Mr Big Shot KZreadr over here flexin' his exotic travel history.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    The goose? Oh yeah, we go wayyy back

  • @kennyobrien

    @kennyobrien

    6 ай бұрын

    @@jessesenko I first saw the goose in 1983. Did I beat you to it?

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    @@kennyobrien I have to come clean... i haven't actually been there. Been to a big lobster in New Brunswick but not the goose... and also, i was a fetus at one point in '83 😬

  • @kennyobrien

    @kennyobrien

    6 ай бұрын

    @@jessesenko Ha! I win! My life cycle is now complete.

  • @chromagraphphotoart
    @chromagraphphotoart6 ай бұрын

    Well, I actually have no idea of what you are talking about as I was hoping for advice on recording top down stuff to my desktop, you know unboxing shots that kind of thing. But, I am off to rent a crane now, so that should be interesting... ps super slick video pps a geared tripod head helps.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    I don’t know what I’m talking about either most of the time! A baby receiver and magic arm are my fav for my top down setup. But if I didn’t want to ceiling mount, I’d prob use some plumbing flanges and 3/4 pipe to make a goalpost screwed or clamped to my worktop. What do you mean by geared head? Is it one of those micro-adjustable platforms for macro shooting?

  • @CornishMotorcycleDiaries

    @CornishMotorcycleDiaries

    6 ай бұрын

    Does what it says on the tin. More precis adjustments of the camera position. Slower than a ball head. I use one for large format.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Looks amazing. I hadn't heard of them, and literally had my hands on one in a camera shop 3 days ago, but had to run before I could ask what it is. Will set a Marketplace alert for one!

  • @MrCJBG
    @MrCJBG6 ай бұрын

    What if you were to use the mirror to shoot through on a 45degree angle. Like Angle your camera forward, put the mirror on a 45 degree angle over your subject. Zoom in on the mirror and now you didn't have to rig a camera above the subject either. Never tried this, but that's what I thought your original solution was going to be.

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Yes! That’s a way too. We’ve discussed that for food shoots in the past. I think it’s a good solution for a permanent setup with a high quality mirror. But cheap mirrors flex and get wonky. For one-off setups I feel a cam with a safety tether is the safest bet.

  • @MrCJBG

    @MrCJBG

    6 ай бұрын

    @@jessesenkoahh that makes sense. I didn’t think about the quality of the mirror affecting the shot. 🙏

  • @notmattlara
    @notmattlara6 ай бұрын

    💯🪞

  • @jessesenko

    @jessesenko

    6 ай бұрын

    Thanks Matt!!!!