Denver-based Director of Photography Rich Lerner has purchased the new Panasonic AG-AF100 large imager HD cinema camcorder for production assignments ranging from documentaries to independent films to commercial spots. His first AF100 project was a music video Diaphanous Breeze for an original composition written and performed by pianist Lisa Downing. On the Diaphanous Breeze Lerner interspersed performance scenes with time-lapse footage of clouds. He shot with the image-stabilized Lumix G Vario HD 14-140m micro 4/3-inch superzoom lens and worked with the AF100 on a slider. “The footage is really pretty ” he says. “Considering its feature set the AF100 is turning out to be impressively affordable.” Lerner was DP for the Academy Award-winning short documentary A Story of Healing and DP on the national Emmy Award-winning documentary The Urban Elephant for the series Nature. He has shot several projects with Panasonic camcorders—most recently the feature thriller Juncture with the AG-HVX200 P2 HD handheld and a documentary profiling engineers without borders with the AG-HPX170 P2 HD handheld—and has invested in the company’s camera products for more than a decade. Lerner says the impetus for the AF100 purchase was a challenging location shoot in Hawaii last summer where he used two different HDSLRs. “Based on my familiarity with Panasonic cameras and the initial AF100 specs I just knew it would be easier working with a camera that had been optimized for shooting video ” he says. Lerner bought his AF100 from Abel Cine Tech in New York. “Indeed there are huge benefits with the AF100 ” he says. “Professional interfaces like uncompressed 4:2:2 HD-SDI out and HDMI out are standard. There are two switchable XLR inputs built-in and full audio monitoring both lacking in an HDSLR. You get the range of controls a cinematographer relies on: exposure adjustable zebras pedestal and detail a vectorscope and waveform monitor and so on. Also the configuration and body style are familiar.” “The AF100’s eye focus is superior with a high-quality LCD sidefinder and viewfinder ” Lerner says. “There’s no struggling with focus as there is with HDSLRs which is very important for documentary work. Because the camcorder has an interchangeable micro 4/3-inch lens mount I can utilize the film-style lenses that I already own which is highly cost-effective.” Lerner will shoot his next assignment the pilot episode of a dramatic series with the AF100. For more information about cinematographer Rich Lerner and to view the Diaphanous Breeze music video visit his website www.richlernercine.com. Panasonic www.panasonic.com/broadcast
