The perfect breakup solution for video professionals

I was tired of using my old wooden gobo, cutting a tree branch, or making a pattern with a C-Stand and gaffers tape to create interesting backgrounds for on-camera interviews. I was so over it...

Then one day on the B&H PhotoVideo website I discovered the Bill Holshevnikoff pattern kit from Chimera. It changed my life, well not my life, but for sure my camera backgrounds.

My friend, DP Bill Holshevnikoff, created this kit for Chimera, it's a brilliant idea. The kit comes in two sizes and is the perfect solution for creating interesting backgrounds FAST. Every time I bring out my kit, the crew wants to know where to get one. I have the smaller kit and it's very light, takes up little space but makes a big impact.

I purchased the kit from B&H with 7 patterns and then purchased all the extra patterns. It comes with patterns like: French door, horizontal blinds, graduating vertical blinds, palm leaves, leaf breakup and a cucoloris breakup.

With my Canon 5D Mark III and my pattern kit I can create a great look, in no time. It's the perfect addition to anyone's bag of tricks :-)

Check it out at B&H

www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/125140-REG/Chimera_5470_Window_Pattern_Kit.html

Time lapse photography that tells a story

Traditional time lapse photography is one camera angle showing an event from start to finish. With today's video cameras anyone can shoot time lapse, it's easy. However most wind up with a collection of shots that do not lend themselves to storytelling. Videos still need a beginning, a middle and an ending.

A better way to tell a high impact story is with a sequence of time lapse shots. The best approach utilizes multiple cameras and can produce a complete time lapse movie , telling a unique story with a sequence of time lapse shots

Time lapse story telling can include: a work process, office area, building exterior, manufacturing plant or product assembly process.

My process uses DSLR cameras, GoPro cameras and conventional video cameras that shoot time lapse. I also have a 2-axis, 360 degree panning motor that makes amazing shots.

Additional samples can be found on YouTube:  www.youtube.com/dpmikek

Emmy Awards night 2013 at the Red Rock in Las Vegas

The Pacific Southwest chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences held the 2013 Emmy Awards night at the Red Rock hotel in Las Vegas. I produced the live event part of the awards show again this year. The Red Rock was a great venue from a producers stand point. It was another successful show and everyone enjoyed the experience.

The Red Rock Casino, Resort and Spa was the perfect choice

The award winning crew on stage for the "crew shot"

Our celebrity host this year was Barry Shebaka Henley

During the setup our lighting designer Don Swadly brought his remote control helicopter. This one minute clip shows the crew setting up and his flying skills, indoors no less. He did a superb job flying and lighting for the show.

We have now started planning for next year's awards show, which is the 40th anniversary of our NATAS Chapter.

San Diego Mayor Bob Filner impacts Emmy Awards night 2014 planning meeting

Mayor Filner and his inappropriate sexual harassment behavior towards women impacts Emmy Awards 2014 planning meeting

I am on the Board of Governors of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences – Pacific Southwest Chapter.  The committee was meeting last night to go over the issues from this year and start planning for next year’s Emmy Awards and our chapters 40^th anniversary.

The topic came up about possibly adding new awards categories for next year. Then someone says “next year all the stories maybe about Mayor Bob Filner and his antics” and everyone laughed. The consensus was not to add a special category for Emmy Awards for scandal news stories about Bob Filner even though there will be a great many. This is a sad but true story…

Keep your camera lens clean for better cell phone photos

One of the easiest way to take better photos with your cell / mobile phone is to keep the camera lens clean. This works with iPhones, Andriod phones, smart phones or just regular cameras. 

We have all seen pictures on Face Book that look soft or what looks like out of focus pictures..

This photo of Lucy is before cleaning the lens

This is after cleaning the lens, she looks much better :-)

If you take a few seconds to examine bad pictures you see on Face Book you will see that the lens is dirty or smeared with stuff off our hands or face.

We always hold our phones against our face or handle the phone when texting. We transfer grease or makeup onto the camera lens. 

As you can see with this Samsung Galaxy SIII the lens sits between a little speaker and the camera flash.

It just takes a few seconds before taking pictures to clean off the lens. It's best to use a photo cloth or a cloth made for cleaning your glasses.

I learned this lesson the hard way. I was taking family pictures at Benihana's.

When I got home I noticed steam from the cooking surface had completely ruined the shots. The cooking steam got all over the camera lens and  it looked like everyone was in a snow storm.

Doctor Joyce Brothers a pioneer for offering advice, on radio and television has passed away

Joyce Brothers has died at the age of 85. She will be remembered as a psychologist who pioneered advice shows on television and radio starting in the 1950's. She offered advice on topics that were considered taboo like: menopause, frigidity, impotence and sexual enjoyment. Today there are many people in the media that offer advice on a variety of topics, but she got it all started.

I had the pleasure to work with her in the early 1980's and produce several TV commercials with her on-camera. The commercials were "celebrity endorsement" ads on weight loss that were common at that time.

The photo was taken on-set and I look a little younger as does the good doctor. Yes that is me on the right.

She was a very nice person and to my surprise had no big celebrity ego. She took direction well, was easy to work with and was a credible spokes person for the weight loss company. It's also fun to work with celebrities that are processional and get the job done without a lot of fuss and muss. She was a class act, that today is hard to find in the media.

Power failure in San Diego provides a good test run - are you prepared for a natural or manmade disaster?

The afternoon and night of September 8, 2011 in San Diego County was an interesting time. It was the largest power failure in San Diego history. The power when out to over 1.5 million homes. It spread from Arizona to Southern California. Parts of New Mexico, Arizona and Baja Mexico were also affected.

For those of us prepared for natural disaster it was a great test run to see how our equipment and supplies shaped up. When the power first went out, we stepped outside to see if it was just us or the neighborhood. All our neighbors said their power was out. We turned on our battery powered radio to find out it was County wide. Two of our neighbors had no battery operated radios so we shared batteries and information.

With this wide spread of an outage I knew power would not be restored quickly. As darkness fell I fired up our Colman gas lantern, got out emergency candles and prepped our small generator.

We had a nice evening on the patio reading and listening to the radio. I ran our generator for an hour to charge cell phones and the power the refrigerator. All worked as planned.

Now that the power has been restored we have to start boiling water for a few days. But last night it was nice to know our plans and equipment were ready to go and worked just fine. It was a good test run.

For emergency supplies and equipment check out companies like:

www.essentialpacks.com            www.lifesecure.com

               

Emmy Awards night in San Diego a big success

This year I was asked by my friend Craig Bentley to co-producer the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Pacific Southwest Chapter, Emmy Awards night. I was the on-site live event producer at La Costa Resort & Spa in San Diego.

 

In addition to my television experience I have a great deal of live event experience with corporate awards shows. My approach to live awards shows stems from many live events I have worked on all over the world. This year's Emmy show was no different. The approach was to make this a memorable event to those attending.

The positive feedback we received was overwhelming. Some saying it was the best awards show in the 20 years they have been attending.

This is just one of the kind emails we received:

I just wanted to say that this was my first Emmy ceremony since moving to San Diego.  I’ve been to lots of them in San Francisco and Washington, DC, but this was by far the best production, (and party) that I’ve seen.  This NATAS Chapter has its act together!  Congratulations to all of you for your hard work all year long to pull this off.

Best,

Maura

KPBS Senior Producer

The real thanks go our excellent crew, volunteers who gave freely of their time to make the show a big hit. With set design by Donald Benke and video direction by Donn Johnson; the crew is too large to mention everyone by name, but they did a super job.

Many thanks also go the NATAS Board members who pulled it all together: MaryEllen Eagelston, Brian Birk, Suzanne Bartole-Owen, Jeanne and Devin Scott, and our executive director Amy Bosler.

Emmy Awards in San Diego

June 18th is Emmy Awards night in San Diego. This year I am working as the event Co-Producer for the Pacifica Southwest Chapter of the National Television Academy.

 

Emmy 2011 is being held at the La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California. The Gala night includes live entertainment, standup comedy and should prove to be an exciting night for those who are honored by their peers and receive the coveted Emmy Award for excellence.

 

The purpose of the Emmy Awards is to recognize outstanding achievements in television by conferring annual awards of merit in the Pacific Southwest region. The Pacific Southwest region includes San Diego, Bakersfield, Palm Springs, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Santa Maria, California, and Las Vegas, Nevada.

The annual presentation of these awards is intended to be an incentive for the continued pursuit of excellence for those working in television and to focus public attention on outstanding cultural, educational, technological, entertainment, news and informational achievements in television.

I have been an Academy member for many years and it's a great thrill going on stage to receive an Emmy Award, but this year I will be working behind the scenes to create a special night for this year's recipients.

For more information about the Academy:          www.nataspsw.org

 

Peace Officer Training

I am just getting started on a video training project for State of California peace officers. It's a two week course for new supervisors or police sergeants. If you are a peace officer and get promoted to a supervisors position you are required to take this course. I am directing two dozen video segments that are part of the course. We are filming at the CHP Academy in Sacramento.

I have produced many projects for government organizations over the years. But what makes this a very special one is the involvement of The Ken Blanchard Companies. This course utilizes the Blanchard Situational Leadership II program as part of the training course:

  

"Situational Leadership^® II (SLII^®) is the most comprehensive, up-to-date, and practical method of effectively managing and developing people, time, and resources in the world. SLII is a model and a set of tools for opening up communication and helping others develop self-reliance. It is designed to increase the frequency and quality of conversations about performance and development between managers and the people they work with so that competence is developed, commitment is gained, and talented individuals are retained." www.kenblanchard.com

 

I have been involved with Blanchard and their training approach for over 20 years and I think it's one of the best. This training program is a real win-win for helping new peace officer supervisors get their job done properly.

Human Trafficking: Law & Order SVU gets it right

In a recent episode of Law & Order SVU the plot revolved around human trafficking and sex trafficking of minors. It was really good to see entertainment television getting it right. So many times TV misses the mark and focuses on the wrong issues. When in fact the sex trafficking right here in the United States is at a critical level.

The gang influence is driving the sex trafficking of girls to a new level in neighborhood across our Nation. It is much safer for gangs to traffic girls for sex than to sell drugs. Once you sell a drug that's it, but with sex you can keep selling. It is a crime that is hidden in plain sight.

The show's executive producer Neal Baer was interviewed by The Deadbolt . com. Baer was in Boston speaking to a class at Harvard when he learned about human trafficking and researched the topic. He said the story line came out of real life.



My experience comes from training I developed for the State of California Peace Officers on the proper response to human trafficking and the trafficking of minors. Before my exposure to the subject matter experts I worked with, I had no clue. My entire knowledge was based on what I learned in the media and TV.

I am pleased to see a television show like Law & Order SVU getting it right and depict trafficking as the serious problem it is for the young girls in our communities. Or celebrities like Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore making a difference with their Foundation - www.demiandashton.com. I worked with Ashton and Demi on an anti-child sex trafficking video for law enforcement and it was a real pleasure because of their comment to the this worthwhile cause

Working with actor Leslie Nielsen - shooting TV commercials - and his classic out-take

A sad day for comedy as actor Leslie Nielsen dies at age 84. Actor Leslie Nielsen passed away last weekend. He was best known for his roles in comedies like "Airplane!", "The Naked Gun", "Spy Hard" and "Police Squad". He is best remembered as Lt. Frank Drebin from "The Naked Gun" series of films.

Many people only remember him as a comedy actor but he started in TV back in the late 1940's as a very serious leading man. One of his famous films from the 1950's is a science fiction move called the "Forbidden Planet". He played a leading role as a crew member of space ship on a rescue mission. The movie is also famous for creating "Robbie the Robot".

He was a very funny man with a great sense of humor, but as a leading man he felt he could only take serious parts and he avoided comedy. When his career as a leading man slowed down he took to making TV commercials as many actors do. This was before he re-started his career as a comedy actor in the 1980 comedy "Airplane" and the rest is history.

I had the pleasure of meeting and working with him just before the release of "Airplane". We were shooting a series of TV spots for a bank in Nevada and the producer hired Nielsen as a spokes person for the bank. He spent the day on set entertaining us with his gags. He carried around a small device that made fart sounds. Here he is, a serious actor making faces and fart sounds. I have never laughed so hard in my life; he had a great time entertaining the crew who laughed all day long.

After we finished the last spot I asked him to shoot an out-take. It was a day I will never forget and I became a lifelong fan of one of the greatest comedy actors of all times. An actor who when he started his career was afraid of comedy.

Take a look at this classic Leslie Nielsen video out-take:

Responce to - Child sex trafficking in San Diego County

I just attended the first San Diego Regional CSEC & Child Sex Trafficking Council meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to establish a new regional response to CSEC (Commercial Sexual Exportation of Children).

It was heavily covered by the media and attended by law enforcement, government agencies, non-government groups and County Supervisor Dianne Jacob. Speakers included Assistant Sheriff Ed Prendergast and Deputy District Attorney Gretchen Means to name a few.

An alarming statistic is San Diego County is #8 in the nation for child sex trafficking. Child sex trafficking is now coming up on everyone's radar, which is a good thing. We are trying to move past the old school thinking that prostitution is a victim-less crime and it's no big deal. Law enforcement is coming around and recognizing that many young people in the "game" are being prostituted by pimps and gang members.

Young girls are being recruited in San Diego from shopping malls and on the internet. The most common way they are recruited is through romance. They are courted and told they are loved by these young gang members and slowly moved into a life of prostitution.

Awareness training for first responders is key but even educators are joining the cause and raising awareness in high schools and middle schools where kids are at risk.

The goal of this Council is to take the next step and organize a regional response to the problem of child sex trafficking. The next Council meeting will be held on February 17, 2011.

San Diego law enforcement to curb teen human trafficking

San Diego law enforcement agencies are coming together to try and curb teen prostitution. The County is looking into establishing a regional human trafficking task force. Currently the Sheriff's Department runs a Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force and the FBI leads an Innocence Lost task force.


This would put all the resources under one roof and establish a full time regional approach.

For more information check out the San Diego Union Tribune article:

www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/nov/09/local-agencies-cite-rise-in-teen-prostitution/

Meeting and working with Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore

It took many months but we finally got to the set with Ashton and Demi.

When I started working on a training project for law enforcement on the human trafficking of minors this spring, I decided a celebrity endorsement would be a great way to get the audience's attention. My experience in putting Gary Sinise in an Army training video had been a huge success.


One of my committee members recommended Ashton and Demi because they have a foundation and are very active in countering child sex trafficking. Everyone agreed on this celebrity couple so I started the process. It took several months to get it all together and agree on a production date.

When it all came together we drove up to Hollywood to Ashton's production company offices and set up our gear. When they arrive they were a very nice couple who are very passionate about this cause. They appear on camera and introduce the subject of child trafficking and send viewers to a website for first responder training information. They were very professional, fun and a pleasure to work with.


They traveled to the United Nations last week to help raise awareness at the international level, check out the link:

www.timesoftheinternet.com/briefs/demi-moore-and-ashton-kutcher-joined-in-the-fight-against-human-trafficking/

It's great to see such a nice couple use their star power to help others.

 

San Diego honors a fallen police officer

On October 28th San Diego Police officer Chris Wilson was killed in the line of duty. November 4th was his memorial service. He was a 17 year veteran of the San Diego Police force and was well liked and respected by his fellow officers and the community he served.

Thousands of law enforcement officers filled the seats at the Rock Church in San Diego. Hundreds more overflowed into the lobby and street. Many arrived in a motorcade of about 1,000 patrol cars, motorcycles and fire rigs in a procession stretching more than 12 miles long from Qualcomm Stadium.

For a more in depth look at the service check out the Union Tribune coverage:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/nov/04/thousands-gather-mourn-officer-christopher-wilson/

A large part of my work for many years has been law enforcement training and I have come to know many officers from around the State. I did not know Chris but I know people who work Southeast San Diego.

My friend Randy Grimm from the Sheriffs video unit asked for my help in covering the event. I volunteered because it's important for everyone to give back to the community. It was a record breaking hot day for San Diego, it hit 100 degrees. I was positioned on a roof across from the church. I was very uncomfortable, but as I was feeling sorry for myself I realized my comfort would improve in a couple of hours but the family of the fallen officer will be uncomfortable for years and will never be the same.

Helping out was the least I could do, for someone who gave their life for the good of the community.

Has your cell phone gone for a swim?

It does happen; your mobile phone goes into the drink and now what. This advice comes from a young friend who is sometimes careless with his phone. Rice is the answer. Put your phone in a bowl of uncooked rice for about a week. Uncooked rice is great at pulling the moisture out of the phone. My young friend's wife swears by this process.

Desiccant also works, but be careful because it's powder and might cause additional damage. The most familiar form of desiccant is the little packets that come with electronics to absorb moisture during shipment. The label says "do not eat". Also silica gel packets work well and can be purchased on-line.

However most of us don't keep any desiccant or silica packs around the house. So if your mobile phone hits the drink, head for the nearest Chinese market and purchase a bag of uncooked rice.

Real men don't buy girls

Real men don't buy girls is a great campaign to help stop human trafficking of women and girls for the commercial sex trade worldwide.


Ashton Kutcher can be seen holding up a sign that says: "Real men don't buy girls" on his website -

www.demiandashton.com/dna-in-action  

Ashton and Demi Moore have a Foundation to help stop human slavery and human trafficking. I applaud celebrities like Ashton and Demi who take the time and energy to fight for a cause like human trafficking.


www.demiandashton.com

 
Check out their website