Re: Are ND grads only used for static shots?

leo, i agree on your points about the generality of our red-headed stepchild, the zoom. and your point about the level of inexperience of many of the posters makes those points even more relevant... but in many ways, i think that makes it even more silly to automatically discount a particular technique. even a moderate beginner has seen a contrived zoom and experienced its "dramatic disruption" as a viewer. let them decide if they want to utilize it for that, or any other strength that particular technique holds. branding it as unprofessional by default is like reaching into a plumber's toolbox and throwing away his 6-inch wrench and telling him "you're never gonna work on a pipe that big anyway, so don't even bother."

and i have to play devil's advocate on your point about zoom usage in a dramatic context by mentioning the shot where tom cruise's character looks up and sees his doctor in mask in "eyes wide shut"-- the most powerful shot in the whole film. whenever i think of kubrick, that is one of the handful of nuggets of cinema that immediately come to mind. i'm glad he had his 6-inch wrench with him that day.

respectfully,
jaan

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