How is this effect achieved?

[Peter Dmitriyev]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V2VNkyAQEk look at the scenes where chris brown is in profile silhouette with a weird shimmering flare effect juxtaposed over his face during this performance shot.

Effect can be seen in the opening 0:05 seconds into the video and elsewhere through the video.

Now the thing is, I know one can buy stock overlays similar to this and just throw them on top of the image in after effects but I know Labisi shot this and he's big on in-camera effects and so I'm thinking he did this in-camera and so wondering how is it possible to do something like this in camera or is it best to try it only in post? Yes I can just ask him as I'm friends on facebook but I feel it's rude to ask another DP his trade secrets so I rather try to figure it out..lol.

[Timur Civan]

Joe labisi? He wouLd def do it in camera.

[Noah Yuan-Vogel]

Double exposures or light leaks?

[Matt Kirschner]

Achieved a similar look with a fog machine and a few concert lights. Could be just as easy to do in post.

[Matt Ryan]

$50 bucks says GloriaFX handled those as fx shots. Not done on set. If they are practical he set up a foreground plate of glass and had lights specifically hitting that plate for the effect. But my guess is an FX shot... Look at all of his video's Directed by Colin Tilley. Very heavy on the VFX http://rivetingentertainment.com/the...ors/colin.html

[Mark K.]

If it's been done in camera, my guess would be a fog machine with projected lights and a cutter to leave the outline of his silhouette clear from the lights.

[Nick Morrison]

If it's been done in camera, my guess would be a fog machine with projected lights and a cutter to leave the outline of his silhouette clear from the lights.

This sounds about right to me. I think they are using the practical fog they had on set, and lighting it to create his shadow, etc.

[Brandon J. Garcia]

If it's been done in camera, my guess would be a fog machine with projected lights and a cutter to leave the outline of his silhouette clear from the lights.

That's a great suggestion!

By the way, were you by chance the DP for the reality 'The Great Escape'?

[Mark K.]

That's a great suggestion!

By the way, were you by chance the DP for the reality 'The Great Escape'?

Nope, that'll be another Mark I assume :) (I'm based in Melbourne, Australia).

[Liam Hall]

This is simple refraction. It's a very easy and extremely cheap effect to recreate. I used it a lot years ago to spice-up crappy corporates, and it was very popular in the 70s.

You create it by putting a piece of glass in front of the lens (distance is dependent on lens) and move it around until you create the desired effect. Broken glass, or glass tile work well, as does scratching an optical clear filter. Back lighting the glass really makes it sing...

You can do it in camera, if you want blurred foreground or shoot it separately against black if you want clean, sharp shards of light.

The trick is in creating just the right amount of refraction, so make sure you've got a good selection of clamps, magic arms and grip arms.