SL Director’s Viewfinder Android App Review

Today we're sharing an Android App for Cinematographers. It's called the SL Director's Viewfinder.

Long time visual effects supervisor Stephen Lebed has worked in TV and film for decades and has turned his passion for film into the Director's Viewfinder App. Instead of holding your hands in front of your face to make a viewfinder like shape, you'll be holding your phone and running an app that allows you to simulate many of today's top cameras and, more importantly, different focal lengths of lenses. With this app, you get a real life look at what your shot will appear like when you get to the location with your actual camera.

As an additional bonus, the viewfinder app comes with built-in grids for you. Specifically, one that gives you a rule of thirds template to help you properly compose your shots. Now, I'm not sure if you know this, but the rule of thirds is very important. We will discuss this more in a later blog.

Viewfinder also allows you capture images directly to your phone's gallery, making it incredibly simple for you to just print the images out and use them for your storyboards. (There's another blog about storyboards posted in our Pre-Production category.) All you will have to do is look at your shotlist and grab the lens it tells you to. Not only will it save you time, but it will save you from embarrassment in front of your client.

The SL Director's Viewfinder clocks in at just under ten bucks so you won't be breaking the bank, and you'll wind up with a tool you'll use on all your shoots from here on out.

To view the original article, visit the VScreen blog.