Category Archives: Video

Muse Tops 10,000

The story of a young woman new to London and the solitude of her surroundings

In its first five days, the short film Muse has topped 10,000 views.

I’d just like to pass on my gratitude to all who have seen it and also to those who have been kind enough to pass on their views and compliments.
A big thank you also goes out to the main character without whom this project would not have happened and also to Enrico Blatti and the Blue Chamber Orchestra for the beautiful soundtrack.

Muse – What The Critics Are Saying

“Muse” has been online for a couple of days now. Here are a handful of the comments collected from emails and posts on various forums. Many thanks for all who took the time to write. If you haven’t seen it yet, its on full 1080HD at SmugMug.



“SO GLAD I’ve just stumbled on your fantastic piece Edmond. The sheer quality of the shots is fantastic and got the ol’ creative juices going nicely here. 
I’m sure that as well as enjoying your project, you’ve helped a fair few people out there decide that this is the way to go for upping the quality of their work/play in the video field. Myself included.
So. Apart from the obvious care you’ve taken with the quality of your shots, can I just compliment you on your framing and sensitive storytelling. You have the eye of a poet sir.”

“Stunning. You raised the bar!”

“Wow wow wow wow….. Stunning!!! “

“It is a piece of art ! Being this your first try I can foresee truly greatness within the projects ahead. I have always thought of working together with you one day, now I feel it is becoming more of a dream. Brilliant work !”

“I am completely blown away by the movie.  I love the sheer quality, the crisp night time lights, I adored the music, though it feels more Paris than London to me (and none the worse for that) and I am totally amazed by what you have put together….”

“I like the way it captured a serene solitude with an underlying hint of loneliness.”

“Stunningly beautiful, Edmond. Beyond the obvious capabilities of HD technology you transcend with quiet and effective patience. You allow your interiors, exteriors and your subject to speak and reveal”

“I can feel her loneliness, sadness….Thank you for sharing! Excellent work!”

“My heart leaps when I watch this over and over..”

“Spectacular work! Can you believe this is Edmond’s first video? Knowing his photography I’m not surprised, congratulations!”

“Nicely done! So many of those shots would have been simply impossible to execute with standard issue video equipment, and I suspect many of those shots—which I assume were available light—would have have required major artificial lighting efforts, even with digital film equipment.”

“Very nice. You really showed off the capability of the camera and your story was very piognent.”

“The best 5D2 video I’ve seen. Better than Laforet.”

“Hi, I really think this is a beautiful film and nice story, glad you chose a latinamerican poet and the tango is beautiful!  Great first video, can’t imagine what you will be doing in the future.”

“the short film kind of reminds me of one of the scenes from Kieszlowski’s Dekalog…”

“What a fine piece of work! Things I liked best:  The relaxed pace, the peaceful feeling.  Very good use of the short depth of field.  The blurred parts never felt wrong. This camera takes us into a look and feel, with ambient light photography, that has only been seen in high budget productions before.  You picked up on that and really ran with it.”

“Simply beautiful, great piece of art! Also good to see what 5D can do… amazing!”

“It’s a very nice film. I like the minimalist approach.”

“Nice work Edmond, the photography was beautiful. Another string to your bow!”

“Edmond, I hate you, you’re making me consider leaving all sensible and rational thinking behind and go straight out and buy a 5D mkII ! Nice work mate, nice work…”

“I loved the relaxed, peaceful pace. Masterful use of the depth of field and ambient lighting the camera and optics provide.”

“A thought-provoking and atmospheric piece – a pleasure to watch. Look forward to seeing what’s next.”

“Congratulations. I loved this short film and found it better than others I have seen, including LaForet. That was an excellent short movie. It captured the essence of the human condition that we are ultimately alone with our possessions that outlast us and the soundtrack was so evocative of a hidden sensuousness and longing. I loved the way you thought through the storyline and each individual segment, focusing on the key subject in each scene”.

“The film had a soft, paced feeling that was comfortable and contented, yet there was a tension whether the connection would really take place.  A nicely thought out short film.  The 5D’s ability to provide such sharp and rich images was evident.”

“Beautiful Night Exteriors. IMHO better than reverie.”

“that is a fantastic piece of work! Very impressed. The colour and clarity are superb and you should be on the big screen!”

Muse 720 HD

Muse from Edmond Terakopian on Vimeo.

The story of a young woman new to London and the solitude of her surroundings.

A short film by Edmond Terakopian shot on a Canon 5D MkII.

Muse – The Full Film

Its finally done! I’ve been working on my first ever short film called “Muse” and its now finished.

Filming took three nights to finish and editing well over a week.
The film was shot on a Canon 5D MkII DSLR using Canon lenses:

EF 16-35mm f2.8L II, EF 35mm f1.4L, TS-E 45mm f2.8, EF 50mm f2.5 Macro, EF 85mm f1.2L II and the EF 135mm f2L.
Editing was done on a Mac Pro using Final Cut Studio (Final Cut Pro, Soundtrack Pro, Compressor and Motion).
I have posted a 720 HD version on Vimeo and a 1080 HD version on SmugMug.
I’ve been testing the 5D MkII for the BJP (British Journal of Photography) and the film was shot as a way of exploring the camera’s video abilities. There will be a full article on my experiences and thoughts, so keep an eye out for the magazine.

Palestinian Gaza Demo Video – Canon 5D MkII

To view this video in full 1080 HD click this link to SmugMug
NB – With the latest Mac 10.5.6 OS update, occasionally Safari
will not load the video page on the first attempt. Please either
refresh the page twice, or temporarily use Firefox.

As you’ve seen from the previous posts below, I covered the Palestinian Gaza demo on Saturday from noon ’till 8pm, walked and jogged 4 miles with the demo, got trapped in a tunnel with a mild stampede, luckily didn’t get hit by missiles thrown by protesters or batons wielded by Police and managed to make a few ok pictures.

It was the first time I’d tried to shoot video and take pictures; with hindsight it was brave / stupid (delete as appropriate) thing to do so on a fluid news job!

The entire video was shot on a Canon 5D MkII, a Canon 24-105mm f4L lens and a Rode VideoMic.

The film was edited using Final Cut Pro Studio. The footage and sound are pretty much straight from camera. 

Muse – Filmed on a Canon 5D MkII

Muse – Short from Edmond Terakopian on Vimeo.
Here’s a short clip from my first ever film which was shot using a Canon 5D MkII and a Canon EF 35mm f1.4L lens. The video and sound are straight from the camera and have not been edited. I’ll be posting the full film in around a week with edited sound.

Here’s a direct link to the clip so you can watch it in 720p HD.
Addendum: The film is now available to view in its entirety:


For the 720 HD version, visit Vimeo.


For the Full 1080 HD version (and other sizes),visit SmugMug.