Let me start by saying that this post is in no way financially beneficial to me or this web site. Originally I started this site to serve as a place for me to put up relevant information that clients kept requesting. Eventually it turned into a blog and is now more of an industry update for stuff I find interesting. This site is run entirely from WordPress.com, free of charge. I pay for the domain name and that’s it. No advertising (other than wordpress’ built in ads). No kickbacks for me. No financial gain in anyway. There are no interns, no PAs, just me, Matthew Duclos, typing into a myriad of devices in my free time. That said, I don’t usually write about specific people in an effort to keep the site unbiased. However… Once in a while I come across some really cool people that I want to share with the readers. One such person is Greg Hren.
Greg got his start in the motion picture industry fresh out of college. After about four years in the biz on the West coast he moved back home to Boston and found work as a photographers assistant and quickly picked up the trade. Blah blah blah, you know the rest… Today, Greg shoots stills and motion of some pretty awesome stuff. Something of a mix between a stunt-man and a DoP, Greg travels all over the world shooting out of airplanes, off of boats, and just about anything in between. I originally took interest in Greg’s work after he called me asking for some buying advice in regards to optics for his new Sony F3. As with just about everyone with an F3, Greg was moving from still cameras and a little bit of the smaller sensor video cameras and wanted to get ahold of something a little more capable. I did a bit of research and found his website and then his blog where I spent a good amount of time browsing. His website alone is an impressive collection of work and pretty much speaks for itself.
His blog goes one step further and is an excellent source for advice and some great behind-the-scenes footage. Which leads me to the main reason for this post. His blog is a wealth of information for a new breed of cinematographers and camera operators. Anyone looking to increase their knowledge and view some real world experiences should give his blog a good look over. The Behind the Scenes section is a nice simply laid out collection of great material from shoots of all kinds. The other sections are equally is informative. Take a look at his work and spend some time absorbing the information he has to share. On another note, I always enjoy seeing people succeed and grow. Kinda like Leo Laporte and his new TWiT Headquarters that you can see being built from nothing but bare walls. Greg is in the process of upgrading to a huge four thousand square foot facility that he has been showing through his blog. I find in intriguing to watch someone build something from nothing, especially when they share the details of the process along the way. I’ll be sure to keep on reading his blog and I encourage you to do the same. 