Today was our first practical workshop, where we were taught the basics of using sophisticated filming equipment. The camera we were practicing on (and will be filming the opening title sequence on) is Blackmagic URSA mini pro produced by Blackmagic Design. Shooting up to 60 frames per second, this handheld camera has a dynamic range of 14 stops, which helps collect high quality footage.
In order to have a clear understanding of how this camera works, we applied all the theory told by the teacher on practice. One of the important rules/tips that we were taught is the "yours"&"mine" rule. Its idea is in preventing the camera from being damaged and, particularly, from being dropped. When giving the camera to another person on set, it is important to make sure that individual is aware he/she is about to receive this expensive and relatively heavy filming equipment and, therefore, one should say "yours" before passing it. When the receiver replies with "mine", it means that the camera is safe and it is unlikely to drop on accident.
Before taking the camera out of the box, we learnt how to set up the two-stage tripod (Vinten). Out of all of the information I processed, these are the main tips of using the tripod correctly:
1. Keep in mind it is quite heavy (thus, be careful when putting it on the ground).
2. Due to it being two-stage, make sure to regulate the height of the first section (=stage) of the tripod's legs before moving on to the second section. It is not a rule, but a useful tip: if one locks the first stage not on maximum height, the second stage on maximum height and while filming decides to set the tripod even higher up, they will have to squat down and move the whole construction up from the lowest part (first stage). It might appear to be inconvenient making all those unnecessary moves, which is why this tip is just a useful advice to apply on set.
3. Make sure, the tripod is facing the right way: in our case, there was a yellow circle, that we had to be facing before attaching the side leg to the tripod head (that helps rotate the camera later on). That side leg needs to be attached to the right from that circle (which can be seen on the centre column).
4. Check whether all the stages of the legs are locked evenly (so that it is not falling to one side) before attaching the camera to it.
There was also a device attached to the tripod, called the "spirit level". It is basically a sealed glass circle, filled with a substance and an air bubble in it. Looking at this air bubble, one can understand how level the surface is (if the bubble is right in the middle, the camera will be perfectly perpendicular to the floor). It helps to make sure that the camera is set perfectly straight and the horizon in the frame is not going to be at an angle.
It is important to learn how to set the camera up on a tripod, which I found quite tricky to do. The camera should be held by the handle on its top, close to one's chest (there is no point in trying to hold it with a straight arm, it might be hard and also risky). The side leg fo the tripod should be on the right from the camera, when sliding it on the tripod's head. After that one should slide (not push, otherwise it might damage the construction) the camera forward on the plate until it is standing fully on the tripod's head. It is crucial to rotate the side lock of the tripod in order to clamp the camera at the end. We were also told to carefully try and move the camera around to check whether it is held tight. When taking it off, the actions described earlier are just reversed, except it is also necessary to press the release button on the plate's side for the camera to slide off. Throughout the whole process one should be careful about holding the camera in order not to drop it or accidentally let it slide off the plate. Finally, we were told to never unlock one of the tripod's legs without holding the construction at the top, otherwise, the camera will just fall down with the tripod. 
After learning how to set the camera up, we got to see (and try out) how it actually works. In order to make a high quality shot, it is important to regulate the focus. For that, one needs to choose an object far at the back of the shot, zoom in to it (it will be blurry), make the focus sharp and zoom back out to the initial frame. This is done by professionals every time before shooting: the process of changing the focal length (zooming in) and adjusting the focus determines the distance at which the object in the image is sharp.
Subsequently, we explored what white balancing is and why it is important to change it depending on the filming location. It generally is the way the camera perceives colours in different types of light. Outside the colour temperature is more cool than indoors, where it is usually warm due to the artificial lighting (e.g. lamps). Depending on the location of the scene, the white balancing should be changed. On the touch screen of the camera, there are multiple options, including the outdoor, indoor and customisable lighting. Overall, it regulates the colour palette in the shot, making it look natural in a certain environment.
At the end of the lesson, we were also told about the significance of exposure in filming. Exposure is the general brightness/darkness of the shot, which can be changed by rotating the blue wheel underneath the sensory screen of the Blackmagic camera. Exposure can theoretically be changed on the editing stage of filmmaking, but it creates more work and might not look as natural. Changing it while filming helps create the desired ambiance as well as keep the objects and actors lit enough and seen clearly. 
To sum up, I enjoyed this workshop a lot, as I gained valuable experience, knowledge and skills in terms of using the filming equipment properly, that will undoubtedly help me when shooting my opening title sequence.
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