“Tonight Show” opening sequence gets DSLR video treatment

Shooting the opening sequence for The Tonight Show

On March 1, Jay Leno came back to The Tonight Show after much media attention. The show has some new elements including a new credit open sequence, photographed with a Canon EOS 7D DSLR.

With very little time to turn around a complete show package, Director Pete Conlon and Tech Director Brian Yarnell decided to go with a primarily live-action piece that depended less on their fancier post techniques and more on in-camera-magic. There was a need for a small, low-profile, shooting strategy taking place inside of real open venues, restaurants, and exterior spaces, while augmenting natural light for strong visual frames.

Shooting with a Canon DSLR camera was a natural fit.

“Pete Conlon wanted an imperfect, spontaneous and present feel to the footage,” says Vasco Nunes, Director of Photography for the shoot. “We used a combination of Canon EOS 7D cameras on Redrock support rigs,” adds Nunes, “to capture the energy of Los Angeles and the city’s night life without competing too much with the spaces we were entering. The camera and rig were perfect for the shoot.”

The production team relied on compact rigs that are lightweight and ultra-mobile, extreme low light capabilities for capturing natural light, and a complement of equally small and unobtrusive accessories to keep production costs down and production values high.

“The excellent work by Vasco Nunes on The Tonight Show opening clearly demonstrates the combination of Redrock cinema accessories and Canon DSLR cameras can deliver the highest level of production at a fraction of the traditional cost,” says James Hurd, Redrock Micro, Dallas, Tx.