Spider-Man: Brand New Day has already racked up over $2.2 billion (around £1.6 billion / AU$3.1 billion) in theaters. But behind the blockbuster is a character whose visual identity is very different to that of other superheroes – so choosing the cameras, lenses and LUTs to bring his latest outing to life were all crucial considerations.
While Batman verges on chiaroscuro, bathed in deep shadows and brooding blacks, the pop art palette of Spider-Man's suit meant that director of photography Brett Pawlak had to pay precise attention to how the character would be rendered on-screen.
"I found myself really inspired by a lot of the comics, particularly the way the Spider-Man suit was depicted on the Amazing Fantasy cover," he told Panavision.
"His suit has these incredibly saturated reds and blues, but the majority of the suit falls into almost complete black. As I started looking through more of the comics, I realized that was a common thread – how the artists depicted shadow as an inky black but still allowed the colors to stay vibrant.
"That idea of pairing rich, saturated color with deep blacks and shadow became one of the foundations of the look… Throughout camera testing, I worked closely with Tom Poole at [post production house] Company 3 to develop a show LUT that ultimately had a contemporary look with a classic film print curve, taking particular care to protect the reds and blues of the Spidey suit."
Getting the colors right was just the first step, though; choosing the lens outfit to capture the action meant a traditional trip to Panavision to see which optics fit the bill. However, Pawlak wasn't satisfied with an off-the-shelf solution and required customized lenses to achieve the look he wanted.
"I knew we would have to protect for 1.90 within our preferred aspect ratio of 2.39. I knew I was going to be shooting on the Alexa 265… I had an idea for what I loosely described as a ‘classic hybrid.’ I appreciate lenses that have character, falloff, and all the things that Panavision is great at giving its cinematographers, but instinctively I was looking for something cleaner.
"I knew the large-format 65mm sensor would give me that canvas, and I was after lenses that simply performed well. I didn't want to fight them when it came to flares or coatings."
Ultimately, Panavision's Special Optics team modified a set of Panaspeed lenses for the production – and the customizations it made for Brand New Day laid the foundation for the company's new Primo 65 optics.
"Panavision is so collaborative with lensing. I had a brief conversation with Dan [Sasaki, Panavision's senior vice president of optical engineering] one afternoon, and he asked me what I was looking for."
Pawlak explained that he wanted the classic Panavision look, and that he would shoot on Primos if he could, as he needed high-performance glass to maximize the capabilities of the Alexa 265.
"After a moment of Dan’s wheels turning, he suggested modifying the Panaspeeds for the 265 to give me that Primo look on a 65mm sensor. I had tested the Panaspeeds a number of times – they’re beautiful, sharp and relatively clean, with great contrast. The idea of pushing the glass to its limits on that sensor excited me.
"When I put them on the 265, I instinctively knew they were the right lenses. I was at Panavision London prepping when I got the first few. I was with [technical marketing director] Charlie Todman, and neither of us could quite put our finger on it, but we both agreed there was something special.
"They asked what I'd like to do to them, and I told them to leave them exactly as they were – they were perfect. The next few weeks of testing confirmed my choice in how well the lenses responded to the LUT Tom and I were developing. They really went hand in hand."
Panavion's full interview with Pawlak is a fantastic read and gives a great insight into the making of the movie, so I highly recommend checking it out. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is out in theaters now.
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