Ronaldo X Nike Football

Long exposure motion blur at midday on a sunny day, ND filters stacked on all 84 lenses, and two takes with Ronaldo. Both were perfect.

What Did We Do?

We worked with production company Shoot Europe and director Thibaut Grevet on the launch content for the Nike Air Zoom Mercurial football boot. The rig build started in the early hours on a training field in Cheshire and was shoot ready by lunchtime.

The technical problem: the brief wanted long exposure motion blur, and the shoot was happening in the brightest part of a sunny day. The answer was stacking multiple ND filters on all 84 lenses in the array, cutting the light down far enough to hold the shutters open.

After the squad shots came Ronaldo’s overhead kick, which they wanted with motion blur and random flashes firing to freeze frames inside the movement. Our slot with him allowed two attempts. He walked up, hit two overhead kicks back to back, connected perfectly with both, checked the preview on our software, smiled, and was escorted off to his next section.

Around all of this, a 30 strong security team spent the day playing cat and mouse with three paparazzi in the trees and bushes around the site. Quite entertaining.

Common Outdoor Shoot FAQs

Can bullet time work in bright daylight?

Yes. Long exposures at midday need the light cutting hard, so we stacked ND filters on every lens. The result was motion blur in full sun.

How long does the build take?

This rig went up on an empty training field in a morning and was shooting by lunchtime.

What if the talent has almost no time?

We had two takes with Ronaldo. Instant previews meant everyone knew the shot was in before he left the field.

More From The Set

More from the build and the shoot. Click any image for a closer look.