Hendra Aditya Kurniawan is a talented father of two, living in Jakarta, Indonesia. Before he started his company, Hendra was working in the credit card and market research banking related fields. With his computer and business education, and love for photography and technology, he started running his own business,  EVANIA.co, which focuses on responsive web design, 360 photography and cinemagraphs. A smart business man, one of his targets for Evania in 2015 is to start selling stock cinemagraphs. Hendra is the first Flixel affiliate in Indonesia, helping to bring cinemagraphs to the forefront of digital media in the southern hemisphere.

Discovering Flixel

An early adopter, always searching for the newest and coolest innovations in the photography and technology industry, Hendra was drawn to the art of living photos. He first discovered Flixel when watching America’s Next Top Model, season 20 in 2013. He would follow the cycle, mesmerized by the living photos being created. After researching and exploring the medium, he tried to create cinemagraphs in various photo, video and animation softwares. His attempts were unsuccessful, and the frustration began to set in. That’s when he purchased Flixel Cinemagraph Pro for Mac. With his talent, creativity and drive, Hendra quickly became one of the top cinemagraph creators in the Flixel community. Though his hard work and skills have leant him many benefits, Hendra gives some credit to our software, which he exclaims is, “user friendly and simple, but powerful.”

So, what does Hendra like about cinemagraphs?

He finds them to be unique, eye catching and innovative, yet not complex. Both the creation and distribution are fairly straightforward, making cinemagraphs an easily adaptable medium for the artist and the public. Hendra notes that cinemagraphs can be viewed on many different platforms, such as websites, social media and digital displays, which is a big business advantage for both the creator and the client. With the 4K technology of mirrorless cameras and digital screens, along with the growth of mobile devices, responsive web and social media, Hendra feels cinemagraphs have a bright future. We would have to agree with him.

The Process

Inspiration

With a wide range of cinemagraph creations under his belt, Hendra is always searching for inspiration. “I usually start with conceptualizing a message to deliver within a cinemagraph. This makes me more motivated to create.” From searching through our thematic galleries and checking out what the Flixel community is creating, to finding powerful still images on the internet, in magazines and in books, Hendra is constantly looking for new and exciting motivation for his cinemagraphs.

Filming

A smart cinemagraph creator, “I [Hendra] always prepare my specific lens and heavy tripod before shooting.” When scoping out the scene and preparing the shot, he looks for the perfect angle, providing the best composition and optimal lighting. Once he’s found the sweet spot, Hendra takes several short clips of the same scene, ensuring that one of those clips will be just right. Unless filming a timelapse, each video he records “is less than 30 secs and maximum 1 min,” so that the file is smaller, it’s easy to find the right frames, and the processing is thus faster.

Editing

During the editing process in Flixel Cinemagraph Pro, Hendra has a fairly set routine and some helpful tricks.

1. Trim the frames to as short as possible, keeping faster web loading time.

2. Do your masking as detailed as possible, ensuring the moving portion is clear from any visible tears or flickering

3. Try both the bounce and repeat loops and choose the most natural and smooth motion.

4. When the image looks dull, do some minor adjustments and effects, making sure to check how it looks in two different monitors/screens.

5. When doing any advanced adjustments, export/import the still image for photo & video editing, time-lapse, stop-motion or HDR process

6. Lastly, before uploading, try exporting your cinemagraph as an MP4 with more than 1-repetition, double checking to see if everything is working as you planned.

TIP: When shooting, Hendra urges everyone to keep in mind whether they plan to use a bounce or repeat loop. This will help to predict and achieve the desired result.

Thank You, Hendra!

We are ecstatic to have the talented artist and innovator, Hendra, as a part of our growing Flixel community. One of the things that we love about Hendra is his tenacity and drive. He never shies away from an opportunity to ask us for advice, or give us feedback on our software and service. Being in close contact with our community is integral to the success of our business, and, consequentially, the success of our users. We can’t wait to see what else Hendra will create!

Check out more from Hendra’s growing cinemagraph collection here.