Cinematography is not an easy subject to learn on your own -- that is, unless you have access to professional DPs who are willing to spill the beans about the tips and tricks that have made them successful.

From January 20th to 21st (next Tuesday and Wednesday), Big League Film School will host its annual cinematography summit. Aptly named the Big League CineSummit, the unique online event brings a host of working narrative and commercial DPs, ranging from Frankie DeMarco (the cinematographer behind the first season of Mad Men and All Is Lost) to Shane Hurlbut, who needs no introduction around these parts. Each of the guests will be presenting on a topical aspect of cinematography and offering practical tips that viewers can use in their own work.

Here's the trailer for this year's summit.

Video is no longer available: vimeo.com/115342725

Curious as to what kind of material you'll be learning at the Big League CineSummit? Here's a preview that features our good friend Matt Workman, who recently put together an awesome series of videos about operating and designing camera moves for the Technocrane. In this video, Workman talks about both the importance of composition and how different tools can affect camera movement.

The catch in all of this is that these presentations are only free if you watch them live during the middle of next week. If you'd like additional access to them so that you can watch them on your own schedule and at your own pace, well, that's going to cost you about $100 (as of this writing). Depending on the educational value and quality of the presentations, which I expect to be good considering the top notch DPs who are presenting, that price could very well be a worthwhile investment.

If you're interested in learning more about and attending the Big League CineSummit, head on over to their website to get all of the details about who is presenting and what they'll be talking about.