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Widescreen Mask for Regular 16mm Bolex


Steven Wyatt

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Heya,

 

Upgrading my Bolex to super 16 is abit beyond my budget, so would it be possible to install a widescreen mask in the viewfinder that could enable one to frame for 1:78:1 and not 4:3.

 

Comments would be appreciated.

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Heya,

 

Upgrading my Bolex to super 16 is abit beyond my budget, so would it be possible to install a widescreen mask in the viewfinder that could enable one to frame for 1:78:1 and not 4:3.

 

Comments would be appreciated.

 

I do this on MiniDV cams all the time. If you want an exact aspect ratio, thers gonna be a little math involved, but I usualy just guess it and apply masking tape to the VF.

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well - its depends on which bolex you have...

 

All the prisms I've seen will swing out from the body to show the top of the ground glass, which is where the mask is placed, held down by two screws ... On my RX4 it would be as easy as putting some tape strips down on top of that, the SB and EL i own have another convex-planar magnifying lens installed with the mask sandwiched in between.. Maybe you could just put tape on top of this lens, or try getting to the mask itself ...

 

In essence the mask could be put anywhere in the viewfinder path where the rays are coherent - the prism mask itself is probably the easiest ...

 

Some measurements that maybe helpful:

 

10.26mm x 5.96mm = usable image dimensions on neg for transfer

9.65mm x 5.42mm = all things being equal this is the 'correct' size for the mask

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