Which 16mm Filmstock?

[Mark A. Rapp]

I'm shooting a short film next year - my brilliant Civil War epic! Okay, maybe not an epic, but the lighting is going to pose concerns for me for the following reasons:

 

1. The scenes are interiors, mostly at night, lit by candles and appropriate era lanterns. Is there a stock that I can use whereby I will not have to light extensively in addition to the candles and lanterns? Naturally I'll want to add some fill and a bit of light to the background, and I was considering using chinese lanterns for that.

 

2. I don't know the first thing about different film stocks. I understand the rating and measuring light with the light meter, but as far as response of the film and getting that image that I "see in my head," I don't know enough to match a stock with it. Where do I learn about the different stocks, their responses, what it will wind up looking like, etc. Or is it a matter of actually buying and testing the different stocks until I find one I like?

 

Basically I'm just inexperienced with this (my first film was in black and white on Kodak 7222). This will be my first color shoot.

 

If it's relevant, I'm shooting with an Arri BL and the stock Zeiss 10-100 zoom lens.

[John Thomas]

Or is it a matter of actually buying and testing the different stocks until I find one I like?

 

If it's relevant, I'm shooting with an Arri BL and the stock Zeiss 10-100 zoom lens.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Mark,

 

You are so right about testing. To save some dough, I would only test 500 and 800 speed stocks, as they are your only hope for available light photography. Also I'm afraid that you will have to rent some high speed primes T1.3, for a candle lit scene and get a brilliant focus puller. Also rent a prime blimp housing for the 16BL if you're recording sync sound. Don't be afraid to do some under exposure during your test and transfer your test exactly as you plan to do your dailies. Also it's no joke that you should have a fire extinguisher on a set with open flames. Good luck,

JT

[David Mullen ASC]

Kodak obsoleted 800T stock, so that leaves only three 500T choices: Kodak 7218, 7229 (Expression), and Fuji Eterna 500T ('73).

 

Being a period piece, the most pastel, lower-contrast Expression 500T (7229) may be a good choice but all three would work.

 

Is this the older T/3 10-100mm zoom or the T/2 version? Because you'll want to use the faster (T/2) version for shooting in low-light, if not fast prime lenses like T/1.4 Zeiss Super-Speeds (if you can find a 16BL lens blimp for those.) Even at T/2, you'll really need to supplement the candles with artificial lighting.

 

A small Chinese Lantern may work fine as long as it is not too bright and is gelled orange somehow ("Amadeus" used orange-painted bulbs inside Chinese Lanterns, plus faster film and fast lenses, and double-wicked candles.) Or you can use a really bright bulb dimmed way down for a warm color temperature.

[Dieter Vansteenwegen]

Is this the older T/3 10-100mm zoom or the T/2 version?  Because you'll want to use the faster (T/2) version for shooting in low-light, if not fast prime lenses like T/1.4 Zeiss Super-Speeds (if you can find a 16BL lens blimp for those.) Even at T/2, you'll really need to supplement the candles with artificial lighting.

 

What's this lens blimp? A blimp is to avoid sound coming from the camera right? Like a jacket-thingie used when recording live sound?

Is it some kind of jacket wrapped around the lens or am I completely off here? And is it specially related to the 16BL?

 

Thanks,

Dieter

[David Mullen ASC]

The Arri-16BL is an early sync-sound self-blimped camera; to keep the noise of the camera down, the lenses mounted on front are blimped (not a barney, which is soft, but a blimp, which is rigid). Basically it's like a hard external housing surrounding the lens with a glass port in front to keep noise from being transmitted out the front. Looks like the lens is just thicker all-around.