Arri Alexa: soft focus

[omar robles]

Hello group:

So I finally pulled the trigger on a Arri Alexa classic. The only issue I been having is my footage is coming out a little soft. I am shooting currently arri raw on a odyssey 7q. But even with focus assist my shots look softer then they should be. I am using Sony cinealta primes as my lenses at sometimes a 4.0 stop. Is it a monitor issue or camera issue?

 

thanks

[Max Field]

Well record something and see if it's soft focus on every screen you play it on?

[Robin R Probyn]

Might be lens mount/back focus problem.. ?? maybe worth having it checked out by a techie

[Dom Jaeger]

4 minutes ago, Robin R Probyn said:

Might be lens mount/back focus problem.. ?? maybe worth having it checked out by a techie

If the camera flange depth is off it would only throw out the focus scale, it shouldn't affect viewfinder focussing or focus assist which is reading off the actual image. It's unlikely to be a lens problem if it's happening across different lenses. Could be a very dirty sensor cover glass or more likely some issue reading/displaying the files.

Omar, do you have an experienced 1st AC or DP to help you set up and record some footage to make sure the camera settings and workflow are correct, and corroborate your feeling that the images are "softer than they should be"? Could you be used to images from a different camera?

[omar robles]

Hello Dom

You raise a interesting question. I am used to shooting with a SONY F35 unfortunately that camera only shot at 1080p so the arri Alexa footage shouldn't be softer at 2.8K. 

 

 

 

[Robin R Probyn]

But if its a zoom lens with the back focus slightly  out .. can you not get soft focus shots.. ?

[omar robles]

It’s not a zoom lens it’s a Sony cinealta prime lens.