Chris_Burket

For PL mount anamorphics, your choices are Clairmont and Camtec. They both have Hawks. If you do some searching, you can probably find someone with a set of PL mount Lomo's. I have a set being rebuilt now, but its a long process. The arri rental group probably has Hawk's. You could also have vantage ship them here.

Does anyone know the contact info for the company CSE? They make quick release plates, lens support brackets, etc...?

I have one that has been completely refurbished and is in perfect condition. Comes with PL mount and lots of extras. Look on Ebay right now or PM me.

I built my own 18volt batteries from 3 x 6 volt cells. Sealed AGM. Gel Cell would work too. 18 volt float chargers are hard to find, but they are out there. Just search on google and you'll find them. I found a couple that are used for 18volt batteries that are used in some race cars. I think they are made by performance distributors. 18 volt AGM chargers also are used in motorized wheelchairs. So search for that type of stuff too. Or, if you want, I'll make some and sell them to you.

For the crystal motor system and PL mount, contact the ARANDA GROUP. Bruce is amazing and can help you out with this.

Yep, I did the same thing with my 2m before I had the Aranda conversion done. Which by the way, my PL mount, Rotavision Konvas 5000 is for sale.... And you can get 12volt batteries to run the camera for as little as $50.00.

I heard that Panavision Woodland Hills converted a camera to 2perf for Titanic to shoot some underwater stuff. They did the conversion to give them more running time in an underwater mag.

Building block batteries is a actually quite easy. I recently built a bunch of small 12volt batteries in cordura pouches as well as a 12volt block and 24 volt block in Pelican cases. The cheapest option is sealed lead acid batteries. This is what I used. The downside is the weight. I would suggest Odyssey batteries because they are guarantee'd for 2 years from purchase, contain more amp/hours than other AGM batteries, and they can handle rapid charging where others cannot. They can also handle high draws of cameras running at high speed which can damage other batteries. As far as building the batteries, buy your cells (they will come in 12volt). If you want 24 volts, wire them together + to - . Your charger should have a fuse on the + side, so put an in-line fuse on the negative side of your battery. I use 5 amp fuses which seem to work. Put them in the pelican case, take out the O-ring, drill a hole for the XLR and wire it up. Then your done. Don't turn the batteries completely upside down and leave them there. They are sealed so they won't leak but its not good for them. As far as making them 12 to 24 volt switchable, you need to buy a switch and wire that in. Make sure its protected well so it can't accidently get hit and fry your gear.

If you have a 12 volt camera, the possibilities are endless. You could use a lot of different batteries. I depends on how you feel about weight, and how long you want the batteries to last. If you want to go with a cheap option, get a 12 volt lead acid battery, put a fuse and an XLR connector on it and drop it in some sort of container (pelican's are great). You could get a battery with anywhere from 4.5 amp/hours for $25 to one that has 30 amp/hours for $100+. Also remember that the more amp/hours, the heavier it is as well.

I am making some of my own power cables and batteries to use with my Arri 2c and Konvas 2m. I was wondering if anybody knows what kind of cable is best to use. Or what kind most rental houses/manufactures use? I found some good cable at Ace Hardware, but it quite thick, thicker than the cables I've seen go out with LT's, etc....

If you are taking out a big Viper package that will include a lot of AKS, set of primes perhaps, etc... You will probably need a camera cart of some kind. You can rent one from another AC if you don't have one. The production should pay for this. If you do have one, they should pay you for the rental of course.

The camera at $500/day isn't bad. But once you add an HDCAM SR field deck (like found on Genesis and D20), Cooke S4's or Master Primes, follow focus, matte box, O'Connor 2575, batteries, sticks, etc.... it'll get much more expensive. I've heard a Genesis package is around $11,000 with everything you could possibly need... lenses, monitors, waveform, sticks, head, deck, etc.... I'm sure you could put together a pretty cheap RED package with a red drive, zeiss standards, lightweight FF, etc... But it would still be much more expensive than $500/day.

I know they contacted Fujinon about building their zoom, but Fujinon said the couldn't produce a lense that would resolve 4k at that price point. Have heard rumors they are working with Cooke, but I can't say for sure. They may be building the lenses and getting the elements from somewhere else.... Who knows, they may be bulk ordering canon or nikon 300mm lense elements for the prime... It'll be interesting to see their lenses projected and tested when they come out. If the zoom is really sharp, minimal breathing, etc... it could become extremely popular. I'm sure they'd sell thousands.

Why not use strobe lights at various rates? They have a bunch setup at the Oscars right now on Hollywood Blvd. I first saw them and thought they might be slaves setup for the the still photographers to give the stills a uniform appearance. But then I saw them flashing randomly today as they were setting up, and they didn't react to other flashes like slaves would. Makes me think they might be using them to augment that array of flashes look but I don't know for sure. But, I'm sure they could be used to that type of look....

Another thing to think about is that focus isn't determined by the position of a certain actor a great deal of the time. Sometimes you pull focus from one character to another, sometimes from a character to an object, sometimes from the lips of a character to their eyes, sometimes you split focus between two people to keep both of them in focus, etc.... the list goes on. Sometimes a tool that could tell the focus puller exactly how far away an actor's eyes are would be helpful. They have the cine tape, pana tape, and sniper unit for this, but having a sensor would be another way to go.

Ah, now I know what you mean. I remember using rods like that on an older SR2 and you are correct, big zooms could never mount on those. We were using the sliding base plate setup with the Arricam/Optimo. I guess I'll have to get my hands on a camera and adapter and do some experimenting. Thanks.

I have used an Optimo 25-290 2.8 with an Arricam LT and 15mm stainless rods. I'm sure 19mm rods would be ideal but 15mm do work. I haven't actually used an M2 with an HVX though so I don't know what you mean by riser blocks etc... I probably need to find an HVX/ M2 package to test things out and see what's needed I suppose. But does the M2 have the ability to use stainless steel 15mm rods and support them? What I mean is, are the rod mounts plastic, machined aluminum, etc...???

I have heard that ground glasses and mirror shutters are cleaned with denatured alcohol at most camera houses in LA? Do you think denatured alcohol is a good thing to use to clean mirror shutters and ground glasses?

Can you be more specific about what you need? Are you saying your 12 volt 6AH battery doesn't last long enough? I have a 12 volt motors, 18 volt motors, and a 24 volt motor. I have various batteries for each. If your looking for something that lasts longer, try a 12 volt block battery. You can make your own quite easily. If you want a 12 volt battery that will last longer, try an Odyssey 12 volt lead acid battery. They make one that isn't too big and is rated at 9 amps, however they have to be made to military specs, so in reality its probably more like 11 AH. Or, you could wire up two together, and have an 18 AH block battery. Just put an in-line fuse on the negative side (your charger should have on on the positive side) and seal it inside something like a pelican case. You can also use a custom case like an "innserspace case" but they are more expensive.

Yes you can thread the camera in the light. It's very easy to thread and its easy to load the mags as well after you've done it a few times. And don't pull on the door or hold the camera by the door.

What type of grease and oil should you use with the Konvas and mags? I have some arri oil and grease for my 2c, would that be ideal? I've also heard of using loctite's "Viperlube", which is a spray synthetic grease. THe only thing I can't really figure out is if I use the arri grease, how would I apply it? With Viperlube, you can spray it on, but the Arri stuff just comes in a tube... Also, any thoughts on a good degreaser to clean the camera prior to servicing it?

Does the M2 adapter have a rod support system sturdy enough for really large lenses like a Cooke 20-100, or even an Optimo 25-290??? Could you put the camera on a large Arri dovetail or how would you handle balancing the camera and lense?

I did finally find an 18 volt charger for lead acid batteries. It's a trickle charger used for charging 18 volt race car batteries. It's only 1.5 amps, but its the best I could find for a small price ($50). I'm still researching custom chargers with a larger amp output (around 4 amps).

I am getting ready to build some 12volt batteries for my Konvas 2m motor and I'm planning on wiring them all up with 4 pin XLR plugs. I was just wondering what the normal configuration is for 4 pin XLR. Which pins are negative or positive? I've heard 1 is positive, 4 is negative, and 2 and 3 are empty. Is that correct?

I have been looking for an 18 volt trickle charger for my 2c batteries, but they seem to be extremely hard to find. I found a place called Xenotronix that can custom build them, but its pretty expensive. It's really easy to find a nice 12v, or 24v trickle chargers for $40 each, but no 18v. Anyone know where they can be found?