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jan von krogh

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Everything posted by jan von krogh

  1. and then there is still REDCODE BLACK, isn´t it? ;)
  2. Hello Stephen, even if i am not in the red team, some basic things i can explain. 1st) no dead-pixel compensation. if an element in the sensor isn´t working (i was surprised there are so few of them in a prototype), it will generate wrong sensor data. in a marketreadycamera (sony cinelata as example) the defective pixels are marked and replaced by the interpolated values of their neighbours. that would be the small blue pixels here and there, visible in the midleft area of the image. 2nd) 8bit lin instead of 10/12bit colordepth. this forces a conversion, adding rounding errors and removing 2² factors of colorresolution. this makes the noise more contrasty and more visible by this. 3hrd) jpeg quantisation - this generates blocky artefacts which are visible at higher zoom depth (in post, not in the optics) and is adding noise. the codec red is using is wavelet based and therefor quite more free of such artefacts. important to remember. the 5.5 MB downscale for the web should be rather ~32 MByte. 4hrd) sensor isnt characterized yet - so there is no digital logic compensating for anything, no noise reduction etc. this is finetuning and any cameramanufacturer can bring in a individual note here. However, i have put the image in our D.I. here and already now its big fun to use. I saw the image running, additionally less compressed on 4k projection. simply gorgeous.
  3. At ibc we "only" saw moving 4k images at 24fps/10 bit from their CMOS sensor, projected in the d-cinema which they rented directly after panavisions presentation. 60, 120p or other framerates weren´t presented. Their actual planning is prototype in december, delivery to customers ~april 07. The team cleary announced: The only thing that is really sure, is that there will be changes. However, pulling higher framerates out of CMOS-sensors isn´t that tricky, as far as my knowledge and understanding of digital optical aquisition is valid for the design RED has implemented, its rather a cooling problem if any. Hotter sensor=more noise, besides that, a cmos should be quite read-out-frequency agnostic, compared to ccd or mechanical filmtransport. 60p@4k and 120p@2k is what red is aiming at. High bandwidths, but nothing a decent storage couldn´t handle today. i personally wouldn´t mind if the camera will miss features in the early release, to be precise: I wouldn´t even miss them if the camera would cost 500% more and would ship half a year later. Arri, Dalsa, Panavision all won´t sell cameras to me (anyone) and empower their niche-monopoly, Sony has excellent cameras, but we already operate them and for many films we produce/rentout for/postproduce/supervise a lesser DOF and the use of our classic 16&35mm glass & all is highly interesting. Overcranking would be the icing on the cake, one i really would want to have. But besides, red is not noisy, very compact and leightwight and will record synced sound - ideal for steady and many other form of shooting. Run´n´gun / handheld shots, especially on location will also benefit from the less intrusive body. It is my guess, that if red archieves their goals, the red 1 will be the most popular camera for scenic top-end photography here within a short period of time, lets say 1-2 years. the cinealtas will have their place as well, but i think the 70-80% 35mm we had here 99/00, which dropped to ~20% in 06 will be even less. _if_ they deliver, it will be the most versatile camera with images among the best in the market for a really good price with really low operating costs and offers at least on the physical side a very ergonomic design. Or do you see that different? p.s. also greetings from berlin!
  4. I agree. But: In a world of limited budgets, a red would allow for more cams/light on the set when not reducing the budget. Or increasing payment. Also, i do welcome the flexibilty of the workflow red is aiming to deliver. On the one hand, it is fantastic that my 35mm gear now becomes useable on the red. Otoh, the camera itself can do some tricks which so far required (or made at least sense to use) a second camera: overcranking digital at 1080/2k/4k was something i was always missing. Another cost-saver.
  5. In a indirect way, many of reds reservation holders are. Example: My company will add 1 or 2 cameras for digital cinematography in 2007 to the existing gear. 200.000$ minimum allocated. Arri, Dalsa and Panavision (by design) won´t let me buy their 35mm sensor flagships. So i basicly have had the choice between Sony 750/900/950 and SI. Phantastic cameras, good enough for blockbustin superproductions. But: Getiing 120/60p, 2k/4k, a nice disk or uncompressed, 10/12bit, lin/log, 35mm sensor, _compatible with ARRI PL_ and cutting cost per camera by 75% is close to payroll. I have to disagree strongly. In 17 years in the industry, i never have seen a company with such an open customer communication culture as red. Also, even the owner is taking his time, to answer many of the nay-sayers here. 1) If RED 1 comes to the market in 2007, iw will certainly alter many segments of the market, from low-budget over ENG to superproduction. 120P anyone? 4K pan&scan anyone? 2) Panavision isn´t going anywhere soon. 21 fullfeatures shot on "video" on the Genesis, (Superman, Apocalypto, Flyboys etc) they have a system for the future, even if its not as completly their technology as reds. yes indeed, but in the case of the red cameras images im rather "excited" by the quality of the images, instead of the content. Same applies to the female workforce over here btw. Btw, The undertone of hostility which some members of this board direct at the red team is nothing new for me. I remember elder audioengineers when DAW were introduced and multi-track-tape (analogue) became obsolete, when discreet logic software was munching in the so far unchallenged league of black-box compositing... progress always has had people embracing and detesting it. p.s. they posted 4k images today
  6. I dont mean to be rude, but i enjoyed girls, smoking a cigar, and a flash sports car not only in the eighties. camera, concept, imagequality (saw them on 4K projection at IBC06) and businessmodel are rather 2010, imho.
  7. sonys marketing & sales gives you 25p/50i on EURO 750, 30/60 on USA 750. Goal is to rip more money of the cinematic & international buyers and forcing them to the 900. Doesn´t work as well in Europe as many cinematic releases are done in 25 anyhow. Thats one of the disappointing businesscultures of sony. HDCAM VTRs playing back all 1/2 tape, recording only HDCAM etc are other examples of this monopolistic way of thinking. wont last forever anyhow, as propietary formats have seen their best days.
  8. Even if i am in no camp, with all due respect - some folks of the extreme negative camp should maybe express their opinions in a less aggressive, a little bit more civilized way. Equipment has techspecs, and they can be fact, not opinion or emotion. Good features and ergonomics can be depending on personal preferences and/or situation. Things like resolution, framerate, sensorsize, bitdepth, size, weight and operation sound of a camera etc meanwhile aren´t. As artist one should embrace new techniques and new technology. If the folks at red succeed (and i wish them all the best on that, including some good solid fun with cigars) they will -in many aspect- simply offer a fantastic camera for a fantastic price, which realises many of the dreams of most different cinematographers out there. We will certainly add red to our rental, training and production business.
  9. i wont go into the discussion of which is the best 4-digits HD corder (XLH1 and HVX200 in use here) but i have to comment. 720P is 1 MP 1080 is 2 MP cinemas dont support 60p. 24p in the usa, 24 and 25p in europe. so if you intend to have a cinematic release, avoid 720p, use 1080p. it will cut your resolution in half. that would be NTSC at 320.240 instead of 640.480. 720p is challenging 16mm, 1080p 35mm. collateral, starwars II and III, sin city, spy kids, manderlay, dogville, bowling for columbine, two brothers, ghosts of the abyss, maimi vice, apocalypto, fly boys, sky captain, superman, once upon a time in mexico, zodiac.... and so many more... are all 1080p a-budgets. what would be the namedrops for 720p? if someone wants to be informed about >100 p 1080 cameras i will gladly help.
  10. depending on what you are looking at: 35mm angenieux 25-250. get sure to get a recent version (the f3.2 minimum) . >~1980. cooke cinetal 25-250. get sure to get a recent version. >~1980 both should be ~10-20.000k. older models 2-8k. i do own the angenieux, and we and many rental customers are very happy with it. also, you might be better off with used, "bad" 35mm zooms (hey, for kubrick they were good enough :) ) and some elder fixed focus lenses, or how marketing educated everyone to call them: "primes". s16 hard to give recommandations, as prices are still dropping month by month and therefore... bad biz. 2/3 and 16, here comes the interesting part. we do have 16 and 2/3 glass in the house here, but weren´t able to find out as of yet, if 16 (non s16) glass covers 2/3 on RED. If so, i would strongly (very strongly) recommend the angenieux 9.5.57 f1.6 zoom. this one can be obtained ~2000-3000$. used 2/3 hd glass will be quite a bit more expensive, will have a lesser f stop and offer a less cinematic handling. Again here on 16 mm, i own the angenieux 9.5 (and several other 2/3 hd) but would be very happy but am not certain if the 16mm glass is enough to cover the 2/3 capture area. things to watch out for: - you´ll want arri PL mount. standard-arri isnt arri PL. this is valid for 16 and 35mm - any used lens has to be checked for scratches (front and rear), fungus as well for "softness" in being handled. this is (sorry, english is my 3hrd language) the "play" or "tolerance" if you use any of the parameters. if they don´t react at once, the lens might be worn out. - hate to say so, as i own a rental & production company: usually its better to buy non-rental gear, as it has been certainly less used. - if you intend to buy at on-line auctions, make sure the seller is 100.1% trustworthy - there are hacked accounts, "leaving-the-industy-guys" and other shady rolemodels of rather less thrustworty figures out there "en masse". last thing: depending on the situation (do you want to shoot or rather intend to rent out) and your location: take marketing and brand-awareness into consideration. An inferior angenieux will bring you better biz in paris, same is valid for a lesser cooke over the angenieux in london. basicly the same phenomena as with cabs. german cab-drivers swears on the mercedes/bmw (arri), french ones love their renault/citroen (angenieux), americans here andd there love their NYCC, other ones their chevy and some british the london taxi (cooke/hobbes) and anyhow some use the more economic Toyotas. That would be canon and fujinon, in the metaphore, but their star didn´t certainly shine back then in the 35mm era. btw - today, all of these quarreling tribes have good reasons for their _feelings_, logic and facts are not the dominant ones of these :) sincerly yours...
  11. its the same. We opted for 750 instead of 900-3 years in the past, for the exact reasons some people prefer the 900r/750p over the 900-3 now. less/no noise, less heat, less weight, less battery-hungry more creative options in the menu and in the hardware (intervall, slowshutter etc), less external add-ons needed (hd-sdi out) etc. In the USA it might be a MUCH harder pitch between the 900-3 and the 750, as the US 750 only does 30p, the euro 750 does 25p and we are shooting for cinematic release all the time with it at 25, in the USA 30p wouldn´t be an option for this. LOL!
  12. we bought the Angenieux 26x7.8 AIF HD after evaluating all long lenses on the market back in 2002. Its weight is 1900 grams, F/2.2, 7.8-203mm, 63.25°-2.66°, F/4.4, 15.6-406mm, 34.25°-1.33° with extender We shot quite a bit with it and are very happy with the image quality. Has been in Kenia, Kuba, South-Aftrica, U.A.E, Egypt, Spain, Germany, USA... deserts, speedboats on oceans, air, rainy forest and never let us down in the recent 4 years. right now we are thinking of adding the Angenieux 40x15 or 40x11. The 40x15 covers 15-600mm or 30-1200mm with 2x extender. Starts with F/2.7(310mm), F/5.4(620mm) and F10.8(1200mm). The 40x11 is 11-440mm, 22-880mm with extender. Its F/2 (230mm), F/4(460mm), F/8(880mm) Pay attention to the 6 kg both 40x Series beast weight. We just tested the 40x at trade fairs, so i cannot comment precisely about their image quality yet. The 26x meanwhile is a favorite in quality of ours here. On the other Hand, breathing was minimal on the 40x, more on the 26x.
  13. Dear Mr. Mullen, i did have had almost the exact opinion until 2,3 years ago. The, im my humble opinion, dramatic expansion of the creative possibilities in D.I. since then anyhow changed my judgement quite a bit. A good example for my agnosticism towards photochemical/digital is a recent production we did here, high-budget 110 minutes documentary with ~50 minutes worth of re-enacting of events ~1900-1920. Aimed at cinematic-release and prime-time TV. The movie was shot on cinealta, 35mm and (yikes!) even some HDV here and there... HDV as crash-cams, being rolled over by trains etc. BTW : I have to admit that i had a certain satisfaction having the HDV-cameras killed :) Anyhow, back to the topic: In the D.I. and colorgrading process, the footages of such different origins have been matched to each another, one time pushing HDCAM to 35mm look (interiors etc) by adding grain, manipulating the gammas, then moving 35mm towards HDCAM-look (superwides, landscapes etc) by removing grain, sometimes having a mixed-look. etc. The blending of the look integrated the cinealta and 35mm pretty good, sometimes even perfect. However, it took ~3 weeks worth of D.I., but the differences between classical photochemical and new wave digital were eradicated in the process. I have to admit that i highly enjoy this new freedom. As Martin Scorsese once said "2001 made you aware that the possibilities of cinematic manipulation are indeed infinite". interesting aspect of this: when integrating VFX/Animation shots, some motives rather make if preferrable to make the VFX film-stlye, other ones are better done when removing the films typical artefacts (grain etc).
  14. hm, i didn´t think that it looked like film - there was virtually no grain or noise. but it certainly had a very "cinematic" look. DOF was 35mm, but this is not film. film can be 35, 65, also 16mm, this is then rather 2/3 DOF. regarding the pro35, which mr. brennan mentioned - i don´t like this device to much. if possible just get more distance & light to the motive, open up widely. the pro 35 has many shortcomings, 1.5-2 stops less, sound, reduced image quality etc. for mini-dv & hdv its worth considering, but on 2/3 hds i would recommend other ways to get the preferred dof, when possible. expcetions are small sets, steady, minimal light, when you can get distance to the talent and not open the lense.
  15. just for the record: - i (and 3 of my employees) have been at the IBC, including the panavision, arri and red presentations in the c-cinema - no one of red has ever claimed 15 stops in our presence, but after the presentation many people in the audience speculated that. the red team said, sensor has min. 66db, ~11-12 stops. - judging with only my eyes in relation to the 4K Light in the scene i would suppose that the porsche shot were 11-12 stops dynamic, with a very nice, soft "burn" out. - all employees of my company saw the footage, all work hdcam/35mm on daily basis, and we all were really impressed by the testfootage. sadly, i have to say, that the tone of some posts here in the forum, isn´t neither fair or balanced IMHO. This is why i have high respect for jim jannard answering here anyhow. real sportsman. What the team at red is aiming to produce is a blessing for the filmmaking community and industry as well. For my company, which happens to own 35mm and hdcam gear worth several 100.000$, i see red as an oppurtunity, even if it will shake up quite a bit the rental-side of our business. I have to admit that i am not easily immpressed, but windowed 120p, 35mm sensor, finally 4k _buyable_, and an open business communication policy are nothing less than brilliant from my point of view. - i we would have a working red today, 2 of 3 upcoming productions at once would be switched from 35mm and hdcam to red: one is a drama shot in a very narrow space (train compartiment) with tense action, mid-budget, 70% handheld fake-documentary shots, so 35mm dof + digital would be a excellent choice for that project. the other one a episodic fullfeaturefilm with a brilliant cast were the emotion and closeups would perfectly blend into 60/120p modes, and with 4k we could pan/scan so the dop wouldn´t have to go to the extremes all the time. 4k isn´t really necessary for distribution/release, but it gives one so many advantages in postproduction.
  16. i and the companions at laguun here saw the footage of red at ibc. Simply fantastic. after 17 years of 35 mil, 9 year mainly 35 mil, i have to admit, to say... that these images were the best i´ve ever seen from any kind of source so far. no grain (35 mil disease) no banding (digital disease) a very high dynamic range.. quite higher than the usual 35/cinealta we have here. resolution beyond anything we had here so far, and that includes some a-budget full feature films. i think that the claims "these images were 3d renderings" speak for themselves... as compliment. i can cleary say, that the images, which certain members of this so respected bboard are claiming to be rendered, are _not_ 3d. why? they are to imperfect. I would like to underline a certain aspect: when our partners at getty images and corbes saw some specially produced footage they had the same feeling abou the shots. bigger than life. from here in berlin: cheers, red-team, you did awesome work. we expected cameras of this quality level for moving images not within the next 4-5 years. so, we are forced to overthink our 35mil/cinealta strategy... and are happy about it.
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