jon lawrence

A friend of mine asked me if I would help him shoot a music video and showed me this video as a reference: I was curious to what stock it was shot on. I know it's not the best of quality but if anyone could help me out it would me much appreciated. -Jon

Thats the one. Got the numbers mixed up. I'm aware that VNF processing is discontinued but I've found a couple of independent labs that will process the stock fairly cheaply. I'm just going to rate it normally and see what happens. Thanks, Jon.

I brought some expired kodak 7229 160d and was wondering if I need to rate it any differently. I've read that when shooting expired 400t you would rate it 200t. Does this apply to all expired film or just the faster stocks? Thanks in advance for any help. -Jon

You also need to take into account your cameras viewing system. If your camera has a split prism view finder (which a lot of super 8 cameras do) then you'll need to compensate for that as they can eat up any where between 1/2 - 1 1/2 a stop. -Jon

Was the camera crystal synced? -Jon

Now that the films out do you think you could post some stills/give us some more info on how you lit the film. I loved it by the way. I've seen it twice in the cinema already- I think that it's the first time I've ever done that. -Jon

Really good. I loved the shots during the opening. Was this shot on a basic bolex h16?? -Jon

If the camera reads the film at 160 then it'll be over exposed by 1/3 of a stop which is usually considered a good thing for negative stocks. My canon 814 reads 500t at 400 which gives great results. Assuming the filter in your camera is working properly (alot of them stop working over time) it should turn out fine. If you're looking to shoot a wider variety of stocks then investing in a light meter may be a good idea. I picked up a decent sekonic meter on ebay for £100. -Jon

Thanks for all you help. I think things got a little off topic (probably my fault) as my original concern was actually getting the film onto 100ft rolls so I could shoot any kind of test. I'll figure out how to use a split spool and then shoot 100ft to see what the results are. I'll keep the clip/dip test idea in the back of my mind as I'm sure it'll come in handy at some point. Again, thanks for all your help. -Jon

With no guillotine shutter, and having a prism I assume I'm losing some portion of light and should compensate? I have a canon 1014xl which has a split prism view finder and at eats up at least 1 stop. You also have to take into account the camera's shutter angle. The XL in the camera's name stands for eXtra Light which usually means that the shutter angle will be around 220 degrees. Most light meters measure for a 180 degrees shutter angle which means you would have to rate your film 1/3 faster on your meter (or 1/3 slower if your camera's shutter angle is 150). A good start may be to shoot a roll of film using both the camera's internal meter (if it works) and an external one, taking note of the readings. A good choice would be Kodaks 64t as most cameras can recognise it and there's no need for telecine to see your results. If the images are exposed correctly using the camera's internal meter then you will know how much you need to compensate using your external meter and you can shoot any stock you wish.

How would I go about do a clip test? I feel I may be a little out of my depth here. Thanks, Jon

Thanks for the advice. I will definitely test my camera out. At this point in my life I definitely have more time than money and my post skills aren't great so it's a good excuse to spend some time in the edit room and spend a little extra on some stock. -Jon

Thanks so much for the replies. I was referring to the sync generator- it was just my lazy posting. If I'm honest, I got a little caught up in the idea of being able to shoot sync sound and didn't really think about the added cost of a camera service and a barney. "have you tested your 1014 to see how well it holds sync on it own?" I've haven't tested my camera so see how well it holds but I will definitely will give it a try. How well does your 814 hold up when recording dialogue. I will take all these things into consideration and if it's true that I can pick up a arriflex for $2000 then it's something I will definitely look into. -Jon

I was thinking of buying a sync motor for my canon 1014 from these people: http://users.aol.com/fmgp/sync8.htm I was wondering if anyone has brought/used one and if they're worth it? Thanks, Jon

I recently brought 2000ft of expired kodak 7250 16mm reversal (for only £10) and I've found a handful of labs that will process the stock. The problem is a don't want to shoot and then pay for the processing for 400ft of film in case it doesn't work so I was wondering how I would go about spooling down the 400ft on to 4 100ft rolls. I'm guessing I would have to go into a darkroom, spool 100ft on to a reel, splice it, then spool it onto another 100ft reel so it's the right way round? Work this work? Any help would be much appreciated.

Amazing footage - I too have just brought a 1014 and can't wait to get shooting after watching that. I think I'll give frame discreet a try with any future transfers as it looks like they did an amazing job. -Jon

For some reason my canon 1014xls has started playing up. Whenever I pull the trigger it runs for about a second and then stops and displays TAPE END in the viewfinder. This happens with or without a roll of film inside. I ran the camera with the door open and the crank only turns about 180 degrees each time. I tried shooting single frames and the same thing happens after about 15 frames. The footage counter seems to be reading fine. I've changed the batteries but still nothing. Any ideas/suggestions? Thanks -Jon

Ahhh, thanks for the help. Any ideas where I can find a manual on line?

I did a foundation year there. I've heard it's a really good uni for film production.

Ahhh, thought so. The reason I ask is I helped a friend out with a shoot about a year ago and we used that same location. Are you studying at Bournemouth by any chance?

Thanks for your help with the shutter angle. Regarding my first question, I don't think I explained my problem clearly. I'm not referring to light leaks in the camera although I will take your advice and use tape. What I meant was will I have to compensate for light being eaten up by the viewfinder (I'm assuming K3's use split a prism viewfinder)? When I use my canon 814 super8 camera I have to compensate 1 stop on my light meter for the light being eaten by the viewfinder. Will I have to do the same with my K3? Thanks -Jon

This is off topic but can I ask where you shot the footage? -Jon

I just got my K3 but the internal light meter doesn't seem to work. I'm not too worried as I have my own light meter but I was wondering if there was any light loss with the K3 regarding the viewing system and also what the shutter angle is so I can calibrate my light meter with the camera. Thanks in advance for any help. -Jon

I'm in the same boat as the original poster. I have to do a presentation on the lighting in Alien. I've searched through the librarie's back issues of AC and the August 1979 issues was missing (I'm guessing I'm not the first person who has had to do this). Anyway, I was wondering if someone could give me a little bit of info i.e film stock used, filtration, lighting etc. Any help would be very much appreciated.