Michael Morlan

Hi Jess, Muscle carts are reasonable to just purchase, I think. They are an evolution of elegant design that I feel isn't met by anything else. Michael

No, it was a Panavision truck from out of state. My impression was, the local crew threw them together. Certainly felt like something disposable. I'd hate to cart those all over the place. Michael

Hi all, Over the last couple years, when serving in third-man roles on larger sets, I've discovered some elegant and cost-effective solutions to getting heavy stuff around the set. These are pretty cool carts when you are still saving your pennies for a Backstage Taco Cart: BTW, some of these were on a 10-ton G/E truck for a $6M feature. Set Cart #1 - The Stinger Bucket A Rubbermaid trashcan strapped to a regular hand truck serves as a stinger bucket. The trashcan can be released to use the hand truck for other cartage. Securing a small box above the bucket can provide a spot for three-fers and adapters. Can also be used to carry cribbing. Sand bags might be a bit too much for this rig. Materials: trash can, common hand truck, buckle strap - $100 Set Cart #2 - Apple Box Coffin 1/2" plywood constructed into five sides of a box can carry four families of apples on a hand truck. Materials: sheet 1/2" plywood, screws/glue/etc., metal strapping, fender washers, 2x eye bolts, bungee, hand truck - $120 I helped finish this one, getting the straps all secure and grinding off the screws protruding into the box. Apple_Box_Coffin_v01.pdf (forgive the cellphone pics shot handheld at night) Set Cart #3 - C-stand Cart Rather than buying a c-stand cart, I built my own by welding elements that bolt to yet another hand truck. I subsidized the cost of my small welding rig with the savings of building over buying. Welding with today's wire-feed rigs available at Home Depot is surprisingly easy. Mine is the 110volt Lincoln-Electric 3200HD. Michael c_stand_cart_from_hand_truck_v01.pdf

They were on a 10-ton G/E truck for a $6m feature. Michael

On a recent feature set, we had 5-gallon buckets filled with concrete and a rebar "handle" sticking out the top to serve as overhead anchors. Two fit on a furniture dolly for moving them about. I discovered a new little toy: The Figure 9 Carabiner marketed by NiteIze.com can be a faster alternative for a trucker's hitch. Carabiner Figure 9 I tried it out on a still shoot where, as key grip, I was flying multiple 12x's and I was able to move much faster. I even secured a 12x flat against a chain-link fence inside of ten seconds.

re: drunken method for spring stands - Consider simply resting the stand's shaft on your shoulder with the feet before you and using both hands to open it. No spinning necessary. And it looks a lot cooler. re: cable under stand - Never run a cable under a stand - never. Always keep at least a couple loops near the base so when someone trips, the loop is pulled, not the stand. Same goes for the power end of the cable. Use more loops if the stand has a chance of being moved significantly. Add a stinger if you are running out of loops at either end. Orient the loop so it pays to the stand from the top of the loop to accommodate stand raising/movement.

Not sure why this was cross-posted to this thread. It's probably inadvisable to post the set pics in this thread since we were discussing the safety of submerging Kino heads in water. See images and commentary in this thread: "underwater lighting safety, submerging kinos?" Here's a frame from the video: o Kino 4' 4Bank left and right under water. o two Tweenie's (one with +1/2green raking across water to create caustics on talent/set M

JD, Despite your combative tone, I will answer clearly. Yes, the pictures do illustrate that in the case of the shoot I did, the Kino's operated safely in water with personnel. I would not assert, however, that Kino's would be safe in all situations since my evidence is anecdotal, not scientific. My choice to originally sink the Kino's was based on my childhood experiments with and study of Tesla coils - high-current, high-voltage, and high-frequency devices that, with proper understanding, can be handled safely by humans. I reviewed that information before the shoot and came to the conclusion that the electrical characteristics of Kino heads are very similar to that of a Tesla coil - low-current, medium-voltage, high-frequency. I conducted a personal test with the head in water, me on the deck manipulating the head, and safety personnel standing by. Only upon that successful test, did I approve the heads for use in the shoot. We did our underwater shots last night for the feature Iskra is gaffing and we did not use the Kino's because Iskra would not sign off on it. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I gave Iskra the responsibilities of gaffer and I would not override her decision despite my own experience and role as her mentor. We used tungsten lighting on the deck with class A GFCI's protecting all circuits and a grip standing by at the breakers in the event of an emergency. We had five PADI certified divers in the water or on the deck including our first a.c., second a.c., two grips and our set medic. BTW, Jess: A Class A GFCI trips at 5ma. Class B, meant specifically for underwater pool lighting, trips around 20ma. This from UL: UL PDF Article Oh, and a note about the lighting since we're on cinematography.com: We tried to light our green screen from above through diffusion but could not eliminate the caustics so we switched from green screen to a black solid as the background and will let that serve in the final picture.

I finally got these from my producer: :rolleyes:

Thanks Jess. :lol:

I PM'd Jim asking him to reply to this post. The email is Jquisenberry@kinoflo.com. Michael

Hi Mike, Check out my reply to Iskra's post on this forum. I'm so [edit] GLAD [edit] I have such a conscientious crew. :D Best, Michael

I am the aformentioned D.P. :P I and I appreciate Iskra's need, as the project's gaffer, to feel absolutely assured of the safety of the cast and crew. After all, I'm one of the people who will be in the water! I also applaud Iskra's seeking answers from such august company as can be found on this forum. While I have not been able to find definitive references regarding Kino's underwater, I have safely used Kino 4Bank Select heads in two wet conditions: o mounted on a car during a rain storm (with ballasts sealed in plastic bags), and; o submerged in a swimming pool (with the ballasts secured on the deck). The reason Kino heads are safe in water is that they operate at 25kHz. That fact, alone, would allow instruments running at hundreds of volts and many amps to function safely. (Read anything about Tesla coils and you will understand the operational theory here. The dangers of Tesla coils are not the electricity being discharged by the system, but the potential to come in contact with the low-frequency primary and the heat of plasma arcing from the secondary into the air.) In simplest terms, the high frequency of Kino's reduces the size of the electrical field within the conducting medium and current simply cannot reach a person beyond a couple inches from the instrument and cable connections much less pass deep into tissues, resulting in electrocution. In the above submerged scenario, I directly handled the Kino heads while in a chlorinated pool without any ill effect. (I did feel a mild shock when adjusting one of the connectors and the circuit to the tube was momentarily broken. The electrical field was approximately two inches around the broken connection.) There is one health hazard to consider, however. Pacemakers can be disrupted by Tesla coils so one might conjecture that there is a very tiny possibility that a Kino could create a similar disruption. The bottom line for this project is that if Iskra feels uncomfortable with the notion of submerging Kino's, we'll find another way to light our underwater greenscreen. While I am her mentor as a D.P. and gaffer, I have entrusted her with the responsibilities of the position and will abide by her ruling on this set. All my respect, Michael

Hi Jess. Nice to hear from you. Yep. We're done with that. Worked rather nice. One issue is that we were completely dependent on the smoothness of the ice. Imperfections are transmitted straight to camera. It turns out that, since we left the ice un-Zambonied from the previous night that the frost collected overnight provided an excellent friction surface for our crew. So, no special shoes required. I'll feature the dolly setup in a on-set account in a couple days once production has approved my choice of images from the set. Best, Michael

he he he. "Rosebud" I popped out a quick design for my key grip to build with his mad TIG welding skills. Normally, I would tackle this myself but I'm on set for the next four weeks. http://michael-morlan.net/projects/atfn/iceskate/ It's essentially a steel (or aluminum if my guy is feeling frisky) frame in which the dolly wheel rests with four stainless steel blades bolted to the corners. Alternate designs might feature a slightly wider frame to accommodate other wheels and a single blade on each edge rather than two.

Yep. We will be practicing with a former hockey skater and grip (although he's never done the two together.) Alternatively, our dolly grips will simply have ice cleats strapped to their boots. More in mid-October.

Since I have some welding and woodworking skills, I'm designing a rig to fit my Modern doorway dolly. The skating rink has been very kind to donate new figure skating blades for the project. My hope is to have steerable skates using the dolly's own steering hardware. Maybe even a brake. ;-) I'll post pics as the project proceeds.

I just bought a used O'Conner 1030 head for $1100 on eBay and got it overhauled at O'Conner for $620. Add my (Bogen 3192 tripod $447 @ B&H) Bogen 3189 mid-level spreader ($42) and I'm all set. The Bogen heads are generally useless for high-end work but I like the tripods. I've used the 3192 with 3189 and 3067 tripod dolly to support my Porta-jib Traveller working way over spec to move a Varicam package. The tripod didn't even breath hard. Simply keep the bolts tight and adjust the tension on the cam locks for different loads and working conditions. Now, none of this does the job when you are loading up a serious 35mm package. Then, only Mitchell mount gear will do the job. M

Hello all, One of my days on a feature will be covering talent skating in an indoor ice rink. I would like, among other shots, to preceed/follow the talent with a smooth camera. I'm thinking my doorway dolly retrofitted with a hockey skate rig I'll build and pulled/pushed by some amateur hockey skaters. That's a general idea. Other shots may be executed from a static position. What form of friction matting may I put down on the ice to provide a solid footing? Any other thoughts/challenges/solutions to shooting on ice? Michael

I might try backlighting through fog/haze with the tree serving as its own cucoloris. Beautiful beams through the air. Choose a really windless day and add some larger particulates to float in the air like dust motes. M

Jan, nice reply to Adam's questions. Adam, a simple "thank you" would be appropriate here. Best, Michael

Phil, I do have a moment, so let me try: Jim, I'm a big believer in what you and RED are doing and am happy to have RED One #414 with my name on it. I am happily a member of both cinematography.com and reduser.net. As you know, I have even been awarded a sticky thread for my work in charting the data workflows of your first camera. That "RED One Workflow Diagram" has been republished in a variety of forums and print media. I even have given the RED One major positioning on my rental web site. But, you will also note that I have attempted to avoid any rhetoric and fanboy response to your many threads on reduser.net. Mine, I hope, is a sober contribution amongst all the yahoos - call it "qualified hopefulness." Now, I have to say, posting an ISO8000 test image is a bit of rhetoric in itself. I cannot imagine when I would want to dig that much detail out of an underexposed, gained-up image. As I perceive, your posting it was merely a bit of fun to show off how much the camera may be pushed should anyone ever have to. So, having the guys on cinematography.com ask for more detail might have seemed like a bit much. But, I ask you, please stop with the childish tantrums when asked for more detailed data from professionals who have every right and responsibility to be skeptical. You are great at getting the fanboys all excited but your healthy dialogue seems to collapse when confronted with the healthy skepticism of pros. If you want the support of professionals (as you have received with the excellent quotes from such luminaries as Soderberg, Jackson, and Charters) then treat everyone of us with the respect we have earned time and again through real-world application of art, craft, and technology. We actually make our livings with these tools. Recognize that the pros want to respect you and RED. You just have to extend that same respect - even in the face of overwhelming criticism. With deepest respect for what you have accomplished thus far, Michael

Adam, The sticky posts on the reduser.net forum are a pretty good condensation of all the noise: http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1487 - RED One FAQ http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1119 - connectors http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1110 - data workflow diagram http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1476 - E2E workflow diagram Those threads are pretty hype free. ;) Michael

Xavier, you are essentially correct. HMI's are roughly five times more efficient generating usable light than tungsten. The terrible truth of tungsten light sources is that over 80% of the energy being consumed by the bulb is output as infrared (read: heat.) Tungsten bulbs are terribly inefficient. Newer technologies (flourescent and HMI, for example) generate more usable visible light and waste much less of their consumed energy in the infra-red band. Both HMI and flourescent, however, generate a bit of ultra-violet in the spectra. It is bad practice to work with a bare HMI bulb. You can get quite a nasty sunburn and suffer damage to your vision. Always operate HMI's with all the appropriate lenses in place. Michael

Regarding grading: I did the post creative work as well as the photography. I offered this shot to this thread as an example of how one might shoot a scene while keeping in mind how that footage would finally look. The extreme manipulation is not that far removed from what has been done with such film-acquired movies like "O Brother Where Art Thou" and "Minority Report" to name just two. If I could have dialed in a look in-camera, I would have considered it but I find it far better to simply acquire the best possible image on set and defer the manipulation of the image to post. The purpose of the look was to distinguish the fantasy dream images from those of the "real" character. I started by shooting the best possible contrast and color I could for the source image, understanding how highlights and shadow areas might be affected by my plans in post. I had originally experimented with some still frames in Photoshop, building up layers of manipulation including additive blurs to simulate white diff filters, desaturation, and color casting. Then, I built that same look in Magic Bullet in order to process the footage. (A sample Photoshop and Magic Bullet Movie Looks preset are on my site. You can see how I built the look there.) Note that I started with a rich, saturated, properly exposed image and essentially reduced its technical quality to arrive at a creative result. In the end, even though I had shown the producer the finished look before we shot the piece, she got nervous about how I had so seriously altered the beautiful camera original and retreated from my creative look. I've since learned to get that agreement in writing before starting. And thus is the danger of being a director of photography in this digital world. Imagine how hard it will be to protect your photograpy when you're delivering RAW images to post with such future cameras as the SI-2K Mini and RED one. :blink: M