David Rakoczy

__________________ I now see why many CML'ers who dabble in Cinematography.com quickly run home.... Wow. I do appreciate Cinematography.com and look forward to continued participation, however, I entered the wrong room at the wrong time trying to set the record straight. Mathew.. my web address where my demo reel resides has been posted on each post. The Features I shot for HBO are 35mm... everything else is shot on my S16 Arri Sr2. If you can stand by the statement or if you agree with the statement " If you shoot S8 or 16mm, you learn to live without shallow DOF"... well I don't know what else to say.. except good day.. Surprised more 1st ACs (and DPS) have not gotten in on this....

Mathew you said " If you shoot S8 or 16mm, you learn to live without shallow DOF"... that is wrong. This has nothing to do with taking 'things personal' as it does 'correcting an outrageously incorrect comment'... the rest of what you just posted about creativity... well.. I am not sure where that is coming from or what you are referring to... and that's ok.

mm not so correct.. I am comparing a 50mm in 16 to a 100mm in 35... In this case the 50 will need to be back up narrowing the margin even more..

That is correct.. you will need to back up the S16 lens to get the same field of vision which will in turn give the S16 less DOF narrowing that margin. I believe any 'Film' Dp understands these points.

..and as you close down that margin will narrow... look... 16mm is not more 'inherently' deeper in DOF than 35mm... slightly yes... as I used the term 'ralatively' in the last post... but in no way to warrant the quote "If you shoot S8 or 16mm, you learn to live without shallow DOF."... give me a break! Maybe in your world. Why the heck have I been flying in top notch 1st Acs for my 'little' 16mm projects? Alert to any upcoming DPs.. that is utter nonsense. Whenever working my Arri SR2 S16 we carry T1.3 Super Speeds, NDs and a fantastic 1st Ac who won't give me mush... someone who will be 'spot on'... because, I have never gotten 'used to living without shallow DOF'. On the contrary... that is where I live. Running a shot at T2 on a 25mm or 50mm while someone is moving and we are dollying in 'relatively' the same as when shooting the same shot in 35mm on a 50 or 100... difficult.. even at a 2.8 and it takes the skill of a talented Focus Puller. Most Acs will say the S16 will be more difficult because of the size of the Lens Barrel... But this idea that in S16 you just have to suck it up and get used to having Deep DOF is again, nonsense. The comment about the 'forgiveness' of Film as compared to Video also demoonstrates the over-genaralization of these quotes.. Alert to upcoming DPS... Blow A Film Shot... and you can BLOW your career! Learn to Light diligently and Meter diligently. You can not Pull or Push to save a shot in a sequence and expect it to cut... esp after it has already been processed! Film takes more than 'Faith'. It takes Discipline! Though Faith helps get you through the day and sleep that night... even in S16...

Those are Baby Blade Stands... we only use them for 'work' lights... they barely hold a small sand bag and are basically useless for set lighting.. visit www.AmericanGrip.com and get a real stand.

If you shoot S8 or 16mm, you learn to live without shallow DOF. I'm sure there are exceptions like the fellow up a few posts who shoots 16/S16 but tries hard to achieve shallow DOF. That is a completely incorrect assumption. Shooting 16mm does not automatically equal 'Deep' DOF. It never has. Shooting 16mm is the same as shooting 35mm except with regard to 'grain' and 'detail' ... it has nothing to do with DOF. DOF is related to the Speed of the emulsion + the Stop set + the Lens you choose... and these things are equal when comparing 35mm to 16mm. 16mm Film Stocks are the same as 35mm... the Stop on the (Super Speed) Lenses are the same and a 100mm 35 Lens is the same as a 50mm 16 lens. DOF being relatively the same in each. Stating " If you shoot S8 or 16mm, you learn to live without shallow DOF." is completely misleading and wrong. Being the owner of a Super 16 Arri Package and having shot 35mm and S16mm for over 20 years I take exception to this statement. It is complete error and demonstrates a misunderstanding of cinematography in general.

1. Many Low Budget productions are shot on Super 8... huh? 2. One has to 'work' at achieving Shallow DOF in 16mm as one does in 35mm. Try shooting daylight ext without NDs and a talented 1st ac... you will never have Shallow DOF. I often run NDs (3,6,9 and more) on interiors to achieve less DOF... I also fly in and pay well phenomenal 1st ACs to help me successfully pull this off. 16mm does NOT mean Shallow DOF... nor does Super 8. If anything it is the opposite as Super 8 projects (usually) do not have the Filters and camera assistants needed to get it right. 3. Shallow DOF bad for the viewer... huh?.. that's (sort of akin) to saying light everything in frame at key so the eye does not have to 'struggle' to see into the darker areas which is harmful to the viewer. Mathew.. I really don't mean to be harsh but I could not disagree more with your post. In brotherly love,

Desisti Lights are 'generally' for Stage Use as they are in no as RUGGED a Light as Arri or esp. Mole Richardson. I would not invest in that Lamp unless it was going to hang 'undisturbed' in the perms... if it is for Location Shooting get something Durable!

Brother, you are going to need a lot more 'Light'... and Amps. The first thing is, do you need to Light ALL 57ft of Cyc? Will you be seeing the Floor? How much more sq. footage does that total? I would be looking at a Genny w/ Space Lights. Remember, you are going to be Lighting your Subjects as well. They will most probably need to be even Brighter and the Lamp will probably need to be well out of Frame which could be quite a distance on that size Cyc... sooooo.... looking at 10ks/ 5ks or even little 2ks you will eat up that Amperage in a couple flicks of the switch. Sounds like they need more $ or simplify.. scale smaller... etc. Remember, only your Subject needs to have Green behind them. The rest can be junk matted for Wider applications. Best of Luck!

I love Drafting Paper (1000h)... also called Tracing Paper but it is NOT super thin like you expect Tracing paper to be... it come in various sizes up to 6 foot. Great for covering windows etc... a fantastic ready available diffuser. Also great to clip on barndoors or put on a frame in front of the light source. Shower Curtain is also great but will melt if come in contact with the Lamp.

That is a 650 or 1k Nook Light .. depending on what Globe you use.. made by Mole-Richardson. That is a great Light to have. If you absolutely need to use a gel it is best to use a piece of Heat Shield Gel (very expensive at $500US per Roll) between the Light and your chosen Gel. You can find scraps around.. ask a gaffer you may know. Anyway, that is a great Light for punching through a diffuser or just slamming it raw and hot! It is also great to use when loading the Truck at night :-)

Looks to me like that is 1/2 Blue and the rest is done with Make-Up.. tho it could be Full Blue then Desaturated...

Yes there is! Call Rafael Rodriguez in Los Angeles at 323 . 660 . 4993 (office) or 213 . 446 . 1944 (cell). He rebuilt my Sachtler Video20 and did a great job. He came recommended by several LA Rental Houses.

Correction.. I just counted mine and it has only 12 sockets... so 12 - 15 250w bulbs (globes) will be plenty, not 18 - 20. Cut vents and you won't have an over heating problem at all, especially if you go without diffusion which you will probably want to do to get that stop you mentioned. A huge thing to consider is setting this up so your Key (Front) Light does not wash out the 'Smoke' you are using to create those little beams. You will need a lot of separation between the Talent and the Board so your Key Light does not wash out that effect you are trying to create. With regard to extra 'punch'.. this took me a long time to learn and even longer to get used to but now I go in big so I am ready to go high speed... even if it is not in the Script or even on the Director's mind. If the Director wants to go high speed I want to be ready and a lot of the times it is me making the suggestion if I think it will look cool... or fit the story at that moment etc... I have no problem shooting thru a ND3 or 6 or 9 all day so when we want to ramp it up all I have to do is change a Filter and let it rip. For Exteriors this is normal operating procedure but even when going 'inside' and Lighting I like to have the extra punch.... it always comes in handy when you can do it. btw.. Eric, beautiful work!!!!!! Love your reel!!!!!

Build your own 4ft Ring Lite and load it with ph213s (250w). A half a sheet of plywood, showcard, porcelain sockets, wire, a plug, zip screws and a staple gun are all you need. It helps to paint the plywood with reflector white. Mine works great using 1000h paper on it and 1/4 CTB brings it to 3200k. Have extra bulbs on hand as they will burn out at about 3 hrs. Cut vent traps!!!!!!!! Enjoy it on this shoot and rent it out on the next.... btw.. the 'Holes' and 'Placement ' on the board you mentioned seem very very small to me....

____________ Thanks Tim! We can always count on a swift response from You... (ARRI)... Thanks Again.

I am about ready to go shoot and notice a bit of a smudge etc.. on the Mirror of my SR2. What is the best and safest way to clean the Mirror? Thanks for a quick response.

On 'Film' they will be fine.. once transferred to 'VIDEO' they will be a problem!