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Stephen Williams

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Posts posted by Stephen Williams

  1.  

     

    First time I've heard of such problems. Maybe there's more to this story than just bad sensors?

     

    I've never personally seen one go bad and we have over 60 Alexas working pretty much non-stop since the camera released.

     

    Next you will tell me all 60 Alexa's are still have the original fan Saw one being stopped out yesterday easy 5 minute job!

  2.  

    That's what I'm hearing from the rental houses around me. 8 cameras operating for over a year in harsh rental conditions with zero failures. They love film but don't miss the maintenance. They can keep those Alexa's constantly moving.

     

    Quite a few Alexa sensors have needed replacing, 2 out of 3 cameras in a local rental house.

  3.  

     

    Hardly an issue that only affects Alexa! Usually solved with the right IRND (or Tiffen's T1, T1/2) filters.

     

    I suspect Mr Deakins knows perfectly well about IRND's, it's not as if he never tested the camera or the budget did not run to them. i had always heard Alexa produced the best skin tones, even with one of the best DP's in the world, it really did not cut it!

  4. You must have got a good one. I must have heard the ACs and ADs say 25 times on my shoot, "so glad that's not a RED product."

     

    R,

     

    I heard the same with my shoot last week, we had 2 Epics & shot for 37 hours over 3 days, both cameras were perfect. It's more of a 'people problem' rather like horror stories of film being scratched or fogged on every shoot!

     

    Alexa produces some great images , however suffers from IR pollution which was very obvious in Skyfall, outside with heavy ND's skin tones often looked very odd!

  5. Hello everyone,

     

    In a couple weeks I'll be shooting a short film on Super 16mm film using an Arri SR16. The director and I have agreed to crop the final image to 1.85:1 and I'm wondering how I can go about framing for this aspect ratio in camera. I looked through the viewfinder and, to my knowledge, I don't think there were frame guides for this ratio.

     

    Matthew Greiner

     

    You need to get the right ground glass in the camera!

  6. Hi Stephen,

     

    They're from the master Macro,although the Leitz also exhibits the same thing.

    The Master Macro also flares very easily,I liked that,and lit deliberately to emphasise it,but of course it's not always desirable.

    It's quite difficult to get the Leitz to flare.

    The Master Macro and the 100mm Leitz also breathe to a certain extent,but the 135mm Leitz has virtually no breathing or CA.

    Hope you're well.

     

    Best

    Tom.

     

    Hi Tom,

     

    Thanks for that, I was suprised as the magnification only goes to 1:1, it's something that has been bothering me, however I have been going way closer. If the Master Macro does it I guess I will just accept it as unavoidable.

     

    Best

    Stephen

  7. Just put my latest watch & jewellery reel on Vimeo.

    It's all commissioned commercial work,so I've kept it short,so as not to bore everybody.

    Please take a look if you get the chance.

    Any comments,good or bad would be appreciated.

     

    Tom.

     

    Hi Tom,

    Are the Chromatic Aberations from the Master Macro or just the Leitz?

    Thanks Stephen

  8. Thanks Stephen, I feared that would be the answer! I tend to use 5k as a bonus when I need that bit more coverage, preferring the 4k as it keeps the calculations simple and any vignetting fears as far as I can.

     

    I did a bit more research yesterday and I thought one solution would be the usual fisheye adaptor so normal in broadcast. Do you have any experience with these on s35?

     

    Thanks!

     

    Never tried one. BTW most of the SB's do cover 5K & have a pretty even illumination, better than Zeiss standards.

  9. So, been googling for a while and I haven't come upon any information on this. I am planning a shoot on Epic + Super Baltars, until here all good, however the director's asked me for POV and Snorricam shots. This does look like a job for 8mm lenses or wider. Now, as we all now the whole point of this glass is the flares, so I need a fisheye that cuts with them.

     

    Any help would be greatly appreciated. This job is a step up from me, my first DP feature film credit (even if I'm just the pickups DP!)

     

    Thanks in advance

     

    Nothing like that, the wideest was 20mm IIRC, which probably won't fully cover 5K on Epic either IIRC from the tests I did a few months ago!

    post-3524-0-89664300-1349292222.jpg

  10. post-1571-0-27304200-1348000550.jpgKind of an esoteric question, but I’m on a project where I’m trying to emulate a mid 30s look. One of the aesthetics I’m after is the frame to frame variegation in exposure. As I examine some captured plates, I can see an inconsistency of upwards to a 1/2 stop and more between them.

     

    I realize there are a myriad of factors that could be contributing factors, (a shiny pressure plate, faulty shutter, uncoated Cooke Speed Panchro’s, and on and on). But as a starting point, I’m wondering if “mildly” creating some inconsistency with the supply voltage to camera might be a starting point. I'm sure consistencies in voltage from the 30s is not what it is today.

     

    I’m beginning some tests with a Mitchell BNC and come Cooke lenses. Also, I want to achieve all effects and artifacts in camera, or photo-chemically. No digital.

     

    Attached are three plates of Gregg Toland’s “Les Miserables”. A good gauge, for me, of the variegation is the pattern size of the key highlight on Fantine's forehead.

     

    best,

    Kelley Cross

     

    Probably more to do with hand processing than anything else, if you try to hand crank badly there is hardly any change between frames.

  11. Hi all,

     

    I am offered to work as steadicam operator on an independent feature as Steadicam operator and I am not sure of how much I should ask for daily, shoot should be about a week.

    I don't own the stead we are going to be using, A Zephir with RED Epic.

    This would be my first big stead job (other than music videos).

     

    Thank you for your help.

     

    The big question is are you any good or not? Can you even do the job? sounds like they have no money & are giving you a chance.

  12. [/size][/color]

    We are not worthy!

    Surely must have been 1982, though.

     

     

    Sorry Phil, typing error, the Pilot was shot in November 1982, the next 12 in 1983. I actually earned more money in GBP in 1983 than I heve ever earnt since! Having 12 films sitting around to shoot at my conveniance, the first week day I did not work was in September! I worked most weekends for Panorama graphics dept., never been so busy since!

  13. Hey guys,

     

    My first post here! ;)

     

     

    I'm going to shoot a musicvideo, where strong flares, color casts and other lens faults would be suitable...

     

    The question is simply: What lenses do you know of, that produces a great flare? Right now i'm bidding on a Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 2,8 / 180 Pentacon Six, but I would like to hear some first hand intel ;)

     

    Thanks in advance, and good night!

     

    Anything designed before mid 1970's will flare more than modern lenses, make sure the front element is in good condition & clean!

    Early Super Speeds or 'B' Speeds are easy enough to rent & will do the trick! Same for Series II/III Cooke Speed Pancro or B&L Super Baltar if you can find them.

     

    A 180mm is probably too long.......especially if it's your only lens.

  14. It's hard to fill a frame with an eyeball with a 100mm let alone a 50mm - even with a 100mm the front of the lens will only be maybe four or five inches away from the eyeball. I usually use a zoom that goes to at least 200mm for those kind of shots just so the actor doesn't have to be so close to the lens. But it can be done with a 100mm macro.

     

    The problem with a 100mm macro is you have to track back a long way to get a half body shot & there is a good chance things will shake because of the speed of the movement. By using a 20-100 Zoom & zooming back to say 40mm during the track significantly reduces the amount of travel needed. Generally the into the 'eyeball' bit will be a 3 D take over as on a S35mm sensor it's bigger than 1:1. You won't fully get there with a macro lens, unless focus is achieved with a bellows on the camera, with the camera moving backwards to focus & the lens static! The focus direction actually changes when you hit 1:1, which is probably why it's sort of 'impossible' on a normal lens.

     

    For 1:1 & closer reversing a prime lens or even a zoom will get yot there, the wider the lens the bigger the close up will be! Canon have come out with a Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5X Macro Lens, it's basically a 5:1 zoom lens mounted backwards.

  15. Sounds awesome Stephen, thanks!

    I'll know more about specific shots (and hopefully how many lights on my wish-list) we've gotten this friday, and certainly will update with what we're doing.

    I don't think anything will be too too complicated-- a lot of it, honestly, is very similar to the Arri Master Macro promo video-- or at least it was until I informed the director that, well, his ideas were just 'bout the same.

     

    We've got some ECUs of eyes/irises, some paint falling onto a pallet, and of course, some close up brush strokes, as well as calloused hands and the talc you put on when about to lift. I'd also like to get some Chalk on the ground for marking out where to lift and a lot of musculature with a slicked look (Vaseline) at higher speed during the lifting/painting parts. I am pretty certain we can knock it all out with Diopters-- but my question here is this, how do I know which one to pick?

    I mean, i could just put them on and look, of course, but there has to be a smarter way and my ACS manual is coming up kinda short. We've got the 100 and 180 Ultra primes-- so i figure, or at least what makes sense to me, would be to try our diopters thereon? But again, how will I know (aside from experience) when to call for a 1 or a 2 ect? Is there some magic?

     

    IN terms of the Macro-- I asked for the 100, we got the 50 T3.0 I am assuming the "T" account for light loss as David mentioned, but any other pointers on this particular lens?

    I grabbed a Nikkor 60mm Macro to play 'round with on my NIkon FM; and of course promptly found out that camera gave up the ghost... so looks like I'll have no real time to test out anything... which sucks.

     

     

     

    Diopters increase magnifaction but reduce focusing range so a + 1 focus at infinity is 1m away, +2 makes infinity 50cm away, +4 makes infinity at 25cm. There is very little range by +4 or above. Just put on a + 2 & go from there, it's very easy to see what you get.

    The DigiDiopters are 95mm & fit the ultra primes, VERY good quality! I find the most useful lens is 50mm as any movement is way more dynamic than 100mm plus. If I have time then mayne a 35mm or even 24mm, but then lighting gets VERY difficult.

     

    I had a client who wanted to shoot macro of an mobile phone with an 18mm, he knew I had the patients....... TBH a waste of time a 24 or 35 would have been a better choice. It was an interesting shot (for educational reasons) but I would never put it on a showreel!

     

    If you want to track out of an Eye, then the easy way is a Cooke 20-100, with or without a + 1 dioptre, track & zoom at the same time.

  16. Thank you David and Simon, puts my mind at ease a bit.

     

    As for lighting, sadly I don't have what I want and need but then again, the location only have a 20A breaker.... yes... one (renting a tow genny) .... So it should be interesting.

     

    I shoot a huge amount of macro, watches & jewellewy. At 1:1 you loose 2 stops of light due to bellows extention. I generally use 150W dedo lights, my ideal stop as marked on the lens is in the 2.8-4 range. I also use the wideest possible lens. If you stop down to T11 & use a long lens everything starts to loot flat & ordinary. Diopters don't have any stop loss & have the HUGE advantage for the focus puller V a macro lens as the complete range is from 50cm (infinity) with a +2 diopter. Once you start stacking diopters the quality starts dropping off, however I have got away with +4 to 7 on lower budget industrial films.

     

    For closer than 1:1 reverse a prime or Zoom lens, the wider the lens the bigger the magnification, which will surprise you till you try!

     

    Any questions please ask.

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