Thatcher Kelley

Nevermind. I was at HD expo today and found out that the camera only records 8 bit. So it only makes sense that the footage would be treated as 8 bit.

This post may be off topic since this is a cinematography forum, not Post, but if anyone can help I'd appreciate it. I just shot a short on the F900. I just captured to HDCAM tapes. I then used a JH3 deck to capture to Final Cut Pro 5 with the Blackmagic Decklink. I have a RAID hard drive setup that is fast enough for the footage. I set the capture settings to capture 10 bit. It captured and looks fine, but when I try and do anything to the image in after effects, it treats it like an 8 bit image. after effects reads it as "millions of colors" rather than "millions+". And when adjusting the levels and such it acts like an 8 bit. Final cut and quicktime says it's "Blackmagic 10bit", and it takes up the same file size as 10 bit, but it doesn't act like it. Does anyone know what I might be doing wrong? Is there a setting on the Deck or in camera for recording that sets it to 10 bit? I didn't think there was, but I can't figure out what else might be the problem. Thanks, Thatcher

I just finished shooting a short on the F900 w/ the pro35 and zeiss 1.3s. It turned out great. The adapter gives the camera a softer look than with say digiprimes, but as far as grain goes, if you keep your lens open and don't forget to turn on the ground glass vibration, then the video noise is far more noticable than the adapter's grain. Focus is difficult, but doable. My AC has very little experience pulling for 35mm depth of field, but he did a great job. Ya just gotta be careful and take your time. Lighting was tough. be ready to suck amps like there is no tomorrow. peace, thatcher

I said that I don't have experience DPing film. I have a good deal of experience lighting for SD, HD, 24p. That is why I am inclined to stick with HD rather than experiment with film. I have shot on the Varicam as well as the HVX200 and as conveinent as the DVCPRO-HD format is, I really don't like the video noise that it can produce in some situations. I also don't like the fact that color correction can make the image so ugly. I also don't want to throw a 35 adapter onto the HVX because it is already not super light sensative and the F-Stops that you loose makes lighting very very difficult. the nikon lenses are also difficult to use. I used them on a dvx once and they are very difficult to pull focus because of the adjustment ratio. I like shooting on the cinealta, but I do really want good depth of field. I might take Mr. Mullen's suggestion on using high speed cinelenses. I do worry about using the pro35 on the cinealta because of the F-stop loss, which I still don't know what it is. Also I don't want the image to be too soft, which the mini35 seems to do. Can anyone educate me, or just post a link that talks about the pro35's effectiveness on the cinealta. I do have free access to a high speed raid drive, and a G5 w/ final cut and avid composer, as well as a blackmagic HD card. So my budget of $3,000 only goes to camera, tape/film stock, and getting it to the computer. I have a good deal on digitizing HDCAM tapes too. Dave, does the $3,000/day genesis package come with the recording device? Is it hard drives or HDCAM SR deck?

I have at most $3,000 for the camera budget, that means camera, stock, processing and telecine, and editing. I might have a budget for super 16. I don't have any practical experience lighting for film. I know my way around a light meter, but have no actual experience shooting with one. do you know if 16mm can be telecined to an HD format? because My end product will probably be digital and the telecine might be my end product (for budget reasons) So I am thinking HD might be a better option considering my budget. how many stops do I lose if I shoot through the P+S Teknic pro35 on a cinealta, and since I would be using it with HD, how is the grain factor of the groundglass?

I couldn't find a specific forum thread on this topic, so I figured I would start my own. I am shooting a short film in a few weeks. I plan to shoot on HD, but I don't like my options of varicam/cinealta...or the prosumer HD cameras. I am looking for a camera with better depth of field than these cameras. As far as my experience goes, the P+S teknic adapter looses a lot of light and adds grain. So I would like to avoid that. There is a lot of talk about these cameras that are coming out in the future like the Red camera and silicon imaging, and others. But they won't be out for some time. I know that the Genesis has been shot on, and I hear that the Arri D20 has as well. But I don't know how avaliable either of these cameras are, and they may be beyond my price range. I am looking to rent a full package for $3000/day at the most. Does anyone know of any options for this? Is the Genesis or D20 easy to get a hold of, and are they in the price range that I just mentioned? Any help would be appreciated. Also if anyone has had good experience with the P+S teknic adapter on the cinealta, please let me know. I have only used the one for the DVX100. Thanks! -Thatcher

the camera is actually one that I found at our film school. our school doesnt have many resources for film. its one of two film cameras that we have. we cant afford a new one, but I'd like to make this one work for a shoot that I am planning on in early summer. cost is the primary reason for using this camera. Id like to rent, however we will save a lot of money by fixing this camera up. if anyone has any more suggestions for me, let me know thanks, Thatcher

I came across an old arriflex 16BL with the standard original motor. first of all, does it do super 16 film or just 16. also i assume that it cant really do sound because the motor isnt crystal sync. are motors still made or available for this camera that are crystal sync and can do sound? What other suggestions would you have for fixing this camera up to use for 16mm productions? -thatcher