Nguyen D. Nguyen

Would you happen to know where to get this adapter? My arri ii c-bv has a pl mount, which is really good, but I like to have options (cheaper options for certain situations) at my disposal.

You can try this, although I cannot guarantee that it will work, it's just what I've heard. Since the Konvas 2M camera was based on the Cameflex design from Eclair, you could try to either use the cameflex blimp or modify it to fit the camera. As far as I know though, even the blimp will not silent the camera completely. Really, the konvas 2M was specifically made for MOS and post-production dubbing. I would highly recommend that even if you choose to do a post-production dub to record the sound while you shoot with the camera, just to have reference points. Kubrick made the mistake on his first film "Fear and Desire" of not recording the sound, and the postproduction costs went up to three times the actual shooting cost. If you really want sync sound shooting, it's best to rent a silent camera, and use the konvas to do pick up MOS shots. It's good to own one good solid piece of MOS equipment though.

I'm not sure exactly what it's called, but I read through my arri iic handbook and came across a really nifty looking device that makes threading an arri displacement mag a lot easier. It's basically a flat tool with two grooves on each side. You cut each side off using the template, and it'll create a "leader" piece of film at the front of the roll to make threading a whole lot easier (since the arri displacement mag is a bit picky about threading badly cut perforations). Does anyone know where to find this thing, how much it costs, or what it's called exactly? Thanks

David, I just had a quick question. With 3-perf, I heard there was a problem with editing it on a flat bed since it doesn't calculate into the "number of frames per foot" value so well as the 4 perf 16 frames per foot. Is there some standard way around this?

Hey all, I just have a question. I am about to get my arri iic with variable shutter, pl mount and a cp crystal motor and what I'm concerned about is the PL mount. Out of curiosity, is it limited to only modern glass, or does it allow you to take any of the other lens mounts as well? I'd just like to try some for tests, so I need to know if the pl mount can accomodate any other style lenses other than just pl-mount lenses. Would I need an adapter of some kind if it doesn't?

Also, make sure for the single-frame operation, if the camera is reflex (which it should be), that the shutter will always close after each shot. If not, you'll get over exposure problems. That said, when I do stop motion, I always take exactly 4 frames per action just in case.

A friend of mine was thinking of doing that (and even myself at one time), but honestly, the cost of the film processing is very high compared to using 35mm motion picture stock. Also, when you convert it into the computer, there's no way to get a 35mm print since the negatives from the camera are horizontal instead of vertical. If you really want high quality from a still camera to do a stop motion project though, I'd definitely consider medium format instead. The negative is about 9 times bigger than 35mm, and for roughly the same cost of development (though you get less exposures per roll). I'd just find a 35mm movie camera with a single frame capable motor. It'll save you a lot of headaches, trust me! Doing it the way you're describing will take hellishly long since you have to releoad the cassettes so often.

Does anyone know if any blimps for the arri iic (getting one soon with a cinema products crystal motor) are still in circulation. I heard a lot of good things about the cine 60 one, especially that it weighs a lot less, but they're almost non-existent as far as I've looked. Any ideas? Was it because there wasn't enough demand for them once the 35 BL series came out?

Ah yes, that's correct. Does anyone know how much it costs to get a PL mount conversion on one of the konvas 2Ms? I've heard rumors about a camera blimp, but from what I hear, they only reduce the noise so much, or is my information out dated?

There are several things you need to be concerned about before buying the konvas cameras. First off, both the 1M and 2M are strictly MOS cameras; we're talking 55-60 db loud and a blimp will reduce the noise, but definitely not eliminate it. Second, the 1M cannot use 400 ft. mags, only 200 ft ones, which DO NOT allow the use of 200 foot loads. If you use a full 200 ft load, the film stock will rub against itself due to the slightly smaller magazine size (kind of a poorly thought out idea if you ask me.) Third, the 1M cannot use the 17ep(?) crystal motor unlike the 2M. And last, know that the magazines for these cameras can be very tricky to load, definitely harder than an arriflex displacement mag. However, this camera has the advantage of snap on mags, so you can preload them and just snap on and snap off when you finish with one. And, this camera is ridiculously cheap, so you can't really go wrong, but don't expect many bells and whistles to come with this cam. Really, they were made to be reliable, sturdy, and stripped down to the bare essentials. If you really want to go with a konvas, I'd recommend a 2M package.

Hm. Can you give me a rough idea of how much the conversion costs?

Thanks for the information, David. Are there any specific advantages to using lenses of certain mounts, and the Arri Standard lenses ... are they plentiful or have they gone near-completely obsolete?

I'm a bit of a rookie when it comes to the arri 2c (though doing a lot of research on it). My question was about the lens mount on the 2c. I know it can be converted to a PL mount, but as for the turret, what types of lenses will fit on them? Are they readily available anywhere? Suggestions? Resources? Opinions?

I've just posted it on ebay for anyone who is interested. Type in "Eclair" and you should get some camera packages selling starting around 1500-2000; my name is attached to one of them. Read the description posted for more information if you're interested.

If you know of someone, maybe you can find a way to rent the camera from them for either a discount, or, if they're good friends, for free?

Is there no other differences in noise, motors, etc. anything else? I went to visual products, and they were selling a iib and iic package, but the difference between them was around 1000... seems hard to believe when it's just a rotatable viewfinder difference.

I've looked all over the net for the differences between the iib and iic, but I can't seem to find any unanimously definitive answers. So that's my question: what is the difference between these two models? Anything significant enough to choose one over the other?

I took a look on the resources area at www.commiecam.com, and from the looks of it, the threading of the magazine seems straight forward enough. What specifically is the difficult part in loading and threading the magazines?

I've been looking carefully at these cameras sold on ebay, but i'd like to know from anyone who has used it: how difficult is it to load these cameras (compared to other 35mm film cameras)? Hopefully, it's not as demanding as the konvas ones?

To be honest with you, if you don't have the money, it might not be a good idea to shoot the shot at all. For the budget conscious person, I'd try to convince your director to maximize the quality of each shot rather than settling for obviously (depends on how well you do it) underbudgeted so-so shots. Good to know your limitations and maximize the potential of that specific budget.

One thing I would recommend to you (as in, if you choose to make this type of film again) is to slow the pacing down by a lot. One of the pitfalls of making "art films" that do obscure things it that they often try to convey too much "conceptual depth" in too little time. Other than that, I also applaud that you worked with film.

I've used the dvx before, as well as 16mm and 35mm. If you want it to look like 35mm, or to many degrees, even 16mm negative, just forget about it. However, if you want it to look AS CLOSE TO 35mm as possible, that really depends on your lighting set up. One thing to avoid is bright areas and as much as possible, avoid shooting outdoors; and as I've discovered, make sure the set is naturally dark and use studio lights to control the set as much as possible. One misleading thought that many people tend to advocate is that you must light digital as if you were lighting with film. However, since digital cameras like the dvx allow you to manipulate the settings in-camera, you really need to talk to your director concerning what "look" they specifically want.

Let's just say it like this: the funniest films are generally the ones that aren't classified as comedy.

Expect mistakes and lots of them. Though that doesn't imply that mistakes are unwelcomed.

That's very true, and is ultimately the reality of film making. Give one script to ten different directors and you'll get ten different films. Unless you interpret the ideas yourself, the end product will likely never come out the way you had hoped. I wouldn't necessarily see that as a setback though. It's interesting to see how different people interpret ideas and, really, that's the foundation of art, giving it room to mutate and grow in unexpected ways. Though, again, if you really want the idea to be exactly the way you pictured it, directing it yourself is a better option.