steve waschka

Need to do film fill-in shots camera: I have an eclair NPR super16 with a b4 to cmount adapter. The only one that fit the mirror housing has no "extender" glass in it. So I need an extender. Lenses: I have various canon and fujinon b4 mounts. all 2/3. a couple with 2x extenders in them. 2x defeats the lens speed and wide angle. ones without vignette. Concerns: 1. additional costs.... its all enough already 2. finding a cmount extender will be designed for mount video and the tiny element in it will still vignette 3. replacing the internal 2x will be way too hard to find the right elements. 4. ignorance... once I had polarizer filters cut down to fit behind the b4 back lens. It changed back focus but otherwise worked awesome. is there something to that discovery... I mean can I order a small element and just tack it back there? I just can't tinker for days on this so any help is massively appreciated.

not wrong... I was tempted by both an ARRI 35bl and a AATON 35 this year.

A possible resource is kineman-sp? in miami. His place is also the home of continental film and digital labs. But, they bought Magna Tech. They were rebuilding a vista vision machine while I was there. I cant explain how many rooms and how many cameras and lenses and projectors and on and on and on. He doesn't seem hurried to reduce his stock mind you.

All simpler with good beer. I am trying to establish a football [soccer] club with some players to compete in 7V7 tourneys. As soon as I can get that on cruise control im investigating this. edit: I've started collecting 16mm prints. I say started... I have 2. Thats a process in an of itself. My projectors worm gear needs replacing. The part was readily avail and cheap. Putting it in.... well thats the fun part.

Anybody doing this in the South East US? Gorgeous!

Because you can. Look to fine art still photography as an example. The more choices you have the better. Support film not as a superior or inferior choice. But as just having the choice. What fun would it be if you still couldn't do platinum prints. Look at the dye transfer printing process... beautiful and gone! Shoot film when you can or it will go away.

And thankyou David. I look for your responses when reading others topics. I respect your opinions. And to everyone else helping me fumble through.

Camera is scratch tested, all lenses chked at the gate for accuracy. Everything seems good using loops, ground glass, and charts. Plus the "feel" of the look is its sharp. And im always the skeptic. Even was able to dig into the kit ang 12-120 and get its backfocus fixed. Though it does not seem to be a fantasic specimin of that lens. Otherwise ready for filming. Have a promo I owe to a vendor. I think I will do it on film.

Not that there isnt plenty of the footage out there already... But samples: The bvw-d600ws processed to 29.97psf on the Teranex [horrifyingly humid shoot... the lenses are better than they come across here. And dont ask what I white balanced on. I should have color corrected before I let that one go. For whatever reason I did not] The sdx-900 recorded on 30p setting and output thru onboard SDI straight to BM shuttle.

David: I am not certain 24p in a 3:2 will be an issue. And no the 60i camera' footage goes thru the teranex and converted to 29.97psf if going onto hard drive. When put into a 30p timeline the computer knows no different. However, the deinterlacing of the teranex does soften the image. So the camera's scope of use is somewhat limited to close shots. Even the 30p camera's image will be fairly soft on wider shots compared to film. So film will be my vehicle into HD. Honestly video, for me, was supposed to be the tool for interviews and sports footage where i had to take long runs to get the shot. When I started using it I had no idea how much tech I was going to have to learn. I guess the 2/3" prism block sensors becomes an acquired taste as the look grew on me. Although I hated the aliasing. The past few years have been testing of tons of deinterlacing programs and scripts, expensive filters, and modifying shot technique to limit it. I started using a standard 4:3 2/3" sensor and shooting anamorphic and widening with a scaler. Looked pretty cool but the footage was now in HD size. My MacBook pro choked on it. Couldnt edit it at all. Then I went to the widescreen sd cameras and things got easier but I still was having issues with adobe's transitions and various DVD burning programs glitching. So I already had the edit decks for the camcorder's tapes. It was just less heartbreak to edit on them. But it was interlaced again. So I knew a bit about psf from studying deinterlacing but had never really tried it. So I tried a few times to get the signal right and saw nothing but a mess. Until I finally properly connected the decks with ref signals. Then I successfully played back a 29.97psf image on a BSP tape and recorded it with a BM shuttle. Put it on the computer and there was a 29.97p image. Then I took the 60i footage and skipped the computer and put it straight on a standalone dvd recorder and played that back. Looked like progressive because I wasnt messing with the links in the chain. So I don't hate interlacing anymore. But I don't like motion stuttering which is my concern for the 3:2 footage. But I am ignorant to properly done 3:2 mixed with video. If I am careful it may not be an issue at all. I read that Perry had worked with a very similar Teranex unit to the one I'm using and I was hoping it might be a big part of the answer for film on video. But I really need to get this NPR finished so I can get on the next project and just see for myself and stop bugging you guys. I was just curious and "armchair filming" I suppose.

Perry- I think I need to leave my film cameras at 30fps to match the video cameras. Because one video camera cannot do 24p. and the other one isnt any good at it unless you have the matching edit deck. I am not buying anymore edit decks. David- I know its dinosaur. But I can do SD video well with what I have. I cannot do HD properly without major investments. And I have barely flexed the muscles of this equipment. If I need to do HD or 35mm I will have to rent and someone else is gonna have to pay.

I keep thinking there may be some magic in the xantus I am not taking advantage of when it comes to taking a telecined 24fps film on SD tape and outputting to 29.97psf. But I decided not to burn film and test it before converting this camera. Everything I have shot has been at 30fps. So I have no reel laying around to try it out. I guess I could send in an old print of something.

Perry Paolantonio you may be the best resource for this. But, I tried to PM you and it wouldnt let me. I just converted an Eclair NPR to 30fps wild when it was 24fps sync to match +/- 30psf sd video. Then just saw an old BM forum post you wrote about the xantus and its 3:2 capabilities. Is it good enough for me to put the camera back to 24 sync and use the xantus? I have never used it for anything but video processing.

Went with a simple robotics step up / step down voltage regulator the one I chose barely holds just under 30fps with film and a 24v supply. Needs the volts to create the amps. But it does hold checked against a strobe. When it gets close to the bottom of a hundred foot roll it drops .3-.4 fps. This is not going to be for sync use. So I am running around 29.85 down to 29.40. Still havent given up on figuring out reworking the sync board. I would like for it to be useful for sync in the future so I will continue with it. Right now I am probably going to have to chose a diferent board to get it to hover at 30. Edit: Camera ran faster as I used it so a re-- tear down and a relube is probably inorder. Side note: this camera has fought every step of the way. The NPR's front face of the housing behind the turret is extremely thin walled. Doesnt take much to crack or flex and graze the shutter. Apparently someone else tested that out with this camera. After clearing the obstructions and filling the cracks mine is VERY quiet. WAY quieter than any ive seen running on videos. All thats left is a flicker. Im not sure there isnt still a tiny contact. But what I'm hearing may just be the claw / or pin transmission now. Then what looked to be the best part of the outfit as in nearly new, turned out to be a frozen mag. Frozen at the input shaft. And frozen so that the set screws for the sprockets were facing an unreachable direction. Had to completely tear down to repair. I think Ive held proper flange depth and I havent had to move the ground glass to clean. Final word will be a film test. But what I have says its ok. Getting close

SD workflow for me was affordable and became a choice and a process for a look. Affordable has become relative. I had no idea what I was doing with video. I have self taught from project to project. Once I get this NPR on its feet I will run it for a while and pass it on for an XTR or an SR in super 16. I try to pass on cameras in better shape than I found them. I have had my share of "gifts" and boat anchors. its a bit of a gamble sometimes.