Matthew B Clark

Sorry, I'll quit bothering this place after this for a while! Just wanted to report that it was easier than I thought and I probably freaked myself out about all that electrical jazz. I checked over the plugs, picked up an outlet tester and a GFCI and just carefully plugged them in to avoid ripping cheap plugs etc....these things actually look really good to me. The only problem is THE SMELL. Man, I really hope whatever this Chinese factory uses in their paint and parts will burn off after an hour or two of use. PS, fully expect crappy fresnel lens to blow in half. Part of the territory. Will replace. Happy these things were affordable and didn;t blow me up! Shot some tests and am ready to roll on a short. Thanks again for all yer help to all those who helped me get over the basic humps here of not knowing anything about anything!

I do apologize for this basic lack of understanding...but are you saying I ought to just unscrew the head of the plug and check to see that three wires are connected? And also, do I do the same process at the connection "to the lamp"?

FIVE ELECTICIANS LATER: Everyone I found in ye olde Yello Book is scared to death of touching anything above 60 watts! Do rental houses typically do servicing/re-wiring? I'd have to think they know people at least who can. I'll give that a shot. I just can't believe how many folks are genuinely scared to death of "film lights", being that they are supposed to be "certified electricians".

Is it easy to change a mount yourself? Not an adapter, but the actual mount on one of these? I just bought a Peleng 8mm lens that was listed as an M42 mount, and it arrived with a Nikon mount. This is shipped all the way from Belarus, so right after I complained that he sent me a Nikon mount Peleng, he suggests he can send me the "actual mount" to replace myself. Turning this into an M42. This scares me a lot....since I just bought a new lens, and expect it to work as a new lens...and I am just now getting this as my first lens other than my stock Meteor zoom on my Krasnogorsk 3. I am a little worried I will miss something very obvious and screw it up "mounting this myself". Is it easy to do? Or should I send this thing back straight up and ask for a new one?

Ouch. I got punked paying double that! Oh well. Yeah I was wondering about the fuses too. I'll make a nice bag of extra fuses and globes for all my cheap gear!

In my first painting class we were forced to paint with just white and burnt umber (dark brown basically) - mixing all shades in a warm, sepia grayscale (brownscale?). After that it was primary colors. Every color mixed from just three tubes of red, yellow and blue (white was permitted, in order to lighten colors). The point is, while there were certainly shades among the still lives of intense purple - folds in background drapery, or vibrant greens missing from the wild array of foliage scattered among the fruit etc., there was also an approximation that was remarkably "possible" from these limited options. In the end, nicely drawn plants and good compositions were still nicely drawn and well composed. And interesting shades of that same drapery that threw us all a curveball, or that wicked, defiant speck of foliage trying to be "a certain green"....well, it actually still registered to the viewer as a naturalistically rendered plant somehow through the magic of relative shifts of perception, picking up the defiant shades anyway on their backs, carrying the art onward. Some of these paintings were even amazing. And although I'm sure a skilled colorist could tell quickly note the oddity of the unothodox green used here, they also could not deny there were also shades that the "correct" green could equally never produce. And so, some bad, but some amazing paintings came out of those classes. Just like some bad, some amazing paintings came out of the upper level classes. The ones where the big boys were allowed to use "all the colors". So why blather on about this? Well, as a footnote to what I said above, this taught me it's not so much important to strive for the last, sometimes exotic five percent of "technical" perfection, but much rather to make sure that the basic, cheapest foundational elements really sing creatively...and to allow yourself to re-focus your mind around trying to make something even more exotic out of it's limitations (ironically)! This is the art...not the science....of anything. a spec sheet is not a talent. And after harnessing that, you actually deserve a tube of "Dioxazine Mauve", "Cadmium Yellow Deep" and "Cobalt Blue"!

Thanks for the information. I should be clear that I do not plan to rigorously test these lights in a "rental-like" or "continued production" type of capacity at all. These are for personal use on personal films. I saw the 3300 Kelvin listing on the Julius studio light...and I'm sure it will get a little more varied when using the dimmers too, but I think I can live with 100 Kelvin difference in color temperature, stylistically, too...and I am my own client in this case, so that works well for us both (me and me!). The one thing I cannot live with is being electrocuted. So safety is my main issue with these "poorly made" or perhaps "unregulated" lights. Then again, you guys have to understand...I am the type of person who enjoys a little lee-way....I like the art of playing with variables a lot more than the stagnancy of precision. I enjy precise knowledge pretty much only for the sake of knowing how to specifically bend and break it to my liking, that's it - so if there are ever any comments I hear about "you ought to do this because this is just the way it's done", then that to me is just blind lemming activity really, I mean come on. Anyway, not trying to rant - just give background on what I'm after - what I'll put up with. For example, I am shooting a feature on expired VNF reversal stock, processing it as E6. Do you think I care if my lights are 3300 Kelvin? I'm going to challenge myself to make it look good aesthetically. That's my job. Boring, regular, predictably precise to the point of yawning myself to death...is not my job! Again, just throwing that out there. What I want with this kit is basically the ability to "throw light....different types of light". To be able to have a nice short list of options...a pallette to play with. In my view, if I'm really a good artist, I can do it. I can make it work.

Thanks Adrian, and Ian. I'll have those dimmers checked too, yeah. I see what you mean...a 1K pulls only 8.3 amps (I'll round it to 10). So the 15 amp capacity work with almost 40-50% more headroom or so. If I can dim a 1K down half way with those dimmers, would I be effectively pulling "500W"? In other words, to get more of my lights into play here, even on the same circuit at times, I'd ike to know...do dimmers actually RESIST or CUT the actual "pull" of electricity down so that the power draw is lessened, allowing more room on the circuit? Or do the 1K's with dimmers still draw 1000 watts...but just sort of "stunt" it at the middle of the cable somehow in the dimmer's resistors, burning it off somehow in the middle so it doesn't "reach" the globe of the light, but is still actually pulling up the full 1K - just not "using it" in other words?

I just picked up a pair of these dimmers, for the 800W RED HEAD and 1K FRESNEL. Will these do - rated at exactly 1K? Or do I need to leave some headroom on these dimmers....perhaps only using for the 800W redhead? Spare fuses etc needed? I may pick up another very cheap 300W FRESNEL and make my pallette a little more rounded.... http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-1-Lighting-Dimmer-Use-on-Arri-Mole-Lowell-Lights-1000-Watt-/141043566565?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20d6da07e5 PS, I called like five electricians today....getting these lights examined hardcore.

You guys are the best. Thanks much. Once I settle in with all this jazz I'll be shooting a few test rolls which I'll probably post (not like anybody necessarily cares what my tests look like haha), so thanks for the help. Got me out from under the cinder block of "phone book" info weighing me down. Speaking with people always helps.

Any way of playing it safe is good with me. I will use the paper watt method....and I'll buy heavy gauge chords. The circuit testing baffles me a bit. I know I will be messing with flipping on and off random breaker switches with a radio in every possible socket to alert me....which I plan to do before shooting to take my time at locations. But, I still am such a novice, I don't understand how to completely rule out or rule in the sockets....whats on them....especially when running risky lights like 1Ks. I will do my best to find where circuits go for sure...but I hope a box breaker switches off if I royally mess up.

PAR64 was, hilariously, right at the top of my list too! I feel like yeah, it will be a great option/source for pointed light, probably especially in low-key set ups. I mean, I could shoot it right as something, defining it easily, even in the midst of other set ups, without needing to fuss around with extra flagging etc. Good call...nice to have all these wonderful people on this forum btw. I'm really amazed at the kind of expertise gathered here. Thanks. Oh, PS, I'll look into those flags now....and Craigslist. Thanks for that. PPS, what did you mean when referring to the proper gauge extensions cords? Should I buy from a particular source that manufactures film equipment? Or is there a standard gauge number that I should refer too? Like somewhere saying "this can handle 1000 watts current?"

Oh, I forgot to mention, the reason I went in for the 1K as opposed to a 300 or 650 is because for interiors, I am shooting on the Peleng 8mm lens with a Krasnogorsk-3 16mm camera, using Tri-X, so that lens is not really very fast at all - F3.5. I would need to get something to cut the room up nicely with hot lights in order to shoot in the middle of that lens...maybe even open....or maybe I'm wrong there/missing something...

Thanks very much for all that insight into it! I appreciate that a lot. I have a couple of those very basic Home Depot silver fixtures with tungsten balanced 150W bulbs too in case something needs way, way less light too. The Chinese red head comes equipped with a little scrim-like shield that doesn't really cut the light, so hopefully that will hold in shattered globe shards, should fate come exploding. Both come with barn doors. I'm thinking if I can get a flag or two, I could probably use the 1K Fresnel to mold a lot of the shot, and then use the red head 800W with barndoors for a lot of HOT backlighting, playing with placement. It's for a lot of horror/art-horror-ish images. Probably going to get crafty with the lights anyway, but for the most part, I am looking for low key, pronounced chiaroscuro. I figure I'd do a lot of floating that china ball around, draped with something to shape it (??? what would I use for that you think??) as a fill light, and play with hot rim lights using the redhead, either bounced behind the talent indirectly or directly highlighting them... Those gloves sound like just what I need, and thanks for the advice on globe-handling in general. I find it hilarious that my 1K fresnel was $129 and a C-stand is about $150! Ughh.

Santa's elves allowed me to purchase my first set of basic lights! 1 X 800W RED HEAD (eBay Chinese brand) 1 X 1000W FRESNEL "As Arri" (Chinese - "Julius Studio" brand) 1 X 30" CHINA BALL w/ 250W halogen light I'll have an electrician look at the grounding when they arrive...if it's necessary to do so (??) I'm wondering if this is enough light to do simple, tight shots for short films in basic, small rooms. Typical scenarios. Or if you see something GLARINGLY omitted from my little baby kit there I should still get. Also...any advice on proper practices for as far as changing bulbs in these? Do I need gloves or really need to use a volt-meter pen thingy? I've seen some tutorial vids that seem like they are overly-cautious with the use of those pens after cutting power off and unplugging and all that...they still use a pen on the wire and then use gloves to change the halogen bulbs. To be honest, it freaks me out. All this high voltage jazz does. Let me know. Best, M

Mark, I took a Q-tip to the gate last night (dry) and pressed it firmly around the border of the gate....potentially jabbing that little frosted silver plane inside the gate (the metal at 45 degree angle downward just inside the gate). Is this an "optically sensitive" area?!! I did it carefully, but I know the Q-tip did touch that metal bit.

Thank you Nicholas and Mark. Also, sorry I originally placed this in the 16mm forums. Correction graciously accepted and noted. Mark, the pressure plate is secure, but yeah, it's not exactly being bludgeoned against the gate either by that plastic knob/spring, you're right. I'll have to dig into that idea and do some more tests. Which brings us back to reversal testing Nicholas! Ok, so I picked up some 20 year old (freezer stored) Kodak Ektachrome 7240. So I'll check the stability again when I shoot a test roll of that now. I'll be very curious to see how that turns out. I'm going to have to conduct a wide variety of bracketing type tests on that stock due to age, and also because I need to see how the E6 processing affects it as it is an old VNF stock. I never used VNF process before, and therefore, never will, since its no longer with us...but I will have to figure out now how the various VNF stocks play nice (or not so nice) in E6 chemicals.

By the way, are you implying that you are interested in selling your Peleng 8mm lens (due to disuse)???

Ah, so the film - not running through the camera at precisely constant speeds - is perhaps minutely over/under-exposing particular frames or groups of frames? Thus causing this "breathing effect" of widening or glowing highlights? It would make sense because the image seems to me stable, but there is a warbling glow.... Your 100D footage looks really vibrant. I shot some super 8 100D in an old Nizo 136xl, and it did the same thing that this did...it looks like you said in your comments - like it has inky blacks. I wish they still made something like this stock (100D) because I'd like to try to experiment with lighting up shadows on strange surface textures/colors to see what kind of things happen with all those beautiful colors the film is capable of producing while also rendering in a compressed/tight contrast ratio, leaving only certain things "black" black. This seems like a true artists stock. Is that agfachrome 200D similar??? In terms of blacks and that? For the Pentax lens....thanks for that tip. I'll probably take the plunge. Although, my zoom really did please me. If the Peleng 8mm is not too blurry...compared to this zoom....maybe I'd be better off widening my lens with that to give me a better pallete. The underexposure in this footage is something....that I think I just realized....I probably absent-mindedly opened it up for the Tiffen RED 25 filter only 2 STOPS....and since it was being stacked on top of the ND 0.9, I needed to open it 5 STOPS!!! It's all I can think of....because if I suddenly added that red 25 filter on top of the ND AND opened it the full 5 stops.....wow.....that red 25 must have a really unrealistic filter factor. So I am thinking it's just me who screwed it up. I did it! I'll take the credit. By the way, many thanks for the comment, criticism and information. I do appreciate that. PS, your footage again looks great. Colors are INTENSE with that 100D. Like I said, I'd love to use that stock (or similar stock) artistically. Did you do color correction to that at all? Or was it a flat scan of the film?

Hello everyone! I shot this daylight spool of 7266 Tri-X on my Krasnogorsk-3 16mm camera, stock Meteor zoom, on one very cold and overcast day using natural light. Please take a look (and a listen - I placed a track of my questions and explained what filters each shot used in the audio track). http://vimeo.com/82351072 Please let me know your thoughts. I'm especially curious about: -My focus on zooms: Why does my zoom shot seem to wobble in and out of focus on the lamp? The chairs? But the house stays the same focus when zoomed? -Gate Cleaning: Tonight I cleaned under the pressure plate, inside that little metal rectangle the films presses against (I assume this hole is "the gate"), swiping around the edges rather briskly with a Q-tip, getting up around the corners etc. Is this a fair "cleaning"? And what is that "frosted" looking metal surface just inside the gate sitting at a 45 degree angle? You see it on the top of the gate right as you peer into it, and it seems to aim downward. I pushed the Q-tip into that gently a few times, and I REALLY hope I didn't screw with some "optically essential" and thereby delicate piece there in doing so.... Anywho, best to all of you out there reading my questions. Help is always appreciated. PS, I want to snag a Pentax Super Takumar 50mm/1.4 M42 lens....but what is that little "pin" on some models of Pentax M42 lenses? Is that going to affect me placing it on my M42 mount K-3? I really want to take advantage of that amazing little piece of reasonably affordable glass...but in doing so, I want to make sure I have my bases above covered. I don't want to be backing up my camera a mile and shooting zoomed stuff with super shallow depth of field on the 50mm prime lens and see all that wobble effect on the lamps and chairs I mentioned in the video, you know what I mean? I guess I am just looking to obtain control over a steady, narrow depth of field. Steady...and narrow. And steady. Did I mention steady and narrow? Best....

Cinematography.com....gettin things DONE! Thank you for the info. I'll do some poking around the breaker box and find out what this place has. So I assume for outdoor shoots, and weird spots like caves, gothic castles, the woods, or inside the back of a van...you need a generator. Doh!

Thanks a ton, again. So a standard house/building in the US is typically 120 Volts? One big fat circuit? Or many inside a single house (and I assume I'd have to ask for electrical plans etc./possibly consult an electrician?) Or can I just safely lug a small 3-point lighting kit (a few 650's say) and just jam them into the walls and roll?

Thanks Brian. Edit: and Travis! I am located in the USA. I'm looking at these types of Arri knock-offs (CineLight, etc.) that are all over eBay. http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-650W-Fresnel-Tungsten-Video-Studio-Light-Halogen-Film-Video-LIght-Camcorder-/120896106966?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c25f831d6 Will something like that, plugged into USA outlets burn a hole in my walls (or lights)?! Also, I'm wondering if I'm going to need something bigger, like a 1K. Using as a general purpose kit to light interiors for a variety of scenes.

Please pardon my ignorance. but when do I know to use a generator for my lighting kit? I am about to pick up a small lighting kit (300/650/650 Watt fresnel package, possibly another 1000 Watt) I'm wondering "at what point" I need to really worry about electrical problems. Like either frying my lights and/or when exactly DO they draw so much power that the walls burst into flames? Or is that all nonsense altogether? I have no electrical knowledge at all. Frankly it scares me to death. I just want to be safe...and run a simple light kit for a small 16mm film project without blowing the various locations up in the process. Baby steps. Thanks for the help guys. -Matt

Hi all. Long time lurker, first time poster. I'm sorry it had to be to ask for newbie advice! Anyway, I just made the jump from Super 8 to 16mm with a K3 I just got in from a recent eBay purchase (from Russia if that has any bearing at all). The spring was wound up when I got it, so I switched it to 8 fps and ran it out (it worked! haha!). So tonight I busted it out again to really have a look and practice loading and unloading, and as I'm doing this, I am turning the fps dial, which suddenly doesn't seem to "click" (should it?), plus, it seems to rotate round and round. Not exactly "loose", but it just kind of "revolves" I guess. I brushed it off, newbie I am, because that said it might be normal if I found an actual eyeball inside the lens of these strange 16mm creatures. However, every youtube video I've digested thus far has shown a "crank" sound upon wind-up. I definitely don't hear that. Nothing is winding. Is this normal? Is it fixable? I just emailed Bernie O'Doherty about it because I wanted to get this thing looked at anyway (possibly widened to super 16 too), but this place always seems to get good answers. Anyway, if anybody can help explain this I'd certainly appreciate it a lot. I also seem to have a lot of "dried turpentine" looking residual dirt swipes appearing in the viewfinder. Is this camera one of those that you see right through the lens? Thus making that appear on the film plane too? Yikes. $300 might have been better spent elsewhere, but I want to get shooting and practice!!! Arrrrgh. Ok, thanks in advance everyone.