T Sanders

UPS just tossed this 200lb blimp in front of my door (yep, heard it thud all the way in the back of my 4 bdrm house). It's a good thing it's built like a tank. :) With that having been said, it's FANTASTIC! It's pretty heavy and all one piece pretty much. The body part pulls up on a hinge much like how the magazines load on the camera but it doesn't come off. Inside is a removable quick release type plate and 3 short cables that plug into the ports on the SR. Those route to the ports on the outside of the blimp for the power and accessories. The green button is the power button and there looks to be some kind of digital counter on the same side as the green button in the back end. There are a couple of more ports on the other side. The ports have slide over covers. The blimp inside is nicely padded and padded around the holes for the lens and viewfinder. I have to figure out how to get the viewfinder through it's opening. It looks tricky. It also has that rail thing in front that detaches and some kind of lens holder I'm assuming. I don't really know what that thing is. Well, that's it. This thing is sweet and I'm glad I bought it. I seem to keep getting lucky with the blimps (got one for cheap for the Bolex too).

Thanks Dom! Hmmm I think I've seen what you're talking about (T-bar elbow). I'll check it out. I searched online and couldn't find anything on an SR blimp either...so I guess I'll see when this one arrives. :)

HI There! I just got an Arriflex 16 SR1 (somewhat by accident) and I have a few questions. :) The seller had "1 - Video Assist Optics" listed as one of the items that comes with the camera. I thought I knew what this meant. I thought it was a viewfinder piece that would allow you to hook up a camera to it. However when the camera arrived today, what it has looks like the standard Arriflex viewfinder (like the one in the manual). The seller sells a lot of these things and all of his listings say "1 - Video Assist Optics". This being my first time owning one, do I need to get something else other than just a small video camera to have some video assist action going on? The seller is away until the 8th and I didn't ask before because I thought I understood what was what. :) Here it is the camera I have. Next question, I bought this SR1 blimp today. Anyone ever seen/used one of these? I couldn't find anything about it on the net. Just wanted to hear about any experiences with it. Thanks!

Thanks for the update Chris. I understand what you mean. I'll post some stills or footage when I get it back from the lab. :)

I gotcha. :D I wanted the candle stand on the table but it was blocking a short someone. :D I hear you about the meter. I will definitely share the film once it's done. :) Now I have to tell you my car story. hahahaha Sooo yes, I had to buy a new car instead of film. I'd had a '99 Corolla since 2000 with over 160K miles on it, had driven it in Seattle, cross country(several times), and upstate, NY for 10 years in the snow. The hood had flown up, the windshield had a big crack in it (after 4 replacements), parts had rusted off, the door handle on the inside and outside of the drivers side was broken, had to replace the rims several times and some metal was digging into the tires on the inside under the car and eventually putting holes in them. The car was becoming a deathtrap and I kept it all in the name of spending more money on my creative arts. :) So when I had to change my tire AGAIN like seasoned pit crew after work in my work clothes at night, I'd had enough (oh and I got a raise at work). Even the morning I set out to go buy the new car, I walked into the garage to find the old car with a flat tire. So, I went to the dealership with my eye on a used 2006 V6 Saturn Vue with a Honda engine and transmission in it and 75K miles on it (and in fantastic shape). They looked over my Corolla for the trade-in value and basically said I had no business driving it. hahahaha Then the first thing the guy who does the paperwork said to me is that he had to ask why someone with my income would drive such a thing... I told him I had a good reason. I spend my money making films. He thought that was a good reason and I bought the car. :) It was cheap anyway (less than $10k). So.... eventually, I'm going to put a hitch in the front and back and build a camera platform for filming so it still worked out. Might should have kept the beater for this but I'd rather be safe.

Wonderful Adrian! Thanks. :) I can't wait to see what this looks like. I definitely trying to get that look in camera. I like editing but I don't like doing a lot to the footage in post. Freya, the set is my garage. I swept it up a bit and hauled a bunch of stuff out of there. It certainly forced me to clean up. :D Makes me a bit anxious though, I just got a new car a few weeks ago and want to put it back in the garage. :ph34r: I have one more scene to shoot for this film with one talent and some inserts. I will meter them. :)

Thank you all so much! I will never do it again without a meter. I was so tired last night when I wrote the post I just didn't think of going back and doing the meter read after the fact. I just metered where the subjects were sitting and it gave me a reading of f2.8 and t60 for the 500 ISO film. It gave me a reading of f2.0 and t60 for the 200 ISO film. I have a Gossen Luna-Star F2 meter. I had the meter available but too much going on with too little time and I forgot about it given up until this point I'd never used one when shooting digital (wish I had then too). I knew how easy it would make my job and still forgot it. Both the 16mm and 10mm Switar lenses are wide open at f1.6. I could have answered my own question with a reading. :D I can clearly see now a push is not needed. Freya I have heard that about lighting digital vs film. I didn't quite think of that in this case because I saw a video where a guy took a bolex out with Vision 3 500T to see how it would do in low lighting and it it did really well but it was helpful to me to get an idea of the lighting conditions. https://vimeo.com/36703048 So I guess I should have known but I was still worried my set was too dark because when I was shooting digital I always felt like my sets were under lit. Yes my DVX100B is AMAZING in low light. I still kiss it every now and then. j/k hahahaha :) I don't feel like any of this is bad news at all. I used this as a learning experience and I'm learning. :) @Chris how did you get the overexposed film fixed after processing? It sounded like it was processed and you noticed it was overexposed by 10 stops but you were able to fix it and get the right image if I'm understanding correctly? How so? I think I will ask the lab to only do one roll first so I can see.

Ok, this is my first film shot with motion picture film. I read as much as I could about it a jumped right in. This weekend we filmed a very fun and cheesy, short for a Zombie Film Challenge. I'll be sending the footage to the lab on Tuesday. I had a relatively simple one-location story (my garage) with the lighting you see in the photo. In the back, the large white square on the ceiling to the far right behind the practical is a 250 watt Lowel Pro Light. In front there is a 500 Watt Lowel Omni Light and to the far right a 1000 watt Strand Bambino Fresnel on full. I didn't use my light meter. :( I felt a bit unprepared and rushed. I shot with the 16mm Switar wide open the whole time. I may have shot a few seconds with the Switar preset 10mm but that lens for some reason seems confusing to me even though I've read how to use it. I shot most of the garage scenes on Vison 500T and some on Vision 200T and one on Vision3 200T. My question is do you think I should order 1 - 2 stop Push processing for the garage footage given the film stock used, the lighting conditions and me shooting wide open? Thanks.

Thank you Chris for assuming I would be professional about this. :D I have a couple of digital multimeters, soldering iron, desoldering iron, solder, etc, and the basic ability to swap out parts (like testing and fixing LCD TV backlight inverters and modding Ataris and Colecovisions). I was simply going to swap out the motor and if it didn't work put the original back. And I'll be careful to not even breathe on anything else in there. :) But I'd feel better about it if someone who knows more than me could confirm if it "should" work or not based on the specs. :) I saw another company was offering a mod of my own MST motor to crystal sync but I just can't spend another $1k+ right now. The Bolex Rex4 fits perfectly in the blimp with the MST motor on it but without it being crystal sync, I see no point but maybe I'm missing something. This Tobin motor would be awesome too if it didn't have this huge motor sticking out of it. :D

Hello again. I'd posted some photos of a blimp I bought off of ebay for the Bolex H-16 (http://www.cinematography.com/index.php?showtopic=61757&hl=). It came with a motor but I wasn't sure about the motor's accuracy so I removed it. I also own a Tobin TCS TXM-20Ba Bolex Crystal Sync Motor. I want to use the Tobin motor in the blimp but the motor sticking out of it is just a little bit too tall for the camera to go all the way in place with the motor attached. So I got this bright idea (or not so bright maybe) that I would replace that motor with a shorter motor of equivalent specs/function. These are the specs of the motor currently installed on the Tobin crystal unit: Mabuchi RS-555 VD - 12V - 13500 RPM - High Torque Motor Manufacturer: Mabuchi Model: RS555 VD Operates on 12 VDC nominal No load speed: 13,500 RPM No load current: .75 A 5 pole armature Stall current: 60 A Can be operated in either direction, simply reverse power supply polarity Dimensions (not including shaft): 65mm long x 38mm diameter Shaft dimensions: 3.3mm diameter x 9mm long Weight: .55 LBS Comes with solder eyelets for power connection Here is a slightly shorter motor I recently bought in hopes of swapping the two out. Specification: Product Name: DC Micro Motor Model NO.: 540 Rated Voltage: DC 8-12V Current(no load): 3A Rated Power: 28W Speed(no load): 13500RPM Rated Torque: 1900g.cm Body Size: 36 x 50mm / 1.4" x 2" (D*H) Shaft Dia.: 3mm/ 0.12" Total Length: 75mm / 3" Main Color: Silver Tone Material: Metal, Plastic Weight: 131g Package: 1 x DC Micro Motor Description: Round shape and with 3mm diameter long shaft and 2 pin connectors. My question: Is the new motor a suitable/equivalent replacement for the original motor? I thought it was but I'm just not 100% sure and thought I'd ask anyone who is more savvy with electronics before I go taking the Tobin motor apart. I think the new motor will allow me to use the Tobin unit in the blimp but it would be even better if I could get an even shorter motor. If anyone knows of an even shorter equivalent, please let me know. :)

Oh cool. I didn't think about that with the mounting. :) Thanks! I think I saw someone else did a video assist with a mini-dv camera too. Whatever works helps. :)

I'd ordered another camera before I tested the other one and it came today. The new camera is so much better. Still can't get edge to edge but it's so clear. This one was $24.95 and free shipping. Still not bad. :) Used the Rex 4 for this test. The camera has electronic controls and you can make many adjustments. I cranked down the automatic gain and got the image below. And although this is a bigger camera it's still pretty light. I'll have to come up with a way to mount it. http://www.ebay.com/itm/131047732677?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

Hi There, I made this super cheap video assist from a camera I'd bought a little while ago but thought didn't work (not sure why). The cameras are on sale for a little less than $8. They are light enough for gaff tape to hold them on to the viewfinder (at least until you find a permanent solution) and they are good enough for framing for sure. This was on a Rex 5 with 13x viewfinder. I will try it on the 10x tomorrow. I think they have some kind of automatic gain which really does help make it brighter than the Bolex viewfinder would ever be to the naked eye. But the image is also not that great under normal household light but one wouldn't be shooting under those lighting conditions I would hope. :) You can see more photos and ready about it more here: http://www.threewestcreative.com/12-dollar-bolex-video-assist/ You can get the cameras here while they last (looks like they also have the same ones for less than $7 too if you look at their inventory) : http://www.ebay.com/itm/291002399506 I have a 1k Bambino with diffusion in front going on there so the edges of the video view can be seen. It doesn't zoom in enough to be edge to edge though. The lens is 3.5-8mm. I'm not sure how this will look once in a real world situation where you'll have the lens stopped down for the best exposure. I'm sure I'll find out soon enough. Cheers!

I still haven't tried to get my rex 5 in this thing. But it looks like it's really for the cameras without the 400' magazine port which makes the camera 1/2" taller. I went ahead and bought a rex 4 today. So I think I will mount the Rex 4 in there with the Tobin motor to the plate that's there. I'll remove that side plate and the motor that came with it and it will all fit nicely. That way I can always have the Rex 4 in there and use it for all the sound shots and use the Rex 5 for any silent scenes. I also recall the listing for this blimp saying the rubber seal fell apart on this thing so now I think the reason there is any hum at all is because the seal is missing. I will try to fashion one myself.

http://www.threewestcreative.com/filmmaking/bolex-blimp/ Sorry, I misunderstood the option to hide this video from vimeo. I don't want it showing up with my other films. So it looks like if I use that option you can't view it on vimeo.com but you can if I embed it somewhere so I made a blog post about the blimp and you can watch the video there. Cheers!

Hi There, Nice video Nicholas! I'd lean towards "no" on the rental. Locally maybe but not otherwise. Here is the video finally. http://vimeo.com/81908440 In the video I have the motor running with the top on and then I pull the top off so you can hear how loud it is without the top. Then I run it with the top on. My camera was less than a foot away from this thing. It's really hard to show how this thing really sounds in real life. It's funny the only thing I can really compare the volume of the naked motor to is the motor on my vintage Rain Lamp which uses a small pool pump. And if you don't know the wonders of a Rain Lamp, you poor poor thing. :) The motor the blimp came with would definitely need to be cut out in post if used outside a blimp but covered inside the blimp, its more like a low hum and I don't think it would be picked up at all with a directional mic but would be picked up by a lav although probably wouldn't be too noticeable with good sound design. I also add a low level hum to my films anyway. With the current motor, it vibrates more on a tripod sitting on carpet and the hum is louder. But I think if I can get my camera in this with the Tobin or MST motors it will be silent. The Tobin motor is definitely quieter than the motor this thing came with. It's just a matter of if it will fit.

Hi Nicholas! I will definitely do that. It's bed time for me but I just had to at least plug this thing in to see if the motor that's in it works. It does! Even more amazing is when I put the top on it, the noise went away like magic. I have to post a video of it. The motor that's in it is pretty quiet as well but looks like it's definitely only for the h-16. But the whole assembly inside comes out easily and my Rex5 fits in there. But I have to do more testing with the height and everything for the viewfinder hole. This was prefect timing. I'm planning to shoot a little crime/film noir short and really wanted at least a few lines of synced dialogue. And I almost passed this thing up; paid $200 with free shipping. :)

The underwater housing sounds great too. :) I haven't had time to really check it out (had to come home for work just to log back in and continue working). But there are two port hole like openings on it. I believe one of these is to allow you to look in the viewfinder (photo #4) and the other to see the footage counter I think. I'll post updates when I get a chance to play with it. Hopefully later tonight or tomorrow.

I just got a Bolex H-16 Blimp in the mail today. I bought it on Ebay. The seller really didn't do this thing justice. WOW! I can't wait to test it and see if I can get my Rex5 in there or if I can swap out the motor it came with for the Tobin sync I have. It's roomy in there and everything can be unbolted out if need be. Worse case, I can use it as is with a regular H-16. Anyone familiar with these? It was made by some engineering company called Sonex. These photos make it look small but it's pretty huge... I have to put this on one of my big beast/crane tripods.

I'm waiting for the 16mm version. I'm ok with scanning some projects on my own at lower resolutions. It's not like you can't have them re-scanned by a lab at a later date at a higher resolution if needed. :) I'm all excited at the possibility of shooting on film for those timed pro-digital film competitions I use for practice and slamming my film down at turn in time having shot it on film. <insert diabolical laugh here> Ok so that's not the only reason I want it but that would be great anyway. :)

Oh ok. Thanks. I was trying last night but didn't get an image but I think it's because it's a pinhole lens. It's just a white dot in the center and I can't see what I'm focusing on even when I'm not trying to hold it up to the viewfinder. I suspect I don't know how to use a pinhole lens. :D I've been in the "non-removable" lens world since I started making films so I'm getting a crash course in lenses since I bought my Bolex some weeks ago. I'll play around with this some more and order a non-pinhole 8mm for this instead and see if that works. I'll see about getting an adapter made of some sort. Thanks.

How do you keep the camera on the view finder? Do you have to remove any part of the view finder? I just got a little mintron camera in the mail today (see Photos) and I'm trying to figure out how to hook it up as a video assist. I'm not sure if I need a new lens. It came with a 4mm apc tv video drive pinhole lens. Seems like if I removed the eye piece, I could slide the lens in. But I'm sensing I need another lens.

Well now, I'm about to resell the thing. I just bought that last Tobin Crystal Sync motor those duall folks had left. :)

I got my lenses in the mail today. They look brand new and operate so smoothly. I'm pretty happy about my decision now. Now it's time to make a movie. :)

Thanks! I have no skills in that. I was thinking such a magical plug already existed (wishful thinking) but I guess I need to start learning. :) You make it sound so easy. So I'll try to make the cable myself.