Julian Fletcher

many thanks for the replies - I am going for 10 bit log dpx.

Hi, I am having Vision 3 50D Super 16 scanned at 2k and will get the file as an image sequence. I am using a PC with Sony Vegas Movie Studio (yes, not ideal but all that funds are allowing currently - NB this is Sony Vegas light version not the full one). Despite having latest Quicktime PRO installed, Vegas cannot read Pro Res files, so the only option is an image sequence. My options are: 1) Get a Pro Res 422HQ or 4444 from the lab, and use Quicktime to make the TIFF images for Vegas to see as an image sequence. 2) Get TIFF files from the lab. 3) Get DPX files from the lab, but I'll need to update to Vegas PRO for that (upgrade cost 300 dollars). Bearing in mind that the final output is Blu Ray for home viewing in HD, and never cinema distribution - what's my best bet? My goal is obviously resolution and sharpness of the images. Clearly unless I completely switch software, I am stuck with image sequences - the question is how best to acquire them. Apart from usability on future projects, will I gain much in picture quality with the DPX files vs the TIFF ones? Is it worth the extra outlay in the software needed? (NB - I think storage wise I am ok). Should I just stick with 422 and let Quicktime make the TIFF files? Your thoughts would be much appreciated, Best Regards Julian

Hi All I am trying to source a viewfinder magnifier similar to a Nikon DG22 eyepiece magnifier, to fit to the end of the bolex's viewfinder screw thread. Has anyone done anything similar? Would you know what the exact size is of the bolex screw thread? Thanks Julian

sounds to me like the guy waits until he has accumulated like 100 or so super 8 cartridges to get processed from all of his customers, and then sends them off to a third party in bulk, for a discounted rate - hence the long wait.

sounds to me like the guy waits until he has like 100 cartridges to get processed from all of his customers, and then sends them off to a third party in bulk, for a discounted rate

Hi, Please could you help me? I am wanting to know if its possible to effectively use Nikon 35mm SLR lenses on an Aaton 35mm camera? If so, which one and how? I have Zeiss Nikon fit lenses as well as plenty of Nikon primes, so am wanting to explore this option. (PS - I realise the limitations of SLR lenses on such cameras - especially with the short focusing). Any help is greatly appreciated. Best Regards Julian

I found out that the company uses a "2k Phoenix Frame Scanner". The 140 USD was for 400ft of Super 16, not 140ft. I am still confused as I agree that the end product is an HD scan, not a 2k scan.

That is exactly what I thought. I asked if they could not crop it and just give me the uncropped file, but apparently its not possible to change their workflow and the output can only be 1080p. I am assuming that they are using some sort of "autocropping" system. Unsure as to what scanner they are using. The costs are very good value, so I wonder whether its worth going for it anyway? Looking at approx. 140 USD for 400ft of super 16, based in UK.

Hi All, I have a question re 2k scanning of Super 16mm. I have made an enquiry to a scanning company who claim to perform a 2k scan on Super 16mm, but can only output 1080p from it in Apple Pro Res 4444. They said that the 2k scan that they do includes the full overscan area which sees beyond the edge of the footage itself such as the edge of the film and the sprocket holes (i.e. the stuff you don't need), and then the file is not down converted, but cropped to essentially what is a 1080p output. I know that the actual difference between 2k and 1080p is quite small, but something is telling me that this cannot be right, and is actually an HD scan not a 2k scan of the footage. I am going to a lot of trouble with V3 50d and high quality zeiss lenses, and want the best scan. Please can you share your point of view? Thanks Julian

That's a huge help - MANY THANKS indeed !! I can do a visual check on the design of the viewfinder tube now. Many thanks.

Hi All, Please can you help me clear up something that is confusing me, based on what I've read online. The lens in question is the Pan Cinor 17-85 f2. This is the one with the bolt on viewfinder that is attached to the side, and features a focusing aid in the viewfinder. My questions a) How many versions of this lens have there been? b) Which ones feature a coincident image focusing aid, and which ones feature a split image? I did not realise that some feature one type, and some feature another. Is this true? How do you tell the difference? I believe that there is also a 17-85 f3.8,which has no focusing aid in its viewfinder at all. Your help would be much appreciated!! Cheers Julian

Hi, I want to shoot some indoor scenes of my family over Christmas - super 16mm using Kodak Vision 3 500t and Eterna Vivid 500t. My viewfinder is dim as it is, and I don't want to shoot wide open due to dim light. SO - I am thinking of omitting the 85 filter needed for tungsten balanced film. I assume I can do any colour correction afterwards - is this a good idea? Any watchouts ? Many Thanks Julian

Hi, I know that the Bolex sub-forum may be the best place for this, but there does not seem to be much activity there at the moment, and I am on the point of throwing the towel in on 16mm.........so I am counting on you guys to help me and show me the light!! A few years ago I invested in a nearly new Bolex factory made Super 16 H16. To be honest, I find it an incredible pain in the ar*e to use. I mean seriously painful, which frustrates myself and my family. What I know is hampering me - a) I know I should be using Switar RX lenses, but the cost of these on UK ebay is extreme to say the least, for what looks like something you would class as dusty old junk really. Very old rusty examples going for hundreds of pounds. Sorry, just can't bring myself to invest. So I've been using Nikon and Zeiss 35mm SLR lenses. I use longer than 50mm so I am free of the prism effect, and normally around f8, but obviously often means I have to stand miles back from my subject and focusing is a very delicate affair. b) Still using 100ft loads, as cannot locate a motor for my 400ft magazine. To be honest, this is a minor issue. BUT My main problem - Is around the focusing and viewfinder. I mean, its seriously dark and really hard to see whats going on. I have to focus with the lens wide open by eye (no focusing aid like I'm used to on my Nikon SLR cameras), and then once stopped down and/or a filter attached (say an ND) - its almost impossible (no it IS impossible) to see out of, and use. Every shot has to be composed first, and locked off on tripod - before stopping down etc, which then means the viewfinder image is so so dark all I can shoot is what I have pre-composed. Forget panning, and forget using it handheld following the kids around etc. I am getting OK results, but the process and blood, sweat and tears with much swearing and frustration - which is all starting to feel just too much. So, this is a real plea for help * Am I doing something fundamentally wrong here? * I got the Bolex from a very respected UK Bolex expert and I am sure he would have not sold me a dud. So I don't think the camera is the problem. * Is using the 35mm lenses with a Nikon to C mount adaptor the main issue here? (I doubt it as the viewfinder is dark anyway). It just seems amazing to me for such a popular camera, the effort and pain seems massive. Thoughts? Am thinking about ditching it for a used SR2 or SR3. Will I experience the same grief? Cheers Julian

Hi All, Please can you help me with a question. I mainly shoot 16mm Kodak vision 3 50d for home movies of the family and on vacation. I purchase say 6 x 100ft reels for my Bolex, and store them in the freezer at home up until I leave for vacation. They warm to room temp over the stay, but I will invariably have 2 or 3 reels leftover, which I then put back in the freezer when home for say 3 months until the next vacation. Is this OK to do? Will it have an adverse effect on the film itself? Your help would be much appreciated!!! Cheers Julian

Hi All, I have a factory made Super 16 spring-wound SBM, and want to add a 400ft magazine to it. I will probably end up buying one from ebay I guess, primarily to save on cost. I have several questions though a) Do I need a specific type for it to be Super 16 compatible, or are they all the same? b) what accessories / additional items do I need? c) I saw an EM motor attachment for sale - would this help? Is it an advisable item to fit when adding the 400ft magazine? Your help would be much appreciated. Cheers Julian

Hi - thanks for the reply. the worst affected were 200t and 500t. I guess that my real question is does 16mm film break down faster or is more susceptible to ageing and temperature fluctuations than 35mm stills film? Thanks

Hi All I shoot stills and keep my 35mm film stock either in the fridge or freezer. I dabble in 16mm film making as well. I have a selection of Kodak Vision 3 mainly 500t, 250d and 50d. I am keeping this in my fridge with the rest of the film. I have a couple of questions a) a few years ago, unfortunately my 16mm footage was refridgerated and then kept at room temperature for a couple of years, and then I used the film - and when exposed, it was much more grainy than expected. Could this had been a result of the cold/warm/ageing effect, and then not using the film for a couple of years? b) I didn't get the same issue with my 35mm still film stock - if it gets warmed and then refridgerated again, and even when used a little time later - I didn't get the same issue. Is 16mm motion picture film stock much more fragile in this respect? Cheers Julian

Hi All Can anyone please help me to understand where I can now buy fresh Vision 3 16mm film stock, and also processing and telecine in the UK? The possibilities seem to be evaporating fast here in the UK!! I used to buy my stock at Stanley Productions (they have packed up and now the new incarnation of this company no longer stocks film), and I cant seem to find any processing labs at all! Can anyone please help? Thanks Julian

Hi All Please can you help me? With the closure of Stanley Productions, Technicolour processing and a lot of other companies, after lots of hard searching on the net - I can no longer find anywhere to purchase 16mm Vision 3 stock in the UK? Yes, widescreen centre have some - but is mainly old Vision 2 at quite high prices. Can anyone help me please? Thanks Julian

Hi Heikki Thanks for the responses and the advice, and also the time you have taken to do that - its much appreciated. I would say that currently I am getting no where near any of these results. I am struggling with absolute sharpness and clarity I would say. I will try and get some footage up in next week or so - (I work abroad during the week, so limited time). I got my footage processed at Technicolour in UK, and scanned at 2k at Process Blue in USA. Whether the reel was opened up at customs, or whether Technicolour did not clean it properly - I have an amazing amount of white spots and crud all over it - its very unclean. I have it as tiff files and will do some work on it in my Sony Vegas program, and then I will post it. * I would say that I am getting no where near your work with the Arri and the Zeiss Super Speeds. I am using decent Zeiss glass though, and apart from the real top end cine lenses, I don't think that the super speed class is infinetly better than their top end SLR lens glass. Maybe your scan was awesome - but then again, I got a 2k scan. * Super 16mm summer - a benchmark film, I often look at it. I know that the owner of that footage works in a post house, and it was scanned with an Arriscan and has probably had a lot of work done on it as well - but then again, it looks good. Let me get round to posting some footage and you can judge for yourself !!! Cheers.

Hi Heikki Does this theory apply to ALL bolex? I have one of the latest ones SBM model, which is based on the REX5 I believe. I expect that the answer is yes!

Hi everybody - thanks for your responses and also the interesting discussions. Will mentioned that the key issue is really the Bolex camera. When I bought it I did not know much about cine (still the case really), but as I come from the 35mm SLR film world where the conventional wisdom is that its the glass that matters (I use an old Canon EOS 500 film SLR with Contax Zeiss lenses), I applied the same principle. Will's advice is that its more 70% camera, 30% glass - as his great footage on a 35mm Arri and the 16mm SR2 shows - I get nothing like that with the Bolex. I know that the Bolex has some sort of strange prism, which means I need to meter the scene differently and apply a compensation factor (which is all explained in the Bolex manual), but I did not know why this would affect the actual picture quality - i.e, sharpness primarily. Will's advice has made me think about saving up for an SR2/3, but just for my own knowledge, can you all tell me what the difference in picture quality would be if I used say a Nikon 50mm SLR prime lens designed for my Nikon 35mm SLR camera with the appropriate adaptors on the Bolex and on an SR2, and why would I get a difference if there was one? I know that the image is steadier on the Arri, but would there be any differences in sharpness and clarity of the picture? I find my Bolex steady enough despite the fact it has no pin registration, but from what I understand from Will, the actual picture would be a lot better with the SR2. Just intrigued as to why the Bolex might degrade the results? Would be grateful if anyone could confirm why this might be. Cheers.

Hi Will Thanks for the reply. I think that maybe I am a little concerned that we are essentially getting into a discussion about what is the best c mount. For me, that is not really the question, or was not my intention anyway. Yes, the bolex will take C mount but with adaptors (and less presume that they will work OK for the moment), the choice is more and it will take a Bolex bayonet, Arri bayonet or PL, and also many SLR models. My key question is (ease of focusing aside), will my image quality be much better using a lens that has been especially made for super 16mm (like those I mentioned Angieneux, Zeiss etc)? Will I gain much, as my thinking is that I am using a couple of very good 35mm SLR lenses and obviously with the crop factor I am also using the centre part of the lens glass - which is mean't to be the highest quality area anyway? What do you think? I believe that I saw some of your great work on Vimeo etc - and you at one time did use a super 16mm camera with a Nikon 17-35 2.8 zoom? As you did more stuff, and moved to dedicated cine lenses - did the quality improve, I mean the 17-35 is still a great lens? If there is something specific to the Bolex that I should now - please do tell, but maybe imagine this scenario for any camera - say if I used an Arri SR2 and I had the choice of a really high quality 35mm prime with an adaptor, or a used super 16mm zeiss or angenieux zoom? I see a lot of old movies done in super 16mm, even more recently Michael Palin's Around The World series which was done with an Aaton LTR super 16mm - and my results (even with very high quality 35mm lenses, 2k scanning and very careful focusing) are nothing like what was achieved with that program - and many others!! Your experience and advice would be much appreciated. Is there an issue with this "35mm strategy"? Cheers.

Hi Everybody, Please can I ask the forum for some help? I have an almost new Bolex SBM Super 16 camera and am wanting to know what lens I should use for the sharpest and best possible results? I know that sharpness is a big topic and a lot also comes down to accurate focusing, but I have an interesting question. Currently I am using the Bolex with 35mm SLR lenses - using Nikon / Contax to C Mount adaptors. The two best lenses I use are a) Zeiss ZF 35 f2 Nikon fit lens, b) Zeiss 50 1.7 Contax fit lens. While of course there are much greater lenses out there, these are highly rated prime lenses to be honest in the 35mm SLR world. They give good results on the Bolex. Does anyone have any experience in using 35mm lenses on Super 16 - any lenses to be recommended here apart from the usual Nikon stuff. Will I gain much in image quality and sharpness by purchasing a lens especially made for Super 16mm - e.g. one of the Zeiss primes PL mount, or one of the older super 16mm Angenieux zooms that are on ebay, vs the two zeiss lenses? I primarily shoot on Vision 3 50D and have had some of my footage scanned at 2k at Process Blue. Cheers Julian