Jeff Tanner

I'll throw in my $.02

There is no such thing as "you must..." in the film industry. Except of course when it comes to the safety of cast and crew. Being a cinematographer is an art and you use the tools at your disposal to achieve the look you're after. If you want blown out whites, you certainly don't expose for them. If you want deep blacks, you don't expose for them either. In short, there really are no rules.

You have to know what you're after. I know that this may seem like an answer without a real answer but I hope that it helps in some way.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

Rifa lights are fantastic. But just like every other lighting instrument ever invented, it has it's place. The Rifa will not be a revolutionary lighting tool for you but they are excellent for producing a quick, soft, tungsten light. My favorite feature is the ability to change out the lamp socket for different types of bulbs (standard two pin FEL lamps, or medium base, or candelabra, plus others). I've been very happy with ours.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

My thoughts and prayers go out to John's family. He was a very knowledgeable man and loved sharing his knowledge with all of us and he did it in such a polite and kind hearted way. He will be sorely missed.

Respectfully,

Jeff

Thanks for the information. I'll get some units in and set up a day for testing.

Jeff

I'm involved in a tv series that will be shot on a stage for about 5 weeks. We're looking for a good, reliable video transmitter system that we can use to send the video assist signal out to numerous monitors in other parts of the building and outside to a production trailer. Are there any manufacturers or models that would be recommended for this application? Any to stay away from? Thanks in advance.

Jeff Tanner

John,

You will continue to be in my thoughts and prayers. As a native (and longtime resident) of Brockport, NY I hope that the end of winter and beginning of spring lifted your spirits a bit. I know that spring was always a welcome sight when I lived up there.

There are a lot of people spread all over this planet wishing you a full and speedy recovery, this forum is a small testament to that. Take care of yourself and get well soon.

Sincerely,

Jeff Tanner

I've been under the impression for many years that this was a forum for discussing cinematography. Please gentlemen, let's no go down the road of personal insults...there is nothing to gain by insulting one another on a "professional" forum.

Now back to the topic at hand. Comparing screen grabs from one movie to another or one commercial to another or one student film to another does absolutely nothing in the way of comparing camera systems or mediums. The only way, in my view, to compare is to perform extensive side by side testing photographing the same subject under the same conditions. I can find hundreds of thousands of examples on either side of the "which format looks better" argument on 35mm, super 16mm, 16mm, HD, Digibeta, BetaSP, mini DV, etc. Picking a good looking shot with a saturated blue sky, or overall desaturated image, or a sunset over the Pacific has no relevance in a discussion about technical specifications...unless you have the same shot captured and color corrected in similar fashions on each format.

What I consider the best looking shot ever captured on a camera will not be the same one that you would pick. This seems pretty basic to me.

Please, keep on topic. It makes for a much more informative forum.

Respectfully,

Jeff

David,

I'm glad that you had the opportunity to see the RED ONE. I had a feeling that you would be impressed. As I mentioned in another post, I went to NAB for one purpose...to see the RED camera and get some real information for myself instead of reading opinions about it. I fully expected to walk out of the booth knowing that the RED was a good start to a good idea but wasn't quite ready for high-end production work. I must admit that I was wrong. The footage in the demo was a great "real world" test and showed that the technology works. I would like a serious testing session with their lenses however. I'm not suggesting that they are inferior but I do want to see an in depth test of their performance versus other cine lenses.

As I've said before, this camera will change the way that my company works and I'm excited about the future of digital aquisition.

Respectfully,

Jeff

Not to mention if you want to shoot for 35mm contact-printing without going through any laser recording of digital files to 35mm interneg.

 

David, I completely understand where you're coming from. However, my opinion is based on what I do...commercials. To undergo the process of printing for theatrical release is something that I'm not familiar with (yet). For my work, this is an incredible accomplishment and I firmly believe that even someone like yourself who shoots features will be impressed by what this camera offers. No negative purchase (what will that save production on even the tightest of shooting ratios?), no processing. I wish that RED would send you a camera to test since you are so active on this site as well as cinematography.net. Even though I don't know you personally, I really believe that you would love the features and quality of this camera since you are a true student and lover of cinema.

 

Seriously, the final test will come when the RED camera is shot badly, not shot well, because everyone can make mistakes sometimes. People need to see how the image craps out, not just how it looks when well-photographed, exposed perfectly, minimally color-corrected, etc. It needs to be pushed to the breaking point because at some point, all formats, film and digital, are pushed to the point of failure.

 

But this completely eliminates MOST of the problems I see in the theater. Dirty gates. With the 4K data files I think that anyone who calls themselves a cinematographer will be able to operate well within this camera's limitations and I'm not sure what the limitations are yet.

 

Plus someone's going to have to take a feature film's worth of RED 4K data, maybe some 50 hours worth, and take it all the way through post to a film-out, just to get that workflow smoothed out.

 

Again, I agree but from my perspective the likelyhood of success seems nearly certain.

 

All demos look gorgeous generally. I always take them with a grain of salt, even though it's nice to know how much quality can be obtained.

I await your personal testing. I'm eager to know what someone of your stature thinks. All that I can say is that this camera will render 35mm obsolete for my commercial/tv programming/documentary work.

Respectfully,

Jeff

This camera is fantastic. There is no argument to be made about it's existence, it's capabilities, it's technology, or it's price.

I've seen Peter Jackson's film that was shot with two RED camera's and it was spectacular. Film has a special place in my heart and always will but after putting my hands on the RED and talking to the people who built it (who answered every question that I had...in great detail) and seeing the demo film shot with it, there is no question that this camera is the real deal.

If you can honestly say that the RED camera does not meet your specifications after viewing the demo and playing with the camera yourself, then don't buy one but stop all of this unfounded speculation on it's shortcomings or problems that you percieve. I honestly believe that there is little reason to shoot 35mm film anymore and no reason whatsoever to shoot 16mm or super 16mm. I am stunned by what I saw at NAB today. So stunned that I've ordered a RED camera for our company.

I am by no means as technologically saavy as some of you are but I judge by what I can see and this camera meets every criteria for me.

Respectfully,

JT

John,

Keep your spirits up. I firmly believe that a positive mental approach can do wonders for the body. You will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Get plenty of rest and here's wishing you a speedy recovery!

Sincerely,

Jeff Tanner

Although it's been a few years, I have shot on the strip in Vegas at night. My best results were WIDE OPEN and I still wish that I could have used super speed lenses. From the air, you will want to be wide open for sure...especially in 16mm. It's easy to "print down" but if you try to push 16mm it will fall apart quickly. Seeing the neon will be a no brainer but you want to see the buildings themselves too so get as much information as possible on the negative.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

It's pretty simple in this case...

Resistance = Heat

Either in the stinger or the ballast power cable there is a bad/old/corroded connection. Snip off the burnt ends and replace the connector with a new one. It will be as good as new.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

I think its the only 16mm & 35mm lab in the area.

Filmworkers Club in Dallas also has their own lab and transfer to SD and HD via Spirit. Check them out.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

My SRII has a 172.8 shutter angle because of its conversion to super 16. The original mirror/shutter was a 180 degree shutter and with the wider gate of super 16 the mirror would not clear the gate long enough for a frame to be exposed properly. That is one reason for a 172.8 degree shutter.

Like Dominic said, the difference in motion blur will not be noticable.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

The Matrix was shot on 35mm film not on a Varicam. The fight sequences were shot primarily in front of a green screen and a special rig of still cameras was used to "freeze time". Each of the still photographs were stitched together in post-production to produce a camera move while the action remained "frozen". Backgrounds and virtual sets were created in post production.

The Varicam can record at frame rates ranging from 4fps to 60fps.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

4K pars or fresnels? 250 sounds a bit thick for a room the size of the one you describe especially if you're talking about 4K fresnels. But with a fast stock it might be okay. If you have 4K pars you should have enough punch for 250. When you say "sunlight" I'm assuming that you want a soft ambient light since your putting diffusion frames in front of the lights so pars will suit your needs better for this situation IMHO.

If you have access to larger units...get them.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner

Yes it can be safely done. I mount our SRII to an upside down sachtler 18 plus quite regularly on the end of a 6 foot jib arm. I attach the quick release plate to the threaded handle so that I can place the camera fractions of an inch off the floor/table/whatever.

Jeff

I disagree with the previous posts. Aquisition is the most important step in production. Why would the television that a consumer uses to view this project matter in choosing the format? NTSC is the standard in the U.S. but commercials, tv movies, music videos, documentaries, etc. all shoot on film or HD. Just because the final dubs will be handed out on DVD doesn't mean that shooting on film or HD is a waste, in fact its quite the opposite. Everything that you do to your footage after aquisition degrades the image and it will never look that good again so why not start off with the best format possible?

If the fact that John Q. Public is watching a 1985 television was the basis for choosing a format, there would be no film or HD. We would all be shooting our projects on S-VHS since it has as many lines of resolution as his televison.

My advice is to always fight for the absolute best format that can be afforded. It does make a difference...a noticable difference.

Respectfully,

Jeff

I love xenons. For sharp shafts of light with a lot of punch, nothing beats them. Several years ago I was involved in lighting 4 blocks of Beale Street in Memphis for a live New Year's Eve broadcast (It was an enormous set up). I think that we had 6 xenons (a pair of 2k's, 4k's, 7k's) in addition to dozens of other large tunsten and HMI sources. We used the 4K's to hit a 36" mirror ball that was hanging over the street and it looked awesome. Spinning specular light was all over downtown Memphis. I wish that I had some photos of it.

As for the mirror, you are correct. Use a mirror when the light is tilted to extreme angles and be concious of the mirror's distance from the unit. Closer is better with xenons. I'm sure that you know how hot the beam can get at certain distances from the light. I witnessed an electricians baseball cap start to smoulder while the tip of his head was in the beam of light. It was funny...after everyone realized that he wasn't injured.

Changing xenon bulbs is a very hazardous job. Be sure whoever is changing the bulbs is wearing a face shield and heavy duty gloves. The bulbs can explode violently.

Respectfully,

Jeff

There are 10 different frame line options in the varicam settings. There are no "scope" lines. 16x9 is the widest screen available (unless there have been upgrades made since we purchased our camera).

You are correct about the running time of the tapes. The length printed on the box is not relevant when using the varicam.

As for the low light situation...This is a matter of taste. The varicam can produce great images in low light if you are familiar with all of the settings the camera makes available. Lot's of practice along with trial and error are the keys to finding the right combination of settings.

Respectfully,

Jeff

The varicam builds up a lot of heat...especially when shooting at frame rates below 24fps. Since I live in the southern U.S. where temperatures in the summer can stay above 90 degrees F (even through the nights!) I have found a few "gremlins" that appear on occasion. Once I had a blue line similar to what you describe. I powered the camera down and took it indoors for a few minutes and when I turned it back on, the line was gone.

It was suggested to me (from a panasonic technician) that when shooting in extremely hot conditions (especially when undercranking) we should place a cold pack on the top vents of the camera (obviously the type that does not have condensation dripping off. Something like runners wear around their necks). As weird as this sounds...it works. No problems since, even at 6fps in the Mississppi Delta with 95+ degree temperatures.

With all of that said, if you were experiencing this problem in a mild climate there is another underlying problem that I can't really help you with.

I hope this helps.

Jeff

Barry,

Data Flashes would suit your needs perfectly. Try any special events lighting company that specializes in live rock-n-roll shows. Data Flashes are very cheap to rent (I get them for $20 each) and they can be sequenced together plus they have the ability to change the flash duration (up to 2 seconds I believe). They also are great for a poor man's lightning gag.

Regards,

Jeff

I just got hired to shoot a movie in Baton Rouge, Louisiana called "Texas Lullaby" (the second film in a row for me set in Texas -- but shot in a bordering state, probably because of the tax breaks in those states...)

 

The prep will be rather short and accellerated, so I may be too busy to post much soon -- I think I leave in the middle of next week. It will be a challenge to put together a Louisiana crew, camera package, scout, etc. so quickly.

David,

Most of the crew that I use on larger budget commercial shoots are from Louisiana (New Orleans and Baton Rouge). I would be happy to pass along the names of my Gaffer, Key Grip, etc. They all have extensive feature experience and really good resumes. Contact me off list and I'll be happy to help with your crew/equipment search.

Regards,

Jeff Tanner

The filter wheel's "A" position is a cross or star filter.

Respectfully,

Jeff Tanner