Troy m

I'm about to shoot a short film and have a question about focusing the lens of my bolex cam. Should I eyeball it? Or do I use a tape measure from the lens to the subject and then calculate that and adjust the focus ring by what the tape says? I want to be as accurate as possible. The lens is 12.5mm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPgZVTFzG3I --This's the link to a short 16mm film I did back in 2005, shot on bolex. I think it turned out pretty good, despite the choppy editing and a few -out-of-focus shots. Let me know what you think :)

Can bolex be converted to super 16? If so, which models? Also, can bolexes be outfitted for crystal sync/ electric motor? Just curious, thanks.

Tyler, thanks for the reply.yeah, I've heard reversal is grainy, plus the film had sat around for a while too. The color neg I shot on years ago looks spectacular, like a real movie. I get what you're saying about the gain on hv20. To be honest, I don't know what menu I have to get on to do everything manual. I know about cinemode and such, I just don't know where I go to get complete control. I guess that's why in Hollywood they have so many camera people doing different things, because manual makes everything turn out much better. A lot to learn.

Hello. I have been making short movies all my life. Went to Pittsburgh filmmakers and shot a couple 3 min long films in 16mm. In 2007 I bought a canon hv20. It's a hdv camcorder that takes the old, small tapes. Anyway, here's my thoughts. The 16mm film I did (the one that turned out well and not grossly overexposed) looked phenomenal to my eyes. I''d/I've never done anything else that looked that good. It was done on Kodak 16mm color neg 200t. I used a bolex from school with ordinary, non zoom lenses. So, ff to 2007. When I took a few videos with hv20, I was floored by the quality. I compared it to the 16mm film I did. The 16mm still looked better, and handled colors better. However, with the hv20, after tinkering with it a while , I've gotten COMPLETELY mixed results. I've learned that if you're shooting on video, everything has to be PERFECT to get the same quality every time. It's almost as if the stars have to be right to remain consistent. I mean, I have lit it well and it looks like crap, and I've lit it poorly and it looks great. Vice-versa. I just got back some 16mm b and w reversal I shot with a bolex. Looks good. however, after comparing it to a few of my "good days" footage with the hv20 (b&w in post), the hv20 clearly stands out. So now I'm shaking my head, confused more than ever. The HDV tapes are exceedingly cheaper than film and do produce excellent image quality... if everything is done absolutely perfect every time. How do I do this? I just don't know what I'm doing wrong to get some things looks great and some things that look like a 1980s videocam.

Hello, below is a link to a lens. It's d mount, not c, which is what my bolex 16mm reflex is. My questions are, what adapter would I need, and would the lens even work? http://www.ebay.com/itm/Rare-Kern-Paillard-SWITAR-12-5mm-f-1-5-D-Mount-Lens-For-Bolex-or-Pentax-Q-Nice-/391064522748?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5b0d430ffc

I found a super cheap switar lens on eBay. It's a 16mm lens. Below is a link. My question is.... Would this be relatively a "normal" lens for a bolex? I would rather get a ten mm, but don't want to pay 200.00+ for one. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kern-Paillard-Switar-AR-f1-8-16mm-C-Mount-Camera-Lens-No-Reserve-/371264300473?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item567113a5b9

Here are two pics of my camera. I tried putting more but it kept saying the files too large. Let me know if there are any certain "angles" of the camera that might be more helpful. Also, what lens is considered normal and would work well with this bolex? It says "H16 Reflex" on this camera.

It says h16 on the camera. What would you recommend doing? I did run a roll of 16mm film, but have to get it processed and telecine do though.

Hello, I recently bought a bolex 16mm film camera. Runs well. However, everything in the viewfinder is very very dark, even with quite a bit of light and aperture fully open. Is there anyway to fix this? Also, I got a 25mm to 100mm zoom lens for it. Almost impossible to focus because viewfinders so dark. Besides that, even when zoomed out all the way, things appear closer than they should. I have to stand at the other end of the room just to get a medium cu shot. Any ideas? Thanks.