Brian Drysdale

High Definition and 24p Cinematography by Paul Wheeler is a good starting off point for getting an overview. He doesn't go into any depth about creating your own "look" inside the paint menus, but you can go into a rental house with the book and use it to find your way around the F900 menus. The book gives his personal menu settings. Perhaps it could do with updating because of new recording formats like HDCAM SR and hard drives. I haven't read it, but you could get the "Goodman Guide to the Varicam", if that's the camera you use the most. It's not cheap at around $125, (although I think you can get it cheaper).

I don't think this is an issue, but I suggest you check this with the guys at Band Pro in LA, who are usually helpful in giving information. My understanding is that it should playback at 24p in Europe without you doing anything, it'll just run that very tiny fraction faster. They show 24 fps feature films in europe at 25fps in case you're concerned. I suspect the guys in Europe don't realize that almost all 24p productions in the US are shot at 23.976p. They're just told that the production is 24p. It would become a problem if you're going to be doing post production there and you're sending double system sound tape with the HDCAM. You would have to talk through whole workflow.

I'm not too sure why you'd want to do this. 23.976p is the recommended frame rate for shooting HD in the US instead of 24p because of the NTSC drop frames. In Europe they shoot at 24p because they don't that problem. You won't notice the difference between 23.976p & 24p when it's projected. You can convert to all the other standard frame rates from 23.976p (25p & 29.97p)

You can't used a dog leg viewfinder lens on a CP16R, they're usually a c mount lens and were used on the early CP16 cameras that didn't have a reflex viewfinder (Also Auricons). There are a number of lens you can buy. The 12mm to 120mm Angenieux was extremely common (however, you only can only to focus to 5ft) and you can find good examples. At T2.5 it's also faster than the T2.8 9.5 to 95. The Zeiss 10-100 T3, has scale marking to 5 ft but can focus down to 1 meter. It gives triangular flares as against the usual multi sided. The T3 has the T* multi coating and doesn't flare as much as the 12 to 120. I don't think the older versions of the 10mm to 100 have this coating, because they're a bit slower with their max T stop. Also the zoom control goes in the opposite direction to the Angenieux and you really need a fluid drive for move action. It's pretty compact and gives good pictures when stopped down a stop. You can get a CP mount fitted, or and adapter for the Arri B mount. The Angenieux 10 to 150 seems to have had mixed comments about it. The 9.5mm to 57mm is compact and close focusing, but like the 10 to 150 has aperture ramping. However, you really need to test these lenses before buying, because these older lenses vary so much.

What's this got to do with DigiBeta? DigiBeta is a SD format and is very mainstream!! You shoot with the format that you can afford. If you're at high school and you're interested in the industry, you learn about the other formats, then you can speak with knowledge on your side.

Being a Steadicam owner/operator I'm not denying the usefulness of video taps. However, the only time I've ever used video assist on a film documentary is when a Steadicam or other kit requires it. The budgets on documentaries are usually too tight for the extra kit, you're lucky if they're shooting on film at all. My comments were addressing the period when the CP 16 was in use on broadcast TV and if you'd have used a video tap for TV news on a CP16. The answer to that would be no, it's a higher end production tool. However, if this camera has the optics already fitted, it should be possible to fit a modern CCD camera. The video assist is now an accepted tool on productions complete with the video village. Of course, the monitor is also now a standard piece of kit on documentaries being shot on video. However, in fast moving situations it just gets in the way and is best used in controlled set ups.

The CP 16 was in mostly in use for news during the 1970s and early 1980s. Video assist was only used then on dramas and commercials, Cinema Products were promoting a production version of the camera, but it never really caught on. It was rare at that time for a 16mm camera used on documentaries, never mind news, to have a video assist fitted. Basically it's an extra cost (never mind equipment and it also slows you down) and many, if not most feature films didn't use video assist at that time. News crews didn't have anyone that needed to see a video assist output and even today news crews don't often carry monitors while shooting. Documentaries being shot on video are different. On the rare modern film documentary the director will just look down the camera viewfinder before a take, usually they don't bother once they trust the camera person.

You get the lab to make a workprint or cutting copy. You use that to edit your production on, marking any fades or dissolves on to the your edited workprint using a chinagraph pencil. You'll have to look up the symbols used, any old film editing book will have them. All the splices used cutting the workprint are tape splices, so that you can remake them and play with your timings without losing any frames. In the meantime the neg will be stored away and you then send the neg together with the edited workprint to a neg cutter who will then match your cut workprint to the neg using the edge numbers. They usually break it into A & B rolls, so that you don't have a white flash at every splice - they use a chemical neg splicer that only overlaps one frame. With A & B rolls the splice overlap is on the black spacing between the shots, so you don't see it. It's usual to send it to the neg cutters rather than do it yourself; you need some specialized pieces of equipment and a very clean room. You can't do it on a Steinbeck, but you might with a Pic Sync with the sound heads removed and a lot of careful handling. However, you do need the neg splicer.

The build quality is also higher on the DigiBeta cameras and the viewfinder is a lot better. However, pricewise, I suspect there's an element of what the market will bear. Although the old Betacam SP BVW 200s were used by the local BBC for about ten years on news (perhaps a case of grandfather's axe), but they got a lot of hard use and they got their money's worth. Could be the higher grade CCDs from the production run are used on the DVW 970.

I suspect that Sony was finding that DigiBeta was being left behind in the current fashion for shooting progressive frames. It looks like there's been a lot of crossover in the front end of the latest Sony SD cameras, so the R &D costs have been spread over 3 formats. The broadcasters have invested large sums in their DigiBeta post production suites, so the market demand will continue for a few years yet. Although, question remains how well it'll do in the reducing middle ground between the DV cameras and the HD formats. Many of the co-productions with the USA now have to be shoot HD. So Sony must aiming at drama and high end docs for the European market and lower end commercials. It could also be the case that insurance companies are happier with rushes on a tape format rather than a disk format. If it looks like downconverted HD on screen (i.e much better than DVCam) and the price of camera is competitive it should do ok.

You stand a better chance of getting into film festivals with a shorter running time. Some award winning shorts have been long (25 mins) but usually it's better if you can keep them under 15 mins. you've also got a better chance of getting some sales as fillers to TV stations.

I had a 9.5mm to 95mm as my first zoom lens and RTE (Irish TV) used them on their CP16Rs. They do focus down to 2ft 6 inches which is useful. However, these lenses are big and don't have much contrast compared to modern lenses. I changed to a 10 to 100 T3 Zeiss after a year: it made the 9.5mm to 95mm look like it had a low contrast or double fog filter in front of it. However, I shot a film in B&W using the Angenieux, it looked much sharper than when shooting colour. Last I heard Whitehouse AV still handles CP16s, you may have to fit a more modern video tap camera. These cameras were used mostly for news, so I suspect there aren't too many fitted with video assist.

You can put the dialogue on just one track, however, by putting each character in a scene onto separate tracks during the editing (although sound recordists will often split their tracks during the shooting) it allows the editor to have to have control things like overlapping dialogue, increase gaps, fade up a track etc. The sound mixer can apply different settings like sound level, low and high frequency filters, reverb to each track for best effect. If there is only one location track the editor will break down each character's dialogue onto a different track eg Dialogue #1, Dialogue #2 etc. It makes sense when you have CUs, Wide Shots and you start using sound from one shot (eg CU) over another shot (eg WS, reaction shot etc). Ideally the dialogue tracks should be recorded as clean as possible - a good sound recordist will tell you when you've got background noises or overlapping dialogue. They'll also insist on recording a atmosphere or buzz track of the location so that the editor can use this to cover gaps or variations in background sound levels in the dialogue tracks when the levels are adjusted during the dubbing mix. You also do the same for sound FX tracks and music tracks. By this process you can build up your film's sound layer by layer. It's well worth reading up on the whole process.

Nice pictures. although with such a small picture you can't tell much about the differences. The difference comes with the higher quality lenses (and range of lenses) that you can use on the high end HD cameras compared to the HDV cameras. There's also noticeable aparture ramping on the FX1's lens. Most HD productions don't use the Mini/Pro35 type adapters, which also have a slight diffusion effect from the ground glass. With the high end formats you don't have the the same compression issues (although HDCAM has a quite a lot of compression), which can create problems in post production and distribution chain.

Go to page 6 under "file for PAL version" "help needed to find some "PAL" settings" You'll find the "header" text required to convert these files to PAL versions. I used this to convert downloaded files for a short film and everyone was delighted with the final result.

I've read that Arri made some Super 16 models. I suspect you'll need to find a repair company that has experience with the 16BL. Sorry I can't help you with anywhere in LA, I think you'll have to do a bit of local research. However, you may have to look in another state for people who work on the 16BL.

You can check with them, although they may only work on the later Arri cameras. However, they may have some names that you could contact. I'm sure some of the guys based in LA assist you with other camera workshops. I notice there's a company in Australia that converts the Arri 16BL to Super 16, they might give a good price for repairs. http://www.design.arandafilm.com.au

Television is the main outlet for the most of these adverts and they'll be shot for that medium at 25 fps, the theatres are just an additional outlet. If required they can do a pitch change on the sound for the cinema versions, although I suspect they may not bother - the success of this process depending on the type of music.

You'll find light meter reviews and some prices at http://www.photographyreview.com/cat/light...LS_3115CRX.ASPX Not many new digital meters under $250, so a good condition used one would be the way to go.

True, although the bum factor can kick in on a feature film shot at 25fps playing in a 24fps cinema.

In Europe the film cameras are set at 25fps for television and video work. It's because PAL uses 25fps and it makes sense to shoot film for TV at the same frame rate. However, films for cinema release are shot at 24fps. On European TV shoot 25fps and do a standards conversion to NTSC. Cinema is always 24fps (they show these films at 25fps on European TV). You can set the film camera shutter angle to remove HMI flicker at 24fps/50Hz. In practise 25fps is extremely handy because it does prevent flickering from fluorescent lights and if you're filming a television. Short films are often shot at 25fps because post production in Europe is more geared for 25fps because of the TV industry. Sometimes in the USA they shoot film at 30fps for TV, although it's mostly at 24fps.

Very often analogue light meters have a rotating calculator in which you set the film speed and by setting the calculator you can read off the f stop for each shutter speed. With the Sekonic L-398M you can get disks that you insert into the meter that allow you to read off the f stop directly. The digital meters, once you've set the film speed and shutter speed, usually read out in f stops. These are extremely easy to use.

I'd get your Arri 16BL to a workshop, they shouldn't that loud. These cameras were used for shooting numerous TV dramas in the 1970s and should be relatively quiet (around 31dbA). This should only be a problem when the camera is close to the subject, when a barney or even a blanket will be needed. It could be the camera movement or some other part is touching the outer casing, since everything inside is suspended on rubber mounts.

For doing serious lighting work you really need an incident light meter, unfortunately many of them now have flash metering which increases the price. Most of the cheaper meters take only reflected readings, which are fiddly to use when adjusting lighting, because you'd need use a 18% grey card for accurate readings. An incident meter is much easier when tweeking lights. A used meter will enable your money go a lot further. A good basic meter for film work would be a Sekonic L-398M Studio Deluxe II, it's a needle job, but they've been around for years, doesn't need batteries and you should be able to buy a used one. I've got a couple of Minolta Autometer III meters, which they don't make anymore, but again you should be able to buy used. One of mine is covered in gaffer tape, but still gives accurate readings. One of cheapest new incident meters seem to be Sekonic L-208, but it would depend if you regard its price as cheap. Check out the local photographic shops for used meters and check them against a known meter before buying. The analog meters may need to have their needles zeroed before they'll give an accurate reading.

The multi camera function is found on the full Avid programs. Avid Free DV does ofter various methods of displaying the shots in the bin/bins, including storyboard. With these you really need to be thinking like a film editor; most would tend to do an assembly and then start trimming to tighten everything up. It's also good if you want to practise using the keyboard for the full Avid programs. I imported a short piece of QuickTime - you may as well go off and leave it chugging away. It is slow.