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a-minima camera test montage


Hunter Hampton

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I recently bought an a-minima from another fellow on this board.

 

I put 600' through it testing it out and I am very happy with the results as well as the camera. It is such a fun unique camera to use! I tried to not to do a typical camera test- its more like a montage of bits of my life.

 

Anyways, just wanted to share:

 

http://vimeo.com/2804826

 

P.s. Cinelicious was great to work with on the telecine.

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I recently bought an a-minima from another fellow on this board.

 

I put 600' through it testing it out and I am very happy with the results as well as the camera. It is such a fun unique camera to use! I tried to not to do a typical camera test- its more like a montage of bits of my life.

 

Anyways, just wanted to share:

 

http://vimeo.com/2804826

 

P.s. Cinelicious was great to work with on the telecine.

 

 

Great stuff, Hunter. The A-Minima is a perfect camera for that kind of shooting. I really like the time lapse and the use of slight overcranking. Looks beautiful.

 

-Fran

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Thanks for watching. I agree! My daughter is cute! :D

 

To answer your questions, I used an illumina set from 8mm up to 50mm mostly at T2-2.8. And about the stroller rig; I used a full size cardellini clamp on the fork of the stroller, attached to a bogen magic arm with a baby pin adapter mounted to the top of the a-minima via the 3/8"-16 female screw on top of the camera. Thats one of my favorite things about the camera is that its so light you can utilize all kinds of lightweight rigging.

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Honestly, I was just glad to see that I didn't screw up too much as this is my first film camera. Glad you enjoyed it!

 

Absolutely gorgeous, much of the beauty of film I think is emphasised in mobility, and I think the A-minima has it in spades!

 

If only you could get Fuji stock on those dam 200' roles!

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Really great footage!!! lovely camera compact perfect for all these shots skate/car etc.

Btw are the interior shots shot with natural light only or did you use any lighting setup?They are great.!

 

Isn t it possible to manually spool fuji in 200 feet reels? i thought the only difference is that the emulsion is inside out?

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About the car interiors; I didn't light them- I think this worked out because it was such an overcast day. And my exposure was so long at night that the light from passing cars filled up my car. I did however overexpose the inside of the car by about a stop during the day.

 

I heard from a friend that Media Distributors will spool aminima rolls for you (I think they may even do it for free if you buy enough stock from them!) I haven't tried it yet.

 

Thanks for watching! I hope to actually shoot a project now with the camera! ;)

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Beautiful footage! seems like you live in a nice area :lol: I love film so much! and me too thinks it was a good decision to sell the red...don't like this camera.

 

Hope to see more stuff from your A-minima, I need to get my hands on one as soon as possible :)

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P.s. I am SO GLAD I sold the Red...

 

 

Hunter,

 

Just curious about why you bought a RED in the first place. Also, is the A-Minima intended to replace it?

 

Honestly, considering the feeding frenzy RED ONE created, I'm shocked that Aaton didn't sell a few thousand of these cameras. I purchased mine new for $17K from Abel in 2004 and it has a serial number around 250. It is an amazing bargain, IMO. Seems like the A-Minima would appeal to many of the same people who bought RED because of the price point as well as those who needed a camera to keep around for personal projects as well as paying jobs. I understand they are very different cameras, but at the end of the day I like the smaller size of the A Minima and the fact that it makes an image on film. I admit I'm biased, but I think anyone who looks at your 600 feet can see the difference between HD and film as plain as day. I think it looks so much more alive and organic than video. :)

 

 

-Fran

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Hi Fran-

 

I was hired to shoot a feature on the Red and I decided to buy a package and rent it to the production (rather than the money going to a rental house)- I always had the intent to sell it after- that way I pocketed an extra chunk of change! I would have never bought a Red if it wasn't for that one job-

 

Now I just rent Red cameras when I need them because they are so cheap. The image is so sterile from the Red, I personally cant stand it- it needs to be heavily graded to start looking good. But super16mm (or any film) looks AMAZING right out of the box. The Aaton is more like a really fun temporary camera for me to learn shooting film on, I hope I am able to keep it for a long time though- this little aaton makes shooting a real joy!

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Hey Hunter,

 

Watching your film brought feelings of why I love film so much.

 

I've been ruminating of late about buying a A-minima. Seeing your film it just looks like such a fun and versatile camera....have you got any insights that might push me towards it?

Edited by Serge Teulon
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  • 2 weeks later...

This footage is simply beautiful, and really makes my bittersweet transition from film to digital seem like a mistake.

 

I do miss film, so very much. This little camera works wonders with it! At the end of the day all this arguing about resolution, and codecs, and signal to noise, and pixel shifting and whatever..It all seems so pointless, when film is sitting right there begging to be used. And plus, it looks great right out of the damn box!

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Daniel-

 

Thanks for watching. You know, Its easy to think of decisions as black and white (regarding digital vs. film), but I don't think you need to think that your on one side of the other. We are visual artists, even though 16mm film is kinda grainy and has a lower MTF than digital 4k options available... its not about numbers or charts with us. We make images that make people feel something- it doesnt come down to what format has the highest bit depth or what telecine can get you the sharpest picture, or what camera looks better on a white paper, its where the rubber meets the road. Get back on that film camera boy! Its not about choosing sides! ; )

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  • 4 weeks later...
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Absolutely gorgeous, much of the beauty of film I think is emphasised in mobility, and I think the A-minima has it in spades!

 

If only you could get Fuji stock on those dam 200' roles!

 

Ask the lab you want to go through to respool it for you. They'll usually do it for free if you're processing and/or transferring there.

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