P+S Technik’s New Mini35 Professional System Accessories
Continuing its Mini35 line of accessories — which began with the Mini35Digital Adapter that allows the use of 35mm motion picture lenses on MiniDV cameras — P+S Technik has unveiled the Mini35 Breakout Box, Battery Holder, Shoulder Pad, and professional viewfinder connections.

At the heart of the new lineup is the Breakout Box, which distributes 12-volt power from one battery to the entire system, from the image converter to the camera and all of the accessories along the way. It also provides video outputs for professional viewfinders and additional monitors. The video signal provided by the Breakout Box can be transferred to either the Sony DXF801 or Canon FU-1000 viewfinders via the new Mini35 viewfinder connections. The battery holder permits the use of the Breakout Box and accepts most professional V-mount or snap-on batteries, such as Anton Bauer and PAG.

Finally, for the comfort of videographers who prefer to shoot from slightly above the hip, P+S Technik offers the new clip-on shoulder pad, which in turn accepts the Mini35 hand grip with its central run button.

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SL Cine’s Steadicam-style Mag for Arriflex 235

Living up to their mantra of “lightweight performance and solid durability,” the people at SL Cine have introduced the SL-235 400’ magazine, designed specifically for the Arriflex 235 camera. Constructed of lightweight magnesium, the magazine weighs 3.5 pounds, measures 12.5” long, 10” high, and 2” wide, and is intended primarily for Steadicam, remote and handheld applications. The magazine can handle a speed range of 0-150 fps and features an extended throat for vertical film load and a manual footage counter scale.

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AccuColor Filter System from Schneider
Answering the need for proper color temperature calibration among film projectors, particularly with the rise of digital postproduction and simultaneous film and digital release formats, Schneider Optics has introduced the new AccuColor Filter System.

The filters are designed for use on film projection lenses and come in a set consisting of 10 filters and one filter holder for both the flat and anamorphic projection formats. The series of 10 filters takes into account fluctuations in color temperature as the various elements of a film projector age, matching the color temperature to a standard value. 

AccuColor filter holders fit the front of standard 70.6mm diameter projection lenses and hold the filter at a three-degree angle to prevent ricochet reflections between the filter and front lens element. An additional kit is available for greater diameter anamorphic lenses, and Schneider also offers customized filters according to individual customer requirements.

Resolve 2.0 for da Vinci
Da Vinci launched Resolve v2.0, combining the company’s image enhancement technology with new nonlinear conforming tools. Resolve boasts an open architecture aimed at maximizing speed, flexibility, and throughput, and the program’s color correction processes are visualized by node mapping, which provides a pictorial view of the system’s signal flow. Multiple layers of color processing, windowing, defocus, image filtering and more can be cascaded or added in parallel for increased user flexibility.

New features of Resolve v2.0 are an advanced defocus feature as well as object tracking that gives users the ability to lock onto a moving object and continue applying color corrections to it while its position or size changes from frame to frame.

In addition, Resolve includes PowerPlant acceleration, da Vinci’s own PCI image-processing accelerator hardware that provides parallel processing capabilities with thousands of simultaneous data paths, considerably increasing Resolve’s speed and performance. Several PowerPlants can also be combined to form a PowerGrid, increasing overall system performance and allowing for real-time, multi-layered color correction of full-resolution film images. Such processing improvements are most noticeable when running defocus-style effects.

Da Vinci’s familiar interface has been enhanced to include support for multiple EDLs and versions, waveform monitoring independent of the main color processing, and scalability for those who are looking to 4K and beyond.

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Kodak Introduces Vision2 50D 5201/7201
Kodak recently unveiled the newest addition to its Vision2 family of films, 5201/7201, an ultra-fine grain stock rated for an exposure index of 50 in daylight. The film is available in all formats from 16mm to 65mm.

“This new emulsion is designed to give cinematographers more creative latitude while filming in high-contrast exterior scenes in bright daylight as well as shots in mixed color temperatures,” says Robert Mayson, general manager and vice president of image capture for Kodak’s Entertainment Imaging Division. Mayson further notes that the film is optimized for use as a recorder output film, utilized extensively in the digital intermediate (DI) process.

Among the cinematographers who have tested the new stock, Jon Fauer, ASC, comments, “This film definitely proves that the ‘film look’ is not about grain but exposure latitude. There’s no grain to speak of — it’s the finest-grained film I’ve ever seen, with perfect color rendition, natural skin tones, a huge range of exposure, highlights that don’t burn out, and shadows that are rich and dark but with visible subtle detail. Shooting a low-speed daylight film in bright sunlight will allow for less neutral density, so cinematographers can see what they are shooting through the viewfinder.”

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ECinema’s DCM23 HD Reference-Grade LCD
ECinema Systems, a Los Angeles-based innovator of high-definition products for production and postproduction, recently debuted the DCM23 monitor, a reference-grade, color-calibrated high-definition LCD.

The DCM23 is designed for the requirements of HD and digital intermediate (DI) workflows and to enable color grading and critical picture evaluation with color-matched viewing within a facility, across facilities or on set.

Utilizing patent-pending custom TFT LCD (Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display) technology with custom modified optics, the DCM23 delivers true video frame rates at full native 1920x1080 HD resolution. According to eCinema Systems, this technology virtually guarantees identical color fidelity from one DCM23 monitor to the next.

ECinema intends the monitor to ease communication between post facilities and production professionals (namely directors of photography) as all parties can reference the same calibrated standard. And while the DCM23 is ideally suited to HD, DI and digital cinematography applications at larger facilities, eCinema Systems foresees the monitor, with its low purchase price for a full-resolution HD monitor and its low maintenance costs, allowing smaller to mid-sized shops to elevate their capabilities for taking on new types of projects.

The DCM23 features a 23” diagonal view, a depth of 4” and a weight of 22 pounds, making it suitable for use on set as well as in post facilities.

Along with the DCM23, eCinema Systems is touting its Surround Lighting System, SLS1, a lighting template designed for use with the LCD monitor to produce the optimum-viewing environment and ensure accuracy and consistency.

Customers ordering or purchasing DCM23 systems will also be offered an easy upgrade path to dual-link, the DI-centric 4:4:4 color resolution video standard that will be forthcoming shortly in the DCM23 product line.

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TerraScope Camera Transport from Innovision
Created for use with the Innovision Probe and similar snorkel lenses, the Swenson TerraScope Mount from Innovision Optics is a rolling camera platform that allows operators to track from a near ground-level point of view, enabling panning and rolling in ways not possible with larger rigs and bulky dolly equipment.

Invented by visual effects director of photography Eric Swenson, the TerraScope is designed to carry a camera with an attached tubular lens pointing downward. Measuring 33” high, 21.75” wide and 22” deep, the transport fits through standard doorways and is suitable for interior and exterior work, on stage, in a warehouse, on a driveway or scooting along counters and tabletops. The custom, multidirectional smooth-glide wheels are the heart of the TerraScope’s maneuverability.

The rig can be particularly useful with rapid-paced miniature work, and by tiliting the camera on the mount, the lens can be set up along the center axis of the rig for nodal panning. Or, with the camera tilted back, the lens can be extended outside the rig to get close to larger objects.

Constructed of lightweight, durable aluminum tubing, the TerraScope weighs 50 pounds unloaded and accommodates cameras up to 55 pounds. Two-handed control is provided by two ergonomic grips, and an optional side bracket is available should the operator wish to carry a small video monitor on the rig, allowing the operator to see framing while moving freely.

Doremi Hits a High Note
Replacing its popular HDG-10 Video Test Generator, Doremi Labs introduced the HDG-20, designed to offer video professionals a low cost, portable, HD and SD test generator to calibrate and test video equipment and displays at broadcast, postproduction, concert, home theater, R&D facilities and more.

The HDG-20’s new features include sync input to genlock the unit to an external sync source, a PC and Mac software GUI for serial remote control and new video patterns. The HDG-20 also features a 5- to 18-volt input range to facilitate connection to a battery pack.

Additionally, the palm-sized HDG-20 features still patterns and moving test patterns in both SD and HD formats at full broadcast quality. It also outputs audio tone, time code and closed caption characters. Also included is a dual-link HD-SDI 2K resolution video output. Furthermore, the HDG-20 is capable of combining any still pattern with a moving pattern to create hundreds of video pattern options. Other useful features include a save function to preserve settings on power off and a lockable power cord connector to prevent accidental shut down. Navigation of the test generator’s menu, which is displayed on the unit’s LCD screen, is made simple with four buttons.

The HDG-20’s flash E-Prom memory enables users to keep their test generator current with the latest video patterns and features, available as downloadable firmware from Doremi’s website.

The HDG-20 outputs NTSC, PAL, 720p, 1080i, 1080p and 2048x1080 video formats. Video outputs include SDI, HD-SDI and dual-link HD-SDI. The HDG-20 can also be paired with Doremi’s HDVI-20 converter to provide a DVI output.

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Back to the Ol’ Blackboard
FilmLight Ltd, a leading provider of digital filmmaking technology, recently launched the Baselight Blackboard, an optional dedicated control surface for its Baselight color grading and finishing system. Blackboard simplifies the creation of complex grading and effects by providing one-touch access to frequently used functions and has the flexibility to be reconfigured to suit individual and job preferences.

Designed to be more intuitive than using solely a pen and tablet or keyboard and mouse, the new control surface offers familiar modes of operation to colorists from a variety of backgrounds, whether telecine, lab color timing or digital grading. Furthermore, originating in-house at FilmLight, Blackboard integrates seamlessly with Baselight, and when used in conjunction with the Baselight Four and Eight systems, it offers users real-time interactivity and control over any resolution material.

Key features of Blackboard include: one touch access; three three-axis trackballs, each with six dedicated buttons; full jog shuttle transport control; dedicated trim controls; dedicated keyframing controls; additional controls for gallery grade selection and application, view configuration, and macro record/recall; adjustable key illumination; assignable macro keys and customizable hot keys; four integrated and fully customizable hi-res color LCD screens; context sensitive buttons and encoders; low profile; and an integrated pen and tablet.

Blackboard is available as an option for all Baselight systems and is also available as a bundle with Baselight Four and Baselight Eight. Baselight v2.2 software with support for Blackboard is also currently available.

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Wheeler Sunpredictor
John Wheeler, ACS, has launched his Wheeler Sunpredictor (WSP) program for PDAs as an online download with a free seven-day trial period. Russell Boyd ASC, ACS has been using versions of the WSP on commercials and 2006 feature release Ghost Rider, noting, “I recently was shooting a commercial and found the Sunpredictor absolutely indispensable for giving me the times and bearings of where the sun was going to pop over the surrounding mountains. I needed to know exactly so we could arrange the shooting day in advance.”

Operating on any PDA that runs the Windows PocketPC platform, the WSP predicts the position of the sun for any date and time (from one minute to over 11 months in advance) anywhere in the world. While latitude and longitude can be manually input in the program, Wheeler recommends the use of a PDA with a flash-card slot that allows the addition of a GPS unit (for example the HP iPaq hx2100PDA with Haicom 303S GPS) or a PDA with built-in GPS (such as the Garmin Ique M5). Mac files are also available for download on the Web site, although a third-party program (PocketMac is recommended) is necessary to transfer the WSP files from the user’s computer to the PDA.

The WSP displays the sun’s position both graphically, as a daily transit path, and numerically, as compass bearing, angle of elevation, date and time of day. Furthermore, location parameters can be saved to a database, allowing location information to be repeatedly accessed without a need to re-input data.

The program features three pages, a setup page, a location page, and a prediction page. On the setup page, the user’s personal parameters are entered (compass bearing display, GPS accuracy, port number for GPS unit and baud rate for GPS). Once these parameters have been established, the user does not have to return to this page and future program use will only deal with the location and prediction pages.

On the location page, the GPS is activated, and once the location is locked, the user can name and save the data. Time zone is also selected on this page from a drop-down list (this is the only information that needs to be manually set; the WSP will automatically calculate Daylight Savings).

All calculations are carried out on the prediction page. When this page is first opened, the display shows sunrise, total hours of sunlight and sunset for the selected day, plus the current position of the sun on its transit path. Dragging the sun along its transit path instantly updates the time, bearing and angle of elevation. Changing the date also instantly updates all of the data.

For more information, to download the Wheeler Sunpredictor, or for online support and upgrades, visit www.sunpredictor.com.

Arri Studio Ceramic 250
It’s not often that a fixture surprises me. But after flicking the switch on the new Arri Studio Ceramic 250, with the Philips ST Ceramic globe, I watched a tungsten-balanced light strike and come up to temperature. It is odd to think of a gas-discharge tungsten fixture, but that is exactly the heart of the new Arri Ceramic line of fixtures.

The Studio Ceramic 250 is a beefy baby-junior-sized Fresnel fixture with a 7" (175mm) diameter lens. It is a bit hefty at 18 pounds (8.2 kg), certainly much more than you would expect in size and weight from a 250-watt fixture, but the Studio Ceramic 250 also packs much more of a punch than you’d expect. As far as I know, there isn’t any other 250-watt Fresnel fixture with a 7" lens, so comparing photometrics is a tricky business. In taking a look at the ASC photometric charts (9th Edition, p. 823), a 250-watt Fresnel fixture (2" lens) at 10' has a full spot intensity of 57 footcandles (fc) and a flood intensity of 28fc. I measured the Studio Ceramic 250 at 10' and found a spot intensity of 630fc and a flood of 120fc! Scanning through the ASC chart, the nearest competitor to the Studio Ceramic 250 is a 1K with a 6" lens that has a spot intensity of 600fc and a flood of 130fc. This coincides exactly with Arri’s marketing claim that the new 250-watt fixture is just as bright as a 1K tungsten source, while requiring 1⁄4 the power.

Of course, just using less power isn’t the only benefit to the Studio Ceramic 250.  Because it is using a gas-discharge lamp and not a true tungsten filament, there is much less heat output from the fixture. In fact, even after an hour of burning, all of the touch points on the fixture were no more than room temperature, and the heat from the lens even at a few inches away wasn’t unreasonably uncomfortable, even on bare skin.

Arri has built the electronic ballast and igniter into the head to make a single unit that plugs directly into Edison power. The overall design is what we’ve come to expect from Arri: robust and efficient. Sporting a “New Age” black paint job as opposed to the traditional Arri silver and blue, the fixture looks a little more stylish than most. Typical features and accessories include standard four-leaf barn doors, a large balelock handle, an optional junior pin or baby socket. For an 18-pound fixture, I don’t mind the idea of a junior pin on this fixture at all. The fourth (or top) accessory frame spring-locks in place and is opened with a single button on the side. This is the better design for the fourth ear, and because it stays quite cool, it is actually functional as opposed to fixtures that turn into a mini hotplate after burning for a bit. Re-lamping the fixture is extremely easy, as the lens mount swings away with the press of a single lever on the side. Actually, the lens opens perhaps a little too easily. I can see this rather large lever being accidentally bumped by a lamp operator who is focusing or dropping diffusion in the fixture and, because it is a high-pressure gas-discharge lamp, the safety on the lens housing would then kill the fixture. This isn’t too much of a problem, however, as the Studio Ceramic 250 has no problem with hot restrikes, although even after a nearly immediate restrike, it did take a full minute to settle back to temperature. The lamp restruck at about 1000°K above the normal operating temperature and slowly dropped back down over the course of a minute’s burn time.

The fixture I was working with burned at 3550°K with a slight green spike (+2/+3 on a Minolta Colormeter II).

The flood and spot control has a nice little gauge on the side, calibrated in 10 positions from full spot to flood with a distinct detent for middle flood where the knob takes just a little more pressure to pass the midpoint. I sincerely appreciate this kind of detail, as it helps in communication between the gaffer and lamp operator when asked, “How flooded is that?” With the little scale it’s easy to say “2⁄3” or “4⁄5” at a glance. I did notice, however, that the “full pin” spot position was not actually the optimum spot point on the fixture I was working with. I got the best spot definition and intensity 1⁄5 of the way toward flood. Continuing to move past this position actually diffused the spot slightly and reduced overall intensity at the subject. With the spot control set in the “sweet spot” at 1⁄5 flood, I read 720fc at 10', whereas when I continued to the maximum spot setting on the control, the output fell to 630fc. Even after making this notation, for the sake of repeatability, I took my photometric measurements (below) from the extreme spot position on the control.

The heart of this new line of fixtures is the Philips C3 technology in the new ST Ceramic 250 bulb, a compact, single-ended globe that uses Philips’ Ceramic Discharge Technology to create tungsten light from a gas/arc source. Philips states a 4,000-hour lamp life, considerably longer than the 500-800 hours associated with most tungsten halogen bulbs, and a >90 CRI. The lamp can burn safely in any position. Expanding on this line, Philips recently released the MSR 250 HR globe for a daylight-balanced source with a CRI >90. The MSR globe has a 500-hour lamp life and also can burn in any position. These two globes are part of the Philips Broadway line incorporating the latest technology in gas-discharge lamps. I worked with a brand new MSR 250 in the Arri X and found a color reading of 6200°K. I would imagine this would drop a bit after burning the lamp for a dozen hours or more.

Arri X Ceramic
Another fixture to be released in the Arri Ceramic line was the Arri X Ceramic, an open-face, broad, soft source. I’ve never been much of a fan of open-face units, although the second feature I photographed was lit entirely with Lowel-Light Omni and DP open-face fixtures.

I generally turn to them only for a bounce source. The Arri X performs more like a 1K Zip in that the reflector puts out a rather soft source, even though there is an exposed lamp. The X also comes with a detachable intensifier that helps focus the fixture’s light spill to increase the candlepower, but it adds quite a few undesirable aspects as well. Once you slide the intensifier in place, the mirrored surfaces, which have been designed to maximize the light capture and focusing power, serve to redirect a lot of the spill and create a brighter source, but you also see the mirror reflections on your subject. It creates several hot spots around the area of illumination. If you centered the light on a performer’s face, you would see hot spots above his head, on his chest and on either side of his face. It is definitely not a source I would use without diffusion to key talent. Additionally, with the intensifier in place, you’re suddenly getting five shadows from a single source, which is very disconcerting. I was working with the Arri X with the clear glass face, but I imagine the overall quality of the fixture would be much improved with the optional frosted glass face.

The intensifier has soft Velcro around the inner front lip, and Arri offers several accessories in 365mm2 (14.38"2) including diffusion squares and eggcrates. Arri provided me with 1⁄4 gridcloth diffusion, which helped to sweeten the source up nicely. The light and shadow quality on skin at about 8' to 10' was similar to a 4' 4-bank Kino Flo from about half that distance. The 50° eggcrate from Light Tools/Chimera helped to control the broad source and cut down on a lot of the spill. Even with the 1⁄4 gridcloth, the light output still had discernible hot spots around the center of the source, and I found that if I didn’t secure the diffusion very carefully and there were gaps around the Velcro seam, the direct light sneaked through with surprising vehemence and was easily visible on the subject. Also, at 10' with the 1⁄4 diffusion and 50° eggcrate, I was actually seeing the shadow pattern of the crate at the subject, which was surprising and frustrating. Again, I would want an additional layer of diffusion between this source and the subject, which would negate the use of the eggcrate altogether.

Relamping or changing out the glass face is incredibly simple. With two spring-loaded thumbscrews at the top of the fixture, the glass is released and slides right out. This not only safely secures the glass in place, but also makes changing it out to frosted or re-lamping the fixture in the field a breeze.

I was not able to get the fixture to hot restrike with the Philips MSR globe. What I got was the spark of an attempted strike, the sound of a battered Yugo with a bad starter, and then nothing. After a couple failed attempts to hot restrike, I let the lamp cool for a few moments and then it struck fine. With the ST 250 globe, the fixture hot restruck with no problem.

As with the Studio Ceramic 250, heat dissipation from the Arri X is very well designed. Even after 45 minutes of burning, the fixture is cool on all the major touch points. Despite the clear glass at the front of the fixture, the heat from the lamp hardly registered on bare skin at just 1' from the glass. I used the Arri X with the intensifier and 1⁄4 gridcloth diffusion to photograph the Philips bulbs for this story. I was handholding one of the bulbs within 2' of the lamp face for 10 or 15 minutes and did not feel the lamp’s heat on my hand at all.

Although it performed nicely for my specific tabletop application, I am at a bit of a loss for where this fixture might fit into my own toolset on a day-to-day basis. Without the intensifier, it would make a nice broad backdrop light, but it’s a bit too harsh for my taste for direct light on talent. With the intensifier and diffusion, the “unclean” light coming from the source is not something I would often turn to for talent or even set lighting. I could see this fixture working nicely in a television studio where broad, soft sources are required, but I personally see limited applications in the feature-film world.

With the MSR 250 HR globe:

By way of comparison between the globes, I also tested the Arri X with the 250 CT globe

The real benefits to these two fixtures are the low power consumption and, probably more importantly, the cool operating temperature. This isn’t such a new thing for a daylight source, but to have a cool operating tungsten fixture is a great alternative when working in close proximity to talent, children, animals or food. Although both fixtures are low wattage with high output, they are physically the same size (if not larger) and weight of their higher-wattage counterparts with which they are competing. As always with Arri products, the craftsmanship is outstanding. These are robust fixtures that will certainly stand the test of time (and crews!) over the rigors of a long production life.

Pro 8/85 – A Daylight Reversal Kodachrome 40 Alternative for Super 8
Pro8mm has introduced Pro8/85, a 100-ASA daylight reversal film. The product, which has undergone months of testing, comes to market as a result of Kodak’s announcement in May 2005 that it would discontinue Kodachrome 40.

Pro8/85 is the ideal choice for achieving the color palette of the familiar Super 8 Kodachrome 40. It has the look of Kodachrome 40 with the convenience and latitude of an Ektachrome film. Colors are saturated, extremely sharp and render authentic skin tone. Pro8mm’s award winning in-house, on-site lab, offers same-day processing of this film stock. Pro8/85 can be processed as a positive for projection, transferred to a digital platform for computer editing, or cross-processed as a negative for creative visual effects.

Pro8/85 is the ideal film for creating that nostalgic look of amateur Super 8 home movies or for re-creating archival looking images. Most older film processes were positive, and the artifacts associated with positive film can be easily re-created. In addition, Pro8/85 reversal reacts the way that positive film would respond to incorrect lighting, filtration, and other common mistakes that emanate nostalgia. These effects can easily be re-created on the emulsion or in the digital transfer. This is more difficult to achieve in negative film due to the artifacts associated with negative technology.

Pro8/85 is $35 for a 50' cartridge of stock and processing. Discounted packages for four rolls inclusive of prep and clean and digital mastering to MiniDV start at $298.

Litepanels Work With DV Camera Batteries
Now operators can use their spare digital-video camera batteries to get the bright, projected soft output of a Litepanels LED lighting system. The new DV Battery Adapter Plate attaches easily to the Litepanels Mini head, making it a self-contained lighting source capable of running off two standard Panasonic, Canon or Sony DV camera batteries.

The Litepanels DV Adapter Plate simply snaps on to the back of the Mini Flood or Spot head. Once the plate is secure, two batteries fit easily in place to power the fixture for up to 8 hours.

Litepanels’ self-contained DV battery option allows users to use lightweight Lithium-ion DV batteries (along with their existing DV battery chargers), instead of carrying heavy battery belts or bulky shoulder-worn battery packs.

Litepanels portable daylight balanced lighting systems — winner of the 2005 Emmy Award Plaque for Outstanding Achievement in Engineering Development — employ light-emitting diode technology to produce a soft and projected light ideal for interviews, car interiors or ultra-portable location lighting. 

The lightweight DV Battery Adapter Plate is available in three versions: the DV-CP-P (Panasonic), DV-CP-S (Sony), and DV-CP-C (Canon). Litepanels DV Battery Adapter is also compatible with their Infrared lighting system.