Black Magic Video Camera - Shane Hurlbut

[FilmMan]

Check this out on the BM. 

 

http://www.hurlbutvisuals.com/blog/2013/02/the-black-magic-cinema-camera/comment-page-1/#comment-53634

[Axel]

Just to think about what old toys Hurlbut finds in his attic ...

Thanks for the link.

[FilmMan]

Axel, he's got alot of toys.  That's for sure.  Cheers.

[Sean Cunningham]

Fantastic article, thanks for posting.

[see ya]

Interesting he's also suggesting making use of a ground glass adaptor. Bring on the usual BS about over use of shallow DOF.

[Sean Cunningham]

I think he was referring to the Letus shoulder rig they're using.  They make more than just those adapters.  His emphasis on using those Super16mm zooms precludes the use of the Letus adapter.

 

*** edit: though yeah, it does appear he played with their lens adapter too, sorry **

 

It's one of the few (maybe not the only one anymore) that places a DSLR or equivalent rig more on the shoulder, like the ergonomics of shooting compact 35mm motion picture cameras, rather than the awkward and fatigue-inducing position out in front of the operator, throwing off their center of rotation.   This, of course, necessitates an EVF or small HD monitor positioned farther forward than most rigs.

 

With the Letus rig your recorded view pivots about a point closer to the imaging plane.  With most rigs you're actually sweeping the whole camera through the air, side to side, doing a simple pan.  

 

To get an acceptably shallow DOF he opened up to T2 and used heavy ND in the daylight exteriors.  That's not unheard of.  The stop Cronenweth tried to maintain throughout *Fight Club* was like a T2.3 even for daytime exteriors, and that was Super-35.

 

edit2: because now I felt like I'd totally misread much of the article I went back and read through it again and it looks like he did shoot with the KOWA 35mm lenses but cropped in and without the "ground glass" adapter equipped (it's never pictured in any of the camera rigs, he just seems to mention it with a stock product photo in the article). 

[see ya]

Yeah, it wasn't so much whether he used the 'DOF adaptor' in this particular test, more that it was mentioned at all, that a special adaptor ring bracket even exists for the Letus BMCC cage and that 3 images in his write up referenced that idea of putting a 'DOF adaptor' in front.

 

Not suggesting one way or the other whether it's right or wrong, there's enough of the 'black or 'white' 'right' or 'wrong' BS about as it is, just imagined another bit of kit in peoples attics getting dusted off to use once again when perhaps many had thought those days of DOF adaptors were generally over. :-)

[Sean Cunningham]

I must admit, I was pretty shocked to find out they had adapted the GG-type adapter to something this modern.   Letus had nice hardware but, at least when I had my Redrock gear, the Letus was smaller but it featured a greater parasitic light loss.

 

Solutions like the Metabones Speed Booster are way more appealing.

 

Still, I agree with what you're getting at, and admit that I've certainly contributed my own bias on the subject, but at the end of the day results are what I value most.  I can't deny that great looking, cinematic imagery has been made with smaller sensors.  I mean, an SI2K film won the cinematography Oscar one year.  I didn't go to look up what cameras were used because I thought there was something wrong with the imagery in Slumdog Millionaire.  Quite the opposite.  There are loads of great looking episodic shows shot on S16 as well, often more cinematic than other dramas shot on S35.