Monthly Archives: May 2011

Contact Lens Monovision in the 3D World

Here’s an interesting article submitted by Tony Rivetti, 1st Assistant Camera/Focus Puller/Local 600 NEB. It sent me to webmd.com to find out what “contact lens monovision” is: “if bifocal contact lenses will not work for you, your doctor may recommend monovision. With monovision, you wear a contact lens that corrects for near vision in one eye and a lens that corrects for… read more…

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JVC 4K at Cine Gear

More K at Cine Gear. JVC Professional Products Company will host JVC 4K Focus Forums on Friday June 3 and Saturday June 4 at Cine Gear Expo. JVC will show their new 4K technology, which is based on the world’s first large-scale integration (LSI) chip for high-speed processing of images. There will be detailed demonstrations of the technology and feedback from attendees is encouraged…. read more…

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Canon Lens Update

Canon U.S.A., Inc. announced updated availability dates for five of its EF lenses. Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye USM lens The EF 8-15mm f/4L USM is the world’s widest fisheye zoom lens. The Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye USM lens is expected to be available in late July for an estimated retail price of $1,399. Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II… read more…

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Optimo, Alexa & Quasar at the Royal Wedding

Angénieux Optimo zooms, ARRI Alexa cameras, and Element Technica Quasar Rigs converged on the Royal Wedding in 3D. As an estimated 2 billion viewers watched the marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, 3 rigs with 6 Angénieux Optimo DP zooms on 6 ARRI Alexa cameras recorded the event in 3D for broadcast on BSkyB in the days that followed. Three… read more…

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FDTimes 6th Anniversary

Film and Digital Times will be 6 years old when Cine Gear Expo resumes on June 3-4 at Paramount Studios. FDTimes got its start at Cine Gear 2005. We managed to sign up a few trusting colleagues. Since then, thanks to our sponsors and subscribers, we’ve grown to more than 45,000 readers and around a million visits annually online. How it… read more…

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We’ll Be Back at Cine Gear – Booth 66A

  Visit us at Cine Gear, our favorite show of the year, on June 3 – 4 at Paramount Studios in Hollywood. We’re at Booth 66A – between Cooke, P+S Technik, ZGC and OConnor. Pick up a complimentary copy of our latest June Issue #43. Cine Gear registration is free until May 28. Cine Gear is where it all began… read more…

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Cine Gear Honors Howard Preston

Howard Preston will receive the Cine Gear Expo 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his significant contributions to advancing the art and craft of filmmaking. Howard is head of Preston Cinema Systems, makers of Microforce, Motors, FI+Z, FX Units, 3D Wireless Controls and much more. He revolutionized the way we focus and control lenses, and elevated the task of performing smooth… read more…

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P+S Technik X35

Only a few more shopping days until Cine Gear Expo 2011 in LA. P+S TECHNIK will premiere their new PS-Cam X35 at ZGC Booth #67. We have taken the vow of silence about the capabilities of the X35. But you can piece the puzzle together by looking at the picture above, and knowing a little something about P+S Technik. Also, the… read more…

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Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC – Take 5

Unedited dailies from 2004 interview with Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC from the film “Cinematographer Style.” This is copyrighted material, and not to be copied, forwarded or reused. “Cinematographer Style” is available on DVD from New Video (newvideo.com) or the ASC Bookstore (ascstore.com). Proceeds are donated to the ASC Education Fund.  

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PhotoCineRent Paris

Please welcome our most recent sponsor: PhotoCineRent in Paris. This is a rapidly growing camera rental and sales company in Paris, headed by Albrecht Gerlach. In the year since I first met Albrecht last year at cinec, the company has grown incredibly fast. They have 4 Alexas and 4 more on order, 50 Canon HDSLRs, Sony F3, Red, Angenieux, Cooke,… read more…

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GoPro

GoPro makes the famous HD HERO line of wearable and mountable cameras and accessories. The camera’s about the size an ice cube. It comes with a rugged waterproof plastic shell. At NAB 2011, they introduced a tiny on-board monitor and a 3D version. As GoPro says, “these cameras make it easy for people to record and share their lives’ most… read more…

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Motion Picture Lens Database

Richard Bradbury, Focus Puller from London, has compiled a Google Docs database of motion picture lenses. It’s a continuing work in progress, as new lenses are added and existing lenses are updated. Motion Picture Lens Database:  www.tinyurl.com/cinelenses  

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Full Frame vs APS-C and H

Joe Christofori, Camera Assistant, Data Wrangler and Artist from Massachusetts sent this chart in. It’s a good, graphic explanation of why your Canon 7D (EF-S) lenses won’t cover a 5D (EF lenses), and what happens when you put 5D lenses on your 7D. When you mount an EF lens on a Canon 7D, you’ll notice that the red lens mount… read more…

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Focal Lengths, Format Sizes

Why a 12mm lens is always a 12mm lens (PDF version of this article is also available here) This is an update of an FDTimes article from the ancient days of 2007 that tries to clear up some of the mysteries of millimeters. We talk about film cameras a lot because many of the current digital cameras are using specs… read more…

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VBag: To Hold and Protect

One of the best things at NAB was the VBag, a flexible, inflatable “hi-hat” from Danish camera assistants Thomas Holm Deleurang (at left) and Erik Thal-Jantzen. These guys know a thing or two about extreme temperatures, working in -25 degree Scandinavia, studios, sweltering sand dune locations… They also know how to improve on the low-tech, lowly furniture pad to support a… read more…

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Canon PL Zooms Image Circle

Correction to our article on Canon PL Zoom, page 38 of April 2011 FDTimes. After projecting the Canon 14.5-60 and 30-3000 mm zooms last week, the two prototypes have an image circle greater than the 27.5 mm diagonal we previously reported. It’s more like 29 mm. These specs are unofficial, and the image circle of production models has not been… read more…

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Hilary Araujo 1945-2011

I can’t believe we lost another great colleague. Hilary Araujo passed away on April 14, 2011 after a short illness. Hilary was Vice President at The Tiffen Company . He was a wonderful teacher. Whenever I was out of town, Hilary would often take over my class at Columbia’s University’s Graduate Film Program. The students adored him. Hilary Araujo’s first… read more…

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