Robert Keslow, CEO of Keslow Camera, and Howard Preston, Pres. of Preston Cinema Systems.

On Saturday, July 16, the crew from Preston Cinema Systems pulled into Keslow Camera’s Culver City headquarters on Blackwelder Street for a day of Light Ranger 2 demos and a Keslow Camera Open House. Howard Preston, Alanna Berkson and Matt Davis provided hands-on demos with a large variety of camera and lens combinations equipped with the LR2.

The Light Ranger 2 is described by Howard Preston as “a critical focus tool for the digital world.” It shows zones of focus on any monitor and intuitively guides your focus pulling in the correct direction.

The system consists of two units. The sensor unit sits atop the camera.  A quick setting calibrates the offset.

The Video Interface box attaches easily to the back of almost any monitor. It receives focus information from both the Light Ranger 2 and the Preston FIZ HU3 Hand Unit.

A beam of infrared light emitted by the Light Ranger 2 is captured by the detector array behind the unit’s lens. It’s safe infrared. There are no lasers, no ultrasonic signals, no transponders attached to actors.

Light Ranger 2 works in harmony with Preston Wireless FIZ system HU3 hand unit and MDR3 motor driver. You still control focus the way you always did. The same skills developed by years of muscular-neurological memory are applied. You still control speed, point of interest and splits.

There’s also a very accurate autofocus mode — shown as a red rectangle on the monitor in some of the pictures below.

FDTimes article on the LR2.

And another FDTimes article here.

More than 50 camera assistants, operators and DPs attended. Keslow staff were on hand as well — Robert Keslow, Juli Kanner, Jordan Keslow, and many more.

The BORDER GRILL Food Truck pulled up in the early afternoon with gourmet tacos, sides and beverages.

Photos by George Leon.

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