Products
ARRI Hi-5 Hand Unit
Read all about it. The new ARRI Hi-5 is featured in Film and Digital Times August 2021 edition. Download free PDF.
Hi-5 highlights:
Tail Slate Mode protects you from the muscle memory impulse to cut when the Director says “Cut.”
The display screen lets you navigate by touch or buttons.
There are 10 pre-engraved focus rings. A smart chip is embedded within each ring and the Hi-5 automatically adjusts accordingly.
OCU-1 Camera Operator override and Focus Puller handoff is seamless and good.
Hi-5 has a built-in base so it can rest at a comfortable angle on a flat surface like your Inovativ Echo camera cart’s top shelf.
A pivoting bracket slides onto the Hi-5’s top NATO rail to support a monitor.
Three different Radio Modules plug into the rear of Hi-5 for different ranges and regions.
All Hi-5 units include ALEXA camera control by default. Sony and RED camera control is planned with a future software update.
Focusbug Cine RT Ultrasonic Rangefinder System integration is expected with future firmware updates. read more…
Tags: ARRI Hi-5 Hand Unit
Angénieux Optimo Ultra Compact Zooms
Angénieux lifted the mystery at Cannes today. Christophe Remontet, Managing Director Cinema Optics, announced two new Full Frame Optimo Ultra Compact Zoom lenses:
21-56 T2.9
37-102 T2.9
Specifications are expected in August, with the official launch of prototypes at Cine Gear in September and IBC in December. Christophe said that deliveries could be early 2022.
These two lightweight and compact zooms complement and match the existing Optimo Ultra 12x (36-435 T4.2 in FF/VV and 24-290 T2.8 in S35)
and the 12 Optimo Primes. read more…
Le Voyage Continue
Tags: Angénieux, Angenieux Coming Soon
Blackwing7 News on 7/7
There’s something special about the number 7.
Tribe7, makers of Full Frame, tunable Blackwing7 lenses are especially attuned to sevens. Initially, there were seven focal lengths, each ending in a seven: 27, 37, 47, 57, 77, 107 and 137 mm. An additional focal length, 20.7mm, has been introduced.
And so, on 7/7 of this year, Tribe7 announces that Blackwing7 lenses will be distributed exclusively in North America by AbelCine. The news follows on the heels of TRIBE7 announcements that Second Reef GmbH is the exclusive distributor of the Blackwing7 lenses in Europe. And, CVP is the exclusive distributor in the UK. read more…
Teradek Bolt 4K LT MAX
“Video Village is a dot on the horizon. The walkie barks for a quick reset. The sun is setting.” That’s how Teradek introduces their new Bolt 4K LT MAX wireless video system. This good and terse writing style catches your imagination. It follows the 1917 Kansas City Star Style Sheet used by Hemingway. And so Teradek’s new Bolt 4K LT MAX sends and receives DCI 4K, 10-bit HDR, zero-delay video from camera to crew and video village over a line-of-sight distance of more than 5,000 feet, in a lighter, smaller, less power-hungry, more affordable 4K wireless video transmitter and receiver system. read more…
Tags: Teradek Bolt 4K LT MAX
Sony Airpeak S1 Drone
This is not your father’s Sony. My father’s Sony was an iconic 5″ tummy TV. Being a Mad Ave ad man, he also loved the print ad: “For waist sizes 38 to 46. For smaller tummies, buy the 4 inch set.” Nor is this your Sony, familiar for VENICE and Alpha. This is the Sony of Vision-s electric vehicles and Airpeak S1 drones. The sibilant letter “S” suggests something special. Today, Sony Electronics Inc. announced their Airpeak S1 drone. The Sony Airpeak S1 was also designed around carrying Full-Frame Sony Alpha series (a7, a9, a1, FX3) mirrorless interchangeable-lens cameras. These cameras connect to the drone directly via HDMI for video and USB for start-stop and camera control. The S1 flies at a maximum speed of 55 mph and stays steady against headwinds and gusts up to 44.7 mph. read more…
SIGMA fp Update 3.00. Framelines! EVF!
Faster than you can say fp Firmware Update 3.00, this free download brings many of SIGMA’s new fp L camera features to the fp camera.
Best of all, Version 3.00 lets you use the essential accessory SIGMA ELECTRONIC VIEWFINDER EVF-11 on the fp. And it add custom framelines and aspect ratios.
The EVF is modular and screws onto the camera’s left side. It’s makes the fp a great DP / Director’s Finder. read more…
Musashi-Opt 29-120 T2.9 Full Frame Zoom
Musashi Optical System Co. Ltd announces the new Takumi 2 Full Frame 29-120 mm T2.9 PL-mount zoom lens. Musashi Optical System Co. Ltd is based in Saitama, Japan, about 20 km north of Tokyo. Founded in 2003 by former Fujinon executives, Musashi-Opt (as it is commonly called) is well-known for its OptMag and OptMore PL mount extenders and Full Frame expanders. In 2019, they introduced a Super35 23.9-195 mm T2.9 zoom lens. This was followed by the Takumi 1, a Full Frame 40.6 – 332 mm T4.8 PL-mount version of the lens. And now the Takumi 2 29-120 T2.9. read more…
EL Zone by Ed Lachman ASC
Ed Lachman, ASC has come up with an incredibly intuitive, innovative and essential exposure tool. It’s called EL Zone, which stands for Exposure Log Zone — or Ed Lachman Zone.
Think of it as a spotmeter in your viewfinder or monitor. Toggle it on or off. Each stop of exposure is represented by a color. White shows areas of the scene that are over-exposed by 6 or more stops. 18% gray is normal-neutral. Black is under-exposed by 6 or more stops. read more…
Tags: EL Zone, EL Zone by Ed Lachman ASC
Litepanels Gemini 1×1 Hard
Hard Soft. The new Litepanels Gemini Hard 1×1 is both hard and soft at the same time. This is not a paradox. It may remind you of a 5K Tungsten Fresnel, full spot through a 4×4 frame of 216 Diffusion. The light has intensity, punch, direction. And yet there is peripheral softness and fill. It is a very pleasing for portraits. Directional enough to punch through a studio fogger yet soft enough to avoid seraphic shafts. Bright and soft to light a studio sky of overhead rags. Perhaps in separate Space Light style: skirted, diffused or raw. The Gemini Hard 1×1 is bright. I measured 3660 lux / 340 footcandles at 10 feet and set to 5600K CCT. That’s T11/2 at 800 ISO, 24 fps. read more…
DJI Air 2s
The new DJI Air 2s combines thrill of flying and amazing image capture. It is nimble, amazing in low light, and super steady—even as a tripod in the sky. You can film in 5.4K or take 20 Megapixel stills. The one-inch sensor has 2.4 micron photosites — significantly larger than the Mavic Air 2 camera’s 0.8 micron photosites. This contributes to gorgeous picture quality and great dynamic range. read more…
Tags: DJI Mavic Air 2s
SIGMA fp L: 61 MP. Still. Cine. Director’s Finder. Webcam.
March 25, 2021. SIGMA Corporation CEO Kazuto Yamaki presented the SIGMA fp L as the sequel to fp and the world’s smallest and lightest full-frame digital single-lens mirrorless camera with a full-frame 61 MP sensor. The camera continues SIGMA’s fp development concept: smallest and lightest pocketable full-frame camera; seamless STILL/ CINE switch, and scalability. The optional EVF-11 OLED electronic viewfinder addresses many user requests. And, the SIGMA fp L is one of the best Director’s Finders you could possibly find. read more…
Panasonic LUMIX Firmware Updates
Panasonic LUMIX S Series and BGH1 cameras get firmware updates. Quick review: LUMIX S Series are Full Frame L-Mount mirrorless hybrid video/still cameras with compelling cine capabilities. BGH1 is a Micro Four Thirds versatile cube-shaped camera conducive to remote, drone, multi-camera, stunts and car rig coverage. Highlights include: S1H: 5.9K and 4K Blackmagic RAW 12-bit Full Frame recording with Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR. S1H: Anamorphic 3.5K 12-bit recording in Super35 format. S1: 12-bit ProRes RAW recording with Atomos Ninja V. BGH1: 12-bit ProRes RAW recording with Atomos Ninja V. (S1H and S5 already record ProRes RAW on Atomos Ninja V.) Additional video capabilities for S1. And lots more. read more…
AJA T-TAP Pro
Grass Valley, CA. AJA Video Systems releases T-TAP Pro. It’s small, sturdy, silent and sits inconspicuously between your Thunderbolt 3 computer’s output and 4K TV or monitor’s HDMI or SDI input. T-TAP Pro is about the size of a small box of Lipton Instant Soup Mix: 5” x 5” x 1” — and weighs about 8 ounces. Best of all, it is silent—quiet on set. The sound recordist will not be prowling in search of a noisy fan ruining whispered words in a dramatic, critical close-up. AJA T-TAP Pro is essentially the key to viewing 4K or HD via 12G-SDI or HDMI 2.0 inputs from from any supported Thunderbolt 3-enabled Mac or PC. (UHD and 2K as well.) read more…
Tags: AJA T-TAP Pro
Sony FX3: Cage-Free, Free Range
And now there are four.
The FX3 is the latest addition to Sony’s growing Cinema Line of cameras. They seem to be multiplying at an impressive rate. VENICE, FX9, FX6, FX3.
Sony explained the concept on Sept 2, 2020: “Cinema Line will deliver not only a coveted cinematographic look but also enhanced operability and reliability. The series will extend beyond traditional cinema camera and professional camcorder form factors.”
Here’s a cinema camera with a decidedly different form factor. Inside, the FX3 acts quite like Sony’s a7S III hybrid still and video camera. Outside, the FX3 has lots of 1/4-20 threads in a unibody rugged steel skeleton. The cage-free design begs you to mount this camera in all kinds of places where a single mounting point and add-on cage wouldn’t dare to thread. read more…
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro
Three exciting things about the new the new Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro should get your heart racing and your fingers dialing to buy one:
Built in Clear, ND.6, ND1.2 and ND1.6 filters.
5″ LCD Monitor tilts up and down
Optional (essential) 1280 x 960 color OLED viewfinder.
Unless you have the enviable close-up vision of a 12-year-old prodigy pointillist painter, squinting at a camera’s rear monitor held at arm’s length in bright daylight may not be your idea of the best way to discern framing and focus. read more…
Chrosziel Lens Projection with Metadata
2/22/21
Chrosziel Lens Projection with Metadata - Webinar: Lens metadata read-out is now available with the Chrosziel lens test projector.
Chrosziel will host Zoom meeting webinars about lens metadata read-out on the Chrosziel lens test projector–and more–on Feb 19 and Feb 22. Topics include a short introduction to Chrosziel P-TP7 II; Metadata display of Cooke /i, ZEISS XD, and ARRI LDS; Latest lens service products and accessories (MFT, RF, Leica M, Nikon F, USB-Adapter, Reticles); Newly updated Chrosziel Collimator with CLC Mount.
Panasonic LUMIX DC-BGH1
Panasonic calls it a box camera. Perhaps that is too modest a name for the LUMIX DC-BGH1. “Box” reminds me of the first Kodak box camera of 1888. It had a simple fixed lens and lacked controls. “You take the pictures, we do the rest.” Calling the BGH1 a box camera could be like comparing a Jiro (dreams of Sushi) Omakase experience to a box lunch. Yes, the LUMIX BGH1 is boxy on the outside, with sculpturally beveled and rounded edges. It will feel familiar for broadcasting, streaming, multi-cam and IP remote control. But the BGH1 is much more. read more…
Tags: Panasonic, Panasonic LUMIX DC-BGH1
SmallHD Indie 7 Monitor
Indie 7 is a new SmallHD 7″ touchscreen monitor, well, for independent filmmakers and many others. Some call it an entry level model, but perhaps that is a bit modest for something so packed with helpful features. This is probably the affordable monitor you’ll want to tame your new KOMODO. Optional software upgrades provide touchscreen camera control of RED KOMODO and DSMC2 cameras. read more…
FUJINON Premista 19-45 mm T2.9
Jan 14. FUJINON officially launches their new Premista 19-45 mm T2.9 Full Frame zoom lens. This third member of the Premista zoom family was first announced as being in development on Sept 2, 2020. Now it is here and will be released on January 28, 2021 with an online presentation that day (details to follow.) The three FUJINON Premistas cover from 19 mm to 250 mm: 19-45 mm T2.9. 28-100mm T2.9. 80-250mm T2.9-3.5. read more…
