mercer

Shooting in Super 8 and planning to project it in the 90s was about as useful as shooting with a Flip cam for a feature film today. But I do agree with you that these samples do not look exactly like Super 8 but they are reminiscent of it... Which is what I think was the point. With that being said, your video samples look nice. I am amazed to see how clean Super 8 negative stocks are now. A few months back, a bunch of videos were posted that looked absolutely stunning. I also agree with this, but I will say the biggest culprit of the "looks" in this thread is the shallow depth of field, especially with the wide shots. Super 8 had wide depth, so when the shallow depth of field reared it's head, it took me out of the small frame feel original Super 8 had. With that being said, I still think it's a very cool experiment. I wonder what an early HD cam could do... Maybe an HV20 windowboxed or using 4:3 guides... It may have a nice mix of definition and color that really could reproduce that Kodachrome feel. Also, I think Frank Glencairn has a highly regarded Kodachrome LUT that may be neato to mess with.

Just to be clear, when I asked about hard stops, I was referring to stops at the minimum ND and at the maximum, not a hard stop at every level of filtration. Do you have the original, or Mark II version?

I'm in my early 40s, so I am probably not too far behind you. That's a shame about the evf... The one on the G7 is brilliant. The G8 should work out all of the kinks with the GX85 I suppose... It seems like we're always a generation away...

I think that sounds like a cool camera, but it's not really in the spirit of the D16. I also question the rationale of changing a great camera? They never said they were stopping production due to lack of interest. To me, the message seemed more related to obtaining the materials in a cost effective way. A lot of people think the camera was overpriced, so if they couldn't source that sensor at a smaller or equivalent price, then it would really be overpriced. I get it... a lot of people do not like that vintage aesthetic, but if you go to their site or their Vimeo page and look at their Westerns that show off the D16 and the Kish lenses... I can easily argue that, dollar for dollar, the D16 is the best camera on the market!!!

As far as synching goes, yes double sound is a major pain in the ass. FCPX does make it a helluva a lot simpler with it's automatic synch... Which is insanely accurate btw. Also I think Max developed a simple analog workaround that created a tapping noise, similar to a slate, minus the annoyance of a slate, when he pushed the record button on his Zoom. With the GX85, doesn't the focus peaking work with the evf? Shouldn't that make focusing easier on your eyes?

Pretty interesting. First it looks really good and disturbing. The content has this weird Buster Keaton forgot to take his meds vibe. I recently bought the BMMCC and I have been having a blast using old c-mounts with it. The camera mixed with those lenses seem to give an instant vintage vibe. We're actually very lucky to have the resources available to us. Back in the 90s, it was shoot on film or don't make a movie. Then The Conversation was made in the early 2000s which helped to usher in the notion that SD DV can be used and acceptable for feature films. And then, etc, etc, etc and we fast forward to today where a filmmaker has so many options to make their films look modern and clean with high resolution or vintage or anywhere in between. It's an interesting experiment to revitalize these old SD cameras, but I believe the consumer cameras of today can excel at achieving a high end 70s film look, or a nostalgic 60s home movie look, or a gritty underground 16mm, or the French New Wave... The possibilities really are endless.

Looks cool Ed. I think there is an equal mix of analog video and old 8mm. Didn't you do a similar test about a year ago? Yeah, this looks wicked. It definitely has that old film look. Good job.

Does the SLR Magic have hard stops?

What I find kinda strange is that they recently lent one to Noam Kroll for a short he is working on, so it would seem that this decision to close shop is fairly new and abrupt. I, actually, don't like the design of the camera body. As you said, they stayed true to the traditional Bolex packaging, yet they went with the traditional Beaulieu body design instead of the simple Bolex design.

Here's a 4:3 version that one of the producers/editors through on his YouTube page. It has a little more of that traditional Kodachrome 40 look to it.

Since we're discussing Super 8, a good friend of mine and great director shot a super 8 film about 20 years ago while we were still a bunch of kids. The trailer went through the film to, analog video, to sitting on a shelf for 15 years to digital pipeline and ended up with a very cool, gritty, grungy look.

Dayum, he done dothed his cap to you.

Yeah, that should work with it. If you're looking for a 12.5mm, I have two extra copies I am looking to sell that both cover the sensor and fit into the adapters without modification... the Fujinon 12.5mm f/1.4 and a Cosmicar 12.5mm f/1.9. Yeah, I just got burned with the 15mm Angenieux... It's my own fault really. He listed some of the flaws, but never mentioned anything about the focus. Since he mentioned the flaws, I stupidly overlooked the focus and sure enough, the focus ring is a little too stiff. Do you know how complex it is to relube focus mechanisms? Or a pro that works with these old c-mounts?

Honestly. That's probably the nicest footage I have seen from the camera.

I was looking at their site last week because I had read that they had a simplistic raw conversion software and while I was there I had read and watched all there was to read and watch and I can honestly say that the raw they were using in those D16s was nothing short of gorgeous. It was like a perfect mix between 5d ML and BM raw and in a lot of ways better looking. I also loved the small videos featuring their Kish lenses... Specifically the 18mm. If anyone has one they want to sell, keep me in my mind.

Gotcha. It is an expensive holiday... I guess I just figured with the traffic you get on your YouTube channel, that it paid for your toys. I would love to see a feature film of yours made with that D16 though... Am a big fan of your work.

It sounds like a totally different camera that Fuji could make at any time without buying Digital Bolex. Fuji should definitely make that camera, but where are the ingredients from the D16 that made it such a special camera?

I love b&w but I don't think I would ever pay more for the D16-M than I would for the D16. Leica is another story I suppose. I can't believe you are considering selling off your second D16?

I do think the D16 Monochrome wasn't priced properly... If that camera came in under $2000, there would have definitely had been a large niche market for it. But then again, I'm sure it was priced appropriately for what it cost to manufacture and unfortunately this is why it is very difficult for smaller camera companies to get market share.

I almost bought the Sigma 28mm f1.8 the other day for a steal, but since I started shooting with the BMMCC, I have really found an appreciation for S16 c mounts and micro 4/3 lenses... Mostly the Sigma 2.8 line, and possibly a Rokinon 12mm. Instead of going the speedbooster route, I like the idea of using lenses intended for that format to take advantage of the quirks and flaws of lenses designed for a sensor/camera of that size. I am curious what your thoughts are involving only using lenses made for full frame with these huge crop sensors... Do you feel by only using the center most portion of the lens, that we are losing some of the characteristics those lenses were designed for?

Yeah, this is kinda sad. The D16 had a major influence on my decision to strive for higher DR and a more robust codec and color space. Unfortunately, I couldn't afford the D16, so I went with the BMMCC, but I had hoped that in a few years time I could be shooting on my own shiny and new D16. I imagine similar choices like mine eventually was too much for the small firm to compete. I wonder if an H8 version of their D16, at a price point similar to the pocket cam could have saved them? Who knows. On another note, has anyone used their software? It looks like a nice program... and I wonder if that will still be available?

I briefly had an a5100 and I remember getting good results with portrait. Being a Nikon guy, I would have thought you would have gone with the D500. Well it looks like you made a great choice because the images look stellar. Gotta love those Voigts.

Looks nice, how are you liking the Sony?

Another lens test, this time with the Angenieux 15mm c-mount and the BMMCC...

Has anyone noticed any weird color/contrast shifts lately with their uploaded Vimeo videos?