We’ve been selling the BlackMagic Design HDMI to SDI mini converter box, and it has quickly become popular with our clients. It is the only HDMI to SDI converter that will accept both HD HDMI signals, as well as the SD HDMI signal from the 5D Mark II camera. For those of you that don’t know this unusual fact, the 5D Mark II outputs HD HDMI until you hit record. When recording, the signal changes to SD and most converter boxes just stop working. BlackMagic’s box will work with both signals, at least up until recently. BlackMagic released a new firmware for their box – version 1.5 – which has some nice fixes but it also happens to break the SD conversion option. If you upgraded your BlackMagic, or just purchased one recently, then it might not work 100% with the 5D Mark II. BlackMagic knows about the problem and will address it in the next firmware, but until then we recommend sticking with firmware version 1.4. You can easily downgrade the box also if you are having this problem. Download the firmware version 1.4 for Mac here, or for Windows here and just attach the converter via a USB cable – it should only take a couple of seconds to install.

Caroline Champetier shoots with the Aaton Penelope

Among the winners at this year’s Cannes Film Festival was Xavier Beauvois’ Of Gods And Men (Des hommes et des dieux), based on a true story and shot on the Aaton Penelope. Revolving around a group of Cisternian monks facing threats from Islamic fundamentalists in the mountains of Algeria, the film brought home the Grand Prix, the second highest prize awarded at the festival.

For a film in which the landscape played such an important part, it was important for Beauvois to work with a Director of Photography that understood his vision – enter Caroline Champetier. “The first question we asked ourselves, Xavier and me, was that of format,” she says. They decided to use the Penelope and shoot in 2-perf in order to preserve the 2.35:1 aspect ratio.

Champetier praised the camera’s design and comfort: “It allowed me to have real stability…it’s long and its center of gravity is very low, the sight is clear and bright. This camera allowed me a subtle and sensitive accompaniment of movement…” She concludes that “it was particularly reassuring, intoxicating even, to realize that we had the perfect tool to translate exactly what we wanted onto film.”

The filmmakers also chose Aaton’s Cantar Digital Audio Recorder for its flexibility and ease-of-use. Read an in-depth interview with Champetier about her experiences shooting Of Gods And Men here (French).

Convergent Design is constantly adding new features to their nanoFlash HDSDI recorder. On their last update they added  overcrank / undercrank recording. Many of our clients have the Panasonic VariCam or the HDX900, and are looking for a tapeless recording option. With high quality-recording and the new variable frame rate recording option, the nanoFlash can really extend the life of these cameras. Check out this quick guide to get your HDX900 or VariCam working with 720 24p recording, 720 30p recording, and overcrank / undercrank mode using the nanoFlash.

…continue reading HDX900 & VariCam with the nanoFlash

At NAB last month, Zeiss introduced an updated version of their popular Arri/Zeiss LWZ-1 zoom. The new LWZ.2 is a 15.5-45mm zoom that features outstanding image quality and is available in multiple, interchangeable mounts (PL, EF, F). Perfect for use with HDSLR cameras such as the Canon 7D, as well as more traditional cine cameras, the lens covers the full Super-35 frame and weighs only about 4.4 pounds (2 kg). Read Zeiss’s full press release on the LWZ.2 lightweight zoom here.

Mitch got a chance to get some hands-on time with the LWZ.2 at Zeiss’s booth – check out his video on Vimeo or YouTube.

A lens is a lens is a lens, and it doesn’t know what size sensor or film gate is placed behind it.  A lens projects light and the magnification size of that projection is determined by its focal length.

Nevertheless, there has always been a great deal of confusion associated with the focal length of lenses and their relationship to the size of the image area.

I’ve read many explanations in various books and on the internet over the years and authored some of them myself. But often written explanations confuse as much as they explain. If a picture is worth a 1000 words, I figure this video is equal to a small novella on the subject. Many people seem to use the various optical terms incorrectly or interchangeably, so I figured showing what happens would help demystify the concepts involved.

Need to generate timecode easily on your iPhone or iPad? There’s an app for that.

JumpStart LTC is an elegant and easy to use app designed by Abel client Edward Richardson, which generates a Longitudinal Timecode audio signal. It also allows you to manually set your frame rate and userbits. Simply plug in a headphone cable to your iPhone/iPad, connect the other end to the timecode slate (or other device) of your choice, and it will jam sync to JumpStart LTC. Since iPhones have become such ubiquitous sights on any shoot, it’s always great when something like this comes along to make our lives a little easier.

For more info, visit the iTunes App Store or the official site here. JumpStart LTC is 50% off for the entire month of May!

Recently, I got a chance to play with one of Canon’s newest lenses the HJ15ex8.5 2/3″ ENG-style HDTV lens. It features Canon’s advanced Vari-Angle Prism Image Stabilizer (VAP-IS) technology, allowing users to adjust for specific shooting situations – perfect for handheld work while walking, running, or on a moving vehicle. Check out the video to see my overview of the lens’s key features.