A DIT Tent that Comes in Camo? Uber-Awesomeness!

This is cool. Paying out $1500 bucks to Village Blackout is not.

So what's a cash-strapped Digital Imaging Tech to do? How about buying a Hunting Blind instead?

Is the Gaffer giving you a hard time 'cause your DIT tent is bouncing more light than his 20x? I suggest getting the Undercover 360 in Mossy Oak.


Working on a feature deep in the heart of Siberia? You won't go wrong with the addition of a Snow Camo Cover.


Shooting on the prairies of Nebraska and you need room for three? Don't sweat it. Beavertail's got you covered. Literally.


By the way, the above is probably the best picture ever taken and/or created in Photoshop.

I bought my camo rig at the Bass Pro Shop in Rancho Cucamonga for a buck and a quarter. It's got windows, a roof flap, and a hook for hanging up any fresh meat. Best of all, I don't have to move out of the wide shot when shooting on a golf course.


Hey! Check out those extras hanging out next to that bush! Nice!


I'm gonna spend the $1375 I saved by seeing Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World at the Academy in Pasadena over and over again 'cause it's the BEST MOVIE EVA! And if you haven't seen it you should be ashamed of yourself for not supporting a studio film chock full of creativity, originality, and awesomenesses.

Own an ALEXA and Put It On Your iPad... For Free!

Don't have 75K in your back pocket? Still at the bottom of the waiting list? Just can't get enough cool toys for your tablet?

Well give it up to ARRI once again. Now you can have your own ALEXA in cyberspace. Or better yet, download the ALEXA Camera Simulator right to your iPad. Now all you'll have to do is figure out how to attach that 27mm Master Prime.

What Does ALEXA's Log C Look Like?

I've been really nutso busy lately and am still deciding how I'm gonna make sense of the ALEXA ASA/Gain test I did a week back. But for now I thought I'd share a short clip of the ALEXA's Log C capture with and without a color-corrected LUT applied. This was a 3D LUT made in the field as a quick reference color grade and not a simple transform LUT. You can really see (even on the small, small screen) how much detail the ALEXA picks up in the shadow areas of the frame (pay close attention to our ladies hair).

ALEXA Log C + LUT from Adrian Jebef on Vimeo.

And check out this article from ARRI's website. It's a quick Q&A with DP Anna Foerster on her experience using the ALEXA for the first time.

ALEXA Initial Impressions

I have been lucky enough to have gotten my hands on Arri's new ALEXA digital cinema camera. Actually, I've done three separate jobs with the ALEXA so far and am starting another one tomorrow. For about six months I have been waiting with baited breath in anticipation of this camera system. I had hoped it would deliver. I had at least pleaded that it would deliver 75% on its promises. I can tell you right now, unequivocally, that this camera, simply stated: over-delivers.

Everything you may have heard is true... and then some. This is the new standard for digital acquisition. I can say, for the first time, that this camera looks as good as 35mm film. In fact, I doubt that anyone could tell the difference between properly lit and exposed 35mm negative and properly lit and exposed ALEXA Log C capture. This is the first digital cinema camera. Period. It does not look like a video camera. It is smooth and silky. Much like film. And has such unbelievable dynamic range that you will crap yourself if you haven't already.

Arri has outdone themselves. This is a company that I have always admired. That I have always put at the top of any list. This company does not sit still. They are constantly evolving and pushing the boundaries. However, they are German. And being German requires a certain level of commitment to excellence. Sometimes this commitment can be an Achilles heel. For example, the 35mm BL was a workhorse of a camera, but it needed to be replaced. So Arri introduced the 535a, a 35mm film camera built like a tank and weighing almost as much. It had an electronically adjustable shutter, speed ramping, arriglow, a huge and bright viewfinder, etc. All of the specs screamed perfection, but the camera was just too damn big and bulky. Have you every tried a hand-held shot with a 535a and a 400ft mag? How about riding one on a steadicam? The thing just kills. About ten years later Arri introduces the Arricam ST and LT. C'mon. We can say it together: The Arricam LT is the best 35mm sync-sound motion picture camera ever designed and built. Period. And so it was with the Arri D-20. A great design on paper, but not so much on location. The D-21 proved Arri's point that it could produce a digital camera that looked great. As long as it was a day exterior or you had an uber budget for G&E.

So here we are. It's September of 2010 and Christmas has come early. Arri has produced the standard. Nothing else even comes close. Out of the box the ALEXA is stunning. It is small, compact, well-designed, intuitive, simple, and elegant. It also happens to weigh quite a bit more than you'd think (I've gotten accustomed to calling it "The Brick"). But the weight adds confidence. This is a motion picture camera. It is not made of plastic and rubber. It will not crack or throw a tantrum. It was built like a tank (in a good way this time). And it has a soft side. The ALEXA's pictures are simply gorgeous. There is an incredible smoothness to this ALEV-III sensor that I've never seen before in digital cameras. The ALEXA is sharp, of course, but not like a F35. It is a new world. And we should be happy.

This was a bit of school-boy gushing on my part but I just had to get it out. My next post will include an ASA/Gain test that I just finished this afternoon. With ALEXA's native 800 ASA sensitivity I wanted to objectively measure any reduced dynamic range under middle grey when the camera's ASA is set lower (like to 400 or even 200). From just observing the camera in the field I suspect that any reduction of DR is going to be purely academic, but I'll have the real data up soon and we can take a better look.

One last thought... I know there are those out there amongst us that may be impressed with the ALEXA but are still waiting on the next generation of digital cameras from RED. I admire your loyalty. I'm sure the Epic or the 83.2K Super Iliad will be just awesome. I am intrigued. That being said, there is not a lot that I would change on the ALEXA. I do not see much room for improvement. Resolution? Sure. But as any film professional will tell you there is more to resolution than merely resolution. Dynamic range, sharpness, contrast, all of these affect resolution. A higher K doesn't always add up. But one thing is for sure. When the history books are written our film scholars will no doubt note the impact that RED had on the future of digital cinema. Because without the RED ONE dropping into our laps those few short years ago we would never have Arri's ALEXA. Here's to more industry shake-ups!

And here's a few screen grabs from my last few ALEXA jobs...

These stills were captured from ALEXA's LOG C out, routed through a Cine-tal 24" Class 1 HD Monitor, color-corrected via SpeedGrade OnSet, and outputted to a QuickTime movie file. They represent a quick and dirty snapshot from a much more beautiful machine.


ALEXA @ ASA 320


ALEXA @ ASA 800


ALEXA @ ASA 400


ALEXA @ ASA 1600 with a Cooke S5i 24mm Lens at T1.4 and lit entirely with a source 4 backlight and a kino barfly about 15ft from our star.

Is Your Waveform Stuck in the Past?

Having a professional-grade waveform monitor on the set to analyze exposure is absolutely critical when dealing with digital capture. And if you were to take a survey of all the sets across the entire country on any one day you'd find that 99.9% of the waveform monitors used to judge exposure are set to an IRE percentage scale. Unfortunately, the IRE scale is simply the wrong tool to use for digital capture. Let me explain...

The IRE scale is named after The Institute of Radio Engineers which was first formed in 1912. The IRE merged with another engineering society in 1963 and is now known as The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers or IEEE. IRE's as a unit of measurement are designed to measure an incoming composite video signal in milivolts (mV) and then convert it to a 0 - 100 percentage scale where 0% is black and 100% is white. The reason IRE's use a 100% scale is because a composite video signal is an analog signal. There are no discreet points in an analog signal as an analog signal by definition can be thought of as a continuous wave not as specific points on a graph. An amplitude scale from 0-100 makes a lot of sense when dealing with analog signals because this scale gives you a relative understanding of video gain. The brighter the pixel in the image the closer to 100 IRE. The darker the pixel the closer to 0 IRE. But because this is a relative scale each luminance value in a pixel is simply an approximation when transferred onto an IRE % waveform. The pixel's luminance does not correspond directly with a specific IRE % because the pixel is not discreetly sampled like it is in digital video. The IRE scale is still a great way to monitor your video images. As long as they are analog video images. Which is another way of saying that the IRE scale was designed and is intended for standard definition video only.

So why do we still use an SD scale for HD video? Simple: legacy. It's human nature. Once you get used to something, why change? Many of the engineers that were designing this stuff twenty years ago are still around designing it today. All of your brand-spankin' new Leader waveform monitors will come equipped with an IRE scale. We've all gotten accustomed to it. Our DP's are finally accustomed to asking that skin tones settle in to 40 IRE. What will they think when we tell them this whole thing has been a sham right from the beginning?

Don't sweat it just correct it. In digital video a camera sensor's ability to capture differences in illumination is dependent on its quantization level or bit depth. The higher the bit depth the more discreet steps of luminance a sensor can discern. An 8-bit sensor can make out 256 discreet differences in luminance. A 10-bit sensor 1024. 12-bit 4096. And 14-bit 16,384. Depending on the bit-depth range each pixel on a digital sensor will assign a discreet value for every step of luminance difference within a scene. This number is known as a coded value.

When dealing with digital video you want the ability to use a waveform monitor to identify discreet differences in luminance within a scene. A coded value scale is the only scale that will give you these discreet readings. For most applications a 10-bit scale is standard and user-friendly. Again, there are 1024 discreet steps of luminance in a 10-bit image. Looking at a waveform coded value scale we would find 0 at the bottom of the scale representing total black and 1023 at the top of the scale representing total white. This scale will usually also be identified with 100/75/50/25/0% markings. A coded value of 940 will correspond to 100%. 721 is 75%. 502 is 50%. 283 is 25%. And 64 is 0%. Here's a scale that includes both IRE % and 10-bit coded values for Sony's S-Log gamma curve.


We can see that these 10-bit coded values get close to an IRE % scale. But for what I do, close is not good enough.

It's about time that we start embracing the coded value scale when we discuss luminance within a digital video signal. It is the only correct way in which to truly monitor HD video. One British company that insists on using code values on all of its waveform scales is OmniTek. They're propelling HD test measurement into the future where it belongs, not into the past where just about everyone else is stuck.

So the next time your DP asks for skin tones to hit 40 IRE let her know that they look fantastic at 420d.

Why the Weisscam is My New Best Friend

So you wanna shoot high-speed HD? Get a Phantom Gold, right? Sure, if you enjoy headaches. Now I don't want to knock Vision Research too much here, but truth be told: the Phantom line of high-speed digital cameras is a pain to work with. I like to compare a Phantom HD Gold to a 2-year old toddler: every thing's just dandy until you take away their ice-cream or forget to perform a black balance every ten seconds.

These cameras can produce stunning, high-resolution images BUT you MUST baby them. Their sensors are extremely susceptible to temperature changes. This is why it is a requirement to constantly check your image and make sure it is clean before every take. If you don't, you'll end up with superbad mojo in post and even worse juju in life. I'm also not a huge fan of the windows operating system that is the foundation of the Phantom's capture software. It works, but then it doesn't. Freezes. Reboot. Not a fan. Remember, Arri never had me boot up Windows XP in order to shoot 150fps on a 435. I really don't see the need for Vision Research to insist on such a weak interface.

OK, enough about the Phantom. Like everything else, it's a tool. Until it fails...

Which brings me to the Weisscam HS-2. As far as I know there are only two HS-2's in LA via Clairmont Camera. Tentative steps...

The Weisscam solves some of the Phantom's shortcomings by running an automatic black reference calibration that constantly, and on the fly, evaluates the dark noise in an image and adjusts for the best image quality. This is a huge advantage as there is no need to interrupt shooting to perform any "Wizard-of-Oz" techie tricks.

The Weisscam's workflow approach is similar to the Phantom's in that the camera is meant to constantly store frames (at a specified frame rate) in an internal RAM module while waiting for the operator to tell it to stop. Once a recording is stopped the preceding footage must be output to either the Weisscam Digital Magazine or via the camera's HD-SDI outputs where it can be captured in real-time (1000fps played back at 24) with a SRW-1, nanoFlash, or other HD recording device. The internal RAM buffer stores image frames as sort of free floating information. None of it is actually recorded onto any media or hard drive. It simply holds your shot there temporarily until you send it out to a recorder or begin recording right over it again. That's why if the camera loses power you've also lost your shot. It was never actually stored anywhere, it was just present for a fleeting moment...

That's precisely why there are two power inputs on the camera body. In case of a battery failure any shot stored on the internal RAM buffer won't vanish into thin air like it would if you have to reboot Windows (hint). Power redundancy is a good thing to have in high-speed digital capture. Does the new Phantom Flex have two power inputs? Yes, I think it does. About time, boys.


And did I mention that the Weisscam comes with this small, super-sweet, touch sensitive LCD, remote bluetooth controller so you can turn the camera on and off effortlessly when you've got it mounted on a 50ft Technocrane? Oh, right, VR also introduced their RCU. About time, boys...

Tech Tips with Your Nano

Here's a few observations from the field when using the nanoFlash on high-end, digital cinema cameras like the Sony F35 and Arri D-21.

The nano is a very smart machine. It will automatically detect an incoming HD video signal and display its format at the bottom of the LCD screen. If you are unsure of what a camera is sending you via its HD-SDI out make sure you take a moment to check with the nano.

I've used the nasnoFlash to record directly off a Sony F35's interface box with no problems. But the "monitor out" SDI outputs will NOT pass any Timecode or audio information. Take note because this is important. If you need embedded audio and TC then you must connect the nanoFlash to one of the SDI outs on the interface box. And if you are shooting 4:4:4 then your best bet is to separate the SRW-1 from the camera body, connect it to the SRPC-1 Video Processor (aka: The Toaster!), and use the monitor out SDI output. Just be sure to take note that this signal is set at a default 59.94i frame rate. This means that if you have set the F35 at 23.98PsF you will NOT be getting a true 24P signal coming out of the toaster. If you've enabled your nanoFlash to record PsF but have not added a 3:2 pulldown to the 29.98PsF out you'll end up with motion artifacts.


Fortunately, you can easily add a 3:2 pulldown after the fact to get your 23.98PsF back. But you're best off by either setting a 3:2 pulldown via the SRW-1's video menu or enabling a 3:2 pulldown in the nanoFlash itself.

Also of great interest is the ability for the nano to accept a Timecode Trigger to begin recording. If you are working in a Record Run TC mode this means that the nanoFlash will begin recording when you hit your camera's record button (as soon as the TC advances). If you're working with a single-system (audio + video are one) this is a sleek and efficient process. If you're running a dual-system (audio + video are separate and will be matched later in post) then you're most likely using a Time-of-Day TC mode and you'll have to trigger your nano manually.

Some more tidbits: A 32GB CF card will easily hold more than 50min. worth of 23.98PsF material at 50Mbps Long-GOP (HDCAM SR anyone?). At 100Mbps you'll get about 40min.

You can record any Log Gamma modes with a nanoFlash including S-Log, Panalog, etc. as long as you're sending the nano a 4:2:2 signal. Your D-21 set to Log-C 4:4:4 will have you seeing funny things in post production.

You may need to add the XDCAM plugin to Quicktime Player in order to view nano QTs properly. Check: Sony Support or Calibrated Software or Perian.

Be sure to consult Convergent Designs approved Media page when picking out CF cards to use with your nanoFlash. It never hurts to test something before you push the button and sink the Titanic.

Finally, the nano3D rig is right around the corner. Having two synced nanoFlashes for 3D television and commercial work will be just awesome. Plus I bet you can record 4:4:4...