Photos of Letus extreme + HVX200 and questions on basics

Deuceofspades

Deuceofspades

Veteran
So I just got my whole set-up finally assembled. Hope I did it right. I followed the directions mailed with LetusX... ran into a few problems:

1- Got the bracket with LetusX and it is supposed to line up the adapter to the lense perfect, but did not. I fou nd my brand new rails from Canavision, were not centered, so I fixed that. It helped a lot, but I am still not perfect center.

QUESTION 1 - HOW VITAL IS IT TO BE PERFECTLY CENTERED?

2- Now I tried to shoot. Not sure I am doing it right, there are more parameters now to play with so I need to know the basics when shooting with adapter.

QUESTION 2 - WHERE DO YOU SET YOU F STOP ON YOUR CAMCORDER? I suppose you don't want it all the way open since you lose about 10% of res that way... So where at... 2.8?

3- No way to zoom in or out of an image anymore. OK, I can live with that since you are not supposed to zoom when doing a feature film.

4- Focus is done with 35 mm lense. I practiced and got good at rackfocussing, even without follow focus (still have to order one). but of course DOF will depend greatly on how open the lense is and that brings the most vital question I have:

QUESTION 3 - Now there are 3 ways of controlling how much light you let in:
A)- your lense f stop B)- your camcorder iris and C)- your camcorder shutter speed - SO WHAT IS THE CORRECT WAY TO GO ABOUT IT?

On my first try, I tried all kinds of ways of doing it LOL. I quickly found that using the lense F stop would greatly impact the DOF, so I decided to make the DOF my priority. hence I dialed how much DOF I wanted for the shot and locked the f stop on the 35 mm lense there. then I used my camcorder iris and shutter speed to compensate as needed... is that the proper approach?

thank you for you help you guys!

PHOTOS:

And who says size doesn't matter??? :)

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Looks like a lethal seapon (with double barrel - ready to SHOOT everything - pun intended! HAHA!)

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good questions...I wonder the same thing as you are....since I am having the same setup...
 
Question 1: Are you talking about your composition of the shot? If so, rarely should your subject be centered perfectly in the frame. Composition wise, it just makes for a flat and boring image. There are tons of books on cinematography and shot composition, check em out.
Question 2: On your HVX, try to stay around 5.6
I know that in low light that may not be possible.
Question 3: You can also use an ND filter infront of your 35mm lense. Since you are using the Letus, dont close that lens down to much or you will start to see grain. If you are outside on a bright day, close down the HVX first to 5.6 and then adjust your 35mm lens to its limit before grain, after that use an ND.
 
I guess your questions are answered. Only thing I'd say is it pays to gaffer tape your hvx focus ring down when you find the right focus. I've gone through a number of shots not noticing that i had bumped it and everything was soft.
Now for my question to you: that's Cinevate rail system, right? How do you like it? How long are those rods? Look really long.
 
pdsage10 said:
Question 1: Are you talking about your composition of the shot? If so, rarely should your subject be centered perfectly in the frame. Composition wise, it just makes for a flat and boring image. There are tons of books on cinematography and shot composition, check em out.
Question 2: On your HVX, try to stay around 5.6
I know that in low light that may not be possible.
Question 3: You can also use an ND filter infront of your 35mm lense. Since you are using the Letus, dont close that lens down to much or you will start to see grain. If you are outside on a bright day, close down the HVX first to 5.6 and then adjust your 35mm lens to its limit before grain, after that use an ND.
Click to expand...

No question #1 was not referring to composition, of course not, it was referring to the ground glass lining up perfectly centered when you zoom all the way out with HVX200. I found my adapter was alittle to the left. I tried to adjust it as much as I could loosening the 3 little screws and moving the adapter a bit, but since I have a support braket, it was a real pain in the you know what...

OK, Please explain why HVX needs to be at 5.6 specifically. Ande what aboutmy shutter speed?

Since posting this I talked to Disjecta, and he gave me his 2 cents. Curious to see if everyone is approaching it the same way or not, so please do share your own way of dialing it in.

It owuld be nice if Letus gave you a little pamphlet explaining the very basics, sorat like a mini manual? right now you're pretty much on your own or really have to dig for the answers - who has the time for it? I know I don't.
 
Hi Faith,

for filmish look you use that 180 Film mode shutterspeed. Try to keep it there for the sake of a consistent overall look.

Get a mattebox with filterholders if you don´t have one.

Controll too much light with ND/Nd grad filters first bevore you touch.

1. Cam iris - thats what you using most
2. 35mm iris - sacrify DOF
3. shutterspeed - your last option

In lowlight - use more light before you change your settings - if possible.

Frank
 
Postmaster said:
for filmish look you use that 180 Film mode shutterspeed.
Click to expand...

I think this maybe confusing to some.

Postmaster is referring to the angle of the shutter (180 degrees), not to be confused with the shutter speed. Shutter speed is considered "normal" at 1/48th if shooting 24p.
 
Deuceofspades said:
QUESTION 1 - HOW VITAL IS IT TO BE PERFECTLY CENTERED?
Click to expand...

So long as you fill the frame with your picture and no "edges" are showing, it doesn't matter if you are perfectly centered or not.


Deuceofspades said:
3- No way to zoom in or out of an image anymore. OK, I can live with that since you are not supposed to zoom when doing a feature film.
Click to expand...

This is not completely true. There are some who have been able to emulate that zoom look by actually zooming onto the ground glass a little. You can experiment to see how far you can do it before it becomes unacceptable but the Extreme's smooth GG allows you to do it more than on other adapters.
 
Faith,
1 it's not vital to have the adapter perfectly centered, this is more of an issue with the hvx rather than the extreme. I'm zoomed into about 24mm to lose the edge vignette.
2. and 3. I shoot at 2.4 all the time with no problems. Just choose the f-stop on the still lense that you want for the depth of field look that you need and adjust the hvx's iris and/or ND filters to get a proper exposure. Don't worry about using the internal ND's - it's not a problem. I would however try to stay under 5.6 on the HVX and the still lens.

It is possible to zoom on the HVX - I get a 24mm to 55mm zoom range. There's a slight drop in resolution at the long end but I don't think it noticeable unless you are really looking for it.
One thing I would say is that it is important to tape the focus ring off once you set it and remember what number the focus was set at - I've tried it on 3 different hvx's but it usually seems to be around 5.64. Oh, and remember to turn the adapter on which is why i've mounted mine in a "snorkel" configuration with the on/off switch at the top so I can see it.
I've shot 3 jobs with the extreme in the last 3 weeks and the adapter has practically paid for itself. I can't say enough good things about it.
Regards,
Shane.
 
What jobbies have u had lowdown? I'm trying to think of ways to start paying myself back for all the money spent on equipment. Not attempting to steal the thread.
 
PaPa said:
What jobbies have u had lowdown? I'm trying to think of ways to start paying myself back for all the money spent on equipment. Not attempting to steal the thread.
Click to expand...
Mostly talking heads - some web interviews for american legacy foundation and 2 shoots for the Texas governor's office. I shot in a laboratory last week with the letus and my camtram and got some really nice footage.
 
The HVX's lens was designed, to be shot wide open. you only lose like 3% of your resolution, and thats negligable. keep your 35mm lens iris where you want it for DOF controll, then dial in exposure with the HVX iris. Your shutter speed depends on the look you want to achieve.
 
LowDown said:
Mostly talking heads - some web interviews for american legacy foundation and 2 shoots for the Texas governor's office. I shot in a laboratory last week with the letus and my camtram and got some really nice footage.
Click to expand...

hmm, wonder how to find these gigs..

perhaps craigslist?
 
TimurCivan said:
The HVX's lens was designed, to be shot wide open. you only lose like 3% of your resolution, and thats negligable. keep your 35mm lens iris where you want it for DOF controll, then dial in exposure with the HVX iris. Your shutter speed depends on the look you want to achieve.
Click to expand...

WEll I'll be darn! I was still applying the same rules as the DVX-100B, which I JUST upgraded from.

Good to know THANKS for the tip!

Also I like your approach, makes sense to me.
 
DeuceofSpades,
I'm still wondering how you like your Cinvate rails. I'm getting really impatient waiting for the more expensive Letus rails (especially since they've stopped giving updates and haven't shown a proto. My LEX has just been shipped, I don't plan on getting a Mattebox, so I'll have virtually the same setup as you. Have you noticed any problems? Is it quick and easy to set up? Sturdy? Can you see a reason to wait for the LEX rails and spend more money?
thanks!
 
shortnstout said:
DeuceofSpades,
I'm still wondering how you like your Cinvate rails. I'm getting really impatient waiting for the more expensive Letus rails (especially since they've stopped giving updates and haven't shown a proto. My LEX has just been shipped, I don't plan on getting a Mattebox, so I'll have virtually the same setup as you. Have you noticed any problems? Is it quick and easy to set up? Sturdy? Can you see a reason to wait for the LEX rails and spend more money?
thanks!
Click to expand...
Here is an update: It'll be released this week. Every little piece (except for the screws) is custom. Multi color with Blue base plate, silver cam plate, black anodized to rail pieces and raisers, silver custom thumbscrews. Shinny silver rails with screw-on extend-able, weight balancing, X-Y-Z adjustable.
 
oh wow! This week.? I can wait a couple days to see it if it is worth the price as compared to the $230 Cinevate. Thanks for the update! Sounds interesting. Was there a final decided price? Are there different options for packages? Why did you decide to go silver instead of carbon rods?
 
shortnstout said:
oh wow! This week.? I can wait a couple days to see it if it is worth the price as compared to the $230 Cinevate. Thanks for the update! Sounds interesting. Was there a final decided price? Are there different options for packages? Why did you decide to go silver instead of carbon rods?
Click to expand...


Actually what I have are cavision rails. It is a Canadian company. They were around $200 + shipping. having never used rails before I may not be the right person to give feedback. But I like the way they look and they took 15 seconds to assemble. The company was referrd to me by Disjecta, he uses their rails too.
 
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