Alexa Studio... from an operating perspective?

Grug

Grug

Veteran
Hi guys and girls,

Not sure if many people on here have much experience with this, but I have a feature coming up later in the year and I'm liking the idea of using an Alexa Studio for it. We'll have quite a lot of practical light flashes in the film, so I like the idea of the mirror shutter to avoid the partial exposure frames that a conventional rolling shutter yields.

However I haven't seen the Studio model up close before, and haven't shot through an optical viewfinder since shooting 16mm short films at uni a **gulp** decade ago.

I was wondering if anyone could comment on their experiences using the Studio compared to a conventional Alexa?


- How did you find the optical viewfinder after becoming used to what-you-see-is-what-you-get with electronic viewfinders?
- Did the extra weight of the camera make much of a difference on set?
- Was 800 ISO a problem outdoors having to put so much ND in front of the lens (and therefore darken the image coming into the optical viewfinder)?
- Did the noise from the mirror shutter cause any issues for sound recording?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Cheers,

Mark
 
I can't comment on filming with alexa studio since I've only just played with it at rental houses but I can answer these based on shooting film with an optical viewfinder and compare that to shooting alexa:

Shooting with an optical viewfinder is totally different, it's like just looking at real life but through the window of whatever lens you put on. You have to pretty much forget about wysiwyg except you can still see lighting contrast. You'll have to rely solely on a light meter, which isn't a bad thing. The image is really sharp but I do miss that 1:1 pixel punch in just to check critical focus that digital viewfinders provide. One thing to note with the alexa studio is that while you are looking through the optical finder, no image is being projected on the sensor so hense- no video is coming out of the sdi, there is basically a button you can switch back and forth so if you want the mirror to rest I'm position where you can compose through the optical viewfinder or in a position where the optical viewfinder is blacked
Out but you get the full sdi out from the sensor for onboard monitor and video village.

The alexa studio is REALLY HEAVY even heavier than some sync 35mm cameras. Handheld would hurt on a feature, not sure if your doing that but something to think about if you are. Easy Rig and limiting the time the ops have to hold the camera would help for sure.

I can't really speak to shooting 800 iso outside but I have shot alot of 500t film outside and on a bright day with lots of nd, the optical viewfinder does get really dark. Not unmanageable but again since your forgetting wysiwyg there isn't a problem even though your brain might tell you otherwise! I want to say the alexa studio has a slot to put nds out if the optical path like the arricam ST and LT, maybe check that option?

Regarding audiable noise from the mirror shutter, you would never have a problem with it. It's so quiet,even quieter than a film camera. I think the fans on the alexa are actually louder than anything you would hear from the shutter.

I'd go play with one at a rental house and see what you think!
 
My experience with the Studio is very limited. Had it hanging out of the side door of a mini van for driveby shots of Detroit, & due to the camera position I mostly used a onboard monitor for framing. The Studio lived in the van & we had a pair of XTs for all our other needs.

The optical viewfinder felt a bit dark, & watching the mirror spin up somewhat retro, but as the drivebys were at 48-60fps I found the mirror shutter unnecessary & eventually shut it off, which allowed picking off shots more spontaneously.

Never got a chance to test but it is possible to use an EVF on the Studio.
 
Thanks guys, really appreciate the advice.

The Studio has a 4.3 stop internal ND that can swing in front of the sensor (but behind the shutter), which will certainly help on the ND front since I wouldn't need to put more than four stops (maximum) in front of the lens.

I suspect we'll mostly live on sticks/dolly for this film, so not anticipating a lot of handheld, but the weight is a little daunting (particularly if I end up shooting on zooms, which is highly likely).

You can pull the optical viewfinder off and replace it with an evf (which would perhaps simplify things a bit more, and would save a bit of weight), but part of me quite likes the idea of an optical viewfinder for composition and operating.

Does the shutter only spin up when you hit record?
 
Grug said:
Thanks guys, really appreciate the advice.

The Studio has a 4.3 stop internal ND that can swing in front of the sensor (but behind the shutter), which will certainly help on the ND front since I wouldn't need to put more than four stops (maximum) in front of the lens.

I suspect we'll mostly live on sticks/dolly for this film, so not anticipating a lot of handheld, but the weight is a little daunting (particularly if I end up shooting on zooms, which is highly likely).

You can pull the optical viewfinder off and replace it with an evf (which would perhaps simplify things a bit more, and would save a bit of weight), but part of me quite likes the idea of an optical viewfinder for composition and operating.

Does the shutter only spin up when you hit record?
Click to expand...

What's great is that you can also frame up the camera without the camera being on!

As mentioned you can save weight by removing the OVF if you don't want it and just operate via a monitor feed or an EVF. OVF is great for operating as long as you don't forget it's OVF.

I'd prefer to operate with OVF, but if I'm DP and Operating, I might want to go EVF, so that I could also keep an eye on the real image too. But OVF is pretty sweet.
 
Ryan Patrick O'Hara said:
What's great is that you can also frame up the camera without the camera being on!
Click to expand...

I REALLY like that feature - especially given how power hungry the damned thing is!

Ryan Patrick O'Hara said:
As mentioned you can save weight by removing the OVF if you don't want it and just operate via a monitor feed or an EVF. OVF is great for operating as long as you don't forget it's OVF.

I'd prefer to operate with OVF, but if I'm DP and Operating, I might want to go EVF, so that I could also keep an eye on the real image too. But OVF is pretty sweet.
Click to expand...

I was thinking about that, but since there'd always be an onboard monitor there for the AC, I think you kinda get the best of both worlds - an OVF to operate with, and an HD monitor with MLUTs to check how colour is playing out in the actual recorded footage.
 
If you're used to EVFs now you'll be quite surprised by how dark the optical finder is. Have a good AC because it will be much harder for you to judge focus (plus the AC can lug that beast around for you).

You can turn on/off the mirror shutter independent of rolling the recording itself, and you can choose to park it for the eyepiece or for the sensor. Note that if you leave it parked for the eyepiece then no one else on set can see anything in the monitors. That may be a problem with the rest of the group.

Shooting day exterior is really great because with the 4.3 stop ND over the sensor, the viewfinder is really quite bright. You're basically shooting around 32ISO, so that's lot of light to your eye.

Lighting with a classic optical finder can be a joy, but remember that in certain ways the EVF is actually more accurate. We are talking about an electronic sensor camera here. You'll definitely need to do some retraining of the brain.
 
Thanks Mitch, good to know.

There's a chance we might actually be shooting in New York (either that or Calgary, Alberta... because... I don't know) if that does come to pass I might lean on you for some recommendations for local camera, lighting and grip crew if that's alright?
 
Grug said:
Thanks Mitch, good to know.

There's a chance we might actually be shooting in New York (either that or Calgary, Alberta... because... I don't know) if that does come to pass I might lean on you for some recommendations for local camera, lighting and grip crew if that's alright?
Click to expand...
Absolutely.
 
What happens to things like rolling shutter and dynamic range when you park the shutter in the open position (electronic view only). On video cameras that have a physical shutter (old LDK ENG/EFP cameras) they needed the dark period to clock out the image, in electronic shutter (mechanical was parked open) the images were not as good. Does the same thing happen to this much higher level camera?
 
With the shutter parked it looks like every other Alexa. With the shutter spinning, even though the sensor is still a rolling shutter one, the scan-on/scan-off cycle happens while the shutter blocks the sensor, effectively turning it into a functional global shutter.

For the most part one does not see the rolling shutter on an Alexa in 16:9, however it same processor core is used in 4:3 so it takes longer to scroll through the extra 33% of lines of resolution. So rolling shutter is more evident in 4:3 mode.

Other than the original Alexa Classic (aka Alexa EVO), all models of Alexa are now available switchable between 16:9 and 4:3.
 
Hey guys,

I've just watched an introduction session that Rule Boston Camera held with the Studio, and it was mentioned that you can't run the mirror shutter above 30fps with onboard batteries (apparently it needs 18v to power the camera and shutter at 31-60fps). Can anyone confirm or debunk this? (I can't find that same caveat listed anywhere else online).

Cheers
 
Hi.

I used the Alexa studio, two of them actually, on The Beautiful lie. All six episodes are shot hand held and we only had two shots on sticks from memory, for VFX reasons.

From memory the top speed with mirror is more like 60 FPS, and 120 FPS when you park it...i think.....

Don't even bother with the optical EVF unless you really like the idea of using one. If you ask the guys from Panavision, which is as far as I know the only place to get them over here, they say everyone returns the OVF after the first week.

Older operators who've trained or operated on film cameras love the idea, but then you forget that it's much harder to pick focus, that shooting using lower light levels that modern digital cameras allow means the OVF turns to mush, and that MOST of the extra weight of an Alexa studio is in the OVF.

Take it off, use the EVF and take a bunch of weight and bulk with it.

I used them only because I was working with a director who really loved them, and I was skeptical that there would be a difference, but I have to say, I'm convinced ! Theres something very nice about the way they do motion, even though the Alexa already has a very fast integration time.

I wrote a little piece on them here. Also, if you're around I start prepping for Offspring 6 next week, you're welcome to stop by and take a look :-)

https://johnbrawley.wordpress.com/2016/02/07/the-beautiful-lie-a-love-story/

JB
 
Thanks JB,

Good to know. Two cups of tea later and I've just made it through that epic blog post - great stuff!

I'll be around next week, and I'd definitely be keen to stop by and see how you're rigging the cameras. So expect a call from me!

Cheers,

Mark
 
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