DVX vs. Super16mm

W

watson

Well-known member
I worked as DP on one of my friends Thesis Film. We shoot DVX and Super16mm. i posted some of this footage a while back but i didnt have any Super16mm to show at the time. So for anyone who is interested, here is some footage from the film.

DVX - Montage from various scenes
http://www.andrewdavidwatson.com/tuesdayschild.html

Super16mm - Actual screen from the film (Aaton a minima, 50D)
http://www.andrewdavidwatson.com/tuesdayschild16.html

When i saw the final cut, i was pretty happy on how the super16mm and DVX cut together. A lot of it was also motivated and thought out ahead of time to fit the story. Honestly, i wish i got to shoot more Super16mm then DVX, but the DVX didnt let me down. IF anyone has any questions on mixing the formats i'd be glad to try and answer them.

Andrew David Watson
www.andrewdavidwatson.com
 
how much are super 16mm cameras,im thinking of buying one,is there a big diffrence between super 16 and super 8,how much is the film for super 8 and 16.thanks
 
there is a huge different between super16mm and super8. The super 16mm camerage package i shot on (Aaton A minima, 3 prime super speed lenses) was probably worth around $30,000+. You can get fairly cheap 16mm camera, but not super16mm.
 
The DVX footage looks great...made even better by the camera angles, lighting, and dolly moves. But Super16 still looks better to me.....

Super 16 cameras like the AAton XTR still sell for $40000. They are considered the best of the bunch even better than Arriflex.
 
"Super 16 cameras like the AAton XTR still sell for $40000. They are considered the best of the bunch even better than Arriflex."

Aatons are not considered better than Arriflex. The only two real competitors in cameras are Arri and Panavision. A very small percentage of movies are shot with Aatons.

$40,000? This depends on what kind of lenses and accessories you get. If you are looking to buy a super16mm camera look for an Aaton LTR-54 or LTR-7. You can pick one up with a decent zoom for less than $10,000. Or an Arri SR-I for a little more.

Matt :beer:

Definitely check out cinematography.com and .net

The 16mm looks nice. Where did you process and transfer?
 
I thought the DVX footage stood up well against the 16mm. It was really an apple to oranges comparison for the most part but considering the lens limitations of the DVX it held up well. I was impressed with the mix of the two. There is bound to be times when the DVX would be the camera of choice and vice versa. Rob Zombie's Devils Rejects used a number of 16mm cameras, maybe he should have just bought one of each. Just my 2 cents worth. Interesting post, thanks for sharing!
 
Yea, for some reason my school likes Aaton Camera. I'm shooting my thesis film this year on a mixture of HVX and the Aaton XTR prod. I'm interested to see how those two mix.

escozooz - I believe the film was processed at NFL in Jersey, and the color correction was done at Modern Video in Philadelphia. Unfortuntaly i was out of the country for an extended period of time so i did not get to sit in on the transfer.

bigmagic - yea i hear ya on the camera choice. With a small crew (and no real AC) i couldnt do as many moves with the A minima becasue of focus issues, as where i tried to do a lot more camera moves with the DVX.
 
Watson: Hmm I don't know any of those labs, I'm in NY. You go to Temple? The first AC I worked under on my first feature went there.

What kind of transfer did you do? Spirit to SD?

Yeah I updated my site, I'm only DP'n right now. Its good you are shooting film. I'm trying like crazy to get music videos with budgets that can handle that. Its a hustle.

Cheers. :beer:

Matt
 
very nice dvx footage.... though i feel that if both the videos are shown in full resolution then dvx will lag behind, but the color matching and feel was very impressive....
 
the 16 looked significantly better, but the dvx really held its own along side it. the combination of proper lighting, angles, and movements made it all the better.

ps. can you explain a little about those scenes as well? it was really interesting, and i would love to see the whole thing to know what its about.
 
It was close for me, man. Really close. Obviously the 16 is going to look a bit better, but most people outside of this forum would never know the difference. Most people I do videos for can't tell a difference between VHS and DV.
 
I just watched this footage, and all I have to say is "WOW". Very, very impressive. Everything from framing, to lighting, to audio, to camera movement (which was exceptionally good), to editing, to the story all came together VERY nicely. You guys are on to something here, and I'll be looking forward to seeing more when it's ready.

Excellent work.

-brown

5 stars from me ;)
 
Matt, yea i'm at temple. I think the transfer was done on a Spirit, but i cant remeber, but it was transfered to beta.

ksduded - the only time i saw the footage projected was off a DVD so it was kinda tough to get a real good idea, but the super16 did hold up a bit better.

The film is actually all done, but i do not think the director ever posted the whole thing online. I'll have to see if he did and i'll post a link for those interested.
 
dvpixl said:
film- always warmer and yet sharper... and takes you away instantly to another world....
Click to expand...

Well said. I agree. The 16mm stuff looks beautiful. Looks like 35mm. The video is nicely lit and composed and CC'd too - it just doesn't look like 35. Did you overcrank in camera on the cornfield shot?
 
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