GH4 Having a lot of fun prepping my GH4 for an anamorphic shoot

Zak Forsman

Zak Forsman

Major Contributor
Will be directing another feature this fall and this will be my first shot in 2x anamorphic. I'm auditioning two lenses on the GH4 -- a Kowa Bell & Howell and a Schneider ES Cinelux. The Cinelux tends to vignette a bit when paired with the SLR Magic 25mm, but I love its purple, blue and pink flares. Normally these would require dual focusing, but i have the scopes housed in a Rectilux 3FF-W to make them single focus. Can't wait to get past the testing phase and start shooting this sucker...


 
Yes, it'll be shot on a pair of GH4s. This will actually be the third feature we've shot on these cameras in less than a year. My previous effort what shot on an AF100. And our first two were shot on HVX200s. It was never a intentional thing, but we can't seem to get away from Panasonic cameras. :)
 
Erik Naso said:
The breathing is pretty bad. Are you concerned with that or going to avoid racking.
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well, two things about that. The breathing is a variation in squeeze factor that can be corrected in post. And i'll do that if it comes at a critically dramatic moment. But I also welcome many of the flaws that have been taken out of most modern anamorphic lenses. the breathing is not unlike what you see in most vintage anamorphics, for example...

 
Looks good to me. A lot of people worry about breathing, but I'm even noticing it more and more on high-end films. I don't think it's a stylistic choice, just simply a side effect no-one really cares about - especially when you have a great narrative playing out in front of you.

I was watching Nolan's Interstellar the other night, and there were a couple of scenes with noticeable breathing in it - and it didn't change a thing.

Gets noticeable in some clips you see online - like those above - but they're long takes with multiple focus racks, over and over. Not a common thing on a feature.

As an off-topic, I really enjoy that actors screen presence in the above clips. He has a natural manner and comfort in-front of the camera. As someone that enjoys watching low/no-budget films, that's not as common a trait as you'd hope as a viewer. Great find.
 
Definitely prefer the look of the Kowa based on these test clips. Schneider just looks a bit too "fuzzy" to me, even when you are focused on his face in the closeup on the first video, it doesn't look quite in focus or something. Blurs out at the edges of the frame more than the Kowa. Much prefer the bokeh in the outdoor shots with the Kowa as well.
 
Yeah, i have one of the new SLR Magic Rangefinders too. Haven't been able to shoot too much with it yet, but here's what I've got...



 
Zak Forsman said:
Will be directing another feature this fall and this will be my first shot in 2x anamorphic. I'm auditioning two lenses on the GH4 -- a Kowa Bell & Howell and a Schneider ES Cinelux. The Cinelux tends to vignette a bit when paired with the SLR Magic 25mm, but I love its purple, blue and pink flares. Normally these would require dual focusing, but i have the scopes housed in a Rectilux 3FF-W to make them single focus. Can't wait to get past the testing phase and start shooting this sucker...



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Hey Zak, nice look on the anamorphic tests. I feel like the breathing is just a tad much, but most audience would just consider it part of the film and never notice. Can ask what profile you shot those tests in, and what settings. I really like the look of the color and tone of your shots.
 
blazer003 said:
Hey Zak, nice look on the anamorphic tests. I feel like the breathing is just a tad much, but most audience would just consider it part of the film and never notice. Can ask what profile you shot those tests in, and what settings. I really like the look of the color and tone of your shots.
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In camera, it's the Natural profile with Contrast 0, Sharpening -5, NR -5, saturation -2. The grading is a LUT I made for myself a while back. It basically cools down the shadows, takes the highlights from white to "creamy" and the rest is getting skintones to something complimentary.
 
I'm sold on Natural profile now. Wish I did my project with it. I bumped the Hue +1. Seems to put a little magenta/red back. The GH4 tends to go green/yellow a little. Other settings are the same as what you're using and very pleased.
 
I like the look of the Rangefinder much more. The breathing is very subtle and sharpness slightly better. The breathing on the first clips is too much, and very odd in the way it expands and stretches at the edges. I'd use it as a disorienting effect but for regular footage I think it would be distracting.
 
So with the nokton voightlander 42,5mm you would get no vignetting right? Would it work also with the kowa 8z without vignetting. As I read the kowa has a 52mm rear end(or are there different back rear end sizes on the kowa 8z?) And the nokton voightlanders have 58mm filter threads?

Thanks!!
 
also depends on your sensor size. on a GH4 you'd definitely be okay with a 35mm lens. maybe even a 28mm.

as for your taking lens, you just need to make sure the size of the entrance pupil is smaller than the diameter of the anamorphic's rear optic. and you find your entrance pupil by dividing the focal length by your f/stop. So a 42.5mm at f/.95 would have an entrance pupil of 44.7mm which makes it fine to use with the 8z at any f-stop.
 
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