How do I set my adapter(letus35A)most optimally.

Yas Kassana

Yas Kassana

Well-known member
Hi Guys, How do I configure my leus35a to cnfigure on my canon a1 most optimally? i.e. How do you get the most sharp footage,ignoring the obvious stuff like cean glass.

I'm not sure, do I focus my Nikon at infinity and focus my letus at infinity as well?

Help as I don't have a clue, my footage is too soft and out of focus.
 
Kass, man, I have been going through the same problem. I tried everything and nothing seems to work. Look for threads started by me here, at dvinfo, and xlcinema and you'll see what I'm talking about. The A1 has a truly beautiful sharp organic footage and when I put the letus on it it's like throwing mud in the lens. I didn't understand how some people were getting such nice footage and I wasn't...but then I realized they were shooting with the XL-H1 with the letus XL...which goes directly INTO the camera.

Apart from what I said before one thing that makes things really difficult with A1+letus combo is the A1's horrendous toy LCD. It's the only thing I absolutely despise about the A1. Use the expand focus always and it might help you to some extent. Anyway, there's probably some sort of A1 preset that can make thing A BIT better, but I would not expect G35 results. My advise? If you have money sell the letus and buy a brevis.
 
Sorry brother but I don't agree with you. There is a way, I heard someone talking about setting your lens at infinite focus and playing around with that. There is a way, maybe I need a spacer.
 
When I asked Qyen he told me to keep the motor off, not to zoom at all and to put the 35mm lens at infinity...then I should hit autofocus on the camera. When the focus is set I should zoom in until i could not see the adapters' interior anymore. And then everything should be set...but I tried that AND also tried to focus manually and the image still...well...not clean and sharp enough. And even the best footage I've seen with the letus contains grain. Anyway, if you find a solution (and I HOPE you do) please DO share.
 
You would not set your camera lens at infinite. You could set your 35mm lens at infinite and that might help because everything the 35mm lens is seeing would theoretically be in focus and then you could focus your camera, but it is not necessary and not the best way.

So you have your letus on your A1
  1. Zoom in until you don't see the edges of the frame holding the GG anymore.
  2. Make sure your focus is set to manual.
  3. Use the A1'a focus assist (blow up) and focus on the GG inside. This will not be infinite focus because obviously the GG is very close. This will be a low low number, Macro focus. On my DVX with the letus the camera focus was at "11" with the letus, on the HVX it's at "4". The whole point with the GG is that it is an opaque screen that the image outside the camera is projected on and. So your camera is filming the little movie screen - the GG just inches away from its lens. You don't even need your 35mm lens on the letus to calibrate the cameras zoom and focus. You just need enough light coming into the adaptor to see / illuminate the GG. So again, using your focus assist blow up on the A1 blow up the image and try to focus on the GG, you WANT to see every grain in crisp detail, the sharper the better at this point, and I again this will be a very low number. Now if you zoom in too much, your camera won't let you macro focus.
  4. Make sure the zoom servo is off. Now use a small piece of gaff tape and tape the focus ring and zoom ring in place.
  5. look at your GG through the camera. Still sharp? Great. Now flip the switch on your letus and the GG grain will virtually disappear.
  6. Attach your 35mm lens if you haven't already and focus it as you would normally - remember your camera focus and zoom ar locked and they should stay that way - the relationship of the GG and your camera lens is a constant, so no need to change focus or zoom on the camera.
The letusA is one of the sharper adaptors out there and if all the parts inside are positioned OK then you will have VERY sharp footage.
 
I just went to your website yesterday Wayne.
Your adaptor looks amazing.

The design looks simillar to the M2, but the stuff on the redrock site looks a little milky to me, like the GG isn't transluscent enough or something.

But yours looked very sharp and with nice contrast.
TimurCivan swears by it too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top