Letus35 Extreme

it comes down to upgradebility. Like the Brevis. It allows you to upgrade as newer changes are introduced. You need to only spend a friction on the up grades . I hope the Letus or SGpro does the same. Everytime something new in line comes out the older unit is devalued.
What do you think all the people that have bought thier Letus 35 about 2-3months ago or even earlier then that, are thinking right now. Suddently there are so many letusFE for sale on the market. I saw an ad asking for $570 for a 2months old Letus fe. and the exchange for a letus extreme will only gets you a $500 credit Even the SGpro (rev 2) is like not hip anymore when the rev 3 is out.
 
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Got a review unit; I've only had time to use it a little. But basically, it's just about perfect.

Questions about construction quality? Gone.
Questions about durability? Gone.
Questions about "professional look"? Gone.
Questions about sensitivity/low light? Gone.
Questions about shutter speed issues? Almost completely gone. What I mean by that is: overcranking 60p with a 1/120th shutter works exactly like it should (which I couldn't say for the L35FE). I can even push the speed to 1/250th and almost get away with it; it'd work at that speed for most shots but a lock-down shot might start to show some swirly artifacts. 1/500 and 1/1000 are out of the question.

So, basically, while we love our friends from the other adapter manufacturers, um, the Le brothers are callin' you out. Y'all had better bring your "A" game, because this Letus Extreme has just served notice. Based on only my preliminary examination (and not on detailed testing, which I won't be able to get to for a couple of weeks) this thing is the RED One of adapters. It kicks the mini35 squarely in the teeth, at 1/10th the price. It's sharper and more light sensitive than the mini35. It's slick.

Is it perfect? Maybe not, but it's awfully close. :thumbsup: (of course, as always, detailed testing may reveal some flaws or shortcomings that are not initially apparent; my comments here are based on my reasonably in-depth knowledge of the L35FE, and the Extreme being every bit as good in most ways and substantially, significantly better in other ways).

What could be better? Well, it could have a PL mount, I guess. The red power button could be mounted on the back instead of the front. An integrated rod support plate would be cool. And maybe they could make it fly, and spin straw into gold. Other than that, my first impression of it is that this is the real deal.
 
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DavidChia said:
it comes down to upgradebility. Like the Brevis. It allows you to upgrade as newer changes are introduced. You need to only spend a friction on the up grades . I hope the Letus or SGpro does the same. Everytime something new in line comes out the older unit is devalued.
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With the introduction of the Extreme, I think *every* other adapter just became devalued. :thumbsup:

With that said, the upgradeability of the Brevis is a unique feature and a very cool feature.

What do you think all the people that have bought thier Letus 35 about 2-3months ago or even earlier then that, are thinking right now.
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Probably that they wish they would have waited; I just wonder what people who bought a MovieTube Jr. are thinking right now. Probably about the same thing that someone who just bought an F900 thought when they saw the Red One introduced.

Suddently there are so many letusFE for sale on the market.
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And every other adapter, too. Lots of adapter ads in the marketplace, for all brands.

Expect to see more.
 
anyone have anything to say about its weight?

barry, you dont, by any chance, own a glidecam 4000 pro to test out if it can handle the ewight of a camera, adapter, and lens?
This is the last piece of info i need before making the purchase. I have spent too much money on the glidecam and SS to not be able to use an adapter with a wide lens on my rig.

actually, i should add rails to that, because it is such a heavy unit, i dont want more weight hanging off my A1 lens that the actual camera itself.
 
PaPa said:
anyone have anything to say about its weight?
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Yeah -- don't drop it on anyone's head. :)

barry, you dont, by any chance, own a glidecam 4000 pro to test out if it can handle the ewight of a camera, adapter, and lens?
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I do indeed have a GlideCam 4000 Pro, somewhere... unless you're built like Arnold Schwarzenegger used to be, forget about it. This rig probably weighs about as much as the HPX500, so around 10 pounds. Your arm would fall off after two minutes.

Besides -- it'd be almost impossible to fly an adapter and focus with a still-camera lens. Better to pull the adapter off when using it on a stabilizer -- that way you'll have a prayer of your subject being in focus.

With that said -- the GlideCam 4000 Pro claims to support up to 10 pounds. So if you want to try it, it might work. I don't know how you'd balance it though; with a little/light 50mm lens on, the center of gravity has moved forward to about where the zoom ring is. But technically it may actually be within the weight rating for the GC4000Pro.

actually, i should add rails to that, because it is such a heavy unit, i dont want more weight hanging off my A1 lens that the actual camera itself.
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A1 -- wait, that's a little lighter, isn't it? HVX is 5.5 pounds, XHA1 is 4.7 pounds... so it might squeeze in under the weight limit... and if you're using the smooth shooter, that might save your arm from falling off...

I would guess that the L35 Economy would be lighter since it's plastic, if weight is an overriding concern.
 
Wow, what great timing...

After lots of research, I was pretty set on getting the Brevis and was waiting for the flip module to be released at the end of this month before pulling the trigger on an adapter.

However, I placed my order for an Extreme yesterday based on the positive initial reports and can't wait to get my hands on it! Hope they planned for an avalanche of orders...
 
About the weight...
The weights you saw listed on LetusDirect.com were not actual weights. 5 pounds was a place holder for the shipping calculator application. The actual weights are as follows and will be updated on LetusDirect soon.

Extreme: 3lbs
Economy: 2lbs 3oz
Flip: 1lb 8oz


About recent Flip purchases...
We are currently offering a 100% credit on any Flip purchased within 30 days previous to the launch of the Extreme for anyone wanting to upgrade. Purchases 30-60 days previous will receive a $500 credit toward the Extreme.

If you are looking to upgrade your Flip, please head over to the LetusDirect.com forum and leave your last name and order number. That is where we are collecting a list so we can get everyone taken care of.

Keep in mind that the Letus35 FE is not obsolete. That product will continue to be offered along side the Extreme for now as it is still a strong performer and may fit the bill for those on a lower budget.
 
Barry - what do you think of using a stabilizer with the Letus Extreme, and simply having a focus puller come with, tweaking the follow focus with a whip or remote control?

I've done it on F900s, why not the HVX?
 
taormina said:
Barry - what do you think of using a stabilizer with the Letus Extreme, and simply having a focus puller come with, tweaking the follow focus with a whip or remote control?

I've done it on F900s, why not the HVX?
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If you've got that setup, that's possible. But someone using a GC4000 isn't as likely to have such accessories. So yes, done the proper way it's every bit as possible.

What I was referencing was the idea of someone flying an adapter on a handheld stabilizer and trying to pull focus on a still-camera lens. To me that's a recipe for disaster. :)
 
Barry what about Fstops? What if you stop down to like F11 or F16 on the 35 lens? any artifacting???

Also, Stop down to F11, AND run it at 1/120th @ 60P. Thats the torture test.

( also, in case anyone is wondering, F11 will still give you a soft background, and its most useable for stedicam work. mor room for error, so dont gimme crap about losing DOF... you can stop down to F22 and still have shDOF with 35mm lenses......)
 
TimurCivan said:
Barry what about Fstops? What if you stop down to like F11 or F16 on the 35 lens? any artifacting???

Also, Stop down to F11, AND run it at 1/120th @ 60P. Thats the torture test.
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Wouldn't using an f-stop like that degrade the image quality and vivid colors though?
 
No absolutly not. Infact the more you close the iris the better your sharpness and contrast becomes. 35 lenses perform better at smaller apetures, fast wide open lenses are prone to internal flaring and reflections. Shooting wide open will milk up your contrast and color in no time. Serisouly, the "magic" of the 35 adapter isnt the DOF, its the Field of View. Things look differen through the lenses. even if yo ustop down to deepen the DOF, its the FOV that says "movie".
 
Barry_Green said:
With the introduction of the Extreme, I think *every* other adapter just became devalued. :thumbsup:

With that said, the upgradeability of the Brevis is a unique feature and a very cool feature.


Probably that they wish they would have waited; I just wonder what people who bought a MovieTube Jr. are thinking right now. Probably about the same thing that someone who just bought an F900 thought when they saw the Red One introduced.


And every other adapter, too. Lots of adapter ads in the marketplace, for all brands.

Expect to see more.
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Glad I didn't wait to buy the FE because it was great and I put it to instant use on a big job. I'll might just go ahead and buy the Xtreme and keep the old unit for my DVX . I definitely got my $700 worth out of it on just one job.
 
TimurCivan said:
No absolutly not. Infact the more you close the iris the better your sharpness and contrast becomes. 35 lenses perform better at smaller apetures, fast wide open lenses are prone to internal flaring and reflections. Shooting wide open will milk up your contrast and color in no time. Serisouly, the "magic" of the 35 adapter isnt the DOF, its the Field of View. Things look differen through the lenses. even if yo ustop down to deepen the DOF, its the FOV that says "movie".
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The reason why I questioned this is based on an article I read a while back. I don't remember where but it stated that depending on your camera, lens and so forth there was a sweet spot. f5.6 being probably a good one for the dvx. I remember hearing that if you closed too much then things may start looking weird. I know you're more informed on these matters but thought I should mention it. Thanks!
Jgastelb

I thought this applied to using the dvx in conjunction to adapters as well but what do I know? Perhaps you meant on the actual 35mm lens and I was referring to the native lens instead. Sorry!

EDIT:
This is from Barry Green's article on focusing:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=49375&highlight=stop


"Don't go too far though! F/5.6 is about as small an aperture as you want to use; maybe f/8 but that's it. Don't go to f/9.6 or f/11 when shooting high-def, or the image will get softer again due to the principle of diffraction. Stick between 2.0 and 5.6 whenever possible."
 
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and thats why i love my sgpro....

upside down and all, but it will still shoot pretty clean under harshest optical conditions.

but its huge and heavy too..... oh well cant have it all.
 
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