M2 follow focus

L

Lenilenapi

Carbonite Member
I may need to very quickly get a follow focus for our M2.

What is the current consensus re what will work with Nikons and the standard HVX lens.

I gather that the redrock is good for Nikons but perhaps is not a good fit with the standard HVX lens.

Who sells geared adapters for Nikons and HVX lens and what follow focus units will they work with?

Are they interchangeable?
Is there a wait for Redrock units? They haven't answered our emails yet.
 
Its very good for NIkons and the HVX. You have to purchase the special HVX ring to use the FF without the M2, which is available for $60.

Contact Redrock and they will give you the proper lead time. Certainly you won't get it this next week if you order tomorrow.
 
Get the Cavision. It's the most solid follow focus (no give whatsoever) in the price range. Jared fell in love with it at the LA User Group meeting in July. You'll need to order it with their "Cinema" (gold) gear as well as the gear rings from Redrock. Cavision also makes a gear ring that works with the regular HVX lens, and for that, you'll need their regular gear (it's white). Just ask for Jason.
P.S.: See the Cavision FF with the gold "Cinema" gear and RR ring here:
http://15minuteslatermovie.com/hvxrig.html
 
www.hysonfilms.com gave me a 4 day turn around time on the HD Matte box and Follow focus, both rail mountable and the Mattebox can mount on the stock lens as well as the FF can mount to the mattebox for the stock lens. Or leave it on the rails and use it like that for the stock lens.

heres a pic of it with my M2 and Nikon lens.

1156193238.jpg


side view

1156193187.jpg


give him an email and see how fast he can crank it out for you
 
Whatever you do, do not get a follow focus unit from JBK
http://www.jbkcinequipt.com/
It is built like a toy, has a huge amount of freeplay from the gears and the belt drive. It is not pro quality gear and the customer service sucks. I'm still trying to get all of my money back from him... take your money elsewhere. I'll post a detailed review of this unit soon.
 
Cynic821 said:
www.hysonfilms.com gave me a 4 day turn around time on the HD Matte box and Follow focus, both rail mountable and the Mattebox can mount on the stock lens as well as the FF can mount to the mattebox for the stock lens.
Click to expand...

I'm curious --- where do you put the filters on that matte box? And, does the FF gear and ring have enough thickness to handle the bigger lenses? My 135mm lens moves so much front to back that those big RR focus rings can barely handle it. The ring in the picture looks too small to cover that kind of travel (unless I'm not understanding how it works).

BTW, the other thing about the Cavision follow focus, is that it will take any starndard Chroziel whip. Something to consider.
 
is it worth 900 bucks for the single wheel FF just for the whip? there isnt too much extra IMO opinion to pay for the name cavision. I dont understand what extra you get?

The filters go in from the top down.

Im confused by what you mean about the lenses moving when focusing. The focus ring should stay exactly where it is when focusing and the lens should move indipendantly. The focusing ring never moves even though the lens does.

on my 100mm , the lens moves alot, but the ring stays the same, i beleive that is the 100mm in that picture, you see how its sticking through the mattebox and the focus ring is still in the same position? when focusing backwards the lens comes back out from the mattebox towards the FF, but the focus ring doesnt move. They arent the worlds greatest lenses, but im positive thats how they all are, unless its a zoom lens.

Im not knocking cavision or anything, or any company for that matter, but it took a few days just to get an email response about prices for their Matte Box and follow focus, (prices arent listed on the site) When i was a TOTAL noob on the FF and Mattebox stuff, they answered ZERO of my questions, where Joel from Hyson gave me his number in an email about 2 hours after i sent it and we talkd on the phone for a while , while he described to me what the hell i was thinking about. im sure the products are great, but we are talking almost 5 times the cost for 1 ring, 1 single wheel FF and a marking plate.

The FF i got there is Version 2 and has 1 hard stop on it, Version 3 i beleive will have 2 hard stops, but dont quote me on that one. you CAN quote me on everything else though. :)

Hope i could be of some help.
 
I would strongly recommend against the red rock for the hvx stock lens - it has a number of issues including tolerances a bit too tight causing some rubbing, and an inability to move the lens completely through its whole range.
 
Cynic821 said:
is it worth 900 bucks for the single wheel FF just for the whip?
Click to expand...

I shot a music video this weekend. There were two shots that we could not have gotten without the whip --- one because of a confined space, the other because standing close enough to the camera to adjust focus without the whip created lighting problems. So, yes, it's worth it to me.
 
Im sure a subsitute shot would have sufficed though. :P when you can afford to pay 5x + more for a different follow focus, then that is great, but for most, we arent in a specific situation for a dire shot needed by a client.

you know what im saying right?
 
Yeah, I get budgets and whatnot. But when you've spent $10-12,000 on a camera (HVX, 2 8GB P2s, M2, lenses, HD montitoring, etc...) it just makes no sense to me to skimp on the little things, like a follow focus. It's a professional camera. Shouldn't the rest of the equipment match?

And how do you tell a paying client (who expects a certain amount of professionalism) that you can't get THAT shot because you skimped on the FF? Unless, of course, you're doing this just a hobby.
 
Lacking a whip on your follow focus doesnt neccessarily mean you arent a professional, my opinion is that these companies charge too much for these things strictly based on the price of the camera. Buying into the philosophy of such things is something i wont do. Ya, we have paid up to 11k on the HVX already, but it can FF just as well as any other one.

YOu know and i know and they especially know that an FF is not 1000k worth of plastic and gears, and its probably not 500 bucks, and not 200 bucks. SURE i know, theres the R and D, but thats been long since paid off and would have paid off quicker, but to each his own...nevermind.

Opting for a follow focus without a whip is not skimping is all im saying, you sound sort of condesending but its all good.
 
Cynic821 said:
you sound sort of condesending but its all good.
Click to expand...

The guy asked a question about equipment. We're all just giving him our best advice and OPINIONS --- trying to make him aware of the pitfalls, right?

You asked if the whip was worth it to me. I gave you a specific example of where it was.

Having an opinion that differs from yours doesn't make it "condescending." So, don't be so defensive --- especially if "it's all good."
 
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