M2 questions

B

Boomerang

Well-known member
Will be getting a M2 very soon for my HVX.

Wanted some RedRock user input on the average set up time for the adaptor using Nikon lenses.

I will be working on some interviews and wanted to see what the adaptor would add to my normal set up time to help me schedule properly.

Any other thoughts on using the M2 for interviewing would be great.
Thanks!
 
Set -up time on the set is minimal. 15 minutes or so for me. You'll get your own routines down.
You need higher light levels though and that requires more time.
 
Its important for you to get some fast lenses for the adaptor because you have to consider that the light loss is considerable, for example: My DVX has a f1.6 lens, but when you zoom into the adaptor you get a f2, this plus the 0.5f of the adaptor and lets say you have an f1.4 50mm lens on front, that means that you whole system all stoped up is at a f5.6 minimum. The quality of the adaptor is really great, but it is something you have to consider. Just be careful on the first setup to properly focus you adaptor.
 
Consider this:
1. The HVX comes with a mounting thread not in the optical axis. You have to adjust the M2 mounting plate unit to be sure everything is ABSOULTELY aligned and in axis.
2. Be sure you have a monitor that shows the WHOLE frame. Make sure you have the motor of your M2 way out of your image. By changing lenses, you have slightly different views of the ground glass and you COULD end up seeing the motor of the gg in your image - which will piss you off, believe me.
3. Light, light, light. The M2 needs light, the HVX doubely so. If you shot like with a DV cam or HDV cam in low-light situations you will be screwed. DVCPROHD with the HVX in low light conditions has NO NO NO NO NO "headroom" for making the image brighter in post. You will be punished with grain like in 8mm film if you do it anyway. And always make sure you have at least one tiny element in your image that is "quite bright".
4. The ground glass is NOT a 2d plane! It is "rough" and therefore 3d and therefore has MULTIPLE focus points. Make sure you always check inital focus setup with a hires chart and a hires monitor and do so by re-adjusting HVX-focus AND M2-lens-focus again and again to come close to "your" perfect focus point. Then tape and lock the HVX focus and zoom ring and disable the zoom button by setting the zoom servo to manual.
5. Make sure you know how to actually "carry" this HVX-M2 combo while shooting. It's quite a monster. Fig Rig, Glidecam Pro 4000, they all DON'T WORK for this combo. Shoulder will kill your DP. Mine had to get his back treated after the shoot. Tripod works well of course.
6. A hint for editing: I use Avid and have THREE monitors: one main, and two paired in a DVI-splitter. Monitor 3 is just a copy of Monitor 2, but mounted upside down to flip the image.
7. Go and get a follow focus. Focussing is very, very, very, very tricky. Very.
8. As someone already said: Thoroughly test all your lenses. In low-light-conditions you MUST use extremely fast lenses (1.8 or better).

Good luck.
 
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