Ryan Patrick O'Hara
Veteran
I'm helping a fellow cinematographer, Rainer Lipski, as a 1st AC on a film he will be shooting this following week. We are shooting 35mm Fuji film on a Panavision Panaflex-X camera... that really isn't.
The Panavision Panaflex-X is much like the Gold, GoldII and Platinum packages, but has some key differences. First, it's not a handheld camera. The eye-piece is non-removable and studio configured. Second, it's a bit louder than the other cameras and does not have pana-glow. It also has a modified door, because of the long, non-removable eye-piece.
However, the Panaflex-X we are using has been so highly modified, I would venture to say that it is a Gold or Gold II at this point. The serial number says it's a Panaflex-X, but it has a video tap, a removable eye-piece with panaglow, and what looks like a GII door. If it hadn't of had a Panaflex-X serial plate, I'd have thought it was a Gold or GoldII and probably bet good money on it.
Here is a picture of the camera in full beast, studio mode: (We won't be using the zoom, but rather some Panavised lenses I have not seen yet. Heard they are older superspeeds, which I didn't even know were Panavised.)
While I was on my way to the camera-build, I was sort of looking forward to seeing an original Panaflex-X, as I had never used one, (nor seen one) and that is something considering I used to work at Panavision! Sadly, and thankfully for production, we got this super-upgraded X- which now makes it something in the Gold family. I don't know if any Panaflex-X's with the original build still exist, but I am beginning to doubt it. If they can easily up-grade them to GoldII like function... it would make absolutely zero sense to keep the original Panaflex-X's in the field.
It had been about two-years since I last loaded a Panavision GII. It's a pretty easy film camera to load, thread, and operate, but the first load got jammed because of a registration pin issue, but after I got the rust off my brain (and cleared the film chippies from the pressure plate) the next three loads went through just perfectly. Back in the saddle.
More on this project later!
The Panavision Panaflex-X is much like the Gold, GoldII and Platinum packages, but has some key differences. First, it's not a handheld camera. The eye-piece is non-removable and studio configured. Second, it's a bit louder than the other cameras and does not have pana-glow. It also has a modified door, because of the long, non-removable eye-piece.
However, the Panaflex-X we are using has been so highly modified, I would venture to say that it is a Gold or Gold II at this point. The serial number says it's a Panaflex-X, but it has a video tap, a removable eye-piece with panaglow, and what looks like a GII door. If it hadn't of had a Panaflex-X serial plate, I'd have thought it was a Gold or GoldII and probably bet good money on it.
Here is a picture of the camera in full beast, studio mode: (We won't be using the zoom, but rather some Panavised lenses I have not seen yet. Heard they are older superspeeds, which I didn't even know were Panavised.)
While I was on my way to the camera-build, I was sort of looking forward to seeing an original Panaflex-X, as I had never used one, (nor seen one) and that is something considering I used to work at Panavision! Sadly, and thankfully for production, we got this super-upgraded X- which now makes it something in the Gold family. I don't know if any Panaflex-X's with the original build still exist, but I am beginning to doubt it. If they can easily up-grade them to GoldII like function... it would make absolutely zero sense to keep the original Panaflex-X's in the field.
It had been about two-years since I last loaded a Panavision GII. It's a pretty easy film camera to load, thread, and operate, but the first load got jammed because of a registration pin issue, but after I got the rust off my brain (and cleared the film chippies from the pressure plate) the next three loads went through just perfectly. Back in the saddle.
More on this project later!
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