Redrock M2 questions...

SomewhereinLA

SomewhereinLA

Well-known member
I am looking into buying an M2 but I would like to fully understand the workflow. You put the M2 onto the HVX, add let say, a Nikon lens then what? How do you set your camera built in lens. Which lens do you adjust the focus/iris on. Do you leave the Iris of the built in lens fully open, where do you set the focus on? When you add a lens do you use prime lens or can you use zoom lenses as well?

Also does anyone use the M2 Follow Focus? does it work with the HVX built in lens .

Is the support plate/rods high quality?

How about the Achromatic lens? Do you guys use it much?

Cheers.

:dankk2:
 
SomewhereinLA, reading the forum at redrock website would be most helpful, but I have some time so I will try and answer your questions. When using the M2 with the HVX it is a basic setup. Imagine the image going through a still photography lens. The light bends together perfectly at the film plane, therefore exposing the film. Instead of the film plane, the M2 has a spinning piece of glass on which this image from the lens is projected onto. Meanwhile the HVX is zoomed and focused on the spinning piece of glass.

Your iris settings on the HVX are up to the user, I will repost more on that.

The plate and rods have good reviews. I have not recieved mine yet. They are on order. Never heard a bad thing about them, although I have one complaint from design. Which I will post with more info.

The achromatic lens is not considered optional. It has a very important role in the setup.
 
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The DVX or HVX is focused on the spinning ground glass with iris almost fully open. You stop down and focus the lenses you place in front of the unit. I'm using Nikon fully manual lenses. You can also add the RedRock follow focus. I've been using a Cinetatics soft matte box until RedRock releases their own mattebox this fall.

rrc12.jpg
 
SomewhereinLA said:
I am looking into buying an M2 but I would like to fully understand the workflow. You put the M2 onto the HVX, add let say, a Nikon lens then what? How do you set your camera built in lens. Which lens do you adjust the focus/iris on. Do you leave the Iris of the built in lens fully open, where do you set the focus on? When you add a lens do you use prime lens or can you use zoom lenses as well?

Also does anyone use the M2 Follow Focus? does it work with the HVX built in lens .

Is the support plate/rods high quality?

How about the Achromatic lens? Do you guys use it much?

Cheers.

:dankk2:
Click to expand...

Setting the HVX lens is all described in the HD Manual for the M2. First you put the achromatic HD lens onto the HVX (i needs the step down ring) You slide the M2 with no lens on it toward the lens on the HVX (remove the hood first ofcourse) and you get it very close but not touching. You then want to zoom the lens of the HVX into the inside of the M2 adapter. Leave the M2 turned off. The zoom will be around 70+ when using the number version of the Zoom info. The focus will be in the late teens. You want to make sure that there are no dark shadows in the upper corners of the HVX LCD , then focusing, you want to focus it until you see a lot of texture. Like grain an some dust even . Make sure to focus the best you can. Now you secure the M2 adapter and use the rubber gasket to connect it and the HD achromat that is connected to the HVX.

Next you make sure not to touch the HVX zoom or focus ring, but in my experience, its not that huge of a deal if you do, because with a monitor, if i find im still getting some soft focus with a lens, i adjust very very very lightly, the focus ring of the HVX.

Attatch a lens to the front, turn the M2 on, and refocus using the 35mm lens. If you find its too soft, just adjust the HVX a little until its just right.
 
Your iris setting on the HVX is up to the user and should be used to achieve the look you desire. For example, many people use their HVX/M2 with the HVX wide open. They will adjust the photo lens aperture to control light intensity. But if someone wishes for even more shallow dof, they could stop down the HVX and then open up the film lens causing the desired decrease of dof. Think of the possibilities useing the HVX iris to help manipulate the lens apature.
 
sorry, forgot to post about the plate and rods, they are both totally kick ass professional and as strong as you would want. The rods i have are 18inch and are extremely rigid, the base plate is just as great!
 
I have not got mine yet and the fact I already have them (rods and plate) on order is prob enough proof of my faith in redrock hardware, I just want to say that the HVX setup eerks me a bit. I read you must shim the rods which causes the rods to hit the baseplate causing the rods to be unable to be used in the back..... which is (I guess) why the powerpod is being develeoped..... but there is even less info on that release!

I am just sad I cannot attatch a rail support shoulder pad and a battery mount on the back.

Anyone have a working shimmed HVX/M2 and the rails on both ends?
 
ya, that was kinda weak, but for me, i have no use right now for the rails to be in the back all all. You can shim the M2 instead to allow the rails to be pushed all the way back, but it is not recommended by Redrock, it says in the manual how to do it, but they warn you not to try to. only for the adventerous. you can always rototool the plate :P
 
Shimming the M2 should work just fine, but if you do your mattebox and follow focus system will become out of wack. *Sigh*

Your slight suggestion of modification isn't that bad. I will look at the setup once it arrives to see if it is possible to get the rails back. Thanks Cynic821, btw any problems with the rails all in the front? Is is just as solid as the rails more evenly distributed under the plate?
 
Prodigy: No problems at all with the rails in the front like that, ive applied some pressure to see if the leverage lost from them being moved up was gunna do anything bad, and it doesnt change a thing, its top notch workmanship. Industrial strenght , so nothing to worry about at all.

If you want to shot with the stock lens though, youll have to slide the rails out since they are in the shot using the HVX lens alone. :( looks like that video game Beach Head with the 2 rails shooting out the bottom of the view finder. Reminds us of a first person shooter.
 
Cynic821 said:
Prodigy: No problems at all with the rails in the front like that, ive applied some pressure to see if the leverage lost from them being moved up was gunna do anything bad, and it doesnt change a thing, its top notch workmanship. Industrial strenght , so nothing to worry about at all.

If you want to shot with the stock lens though, youll have to slide the rails out since they are in the shot using the HVX lens alone. :( looks like that video game Beach Head with the 2 rails shooting out the bottom of the view finder. Reminds us of a first person shooter.
Click to expand...

Good to hear! Funny Cynic you and I are parallel in more then one thread! :)

I guess a solution would be to unshim the rails for the raw HVX... pain in the ass, but it would allow the rails to be used.
 
I ordered the 12" rods from Redrock, because with my HVX shimmed, the 18" rods (all in front) stick out about 6 inches farther than I need (I'm using all Nikon primes, no long zooms).

It will make the rig look less like a dangerous weapon, and I don't want to impale anyone. :Drogar-Evil(DBG):

It's cool to add all these additions to the HVX, (marshall monitor, M2, rods, follow focus, etc.) but damn this thing's getting heavy! ...feels more and more like a 35mm film camera...
 
Good idea Gale, i got mine from the marketplace here from SamEdwards last friday or i might have done the same. :)



Prodigy:too bad you are so far away. im sure we could work together with this new stuff!
 
You can always get the zacuto universal base plate to resolve the rod issue. It is a $500 fix, but it is an awsome base plate that can work with just about anything.

--

Rob
 
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