Eric Koretz
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Recently put the Redrock microRemote Focus system through its paces, along with the Paralinx Wireless HD transmitter. Thought people might be interested in the combination of the two systems.
Blog post is here with Pictures: http://blog.theimagehunter.com/?p=1570
Short summary,
Redrock microRemote
At $2300 for the package including the motor, it’s affordable and lightweight and well built. in addition it has a fingerWheel controller to let you do ENG style focusing with a lemo connection. No other wireless systems have that option as far as I have found. The fingerWheel currently works with their handgrips only, but with a little shop work I’m sure it’s easy to adapt to any handgrip (and they’re likely to develop a universal one in the future) The main controller is solidly built, has hard stop settings and powers off two AA batteries (make sure the batteries are fresh! It can effect signal.). It feels really solid in your hands. The motor itself weighs only 5 ounces and is extremely small, at nearly half the size of any other motor.
We used the microsystem with both DSLR Canon Zooms, Zeiss ZF primes, and later PL mount lenses like the Angenieux 16-42 DP lens. *The Torque motors are designed to perform on most DSLR and cinema lenses. It can work quite well on cinema primes and lightweight zooms. For big cinema zooms or those that require a lot of torque, it is compatible with digital motors from Heden, Loon, and Preston. The components are well made- and the controls allowing users to calibrate the focus throw and adjust the torque of the motor are easy to use. The auto calibration is especially helpful since the unit needs to be calibrated each time power is lost to the transceiver. The transceiver is very small and lightweight, something that camera operators who are experimenting with new types of compact configurations will surely appreciate as they embrace the freedom created by keeping the camera lightweight and compact. You can adjust the amount of torque between a 1 – 9 setting. With the 1 setting you have more finess and less power, and with the 9 setting you can make fast pulls. We tended to keep it between 1-3 so we could pull focus smoother without stepping. Another great feature is the auto calibration. You simply press auto and the system finds the end points quickly and accurately. There is a manual setting in case you want to make specific adjustments. The Redrock MicroRemote really does work perfectly with the DSLR lenses.
* I've been told the Redrock system is currently working on set on Pretty Little Liars in production on their Arri ultra primes for weeks, and they have no problems at all. They’ve also tested quite extensively with the complete Zeiss CP2 line and works great with them. I only had the chance to test with the Angenieux DP zooms and the system still preformed admirably. When set at 1 or 2 torque, we were able to pull focus smoothly with faster moves. Where the system reaches some limitations is in the extremely slow focus pulls where the motor has some slight stepping to it. The Redrock microRemote system however, is a digital system that lets you use any manufacturers digital motor. That's the genius of the price point, because when you are ready to upgrade to a more powerful motor, it works perfectly with the Redrock microRemote system. We tried the Heden digital motor with the PL mount lenses and it worked great with the system, allowing smooth focus pulls. For PL lenses you're going to have to try it out to see what your personal preferences are. The Heden motor is larger and heavier than the redrock motor so there is a tradeoff there as well.
Microconclusion
For my action commercial shoots I'm very happy with the entire Redrock microRemote system. We were able to execute the focus pulls on the fly, following the athletes and it worked well. With narrative work I haven't had the chance to test out yet. I think it will be up to your budget and your AC's preference/style for pulling focus as to what motor you may need. Overall it's a great system for the price, especially if you are using a lot of DSLR style lenses. The feature set is pretty remarkable and its extremely easy to use.
Paralinx Arrow HD Transmitter
The Paralinx Arrow has been well reviewed here so If you want picks please go to my blog post. The arrow worked flawlessly on my shoot in outdoor hot socal weather, run and gun following a skateboarder around for many hours. Didn't lose signal once. I will say briefly that the two systems work perfectly together. They are both small, lightweight, inexpensive (comparatively) and are perfect compliments to each other. Especially if the DSLR lenses are part of your setup.
Hope that helps some people. Thanks!
Rooar
E
:://::
ERIC KORETZ | CINEMATOGRAPHER
Web. [url]www.theimagehunter.com [/URL]
Blog. blog.theimagehunter.com
Email. eric@theimagehunter.com
Twitter. theimagehunter
* added additional info
Blog post is here with Pictures: http://blog.theimagehunter.com/?p=1570
Short summary,
Redrock microRemote
At $2300 for the package including the motor, it’s affordable and lightweight and well built. in addition it has a fingerWheel controller to let you do ENG style focusing with a lemo connection. No other wireless systems have that option as far as I have found. The fingerWheel currently works with their handgrips only, but with a little shop work I’m sure it’s easy to adapt to any handgrip (and they’re likely to develop a universal one in the future) The main controller is solidly built, has hard stop settings and powers off two AA batteries (make sure the batteries are fresh! It can effect signal.). It feels really solid in your hands. The motor itself weighs only 5 ounces and is extremely small, at nearly half the size of any other motor.
We used the microsystem with both DSLR Canon Zooms, Zeiss ZF primes, and later PL mount lenses like the Angenieux 16-42 DP lens. *The Torque motors are designed to perform on most DSLR and cinema lenses. It can work quite well on cinema primes and lightweight zooms. For big cinema zooms or those that require a lot of torque, it is compatible with digital motors from Heden, Loon, and Preston. The components are well made- and the controls allowing users to calibrate the focus throw and adjust the torque of the motor are easy to use. The auto calibration is especially helpful since the unit needs to be calibrated each time power is lost to the transceiver. The transceiver is very small and lightweight, something that camera operators who are experimenting with new types of compact configurations will surely appreciate as they embrace the freedom created by keeping the camera lightweight and compact. You can adjust the amount of torque between a 1 – 9 setting. With the 1 setting you have more finess and less power, and with the 9 setting you can make fast pulls. We tended to keep it between 1-3 so we could pull focus smoother without stepping. Another great feature is the auto calibration. You simply press auto and the system finds the end points quickly and accurately. There is a manual setting in case you want to make specific adjustments. The Redrock MicroRemote really does work perfectly with the DSLR lenses.
* I've been told the Redrock system is currently working on set on Pretty Little Liars in production on their Arri ultra primes for weeks, and they have no problems at all. They’ve also tested quite extensively with the complete Zeiss CP2 line and works great with them. I only had the chance to test with the Angenieux DP zooms and the system still preformed admirably. When set at 1 or 2 torque, we were able to pull focus smoothly with faster moves. Where the system reaches some limitations is in the extremely slow focus pulls where the motor has some slight stepping to it. The Redrock microRemote system however, is a digital system that lets you use any manufacturers digital motor. That's the genius of the price point, because when you are ready to upgrade to a more powerful motor, it works perfectly with the Redrock microRemote system. We tried the Heden digital motor with the PL mount lenses and it worked great with the system, allowing smooth focus pulls. For PL lenses you're going to have to try it out to see what your personal preferences are. The Heden motor is larger and heavier than the redrock motor so there is a tradeoff there as well.
Microconclusion
For my action commercial shoots I'm very happy with the entire Redrock microRemote system. We were able to execute the focus pulls on the fly, following the athletes and it worked well. With narrative work I haven't had the chance to test out yet. I think it will be up to your budget and your AC's preference/style for pulling focus as to what motor you may need. Overall it's a great system for the price, especially if you are using a lot of DSLR style lenses. The feature set is pretty remarkable and its extremely easy to use.
Paralinx Arrow HD Transmitter
The Paralinx Arrow has been well reviewed here so If you want picks please go to my blog post. The arrow worked flawlessly on my shoot in outdoor hot socal weather, run and gun following a skateboarder around for many hours. Didn't lose signal once. I will say briefly that the two systems work perfectly together. They are both small, lightweight, inexpensive (comparatively) and are perfect compliments to each other. Especially if the DSLR lenses are part of your setup.
Hope that helps some people. Thanks!
Rooar
E
:://::
ERIC KORETZ | CINEMATOGRAPHER
Web. [url]www.theimagehunter.com [/URL]
Blog. blog.theimagehunter.com
Email. eric@theimagehunter.com
Twitter. theimagehunter
* added additional info
