Komodo + KipperTie Revolva + Cage?

[Julien Herth]

Hey fellow Komodo fans,

I'm in the process of planning my minimalist Komodo rig and I'm wondering if you guys could help me decide which pieces of gear I could actually attach to a Komodo without problems.

Here's what I would like, ideally:

- KipperTie Revolva RF-PL with chin strap
- Top handle
- Cage? Or just side ribs with 3/8 mounting points?
- Baseplate with 15mm rods

Now from what I've seen on Youtube and a lot of manufacturer websites so far, it looks like there would be several incompatibilities with this setup. For one, the KipperTie Revolva requires a bit of clearance to the top for the filter wheel, and also the chin strap to minimize wiggle or play in the mount itself would mean I couldn't fit any cage, right? I do like both the Tilta and Smallrig cages, but the Tilta top plate won't allow the filter wheel of the Revolva because it sticks out to the front of the body. And even though the Smallrig cage does look very promising, the chin strap won't fit.

So what do you think, is there any way to combine the Revolva, the chin strap and a reasonable amount of rigid support points to a Komodo body? Just the Wooden Camera top handle would most likely fit, but what about the base plate with rod support? Will it get in the way of the chin strap? And if so, how could I get some more mounting points other than the Arri rosettes from the Wooden Camera base plate?

Or should I maybe ditch the Revolva altogether, since it seems to create a lot of problems rigging-wise, and just go for a solid cage and a standard PL mount?

Hopefully you guys have some thoughts on this, maybe even some experiences on what would work. If there already is a topic on this, feel free to link those threads.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Thomas B.]

Just in case you want to use behind-the-lens filters and don't want to rise your top handle's mount (because of Revolva's filter wheel),
Breakthrough Photography has a RF to PL mount (with Drop-In-Filters) in the works... so, not released yet; I just thought it's worth mentioning.

 

[Andy Maser]

I use the Revolva system on my DSMC2 camera and I'd never go back. Short of an Arri style internal ND, this is the best combo of convenience and optical quality you're going to find. Just as with Komodo, there are weird compatibility things with DSMC2--needing a specific top plate for one--but more lasting is the need to disconnect the EVF before you're able to change ND disks. Even despite that, it's still the best solution. It's only a matter of time before I get the Komodo version.

Those drop in filters only look a half a step better than using the 4x5 NDs and a tiny clip on matte box that many of us probably already have in our kits. You still have to have 7+ filters on you and you still need to change a filter every time your light changes. Putting the filter behind the lens certainly has optical benefits and sure these drop ins are smaller than 4x5s, but I'm not sure if that's enough to make up the difference. Switching between 4 physical behind the lens filters with the flick of your finger is definitely worth whatever fiddling around is required to find the right combo of rig parts (especially if you're going minimalist).

Didn't answer your question about specific bits and pieces, but hopefully that still added.

 

[Julien Herth]

Breakthrough Photography has a RF to PL mount (with Drop-In-Filters) in the works...

Thanks for the input, Thomas, however...

Didn't answer your question about specific bits and pieces, but hopefully that still added.

Andy, you did in fact strengthen my belief that I want the Revolva in my workflow. I have a fairly long history of shooting with broadcast cameras and a ton of experience with the FS7, so a filter wheel with four different NDs would be the easiest thing for me to use. The hassle of carrying a bunch of drop-in filters and exchanging them for every shot is something I'm not looking forward to, and I'm also just not a fan of variable NDs that use polarizers.

Thanks to you both for your input, but now I'm hoping someone might have some insider knowledge about the rigging questions.

 

[Julien Herth]

So here's my newest thought.

Since I was considering the Revolva chin strap mainly for rigidity and elimination of play in the mount, I was thinking of another way to achieve this. The more obvious solution: Just adding 15mm rods and a lens support should be enough, right? Of course the support would be a screw-in, ideally, not just one the lens rests on. With the support screwed into the lens, any play in the mount should be gone, right?

Of course this would limit me to lenses with screw support, but since my goal is a Zeiss CP.3 set, this wouldn't be a problem.

Any thoughts on this?