My first RED.

[Troy Grundstad]

Hey folks,

Today is the day i finally get to join the RED community, I have been a long time fan and supporter of these camera systems. I have been working with System cameras since i was around 15 years old (24 Years old now) And have been working with everything from Live productions to festival productions, small Indy projects, Freelance and some DoP work.

I got a good deal on a R1 Kit with low hours (556 hours) for around $2.000 and got a bunch of extra stuff, allthough not a insane amount of accessories as some of the bigger kits out there has, but the things i got with is in near mint contition!

What i got with the kit


#Red ONE body
#RED LCD
#RED DRIVE (640gb)
# 4x 16Gb CF Cards
#Nikon Mount
#PL Mount
#V Mount & Drive cage
#19mm Rail system (With all brackets)
#FOTGA mattebox
#a bunch of LIMO cables
#CF Module

But from doing a bunch of research, i have found the CF cards to limit the quality? Not beeing fast enough for the best setting and i would need to use a RED mini mag module.
From what ive understood these are getting more and more rare to come by

Cant wait to get to use this and get into the RED Eco system, If anyone has some tips and tricks im all ears!

Hers a shot of the rig (was building it in my garage)

 

[Sergio Perez]

Welcome to the community. The Red One is one serious camera that produces beautiful pictures. The suggestions I can give for the MX sensor are as follows :

1- Don't use ISO above 800 (ISO 1280 is the maximum noise I personally find acceptable)

2- Iso 400 produces, for me at least, the most beautiful picture on the One.

3- Be careful with the V mount batteries you use. If you can, use Red Original ones with the One. I didn't use them much myself, but I remember a lot of stories of problems with the one and they were because of using bad third party batteries.

Happy Shooting!

 

[Alex Lubensky]

Welcome to the community. The Red One is one serious camera that produces beautiful pictures. The suggestions I can give for the MX sensor are as follows :

1- Don't use ISO above 800 (ISO 1280 is the maximum noise I personally find acceptable)

2- Iso 400 produces, for me at least, the most beautiful picture on the One.

3- Be careful with the V mount batteries you use. If you can, use Red Original ones with the One. I didn't use them much myself, but I remember a lot of stories of problems with the one and they were because of using bad third party batteries.

Happy Shooting!

Red bricks are known to be a moderate battery. Any decent V-Mount battery is fine, don't run for the Red Bricks - at best you'll find re-packed ones, or quite old and dead batteries. There are plenty of good batteries sold online, be it SWIT, Anton Bauer, Blue Shape etc.

 

[Troy Grundstad]

Thanks!

I`ll keep the ISO in mind and test it out abit. I did not get any Red bricks with my camera package. Which is fine in my case as i despise the V mount, Feels flimsy and not secure enough.
Will be posting some showreels once i get the workflow going!

 

[Troy Grundstad]

Been a long time user of Anton Bauer. Fantastic batteries albeit expensive, but i guess that comes with the territory of these cameras.
I have a little collection of HCX batteries all well maintained and well kept. so im just waiting for the Gold mount Battery plate. Been tempted to pull the trigger on some CINE series batteries from AB. But just havent done it yet as i feel like my 8-12 year old AB HCX batteries perform like new, give or take 15 min run time.

 

[Mike P.]

Awesome stuff Troy! R1mx is dope. Make sure the firmware is the latest/newest and enjoy that 4.5k WS goodness.

Also worth considering upgrading to the 1.8" SSD module/REDmags as they give you huge runtime compared to the 16gb CF cards and don't drop frames like the REDdrive.

 

[Troy Grundstad]

Been on the lookout for a 1.8" SSD Module along with some other goodies, Ill leave a list below. But im surprised by the low usage and how prestine it looks. It only has 556 Hours of usage (Powered on) and as far as what ive come to find thats good, as if it would have been a bad make it would fail before its initial 4-500 hours of use. So this should theoretically be "proven" im in dire need of some propper PL Glass (Cooke, Zeiss, Fujinon or Arri signature Primes) but thats going to cost a kidney.

Im contemplating CNCing a new body for my Old 50mm Nikkor F1.4 lens just to fit matteboxes, have geared focus and aperature, ive allready had it apart and declicked the aperature. Its not perfect by any strech of the imagination, but i won it on an ebay auction for £30 and have restored it to its full glory! Ill leave a screenshot of how the footage looks in REDCINE-X Pro

What i still need to aquire:

#SDI Breakout box
#RED ONE 1.8" REDMAG SSD MODULE
#RED ONE TOP HANDLE
#2 x 128 GB REDMAG
#REDMAG READER USB 3.0
#Canon EF Mount (Plans to build a remote system for use with the L glass i have from my DLSR days)


Here is a Screenshot of the nikkor performance (super shit quality on this .jpg, ill see if i can render it out as a video preview)

 

[Nick_Brown]

Congratulations!

My recommendation would be to keep it as light and simple as possible. Your Nikon mount will go a long way towards that. Take ever piece of metal you aren't using off of the camera and watch the lbs melt away. Don't spend a lot of money on a shoulder rig (like I did). Even the slimmest of them will raise the center of gravity too high. Instead, buy the longest quick release plate you can find for your tripod so that you have an even surface, and rest it on your shoulder (wear a hoodie and pull the hood to the side for a cushion if it's too uncomfortable). Speaking of tripods, get a 100mm fluid head that can support the weight of this camera. Vinten and Libec heads can be found for cheap on eBay. Bogen 3066 will hold the weight of the camera but won't give you very smooth pans or tilts (haven't tried one myself but this is what I keep hearing).

I haven't seen an SSD module for sale since I bought my camera 8 months ago. You may have to buy a second body that has one.

Use the IPP2 pipeline and the free Red LUTs: https://support.red.com/hc/en-us/articles/360041467533-RED-LUT-Downloads

Join the Red One Facebook group. It ebbs and flows but sometimes people share interesting things on there.

 

[Björn Benckert]

Its a nice camera but dont put too much into it. Quickly you will spend a lot of money that could have bought you a smaller / more modern camera.

But yes, the HDD media solution works well. Roy Andersen is still using his R1 with hard drives and he still win some of the most nobel prices in film making. And yes the camera is so big so having a hard drive on it does not make much difference and you can always record on cards, the difference in compression between cards and SSD is there but not big enough to chase down a SSD module usually you need to buy a full body to get one, people are usually not letting go of the module alone, but you can be lucky to find someone with a dead redone that wants to sell.

Batteries, most Vlocks today are better than the old red bricks that did not have Dtap and was simply not the best of batteries. So try find good high surge batteries for a good price.

Regarding light. I think Fincher rated it to be a 400ISO wihtout his motion mount and 250iso with his special motion mount.

 

[Steve Sherrick]

Keep it lean and mean. You'll enjoy.

 

[Troy Grundstad]

Congratulations!

My recommendation would be to keep it as light and simple as possible. Your Nikon mount will go a long way towards that. Take ever piece of metal you aren't using off of the camera and watch the lbs melt away. Don't spend a lot of money on a shoulder rig (like I did). Even the slimmest of them will raise the center of gravity too high. Instead, buy the longest quick release plate you can find for your tripod so that you have an even surface, and rest it on your shoulder (wear a hoodie and pull the hood to the side for a cushion if it's too uncomfortable). Speaking of tripods, get a 100mm fluid head that can support the weight of this camera. Vinten and Libec heads can be found for cheap on eBay. Bogen 3066 will hold the weight of the camera but won't give you very smooth pans or tilts (haven't tried one myself but this is what I keep hearing).

I haven't seen an SSD module for sale since I bought my camera 8 months ago. You may have to buy a second body that has one.

Use the IPP2 pipeline and the free Red LUTs: https://support.red.com/hc/en-us/articles/360041467533-RED-LUT-Downloads

Join the Red One Facebook group. It ebbs and flows but sometimes people share interesting things on there.

Definetly going to try to keep it lightweight as this camera is heavyy, going to test out a few ideas i have, allthough i do want the flexibility to throw on some rods and fully build it if the shot demands for it.
I got to borrow a Libec LX7 from a friend just to try with this R1, and the camera is way to heavy for it. It does work to get some usable shots, but you are allways thinking "god this is way to top heavy"

Been using the IPP2 pipeline since i downloaded redcine x, its amazing!

 

[Troy Grundstad]

Its a nice camera but dont put too much into it. Quickly you will spend a lot of money that could have bought you a smaller / more modern camera.

But yes, the HDD media solution works well. Roy Andersen is still using his R1 with hard drives and he still win some of the most nobel prices in film making. And yes the camera is so big so having a hard drive on it does not make much difference and you can always record on cards, the difference in compression between cards and SSD is there but not big enough to chase down a SSD module usually you need to buy a full body to get one, people are usually not letting go of the module alone, but you can be lucky to find someone with a dead redone that wants to sell.

Batteries, most Vlocks today are better than the old red bricks that did not have Dtap and was simply not the best of batteries. So try find good high surge batteries for a good price.

Regarding light. I think Fincher rated it to be a 400ISO wihtout his motion mount and 250iso with his special motion mount.

Wont be putting to much cash into Red one spesific gear as much as i am in gear that can be used with other cameras aswell (Grips, Rails, Matteboxes, focus puller, FIZ electronics, PL lenses, etc) But i do want that SSD module just for the sake of not having a litteral brick with spinning disks ( i dont doubt they work well, i just dont trust a used spinning disk as much as i do ssds and CF cards). Definetly wont buy another Red one just for the module, it would only be if somebody happens to have one and is willing to part ways with it for an reasonable amout. Ill be avoiding Vmount batteries like the pest as i have never come around to like that mounting style, been a long time Gold mount user here, so ill just swap out the vmount to a gold mount, i do have a bunch of HCX series batteries around.

Just did a few shots in iso 250 and 400 and it blows my mind how organic and natural this camera is. for the age you definetly wouldnt expect such smooth footage! Thanks for all the inputs

 

[Troy Grundstad]

Keep it lean and mean. You'll enjoy.

Now this is what im talking about! ill be looking into a few variants of building it down like this, with options to throw som rails on for some extra stuff.

 

[TrevorBarnes]

Keep it lean and mean. You'll enjoy.

If you don't mind sharing, what is that top plate and handle you are using? Your whole setup is sick!

 

[Mike Krumlauf]

A little late to congratulate but none the less, congrats kid! I got my first RED back in 2015 which was a ONE MX. I remember when I opened the shipping box and held it for the first time I cried hard. It was a game changing moment for myself as an artist. The irony for me is that my experience with the ONE MX was terrible and I ended up selling it 6 months after getting it. Double Irony is I recently rejoined the RED universe and bought a scarlet and I couldn't be happier. Welcome to the fam!

 

[James O Sullivan]

Here’s my first RED, delivered less than a week ago. I’m very impressed with it. It came out of nowhere; a crazy-good ebay deal that was simply too good to pass up. It’s a R1, hours in the 700 region, with fitted Birger Canon mount adapter, spare PL Mount, a bunch of red cf cards and a large drive, original Red monitor and EVF, v mount battery and mains lead, all the cables, bars and a sturdy case etc. It’s old tech, of course, and big as an anvil, but still makes great images and is such a cool way to dip a toe in the world of RED without breaking the bank.

First impressions - the menu system is not too difficult to navigate at all (contrary to reports I read), the build quality is superb, the variety of inputs and outputs is impressive, the camera clearly needs lots of light and can be prone to noise if ISO is pushed. You get from 2K up to 4.5K - nice! Variable frame-rates - great! It is possible to strip it back to a basic step up and use it as a single operator - excellent! On the downside, the HDMI only outputs 720p (for some reason, I presumed it would at least output 1080). I think my Canon mount may need a back focus adjustment also, but I’m still test driving it so will examine that more closely down the line.

Great to see this helpful community here anyway. I suspect that I’ll be asking a few dumb questions as I wrap my head around this cam in the coming weeks.

 

[Nick_Brown]

What a beaut! Mind if I ask how much you paid? I feel like the prices on these are coming down since the Komodo hit the scene. Speaking of which, I just used my R1MX as a b-camera for a Komodo and the color matched up surprisingly well.

I see that you have a contemporary EF-S lens on your camera. Do the controls on your Birger mount allow you to change aperture and/or utilize IS? I have the same mount but mine is a dumb adapter and it's a shame -- so much of my glass is electronically controlled.

 

[James O Sullivan]

What a beaut! Mind if I ask how much you paid? I feel like the prices on these are coming down since the Komodo hit the scene. Speaking of which, I just used my R1MX as a b-camera for a Komodo and the color matched up surprisingly well.

I see that you have a contemporary EF-S lens on your camera. Do the controls on your Birger mount allow you to change aperture and/or utilize IS? I have the same mount but mine is a dumb adapter and it's a shame -- so much of my glass is electronically controlled.

Cheers. I paid €1350 for the full kit and €50 for shipping, which was a genuine bargain for what is still a very capable camera. I think the Komodo is a game changer for RED price-wise and may well impact on the prices these older REDs will go for.

I’m only getting my head around the Birger Canon adapter at the moment so don’t want to give you any misinformation due to my inexperience with it. Yes, it allows you to control aperture fine on a contemporary EF-S lens, but the auto focus button isn’t functioning properly yet on mine. I think I may need to re-set the back focus to correct it, but I never use auto focus anyway so I’m soldiering away fine without it for the moment. I’ll be digging into the forums here soon to research back focus. Haven’t tested IS yet.

Most of my good glass is Nikon manual lenses, unlike your collection, so changing out the canon mount might be an option in the future if the procedure is not too complicated. I have the PL mount in the kit, but no PL glass in my collection.

 

[Nick_Brown]

Wow, I'd say that was a steal. Basically the price of a mid-level mirrorless camera. Amazing.

My camera came with a PL mount and I had to buy and attach the Birger. It really wasn't a problem. Making a backfocus adjustment was easy enough. However, I have not been able to change aperture on my Canon lenses. I've tried powering the Birger from one of the aux ports, but it seems that the camera won't even power up when I have something plugged into any of those ports.

I have a set of cine-modded Nikkor AIS primes as well as a Tokina 28-70 in Nikon mount. But I also have some Sigma Art primes that I'd love to use with the camera.

 

[James O Sullivan]

Wow, I'd say that was a steal. Basically the price of a mid-level mirrorless camera. Amazing.

My camera came with a PL mount and I had to buy and attach the Birger. It really wasn't a problem. Making a backfocus adjustment was easy enough. However, I have not been able to change aperture on my Canon lenses. I've tried powering the Birger from one of the aux ports, but it seems that the camera won't even power up when I have something plugged into any of those ports.

Yes, I think I got a fantastic deal from a reliable seller. I was very fortunate to spot it.

I don’t know if this will help with powering yours, but I power my Birger by going from the Aux out the back of the cam to the top slot on the Birger. See pics: