Red Scarlet X #316 "Skully"

[Brad Crawford]

Nice looking rig for lightweight tripod usage. i'm gonna have a very similar setup, super excited to get my cam!

 

[Patrick Grossien]

Got a nice holiday surprise today. Received notice that my Scarlet X was actually ready for pickup today!
So I zipped down to Red and picked up the first Scarlet X Al Canon Mount in the USA.

Awesome! Congratulations Phil ! Really looking forward to Skully's first steps...
Merry Christmas to you!

Edit: Ok, now read the whole thread. Great stuff already!!! Keep Having fun with your baby. We'll be here excited and inteterested thanks a ton for sharing.

 

[greg filipkowski]

Hi Phil I heard new test

 

[Phil Holland]

It's coming. Almost done with my dinner Lots and lots of thoughts after today. More likely after tomorrow. By Friday you guys will be sick of me

 

[Waleed Al Shehhi]

Thanks Phil

Waiting for the post ... after your dinner of course ... :biggrinjester:

 

[Mitch Pierias]

Thanks Phil

I am curious as to how the Scarlet goes on that lightweight HDV tripod?

 

[Mike Garrick]

Hi Phil, thanks for the posts, a question if you have any spare time . You have previously talked about a DSMC redvolt preference. Obviously from the pics posted you're also running a Wooden camera V mount setup, any comments about the 2 battery systems your operating? Thanx Mike

 

[Jeffrey Loewe]

Hi Phil, thanks for the posts, a question if you have any spare time . You have previously talked about a DSMC redvolt preference. Obviously from the pics posted you're also running a Wooden camera V mount setup, any comments about the 2 battery systems your operating? Thanx Mike

Adding to this, Phil, does the Wooden Camera V mount setup show batter percentage on screen? I got the VF Brooks plate and have read of fit problems and it also not showing a %, just curious.

 

[Peter.G]

Hi Phil,

At some point can you post your thoughts on 3k/48fps and how it holds up.

Thanks for all the posts...
-P

 

[Phil Holland]

Okay. I've got images and actual "moving pictures", but first answers to questions...

Thanks Phil

I am curious as to how the Scarlet goes on that lightweight HDV tripod?

This particular set of sticks are made by Varizoom. I would say it's at the threshold of what I would consider "usable". It's lightweight, portable, and has mid level spreaders. I'll be switching over to my Manfrotto 545GB for more stability today, which has floor level spreaders that I'm not fond off for "outdoors" work. I know the Manfrotto is more stable than the Varizoom from past experiences with larger cameras.

Hi Phil, thanks for the posts, a question if you have any spare time . You have previously talked about a DSMC redvolt preference. Obviously from the pics posted you're also running a Wooden camera V mount setup, any comments about the 2 battery systems your operating? Thanx Mike

Oh how times change! The QuadVolt Module is not available for a while and initially I thought I'd be rigging out with that. Since I made those comments though, Ryan at Wooden Camera released his somewhat brilliantly designed "Quick Back" system. I was sold and purchased one promptly as I needed to power the camera while I waited on my DSMC Side Handle to arrive (expected early January 2012).

I will 99% of the time be running with V-mount and RedVolts in the DSMC Side Handle once all is said and done. I'll know more about how that works hopefully next month.

Adding to this, Phil, does the Wooden Camera V mount setup show batter percentage on screen? I got the VF Brooks plate and have read of fit problems and it also not showing a %, just curious.

This largely depends on if the batteries themselves "speak" to the Scarlet. The IDX Endura 10s I'm using just report voltage, but they aren't "Red" batteries. I believe the batteries from Globalmediapro should report percentage. I'll know more when they arrive at the end of the week/beginning of next week.

Hi Phil,

At some point can you post your thoughts on 3k/48fps and how it holds up.

Thanks for all the posts...
-P

3k is coming up Peter. I'm hoping to go out today and play with that.

Be back in a few minutes.

 

[Phil Holland]

Here's a little shooting report and a sample from the Scarlet X @ 4k.

Battery usage: After two actual days of shooting I personally know that I'll need somewhere between 300Wh and 500Wh per full day of shooting. I've been using IDX Endura 10 (98Wh) batteries as the only power when I'm shooting for those two days. I shot 75 takes yesterday with very frequent power downs after nearly every setup, leaving the battery on camera, and occasionally leaving the camera on longer spans of time I used about 270Wh in what I would consider an aggressive half a day of work. This was using the Red LCD 5.0" Touch and electronic EF Mount Lenses the whole time as well.

I've ordered 2X 160Wh Globalmediapro "Red" batteries to satisfy me for the time being, but will likely order two more in the future if they work out. I have 4x RedVolts (30Wh) sitting hear as well. I'll be using both in camera when I operate most of the time.


Panoramic Imaging: A big part of my life working on large features for the last several years has been Spherical HDRI Panoramas. So I was eager to test out how Scarlet X "behaves" when attempting to do such things. It's a very different way of working if you've shot panoramas before. As Peter Lik and Jim have shown Red cameras can certainly do this. I just set my shutter and rolled while tilting the camera on it's nodal point. I come from a world of motorized panoramic heads, but it's really fun to shoot this "new" way.

Here's that shot:

I actually attempted this at 1/48th to see if I could incorporate that motion picture feel while doing this type of work. For critical work I would increase the shutter speed. I'll be doing more testing on this front. This was captured with the Canon 135mm f/2L @ 4k, 3 frames for a square composition.


Impromptu shoulder rig: Prior to shooting yesterday I was up and pacing the house a couple nights ago and found myself thinking "it's like 10,000 spoons when all you need is a Clutch" because I wanted to shoot some shoulder mounted material. I've made it no secret that the Red Clutch is the best shoulder rig I've ever used, but I won't be able to purchase it for while.

So I fashioned one out of some spare parts laying around late at night. Also "stole" the top handle from my Easom Cage and attached it to the top of Scarlet. It turned out to be pretty lightweight and I made it so you can mount it straight on Manfrotto heads. I found myself operating with the back handle on the shoulder rig for most of the day. Enjoyed that actually a whole bunch. Also having the front and back handles setup this way allows me to place the camera down on the ground when adjusting setups. I've also been experimenting with operating the follow focus on the right for shoulder setups as I can use my entire right arm to hug the handle while adjusting focus.

A Refining Experience

Below is the first content I shot under what I would consider a nature shoot conditions. This is actually one of my favorite places to do test shoots over the last few years, but it's being torn down at the moment. Shot mostly on the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8, but also the Canon 24mm f/1.4L, 35mm f/14L, 50mm f/1.2L and 85mm f/1.2L. Shooting techniques used in this video are: shoulder mount, tripod, slider setup, and motion control head. Also did not use a matte box to see what kind of flare I could get going here.

Make sure you click "Original" under the resolution settings if you'd like to watch the 4k version and have a computer that can handle that.

YouTube recompression/encoding nerfs the video quality pretty hard, but if you have a computer that can handle it, I'll be uploading a 4k mp4 for you to view by the end of the day once I'm back from "Narnia".

Here's a couple stills of the Kessler Cineslider setup for the stairway shot in the video. I'm using a Manfrotto 701HDV head and operating from the back handle of the shoulder rig as I mentioned earlier. Requires a very delicate touch and as always leveling your slider makes everything go smoother.

Upcoming test shoots: 3k 48fps and Night.

That's all I have to post today

 

[Chase M. Wrenn]

Got a nice holiday surprise today. Received notice that my Scarlet X was actually ready for pickup today!
So I zipped down to Red and picked up the first Scarlet X Al Canon Mount in the USA.

Congrats dude on your camera. Not trying to be a party pooper, but I had the Scarlet-X with Canon Al mount weeks ago, #65. Based in Cali, so not sure how that info was determined. Got a thread on here w/ pics and dates posted, as do others. Is there something unique about Skully?

Anyway, awesome tests and pics, cool to see higher numbers going out.

 

[Paramon Ivanovich]

Thank you my man!
lookin good!

 

[Bob Gundu]

Thanks for the footage Phil. I personally find any lens wider than 20mm too distorted. I usually limit the movement to the wide lenses to subtle pans or leave them locked off. How aggressive was your grading in Redcine?

 

[Phil Holland]

Congrats dude on your camera. Not trying to be a party pooper, but I had the Scarlet-X with Canon Al mount weeks ago, #65. Based in Cali, so not sure how that info was determined. Got a thread on here w/ pics and dates posted, as do others. Is there something unique about Skully?

Anyway, awesome tests and pics, cool to see higher numbers going out.

Weird. It's what I was told by Red. I was told it was the first Al Mount Package in the USA, but I have no way of knowing anything like that for sure. Being first really isn't that important to me in reality. Having the camera is.

Thanks for the footage Phil. I personally find any lens wider than 20mm too distorted. I usually limit the movement to the wide lenses to subtle pans or leave them locked off. How aggressive was your grading in Redcine?

I especially agree when working with people. That Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 is the newest lens in my arsenal and I really wanted to test it out. The grade itself isn't that aggressive. All done in REDcolor2 and REDlogFilm, pretty mild to flat S-Curve for most of it. The shot near the beginning with the pan through broken windows I certainly lifted the shadows a bit. That was pretty high contrast in reality.

 

[Stefan Antonescu]

Wonderful Phil. Reading now...

 

[Peter Staubs]

cool place! nice test man, I like the look of your shoulder rig, compact and fun. how does it feel on your shoulder? I love the red rods!

 

[Michael Dalton]

Thanks Phil, nice to see a lot of shots, and great info on power consumption. It's great to know what can be expected. Like you, I'll use the redvolt, but I have requirements beyond what they are capable and followed this an other post closely. One question though, is there a specific connector for power on the scarlet in which we need a cable, or does any V mount back plate work? One's built for Red cameras and labelled for scarlet such as the Swit.

 

[Phil Holland]

cool place! nice test man, I like the look of your shoulder rig, compact and fun. how does it feel on your shoulder? I love the red rods!

Surprisingly well actually. Considering it was made of just spare parts, that's pleasant surprise. With the battery weight it balance pretty well. If I was using heavier glass I would need to add extra weight for sure. That oil refinery won't be there in a year, but I've had a heck of a lot of fun shooting there. I'll miss it.

Thanks Phil, nice to see a lot of shots, and great info on power consumption. It's great to know what can be expected. Like you, I'll use the redvolt, but I have requirements beyond what they are capable and followed this an other post closely. One question though, is there a specific connector for power on the scarlet in which we need a cable, or does any V mount back plate work? One's built for Red cameras and labelled for scarlet such as the Swit.

Thanks Michael. It depends on the battery plate you buy. Brooks VF plate and Ryan from Wooden Camera's plate both plug straight into the Epic/Scarlet. The Red plate I believe needs the 2b adapter cable. I've used both the VF plate and own the Wooden Camera Quick Back system with V-mount plate and would recommend either of those.

 

[Michael Dalton]

Hi Phil, thanks for the response. Is this the v plate you have attached to the quick back plate? http://woodencamera.com/qb-switronix-v-mount

Thanks