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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Which ND filters for DRAGON?

A

Artur Orzel

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I was wondering which filters will be suitable for the new sensor?
Hot Mirror ND like for Epic mysterium X or IR ND like for Alexa?
 
Artur Orzel said:
I was wondering which filters will be suitable for the new sensor?
Hot Mirror ND like for Epic mysterium X or IR ND like for Alexa?
Click to expand...

From what I can discern from my few times with it. Dragon features a new IROLPF which "helps" with IR contamination. Which to me means you'll be able to get away with a bit more ND filtration. For instance I used an regular ND .9 on this last shoot, and while I saw a slight warmth, I didn't see much contamination. I didn't slap a 1.8 on there though. That's a good stress test. Next time I'm around it I'll do that.

The Motion Mount seems to be where the color party is at. It features some sort of IR cut filter, I think that first bit is actually a hot mirror when you look at the mount. Additionally, it "calibrates" with each adjustment of ND strength to provide accurate color. This is something that NDs and especially IRNDs won't provide as there are variations between batches and individual filters.

Right now it's the best color I've seen out of Mysterium-X because of that. Dragon will be the same.
 
Hi Phil,

So are you running the motion mount on Spike at the moment? Or do you currently have a Dragon on hand?

If the motion mount is a big step up in regards to ND and IR contamination, is it, in your opinion, worth buying prior to upgrading my Epic to Dragon?
 
Nathan Apffel said:
Hi Phil,

So are you running the motion mount on Spike at the moment? Or do you currently have a Dragon on hand?

If the motion mount is a big step up in regards to ND and IR contamination, is it, in your opinion, worth buying prior to upgrading my Epic to Dragon?
Click to expand...


I have it running on Spike. It's actually been on my camera almost everyday since getting it. The color from the Motion Mount versus ND filters especially in the 3+ stop range is so good.

I don't have a Dragon here and I actually almost used it on that "It's Just Paint" shoot, but I decided to keep things as "common" as possible with that particular shoot. Just a PL Mount and ND .9 here and there.

If you have an Epic and you'll be shooting with it while waiting for Dragon to arrive, I'd say it's a good purchase. Plus you'll be using it on Dragon when that time comes. Picking and choosing is a tough call really when it comes to stuff like this. The Motion Mount is available now, although it might be back ordered. I know they go wicked fast in the store.

Dragon is so far a very trickled release and I'm sure we'll get more news on that front hopefully soon. Sensor yield delays suck for us all. Quality Control needs to be real high here. I understand the concept of the delay and I have my Epic to keep me warm in this time of "need".
 
Nathan Apffel said:
Well, off the the Red store to buy the Motion Mount. Thanks Phil!
Click to expand...

For me it made a lot of sense to get it quick as I'm shooting lots of outdoors material at the moment and it's really changed my workflow there. Also, I'm not lugging around a bunch of filters which is nice.
 
80% of what I shoot is outdoors with very little added light. Often packing in a good half mile or more when traveling.

Do you swap out mounts when shooting sunset material very often? Seems like the 1.5 stop light loss will be a hard one to work around until I've got the Dragon.
 
I wouldn't say it's that hard to work around. I am using T2 lenses and have been doing outside and indoor lit work for a few weeks now.
 
My impressions are in line with Ketch's & Phil's notes.

FWIW all my NDs are standard and I put a Schneider 750 Tru-Cut Hot Mirror out front whenever I see more than a smidge of contamination. Part of my reasoning for not getting the combo filters is that IR energy levels are so variable even when the total amount of light dictates a particular strength of ND. I've used 1.2 in situations where there was barely a hint of IR and have seen quite a bit of IR contamination even with a .6.

Yes, I'd prefer to put less glass in front of the lens, and once the filter makers have hard data on the characteristics of the IR/OLPF on the Dragon I might get a 1.8 or 2.1 combo filter for bright exteriors.

I would also point out that RED, ARRI, Canon and Sony have all become more sophisticated in their handling of IR over the last few years. I expect that trend will continue, perhaps to the point where this becomes moot in all but the most extreme conditions.

Cheers - #19
 
I second that Motion

I second that Motion

Great to hear such glowing reviews of the motion mount. I'd be stoked if my matte box was primarily a shade with a 1/4 wave retarder as needed and diffusion when required.

More critically, I'm very excited about the ability to manage the shutter characteristic to combat time aliasing and control judder.

I've been saying for months that the motion mount has the potential to be one of the most significant advancements in motion imaging in decades. Hope they are in stock when I can scrape together the coin.

Maybe I should sell all my filters to raise the funds... ;-)

Cheers - #19
 
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