45 Degree Shutter & Gate Check

Lately I have been working with a DP who uses the shutter alot. I prefer (especially in dusty locations) to check the gate thru the lense if possible.

But with the shutter at 45 degrees the gate is obscured by the shutter....On 435 and 535.

I develop a routine where I change the shutter to 180 check the gate and then change it back...but this is a little risky especially if you get interrupted....any other suggestions?

Too bad one doesnâ€™t have a "program Shutter" (like program speed) that one can change with a flick of the switch...

Charlie Curran
(shuttering at the thought of overexposure..)

>Lately I have been working with a DP who uses the shutter alot.

>I prefer (especially in dusty locations) to check the gate thru the lense if >possible.

I wish I could give you some answers for your question but instead I have another question. What type of stuff are you shooting that you use a 45 degree shutter so often?

Brook Aitken
Film Video
www.laproductions.com
Colorado USA

If the 435 kit comes with an Arri RCU with a short cable, you can set the 'PS/CCU' switch on the camera to CCU (down) and set the limits of the shutter on the RCU so fully anti-clock on the control knob is 45 deg. & fully clock is 180 deg. Changing shutter angles or camera speed is a breeze. I use the RCU if I know the DP will want to shoot a version of the same action at a different camera speed. I set the speed limits on the control knob to the speeds I need.

Look up the manual for the RCU on the CML or Arri site. The RCU is an extremely handy device. Great for cranes & tracking vehicles where the assistant can't be next to the camera.

I can't comment on the Arricam. I have only done some camera tests - registration & lens tests for a colleague who was between projects. In the short time I had with the Arricam, all I could remember was how similar it was to a Moviecam.

Angelo Sartore
1st. AC
Melbourne
Australia

In reference to the RCU issue:

>you'd think that Arri would have taken that to heart when they brought >out the Arricam.

Indeed, and I would have thought that the WRC -1wireless remote would have been brought over to the Arricam. Strange to waste the technology already there, there must be reasons for it, I suppose.

While we're at it, so many SR3's seem to have a loose top handle-and even after locktite, I see many that end up loose. It seems inherent w/ the way the mag hits it when changing mags no matter what you do or how carefully it's done. Perhaps it's been remedied w/ the advanced model(?)

The collapsible cores -I still think they should be eliminated.

John Babl
Miami

> "Too bad one doesnâ€™t have a "program Shutter" (like program >speed)"

Isn't there a "program" button on the 435? You could "program" this button for a 180 degree shutter at a specific frame rate. Say 24 FPS?

This way if it does get pushed by accident you'll be at 180 degrees and 24 fps. I believe you need a computer and a cable to set up this program button. The rental house should have this. The other way of doing this is to just move the shutter, set at 45 degrees, out of the way and then check the gate. On the 435 just move the shutter. On the 535 you need to move the whole movement.

Either way a 45 degree shutter should be enough of an opening to check the gate.

Andy Hoehn
First Assistant Camera
Detroit, MI USA

>While we're at it, so many SR3's seem to have a loose top handle-and >even after locktite, I see many that end up loose.

Interestingly, I have failed to see why Arri have put the 'swing-away' handle on the SR3. It is not required to be swung out of the way to remove or replace a 400' magazine. Do you need to swing it away for an 800' mag?

Angelo Sartore
1st. AC
Melbourne
AUSTRALIA

ADOPT, ADAPT, INVENT, DESTROY !

>It is not required to be swung out of the way to remove or replace a 400' >magazine. Do you need to swing it away for an 800' mag?

I am aware that the handle swings out of the way - I was speaking about the fact that some end up loose.

John Babl

"Isn't there a "program" button on the 435? You could "program" this button for a 180 degree shutter at a specific frame rate. Say 24 FPS? This way if it does get pushed by accident you'll be at 180 degrees and 24 fps. I believe you need a computer and a cable to set up this program button. The rental house should have this."

The 435 does have a program button and its one to watch out for. If the Rental House has not reset it with the Computer you could find yourself with the odd take shot at something other than what you had set either in the presets or variable speed settings. (Particularly if your hand held, the button is easily bumped.) I had one instance where the operator tapped the button just before we turned over and the camera instantly set itself to 50fps at 11.2Degree Shutter! Fortunately I saw the change before it was too late.

The program will only hold for the following take so at worst you would have only the one take incorrectly set. (Having said that, you wouldn't want that take to be an unrepeatable stunt or action!) I have spoken to a couple of the rental houses here in Australia about this and have asked that the cameras be set to an Industry STD. i.e. 25fps/180Degrees (in Australia). I'm yet to see that Standard introduced.

Keep a watchful eye on that little trick!!!

Andrew Jerram
1st A.C./Focus Puller
Melbourne, Australia.

"..The RCU is an extremely handy device...

And so you'd think that Arri would have taken that to heart when they brought out the Arricam. To put a remote on the Arricam seems to take 4 or 5 steps, an adapter or two and you still end up with a weird little remote that doesn't have footage or even an on/off! Are you listening, Munich? Look at how easy, fast, useful and affordable it is to plug an RCU into a 435 or 535b.â€

**(grumble, grumble, rant, rant!)**

Man-o-man, you said it!

That and how long has Arri had an 11-pin Fischer accessory port on ALL of their cameras--long enough that it has become a standard. One more slam on the Arricam, WATCHOUT for the 3-pin "24-volt" RS ports. They are not regulated below 32-volts, so if you have a healthy battery (as they recommend) you could be straining or even frying your Transvideo, Microforce... Other then that, they are great cameras, light, quiet, and easy to use.

Matt Petrosky
AC in LA