Videosmith Rentals

Today’s Rig - Sony F5 - Fujinon 45-250

Mon, 20 May 2013 14:34:17 -0400

Today’s Rig - Sony F5 - Fujinon 45-250

swapping PL to EF on the new Zeiss Super Speed lenses…

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 09:35:14 -0400

swapping PL to EF on the new Zeiss Super Speed lenses…

The new Sony F5 and Fujinon 19-90 PL mount Zoom added to our...

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 10:11:19 -0400

The new Sony F5 and Fujinon 19-90 PL mount Zoom added to our rental inventory

Checking out the new Alphatron EVF on the new Sony FS700...

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 11:10:42 -0400

Checking out the new Alphatron EVF on the new Sony FS700 today….

Did some slowmo tests with the Sony FS700 this weekend- Check it...

Tue, 24 Jul 2012 12:33:51 -0400

Did some slowmo tests with the Sony FS700 this weekend- Check it out!

New Expendables are in! Spike tape, 1”, 2”, Cable...

Thu, 24 May 2012 11:55:01 -0400

New Expendables are in! Spike tape, 1”, 2”, Cable Path, Chalk, Dust-off Jr’s and refills, Setwear Gloves, Flexfills, and much much more!!

Carl Zeiss Announces two new CP.2 Lenses at NAB 2012 As NAB 2012...

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 13:00:14 -0400

Carl Zeiss Announces two new CP.2 Lenses at NAB 2012

As NAB 2012 gets closer, we’re going to get more and more dribs and drabs of new gear, and we’re pretty excited.

The latest to announce new gear is Carl Zeiss, who announced 2 new additions to their awesome CP.2 line

From the press release:

During the NAB Trade Show in Las Vegas from April 16-19, 2012, Carl Zeiss will present two new cine prime lenses. Carl Zeiss is expanding its product range of the Compact Prime CP.2 series with two compact and uncommonly lightweight lenses. With new focal lengths of 15mm and 135mm, filmmakers can enhance their portfolios with these remarkable lenses.

[Source]

the-avengers-initiative: Writer/Director Joss Whedon and Mark...

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 11:00:09 -0400

the-avengers-initiative:

Writer/Director Joss Whedon and Mark Ruffalo on the set of The Avengers (2012)

“A Simple Explanation of F-Stop” The same guy who...

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 12:59:59 -0400

“A Simple Explanation of F-Stop”

The same guy who brought us the awesome explanation of how ISO works with our camera sensors returns with an explanation of F-stop. Definitely worth a watch.

Sony Announces NEX-FS700 I hope Sony’s exhibition at NAB...

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 10:55:22 -0400

Sony Announces NEX-FS700

I hope Sony’s exhibition at NAB is called “cameras on cameras,” because that seems to be their game plan right now. Not content to have only one camera that competes with the C300, (the F3), Sony has decided to update their popular FS-100 to compete with the big boys.

The two biggest features on this camera are definitely going to be 4K and the wide range of frame rates. While the camera can only do 4K with an external Sony Recorder after a firmware update, it can do Super Slow Motion out of the box. You can get 120 frames for 16 second bursts, or 240 frames in 8 second bursts. If you don’t need your slow motion at 1080, you can even go up to 960 fps.

The camera seems, aesthetically, like an upgrade to the FS-100 design with some new features (like finally having ND filters and an HD-SDI), but in the field, this camera could be a whole new animal.

[Source]

“Stress Test”- How Carl Zeiss Lenses are Stress...

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 13:01:30 -0400

“Stress Test”- How Carl Zeiss Lenses are Stress Tested

From the official Carl Zeiss Lenses Youtube account

Camera and cine lenses need to operate perfectly in extreme conditions, withstanding everything from scorching heat and bitter cold to sandstorms and severe vibrations. The video shows how Carl Zeiss researchers systematically submit lenses to extreme stresses in order to arrive at findings that can help in future lens design and development.

First look: Sony PMW-100 The F3, FS100, and the EX-3 are pretty...

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 10:50:16 -0400

First look: Sony PMW-100

The F3, FS100, and the EX-3 are pretty successful cameras, but that doesn’t mean Sony is resting on their laurels. With NAB coming up, Sony is already announcing new cameras, most recently the PMW-100, a camera meant with journalists and videographers in mind.

The PMW-100 offers a 1/2.9 Exmor sensor with a 40-400 zoom lens. It shoots 422 at up to 50mbps onto SXS cards, and it’s really small.

From the press release:

Advancement in digital imaging technology has enabled professional journalists and videographers to cover stories by using portable devices such as mobile phones, DSLRs and consumer camcorders. However, when compared to main-stream shoulder mount camcorders, there is still a significant gap in image quality, ease of editing and data management. The PMW-100 achieves the best of both worlds, by recording full broadcast quality MPEG HD422 video within a hand-held form factor.

Because of the low price of the DSLR revolution, we see a lot of people who are trying to shoot them for news. However, most of the popular DSLRs were never meant for heavy-duty video, so they lack a lot of key features that videographers really need.

It’s good to see that the big camera manufacturers are finally going after DSLRs, now let’s hope they get the prices as competitive as the features.

[source]

Did not know this. Twitter’s iconic Bird logo is named...

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 11:00:05 -0400

Did not know this. Twitter’s iconic Bird logo is named Larry after, well, Larry Bird.

[Source]

Pretty much every time I go through our old equipment I think of...

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 13:00:05 -0400

Pretty much every time I go through our old equipment I think of this video.

Tribute to the late Earl Scruggs: father of the modern banjo.

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 11:00:05 -0400

Tribute to the late Earl Scruggs: father of the modern banjo.

fuckyeahfilmsets: Natalie Portman and a steadicam operator on...

Sat, 31 Mar 2012 13:00:05 -0400

fuckyeahfilmsets:

Natalie Portman and a steadicam operator on the set of Black Swan.

the-overlook-hotel: Original full-size production slate from...

Sat, 31 Mar 2012 11:00:06 -0400

the-overlook-hotel:

Original full-size production slate from The Shining.

"How Lytro’s Weird Design Tells A Story About Revolutionary Tech"

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 13:00:05 -0400

"How Lytro’s Weird Design Tells A Story About Revolutionary Tech":

Interesting look at the Lytro, and what it’s nontraditional design says about the nontraditional camera

Instead of cradling the camera up to eye level, you hold the Lytro almost like a spyglass or a little telescope. “That’s a fundamental gesture that speaks to how we see things,” says Gadi Amit, the founder of New Deal Design, which worked on the camera hand in hand with the Lytro team, led by CEO Ren Ng. Amit points out that kids, playing around, hold their forefinger and thumb together in a similar posture—like they’re creating a peephole on the world, for seeing things with special focus.

[Via FastCoDesign]

S-Log and the Sony F3: Full Series

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 11:00:06 -0400

I posted an excerpt from Abel Cine’s blog about the Sony F3 and S-Log a while back, but they just wrapped up their five part series, so I figure it would make sense to share them all in one place.

Part 1: On the Charts

Part 2: Exposure Index Mode

Part 3: Application

Part 4: In-Camera Look Up Tables

Part 5: 3D Look Up Tables

Amazing Floating Movie Theater: Architect Ole Scheeren designed...

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 13:00:05 -0400

Amazing Floating Movie Theater:

Architect Ole Scheeren designed the Archipelago Cinema for the Film on the Rocks Yao Noi Film Festival, basing it on floating lobster farms.

I would have liked to put going to this theater on my bucket list, but unfortunately, it was temporary, and has already been dismantled. I guess I’ll have to settle for building my own.