B/W footage
 

Here's a little ditty shot with the XHA1 set to the B/W preset and the Letus Extreme...all shot using a Nikon 55mm f2.8 macro lens. Movement was achieved using an IndiSlider...

No particular purpose to this other than I'm getting really interested in black and white and I was bored :)

http://www.pinelakefilms.com/aftertherain.html

Visually Gratifying
 

Excellent work, Steven! Even though there was no plot, you managed to keep my attention because of the beautiful shot composition, excellent use of DOF and the MOVEMENT! IndiSlider is officially going on my 'Must-Have' equipment list.

The main reason I am writing this reply is because of the shot at 00:44 - 00:51. It reminds me of your whole "Pine Lake Films" thing you've got goin', very nice. Was that some type of birdbath in which you focused on the reflected trees in the distance? I gotta know! Heheh.

Oh, and nice choice of music, too. It gave it a very ominous mood. I must admit, I was half-expecting something to happen at the end! (And then I saw a single frame edit at 1:13, which I reviewed and it appears to be a previous shot.)


Great work Steven, you're one of the main reasons I'm saving for a Letus Extreme!

-JDL4

Thanks for the enthusiastic response :)

The shot you are referring to was a reflection in one of those things that goes under a flower pot. It had gotten filled with water from the rain. I just dollied across the table it was sitting on. I focused on the trees in the reflection rather than the water itself.

The frame at the end is a compression error....I'll fix later.

Just leave it & call it art :)

Too late, fixed it :)

Don't have clue what the heck I'm looking at, but I like it.
It's like Eraserhead meets your back yard.

Man, I love that description. That's it! You discovered my secret idea.

Great images!

The music reminds me of Chronos by Michael Stearns or some of the stuff of Steve Roach. Did you create it yourself?
I think it fits the B&W footage perfectly. Somehow I don't think it would have made the same impact if the footage was in color.
And I agree with Eduardo, there is definitely some David Lynch going on there ;)


Regards, Andre.

Steven, I'm amazed by your footage once again.

Ever since I stumbled upon Snow Motion I was blown away by what an XH A1 could do.

Since then I've ordered what feels like half of Tim's catalogue, the indislider, indifocus, indirails...and I also ordered a Letus Extreme, and am currently shopping around for Nikon lenses.

You're a great inspiration man. I had no idea what kind of potential a 35mm adapter, and an A1 could do (in the right hands, of course).

I did have a question though...

I saw an advertisement for a set of Cooke Primes for RED One cameras..and the kit was basically a 15mm-40mm, a 50mm, 75mm, & 100mm.

Are those focal lengths a good start for a Letus Extreme? I'm not talking about the Cooke lenses, I'm referring to the focal lengths in the kit. Is a 15-40mm zoom a specialty lens?

Thanks for your help!

-Dmitry

Dmitry, thank you. It always feels good to inspire others.

A good basic set of primes, in my opinion would be the following:

24mm f2.8 - About $120 on ebay (this is my favorite lens)
or
28mm f2.8 - About $90 on ebay


35mm f2 or f1.4 - Ranges around $100 - 200 on ebay

50mm f1.4 - about $120 on ebay
or
50mm f1.8 - about $80 on ebay (I prefer this 50mm because it appears sharper to me)

85mm f1.8 - about $200 - 300 on ebay

You can get longer lenses but this should certainly cover you initially. I would also recommend the 135mm later.

I also really enjoy my Nikon 55mm f2.8 macro lens, the one I used in this piece.

Ok, guys. I just got my A1 and it's a really slick camera. But now I'm reading about adaptors and a Letus Extreme, a Slider...

But I clicked on your link for the slider and there's nothing there. Anyone got any info on it?

And what exactly does the Letus Extreme do?

I would suggest you do a search. This subject has been discussed ad nauseum.

As for the slider, you can read about it here:

http://www.indifocus.com/products_indisliderpro.htm

The one I use is on the bottom right of the price grid.

Looks like a high end commercial. Once again Steven gets his camera's to perform like cameras costing ten times as much.

wow.. beautiful.

master piece !!!