Home-made dv matte box
 

was wondering if anyone know of any links to sites that have drawings/plans on building a nice matte box for dv cameras? Thanks

Hello Charles !
Nice to see you here (seems we all end up on dvinfo.net)...

As it so happens there is an article on a home-made DV matte box right here on this site:
http://www.dvinfo.net/dvarticles/production/berube1.htm

BTW: Do you have any news about Ron Peperkamp? His webpage is down and I can't seem to reach him.

Oh, and I have another exclusive for your website: a very nice looking new little stabilizer from the famous company Beaulieu. I haven't tested it yet but should be able to fairly soon.

In french:
http://www.beaulieu-images.com/fluidcam.htm

In german:
http://www.beaulieu.de/pages/fluidcam.html

Very good price, too (compared to GlideCam in Europe).

matte box
 

Thanks for your reply Steven. I'll check the links you posted. No. I too have been trying to get in touch with him but to no avail. His e-mail is also not valid any more. I'll get back to you.

matte box
 

Steven, I must have missed something but there is no how-to article or plans at the link you gave me.

Sorry, you're right. I confused two links.
I know I saw a page with plans very recently but I just can't seem to find the link again right now...
Maybe someone else has it. I'll keep looking.

Maybe it was this article (from the original DIY series):
http://www.super8mm.org/pdf/v9n1.pdf

A bit old but I can't seem to find anything else in my archived links right now.

Thanks. I'll keep looking

Hi Charles!
 

So, is it done, yet? The matte box, I mean!

Actualy, just wanted to say "Hi!" to an old friend! :)

matte box
 

Hi there Cosmin. Cool to see you here as well. Yep, almost done. I'll post it on the site when it's done.

matte box up
 

Here's the link to the my homebuilt/kitbashed mattebox cosmin:

http://homebuiltstabilizers.com/mattebox.html

Looks cool!
What did you make the bellows out of and how long did it take?

matte box
 

I got the bellows from a photography store that sold it to me cheap. So that part was not that hard to put together. Like I mentioned it is a kitbash/homebuilt model. The 'flags' were taken from an old spot-light. I sand-blasted the parts after long hours of removing the paint, which were terribly stuck together and spray-painted it a base color before painting it black. The flags could have also been made from thin aluminum sheets which is easier to cut into profiles.
I incerted new screws making the flags easier to adjust. The rod that the flags are attached to are pre-bent for that rectangular look.
The black Mask at the front end of the matte box was done from cutting out a thin piece of poster board bought from a stationary store. I had to lend support to the entire box by attaching a 2mm steel plate under the camera that holds both the matte box and the camera in place for more studiness. So there you have it.

I'm impressed, that looks great - very professional looking and well made. You could probably sell it and get a good price too. About how long and how much did you invest to create it?

Yup, great design as usual, Charles ! :-)

(You might want to change XL-2 to XM-2 in your text or else you'll probably start yet another rumor and get inundated with email asking you about it ;-))

One question though, does your design allow you to change the distance between the lens front and the filter? And if not, aren't the bellows mainly cosmetic?

"About how long and how much did you invest to create it?"

Thanks for the kind remark Christopher. I invested about a 100 dollars. Not bad considering what those professional ones cost. It took me two days to make. If I want something, I want it now. :)

Steven-Marc ,

"(You might want to change XL-2 to XM-2 in your text or else you'll probably start yet another rumor and get inundated with email asking you about it ;-))"

I was referring to the XL-2. You probably misunderstood the sentence. I was referring to the pic of the XL-2 mounted on a handheld support grip like the link below: http://www.cavision.com/Mattbox/for_canon.htm

...and yes Steven-Marc, the distance between the lens front and the filter can be adjusted.