so did you get it finished? the pics look like you just got the cam apart.

Good luck!

What I think would be truly brilliant would be a modular front on the camera that would allow for multiple lens mounts. I own an Arri 2c that can be changed out for PL and Panavision mounts; it's not hard to imagine being able to do a similar thing here so that you could remount the stock lens, switch to a Canon XL mount to use their series of lenses or the Canon relay for the Mini35, a B4 mount to use any broadcast lens, a PL mount for using 16 or 35mm cine lenses, or a still camera (Nikon, Canon etc) mount . Obviously a lot of work to make all of these, but it would provide maximum flexibility. The tricky bit is seating aluminum parts into those molded plastic shells--a bit dicey. And really, there would be a significant issue with weight capacity, the camera structure is not designed to support a signficant lens up front. Even with still lenses, watch out for the big zooms or fat wide-angles...most fixed focal lenses should be OK weight-wise. I'm sure you guys are on to that.

I applaud those who have the cojones and/or resources to do this sort of thing. As a tot I was surrounded by some of the original hackers, gents who frequented the MIT Media Lab and to whom everything was a potential hack. Later, as a fledgling Steadicam operator with an ancient rig I was constantly having new parts built and retooling the thing bit by bit. I think the curvy plastic/solid state nature of these cameras make them seem a bit daunting to break into--you expect a gaggle of warning lights to go off, and the unit self-destructs in your hands into a puddle of slag, but it's still just a widget after all, and every widget can be improved on.

Go nuts, guys. Let's see what it can do.

the new C-mount Flange on FX1
 

2nd day THE FLANGE

again at www.eidomedia.com/hdv the 2nd part of the work... now we have a C mount on the camera after a lot of efforts to make around it enough space to put a Nikon barrel...



tomorrow I'll put online the first shot made with the nikon lens...

Many thanks for the visit to the site... Matteo

holy hell! nice flange....I bet it took some time in the lathe. Its gonna be nice when you get done.

Why are you using the c-mount video lens??? Wouldnt a 35mm film or still lens provide a more movie like look with deeper depth of field and have better glass?

35mm still lenses don't rotate smoothly, for one...

The depth of field wouldn't increase with lenses designed for 35mm. The size of the imager is the determining factor in depth of field. If you put a C-Mount lens designed for, say 16mm, you'd simply get a more telephoto lens because the imager area for the FX-1 is smaller than a 16mm film aperture. If you put a lens designed for 35mm on this camera, you'd get a lens that is MUCH more telephoto than it would be in 35mm.

Regardless of the lens used, there will be a certain depth of field for a lens with a certain angle of view. For instance, if it takes a 35mm lens at 100mm telephoto to get a certain angle of view, and a 16mm C-Mount lens at 50mm telephoto to get the same angle of view, the depth of field will be the same for both of those lenses.

I know my math is wrong, but I'm just trying to illustrate a point. The smaller your imaging surface, the more telephoto a certain lens will be, and the more depth of field you will have.

I think that C-mount would be the ideal option for this camera, due to the low price and availability of lenses designed for 16mm or Super-16 film. Wouldn't the quality and resolving power of these lenses be plenty for HDV work?

/thinking of holding on to my 16mm Bolex for a bit longer

Alright guys. Reality check time. The Nikon lens mount looks cool and offers a few advantages like much much longer lenses but before you open your camera up don’t forget what you DONT get or even LOOSE when you make a modification like this:

1)You no longer have a lens that can give you a wide angle. Thats right. No remotely wide shots anymore due to the 7X factor.

2)You do NOT have 35mm DOF. You still only have 1/3" DV DOF. It may appear like you do but thats only because its using a lens that is much more telephoto than the built in camera's lens. You can get the exact look right now if you put a 2X lens in front. Lenses this long will give you the appearance of shallower DOF but it will also feel like every shot was taken from a great distance away as if you were constantly spying on your subject. Distracting.

3)Auto focus....gone. No a big deal for most but some people use auto focus.

Don’t get me wrong. This mod would be GREAT if you’re into doing surfing videos and wild life videography – basically anything that solely uses long to extremely long lenses. For most other types of videography though it’s little more than a gimmick and one that actually limits the camera more than empowers it. For me personally it seems like your giving up too much for too little.