Over the years, I have acquired a bunch of Bell & Howell Eyemo cameras, but I have not had the time to go through them and make sure everything was working. Most of the Eyemos wind-up and run, but I don’t know how well they run. At some point, I hope to go through and […]
The Bell & Howell Eyemo Read More »
I was taught, when setting the flange focal depth of a camera, the tolerances were +0” -.0002”. The logic behind these tolerances was that any error should be within the layers of the film and not in front of the film. So I have always followed that advice when I set up a camera. When
The Ever Continuing Saga of the ARRI 35 BL 2 Read More »
When I first got this camera and ran it, everything seemed good, and I had previously used the camera on a Steadicam for a feature film I shot, and all seemed good then as well. Then I had to go spoil everything by trying to check the flange focal depth. This is where it all
Still Not Quite Ready for Prime Time – ARRI 35 BL 2 Read More »
After the two weeks of motor recycling, I wanted to tackle something that only needed a final few things checked out before it was ready for adoption. Or so I thought . . . I acquired this marvelous ARRI 35 BL2 from the collection of MovieTech Studios where I got the chance to shoot with
A Check-up for the ARRI 35 BL2 Read More »
From the infancy of the motion picture industry through the first world war, Pathé Freres, established in Paris, France in 1896 by brothers Charles, Émile, Théophile, and Jacques, was the largest producer of films and filmmaking equipment in the world. The brothers got their start in the phonograph business, and later expanded into the emerging
The Pathe Professional: The Process of Restoring an Iconic Camera Read More »
I know I said it was going to be a couple of weeks before I reported back on the problem with this Fries VistaVision camera, and at the time, it seemed it was going to take a lot more detective work. It turns out that the problems were simpler than I feared. The first problem
Revisiting the Fries VistaVision Camera Read More »
Recently, my friend and long-time client Ben Ziryab asked if I could diagnose a rough spot in the drive of this Fries Engineering-built VistaVision camera. This camera is based on a Mitchell VistaVision movement that has been installed in a custom Fries camera body with custom electronics. When this camera arrived, it had a profound
Happy Star Wars Day, everyone! May the 4th be with you! Thanks for joining me for part two of this walk down memory lane as I show you a little bit more of what went into the restoration of the Dykstraflex motion control camera system. For the uninitiated among you, this was the groundbreaking motion
The Dykstraflex: Restoring the Motion Control System That Changed The World – Part 2 Read More »
Please join me as I take a walk down memory lane and show you a little bit of what went into the restoration of the Dykstraflex motion control camera system. For the uninitiated among you, this was the groundbreaking motion control camera system that brought to life the most exciting special visual effects that first
The Dykstraflex: Restoring the Motion Control System That Changed The World – Part 1 Read More »
When last we talked, I shared with you a collection of lenses that were used by visual effects master David Allen. With the exception of one particularly stubborn zoom lens, I have finished cleaning, lubricating, and collimating all of the lenses I shared. This week I promised to give you a look at one of
A Fries Mitchell 35R from the Studio of David Allen Read More »
