Wandering Ear Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I am doing a short being shot on B&W 35mm using an Arri 435 next week. I am looking for thoughts, tips, ideas, etc. on how to quiet the camera down. I plan on building a blimp around the mag, and am in contact with the camera dept. who is on board to help me quiet the camera as much as possible. I welcome your thoughts. Thanks Kelsey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Toline Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 The 435 is a great MOS camera but never designed for sync sound use. In addition to all of the normal blimps, barneys and blankets etc, have the camera department get an optical flat for the lens to reduce sound leakage through the lens. There is a full thread on just this problem on the "Freelancer Soundmixers & Recordists for TV/Film" group on Facebook. Lots of helpful responses there. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Blankenship Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 In no particular order: 1) Blimping the camera 2) Acoustics of the room 3) Distance from the camera 4) Properly loaded mags 5) Speaking volume of the talent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrd456 Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Yes,optical flat in front of lens [the lens acts like a megaphone], Also,put furniture blanket behind camera if close to wall or corner[kills the bounce--it's important] J.D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Waelder Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Typically, the optical flat would be affixed in the matte box. But, you want to take it a half-step further to have it work effectively as a baffle. If the optical flat is just loaded into the matte box in the normal fashion, it will just become part of the lens assembly and part of the noise transmission trumpet. You want the mount to be padded somehow. Affixing thin strips of foot foam to the edges can enhance the effectiveness. Moleskin, foam, whatever works. But the more optical flat is isolated, the more effective it may be. And, a true optical flat is about (or nearly) a quarter-inch thick. That's not so easily obtained and most silencing work must fall back on a regular clear filter. That's better than nothing but not as effective as a true noise control flat. If there is no matte box and you need to rely upon screw-on filters (Series 9, etc.), then screw on the filter holder until it's snug and then back it off a quarter turn. Use a piece of tape to hold it in position. The loose mount breaks the "trumpet" effect. (But only to a limited extent.) David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wandering Ear Posted February 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 All great ideas. I feel more prepared going into the camera prep day. Fortunately the 1st AC is a friend of mine, and willing to work with me to do whatever we need to make it work. This kind of collaborative problem solving. is one of the things I love most about what I do. Although I rarely vist FB, I'll check out the thread there too. Thanks Kelsey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPSharman Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 Given how cheaply you can rent 35mm cameras these days, I can't understand why they'd be using a NON sound camera with a sync sound project. I'd be starting with that before trying to silence something that was never designed to be silent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wandering Ear Posted February 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 Given how cheaply you can rent 35mm cameras these days, I can't understand why they'd be using a NON sound camera with a sync sound project. I'd be starting with that before trying to silence something that was never designed to be silent. I completely agree. I had that conversation, and the answer was in short, "we are shooting on the 435". Now I'm on to making due with what I'm given, and trying to salvage my soundtrack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPSharman Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 Whose decision was this? Perhaps chat with the director and invite him/her to the prep, warning that all close-ups will need to be on a long lens, and the whole project will have either quiet or loud rock-grinding noises throughout. It seems this choice was made by a DP and/or producer without consideration for storytelling. If they can't be swayed, then best of luck to you. At least a RED fan can be dialed out to some degree. A 435 was never designed to share space with talking actors. Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Wielage Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 I was gonna say... my advice on how to quiet this set would be to swap out that camera body for a 35BL3 and don't try to use an MOS camera for sound shooting. The 435 was only made for high speed MOS production. Some of the major camera rental companies can advise better, but I just did a quick search and found painfully few hits on Arri film camera rental in Los Angeles (which is discouraging). The good news is that film cameras are dirt cheap to rent these days; it's the lenses, mounts, and accessories that cost the most, but those are the same as they are with digital cameras. And my apologies for repeating Mr. Sharman's (very good) advice! This link will show that Arriflex designed the 435 only for MOS use: http://www.arricsc.com/camera/435xtreme.html Print that out and hand it to the director and DP, and tell them "you can't use an MOS camera for sound." The possible exception would be the 35 IIC, where some third-party companies did make huge blimps for it in the 1960s and early 1970s. But the reality is that the blimped Mitchell BNCR and Panavision cameras were far quieter and more practical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wandering Ear Posted February 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 Thank you Mark and Robert. I have reopened the conversation about the camera with the producers, director, and DP, and the possibility that it will require ADR if used as the primary camera. Since I've never directly worked with this camera, although I knew it had a reputation for being noisy, I didn't realize to what extent. As always, I appreciate the insight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wandering Ear Posted February 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 The DP had requested that camera from the limited options in our local rental house because he wanted the high frame rates and fine shutter control for the vfx work planned including shooting front projection and miniatures. After much discussion they are looking to switch to the 35bl4. I'm glad i started this thread when i did, it made me realize i needed to fight a little harder up front and get the camera changed before the cam test happening today. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Blankenship Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 Awesome! It's great when the teamwork aspect of our job kicks in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 wandering: " how to quiet the camera down. " the first couple replies had me upset, but then RPS brought some sense to this thread. BTW, it isn't just the really terrible noise, but also, the camera is not crystal sync, and will wander in and out of sync. frankly, the fact that a so-called DP made such a choice would scare me off, unless the money were really good; and the director/producers would agree.... it is definitely a huge bright yellow caution flag about this production... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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