osa Posted January 15 Report Posted January 15 Dry erase markers keep drying out on me of all brands i try just when i need em most. Is there a good trick to preserve them long term coming in and out of heat and cold etc or a better marker solution all together for those who only slate occasionally? Quote
Jim Feeley Posted January 15 Report Posted January 15 I store them flat or with the cap slightly below the bottom. And store them in a thick ziplock bag. And still buy new ones before I expect to need to it seems... But the bag helps. Quote
fieldsound Posted January 15 Report Posted January 15 I asked a few AC’s about this, they all recommended the Pentel Maxiflow markers. They have a button on the back to inject the liquid ink into the nib. So far so good with this brand, much better than Expo but ymmv! Quote
osa Posted January 15 Author Report Posted January 15 This is hysterical we have to have this conversation but i am at an office now that has a dry erase board - all their markers except for the red were dried out! Used a sharpie and the red for eraser fluid for the time being. Will check out the pentels for sure - great tip Quote
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted January 16 Report Posted January 16 3 hours ago, fieldsound said: I asked a few AC’s about this, they all recommended the Pentel Maxiflow markers. They have a button on the back to inject the liquid ink into the nib. So far so good with this brand, much better than Expo but ymmv! Yup, these are standard where I live. Expensive, but last longer & don't leave residue. I carry two in my kit with me. An excellent gauge of how professional the crew is ... if I hand them the slate and they ask me for a pen, I have one to offer, and I know I'm not dealing with professionals. Quote
Olle Sjostrom Posted January 16 Report Posted January 16 7 hours ago, osa said: …Will check out the pentels for sure - great tip Unintended pun? This discussion is fascinating for me as a European mixer, I don’t handle slates at all. Quote
Bouke Posted January 16 Report Posted January 16 Since I never ever have been on a set with a slate, and never have edited slated material (but did have had my fair share of unsynced unslated undocumented dual system sound), slate is just a backup, right? Scene / shot / take is in the metadata next to the flawless timecode anyways, right? Anything I'm missing here? Quote
Olle Sjostrom Posted January 16 Report Posted January 16 I guess it’s one of those things that’s not really necessary, but it’s a staple of production and so integrated in the take workflow, so if you were to remove it, then I guess it’d be pretty chaotic. also, I imagine, for an editor it’s the same thing. The slate is unnecessary if everything else is correct, but it’s like an analog confirmation, something to rely on. Quote
osa Posted January 16 Author Report Posted January 16 That and also when you’re dealing with tons of footage from different sources, having the visual notes attached to the footage. Quote
Jim Feeley Posted January 16 Report Posted January 16 6 hours ago, Bouke said: slate is just a backup, right? For me, backup esp if 2+ cameras rolling (and esp if one or two of them are phones, GoPros, the persnickety producer with a small mirrorless camera who actually has a good eye but really could be doing something else and trust us, etc). And TC slates impress the heck out of clients...and the client's clients. Jim "low/mid corporate and documentary" Feeley Quote
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted January 16 Report Posted January 16 8 hours ago, Bouke said: Since I never ever have been on a set with a slate, and never have edited slated material (but did have had my fair share of unsynced unslated undocumented dual system sound), slate is just a backup, right? Scene / shot / take is in the metadata next to the flawless timecode anyways, right? Anything I'm missing here? In modern production, the sync function is a second or third backup, yeah. It's only truly necessary when shooting film. But it's evolved into a communication tool as well. It means there's a verbal and visual check on the metadata at the beginning of every take, which means anyone taking notes on set (scripty, director, producers) gets notified of what take is happening whenever the cameras roll. In post, it helps workflow because editors often identify clips by thumbnail, and a well run set will have the first frame (i.e. default thumbnail) of ever clip on every camera be the slate. So it saves time & money there. No, you don't strictly *need* it (and I'm like Jim, I work in the doc world where slates are largely optional), but it does still have a purpose in the scripted world. But that purpose isn't primarily sync any more. Quote
carbonhobbit Posted January 16 Report Posted January 16 I just finished a 16mm project and the slate was needed, along with a sound report. I haven't done one of those in years. Or shot film for awhile. Scott Quote
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