Universal Tablet Mount from Matthews Studio Equipment

Remember Tinker Toys when we were younger? I use to love building things out of Tinker Toys and Lego’s.  Truth be told, I still love creating things with Lego’s.  If you work in the TV and Film industry, you may never have grown out of building things.  Especially if you are a grip!

Matthews Studio Equipment is the big boys tinker toys.  You need to hang a fixture any where or off of something, MSE has a “tool” to help you do that.  I always love looking through the MSE catalog… You know, that thing that companies use to print with pictures and information. The MSE catalog is FILLED with tools and hardware to create different mounting systems and hanging hardware.  It’s like we have a grown up version of tinker toys.

In the past couple of years, MSE has gotten into the smaller grip equipment, called MICROgrip or Tinker Tools as MSE likes to refer to the series.  MICROgrip is a scaled down version of their lager grip equipment.  MSE keeps adding new clips, mounts and holders to the MICROgrip series.

The latest mount in the MICROgrip line is the Universal Tablet Mount.  It does exactly as the name suggest, it mounts a tablet device, like the iPad to the MICROgrip system.  Why would you need something like this? you never know! So MSE has you covered.  The Universal Tablet Mount comes in three kits. A Basic for $120, a Desk Kit for $200 and a Master Kit for $250.

Learn more about the MSE Universal Tablet Mount or any of their other Tinker Tools by visiting www.msegrip.com.

DeSisti Introduces 90w & 120w LED-onardo and 40W LED Magis Fixtures

At the NAB Show in Vegss this year, DeSisti introduced their three newest products, the LED Leonardo 40W, 90w and the 120W Fresnel fixtures. DeSisti is stating that the fixtures are equivalent to a 500W, 650W and 1200W tungsten fixtures out put, respectively.

LED retrofit kits are also available for the Tungsten Leonardo 1kW and 2kW Fresnels to convert to 90W and 120W high efficiency LED systems. The above products are available with a Color Temperature of either 3200K or 5600K, in all the versions the lighting intensity can be controlled via a built-in DMX card. The fixtures have the ultimate control with spot to flood focus and excellent barn door cutting. Optically the LED fresnels are equivalent in performance to a tungsten fresnel.

The new LED Fresnel fixtures are expected to hit the market some time this summer.  Pricing has yet to be released.

New From NAB – LED Replacement Lamps for Kino Flos, LED Flo

I have been hearing from friends that attended the NAB Show this year that the hidden jewel of the show was shown at the Film Gear booth. Film Gear was showing off a new LED replacement lamp for Kino Flo fixtures.

Kino Flo is well known in the TV and Film industry for their fluorescent fixtures. More over, people love the fluorescent lamps that Kino Flo makes because of the output and color rendering. A new line up of lamps are available not just for Kino Flo fixtures, but any fluorescent fixture that uses T12 lamps.

The new LED replacement lamps are call LED Flo and available from filmgear.net.  The new LED lamps are available in 2 foot and 4 foot lengths and in 110v or 220v as well as 5500k and 3200k.  All of the LED lamps have a CRI of 90+ and are able to dim from 0 – 100%.

Pricing and availability have not yet been announced.  You can learn more about the new lamps by visiting www.filmgear.net.

Elation Releases TVL2000 White LED Mixing Fixture

Back at LDI, I got a sneak peak at Elation’s newest LED product for the TV and Film market, the TVL2000.  Don’t let the name frighten you, TVL2000 sounds like some killer robot from the Simpsons or Futurama, but no, it’s not, it’s just LED!

Elation designed the TVL2000 to be the “ultimate LED broadcast light,” the fixture is equipped with 450 cool white and 450 warm white LEDs that can be combined to adjust color temperature from 3200°K to 6500°K.  The unit provides a 30° beam angle standard and produces up to 98 foot candles @ a 10’ throw.

Using either onboard controls or a standard DMX-512 controller, operators can blend the LEDs to create any shade of white, from cool natural daylight to soft warm tungsten – or anything in between.  The versatile TVL2000 makes it possible to instantly customize studio lighting to complement any skin tone or production environment with a soft, even white output.  The panel also features full 0-100% dimming capabilities, so users can fade in and out and control the intensity of the light.  A 4-way barn door system around the LED source allows light to be directed precisely to the desired area of illumination, and a magnetic gel/filter holder allows users to add frost or diffusion easily.

The TVL2000 features a dual yoke design, ideal for mounting on a stand, hanging in the lighting grid or floor positioning.  It has built in power supply from 100-240v with IEC power in/out link capability. Each unit draws just 76 watts of power at full.  The unit is also CE and cETLus approval pending. It measures 14.6” x 13” x 4.3”/ 371 x 328 x 110mm, and weighs 13.7 lbs./ 6.2 kgs.

Need 2 Million Lumens in a Single Source?

This is no joke.  From this single CSR lamp from GE, you are able to get 2,100,00 lumens.  Now pick your jaw up off your desk. GE recently announced the availability of their latest CSR lamp, the CSR24000DE.  It is a 24,000w, double ended CSR lamp for the film and video market. The new lamp features 2,100,000 lumens at a 5,900-Kelvin color temperature. It is compatible with the existing CSR range, offering a small arc gap of 45mm. The color-rendering index is 90-plus with a rated life of 750 hours.

Dadco LLC has developed two new fixtures specially for the new CSR24000DE lamp, the Challenger and the G4 HMI fixtures. Arri has also developed a fixture that can handle this beast of a lamp, the Arri T24 Fresnel.

With this much output, the fixtures do not come cheap, same with the lamp.  With all the fixtures mentioned above, check with your local dealer or rental house for pricing. One quick suggestion, do not look into the fixture when it is on.  Squinting won’t help!

New Film/Video Resource on the iPhone: Doddle

If you are in the Film, Video or TV industry, you may want to check out a new service out there, Doddleme.com. Doddle is a new resource tool for anyone within the industry.  From the website or from the Doddle iPhone app you can find vendors, crew, talent, locations and film offices around the country and around the world.

doddle is designed to revolutionize the production industry, saving professionals countless hours they now spend searching outdated and cumbersome production guides for available specialists and resources. Many film commissioners across the U.S. have already commented on how the industry has long awaited something like doddle to bring continuity to the industry and make productions easier.

Everyone listed on doddle can advertise their services to the industry at large, as well as plan and manage their own creative workforce through the creation and instant distribution of their interactive “call sheets” (a.k.a. the glue that binds the industry!).

For production virgins, call sheets are how producers plan each day or segment of a shoot, including all the necessary information for the cast and crew, such as shoot locations, applicable weather/lighting conditions, contact information for set personnel, local resources, hospitals, restaurants, and lots of other vital information. Now, production managers can doddle anywhere from their mobile device to manage all of their production needs – rather than have to stop off at an office or hotel to make a ton of calls, copies, faxes and emails.

There are two versions of the doddle app, one is a free version called Doddle.  There is also a pay version for $2.99 called Doddle Premium which is the same as the free version minus the iAds. Make sure to follow @doddleme and register an account to get listed on Doddle.

Upcoming Release, Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook, Four Edition

Focal Press is preparing to release their latest book on lighting, Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook, Fourth Edition.  The title may throw you off a bit.  The book is actually geared towards the film  & Video guys.  Here’s a brief on the book.

The Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook focuses on what is important when working on-set: trouble-shooting, teamwork, set protocol, and safety. It describes tricks and techniques for operating a vast array of lighting equipment including LEDs, xenons, camera synchronous strobes, black lights, underwater units, lighting effects units, and many others. Since its first edition, this handy on-set reference continues to be widely adopted as a training and reference manual by union training programs as well as top university film production programs.

New to the fourth edition:

• More coverage of the aesthetics of lighting
• Detailed information on LED technology and gear
• Material is harmonized with industry safety and skills training curriculum
• More coverage than ever before about setting up and running DMX512 networks and DMX512 enabled devices, including wireless DMX512 networks
• Completely revised and updated sections of HMIs, tungsten light fixtures, and fluorescent technologies

The book is already on sale over at Amazon.com for $33.71, but the book will not begin to ship until August 18th. Head over to FocalPress.com to read more about Set Lighting Technician’s Handbook, Four Edition.

Matthews Studio Introduces New Grip Equipment – NAB2010

I stopped the Matthews Studio Equipment booth at NAB.  Matthews always has some new and neat grip equipment to solve any gaffers problems.  This year was no disappointment.  My favorite sales rep Pam Hoffman showed me around the booth and all the cool new stuff. The first one being the Hot Flags. Matthews has a patent on a new type of fabric that with stand the extremely hot temperatures of HMI lights on the fabric even at close range. Matthews put together a great little video comparing the new Hot Flag to a standard Metal Flag.

Next up was something that was hard to miss in Matthews booth, the CT overheads.  Matthews has a new set of overheads that not only diffuse light coming through, but also adjust the color temperature of the light based on which overhead you are using.  You have a choice between a 3200k and a 5600k with a grid cloth or standard diffusion. You also have a number of options is sizing as well.

If you have ever worked with a matthellini, you always wish there was a long version then 3″.  In steps the Extendallini.  Matthews has made something that is so simple, it boggles the mind that no one has thought about this before.  Rather then making longer and longer Matthellini’s, Matthews has created an 112″ extension rode for their center jaw matthellini’s.  You can add as many Extendallini’s you want together to get that center jaw where ever you want.  Matthews put together another great video showing the 101 ways to use an Extendallini. If you watch any video’s today, make sure this is one of them, I can not stop laughing!

Last, but certainly not least, is Matthews MicropGrip equipment.  Matthews has their Oversized grip equipment at 4.5″, the standard sized grip equipment at 2.5″ and there MiniGrip Equipment.  It looks like Matthews is not making grip equipment for Smurf’s!  Make sense since their is a Smurf’s movie on the way.  Just Kidding Matthews! They designed an even small grip equipment, the MicroGrip for smaller cameras for mounting in tight places and on car’s.  My favorite part of the MicroGrip series is the new MicroSand bag and the standard Matthews Roach Clip. Matthews put together yet another great video explaining the MicroGrip Equipment.

I love Matthews and their grip equipment.  They are always thinking out side of the box and looking for simpler ways to do things.  To learn more about what Matthews has to offer, visit their web site at www.msegrip.com. Thanks for the demo’s Pam!

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DeSisti Lighting Introduces DE LED Fixture at NAB 2010

DeSisti Lighting announced their latest product at NAB last week, the DE LED fixture.  While it is still a prototype, DeSisti showed off their idea of what a TV Studio LED should be.  Frank Kosuda from DeSisti Lighting was kind enough to give a quick over view of the first LEDs from DeSisti.  To learn more enough about DeSisti’s DE LED fixture, visit their web site at www.desisti.it.

NAB 2010 – Done and Gone

That’s it, that is all she wrote for NAB 2010 in Las Vegas.  The show floor closed down about five hours ago and things moved quick to get exhibitors out of the hall.  Some people were done in an hour, others will be there through the weekend with such massive booths to break down.

My time spent on the show floor was a wonderful experience, and a tiring on at that too!  With that show floor expanding across North, Central and South halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center and other off site locations, there was just not enough time in the day to walk the entire show floor. I was mainly stuck to central hall this year as that is where I was doing interviews in the SeaChanger booth along with all most all of the lighting exhibitors being located there as well.  Just walking the Central hall was quite the task, but still so worth it.

If you have any interest on top of lighting in broadcast, production, content creation and acquisition, you really must attend NAB next year!  There are devices from the beginning level all the way up to the HD production and broadcast level.  Seeing as I am still on the beginning level of video and audio acquisition, I was drooling over some of the latest and greats cameras, production equipment and tools. And remeber, this was just things that I saw in central hall! Who knows what I missed in the other halls!

Some of the great lighting products that I saw were mainly LED products.  It seems that everyone is “in the game” now with getting an LED product out on the market. While I would love to go on and on about them right now, I have to prepare for tonights dinner with the great folks at SeaChanger.  During the weekend and going on into next week I will be putting up some video’s I made during my time here at NAB along with more details and info about some of the new products coming to the market.

I also will be putting up some great interviews that I did in the SeaChanger booth with some lighting designers and of course, the SeaChanger Duck. I want to give a HUGE shout out to SeaChanger, especially Beth, Tom and Phil for bringing me to NAB to cover and do interviews on the show floor.  I had a blast here in Vegas and am so grateful for this opportunity! Even though SeaChanger brought me out to NAB, I really think you should look at the Nemo Plasma color mixing fixture.  All signs point to a great and cool fixture!

Make sure to mark your calendar for next years NAB Show, April 9-11 in Las Vegas!

More NAB 2010 Photos

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NAB 2010 – Day Two with Photos

Day two of NAB 2010 is done and gone. The day started off pretty awesome for me. I was invited to take a back stage tour of KA at the MGM Grand. Let me tell you, what an AWESOME experience! Seeing backstage at a Las Vegas Circqu show is unbelievable with KA especially. The amount of lifts, nets hydraulics, motors mad motion control involved in the show is just crazy! I was able to snap a couple of photos from front of house, not so much from backstage though, sorry.

After the tour back stage, it was a short trip on the Las Vegas Monorail to the convention center to visit and see more exciting products on the show floor. Let me tell you, some of the things I witnessed today were pretty thrilling. I saw over six, yes, six new LED fixtures that were hands down crazy excellent. DiSisti’s upcoming RGBW LED fixture is very bright and pretty damn affordable at under $2000. Videssence also has a couple new focusable LED fixture that are insanely bright. There was also a new studio LED fixture from Prism Projection, a new TV and Film LED that is being distributed by PRG.

I plan on going into GREAT detail about each of these fixtures quite soon. If you are in Vegas still for NAB, make sure to stop by the previously mentioned booths, these LED fixtures will knock your socks off!

I have a dinner date rapidly approaching here so I will leave you with some photos from around the show floor. Stay tuned for updates during the show tomorrow!

Photos from Day two at NAB 2010

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Day One from NAB 2010

Day one of NAB is in the bag, to bad I missed a good portion of it.  I spent most of yesterday traveling to Las Vegas for the NAB Show. I did how ever get a chance to get over to the show for the last two hours.  After making a delivery for Nila and find Beth, Tom and Phil at the SeaChanger booth and doing a quick interview, I had some time to quickly walk a fraction on the show floor to say hi to some friends.

After the show closed at 6pm, we all piled into the SeaChanger Suburban to head back to Treasure Island.  It is at this point everyone asked me which side of the hotel my room is on.  Well, when I checked in a asked for a strip view, why not right, pretty lights and an over head view of the pirate show below.  That is when everyone in the car began to laugh at me.  Apparently the pirate show goes until midnight and is very loud and will keep me awake. And yes, they were correct, it was very loud, but I had the iPod kicking a little music to put me to sleep so no harm, no foul.

Seeing as I was still three hours ahead of Vegas, I needed to get to sleep and get refreshed for today. Look for photos from day 2 of NAB here later today, or for those of you back home, first thing in the morning.