The Cine Technician (1953-1956)

July-August, 1952 THE CINE-TECHNICIAN 89 as it is now possible to immediately play back a magnetic sound recording and to erase and rerecord it in the event it is not perfect, it would be possible to play back the picture for an immediate check as to quality of its visual content. rpHE increasing use of colour film has stimulated -* research aimed at developing a light source of softer quality than that obtainable with existing equipment, says Leigh Allen {American Cinematographer). At M.G.M. studios several prototype lighting units have been developed based on the principle of reflected light, and tested under production conditions during the filming of some recent colour features. Direct illumination from a bare incandescent lamp in a conventional lamphouse usually has a strong straight-line beam characteristic, with no ability to " curve " or disperse light around a three-dimensional object; this is true even when diffusion screens are used in front of the lamp. John Arnold, B.Sc, in charge of photography at M.G.M., found that directing the light source back into the lamphouse reflector and thence towards the set, produced an almost " shadowless " light, approaching something of the quality of the old portrait studio north light. A standard 2,000 watt floor lamp was the first to be converted to this principle. The front or primary reflector was made of sheet aluminium in the shape of a flat-bottomed pan, and mounted directly in front of the lamp. Interiors of both the lamphouse and the primary reflector were painted flat white. This lamp was used in photographing many of the scenes for " The Law and the Lady." Meanwhile other units of increased size and some of different design were completed. For example, a 36-inch floodlamp using three 2,000 watt C.P. lamps, behind a reflector pan similar in design to the first lamp. A complete new application was the " picture frame " lamp which is similar to a standard sidelamp. Rectangular in shape, the body, except for the top and bottom, is a single piece of sheet metal curved slightly in an arc, then curved in sharply at either end towards the inside to form the reflectors for the two No. 2 photofloods which are mounted in either side. The lamp, which is perhaps the most radical in design and application, is the " Skylite." It comprises three corrugated aluminium panels which are painted flat white. The centre panel is the largest of the three, the side panels at either side being narrower and set at a slight angle to concentrate the reflection of the light. Area of the reflector is about 8ft. by 6ft. In front of the tri-panel reflector is a wooden framework which includes two vertical members, each mounted with five No. R.2 (mushroom-type) photofloods. These throw light towards the reflector and thence towards the set. This unit is normally used suspended above the set. These units have so far been used extensively in photographing five M.G.M. films, namely, " The Law and the Lady," " Lovely to Look At," " Scaramouche," " Rain, Rain, Go Away," and " The Belle of New York." All but the first being in Technicolor. These new reflected-light lamps are not intended as " a new lamp to do away with all other types of lamps." They are the result of a specific lighting need, and they have proved to be the type of light to fill this need. They can be ± arc, being integrated with other types of set lighting units, both inky and arc. 1\/TAGNETIC pulses recorded as a separate control J-'A signal on tape to keep the recording in sync. with the picture film are a feature of the Rangertone magnetic tape recorder. R. H. Ranger describes the technique in the September, 1951, issue of American Cinematographer, and it may interest technicians to compare it with similar ideas developed here. With the Rangertone recording system the magnetic pulses are registered as a control track down the centre of the tape during shooting with the camera. The pulses come from the 60-cycle power that drives the synchronous motor on the camera. So an accurate record of the camera speed is recorded on the tape, which can be used on playback to hold the tape in sync, with the film in the rerecorder or projector. The magnetic pulses are at right angles to the normal sound recording so that they do not interfere with the latter. They need not be put on during the recording of the sound but may be put on later, for example when the track is pre-scored and the track is played back while the cameras are shooting the actors who are miming the sound. In other words, the control pulses are always put on the sound track when the camera is photographing the scene. Cue editing is another technique associated with this system. This is a method of using tape cue tracks to edit the original tape recordings and wind up with a continuous tape recording matched to the final edited picture. This original may then be used for the final transfer and mix to get the negative for making the composite prints, i.e., transfers have reduced to a single recording from the original tape to final film negative. The steps are as follows: (1) The original tape recording is sequence-cut to the good takes. (2) These takes are transferred to a direct positive film work print. (3) This work print is fine edited to the picture. (4) This edited sound work print is then transferred back to a cue tape. (5) This cue tape is then used as the guide in the Rangertone Cue Editor for matching the original tape to the cue. (The cue editor is a double-tape playback unit which handles two tapes synchronously forward or back). (6) The final edited original tape track is then used in synchronous playback for the final mix to negative film. Co-developers of the electronic device described on the opposite page are Wayne Johnson and John T. Mullins