International photographer (Feb-Dec 1929)

Six The INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER May, 1929 An Automatic Timer By Ira B. Hoke LEWIS W. PHYSIOC An important announcement is made by the Technical Research Manufacturing Corporation, a concern organized for the purpose of developing new devices to meet the demands upon the technical departments, resulting from the rapid developments in the motion picture industry, especially since the introduction of the sound pictures. The officers of the company are: President, Delmar A. Whitson, electrical engineer; Vice-President, Lewis W. Physioc, motion picture technician; Treasurer, Otis R. Jackson, financier; Secretary, Thomas Shields, Los Angeles business man; Attorney, Theodore Martin; Patent Attorney, John Flam. Offices of the company are in the Great Republic Life Building, Suite 1001, 756 South Spring Street. This company has just completed and installed in the Bennett Laboratories, where it may be inspected, the first device of their program, an automatic timer, under the trade name of "Gammeter," the same being covered by letters filed in the United States' Patent Office. The machine is designed to give a direct reading of motion picture negatives, for printing, without the expenditure of time and material in making preliminary tests and is independent of the fallibility of human judgment in selecting printing lights from the tests, as at present employed. Exhaustive tests have been made, over a period of months, using every degree of density and contrast produced in the ordinary day's work and the machine -has shown an accuracy that would permit of a much greater density control than is now provided for by the present day printers. Following are some of the claims for the device and answers to many questions that have been asked. No waste of film in making preliminary tests. Saves that time necessary to develop, dry and read these tests. Makes the negatives available for printing hours sooner than present system permits. The saving of time in the "lab" necessarily means better service to the producer. Will eliminate guesswork and faulty judgment. Will furnish an absolute standard and enable the "lab" to adhere to that standard. Can indicate accurately how this standard may be modified to suit the tastes of discriminating cameramen, where more softness or contrast is desired. Will time a sound track very accurately and furnish a means of checking the development "gamma," upon which good recording so much depends. SOME QUESTIONS ANSWERED Q. What happens if a roll contains scenes that are too contrasty or too soft in comparison with the rest of the roll? A. Laboratory economies, at present, do not permit of individual treatment of scenes, especially in release work; balance of density is what is sought and the machine gives this balance. If individual treatment is demanded, the machine will immediately disclose any wide diversity of contrast. Q. What about night shots and special effects? A. If such scenes are properly exposed, the machine will read them accurately: if improperly exposed, the machine will still give a proportionate density of print. Q. What about scenes, on exteriors, having a broad area of sky? i 1 UlrJl I Front view of Gammeter Side view of Gammeter A. The machine provides for a selection of that portion of the picture most desired, such as close ups and the desired areas of the long shots. Q. What of running shots where there is a change of exposure from one point to another or a change of speed? A. The machine will indicate every variation and the proper portion selected for printing, obviating the errors that frequently occur, in the present system, when the wrong part is chosen for testing. Q. What about titles, where a single word is surrounded by a large area of almost clear celluloid? A. The machine is provided with a compensating screen that brings such titles within the proper printing range. Q. Suppose a cameraman wishes his stuff timed more softly or contrastily than provided for by the "lab's" general routine? A. The machine can be independently set for softer or harder prints, both the denser or thinner negatives receiving the increase or decrease of light in the proper ratio, an improvement over the present system where the printing lights are merely added or subtracted by a number of points dictated by judgment; the error being, by the old method, that the dense negatives may not receive enough additional light and the thin ones too much. The machine is provided with a quick shift from the picture aperture to the sound track. It is, also, fitted with various controls and adjustments simply and easily handled thtt enable the operator to maintain all the conditions, check them frequently and secure an absolute standard at all times.