American cinematographer (Jan-Dec 1963)

IZJnJii MICROPHONE MIXER feeds 4 low-z mikes info any Auricon amp¬ lifier, any pro tape or film recorder, etc. Transistoriz e d circuit boosts gain, meets broadcast standards. $159.50 POWER PACKS for AURICON CAMERAS Rechargeable nickel-cad battery supplies 115 volts AC current. $139.50 complete PORTABLE MOVIE LIGHT Fits any camera. No tools needed, no holes to drill. Long life nickel-cadmium battery with built-in charg¬ er weighs only 7 lbs. Guaranteed one year. 51 fPP. 50 COMPLETE WITH BATTERY Write for Full Information PHOTOMART ^2^S^^ranklin St. Tampa 2, Florida Telephone 229-1168 WHHI THAT WHATCHAMACALLIT GATHERING DUST ON THE SHELF . . . Why not sell it — convert it to cash — trade it for something you need? A modest ad in the classified col¬ umns will get you prompt results. INDUSTRY NEWS Continued from Page 493 Elements of Cinema” is theme of this year’s conference which annually draws film teachers and producers from throughout the U.S. and several for¬ eign lands. Classics of educational and non-theatrical films, plus the 1962-63 productions of UFPA members will be shown through the facilities of the UM University College Building. Lt. Col. Paul L. Maret, USAF Sys¬ tems Command, will he featured speak¬ er at the Kenneth Edwards Memorial Banquet, Aug. 20. Eugene B. Fleischer of the UM Communications Services Division is in charge of arrangements. • SPIE MEETS IN LOS ANGELES AUGUST 5-9 The techniques and problems of ob¬ taining data in the hostile environment of space will be the major theme of the 8th Annual Technical Symposium of the Society of Photographic Instru¬ mentation Engineers (SPIE), to be held at the Los Angeles Ambassador Hotel, August 5-9, 1963. More than 2500 engineers, scientists, technicians and technical administra¬ tors from the military and industry are expected to attend. Many are en¬ gaged in the development, manufac¬ ture, or use of equipment now being used in the nation’s space and missile program. Reflecting the key role of photo¬ instrumentation in these programs, a number of discussion panels will cover such topics as missile launching, early flight tests, tracking, in-flight and ex¬ tra-terrestrial instrumentation and the effects of space on photo-optical instru¬ ments. Many other applications of photo¬ instrumentation will receive attention at special sessions. Among these are medicine, cineradiography, biology and a number of manufacturing processes. One special session will be devoted to ultra-high speed photo-instrumenta¬ tion and its applications in such areas as plasmas, explosives, fluid dynamics, hyperballistics and nuclear particles. Leading figures from the Armed Services and industry will address the Symposium at luncheon and dinner ses¬ sions. Again this year, an important part of the program will he the Exhiborama of Equipment, in which the latest de¬ velopments in photo-optical instrumen¬ tation equipment will be displayed and discussed by technical representatives of the manufacturers. The Society of Photographic Instru¬ mentation Engineers is a non-profit professional society founded in 1956 by a group of instrumentation engi¬ neers and industrial photographers in Los Angeles, in response to the grow¬ ing need for the exchange of technical information in the uses of photography and optics in solving engineering prob¬ lems. ZEISS REVOLUTIONIZES LENS TESTING TECHNIQUES Automatic electronic instruments de¬ veloped by Carl Zeiss engineers enable the West German optical firm to test its photographic lenses with high relia¬ bility and speed. Prior to the introduction of the Zeiss electronic equipment, lens testing was an intricate, time-consuming process carried on by highly skilled tech¬ nicians. Accuracy depended largely on the training and judgment of the test¬ ing personnel. Two basic methods were used: Either the lens itself was ex¬ amined under high-precision optical instruments, or an image produced by the lens was examined. The first meth¬ od was time-consuming and required the utmost care. The second procedure required troublesome balancing and comparing of optical images, and often produced fatigue which could lead to erroneous results. With the fully automatic instruments developed by Zeiss, lenses are tested completely by electronic means, greatly increasing the speed and accuracy of the operation. A grating composed of alternate black and white lines is im¬ aged through the lens under examina¬ tion. The image is scanned by a photo¬ electric receiver placed behind a nar¬ row slit. A high-quality lens produces marked differences in brightness between black and white lines (high contrast trans¬ fer). Accordingly, a relatively strong alternating current is generated in the photoelectric receiver as the grating image is scanned. In the case of a rela¬ tively poor image (low contrast trans¬ fer), the alternating current generated is weak, diminishing to zero when the grating image is no longer resolved by the lens. Image quality is measured in the center of the image field, and at various other points, for both tangen¬ tial and radial image elements. The testing instrument automatically focuses the lens under inspection by locating the distance at which the max¬ imum degree of contrast between black and white lines of the grid is achieved. This plane of optimum image quality is automatically indicated by a dial on the instrument panel. • TRADE NOTES: — Eastman Kodak Company upped prices of its profes¬ sional color motion picture negative 494 AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER, AUGUST, 1963