American cinematographer (Jan-Dec 1931)

Forty AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER July, 1931 CARL ZEISS LENSES for Cinematographers Tessars F 2.7, F/3.5, F/4.5 Biotars F/1.4 Cinematographers throughout the world are using Zeiss Lenses because of the assurance of perfect definition and brilliancy. Whether for indoor or outdoor shots . . . with simple or elaborate settings . . . your Zeiss Lenses will give accurate and vivid results. No camera can be better than its lens. And Zeiss Lenses are as perfect as human hands can make them. CARL ZEISS, INC. 485 Fifth Avenue, New York 728 South Hill Street, Los Angeles, Calif. New B. & H. Printer (Continued from Page 28) The machine cannot function if any of its parts are not in perfect order. The accidental "burning out" of a lamp, breakage of film, or any error in threading will lock the machine or stop it automatically, if the accident occurs while the machine is operating. The automatic functioning of the machine, including the positive and instantaneous change of printing light, insures elimination of waste, a fact which will be appreciated by laboratory experts. The film "light changes travelling mattes" are prepared before hand and kept in stock for any length desired. An attachment which fits the Bell & Howell splicing machine has been developed which enables the operator automatically to match the film mattes for the length of each scene of the negative with utmost ease and certainty. The new Bell & Howell printer introduces many new conceptions of printing practice and leads the way to a standardization of printing quality which will be appreciated not only by producers and technicians of the Motion Picture Industry, but also by the public at large. Fast Improvements (Continued from Page 101 ing face and skin texture more natural, particularly in closeups, the use of "Daylight" blue globes in part of the floor lamps was effective. They whiten the light somewhat and make the use of the extra dark make-up unnecessary. At the present time the soft glass of these blue globes does not stand up under studio use as they bulge and burst with continued burning in the enclosed lamp housings used on the set. This has prevented their more general use, and it is hoped the glass and lamp manufacturers will discover a better way to make this product. While the emulsions have been improved in many ways, still there was an untrue rendering of extremely bright highlights and deep shadows. Brilliant light sources became blurred by halation to the extent of losing definition. White starched shirts, for example, became dazzingly white on the screen unless they have been dyed a soft tint to prevent the excessive halation. Light fixtures were stippled or diffused, and highly reflective objects such as beveled mirrors, automobile wind shields, cap visors and such has to be putty-ied down to prevent distracting flare. This fault became even more apparent with the super-sensitive film, so the manufacturers next set about to overcome this. The resultant latest offering is the Super-Sensitive Anti-Halation Film, or, as studio parlance has so soon named it "Creyback" film. The latter name is derived from the appearance of the film, for the super-sensitive emulsion is coated upon a celluloid base that contains a small amount of lavender-grey dye. This dye has the property of absorbing the light that has traversed the emulsion at those portions where the image of an extremely bright object is focused upon it. The light would ordinarily reflect from the surface of the celluloid support, back into the emulsion and further diffuse, causing a halo or flare of light in the area surrounding the bright spots. Scenes and tests that have been made with the Anti-Halation film are amazing. No longer are we afraid to shoot into the bare filaments of an ordinary light bulb, and the night-mare of the extreme contrast of formal clothes is gone. Cutglass and diamonds are not blocked up with halation, and photograph like the real thing instead of the 5 and 10 cent store variety. Bright lustre paints of settings will now be possible. Silhouettes against the sun or reflections of water do not have the unnatural flare that destroys definition, and light effects take on a new scope of possibility. The accompanying illustrations show the remarkable advantage of the anti-halation film. The regular supersensitive stock was used, then the "grey-back." Enlargements were made from that portion of the scene where the actor is directly in front of the bright lantern. The old film shows considerable halo of the bright light, and the features of the man are blurred. The anti-halation renders more natural definition, in this respect. It is admitted that this is an extreme example, but the results of ordinary light conditions are so much superior to the old film that this new type of film is now being used on several productions and will soon, I believe, be used exclusively. Both the Eastman and the Dupont film companies are to be congratulated on their accomplishment. In laboratory practice the slight increase of the density of the negative, due to the dye in the base, is corrected in printing, being about 2 points increase in printing time. No correction was made in preparing the prints for the illustrations shown, and they convey an idea of the slight difference of density of the two films. On the screen the new film gives the effect of being softer in quality, having more detail in the shadows. This is partly due, perhaps, to the fact that the scene may be printed a bit lighter because there are no glaring highlights to try to print down. While this film corrects flare and diffused images of highlights, still this effect is quite different than that diffusion obtained with "Diffusion discs and screens," so that these may be employed as before.