The international photographer (Jan-Dec 1930)

Who Can Solve This Problem? This Is Addressed to Producers, Cameramen, Technicians, Engineers and All By (BILLY) G. W. BITZER Look at this picture and the accompanying table of figures. If you can in your wisdom figure it out send in your answer to me. On the left (the large film) we have a photographic reproduction of a film made in 1897. Photographed for the American Biograph Company by G. W. (Billy) Bitzer. It is a picture of the New York Central Railroad's crack train of that day, the Empire State Express, going at the rate of sixty miles per hour. The smaller film on the right is a Colorcraft film taken in color with sound track, the most modern and up to date achievement in the moving picture world today. This film was also photographed by "Billy" Bitzer, whose hands are shown holding two films, specimens of his work in 1897 and 1930. Now here is the problem to figure out. The film of the train (the old film) taken thirty-three vears ago is just twice the width of the Colorcraft film (the new film) which is the standard size film today. The speed or sensitiveness of the old film was a tremendous lot slower thirty-three years ago than today as was likewise the lens. This wide film necessitated the using of a much larger focus lens and it was a very slow lens in comparisons with the high speed lenses which are necessary today on account of the sound which has been added to pictures, requiring the film to run at the high rate of twenty-four pictures per second or ninety feet per minute. Today we just barely get enough exposure with a many, many times faster lens and film,. Yet this train picture was taken at the rate of thirty pictures per second or three hun dred and twenty feet per minute and on a film over nine times the area of the present day film. Here's the table: 1897 Speed of film H. & D.. . .25% Slower Speed of Lens B. & L F. 6-8 Focus of Lens B. & L 8" Pictures per second 30 Feet per second 320 Size of film 2 23/32 1930 Speed of film H. & D 25% Faster Speed of Lens F. 2/3 Focus of Lens 2" Pictures per second 24 Feet per minute 90 Size of film 35 mm. Our thinking technicians will say: "Well you're showing us an exterior scene. We can do the same today." But on this same width, slow emulsion film, the same slow eight inch F. 6-8 lens at the same high rate of picture per second, a picture was taken at the Coney Island Athletic Club of the Sharkey-Jeffries world championship fight with little street arc lights which were nothing like the present day terrific looking search lights one sees in the studios and when pictures are made on the street at night. Just a few more figures that I believe are mighty interesting. This fight lasted twenty-five rounds. Figure three minutes to each round, and one minute intermission during which the cameras were running. There are 5280 feet to a mile and we have therefore approximately seven and onequarter miles of film. And this picture earned for its owners I understand over a million dollars thirty years ago. So the only really new thing in pictures today is color. We've had wide film and made pictures upon it years ago. It is as old as the hills almost. At least it is as old as the hands holding the film in the picture — the hands of Billy Bitzer and who shot 'em all. o George Meehan is engaged in special process work for United Artists. DU CW*9J*E FILM SYSTEM 6723 Santa^MonicaBlvd. Hollywood, Calif? Red QRTHO-' Panchromatic Every cameraman becomes a color photographer if he uses Red-Ortho Negative. His own professional camera with an extra magazine is required. (Write Mitchell, Bell & Howell or Fearless Camera Co. for an inter mediate magazine) . Use Red-Ortho negative in front of a panchromatic negative. SMITH & ALLER, Hollywood, or any DU PONT office or representative will supply the raw stock or write direct to DU CHROME Film System — «r«3^a POSITIVE EMULSIONJ IGHT INSULATOR ■ ' — **\jw*mj 1POSITIVE EMULSION? CELLULOID Sandwich film is a positive stock with two separated layers of emulsion on one side. You can print from both sides (through the celluloid or to the emulsion side) and obtain two ncn-interfering images. T iv e I've