Just wanted to let you guys know that the December issue of "American Cinematographer" talks about the making of "127 Hours."

As a quick summary, it mentions that they used uncompressed capture and a 360 degree shutter to increase dynamic range.

Here's the trailer :

YouTube - 127 HOURS - Full Length Official Trailer HD (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlhLOWTnVoQ)


There's also a bunch of links over on the SI website :-

Silicon Imaging (http://www.siliconimaging.com/DigitalCinema/)

How does 360deg shutter increase latitude?

It would definitely increase the amount of light captured by the sensor per frame, so maybe that was the idea, in the caves and such?

But latitude would not change, AFAIK.

B/c the camera is rated at about 200 ASA, according to the DP's, so they needed more light to lift the image out of the noise floor. By getting more light to the sensor, they increased the usable dynamic range of the image.

Oh I see. So they were working in really dark environments then.

With T1.2 lenses, I normally have no problems with 0 gain, even with scarce light.

Personally I hate changing the shutter angle to 0 (same as 360), because then you get 2x the light, but at the cost of weird motion trail artifacts (motion blur no longer looks normal as we see it at 180 deg angle.)

The 360 deg shutter mode has saved my butt on MANY occasions.

I rate the sensor at 160asa.
With the 360 mode, that boosts it to 320asa. Add 3dB of gain (If necessary) and that'll give you another 1/2 stop.

Works great for interviews and things without much movement.
NOTE 360 mode only works in 2k mode. (Not currently implemented for 1920 mode, but it is in development for a new build).

BTW, We upgraded our setup from using a laptop to using a CINEDECK.. and it ROCKS! So fast so simple. And steadicam work is now extremely easy to hook up, with no more cables dangling anywhere. It is all compact and stays as one unit.