Any hints on getting the HV30 to focus on GG? at DVinfo.net

Matt Buys · June 18th, 2008, 07:10 PM

I've been playing with my letus for the last two hours and can't find a way to focus on the GG. I've zoomed in on white sheets of paper a few inside and out with no luck. I remember finding a thread on here awhile back on how to focus on the GG with the hv20 but I can't seem to find it.
Which brings me to another question. Is it okay to fudge. I get a focused image by zooming all the way out with both the HV30 and the 35 mm and then slowly bringing the 35mm to the distance I need.

Steve Witt · June 18th, 2008, 07:34 PM

Method #1)
Make sure your adapter is turned OFF. Your camcorder's Image stabilization "always" needs to be turned OFF when using an adapter. Set F-stop on the SLR 35mm lens to the Highest F-number. (this gives the smallest aperture size and allows the least light, but allows to focus on the GG) Put your HV20/30 to manual focus. Now you need to point to a nice bright window or just something very well lit. You want to manually focus onto the grain of the ground glass. Try to get the grain as sharp and focused on your HV30 as possible. (try the camcorder's focus assist to magnify the GG-some people like using it---and some don't). Thats it. You're done.

Method #2)
Here is a different alternative method as described by "Michael Panfeld" that also works.
First, turn OFF the adapter. Second open up the 35mm lens' aperture (unlike the other suggested manual backfocus method, you keep the lens open wide for more light). Point the cam at some light and then hit the autofocus. It takes a couple of seconds to find it, then it stops. Then hit MF to lock the focus. You are done and the cam's lens is perfectly focused on the imaging element.

Steve Witt · June 18th, 2008, 07:50 PM

Another hint is to ignore the subject or scene that is your rig is pointed at and displayed on the LCD. You just need the light from that scene. In other words, if pointed at a big beautifully lit window, ignore the window and just try to concentrate on that little GG. Imagine your HV30 as a "Microscope" and pretend there is a speck of dust on your GG. Try to focus on that speck of dust (GG grain).

Matt Buys · June 18th, 2008, 08:33 PM

Steve, thanks for the quick response and hints. Worked great.

Steve Witt · June 18th, 2008, 09:56 PM

You are very welcome Matt. Which method did you use? Or I mean to say, which one worked the best for you?

C.S. Michael · June 19th, 2008, 05:41 AM

I have the HV20 / Letus Mini combo...just received my Letus last week.

I found that setting backfocus was pretty easy using a version of method #1. The key is closing up the aperture of the 35mm lens to the high F-stop, which appears to allow the camera AF to register more contrast in the GG grain. Also, point the camera towards a well lit blank white wall -- you want the camera AF to see nothing except the GG grain.

So far I am impressed with the Letus. It's a well designed and solidly constructed unit. Setup went much easier than with some other adapters I have used.

Richard Gillespie · June 19th, 2008, 01:32 PM

Interesting thread. Does the HV30 hold focus and the zoom setting when you power down the camera? Or do you have to go through this every time you power up?

C.S. Michael · June 19th, 2008, 06:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richard Gillespie

Interesting thread. Does the HV30 hold focus and the zoom setting when you power down the camera? Or do you have to go through this every time you power up?

The HV20 holds focus and zoom settings, so you only have to go through this once.

I recently bought a 2nd HV20 which always remains mounted to the Letus Mini. It's a great convenience to have the adapter ready to go at all times.

Matt Buys · June 22nd, 2008, 08:43 PM

Steve, I went with method number 1. I can't believe how fun it is to mess around with dof. My dogs and kids are pretty worn out from me calling them over to the camera and tripod.

Steve Witt · June 22nd, 2008, 11:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt Buys

Steve, I went with method number 1. I can't believe how fun it is to mess around with dof. My dogs and kids are pretty worn out from me calling them over to the camera and tripod.

I've had my Brevis for over a year now, but am just now getting to where I have the time to mess around with it. I spend way more time on forums reading, learning, and posting than actually shooting with it. But that is about to change.
We also just got a PC powerful enough to handle HVD editing so I'm ready to get busy.

John Hotze · June 23rd, 2008, 11:55 AM

I got my Letus Mini a couple weeks ago and used it almost exclusively with my HV30 last week at a bluegrass festival. It was my first time using it. I thought the instructions stated to point it at a light and focus on the gg without the 35mm lens attached. Anyway, that's the way I did it. I used a 70mm to 200mm EOS Canon lens the whole time, night and day. I shot over 35 hours of video with it and am extremely pleased with the way they turned out. Honestly, I was a bit afraid I'd screw up and not feel comfortable with it but that was not the case. I'm a bit of a maveric and like to experiment around. I know I went against conventional thinking in that when I wanted to get a really tight shot, in addition to zooming in all the way with the Canon lens, I zoomed in some more with the camera, with great success. I don't know why this is never talked about. After I would zoom with the camcorders zoom & I wanted to get back to normal, I would just zoom out until I saw the internal frame around the gg and than zoom in slightly until the frame didn't show anymore. I do not see anything magical about being precise here. You can simply use the camcorder zoom until you don't see any frame anymore. I even did a slight back focus tweak after front focusing on a subject. I had a lot of fun and thought using a 35mm adaptor was not a hassle at all.

June 19th, 2008, 05:41 AM	#6
C.S. Michael Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Birmingham, AL Posts: 197	I have the HV20 / Letus Mini combo...just received my Letus last week. I found that setting backfocus was pretty easy using a version of method #1. The key is closing up the aperture of the 35mm lens to the high F-stop, which appears to allow the camera AF to register more contrast in the GG grain. Also, point the camera towards a well lit blank white wall -- you want the camera AF to see nothing except the GG grain. So far I am impressed with the Letus. It's a well designed and solidly constructed unit. Setup went much easier than with some other adapters I have used. __________________ Bored? Check out my blog (shot with Sony EX1, Panasonic TM700, Nikon D7100, Sony NEX-5N, GoPro2): LongLongHoneymoon.com

June 18th, 2008, 07:10 PM	#1
Matt Buys Major Player Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Asheville NC Posts: 426	Any hints on getting the HV30 to focus on GG? I've been playing with my letus for the last two hours and can't find a way to focus on the GG. I've zoomed in on white sheets of paper a few inside and out with no luck. I remember finding a thread on here awhile back on how to focus on the GG with the hv20 but I can't seem to find it. Which brings me to another question. Is it okay to fudge. I get a focused image by zooming all the way out with both the HV30 and the 35 mm and then slowly bringing the 35mm to the distance I need.

June 18th, 2008, 07:34 PM	#2
Steve Witt Major Player Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: kentucky, USA Posts: 429	Method #1) Make sure your adapter is turned OFF. Your camcorder's Image stabilization "always" needs to be turned OFF when using an adapter. Set F-stop on the SLR 35mm lens to the Highest F-number. (this gives the smallest aperture size and allows the least light, but allows to focus on the GG) Put your HV20/30 to manual focus. Now you need to point to a nice bright window or just something very well lit. You want to manually focus onto the grain of the ground glass. Try to get the grain as sharp and focused on your HV30 as possible. (try the camcorder's focus assist to magnify the GG-some people like using it---and some don't). Thats it. You're done. Method #2) Here is a different alternative method as described by "Michael Panfeld" that also works. First, turn OFF the adapter. Second open up the 35mm lens' aperture (unlike the other suggested manual backfocus method, you keep the lens open wide for more light). Point the cam at some light and then hit the autofocus. It takes a couple of seconds to find it, then it stops. Then hit MF to lock the focus. You are done and the cam's lens is perfectly focused on the imaging element.

June 18th, 2008, 07:50 PM	#3
Steve Witt Major Player Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: kentucky, USA Posts: 429	Another hint is to ignore the subject or scene that is your rig is pointed at and displayed on the LCD. You just need the light from that scene. In other words, if pointed at a big beautifully lit window, ignore the window and just try to concentrate on that little GG. Imagine your HV30 as a "Microscope" and pretend there is a speck of dust on your GG. Try to focus on that speck of dust (GG grain).

June 18th, 2008, 08:33 PM	#4
Matt Buys Major Player Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Asheville NC Posts: 426	Steve, thanks for the quick response and hints. Worked great.

June 18th, 2008, 09:56 PM	#5
Steve Witt Major Player Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: kentucky, USA Posts: 429	You are very welcome Matt. Which method did you use? Or I mean to say, which one worked the best for you?

June 19th, 2008, 01:32 PM	#7
Richard Gillespie New Boot Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: London Posts: 24	Interesting thread. Does the HV30 hold focus and the zoom setting when you power down the camera? Or do you have to go through this every time you power up?

June 22nd, 2008, 08:43 PM	#9
Matt Buys Major Player Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Asheville NC Posts: 426	Steve, I went with method number 1. I can't believe how fun it is to mess around with dof. My dogs and kids are pretty worn out from me calling them over to the camera and tripod.

June 23rd, 2008, 11:55 AM	#11
John Hotze Regular Crew Join Date: May 2007 Location: Saint Louis, Missouri Posts: 129	I got my Letus Mini a couple weeks ago and used it almost exclusively with my HV30 last week at a bluegrass festival. It was my first time using it. I thought the instructions stated to point it at a light and focus on the gg without the 35mm lens attached. Anyway, that's the way I did it. I used a 70mm to 200mm EOS Canon lens the whole time, night and day. I shot over 35 hours of video with it and am extremely pleased with the way they turned out. Honestly, I was a bit afraid I'd screw up and not feel comfortable with it but that was not the case. I'm a bit of a maveric and like to experiment around. I know I went against conventional thinking in that when I wanted to get a really tight shot, in addition to zooming in all the way with the Canon lens, I zoomed in some more with the camera, with great success. I don't know why this is never talked about. After I would zoom with the camcorders zoom & I wanted to get back to normal, I would just zoom out until I saw the internal frame around the gg and than zoom in slightly until the frame didn't show anymore. I do not see anything magical about being precise here. You can simply use the camcorder zoom until you don't see any frame anymore. I even did a slight back focus tweak after front focusing on a subject. I had a lot of fun and thought using a 35mm adaptor was not a hassle at all.