TV Nikon B4-Mount ENG lens.

[Bob Hart]

From a project way back, when I was designing a B4 adaptor for my AGUS35 adaptor, I have an unserviceable Nikon S15x8.5BI-EMS-20 B4-Mount zoom lens with the range. A lens repair shop had given it to me as a pattern for the B4-Mount.

Out of idle curiosity, I cleaned out the white magnesium dust off the glassware and I shoved it onto a IMS-B4 adaptor on the SI2K. I had tried it previously direct-to-camera and it came up soft. To my extreme surprise, despite it being a SDTV lens, on the B4-mount with its corrective optic, it came up as sharp as the Noct-Nikkor which is just a trace short of the CP Ultra T.

The sharpness takes a severe nose-dive with the doubler selected.

A more conclusive test would need to be done but I am motivated to attempt to repair it.

Does anyone know this lens or more particularly, has information about the colour code for the wiring to the camera plug, or against all hope, a circuit diagram. The original plug has either been cut off or was torn off, probably because the lens electrics had become unserviceable.

So far as I can see, the transfer gears for the focus drive have worn out. The zoom and iris gears appear serviceable.

Any info will be much appreciated.

[Bob Hart]

Here are some images from the lens. I applied 25 points of sharpen to them as they are headed for a local newsetter. No colour grade has been done. A bit of black and white levelling was done in some which were a bit dark in places.

The Nikon on the B4 adaptor yields surprsingly sharp images given it is a worn and damaged lens. For a zoom, apparent contrast is also pleasing. There are some marks on the front element which preclude from shooting against the light. When focusing, the lens "breathes" quite markedly.

Contrary to my ealrier comment above, when the doubler is switched in, the image is sharper than was apparent in the first quick tests I did.

The lens does slightly vignette the left corners at wide, clears as the zoom progresses then again more apparent part way through the zoom at about 25mm then is clear through the remaining movement.

There is a chromatic abberation apparent at the left margin of the image. This may be in a zone of the lens which would not be apparent in the slightly smaller image area the 2/3" video cameras see.

Prime lenses still rule however this one has a handily convenient range.

Image details as laid out

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1. Lens in standard setting at 127.5mm.
2. Lens in standard setting at 127.5mm.
3. Lens in standard setting at about 12mm.
4. Lens with doubler selected at 127.5mm.

The subject is Roley Pool, a local swimming hole before people became paranoid about snakes, snags, leeches, cobbler stings (local catfish) and pollution from golf courses and housing developments, climate change and heavier city water usage from the dam upstream restricted water flows.

The stoneworks are all that is left of improvements from the great-depression era, when apparently community volunteer work went into making a diving platform with springboard, some rather rudimentary toilets and change rooms. Now people just want all their amenities on tap, with not so many being prepared to donate time, materials and bodily effort into making things happen.

[Bob Hart]

Some frame grabs from oral history interview. - Second cam. Lens - TV Nikon.

The first is an over-wide view which illustrates our rough and ready lighting setup.

Main cam was placed in traditional interview positions with prime lenses 16mm and then 25mm for supplemental interview and closer view of hand-gestures. Second cam was running to pick up hand-gestures but was a little too noisy for the sound guy so we shut it down.

[Bob Hart]

As for the B4-Mount.


After I started getting all enthusiastic about what lenses I could put on this thing, one of the guys at P+S had the good will to advise me not to try and power a box lens from the camera.

Box lenses are those big Fujinons which can spot an errant nose whisker and crusty attachment at 500 paces on a sports ground.

Apparently the servo systems in those approx 28lb lenses pull 90watts when calibrating. It would be interesting to look through one sometime, though chasing airplanes at 60degrees overhead would be one big wrestle.

[Bob Hart]

Presently, James, Steve and Elliot are running around in Northern Thailand and places furthur afield with the SI2K and the old and battered TV-Nikon ENG lens which has shaped up so well in spite of the obvious earnings of its keep on a Betacam in the days of its youth.

As a documentary camera, it is turning out to be better than expected, if a bit heavy. Time will tell of course.

Hopefully if there is no proprietary constraint, they will let me post a few grabs after they return.

[Justin Lovell]

another nice little zoom lens is the 16mm cmount bolex 1.9 16-100 POE lens.

more si2k footage...

Rise and Fall Online

[Bob Hart]

Thanks for the look. It is making me skill-envious.

[Bob Hart]

Furthur to the above, James, Steve and Elliot are still running around with the SI2K in northern Thailand and getting some good stuff, - tribal village people, etc.. The camera has apparently been rock solid. They are off to Laos tomorrow.

Steve Rice told me on the phone that they got held up at gunpoint on the border, that the gunman took a liking for the geeen plastic lens cap off the TV-Nikon and wanted it. Why he wouldn't want the whole camera is beyond me. The lens cap happens to be the lid off a container of "SPC Two-Fruits" as the original is long gone.

In reality, I think I was being had. Steve and Elliot his son both have this remarkable gift of being able to tell a joke or pull on a gentle hoax with a straight face.

Steve is now infatuated with using a B4-mount ENG zoom lens on the SI2K and has made known on returning he intends to try to find a HD lens with a wide-enough footprint to cover the SI2K image frame as the TV-Nikon does. The old TV-Nikon's servos are dead so it is all by hand for zooming, focus and iris. Life would be a lot easier having a motor lens on front.

I hope to post some grabs but this will be contingent on getting clearances from the client.

The client will be editing in a Mac based workflow. Any basic advice on NeoHD versus Neo Free Player and Pro-Res HD conversion will be greatly appreciated. I don't know whether they set the camera for .avi or .mov files. There may be a conversion step if they are .avi files.

Does NeoHD and Neo Player enable cineform .avi files to be viewed in Final Cut Pro on a Mac or must they be converted first to .mov files. Does the NeoHD interface on the Mac use HDLink in the same way to convert (rewrap) SI2K .avi files to .mov files.

[Bob Hart]

Here's a happy snap from the Northern Thailand and Laos shoot. Makes me wish I had been there as the river shot is very reminiscent for me of General MacArthur's Island just off Morotai.

1.2.
3.4.


1. Director. James With ( wearing beret ), Cameraman. Steve Rice. Location. Vientiane City, Laos.
2. Director. James With, Cameraman. Steve Rice. Location Mekong River, Vientiane, Laos.
3. Director. James With, Cameraman. Steve Rice. Camera Assistant. Elliot Rice. (pointing). Location. Vientiane City, Laos.
4. Actress. Amy Waraluk with two locals. Location. Vientiane City, Laos.

Steve is enjoying more than just a passing encounter with a wonderful piece of glassware, a HD Canon ENG zoom lens, which has supplanted the old TV-Nikon on this project. He had a special set of extended rods made up by Dirk Ulich, engineer extraordinaire of Kelmscott in Western Australia.

I think for some of the second unit, he has been using a Zoom H4 as an on-camera mike via USB.