[Konvas] Shot on Konvas

Thu Mar 12 06:08:47 CDT 2009

Yes, I wholeheartedly agree; except for the part where I'm supposed to  
talk about all the footage I've personally shot with these little  
suckers... I can add that missing part after the 25th or so when I  
plan to shoot two scenes for my little Indy film.

We're shooting on BW--any advice is greatly appreciated; I've been  
reading all of the information y'all give and it is great! I just need  
to figure out how to light a dim apartment livingroom!

Looking forward to the rattle and hum of my commiecam on the set!

Brandon

Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 12, 2009, at 1:13, Sambacine Cinema <cinema at sambacine.com.br>  
wrote:

> Steve,
>
> I love these so-called Konvas limitations. The time I discovered the  
> camera I was shooting a documentary about a simple man from the  
> Brazilian outbacks "caatinga" who had invented and built a movie  
> camera on his own, a long time ago, and used to shoot, develop and  
> screen his films at the local cinema before Casablanca! (as the  
> short feature precceding the long one). He invented lots of things,  
> from guns to a whole astronomical theory.
>
> I thpught that if this man from nowhere was capable of building a  
> movie camera, there must exist in the world a 35mm camera that  
> doesn't cost 100,000 USD. So I found out about Konvas and fell in  
> love with its simplicity and great lenses. I firmly believe that  
> movies should be more connected to emotion rather than economics and  
> Konvas, light and portable, easy and affordable, embodies this  
> vision for me.
>
> I'm a very happy and proud owner, we really cared for our kit. And  
> for me it's so good to receive this discussion list and see people  
> with the same passion. Thank you for your inspiring words!
>
> Best Regards,
> Tiago.
>
>> The fact that the Konvas can produce stunning images is not  
>> surprising, propaganda in the Soviet Union was a high priority and  
>> these little cameras where the premiere instrument of that  
>> priority. The Lomo lenses were very much comparable the Schneider,  
>> Ziess and Cooke lenses of the era and in many cases, considered  
>> superior. If you really want to see what a little Konvas can do,  
>> take a look at the Russian masterpiece, "The Cranes are Flying"  
>> much of which was shot with Konvas cameras, I have seen production  
>> stills showing the little commiecams in action and it warms my  
>> heart every time I look at them.
>>
>> They may not have all the bells and whistles their Western  
>> counterparts have but I kinda liken them to the AK-47s, they may  
>> have their limitations but they will get the job done under the  
>> harshest of conditions and be reliable when more sophisticated but  
>> less sturdy cameras would have failed. If you accidentally drop a  
>> Konvas in a parking lot, there is a good chance you will be able to  
>> just pick it up, brush it off and continue to keep on shooting. Try  
>> doing that with an Arri IIB or C and see what happens. As you might  
>> be able to deduce, I'm a big fan of the Konvas and Kinor (once the  
>> truly horrindous orignal Soviet electronics have been up-dated,  
>> THAT is one thig the Soviets did NOT excell in, in fact it's  not a  
>> question of IF the old Russian electronics will fail but WHEN.  
>> aside from that, they are the best bang for the buck in 35mm motion  
>> picture camera there is....IMHO :D )
>>
>>
>> From: Speedbirdmgh at aol.com
>> Date: Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:48:28 -0400
>> To: cinema at konvas.org
>> Subject: Re: [Konvas] Shot on Konvas
>>
>> "http://www.sambacine.com.br/?p=159"
>>
>> Tiago,
>>
>> Viewed your footage with great interest although some of it was out  
>> of focus, it did show what the Konvas and lomos can do. I was  
>> wondering what lenses you used with the K3?
>>
>> There was some good skin tones especially the close ups, I assume  
>> you were using primes for those scenes. I have not seen many Konvas  
>> images except Adam's 'Hunting Dragonflies' which clearly shows that  
>> Lomos can produce really stunning close up's even with low light.  
>> There are a few Russian shorts I have seen taken with Konvas 1/2M  
>> and these have been impressive.
>>
>> I must add that your "Lama" video was so good that I had to watch  
>> it again. Extremely clever storyboard and CGI.  She is very  
>> photogenic and obviously loves the camera. Perhaps she would like  
>> to work in the UK.
>>
>> Thankyou for sharing your images with us.
>>
>> Rita
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Windows Live™ Contacts: Organize your contact list. Check it out.
>>
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>
> _______________________________________________
> Cinema mailing list
> Cinema at konvas.org
> http://konvas.org - All about Konvas, Kinor and other Russian Cinema  
> Cameras
>
> Be sure to Check out the online Forums:
> http://konvas.org/forum/index.php
>
> Visit the discussion archives:
> http://konvas.org/list-archives.html
>
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> http://konvas.org/mailman/listinfo/cinema_konvas.org
>
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