16mm Transfer Station

From Help Wiki

The 16mm film transfer station is located in L1521.

Policies

  • No food or drinks in the lab.
  • Close the door when you leave the room.
  • Schedule time at Media Loan and use your scheduled time.
  • Return the keys promptly.
  • Sign the log book and enter any problems.
  • email animationsupport@evergreen.edu

Getting Ready

Power

  1. Turn on power strip
  2. Start the computer
  3. Turn on the projector (back right)
  4. Log into computer

File Management

  1. Double-click on the Computer icon.
  2. Double-click on the Storage drive.
  3. Make a new folder to save your work to.
  4. Don't save your videos to the desktop. There is not enough room.

Cleaning

  1. Open StCamSWare from the desktop
  2. Turn projector to Still to turn on the light.
  3. Turn the exposure knob counter clockwise until the image is gray. "About 5:00".
  4. Look at StCamSWare and if the image is dirty you need to clean the projector.
  5. Pull the light away from the projector and clean with blower brush or q-tips only.

Settings

  1. In StCamSWare go to Option > Settings and a new window will open.
  2. Click the Advanced button in the bottom right. If the bottom right button is Simple then you are already in the Advanced window.
  3. Go to the Trigger tab and configure the following settings.
    • Operation Mode : Trigger
    • Trigger Source : Hardware
    • Trigger Mode : Edge Preset
  4. Go to the IO tab and configure the following settings.
    • IO0 : Trigger Input [10]
    • Polarity : Negative

White Balance

  • The white balance defaults to auto.
  • The auto white balance can be very noticeable and can cause color shifts with black and white film.
  • It is best to manually calibrate it before every recording.
  1. Click the white balance tab.
  2. Set the white balance to OneShot. This sets the calibration.
  3. If you adjust the exposure setting on the projector you might need to recalibrate the white balance.

Threading the Projector

  1. Set the Speed knob to Sound
  2. Make sure that you have 4ft of leader to the heads and tail of the film.
  3. Single-perf film should have the peroration on the outside (towards you).
  4. Push the autoloader
  5. Trim the film if needed.
  6. Put the film on the supply reel arm.
  7. Set projector to Forward and insert the film.
  8. When there is enough film to wind onto the take up real,turn off the projector and thread onto the take up reel.
  9. Pull the film to make sure the autoloader is off, there will be a click.
  • If the take up reel does not move:
    • make sure that the autoloader is disengaged
    • there might need to be more film/leader on the reel

Recording

Capturing

  1. Go to Capture > Video Capture.
  2. Browse to your folder on Storage.
  3. Give the file a name and click Save.
  4. The Record Setting window will open. Configure the following settings:
    • Compressor : Motion JPEG
    • Quality : 75
    • Frame Count : Leave the slider at the right side.
  5. Click ok and start the projector.
  6. When the film is done turn the projector off.
  7. Click the X in the top right of the window to stop the recording.

Watching the files

  • You can open the file in VLC to watch it but the motion will be a little fast.

More Recordings

  • You might need to record multiple passes with different exposure settings.
  • Re-calibrate the white balance before each recording.

Rewinding

  • Running film through the projector in reverse does not work very well.
  • It losses the loop and tends to jam
  • It's best to run the film forwards all the way through the projector and then do a fast rewind.
  1. Running the film through the projector.
  2. Thread the film straight across the top of the projector.
  3. Set the projector to Reverse and press the Rewind button on the projector.

Finishing

Converting the Frame Rate

  • The files are 24fps videos but they playback at 29.97fps.
  • Each recording needs to switched to playback at 24fps.
  1. Open AVIFrameRate from the desktop.
  2. Click the folder icon and select your video
  3. Set the New Frame Rate to 24.000 and click Apply
  4. Click OK to close the new window that will open.
  • Now if you watch the clip in VLC the motion should be correct.
  • You need to do this to all of the video you recorded.

Converting the Video

The files can be converted with Handbrake in the transfer station or later in the Multimedia Lab.

  1. Open Handbrake
  2. Drag select your video file.
  3. In the Preset pull down menu select Production > Production Proxy 1080P.
  4. At the bottom set the file name in the Save As setting.
  5. Click the Add to Queue button.
  6. Click the Queue button.
  7. Click the green play button to covert all of the clips in the Queue.

Copying the Files to the Network

  1. On the PC computer click on the Start menu.
  2. Go to search and type in \\orca and press Enter on the keyboard.
  3. On Orca navigate to the Programs folder, and find your class folder.
  4. Copy the files to Workspace or into your cubby.
* Make sure to copy the original avi files and the converted mp4 files.

Troubleshooting

  • If the video looks "smeared" check the Trigger and IO settings.
  • If StCamSWare stops getting picture check the Trigger and IO settings.
  • If the image has a green tint or exposure shifts make sure to manually set the white balance with One Shot.
  • If the image looks "jerky" make sure that the auto-thread is disengaged.
Retrieved from "http://helpwiki.evergreen.edu/wiki/index.php?title=16mm_Transfer_Station&oldid=39631"

The Evergreen State College