Enter the ScarLETUS

No, this is not the next installment of the Godfather and it’s not the newest alternative music on SiriusXM. I think it’s the next step in the quest for a great camera package. The RED Scarlet meets LETUS shallow depth of field adapters at a price that runs in the pack with an FS-100 and AF-100. Lets look at the possibilities…

1. According to Ted Schilowitz from RED the Scarlet is supposed to ring in at around $6000 – not too bad.It will have (every thing is subject to change =) 3K < 2K, 120fps, SSD, HDRx, 28mm to 240mm @ ƒ2.4 fixed lens, RED raw and other goodies.All of these features are terrific and highly sought after by shooters in all categories.The only hitch(s) - everyone seems to be hung up on the fact this camera has a 2/3” senor and a fixed lens.

   
   
2. Philip Bloom first introduced us to the adapter craze with the SONY EX1 and LETUS Extreme. Also P+S Technik and RedRock Micro have been doing adapters for a while. With the LETUS, it has the image “right side up”, looses only a ½ stop of light and was packed into an elegant little enclosure that simply screwed onto your camera lens – no tools required. These adapters made “Film Look” cinematography/videography attainable at a reasonable price point. Add to this cameras that were now shooting in the 400 to 800 ISO range and you were almost all the way home.

   
   
3. Now lets combine the two. It’s very similar to working with the Sony EX1 or Panasonic HVX200. The Scarlet (according to the forums) has a 77mm filter thread.The ISO can go up to 12,000.The form factor is smaller than the EX1 or HVX200. And it’s Cool!!!

So, the run down:

• Small light weight camera 2K resolution
  so I can scale during post for HD delivery
  
• HDRx for those office window I just can’t GEL
• RED raw - no baked in look
• SSD storage for in-expensive client hand offs
  
• Cool 120fps rate
• Full Frame image plane to maximize my current lens kit
• DoF on par with my 5Dmk2
• 10 bit Pro connection options
• Great transitional entre into RED cameras and workflow

I’ll be honest, if I could afford an Epic and my current client list warranted it I would go for it but it doesn’t and I can’t. I’m holding out hope for the Epic-S but wanted to start looking at alternatives. I’m coming from a predominately Sony infrastructure and will have to do some work with myself and my clients to introduce the RED workflow as seamlessly as possible. We (my clients and I) love the look of DSLRs and the ease of the EX3 and F3 but I still need the additional things the Scarlet and Epic offer to move my camera work to the next level. Since I have the LETUS Extreme already and love it, I’m willing to try a “ScarLETUS” configuration to get there =)


I would love to hear thoughts from other DPs, RED users, camera operators and film makers. Please comment =)

Until next time, good shooting

TDTrey.com