By Kendal Miller and Matthew Jeppsen, October 19, 2007
So you see a big camera rig in a production magazine, and it looks all cool with this huge matte box on the front. You say, “Man, that’s really cool—I have to have one of those things.” But what does it do?
At the most basic level, a matte box extends your ability to modify and control light prior to it entering the camera’s lens. A matte box allows you to perform several tasks. First and foremost it allows you to flag and block errant light from directly striking the lens and causing unwanted lens flares. Different models allow the addition of top French flags and side flags to further keep light off the lens. Additionally, a matte box allows you to add glass filters to your camera to further control your image (for an explanation of lens filters, see “DV 101” on page 26). You can utilize filters such as neutral density correctors, polarizers, and color enhancers. These filters slip into trays, which then can be dropped into the filter stages of the matte box.
In making a decision toward buying a matte box, there are several things you’ll want to consider. First is the build quality: is it made of metal, plastic or some sort of composite construction, and how will it hold up in the field? Second, to ensure optimal results, you’ll want to choose either a 4x4 size for a traditional 4x3 aspect ratio camera, or a 4x5.6 for a camera with a 16x9 aspect ratio. Also, you’ll want to ensure that the filter trays used in the matte box will be solid and secure, allowing you to move confidently as a cameraman without fear of damaging your expensive glass filters.
So if you find yourself routinely fighting lens flares and wanting to experiment with adding filtration to the front of your camera, you should consider investing in a good-quality matte box to give you an additional layer of control. Besides, they look really cool.
Chrosziel GmbH 450-A Matte Box
$1,895
DV Score:
Pros:
Mostly metal construction, can accept two different filter sizes, entirely tool-less.
Cons:
No vertical adjustment, only one rotating stage.
Bottom Line:
The Chrosziel 450-MA is a well-designed and solid choice.
Click To Enlarge
This full-featured matte box from Chrosziel features one fixed and one rotating stage. The fixed stage accepts 4x5.65 filters, and the tray supports 4x4 filters as well. The rotating stage is designed for the 4x4 size only.
A 16:9 snap-in front mask attaches to the front of the shade. Filter trays can be locked in place without tools. With the exception of the plastic shade, this matte box is constructed entirely of metal, including the lens flange. The 450-A clamps to 15mm rods using a single solid metal clamp that locks on both rods. There is no horizontal or vertical adjustment. (While we did not test this, our unit arrived with a compact rods and baseplate kit designed for the HVX200.)
The French flag is lightweight metal and folds in half. The side flags are also metal and expandable. Filter trays are all metal and spring-loaded to grip glass filters. Nicely beveled interior tray edges make loading filters a simple task.
Overall, the fit and finish of the Chrosziel 450-A is impressive. It’s equally at home on both simple and complex camera rigs. (Thanks to authorized Chrosziel distributor 16x9, Inc. for providing our demo unit.)
Cinetech Matte Box
$1,250
DV Score:
Pros:
Swing-away design, horizontal adjustment, LED lighting.
Cons:
No swing-away receiver, gap at base of flags, no 4x4 filter option, filter trays require tool to lock in place.
Bottom Line:
A highly configurable design.
Click To Enlarge
A fully-loaded matte box, the Cinetech features two 4x5.65 filter stages, one fixed and one rotating
. Curiously, the trays are mounted vertically in the stages. Mainly comprised of plastic, the Cinetech has a full swing-away design. It mounts to 15mm rods and spans both, though it only clamps to one of the rods. A hard stop holds the swing-away shade in place, but does not have a solid lock and no receiver. As such, the matte box tends to bounce slightly as the camera moves.
There are tool-less removable flags on all four edges of the shade, and all flags are expandable. We noted that a rather large gap exists between the shade and the flags. A rubber boot slides over the camera lens, and rotates with the rear rotating filter stage. This boot features a quick release pop-off design as well.
Filter trays are a metal design and a spring-loaded clip holds glass filters in place. Trays can be locked in place using Allen-head screws. There’s also a top-mounted LED light on an articulated arm for lens illumination.
Overall, the Cinetech is a capable performer. While fit and finish is somewhat lacking, it includes several very handy features that other units don’t offer.
Petroff P44-2
$1,320
DV Score:
Pros:
Vertical adjustment, compact design. Optional filter stages can be added.
Cons:
Plastic rod mounts, clamp design limits range of movement. Would prefer a tool-less option to lock filter trays in place.
Bottom Line:
The Petroff P44-2 is a good entry-level matte box that’s well-suited to small DV cameras.
Click To Enlarge
A lightweight and compact unit, Petroff’s P44-2 features two 4x4 filter trays in independent, rotating stages. Filters can be locked in with an Allen-head screw, with the option to stack on additional stages.
Mainly constructed of plastic, the P44-2 is shallow and comes with a metal French flag that attaches without tools. A hard plastic or optional rubber flange slides over the camera lens.
The Petroff locks to 15mm rods via a plastic mount which also has a vertical adjustment. The rod clamp has limited movement and bumps up against the unit base, limiting the tension you can apply to the rods. This might be a problem for users with non-standard rods (like 5/8 in.). Likewise, the vertical adjustment clamp bumps up against the lower frame when fully lowered. Filter trays are plastic and have a spring-loaded catch to hold filters in place. The catch can be locked open when loading filters—a very handy feature. (Thanks to authorized Petroff distributor Ste-Man, Inc. for providing our demo unit.)
Untested, but upcoming
Stay tuned to DV for reviews of three more matte boxes:
Cinevate 2-Stage Matte Box (www.cinevate.com)
Two rotating filter stages
Mounts to 15mm and 5/8 in. rods
Includes top, bottom and side flags
Chrosziel 4x4 DV Sunshade (www.16x9inc.com)
One fixed 4x4 filter stage
One rotating 4x4 stage
Mounts to 15mm rods
Optional top and side flags
Designed for lightweight cameras
Redrock microMattebox (www.redrockmicro.com)
Three rotating filter stages
Additional stages can be added
Supports 4x4 through 6x6 filters
Mounts to 15mm rods
Includes top, bottom and side flags
| COMMENTS (1) | | 08/17/2010 | | I gotta tell you, when I was first shopping for a matte box for my Panasonic HPX300, I was amazed how expensive matte boxes were: 2000 USD, 4000 USD. Are they serious? Then I found RedRockMicro matte box for under 1000 USD. What a great product. Well made, everythiung fits, and works as it should. I have used this matte box on my HPX300 for a year, shot afeature with it and it did what it was suppose to do, without breaking the bank. Want to see it in action? Check out the photo of my HPX300 with the matte box on (plus glidecam): http://sergykal.me/post/934721982/serge-steadicam-laundromat |
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