BERLIN—ARRI has endorsed B-Mount as a universal 24 V battery industry standard and announced it will be used in its current and future cameras and lights.

“By establishing an open, international industry standard that meets customers’ needs and is compatible across all manufacturers, the B-Mount will enable productions to source batteries locally, rather than transporting them,” said Jeanfre Fachon, ARRI product manager. “With battery transport restrictions getting stricter, this will save productions time, money and effort. At ARRI we fully endorse the B-Mount industry standard and will be using it in our cameras and lights from now on.”

Developed by bebob, B-Mount is a documented and openly available battery mount standard. Battery manufacturers, including bebob, Blueshape, Core SWX, Fxlion, Hawk-Woods, IDX and SWIT, are developing B-Mount products to address the power requirements of today’s digital cameras, accessories and rigs, which often exceed the limits of existing systems, ARRI said.

LED lights also can be powered by on-board batteries, so having an industry standard for both cameras and lights offers new possibilities for fast, efficient mobile shooting, it said.

A new 24 V industry standard with high capacity offers a futureproof solution for the growing power demands of professional camera and lighting systems. The potential for increased power is three times greater with B-Mount than traditional 12 V systems, the company said.

The advantages of B-Mount include rugged construction and the opportunity for it to provide advanced communications between batteries and camera or lights, facilitating highly accurate readouts of remaining run time and charge time.

B-Mount plates or adapters are available for all current ARRI cameras, as well as SkyPanel S30, S60 and S120 lights. 

More information is available on the ARRI website.  

VANCOUVER—Production equipment supplier has gone green with its latest battery packs—literally. The newly developed Urban Power Source is a mobile, zero-emissions battery power pack designed for television and film production. Its first two units, which are now available for delivery, are named Minnekhada and Seymour after regional parks in the Metro Vancouver area and that are depicted on the battery packs’ exterior.

The power stations have built-in, uninterruptible power supply properties and are said to allow up to 124kg of CO2 emissions savings per charge. The batteries are built with the standard size and weight of standard generators and are capable of delivering 125kWh of power storage, 72kW of output capacity and a three-phase 120/208V power supply at 200 amps per phase.

The Urban Power Source models operate with low noise and no diesel smell. It is also compatible with LED lighting technology and its uninterruptible power supply has flow-through capability and a daisy chain connectivity option for additional run time.

This product is part of Sim’s “Green” initiative, which is dedicated to developing sustainable practices in the television and film industries.

For the last seven years, Emmy-award winning Director of Photography Danny Schmidt has established himself as a dynamic presence in the environmental film space – pairing in-depth stories with stunning visuals. From elephant poaching in Myanmar to climate change and changing ice levels, the Montana native has worked with some of the biggest names in the space including the Smithsonian, NASA, Netflix, PBS, National Geographic and many more.

Manios Digital sat down with Danny to find out how he got started and the gear he uses in the field.

Q: You’ve worked on some great videos from the elephant poaching in Myanmar to climate change in the ‘trial of the century,’ how do you approach each of these shoots? Is this more run and gun or do you have shots in mind for the way you tell the story?

DS: I approach every shoot with one thing in mind: what do I need to do to help tell the best and most honest story possible. This informs the type and style of coverage we get, how we approach the characters, the locations, etc. That said, I love verité, hand-held shooting. There's something about the interplay between the subjects and the cinematographer that creates the raw feeling of intimacy and access that the audience feels on the screen. However, I also love the opportunity in slower, more controlled situations to take the time to set up shots, experiment more with composition and lens choice, and create a frame that is meant to be studied by the audience.

Q: Your film, Running Wild, is shot beautifully! Can you talk about your style? Did you plan on using the wide shots, opening timelapse to highlight the isolation and beauty of the mountains?

DS: Thanks! I had a talented team working with me on this, a stunning location, and a unique story. A lot of elements came together! We knew we wanted to merge the exciting cinematography commonly seen in adventure/sports films with the pressing narrative of finding a critically endangered species. We had great, natural subjects in Craig and Sarah who, aside from already being involved in the science project, were badass and passionate runners. Wide shots were the only way to capture a landscape as big as the Uinta Mountains and to show how small people really are in a place that remote and wild. The night time-lapse seemed like a no-brainer to add to our shot list because that is the time when wolverines are out doing their wolverine thing!

Q: Can you talk about this last trip you went on? What projects was it for and can you talk about the different things you did?

DS: I've had a busy fall working on various projects all of which have different styles and aesthetics. From a purely verité doc series on income inequality in America, to a glossy doc about saltwater fly fishing in New York, to a wildlife film exploring conservation on military lands. So, sometimes I am standing behind a tripod in the early morning hours waiting for an animal and other times I am fully loaded with my Easy Rig following people around town.

Q: What is in your kit?

DS: For most doc stuff I use an FS7, a variety of Sigma and Canon primes, EasyRig, MoVI, a couple sets of wireless lavs, Cartoni Focus 22, a bunch of Hawk-Woods Mini V-Lok batteries, a few LED panels, and lots of other grip gear, monitors, and supports. For long lens wildlife stuff, I’m generally shooting on the RED for over cranking and increased resolution. It's a lot of stuff to haul around the airport.

Q: You took the Hawk-Woods Mini V-Lok batteries with you on this last trip. What did you think?

DS: The Hawk-Woods are a game changer. Seriously. I am the envy of my friends and colleagues on set. They are tiny, they last forever, and charge fast. What else could you ask for in a battery? They are the future.

Q: What did you think of the size of the batteries?

DS: The size is deceptive. They are small, but super powerful. I am so glad HW is leading the charge (pun intended) on shrinking the tech into smaller packages. Traditional v-mounts were really big and bulky. With TSA now requiring all batteries to go in your carry-on bags, it is crucial that you take the smallest, most powerful batteries you can find. Your camera will run all day and your back will thank you later.

Manios Digital is the exclusive US distributor Hawk-Woods, Cartoni tripods and Kinotehnik lights.

Join us at NAB 2019! Register for free by using code LV2933.  

SHELTON, CONN.—In an effort to allow Li-ion battery users to comply with the new IATA regulations for air travel, Anton/Bauer has updated its Performance Quad Charger. The charger now has the ability to discharge a battery to any level, including those specified by IATA regulations.

Users of the Performance Quad Charger can now asses and discharge to a desired preset level, including the 30 percent SoC level required for air travel. This updated capability is available for free as a firmware update by going to http://vitec.ftpstream.com/?lid=2cot2ask#.

All current generation Anton/Bauer Li-ion batteries feature a power gauge. The CINE and Digital series batteries displaying the battery charge percentage while the Dionic HC series shows a single bar of charge to represent less than 30 percent SoC.

LOS ANGELES—IDX has announced the release of its AT-E2CMKII, an ENDURA V-Mount battery adaptor plate that works with the new C300 Mark II 4K camera from Canon. Using the adaptor plate, IDX’s ENDURA V-Mount batteries are compatible with the C300.

The adaptor plate comes with a Lemo connector for direct connection to the camera and offers two D-Tap outputs, each able to handle 50W for powering additional gear, like lights, monitors or recorders. The V-Plate design features three industry standard screw-hole patterns to adapt to a variety of camera support rod mounting accessories.

IDX will release the AT-E2CMKII worldwide in October.

LOS ANGELES—IDX has announced the release of the LC-2A, a new Li-ion charger that features interchangeable interface plates with the ability to charge 7.2V/7.4V Canon, Panasonic and Sony batteries.

The 2-Channel charger is able to simultaneously charge two batteries in any combination of compatible modes. The charger also features a 100-240V AC input.

IDX will release the LC-2A in September. It will also be on display at IDX’s booth, 11.C25, at IBC 2015, which takes place from Sept. 11-15 in Amsterdam.

IDX is a manufacturer of Li-ion battery systems for the audio, broadcast, cinema and video industries.

SHELTON, CONN.—Battery provider Anton/Bauer has unveiled its new CINE battery series for digital cameras, which will become available in September. The CINE series delivers 12 amps of continuous power and incorporates Fuse Link technology, which provides protection to surrounding battery cells. It also features multiple sensors to detect temperature and over-current states.

The CINE batteries feature a durable, industrial design and compliment cameras including the ARRI ALEXA Mini and RED Weapon, as well as functions on all existing Anton/Bauer chargers. A PowerTap is included to power auxiliary accessories such as monitors, lights, wireless receivers and any other 14V accessory.

Additional features for the CINE series include an LCD screen that provides run-time information in hours and minutes. When the battery is detached, the LCD screen displays battery life as a percentage.

The CINE series will be available in 90Wh and 150Wh in both Gold Mount and V-Mount connectors. Anton/Bauer will make a 190Wh option available in 2016.