Protecting the Scarlet in the desert

[Monte Casey]

With its large top-side exposed heatsink and grill, the scarlet doesn't exactly inspire confidence in shoots where the elements could pose a problem. Case in point; I have a shoot in the desert next weekend and during our location scouting today we noticed tons of particulate blowing around - so my question is:

How are people protecting their cameras in non studio conditions? Any specific blimp or cover that would work?

[Domenic Barbero]

i built a piece out of aluminum similar to RED top plate. Let an open gap on top of heat area. Put a breatheable mesh on top of that that is supposedly supposed to repel water. works good for protection from snow or light sprinkles, but no way im shooting in solid rain haha. keeps out dirt and dust and small bits of water.

[Terry VerHaar]

FWIW, it has been stated, although it seems a long time ago, that the cooling ducts where the fans are and the air circulates are sealed from the innards of the camera. I believe Jarred once said, perhaps hyperbolically to make a point, that you could pour water through the vents and it would not enter the inner workings of the camera. I take no responsibility for damage of you try this but perhaps it will give a little comfort.

[Andrew Allsbury]

Interesting. Can we get confirmation on this from RED?

[Paramon Ivanovich]

not from RED,
but looks real
:))
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QR1rKgWb1F8

[Lliam Worthington]

not from RED,
but looks real
:))
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QR1rKgWb1F8

HA! Fantastic.

I'd heard it was sealed, but knowing Jarred said something along those lines Terry does give comfort, thanks.

I'm going to be shooting is some desert environs too Monte. So this was something i'd been considering also. Heat vs protection, and access/operation are the obvious factors. Nothing out there I've found that really fits my needs. So I'm going to get something made up. Had a pretty bad experiences in the past in a Desert environ.
Sometimes you learn the hard way :(

Will post pics when i eventually do it. Interested to see what solution you end up using if you get a chance.

Best

Lliam

[Terry VerHaar]

Now THAT'S an unboxing video!!

[Amaury Bargioni]

guys, the part where he pours champagne over the camera is clearly not real :)
you can see at 00:46 that the liquid is over the lens, "in mid air", so there must be somekind of transparent plastic bag over the camera.

[Matt Johnston]

I've sucked up enough dust through the front fan that it blows back out the top vent. Dust so thick you can't see 1foot.

I made a blog post here:

http://mattjohnstonsfp.com/2012/03/1...umentary-tool/

But basically.

You can either A: Suck up lots of dust into the fans and hope for the best. Or B: Cover with something to prevent dust intake, and then overheat the camera and have to shut down.

I don't think the cam really cares about dust in the heatsink. Although I could foresee a situation where the fins would get clogged with dust and need to be cleaned to function properly.

At 90 degrees in the desert with a thin fabric covering my intake fan I was at 126% fan in 3-4 minutes and had to shut down.

With a rain cover or some full covering I don't think it would be usable for long in the heat.

[Doug Beatty]

guys, the part where he pours champagne over the camera is clearly not real :)
you can see at 00:46 that the liquid is over the lens, "in mid air", so there must be somekind of transparent plastic bag over the camera.

Also, it's not a real chimpanzee playing baseball in Ed, just a gymnast in a monkey suit. MYTH BUSTED.