The Diffusion Filters Janusz Kaminski Used on "Munich"

[Zagorchinov]

Hi,
I was curious what kind of lenses and filtration Kaminski used in 'Munich'. There is some strange filtration visible particularly in the scene where the hit team have lunch for the first time.

Thanks,
Dian Zagorchinov, Cinematographer
www.zagorchinov.com

 

[David Mullen ASC]

Most of the time, the diffusion was Schneider Classic Softs. The night attack on the harbor in Beirut looked like ProMist though, otherwise, the Classic Soft look was pretty evident.

Classic Softs have a rigid pattern of lenslets; depending on the strength and the focal length of the lens, you will get a certain ring around the light, or sort of a double-image of the light.

In the past, Kaminski has favored nets, but he started to use Classic Softs more in "War of the Worlds", which is sort of split between netted shots and shots with the Classic Softs.

Here is a shot from "War of the Worlds" with a net:

These are some shots using a Classic Soft:

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[DanDan]

I was looking at the Schneider Classic Softs, and saw that they have gradations from 1/8 to 2. Which gradation would you recommend to re-create the effect of those stills?

 

[David Mullen ASC]

The ring effect is somewhat hit or miss depending on the focal length, but they were probably using a #1 Classic Soft, or maybe a #1/2. You'd want to shoot some tests.

 

[abhishek]

SIR CAN I KNOW WHAT THIS Schneider Classic Softs REALLY IS :?:
IS IT A FILTER OR ANY OTHER KIND OF LIGHTING EQUIPMENT... OR :?: :?: :?: :?:

 

[Agenda Productions]

Hi,

It is a diffusion filter that goes in front of the lens.

Extract from ablecine.com

Blends small wrinkles and blemishes while maintaining overall sharp focus that conceals the fact that a softening filter was used. In the normal range of exposure, this filter imparts only a closely confined, very subtle glow to highlights. If large amounts of overexposure exist in a scene, these filters add a stylish glow that keep the scene's contrast under control, while adding a romantic look.

David- Can you think of why Kaminski would have used a classic soft in that first pic. The highlights seem so overpowering.

James.

 

[David Mullen ASC]

He likes overpowering highlights? You'd have to ask him. The first pic uses a net, not a classic soft, so I assume you mean the first example of the classic soft. Obviously there was a lot of hot glare on the road.

Classic Soft is a glass filter by Schneider that looks like a regular grid pattern of bubbles or concave lenses ("lenslets") are set in the glass. The lighter grads have such tiny lenslets that it looks more like a pattern of white-ish dots.

You can see some examples here:


Here is the pdf of the brochure: