(vimeo)

It’s been awhile since Mavis updated their app to take use of both of the iPhone 7 Plus’s cameras. I had a bit of time, so I went out to try filming some night shots with the iPhone anamorphic rig.

Some key differences and changes now are better PID settings on the Beholder for this rig, the ability to shut off the OIS, and the ability to lock things like shutter speed and ISO. I wasn’t trying for perfection for this shoot, as I wanted to see what ISOs worked on the iPhone. It’s not really known for clean nighttime video. I tried to remove some of the noise just to see how it looked, but it only worked on some shots. Looked horrible on others.

One of the best things about Mavis is the ability to shoot while in anamorphic mode. No guessing, as what you see on the monitor is what you’ll see on your timeline. And the ability to lock or set pretty much all parts of the camera settings make it one of the best camera apps I have ever used. It switches between the 2 cameras pretty well (it’s not instant, but I don’t mind) and was super easy to use, even with freezing hands in the night.

I decided to lock the white balance at Set 1 (2896k) to try to give a nice cool feel to the footage and to compliment the anamorphic flares. It worked well. Decided again not to color correct the footage so people could see how it looks right out of the app and phone. I am not sure if this affected the amount of grain in some shots, but I can always do another shoot later.

One of the big issues with the first shoot I did with the standard camera app were the distortions caused by the OIS. You can shut off the OIS in Mavis, which is fantastic. But you can tell which shots I turned it off in when I move too much. The Beholder does a great job keeping it steady for the most part, but it’s not perfect. It’s still a tiny rig. I did shoot a few shots with the OIS on, and some are not as obvious as others.

Overall it was a good test. It was my first time using the Mavis app and I really enjoyed it. Shooting at night on the iPhone is not ideal, but you can get some decent shots with the right settings.

I have fun shooting with this rig, but it does have it’s limitations. It’s not really a recommended setup for the average user. I just happen to already have what is needed to do it. I have a bit set aside for the new Moondog Labs anamorphic when it comes out, but I want to find a good stabilizer that will work with it. The smaller and more portable, the better.

But you know what I REALLY want? A basic, small stabilizer for my RX100 IV. Nobody makes one. You could seriously make one the size of the current iPhone and GoPro stabilizers. Somebody get on this.

Lastly, the music was done in the Launchpad iOS app. It’s a nice go-to for somewhat original free music when I have no time to look for something.