ALEXA MVF-2 Mini LF Camera User Manual

MVF-2 Mini LF Camera

Multi Viewfinder MVF-2

1. Flip-out Monitor
2. Diopter Adjustment
3. Proximity Sensor
4. ZOOM Button
5. EXP Button
6. PLAY Bution
7. VF 182 User Buttons
8. Top Tally Light
9. SET Button
10. User Wheel
11. LOCK Switch
12.  RECBution
13. Dove Tail
14. Service Cover
15. Bottom Tally Light
16. Product Label
17. Viewfinder Connector
18. Headphones Out

OLED Display
The MVF-2 is equipped with a high contrast, temperature controlled 1920 x 1080 OLED display.
Flip-out Monitor
The 4″ flip-out monitor (1) with up-and-down tilt function can display the camera live image or the main user interface, providing full access to camera functions and menus. See the next chapter for more information.
Diopter Adjustment
With the camera switched on and looking into the viewfinder, twist the ring (2) left or right to adapt the viewfinder image to your visual acuity. With the help of the scale labelled from 1 to 9 you can easily remember your adjustment when different people are using the viewfinder. The diopter adjustment can compensate from -5 to +5 diopters.

Proximity Sensor
This infrared sensor (3) automatically deactivates the MVF-2’s internal OLED panel when you withdraw your eye to prevent burn-ins on the panel and activates it again as soon as you approach the eyepiece.
Do not permanently cover the sensor as this might cause irreversible burn-in on the OLED panel.
Built-in Eyepiece Heater
The MVF-2 is equipped with a built-in eyepiece heater to prevent fogging of the eyepiece when shooting in cold environments. The eyepiece heater can be activated in the camera menu and only becomes active when the eyepiece has a temperature of 15 °C (59 °F) or below. In extremely cold environments please use the Heated Eyecup HE-7.
EXP (Exposure Tool Button)
The EXP button (4) activates and deactivates the exposure tool (either false color or zebra) for the viewfinder and the flip-out monitor.
ZOOM Button
Pressing the ZOOM button (5) activates the viewfinder zoom feature for a temporary 2.25x zoom-in to quickly check focus. The magnification ratio is 1:1, or one sensor pixel to one viewfinder display pixel.
PLAY Button
Press and hold the PLAY button (6) for two seconds to start in-camera playback from the recording media.
VF1 and VF2 User Buttons
The MVF-2 has two user buttons, VF1 and VF2 (7). You can assign a frequently used function to each button.
User Wheel and SET Button
The user wheel and the SET button (9, 10) provide the same functionality as the JOGWHEEL on the flip-out monitor (see next chapter) and can be used for menu navigation and adjustment when the flip- out monitor is used with the display visible in the folded-in position.
LOCK Switch
The LOCK switch (11) locks all MVF-2 buttons. A dedicated lock icon is displayed on the HOME screen as well as in the viewfinder.
REC Button
The REC button (12) starts and stops recording to the recording media. With no recording media inserted, the button is inactive.
Product Label
The product label (1) shows the MVF-2 serial number. The serial number consists of the last 5 digits of the product number K1.0024074 – XXXXX.
Viewfinder Connector
The ALEXA Mini LF uses an industrial CoaXPress interface to connect the MVF-2 viewfinder with the camera. The interface transmits power, video and control data and supports cable lengths of up to 10 m (33 ft). The VF connector comes without a key, so the VF cables plug in regardless of their orientation and support hot plugging of the viewfinder.

Headphones Out
The headphones out (18) is a 3.5 mm TRS connector (headphone jack), which outputs all four audio channels with a maximum power of 2.5 dBm.
ADVICE

• Constantly covering the proximity sensor of the MVF-2 can cause an irreversible burn-in on the viewfinder OLED display. If you need to cover the viewfinder, please disable the EVF OLED first using the EVF power setting: MENU > Monitoring > EVF/MONITOR > Settings > EVF Power
• The Heated Eyecup HE-6 is not compatible with the MVF-2 viewfinder. When using the Heated Eyecup HE-6, the proximity sensor that activates the OLED display will always be covered. In this state, the OLED display will not switch off when not in use, this can cause an irreversible burn-in on the OLED display. Please use the Heated Eyecup HE-7 instead. This is compatible with the MVF-2 viewfinder.
• When shooting in hot environments make sure to have the viewfinder mounted on the viewfinder bracket to ensure proper cooling.
• If the MVF-2 is used as a remote control without standing support, we recommend to turn off the OLED via “EVF-Power Off” to save battery power and avoid unnecessary heating up of the device in hot environments.

12.1 Flip-out Monitor
Adjusting the Flip-out Monitor

Fold out, swivel and fold in the monitor to put the display visible in the folded- in position. The image on the monitor automatically adjusts its orientation, or can be set to the desired orientation in the camera menu).
Flip-out Monitor
The 4″ flip-out monitor with up-and-down tilt function can display the camera live image or the main user interface (HOME screen and camera menu).

1. JOGWHEEL
2. HOME / LIVE Button
3. Upper Screen Buttons
4. Lower Screen Buttons EIFSETEY
5. MENU / BACK Button

JOGWHEEL
The JOGWHEEL (1) is used to

• scroll or navigate through lists and menus
• change values (by scrolling up or down)
• access and confirm settings (by pressing the JOGWHEEL center)

HOME / LIVE Button
The HOME / LIVE button (2) toggles to display either the HOME screen (shown in the image above) or the camera live view.
MENU / BACK Button
Pressing the MENU / BACK button (3) while on the HOME screen or in camera live view opens the camera menu. While in the camera menu, it serves as a BACK button.
Screen Buttons
The MVF-2 flip-out monitor has six screen buttons, three above (4) and three below (5) the screen.
Their function depends on the screen content and is labeled directly below or above each button.
Unlabeled buttons do not have a function for that screen. A grayed-out label indicates that the function is currently not available.

12.2 MVF-2 Cables

The Multi Viewfinder MVF-2 is connected to the camera using an industrial CoaXPress cable. The cable center pin and shield transport power, video, audio and data and the interface allows for hot- plugging the viewfinder. Since the VF connector has no key, the viewfinder cable can be plugged in in any orientation.
When attaching a new viewfinder to the camera for the first time, it may take around 2 minutes until the viewfinder OLED calibration is fully loaded and activated.
Viewfinder Cables
MVF-2 viewfinder cables are available in the following lengths:

mode
K2.0023943| 05m (151)| For use of MVF-2 with VEB-1 or VEB-3, for use on camera right side
K2.0023944| 2.0m(6.51t)| The medium length for remote use
K2.0023945| 10.0m (33 ft)| The longest possible length for remote use

Menu Operation

The camera menu has a tree structure and the name of the current submenu is displayed across the top of every screen. To access the menu, press the MENU / BACK button on the MVF-2 or connect to the camera via WiFi or Ethernet and open the “web remote”, Page 122.
The ALEXA Mini LF menu consists of 11 submenus:

• Recording
• User Buttons
• Media
• Metadata
• Monitoring
• ECS (Electronic Control System)
• Look
• Info
• System
• Alrts
• Setup

Basic Menu Operation

1. Press the MENU / BACK button (1) on the MVF-2 to access the camera menu.

2. Rotate the JOGWHEEL (3) or the USER WHEEL (5) to scroll up or down to select the desired menu entry:
   Entries with a “>” at the end navigate to a submenu. To navigate to a submenu press the JOGWHEEL center or the SET button (4). To return to a higher menu level press the MENU / BACK button.
   Entries with a value allow for direct editing. To edit a value press the JOGWHEEL center or SET button, then rotate the JOGWHEEL or USER WHEEL to select the desired value. Press the JOGWHEEL center or SET button to confirm the change or press CANCEL to discard.
   Entries with a check box allow for direct activation/deactivation. Press the JOGWHEEL center or SET button to activate/deactivate the setting.

3. To leave the menu press the HOME / LIVE button (2).

The JOGWHEEL and the USER WHEEL + SET button provide identical functionality.
For the remainder of this manual, whenever the term JOGWHEEL is used, it refers to the JOGWHEEL and the USER WHEEL. Whenever “press the JOGWHEEL” is used, it refers to the JOGWHEEL center and the SET button.

13.1 HOME Screen
The HOME screen is the ALEXA Mini LF default screen. It shows the most important camera parameters and gives quick access to changing them through the screen buttons:

1. FPS Sensor Frame Rate Settings
2. TC Timecode Settings
3. SHUTTER Settings
4. El Exposure Index Settings
5. ND Filter Settings
6. WB White Balance Settings
7. Status Section

FPS (Sensor Frame Rate)
The FPS label shows the current sensor frame rate in frames per second. Press the FPS screen button to adjust the sensor frame rate. The FPS label turns orange if the sensor fps does not match the project fps rate.
Note: The maximum frame rate that can be set is dependent on the recording resolution and the codec. TC (Timecode)
The TC label shows the current timecode value and project rate. Press the TC screen button to access the timecode settings. The TC label turns orange if a timecode misconfiguration persists, press the TC screen button for more information.
SHUTTER
The SHUTTER label shows the current shutter angle or exposure time. Press the screen button to set the shutter of the sensor. Shutter angle and sensor FPS determine exposure time of the sensor in seconds by the following equation: angle / (360° * FPS). The shutter unit can be set to display either shutter angle (5.0° to 356.0°) or exposure time (1 s to 1/8000 s). The maximum shutter angle is limited by the resulting exposure time (1 s max.).
El (Exposure Index)
Shows the current exposure index. Base sensitivity for the ALEXA Mini LF is 800 ASA. Press the screen button to adjust the exposure index in a range from 160 to 3200 ASA.
ND Filter
The ND label shows the current ND filter value of the in-camera FSND (Full Spectrum Neutral Density) filter stage. Press the screen button to change the ND filter.
WB (White Balance)
The WB label shows the current white balance and tint. Press the screen button to set the camera’s white balance. This is the color temperature of the light source that the camera is currently adjusted for. In addition to the red/blue correction of the white balance, the ALEXA Mini LF can also compensate for a green/magenta tint. This value, called CC (color compensation), is shown as an exponent of the WB value. Positive values are marked with a “+” and negative values with a “-“.

White balance can be adjusted from 2,000 to 11,000 Kelvin (here: 5,600) in steps of 10 K for red/blue correction. Color compensation for green/magenta tints can be adjusted in a range from -16.0 to +16.0.
Positive or negative CC color compensation values then appear as an exponent of the WB value (here: +0.0).
Status Section
The status section on the home screen shows key data about recording, power supply, remaining media capacity and more:

1. Camera Status
2. Codec & Recording Resolution
3. Audio Meters
4. Status Icons
5. Clip Information
6. Battery Level
7. Media Capacity & Look Setting
8. Camera Alert Icon

Camera Status

Audio Meters
The audio meters are only displayed if audio recording is enabled and show the current level of audio channels 1 & 2. If audio recording is disabled, a crossed out speaker icon is displayed.
Black markers are shown at signal levels -20, -18, -9 dBFS for reference test tone. The yellow marker at -5 dBFS and the red marker at -2 dBFS indicate a signal close to clipping. A red frame around the meter indicates a clipping at the A/D stage.

Clip Information

(during STBY).
Bat 241V| Battery Level
---|---
Current battery voltage level.
MEDIA| 0:1721
---|---
REC| ARRIRAW
LOOK| ARRI 709

Media Capacity & Look Settings

MEDIA| Remaining capacity of the recording media, at current FPS and codec combination, in real time. When media capacity is below 2 minutes, capacity values start flashing.
---|---
REC| Active recording processing (ARRIRAW or Log C)
LOOK| Active Look

Status Icons

| WiFi Icon. WiFi is enabled and the WiFi mode is set to Host +B30:D56
---|---
| WiFi Icon. WiFi mode Client is enabled and the camera is connected to a network.
| WIFi Icon. WiFi mode Client is enabled but the camera is not connected to a network.
Sensor Temperature Icon
| Black
Orange
Red| Sensor temperature warning
Sensor temperature error
System temperature error (see MENU > Info > System Info)
Fan Speed Icon
| Black
Orange| Fan speed about to increase above 20 dB.
Fan speed is higher than 20 dB.
USB Icon
| Black
Gray
Orange| USB medium ready.
USB medium is read only.
USB medium is not usable.
Frame Grab Icon
| Black
Orange| Frame grab failed.
Frame grab is active.
| Camera Lock Icon. Camera buttons are locked.
| MVF-2 Lock Icon. MVF-2 buttons are locked.
| Audio Icon. Audio recording is enabled.
| Audio Icon. Audio recording is disabled.
| Audio Icon. Internal microphones are enabled.
MVF-2 eyepiece heater is active.
| Black
Gray| Eyepiece heater is active.
Eyepiece heater is not heating (eyepiece temperature is > 15 °C (59 * F).
Genlock Icon
GEN| Black
Orange| Camera is synchronized to genlock source.
Camera is not synchronized to genlock source (signal not present or unusable).
EXT Sync lcon
EXIT| Black
Orange| EXT sync active.
Mismatch in EXT Sync configuration. See MENU > Alerts for more information.
WRS| WRS Camera white radio is active.
Lens Motor lcon
CAL| Orange
Black| Lens motor calibration required.
Lens motor calibration in progress.
| Indicates an error on the LDS interface.
| Alert Icon. Alert is active. See MENU > Alerts for more information.

13.2 Using the On-screen Keyboard
When working with textual parameters on the camera, an on-screen keyboard allows entering text. You can use the keyboard, for example, to enter the name of a user setup.

• Use the JOGWHEEL to select and confirm characters.
• Use the CLEAR button (top right) to delete the charac- ter to the left of the cursor. Push the button and hold it to clear the entire text.
• The aA# button (2) toggles between lower case, upper case and numeric text entry.
• Press the SET button (3) to save the entry.
• Press the CANCEL button (1) to discard the entry and ex- it.

13.3 Working with Lists and Import of Files

For certain parameters, the camera menu operates with lists that come with a default content and that can be adjusted to the user’s preference. You can ADD values to and DELETE values from these lists, so that only project relevant values are displayed. Some lists contain values that can be edited directly in the camera (value-based lists) while other lists consist of files that can be imported from or exported to the USB medium (file-based lists).

Following parameters work with value-based lists:

• HOME > FPS
• HOME > SHUTTER
• HOME>WB

Following parameters work with file-based lists:

• MENU > Look > Look
• MENU > Monitoring > Frame Lines > Frame Line
• MENU > Setups > User Setups Installed
• MENU > ECS > Lens Data > Lens Tables Installed

Adding Entries to Value-based Lists
The camera offers two methods of input when adding entries to a list. The numeric keyboard is intended to be used for direct input of a value while the dial mode is intended to be used for fine tuning a value (for example to fine adjust the shutter when filming monitors). The minimum and maximum possible values are shown in the middle of the screen above the horizontal line.

1. Select HOME > FPS > ADD.

2. Use the numeric keyboard to directly enter a value. As a guide, the currently set value is displayed in the background:Use the JOGWHEEL to select and confirm digits.
   The CLEAR button (top right) deletes the digit to the left of the cursor. Pushing the button longer clears the entire value.

3. For fine adjustment of values press the MODE button (2) to use the dial mode:Rotate the JOGWHEEL to fine tune the current value.
   Press the MODE button (2) again if you want to switch back to the numeric keyboard.

4. Press the SET button (3) to add the new value to the list, or the CANCEL button (1) to exit.
   Note: the SET button will be grayed out and the value displayed in red if the entered value is out of range.

Working with File Based Lists
For looks, frame lines, user setups and lens tables the camera offers to import files from the USB medium as well as from a default list. To import files from a USB medium into the camera, the USB medium needs to be prepared with a certain folder structure, see “User Storage Handling”, Page 50 for more information. Files are imported from these USB folders:

Note: The maximum file name length of user files is 64 characters including the file extension. User files with a name exceeding 64 characters cannot be displayed in camera lists. The instructions below use the import of frame lines as an example.

Import Files from USB

1. Insert the USB medium into the camera.
2. Select MENU > Monitoring > Frame Lines > Frame Line > ADD.
3. Select the desired frame line file from the USB list.
4. Press the IMPORT button or the JOGWHEEL to add the frame line to the frame lines list.

Import Files from Defaults

1. Select MENU > Monitoring > Frame Lines > Frame Line > ADD.
2. Select DEFAULTS.
3. Select the desired frame line file from the defaults list.
4. Press the IMPORT button or the JOGWHEEL to add the frame line to the frame lines list. >

Deleting List Entries

1. Select HOME > FPS.
2. Scroll to the entry to be deleted.
3. Press the DELETE button.
4. The selected entry is marked for delete.
5. Press the DELETE button again to delete the selected entry or rotate the JOGWHEEL to cancel.

Maximum Entries per List
Al lists have a maximum number of entries they can hold. Whenever a list is full, the ADD button is grayed out and a message is shown. You need to delete entries from the list first in order to add new ones. The following table lists the maximum number of entries for each type of list:

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