GENUS MATTE BOX
I’ve always wondered what all the fuss is about when it comes to using camera matte boxes. I mean, cameras come with their  own lens hoods, and any filter effects can now be added in post production—so why on earth would you want to bother with the expense, time spent bolting them on and the weight they add to the camera? Are there any real benefits to using matte boxes?
Anyone who regularly uses matte boxes will look upon statements like those above as  being ill informed. Thousands of matte boxes are used by professional camera operators each day—and its more than just about making your camera look more impressive (I’ll come back to that later). In some situations, being matte box-free will be a distinct disadvantage.

In other situations it will limit your creative options. Bring on the Matte Box So what exactly does a matte box bring to the table? Firstly, they provide shade to the camera lens face to remove flare. This is something that we do naturally with our own eyes. By shielding your eyes with hands in bright-light situations you can obtain better details and tonal definition in what you see. Cameras do of course come with lens hoods for the same reason, but camera manufacturers  are always struggling between functionality and keeping the camera compact and lightweight. Whilst a normal lens hood will work in most situations, there are many times when they will not provide sufficient protection from light falling on the face of the lens causing unwanted flaring and loss of contrast in your pictures.

This can happen in both natural and artificial lighting conditions. In daylight situations you are not only dealing with direct sunlight, but also the  reflected light from objects around you. It can be an even greater problem in winter months or any time where the sun is low on the horizon.
In artificial lighting and studio situations, you will tend to have greater control of the light. In a standard 3-point lighting set up two of the lights (Key and Fill) will be positioned behind the camera’s lens—but the third light (Back) will be situated behind the subject to add separation from the background. It’s this light that can often spill on to the camera lens face. Adding filters However, matte boxes are not just about providing shade to the lens. They also offer the ability to easily and conveniently mount filters in front of the lens and adjust them according to the desired effect. As well has corrective filters such as Neutral Density, UV and Polarisation filters - videographers now have a wide range of filters for creating tonal and detail changes to their pictures. From filters to apply graduated colours, through to softening filters to give pictures a less edgy feel - the matte box should enable you  to quickly apply and accurately adjust these in the field and instantly see the results. Whilst the benefits of corrective filters can only be gained at the filming stage, adding tonal changes to the picture can be carried out in post production. There is a lot of
sense in shooting material ‘flat’  nd playing with it later in the edit suite, but there are also situations where this is neither  conomically viable nor creatively satisfying. Having a wide range of colour filters to hand, and the ability to see exactly and instantly their effect on the pictures, is often the only way to create exactly what you had in your mind’s eye.

The Genus
True Lens Services sell a wide range of matte boxes for DV and broadcast lenses. The Genus is their mid-range matte box and was recommended by them to use with my 72mm lens Sony Z1 camera. I was sent the complete Genus Starter Pack which includes the matte box, bar support system, French flag and Sunrise/Sunset 4 x 4 glass filter kit. They also include the appropriate adaptor ring for your particular lens (catering for 58mm to 95mm lenses). This lot will set you back £595 plus VAT.

The normal filter starter pack would consist of Polariser, ND 0.6, ND 0.6 Grad, Super Mist Black and Skin tone enhancer. However, I was about to shoot outdoor scenery and landscapes so opted for the Sunrise/Sunset pack. This included Sunset 2 Grad, Twilight 2 Grad, Skylight 2 Grad, Low Light Daylight and Cool Day for Night filters.  Configuring I’m not the kind of guy who races for the instruction manual when I get new toys to play with. I might be too impatient—but I’d like to think that its because I’m eager to see how intuitive the technology is. With the Genus it was only too obvious how it all goes together and within a couple of minutes my Z1 was fully pimped up.

There are no tools required to fit the Genus, apart from an allen key to tighten the support bars which is supplied and stowed  away neatly in the end of one of the bars. Other than that it’s a case of taking off the camera’s lens hood, fitting the supplied adaptor ring to the lens, pushing the Genus hood onto the adaptor ring and finger-tightening the clamp.

If you are going to use the support rails you attach the tripod plate to the mount support, after first having loosened the bars using the allen key and sliding bars out fully. Fit the mount to the base of the camera, then slide the matte box back along the bars so that it fits onto the adaptor ring. Once you’ve adjusted and tightened the bars with the allen key and the brace under the matte box, it becomes one extremely rigid unit. It is worth noting that you can use the system without the support bars and mounting plate when in hand-held operation. Whilst the filter ring clamp will hold the matte box on the lens quite securely, if you are tripod
based and are using a couple of glass filters, I would suggest you use the rails and mount to give the front end of the camera the additional support. The other reason for using the rails is that you can add follow-focus attachments too. The French flag sits on the upper edge of the matte box and can be adjusted according to light spill—or fully closed to give the lens and any fitted filters protection in transit. It can also be easily removed with the turn of two knobs.

Review

Adding filters
You can use two 4 x 4 filters at  the same time with the Genus system. However, the outermost filter tray could only be accessed whilst the matte box was off the Z1 as the tray itself slides out either from the top or bottom of the matte box. If you using the support bars these stop the filter tray coming out the bottom—and the Z1 microphone stops it getting out the top. However, the second filter tray (nicely colour coded in blue for you) has a rotation mechanism and a sideways mounting action enabling you to change filters without the need to re-assemble. The rotation system is also useful when you want to get creative with graduated filters and alter the graduation direction on your pictures. Both filter trays click into place so that you know they will be perfectly aligned for the lens. All adjustment knobs are also colour coded so you can quickly and easily locate them when in use.

Conclusion
It’s not a fetish, but I really do like playing with well made things. Clever gimmicks and super-power computers in sexy cases are nice whilst new, but  good engineering combined with first-class materials are something that are easy to appreciate and should stand the test of time. For me, the Genus matte box falls into the same category as classics such as the Swiss Army knife,  stwing hammers and Breitling watches. They are all built to do a job— and if looked after will keep on doing it for a long, long time.

There are a couple of minor negative points. Like all matte boxes, it will add weight to your camera (about .8kg with a filter or two). However, the weight has been kept to a minimum with the Genus by using high-grade aluminium and acetyl on unstressed components and stainless steel on those that take the stress. I would also like to see the facility for additional side barn doors as light overspill can come from any direction—not just above the camera. I didn’t get the opportunity to play extensively with the filter  it supplied with the system, and in hindsight it might have been more useful to have the standard starter pack with the Polariser,
NDs etc,. However, I can say that the easy-in, easy-out blue coloured filter tray does exactly what is says on the tin... once you remember to loosen the holding screw that is! The other, some would say “nerdy” benefit of using a matte box is that it will make  your camera look more professional. This can be very useful in situations where you are trying to differentiate yourself from the
infamous Uncle Fred.