Laboratory. Hospital. Science lab. These are the descriptions we hear every day from Assistants, DP's, customers, couriers and even the occasional sales person. Our prep areas are the central core of our facility...physically and philosophically. Being in the center of the operation means fast access to equipment, service, expendables, the rental office and most important...the Stratton Coffee shop.
Our prep room was specifically designed to be the center of our business because of our philosophy... Every action taken is to ensure that your camera prep is efficient and flawless.
The Standards
After every rental, equipment goes through a detailed check-in procedure by a rental technician, then transferred to our service department for a final check and preparation for the next rental. Every component must meet strict specifications.
For Lenses we use the industry standard Richter Cine collimator system and the Cooke Metrology projector. These tools allow us to ensure that cinema lenses are adjusted and maintained to the highest standards possible.
The Metrology projector functions like a slide projector by shining an even and bright HMI type of light onto a precision reticle test pattern. That test pattern is then projected through the lens onto a flat white surface in our dedicated projection room. This allows technicians to see how the lens handles geometric distortion of straight lines, whether there is chromatic aberration, internal barrel flare, sharpness issues, etc.
Camera body optical dimensions must be accurate within .0004" (Four Ten Thousandths of an inch). To measure this, we use the Denz FDC collimator. This is the optical equivalent of mechanically measuring the focal flange depth of film camera bodies. The Denz FDC is used by many camera manufacturers to calibrate their cameras for final assembly.
The History
During the summer of 1970 I was given a Bell & Howell 8mm home movie camera that had been dropped in a lake while filming a summer vacation. It took about a month to repair, but when that camera successfully exposed that first roll of film, I knew this could be a career path I would enjoy.
I first learned about high technical standards at a Nikon Professional Service facility in Cincinnati, Ohio. Advancing to the even higher standards of Panavision and Arriflex service along with the tightened tolerances of Victor Duncan Inc. in Chicago and Detroit, I was totally prepared to open Stratton Camera Inc. in 1984. Today, we are one of the few rental facilities that still repairs, modifies and overhauls our equipment in house. And because of that experience, we were chosen to represent feature film productions for Panavision® in Michigan.
The Coffee
What started out as a hobby turned into a quest to have the freshest, highest quality coffee available and ended up being integral to our company. Espresso is a part of our everyday activities and we enjoy sharing our passion for coffee with our customers and friends.
Every week we roast custom blends and single origin coffee from Sweet Maria's Coffee Company in Oakland, California. Stop in for a pour over or an espresso drink any time.
