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BMCC6K arrived a couple of days ago. My first day test.

Indeed. I work with 3-4 cameras, 2 of which can be static any time, 2 lights, 6 audio recording devices, shooting video and stills 100% (or as close to as makes no difference) all day long. But only because of 3 essential ingredients. 1. Practice practice practice, starting simply and building up over time, adding and eliminating elements that work or do not. 2. Having a game plan in advance based on an understanding of what is going to happen and when etc. Advance knowledge is key. 3. Determination/hard work. 4. Bonus element, being organised and having a system. My environment is weddings and at one level they are ‘all the same’ but at another, they are all different and people do random stuff. But it’s rare for there to be enough random stuff to make a difference. It’s not rocket science and there are limits so it’s a case of knowing those limits and working up to what is possible but without it totally frying your brain. It’s more weird for me if I am doing just video or just photo and the latter feels like I am doing just 20-25% compared with both and the kit level is tiny by comparison. My brother by comparison gave up working in the video industry because he couldn’t work alone or make more than solo shooting viable. We must have different genes!

Well, I've decided to get the G9 ii. Should arrive around November 2. If people have questions, I'll do my best to answer. Also, now that I've given up my CF Express Type B that I used for my GH6, I have many v30 cards, but no v60 or v90. I don't really need the highest data rates, but I want 4k 120fps. What card to I need for that? On my CF Express card, I could just do everything without thinking about it, but I'd rather not have to shell out serious money for a v90 card unless absolutely necessary. When I look at the 4k 120fps files, their only 100 Mbps in HVEC. Can a v30 card handle 5.8 open gate?

In 2017 DJI had a 1 inch sensor with aperture control (2.8 to 11) on the Phantom 4 Pro that was really good, I'm not sure why they did not take that one and evolve it... it would have been quite practical for a DJI Osmo Pkt.

Being serious, it was quite a big issue with the S5 for me, especially with stills because if the camera captured it, then it was game over. I had one wedding where the groom and all his men, their jackets…all day long… 🙈 Not really tested it with the S5ii as I moved the S1H into the photo role and now with the Nikon Zf, that very rare thing these days, an OLPF as standard. Yay.

The solution re. moiré is to go back in time and eradicate The French as they invented it. You can tell by the é.

It is fixed aperture so no aperture control

I agree. My only conern is the audio - no manual control of audio levels. Almost all the other 1" sensor cameras have audio manual control. The other is no aperture/shutter contol that I see. Bright light needs external ND filters (which are available), very awkward to even attain 180 shutter. The 1" Canon V10 has full manual control of audio and video settings and builtin ND.

Arrived: WOW Who will resist to not have it for half grand? ; ) The top bargain ever, so far, IMO... This is a dream but for real from now on. And not necessarily for vlogging capture device for sure. Street videography/photography shooters will just say thanks ;- )

I just got the Sony FX30 and Ronin RSC2. Going to try to incorporate more moving shots to my narrative work. I will also say Viltrox has a ton of really good and cheap AF lens options. I am considering selling my Alexa and getting a Mavic 3 instead. Really go all out with the small compact approach. It's hard to part with Alexa skintones though. 🤕

Yeah, from what I've seen it offers video-paths similar to the old Grass Valley switchers. Intuitive, but also deep in certain ways. Also, I like how the old half-million dollar equipment is now ridiculously cheap. Of course, who wants NTSC? but still...kinda neat. https://cutt.ly/FwEfAsoc

The camera integration tips the balance for me towards the ATEM family, particularly with the release of the new Micro Studio 4K G2 camera. For under $4000 you can have four of them that are timecode locked and they can be fully controlled from the ATEM not just for colour and exposure but focus and zoom (with the inexpensive powered zooms from Olympus and Panasonic). With the integration with Resolve, the ATEM ISOs and these cameras give you three products to sell to a client from one job. The 1080p live stream The 1080p master recording of the live stream. A re-cut version of the live stream in either 1080p or 4K. The last one is interesting because with any manufacturers camera you can just bring in the ISO recordings and re-cut them in Resolve (as the ATEM generates a Resolve project with the cuts in it) but with the BMD cameras gives you the option to bring in the 4K BRAW recordings from the cameras own recordings. When used with the ATEM, the BMD cameras can provide a 'video mode' output through the HDMI for the live switching whilst simultaneously recording their own 'cinema mode' versions to SSD. This is a great option for doing live videos for bands as they get the 'video' version for the live stream and the possibility of a more cinematic looking version from the recut BRAW files. The ATEM Mini Pro ISO is a bit limited so I would definitely recommend going for the ATEM Mini Extreme ISO not just for the extra four channels but also the additional media player and the SuperSource function which offers a lot of creative and practical possibilities. The drawbacks with the ATEM are in the animated CG and video player aspects. The former you can get around fairly easily with software such as Uno Overlays etc and the latter can be addressed using BMD's HyperDeck record/playback devices. The cheapest of these, the newish HyperDeck Shuttle HD, is interesting in the role of producing live sports as with some inexpensive additional hardware splitters you can coax it into being a very decent instant replay system complete with tactile jog/shuttle control. For around $6500 then, you can have an eight channel switcher with ISO recording and streaming, four timecode synced RAW shooting 4K cameras with full remote control and three channels of instant replay. Unlike the Tricaster TC40 that I used to own (which was nowhere near being even half the functionality of this system let alone how much more its modern equivalent will cost) it will also all fit comfortably in a Peli 1510 case rather than an 8u flight case and is a fraction of the weight ! Another thing that people tend to overlook about the ATEM Mini series is that it has an excellent fully fledged Fairlight mixer in it with EQ and Dynamics on every channel including the Master channel. Its mind boggling really how much of a value that is as they didn't really need to make it that comprehensive ! Don't get me wrong, the ATEM system isn't perfect but it is a very good eco system to start a business around. And you never know, maybe one of these days someone might release a product that integrates a few more things to make it even more useful......

i’m dit-ing a european co-produced feature rn. Theyre shooting on an A35. Almost every feature and tv show here is being on this thing now from what ive heard. The last commercial i was pa-ing on was miniLF.

I liked it. I felt like there was a rather large learning curve having come from very consumer Panasonic cameras to something that has so much in it. The AF seemed serviceable to me, but I'm sure the G9 ii will make it look bad. It seemed a little overkill for me and my family stuff. I better understand the menus now; so, the G9 ii will be fine, but still, there's more than what I need out of a camera. If everything goes well, I'll sell my E-M1 ii and use the G9 ii for my "big" camera with big lenses and a GX800 for my "fun, small" camera. It's funny because I've bought and sold the GX800 3 times now and it's one of the most fun cameras I've ever had. I just can't live with so many audio and video quirks. I expect the G9 ii to perform better for all of my needs over the GH6 and the E-M1 ii.

With that lack of passion I doubt they'll be going far in the cutthroat real world after graduation. Well, you can still do a lot with just three static cameras. I was thinking for instance I could position myself at a Track & Field event: Cam1: Me (positioned up high in the stands) with an EX3 beside me with a B4 telezoom for extra reach, which I would not actively man it second by second, but if I was to change it from a mid shot of the track finish line to instead zoom in on the LJ pit at the other side of the field, I could. Then I'd sit back down at the switcher again. Cam2: a wide shot of the track finish line at ground level. Cam3: wide shot looking down the back straight. Ideally this coverage would attract the support of the local sporting club(s), and I might get a keen volunteer who can be trained up to do basic manning of one camera. Perhaps with luck some volunteers to do live commentary too. Could then have them micced up and throw a random camera (even merely a a GoPro, or perhaps a Sony RX0) to occasionally cut back to them. Then with time, an extra camera or three could be added to this setup.

One difference I can see is that on a drone you can't just put on a stronger ND, but you likely could adjust the aperture remotely. Of course, I agree with you that an aperture would have been a handy addition. I'd imagine including the ability to have shutter speeds that are crazy short is a cheaper alternative and achieves the same exposure.

Very true a lot of them think they can sit around and just graduate and magically make it. Classes barely teach what you need there is so much I’ve learned about cinematography from YouTube that no one in the department will ever learn if they themselves don’t take advantage of online resources. Also they all shoot on crazy old canon vixia camcorders. And I’m over here shooting full frame mirrorless with a bunch of light.

Well as I think it was Kye who mentioned above, it’s at least partially about before hitting the sensor so it makes sense that if the potentially offended subject is softened or diffused at the lens stage… At least as I understand it but as above, I use a 1/8th mist and I think it helps in the is regard, but not the principal reason I use one which is more about taking off that digital edge and making both video and stills more ‘filmic’ at the point of capture. That’s my theory anyway and I’m sticking with it!

It’s less obvious in B&W otherwise immediately began contemplating an alternative camera. It is quite rare to be fair but this particularly shiny weave of fabric was just uber-prone to it. I do prefer cameras with an OLPF if only for those scenarios but also use a 1/8th mist, partly to reduce the sharpness and the digital look, but also because it might help with any moiré in the first place? I’ve never seen moiré on any S5ii footage using a 1/8th so coincidence or because of?

BM acknowledging that adding OLPF to your 12K camera reduces the issue and gets you Netflix approved. The issue that they were primarily addressing was for LED screens in VP rather than a gang of wedding guests in herringbone suits though.

I don't think it works that way though. A 12K sensor would be sensitive to moire if there were repeating patterns that happened to align with the gaps between the pixels, just like a 4K sensor. It might be that common causes of moire are around a certain size and therefore impact one combination of sensor resolution / sensor size / and focal length more than other combinations. Also, lower resolution sensors might be more prone to moire as they're typically older and there were larger gaps between the pixels than there are now. Lower resolutions are likely to have issues on cheaper cameras too, due to the camera line skipping and therefore effectively creating very large gaps between the active pixels. Sadly, there's lots of different ways to create moire, and many of them tend to come from strategies to make the product more affordable!

RED had their niche for a little while, when the ARRI cameras were big heavy so not doable on a gimbal (or to fly on a drone, or easily rig up on a car or crane etc). Or even in the pre gimbal era, a steadicam op who can handle a full size ARRI Alexa is expensive. But someone who can fly a stripped down RED body?? You can find them a lot cheaper! (if you're flexible about standards) So you can quickly see the appeal of a RED vs ARRI for say Music Videos. Plus if you want to do slow motion, and wanted better quality than the likes of a Sony FS700, then for a very long time your only real choice was RED. Sony F5/F55 (and later on, VENICE) however nibbled away at that. But once the ARRI Alexa Mini arrived? It crushed the RED and ate it for lunch. You've got a gimbal friendly camera that does up to 200fps. Only high resolution remained as a "reason" for RED. But for many people that's irrelevant. I think I haven't worked on a single production in the last couple of months that is doing more than FHD! (aside from that one day on an ultra low budget short film, shooting on a P4K) I don't think it is unique to LA/NYC. Same here in NZ. Anywhere/anybody with tastes tends to go with ARRI. Newer features, performance, plus the lenses choices will push them to the ARRI 35

Yes and no. The Foveon sensor would mean that demosiacing wouldn't be required but it might still have dead spots between the photosites, which is what I was talking about. Here's an image showing what I mean... the yellow areas indicate the light from the scene that would be captured by each photo site, and the blue areas indicate the light from the scene that would not be detected by any photo site on the sensor: If the micro lenses were configured to make sure all light made its way onto a photo site then it would eliminate this issue, like the below shows on the right with the gapless micro lenses: It's worth mentioning that not all lenses project the scene onto the sensor from directly in front either - some lenses have the light hitting the sensor at quite an angle, which can interfere with how well the micro lenses are able to direct all the light to a photo site. These lenses are typically from older cameras which were designed to project onto film, which didn't care about the angle it got exposed from. This is why different lenses often vignette differently on different cameras, especially vintage wide angle lenses that might be projecting the image circle from the middle to the edges at quite a steep angle.

I suspect that there will be a GH7, and that it will be out sooner than their usual release schedule (as the GH6 wasn't well received) but I also wouldn't wait for it, it could be a couple of years and still be "ahead of schedule". In terms of moire, the only guaranteed solutions are an OLPF or to have pixels that have 100% coverage (ie, no gaps between the pixels). If you don't have either of those, there is always the possibility that a repeating pattern will fall into the gaps between the pixels and therefore be completely invisible to the sensor at that location where the pattern and pixels are identically spaced. AI can't deal with moire because it happens before the image is digital. The only way AI could deal with it would be for the AI to re-interpret the whole image and replace sections of the image because it "knows better" than what the camera captured. Getting a good result in video is a long way off I suspect. Your eye will have moire because the interference comes from the actual objects exhibiting this behaviour, not the capture mechanism. The "lines" shown in the below images are formed because the objects physically line-up when viewed from this particular vantage point, and the areas that don't have "lines" are because the objects didn't line-up from that vantage point. I've been saying this for years now. In the conversation that follows, people resume talking about PDAF and CDAF like my comment never existed. It's nice to hear someone else say it, but don't expect to raise the level of discussion!

Here's some interesting overview by one of the usual suspects -- directly to an useful tip to extract the better from:

It's crazy how they go for $4k used now. Or maybe it's not so crazy, I often forget how much time has passed (it's already 2024?) but it's a great value. I'd be tempted to switch too. By the way, eva1 secondhand prices are even more insane now. I struggle with the idea of having kit that would get me hired more easily, or at least be "recognizable" by name vs someone asking "what's a varicam?". Hell at least they'll know what an ursa mini is despite its reputation as a lower end camera/brand. I think that's what pushed me to lean towards the ursa vs the eva1 when I started. For corporate it seems FX line dominates, some Canon. Narrative, its any Alexa with some Venice here and there. Commercial, it's a toss up between any of the big players, including Komodo/Raptor/C300. So I came to the conclusion that if you don't have the trending models in your kit then your strategy to be hired as an owner op by camera model alone is almost a moot point, and you should just get a baseline camera package that YOU prefer and works for your lower-end jobs where renting isn't even in the conversation.

First of all, hello guys! It's been a while since I've posted, and honestly I haven't kept up with this forum as much as in the past. Looking to get myself up to speed on what I missed lol. Changes? Honestly passion focus. My main career will be corporate video (in college right now, got scholarships so it's cheap for me). But I also love broadcast and lately have spent a lot of my time trying to learn more about that workflow, getting reps and networking with people in the field. My goal is to direct or technical direct either live sports or corporate events. Sucks cause those positions are very hard to get when it comes to bigger venues. Smaller venues, more local corporate/college/high school sports events, it's definitely easier. I've also considered starting my own production company upon graduation, trying to network and build clients and do smaller scale events. Currently building my own video switcher, and for the work I do I need something much more advanced than a basic ATEM Mini. At the university I attend we use a Newtek Tricaster 460. It's a very interesting unit; in essence it is a PC running windows (windows 7 actually!) and Newtek's own proprietary switching software. In essence this unit is a lot like a vMix or OBS PC, but using Newtek's own software. I do really like the unit; it gives the flexibility of a software switcher with the workflow and familiarity inspired by a hardware switcher. It has multiple M/Es (mix effects) which are essentially all layerable sub-switchers that can be used in tandem with the primary preview/program bus. You can also use them as separate switchers within the actual Tricaster. This, for example, allows one to cut a live-stream feed independently from an IMAG feed (IMAG stands for image-magnification; so displaying output on a projector at a venue). You can also use these M/Es to create compositions, such as picture-in-picture, and hot swap the contents of the composition live. Super useful! These are all things you can't do to the same degree on an ATEM Mini. I will say that the ATEM Mini Extreme is closer in functionality. The Tricaster also has built-in media players and graphic banks, all of which are a lot more capable than ATEM units. I've been trying to build sort of a DIY-Tricaster, using a PC I have on hand, as well as a Blackmagic Decklink Quad SDI (4 SDI input, 4 SDI output capture card). I have been working on tweaking and configuring OBS to operate in a similar fasion to Newtek's software. With the right plugins, macros and custom combination of features, I've been able to get OBS to work in a very similar fashion to a Tricaster, both in terms of functionality and workflow. I can make sub-mixes for IMAG outputs, use downstream keys (overlays on all of your output), preview/program switching with multiview, custom transitions, and more. I even bought a Tricaster control surface (a legitimate switcher controller with t-bar) and using software called Central Control use it to control OBS. So the workflow is super nice for me. Downside of software switching is the latency. An ATEM uses FPGA chips to run everything, so your output latency is wayyyy lower than any software solution, be it vMix, OBS, or a Tricaster. This makes them more useful for live venue feeds, and as such I will probably purchase a higher end ATEM switcher at some point. Thinking about the ATEM Constellation 2 M/E, which gives me the ability to make a submix just like the software solutions, but with the low latency and reliability of a hardware switcher. Word vomit. Lolz. Broadcast has really peaked my interest as of late. I kind of need to re-ignite my passion for cinematography; feel like I haven't grown in lighting or color grading in a while. Definitely have been complacent, so @kyemaybe you can whip me into shape! I'm still using my Nikon Z6/Ninja Star kit. It's doing the job, and since I'm investing in broadcast gear right now, I'm kinda in a standstill regarding any camera upgrades or even grip gear upgrades, which I do want to do at some point. The Nikon ZF is insanely tempting; 10 bit internal, full-frame, nice and small, and I can use all my existing lenses while using the Nikon Z6 as a b-cam. Looking forward to reading these posts and catching up!

Yes film students who I assume many will be the next DP's and Directors. Not necessarily the people I know but just in that realm. I feel with the older generation it was trending more towards use the latest and biggest. Now things are more trending nostalgic. But that is just my random guess I suppose. I read a reddit thread where the author said that it seems like the Venice replaced the Alexa, this was a few years back. I have definitely not seen that. It seems like the LF is the major bread winner on every production. That is easily seen when I constantly look at the specs for a film on IMDB. It is almost always the Alexa mini or mini LF on newer stuff. I don't work in commercial but I have some friends that do and they say it is almost always Alexa. You have a few situations where there is a director who likes RED and they use RED, but it is rare. Now I am also coming from the perspective of someone who lives in the USA. Looking at american films and the commercial industry in New York City. I definitely think LA and NYC an obsession with ARRI. Detroit where I live there seems to be a liking for RED, especially in the music video space. ARRI is getting it's way into those spaces too. I know a production company here that was all RED. But they now have the Alexa mini LF and they seem to use it for their big stuff. Chinese TV is apparently pushing 8k hard so I imagine a most of their stuff will be using the Venice 2. There is Top Gun 2, but they probably would have shot ARRI if they didn't need the Rialto. Obviously it does get a lot of use but not like the Alexa. I am really curious to see if more Hollywood features and high end streaming shows will use the LF or the Alexa 35 in 2024. Assuming the strikes will have come to and end.

I used this camera for awhile and liked it as well. Some of us just want that smaller form factor I guess. Honestly, my fav cam of all time was the imperfect but really fun GX7. Man, that was 10 years ago already?

Re. S5 ii moire and aliasing tests, the test-chart videos here are pretty comprehensive - https://www.optyczne.pl/70.4-Inne_testy-Panasonic_Lumix_S5_II_-_test_trybu_filmowego_Jakość_obrazu.html For comparison, these are the GH6 tests - https://www.optyczne.pl/62.4-Inne_testy-Panasonic_Lumix_GH6_-_test_trybu_filmowego_Jakość_obrazu.html - and this is for the OM-1 - https://www.optyczne.pl/59.4-Inne_testy-OM_System_OM-1_-_test_trybu_filmowego_Jakość_obrazu.html Unfortunately they haven't tested the G9 ii yet... Yes - as far as I know, all mirrorless cameras with PDAF use some form of contrast detection to 'fine tune' focus after PDAF has got it close (and more so in low-light and with small apertures - I guess diffraction affects PDAF in that situation). Also I remember Olympus saying that C-AF in video (on their cameras with PDAF) uses a mixture of PDAF and CDAF. But in reality, I think with modern cameras the main C-AF issue is how they decide what to focus on (and then track it) - the 'Ai' part - rather than how they do the focusing.

I learned a couple of things after watching a Lumix live stream. DFD is still used for S-AF because it's faster than PDAF. I've also heard that when working in low-light and small apertures (f11), only contrast is used due to PDAF not being efficient- this is true amongst all brands.

With long form content they kind of expect it, I also added Tentacle Sync to my multi-cam workflow because Davinci Resolve isn't very good at aligning tracks based on audio waveform. In this regards I feel like Premier did a better job. TC is awesome though, one click and perfect alignment across dozens of clips instantly. It makes multi-cam so easy that I have been thinking about picking up another R7 for a locked down mid shot but then I would have to rig it, more batteries, another tripod, etc.....not worth it. That's the exact reason why I feel comfortable pairing it with the C70, no overheating concerns. I also use that same Sigma 18-35 1.8 religiously. Before the R7 came along I literally forgot I owned it and discovered that I already had it when I was re-arranging my camera gear. Now it lives on my R7 for any lowlight hybrid event work. For daylight hybrid work I typically use the Canon EF 24-105mm and the Meike vND RF adapter. That combination is perfect for daylight hybrid work. I have also changed my workflow so that my images are all shot at ISO800 even in the daylight when shooting hybrid. It was just too much hassle to fiddle with the ND filter and ISO for fast events since ISO800 is native for CLOG3. The R7's images are clean at ISO800 day or night so it lives at that ISO. Also the Meike vND does not have numbered markings so you have to watch the histogram each time to properly expose....way too much fiddling in the middle of an event. I've had to run the R7 for 3hrs straight with one 30s battery change and it had no problems. I will caveat that with the fact that it will start to overheat after about an hour in 4k Fine (7K oversampled) mode, so it needs to be line skipped but my clients can't tell the difference.

Yes, to buy or not. For Apple devices, I'd always go to the MacRumors.com buyer's guide. They'd say "buy now, caution, or don't buy". Given the G9ii is about to be released, I'm sure the "Buy now" would be warranted. However, do I NEED it? No. I just sold a whole bunch of gear that I wasn't using enough, I now I have the funds to pull the trigger on something I WANT. Sure, it would suck to see a GH7 coming out with a variable ND (in ALL MODES) and PDAF in a smaller body for much cheaper, but I don't think it'll happen. There's also the notion of camera paralysis, not know which one to take because they're all great- I had this. Camera upgrade paralysis is another thing- thinking there's something better soon. In terms of "bigger hybrid camera" for M43, I have my doubts about anything coming soon other than a GH7; even then, it won't be until January to March IMO. I trust Panasonic to not screw their customers too much by obsoleting just after release. Given it took 5 years to have a meaningful release of a G9ii, I think it'll be fine. On another note, I did see a video by Geeky Nerdy Techy. He said there was moiré in one of his videos: Again, most cameras will have frequency where it hits. I'm not exactly sure if it's better than or worse than the GH6 in that regard, but it would be interesting to know.

I have the GH6, S5 and S5II. I don't see more moiré on the S5II compared to the S5. What I see on the S5II is more edge sharpening and worse fine details. Again, if you don't crop I don't think you can see a big difference. The GH6 on the other hand is less prone to moiré, but since the S5, Panasonic uses some processing to minimize moiré : "Intelligent detail processing eliminates the need for a low-pass filter and smooths fine details like hair and wires to minimize moiré patterns". On the GH6 the result is pretty good but maybe a bit too strong compared to their other cameras, the moiré is most of the time eliminated, but this is the same for some fine details. When I compare my video from my G9, GH5 and GH6, depending of the scene, the GH6 has often less fine details when looking them at 100%, especially in low light. At first I thought it was noise reduction, but the noise structure is very nice and seems unaltered. This is a sort of digital OLPF. There is no miracle, in order to have the best picture (similar to a picture raw file), the less processing is always better, but moiré is certainly an issue for most people. It is why the Panasonic S1H has probably the nicest video quality from a camera below 4000$, details are less processed than the GH6 or the S5II, and the OLPF eleminates the moiré without looking unnatural.

FYI, went for a used Xiaomi 12S Ultra. Will report back after using it a bit. Thanks yet again for the advice.

Just upscale it - people can't see the difference anyway!