jcs

The 1DX II has aliasing at 1080p, however for some things I like the soft-ish look and extra shallow DOF available at FF (not to mention the tiny files sizes!). The Sony A99 II is clearly aliasing in 4K on a 4K monitor. I haven't seen aliasing with the 1DX II in 4K yet, though I have seen aliasing on the C300 II in 4K! Very few cameras provide sufficient Bayer photosites to allow oversampling (2x per Nyquist sampling theory) to eliminate all aliasing (along with a tuned OLPF for a specific target resolution). Camera manufacturers could have created a "perfect" camera many years ago, however that would ruin their upgrade path. One manufacturer dared to create a superior camera before its time: Samsung and the NX1. After doing much research in 'how the world really works', I seriously doubt Samsung's reasons for dropping that camera were accurate. That said, balance is important, and it's best if there is good competition and many different companies be allowed to survive along with all the people they keep employed. A lot of people think it would be great if we had free energy for all, right now. While that will be amazing for the planet, we'd need to ease into that, because the world economy is based on the petro-dollar, and anything that disrupts that dramatically would cause a worldwide crisis and chaos. Bitcoin and related cryptocurrencies are the next big disruptors, and are very close to being mainstream and trusted replacements for the petro-dollar. Once that transition is more established, then we'll start to see more clean energy technologies becoming available (some say government UFO/alien disclosure will happen then too, however I wouldn't hold your breath. Some people think Jupiter Rising is a documentary, hopefully that's not true, lol). The ARRI Alexa/Amira series are as close to perfect for image quality that have been created so far, however these cameras are big, heavy, have huge power requirements, don't have any AF, and are priced for very specific markets (which can also afford a skilled AC to pull focus). So nearly perfect image quality doesn't make a perfect camera for everyone (Alexa Mini becomes big and heavy when fully rigged). Regarding older cameras being better, the Canon 5D III IMO has better color science than the 1DX II, especially for video using the stock picture styles! This does create opportunities for folks to create and sell better ones (I'll release some for sale soon). 5D III RAW compares very favorably to the C300 II 12-bit RGB444. The 5D III has less DR, much more RS, more noise, no NDs, no XLR audio, and no AF, however it can still be used for quite a lot of types of shooting with fantastic results! In the budget market, the 5D3 and GH5 are really no excuse cameras. If AF is a primary need, the Canon 80D and Sony A7R II can work really well, especially if the target is only online streaming. In the midrange, the C200 is going to sell very, very well.

I attended an event in downtown LA on Saturday, June 17 called DisclosureFest 2017. It was about meditation, healthy products etc. While it was called DisclosureFest, I didn't see any booths or promos for UFOs/aliens etc. During Robot Nature's performance (pretty cool new band), people began pointing at the sky and everyone with a camera started pointing up and taking pictures. I looked up and saw a tiny spec of white, with bright flashes. I said out loud that looks like a drone, and everyone said, no, that's a real UFO! I put the 70-200 F2.8L II on the 1DX II and looked at the object through the optical viewfinder at 200mm. It looked very strange, kind of like a human-like form, all white floating in the sky. There where kites and some balloons floated by- windy enough to move balloons. This object didn't move- a balloon would float up and with the wind. I took a few stills then switched to 4K video. It was super sunny and I couldn't see anything on the LCD. So I just pointed the best I could... I learned a few things for this kind of shooting: A viewfinder is absolutely necessary! Go to manual focus and set for infinity with a high f-stop DPAF couldn't hold focus on a small object, however I did get a few seconds of decent footage. The RAW stills showed so much more detail vs. 4K video. That's when I realized I should have looked through the optical viewfinder and shot a few rapid bursts of RAW stills at 14fps! I found a decent VF for $110: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D3551NU/ (on the topic of Amazon- need to start supporting other vendors. Low prices are great but killing all competition is not): I shot this pic using a little product box I picked up at Samy's a while ago. It works pretty well. The only issue with the VF is base plate needs to be adjusted/shimmed to get a better fit to the LCD and VF. Even as is, it works great because when you put up to your eye it pushes forward and blocks all light (no leaks). I'm pretty sure at least one of the objects was man-made, some of the others it's hard to tell. I'm editing all the shots into a short video and will post when done.

Gaussian Blur .5, Camera RAW: WB, highlights, shadows, blacks, whites, contrast, NR, sharpen, grain; curves

A brand new Cintel 35mm scanner is $30k: https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/cintel (+$1500 for 16mm). Perhaps there are deals on the used market for film scanners...

Since you're using ACR, try pulling the highlights down a bit and using ACR's Grain to increase perceived resolution and to help hide aliasing artifacts.

Without pixel peeping and YouTube/online-streaming compression, it's hard to tell the difference between 1DX II 4K and 1DX II 1080p (ALL-I ~100Mbps) post sharpened + fine grain noise (watch in 4K; even harder to tell when watched in 1080p): I find the stock 1DX II picture styles don't look as good as the 5D3 (different color science and sensors), however you can tweak the stock picture styles or create all new ones which work really well. When targeting 1080p/online-streaming and doing long takes/events, 1DX II 1080p works well and the ~100Mbps ALL-I files are easily manageable (can use IPB to get even smaller file sizes. I would normally use the A7S II for this kind of event, however the Sony was fired after it overheated in a 74F room + the 1DX II has working/usable autofocus): While the 1DX II can make a fine B cam for the C200 (and C300 II in our case), for the price if not also needing stills, the C200 is a superior B cam for video (and A cam if using RAW/external and if/when Canon allows 10-bit 422 internally).

Thanks @Aussie Ash! Boots' primary interests are, 1) Food, 2) Food, and 3) Food. His secondary interests are watering and fertilization, of which there may be some artistic skill

Boots is a good listener and gets hypnotized (1 minute clip) 1DX II, Filmic Skin picture style straight from camera, 1080p ALL-I (full frame), 24-105 F4L @ F4 1/50, Auto ISO, Auto WB (mixed lighting, continuous live shots). Audio: Sennheiser wireless with Rode NTG2. Edited in PP CC, no color grading- post sharpening and stabilization only.

@A Furry Peanut try disabling the Lumetri effect, which is where the error is reportedly happening. If that fixes the issue, recreate the Lumetri settings, one at a time until you find what is causing the error.

The Schoeps is $1622 vs. the Audix for $500 (USD). If the Audix is really "80%" of the Schoeps, it should cost $1298, so it would be worth $700. You can compare the Schoeps to the Audix in all the Cosmic Flow episodes (see my sig). Can you hear a difference in the left/right channels? You can make any kind of recording you want with the Ambeo. From 2-channel stereo, to binaural 3D/HRTF, to 5.1, 7.1, 11.2, to an infinite number of channels (since the sound is captured effectively in 3D, it can be processed to any number of desired channels and pickup pattern). If all you want is flexible stereo, Mid-Side is cool and more cost effective (we have an Audio Technica BP4029- some recordings played back over monitor speakers have gotten me to turn around thinking the sound was actually behind me).

I used shotguns indoors for years before I learned the hard way. Did a shoot in a small reverberant room with the shotgun boomed close to the subject. I could hear it sounded echo-y but figured I could make it sound OK in post. Got the footage into the computer and it wasn't fixable- really bad phase issues. Fortunately the talent didn't like her hair and makeup so it was later reshot (and I picked up the Schoeps and Audix. Was going to keep just one, however they work great as a pair). I use both mics for every green screen episode of Cosmic Flow (Audix on the left channel, Schoeps on the right, straight into the C300 II (has decent preamps); typically no audio post needed). A 416 or any shotgun can work fine indoors, not sure if say the CMC641 sounds better than the CMIT5U indoors (it probably does, though both sound great in my studio, which has carpet and lots of gear- not much reverberation), however it's good to have a non-shotgun in one's kit just in case of interference tube issues.

To get a film look: Don't clip your highlights when filming Shoot with lower contrast settings, including turning in-camera sharpness down or off Turn down or off noise reduction and/or add organic noise grain in post (subtle is best IMO unless going for an effect) Use a diffusion filter, e.g. Tiffen Black Pro Mist 1/4 (I use one sometimes) In post bring your whites down so nothing is super white (study film to learn the levels) If too sharp or any visible digital artifacts, apply Gaussian Blur to reduce or remove. Then if too soft try Unsharp Mask (verses Sharpen) to bring back more apparent detail, and Unsharp Mask can also be used to create a Local Contrast Enhancement (LCE) effect: use a very large radius- over 100, perhaps 200 or 300+ and adjust other settings as needed Study the contrast curves / gammas of film, compare to similar shots on video-looking shots to learn the difference. Do the same with colors You can get a film look straight from camera with a bit of work. 1DX II (other Canon DSLR will look similar), on the left is Canon Standard with bit of grading and on the right is a custom profile with only contrast and sharpening in post. See full screen- at first they may look similar, look more closely at the skintones, eyes, and all colors: I will try something similar for Panasonic and Sony after I finish the Canon version (I think the Panasonic and Sony versions will require a LUT in post to match what I can do with Canon SOOC). More info here:

For indoor dialog and interviews mounted on a boom (stand or pole) near the subject, the Audix SCX1 HC is hard to beat for the price ("80%" of the Schoeps CMC641 (I don't know about the 80%, we use both and it sounds very good). There are really inexpensive preamps/mods for DSLRs that sound decent for the price ((google for mod instructions before buying; you may only need a TRRS to TRS adapter: see the comments) iRig Pre https://www.amazon.com/IK-Multimedia-microphone-smartphones-tablets/dp/B007534LFK/, Saramonic https://www.amazon.com/Saramonic-SmartRig-Audio-Adapter-Smartphones/dp/B00WITIHZ6, two channels: https://www.amazon.com/Saramonic-2-Channel-Microphone-Camcorders-Smartphones/dp/B01LBS52YI etc.). While interference tube shotguns can sound great indoors (such as the 'Hollywood Standards' MKH416 or CMIT5U), as soon as you record in a 'magic reflection room' (you'll know it when you hear the (awful!!) recording!), you'll quickly realize why you need a non-interference tube directional mic for indoors (super- or hyper-cardioid). More info here: https://soundslikejoe.com/when-not-to-use-shotgun-mic/

The latest C300 II firmware has an option to completely disable NR, and thus no more ghosting/artifacts. I've always liked Varicam footage, however I'll need to review this video in more detail when I have time. In a quick scan I didn't see where the V35 looked significantly better (on a technical or aesthetic level)- which time segments did you see this? I'm confident if I had both cameras at the same time (we have C300 II) I could make them match pretty well (I think even the GH5 Vlog can be filmic with a little post work). The big issue for us for these cameras is AF and native EF lenses (EVA1 has native support but no video AF (yet?)). For non-scripted shooting especially without a (great) AC to pull focus, DPAF-level AF is super useful. If the shots aren't in focus, especially in 4K, nothing else matters. We considered getting an Alexa Mini, which is arguably superior to all these cameras, except it doesn't have AF (and when kitted up it's pretty big and complicated).

Mitch moved to Panasonic.

What makes the ALEV III sensor still competitive after all these years (and still the most actual, usable DR!) is simultaneous dual analog gain which gets merged into a single image. ARRI calls this simply a 'dual gain architecture' (vs. a fancy marketing name), http://www.arri.com/camera/alexa/technology/arri_imaging_technology/alexas_sensor/. Along with hardware and software optimized for highlight roll off and overall film like look (from years of making film scanners), ARRI still has the best look. Sure, for some shots even a cell phone can 'match' an Alexa, however it's the tricky lighting situation where the Alexa will work and other cameras will have a tough time. Patents of course keep competitors at bay, and will continue until the patents expire or fundamentally new sensor technology is developed (so no need to replicate or work around a dual gain architecture). Agree with your comments regarding Sony. We had an FS700- great camera for slomo, however when skintones are important, it was challenging to use (could look decent, but took a lot of post work). The A7S was also challenging for skin tones, however the A7S II is actually pretty good! And from what I've seen online, so is the A7R II and A9. It's pretty clear now that most (all?) Sony A series cameras can overheat, so that limits their usage. But for shorter takes we never had an overheating issue with the A7S II (only after 1.5hrs of continuous shooting did it shut down). As one's experience with filmmaking grows, the less time we're willing to mess around with camera problems and weak color science. What's cool about RAW is as long as one sets exposure correctly, there's no need to worry about WB or picture styles/profiles. Any WB and any look can be achieved in post. Alexa's contain so much color information, that even 10- or 12-bit ProRes has a huge amount of latitude in post. We've found the C300 II in 'ARRI mode' shooting 10- or 12-bit XFAVC is also pretty flexible in post.

What's the RS on the EVA1 (or did I miss a global shutter announcement? )? If the C200's RS is the same or better than the C300 II, that will be basically very little RS (C300 II is 8.33ms (Cinema5D reports 6ms)). Wonder if ML RAW prompted Canon to put RAW in the C200...

Panasonic has (E)IS, Canon has (DP)AF. AF is more important for our needs, though the EVA1 looks to be a very nice camera (we'd get a C200 as a b-camera to the C300 II). Guess it's up to Sony to roll out high-quality IS and AF in one camera (maybe that will happen with the F5 replacement).

Our A7S II just overheated and shut down when filming a live event (tripod and AC power), after recording continuously for ~1.5 hrs (sub 30 min segments). Ambient temp was around 74F. A C100/C200/C300 or FS5/FS7 (even a GH4/GH5) would have worked better in this situation. From our available cameras, it was the best size, file size, low light and look. Now that I know it overheats it won't get used this way again.

Pretty cool. Was going to ask about interframe codecs (long GOP) if not transcoding (answered in video). Would be cool if there was a way ffmpeg could report the actual in/out times vs. what was specified so you could fix up the in/outs in the generated project, making a frame accurate solution possible (if not possible with ffmpeg, should be possible if using ffmpeg component libraries in C/C++ (might have to build in Linux/OSX and then cross-compile if targeting Windows)).

Should be fine as long as the low con has no polarizer.

Thanks @jonpais! One of the goals is an option for zero post and also for live streaming, especially in challenging indoor lighting conditions. @Luke Mason for medium and close up shots I was surprised how well post-sharpened 1080p compares to 4K. You are right, for wider shots and deeper DOF 4K looks better. In some cases 1080p aliasing can be an issue, however being able to use the full frame and in many cases getting shots than can cut with 4K material when the delivery target is online streaming is pretty cool. Wearing glasses and head turns challenges face tracking algorithms (some day they'll be spot on no matter what). Ultra shallow DOF with full frame and a slight crop along with (currently) class-leading AF is a fun, unreal look that's not possible on any other camera right now (closest would be the A7R II / maybe A9). I developed 4 picture styles, which also work with other Canon DSLRs such as the 5D3- I'll post examples later this week.

Here's a test with the Canon 1DX II with 1080 vs. 4K on YouTube. Which of the first two clips is which? Also tested is my new picture style optimized for skin tones*, compared against Canon's Standard (with sharpening and contrast turned all the way down). * when saturation is pushed, it has to be right on for skin tones to look decent. A work-around for below par color science is to reduce saturation. Canon has excellent color science for RAW stills, however their default picture styles have room for improvement.

Wow man your smartphone looks like a lawn dart!

Yeah I bought the Boomerang app for my smartphone, what you do is you throw your phone like a boomerang and it's supposed to 'untwist' the video. However I can't get my phone to 'boomerang back'. Think the app has a bug!