sanveer

For broadcast?

Corrected it. Thanks for pointing it out. Actually if Grant was confident enough to have a 2nd Autofocus button in the Front and use it to record himself, I am guessing the BMPCC 4k may actually have very respectable auto focus (within the limits of this non PDAF sensor). Thank you. I guess all 3 of these have 4k 50p/60p internal. Unless the Panasonic only has it via HDMI (?). I am not sure of release date for the Z Cam E2, and Blackmagic had a fiasco with the BMPCC, though I didn't hear anything similar on those lines for the URSA or other cameras. It may therefore e based based on surmises and conjectures, for now.

As everyone in these forums has already figured out, in the last few days, at NAB, we have 2 more contestants in the Best M43 Video Category, and suddenly in the sub-2k Category, we have now 3 Very Competent Cameras for the Ultimate Face-off for Features and Price. The bad part is that there is there is a lot of confusion, and some would want to own All Three (or atleast test them comprehensively). The Good part is, any of these 3 would be better than good enough. This is a face-off in terms of features, by way of Pros and Cons, between the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4k, the Z Cam E2 and the Panasonic GH5s. What is common is obviously the New Sony Starvis IMX-294 sensor and thus the excellent low light capabilities that come with it (Dual ISO) Here are the Pros and Cons of each. Please feel free to make corrections or additions. Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4k Pros: Cheapest of the 3 at $1295, which is approx. 35% Cheaper than the Z Cam E2 and approx 48% Cheaper than the Panasonic GH5s. Which is Huge TBO. The masters of post production colour and grade. Excellent colour science and the industry leaders in colouring and grading, and thus the ability to know what codecs, colour science and what bitrates would best suit cinema camera footage. The first guys to point out the fundamental flaws with ProRes RAW. I am betting on their Colour Science would be better than the other two. The only question would therefore be, by how much (considering how lovely the Varicam image it, I am guessing, by maybe a hair, in ProRes, though noticeable in RAW). Have a 5 year experience in RAW shooting Affordable Cinema Camera Manufacturing, with the Original Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera being a runaway hit, despite all its flaws, mostly due to its 13 stops usable dynamic range and its tiny form factor. The design on that one was superb even if the battery life a lack of ports was a major drawback. Bluetooth control Includes FREE DaVinci Resolve Studio thrown in, which itself is about another $299 alone It seems to be the only 1 of the 3, to have an onboard fan. Which seems odd, but Grant mentioned the advantage of a fan, saying that any kind of heat would adversely affect the image quality, having a degrading effect on the image. I am guessing it would introduces very visible noise, make the image soft, and also reduce dynamic range. This may be a clear advantage for the BMPCC 4k, for pushing slightly past the competition. Also, if the fan is anything like that on the MacBoom Pro, it would be very faintly audible, if at all. Right now, the BMPCC seems have the largest Codec options. Arguably the best Interface/ OS. Very predictive (like the Panasonic), with large clear button, and not insanely wide menus like Sonys, and everything very clearly laid out. A Bright and Large 5 Inch Screen Balanced Mini-XLR mic jack for some good on-board recording (though unlikely to replace a boom operator, or talents with lapels). 3 Onboard mic options (4 onboard mics, Mini-XLR and 3.5mm mic in options). SD and CFast Card option,s apart from SSD Dual Continuous Power options. One by way of USB type-C Limited storage options due to SD, CFast and USB options The Only one of the 3 offering RAW right now Cons: The largest in size of the 3. Though not the heaviest, and also, likely with the best ergonomics for comfortable long recordings. Codecs are limited to ProRes and RAW. Which, TBO is not a bad thing, considering the the sheer number of flavours of ProRes and RAW that are available, and the fact that ProRes starts at some very lot bitrates (PRoRes LT and Proxy). This could, though, be Incorrect, because I heard grant saying that it has HLG, which I am guessing would be on the H.264/ H2.65 platform (please correct me if I am wrong). It has a fan on board, which would mean that there is a possibility of it being heard, atleast in extremely quite environments. Also, the fact the heat wave may also be mildly distracting if you hold the camera in the hand Completely non-articulating screen. Most likely due to the dangers of a huge screen in a swivel design causing hinges to break easily or pushing into wires and ports. Also, tensile strength may be an issue with the carbon composite hybrid material. Panasonic GH5s Pros: Arguably one of the best weather sealing in a camera. Surprisingly a lot better than even some top end DSLRs. Superb battery life Fully articulating screen OLED Viewfinder Bluetooth Control Excellent ergonomics and very manageable shape and size of body 240 fps at 1080p Dual SD Card slots with swappable SD cards during recording, as cards fill up, to have almost limitless recording Continuous power option 3 Year Extended Warranty. Though, for me, the Panasonic after sales has not been terribly inspiring. I am sure, your mileage may vary, varying from region to region Being in the Cinema Camera industry for pretty long, despite the short hiatus when RAW was the new Cinema Camera Industry Standard Cons: Most Expensive of the 3 at $2500 Screen size is good by DSLR standards, but requires a monitor, especially for very fine monitoring Codecs limited to H.264, though from some reviewers, they seem at power or better than some flavours of ProRes 10-bit 4-2-2 Z Cam E2 Pros: The Only one among the 3, that is offering 120fps at 4k. which frankly is HUGE Claimed dynamic range of 13.5 stops (which is Quite Likely, if they use the QuadBayer pattern, this sensor is capable of). The 1/2 stop of dynamic range may even be noticeable to some some self-claimed experts of dynamic range and great camera testers. Presently the tinniest form factor Offers H.265 apart from H.264. Which would make file sizes noticeably smaller than the other 2 for the same kind of data While neither RAW nor ProRes are available right now, there was mention of a RAW flavour (could be DNG RAW) Deep Learning Engine (not sure how it fits into a Cinema Camera lineup, except for fancy lingo, used by all random smartphone companies nowadays) Gigabit Ethernet port for control setting & live streaming Cons: ONLY CFast storage options on-board No Screen to see the footage Tiny LED to check data only Missing most of the body, including LCD or monitor, handles etc etc The missing accessories could add substantially to the final price of a usable product Company that is relatively unheard of. Warranty and after sales may be a bet It only has the equivalent of a camera brain. Users would have to buy a host of accessories to be able to fully use the camera All there have autofocus, and if GH5s is any indication, it would absolutely dreadful. I am also guessing that Time Code sync, Waveform, Vector Scopes, and programmable Zebra patters (apart from false colour etc), may be common to all three. All the extra bells and whistles would be knows soon enough, I guess. .

@KnightsFan I have a strange theory. Right now I am too zonked. I.probably. shohld sleep. Gn

Grant basically called it rubbish, with just a diffrent set of words. Considering that Blackmagic lives of ProRes, I am sure Grant tested it enough to know how utterly useless the development may have been.

I find the owner a juvenile and someone who has the accountability of a 12 year old. Seems loud and brash and more interested in buying private jets and yachts, when his comoany stocks are plummeting, and then indulging in some very inspiring NGO work directed money laundering. I am curious that us not being investigated by the agencies and regulators. I also remember those awful worker and employee retrenchments.

Absolutely. I believe he says it at 2:40 or so. I could be wrong. Actually each and ever interview with Pety and the Blackmagic guys is interesting. Because they all give interesting information Including why they didn't put ProRes RAW on it and whay he thinks about it.

I shared a video (or more than one), where one of the Blackmagic employees says that it does upto 100fps non-windowed.

Sony were trying to do a Canon (around 5 generations or more of Canon entry level cameras had the same 18MP sensor). Maybe if they paid a few reviewers, the reactions would have seemed more positive.

Sensitive Topic. This can blow up. Especially when, ahem, little children are involved.

Wow. Pretty interesting. I wish they had similar maximum aperture on all their lenses though.

Ok, I wasn't aware. I guess they're using licensed versiona or have made their own versions. The tech has been around for over a decade I guess. Even the maybach uses a version where clear windows suddenly becone tinted. I guess it would depend on the amount of curreent being passed to rearrange the electrons (I hope I am recollecting things correctly). I won't be surprised if chinese companies start making these for like 1/10th the price and everyone gets one within the next one year.

Wow. I didn't realise how large the BMPCC 4k is. Also, camera size comparison was quick. Actually, apart from Sony, I don't see anyone else using an eND. Maybe they don't have the tech. Atleast yet. And maybe it is too expensive to be borrowed from Sony.

I think that's being unreasonable. For the buck, they are already giving WAY more than anyone else. I doubt that. They are happy offering ProRes or whatever else by the HDMI out. If Panasonic feels the heat (which nobody would really deny) they may reduce prices of their GH line. Other manufacturers may not really feel the pinch, because a lot of those don't really make the cut due to the 10-bit 4-2-2 mandate Netflix and other VoD and Broadcasters, and the limited recording times on those cameras are also a huge let down. I am guessing sales of the A7s series will be hit, because it too does good low light (much better), and it too has limited functionaliy as a photo shooting stills camera. Therefore, in essence, the BMPCCii has targetted the GH5 and GH5s' customers. Curiously having RAW via HDMI won't solve the problem. The Price Difference is too great.

Hahaha. That campaign/ AD was pretty bad.

They will Obviously avoid being seen using Panny lenses. After using the Same sensor as Panny and probably doing a better job with it, albeit at Half the Price. I am guessing that Grant using the strangely placed record button and pointing the camera towards himself to make a video would imply something. Maybe their autofocus has improved substantially. Maybe he didn't mention it cause the sensor obviously doesn't have PDAF, but it may have autofocus as good or bad as Panasonic (bad for continuous). I am also guessing that Blackmagic is planning to unveil some more interesting tricks with the BPCC ii, when they finally have it in the hands. Right now, this is enough to stir up the hornet's nest.

Wow. You're a star. I wonder if Andrew woupd be so kind, as to award you the star of the day for today. ?

Wow. I am curious though, why is it at 3840 x 2160 instead of 4096 x 2160? Nice image, and how did you get this one.

Yes, true. One of the things that Sony said about the A7iii was that the new processing greatly improved heat dissipation (and I think they also said something about it affecting battery life).

I wonder if any DSLR or Mirrorless has a 5inch screen? Why I am asking this, is because I am wondering if it would have been possible to have a Hinge on a 5inch screen with a non-metallic body (carbon composite), and also have a fully articulated screen that doesn't crash into all the wire when being rotated. They could have tried something on the lines of what Sony or the Panasonic GX85 has with a flip out to the front. But, like I mentioned, it was probably due to the unweildly size of that 5inch display and the fact that the body is Composite and Not Metal. This is probably the time for someone like Atomos to probably either make a Portable screen with very low lag, fed via the HDMI or USB-C. Or have a Screen with a Swivel Design or Articulated Stand, that allows it to twist 360 degrees.

There is no information on brightness and some customers on B&H have mentioned issues of overheating. Price is good and the idea seems great. Maybe the implements needs a little working on.

Hahaha. People are always complaining about too much dynamic range ??

It has 4 flavours of DNG (including flavours of compressed RAW). I am comparing RAW with H.264. I am guessing that while many flavours of ProRes may require less processing power due to compressing at real time, in comparison to RAW, it may be different.

Upto 100fps HD is non-windowed. Also, he (the guy in the video below) hints at a few other things being added by way of firmware. Which effectively means that we should wait until all the features are stated. This also shoots HLG (I read or heard somewhere), for anyone interested in lower dynamic range with lower bitrates. Btw, why do I feel that this is a 4096 x 2160 sensor (and Not 10+megapixel sensor). That's like 8.8MP compared to 10.something mega pixels on the GH5s. I hope someone makes a large battery accessory for this that is like a battery pack at the bottom (like on DSLRs), and which powers it via USB-C or the locking socket to add another 2-3 hours of juice. And also adds a flat SSD like on the new Atomos recorder.

Unfortunately I am out of likes for today. But, yes, the AD Agency doing the work, obviously mistook it for a smartphone or GoPro, and planned the campaign for VLogging and action sports among other things. They probably wanted to position this as a camera for everyone. Btw I still didn't figure out why there is money flying around that biker in that scene with the camera.