Oliver Daniel

Looking like a great cam. One thing I'd be concerned with is XAVC-L. In my experience, this codec suffers from some very ugly banding, macro blocking and colour artefacts.

Sony has said this new camera is "groundbreaking". It must have at least one big feature the FS7 doesn't.

Apparently it's actually called the FS5. http://cinescopophilia.com/sony-pxw-fs5-is-the-name-of-the-new-fs-4k-camera-coming-to-ibc-2015/

I re-graded many historic shots in my new showreel... I actually find it mesmerising that I thought the previous version looked good, when in fact, it was actually quite bad. Glad you're enjoying the FS7 - I use it all the time. Don't use XAVC-L though - found some extremely hideous banding and macro blocking issues. Normal XAVC is fine! I've also been using the RX10 II with the FS7 - that thing is a brilliant little camera with tweaked Slog settings! You should get one.

I'm very, very impressed with what I've shot on the RX10 II. I've just finished shooting a Christmas music video - all on the RX10 II. Slog2 is a great profile (when tweaked in the camera settings) and the picture quality under controlled lighting conditions looks really great. 100p is impressing me more, now I've got more practice with the lens, focusing and the peaking. Other than that it's great fun, delivers great results and shouldn't be ignored.

True. I'm shooting on the F55 tomorrow. Lucky menu day!! So the recent rumours suggest it has the "A7S" sensor... so the groundbreaking part is a camcorder with high sensitivity? I'm guessing they would exclude 4k 60p and have the highest frame rates at 100p in HD. It would also be interesting if it was 10 bit. There has been talk on this forum lately saying there is hardly any difference with 10bit vs 8bit. From what I've seen from my recent tests on the FS7 codecs - there is a MASSIVE difference. 8bit codec highlights in some shots had banding galore, heavy macro blocking and a mess of colour information - whereas the 10bit codec was clean and could be pushed around much, much more. My judgement of the A7S' low light ability is that it comes with very serious issues if used for professional work - mostly due to the sick cocktail of colour and the awful amount of noise, plus loss of resolution. The sensor in a more powerful, video-centric body might improve on this. We'll see eh!

As a chronic sufferer of being a pre-order warrior, I can't wait to get my hands on the URSA Mini 4.6k. Some friends have said I shouldn't wait and just get an FS7, but I don't mind waiting a bit. My gut says it's going to be a monster. In case you missed it: http://noamkroll.com/chatting-about-the-new-4-6k-ursa-sensor-more-with-dan-may-president-of-blackmagic-design/

Let's not forget on the advertising that they claim this camera is groundbreaking. What exactly could be groundbreaking about the camera, other than being a watered down FS7? I'm sure this camera may have something that the FS7 doesn't to make it appeal further (but watered down in other regards). I hope the groundbreaking feature isn't a new menu system. :-p That should be done - but I bet it won't be!

Cheers for all the info. Never heard of Exakta Mount, but I'll make sure to avoid it certainly. Guess it's not adaptable? i've been looking at Helios... and even though I have a 44-2 version of the 58mm, what's the difference between the models? Does the lens have a specific honeymoon period? Also wit the 40-2 85mm, seems like it's only the "new"version available on eBay, do these differ from the earlier version in any way? (I'm finding a lot of conflicting information online with Helios). I'm not to happy with my Helios and Mir 1B. The focus ring on the Helios is very tough, and the Mir-1B aperture ring feels too loose. I'm happy to look at other versions/models of the lenses so I can get them without these niggles. Generally I'm re-building the Russian set at all focal lengths with unique character in mind. It's quite brain blitzing knowing HOW to look.

Thanks for that! With the anamorphic, I'm doing the effects in post. I'm curious to use it properly the very near future though. Wow - that Helios is crazy. I have to get one of those. The bokeh is amazing. Also, the Meyer Optik looks beautiful. Is the attached screenshot the correct lens? (p.s what on earth is that weird thing sticking out the bottom?)

I've wanted these TRUMP lenses ever since I discovered them, but haven't found the financial justification within the business to purchase yet (all things considered). I am finding that more clients are looking for a TRUMP look, so it might not be long now. I HAVE wanted to buy an FF58 or two but they are sold out. I'd love to try them out though - thank you for the offer. You can fire me over rental rates/logistics by PM if you want? Thanks for that suggestion. I think I won't have enough time to fiddle with this, considering I'm also responsible for sorting out the neon-flashing lighting swell as all the visual references for the compositions. I'll probably fiddle with this stuff over time alongside some resources. In my lens disposal, I've got Helios 44-2 58mm, Mir 1B 37mm, Nikon 43-86, Asahi Pentax 55mm - all flare/character heavy. Apart from Rich's superb TRUMP's, are there any other vintage options you'd recommend for full-on lens weirdness?

Thanks Rudolf. I'm a heavy post-production guy and I've used this kind of approach in a subtle way before. I guess when I see an opportunity to do something a little different, I jump in all guns blazing. However, I can't be taking too much risks with this one, it's a very important client who are playing big festivals around the world. The SLR Magic seems ok, if a little more boring than the vintage options. I'm more interested using the 2x version in 3k mode on the upcoming URSA Mini 4.6k, but that's another story. Looking like a post-job with the tight turnaround.

I've never shot anamorphic, it's always been on my to-do list and the time has finally come. A client has specifically asked for "in-camera anamorphic lens flares like J.J Abrams", and they are very adamant they want this as the main visual feature, with a load of spotlights and LED striplights flashing and creating a sci-fi, distorted, visceral look. (the genre of music is dubstep mixed with metal!) I don't have much time to sort this out (little over a week!), so I'm looking for advice regarding an anamorphic solution that "just works", as I don't want to risk a cumbersome fiddly DIY solution on this job. It's not so much the aesthetic you get from the squeeze, it's more the streaky organic flares that's required (although I do love a bit of squeezy vibes!). The camera is likely going to be the FS7 as high frame rates were agreed in the treatment. I've attached screen shots of the aesthetic I'm looking at. Any advice is much appreciated.

I don't think it's very good. I'd never shoot at ISO 3200-6400 like the review states.

This is a good start - a lot of people have been going off this on the inter webs. In colour depth, you might want to mess with yellow a bit more when capturing skin. This profile performs best in daylight I feel. I tweak things slightly depending on what I'm shooting under different light conditions. Black Level: 0 Gamma Slog: 2Black Gamma > Range: Middle , Level: -3Knee > Mode: Auto , Auto Set > Max Point: 95 , Sensitivity: MidColour Mode: ProSaturation: +8Colour Phase -2Colour Depth > R+1, G-1, B+2,, C-2, M-1, Y-3Detail > Level, -5 Adjust > Mode; Manual, V/H Balance: -2, B/W Balance Type3, Limit: 0, Crispening:0, hi_light Detail: 0

Having played with both cameras side by side with identical settings, the RX10 II certainly seems to have a more pleasing look out the box. It feels more natural and accurate - whereas with the A7S it's not as prominent. I feel this may have something to do with the ISO, as the A7S needs 3200. You get much more pleasing colour when you add light, rather than artificially boosting the sensitivity. (this is completely non-scientific, just experience). Only buy the A7S if you need full frame and better low light, but don't live under the illusion that your overall image quality will be better just because you can boost the ISO. Be prepared for a lot of noise and cocktails of weirdness when used this way. A lot of the Vimeo-lots "replace lights with the A7S". Not a good idea for serious usage. The A7S for regular use under a different picture profile can look spectacular though. Slog2 + low light is best avoided. I would personally wait for the A7S II unless you get a ridiculous offer. Very good camera. Keep enjoying the RX!

Thanks for the review. As an owner of the camera, I can definitely relate to some of your points made. I would highly recommend anyone shooting on the camera to not use the factory settings for Slog2. It looks like Homer Simpson put too much butter on his bacon and threw it all up, and you have a toothbrush to clean it up. By playing with the Slog2 settings, I've got very pleasing skintones and colour - better than the A7S. It's certainly no replacement for an FS7 either. The difference between Slog3/Slog2 10bit/8bit combination is very obvious when you start playing with footage and matching it up in the grade. If you need 100fps and have the budget to rent the FS7, then you should The camera is great quality though. I bullishly took it out for a night shoot to do some narrative shots for a music video. We had battery powered lights, so low light wasn't too much of a concern as most of the shots were mid/close-ups. Unfortunately, it was too time consuming on the tight schedule and we called out for an A7S and whipped out the Sigma ART lenses - using two LEDs to shape the light around the faces. (The A7S record button - absolute fail!). The RX10 footage was superior - because it was lit properly. The A7S did the job but the shots are very noisy, and I certainly would not shoot this way on a regular basis just because I can - unless I want cocktail zombie vomit images! Point is - the RX10 II shows it is a great cinematic tool with all factors considered. Certainly the great low light of the A7S has very serious trade-offs. The BEST thing about the camera is the ability to run around with just the camera, grab your shots and put more time/focus on the subject. It's a liberating low budget tool that's perfectly capable of creating fantastic images with a very small footprint. Just the one thing I'm struggling with is sharpness. I have a feeling the peaking is a bit inaccurate and I think Sony should have a look at this for a firmware update.

To be fair on the client, the inclusion of such heavy flares does fit the brief. The brief is an incrediblly high octane performance with a sci-fi neon feel - using distortion, flashing lights, flares, defocus techniques, glitches, lens whacking (we helped them out with the idea of course). We referenced the flare techniques are now they are obsessed! I could do it in post but where's the fun in that? I'm a firm believer that if you can do it in-camera/practical - then you should! (Look away George Lucas!)

Cheers for the offer. I always like to do it in-camera as it looks better, even though I have the post tools to do it, it's never quite the same. I'm very interested in anamorphic - another topic to cover and experiment with in the coming weeks. If I tried anamorphic, I would prefer the more simple options. The Optek/Century or SLR Magic seem to be a good fit - any experience with these lenses? I've really been focusing on post production this year, but need to go full swing with my cameras/lenses/grip for a while! Love weird lenses. I need plenty of dog schidt!

Lovely. I do follow most of the references you have provided - just curious to expand all knowledge of lens weirdness should it be required in future. I also own a Mi 1B 37m and Helios 44-2... I want to try out a few versions, modified and out the factory. I'd order some FF58's from Rich but I need EF mount and they are "sold out". Can't justify TRUMPS yet (financially). I know there is another site called Motion Six who do modifications - but on the shell of it, I find the company very unconvincing. A website that can't even provide nice sharp pictures of their product (instead of blurry pixelated ones) makes you question the quality on offer. I bought the Nikon 43-86 lens because it's apparently terrible and flares nicely. Not come through yet. The client has now asked for anamorphic streaky flares (see screenshot) - so it looks like I will be looking at an anamorphic setup for the shoot. Really need the most "less pain in the ass" setup as the client is a very decent one!

We've spoke about it before on this forum (lenses with character) - but I'd particularly like to collate some thoughts/findings on lenses that have a weird aesthetic feature, and post visual references here. There are also times when I see a particular video that repeatedly creates an in-camera aesthetic through the lens. I'd like to make this topic an area for sharing such images and finding out which "weird" lens can perform such an aesthetic. So we are looking at: Any lens with some kind of weird feature/aesthetic/artefact. Features: bokeh, lens flares, color, tints, haze, distortion.. anything bizarre/odd/weird/strange. Recommending lenses/sharing images/finding out what "weirdness" features on what lens. I'm shooting a music video in 2 weeks, and the clients wants this particular aesthetic in their video, all over the place. I've attached an image. Anyone with some weird less love?

I've been editing a music video project - the first one on this new G-Speed Studio in RAID 5. I've not really decided how to configure it in the long term (I'll have to decide after I've done this project), but I've been able to play full quality 4k ProRes LT video on 9 multi-cam windows simultaneously in FCPX, with the main timeline playing too. (in full quality 4k). Editing is buttery smooth with absolutely no issues whatsoever. Also - 128gb of footage from my SD card takes 3 minutes to save to the drive. (before this was an overnight job). While I'm very happy with this performance - I'm not sure how that compares with other solutions explained in this thread.

Cheers! Making more sense now. I'm going to spin a few projects through the drives and see how it performs. Hopefully it will be ok and i can get back to focusing on the things I do best I'm just this minute saving 163GB of video footage onto the drive... the waiting time is just 4 minutes!

I got this product for nearly half-price the retail brand new (hence why I've gone from very simple to a little monster!). From what I can see it's come configured as RAID-5... although it's 24TB it says the capacity is 18TB. I'm guessing you lose a 1/4 of the space in all the mathematical TB calculational thingy whatever? (yes, my head is working this way right now and I have a night shoot looming!). So the best way would be to keep it this way, but have separate external drives just to backup the final data and projects for archive, then when the G-Speed RAID 5 fills up... just delete it all and re-fill with new stuff (which is fine, as I will have all the final projects/media backed up/saved anyway). Thanks for the help so far!

I need it simple, because I don't have the spare brainpower to study this nor do I have time for it. I just need to use this huge 24TB trashcan to offer me speedy editing, and also some room to hot swap a disk in the 4-bay that i can use for backup (as well as a bunch of other external backups - let's keep that separate because I'll do that anyway). Make sense? When it comes to setting it up... blank!