fuzzynormal

Not sure who'll care about this one, but I just noticed that "IDA" is now free for viewers that have Amazon Prime. IMHO, just about every shot is perfect. For me, the film was cinematography on a whole 'nother level. And whattaya know? There isn't any anamorphic, color grading, stabilization, etc. So many of the things that aspirational shooters like myself tend to worry about just aren't part of the visual narrative in this film. Yet, for me, it works. So, you know, kind of informative about what can really matter when telling a motion picture story.

Yeah, and mine is flaking off a lot of paint chips too. I've really been flogging the thing though. Still holding together. The camera looks very used and beat up at this point, which is how I like it...as long as it keeps working.

Hmmm, bit of a false equivalency retort mentioning the bmpcc, but it's the internet; no surprise. Par for the course. Your other argument is good. Tools are tools. Use what helps. At any rate, I use Panasonic cameras all the time. Adjusting the exposure manually is fast and easy assuming you know what you're doing. As you say, to do it otherwise is lazy. So, my assertion remains: the long established manual way works for a reason. Look, feel free to buy/use whatever camera you prefer for whatever rationalizations. I don't care much; only enough to note that many expectations of modern cameras seem kind of silly --especially when it's a complaint about a feature that I believe motion picture shooters should probably avoid anyway. One man's opinion. Good luck.

Oh I don't know. Perhaps you do. It's worked for over a hundred years so far...for a reason.

Who cares what Canon does until they do it? Brand loyalty when camera bodies only cost a pittace doesn't really seem necessary...does it? Even FF lenses work across brands with adapters.

There was a victor in the "loudness wars." India won with the nuclear option.

Beware false prophets.

I still use my 7d as well. (photos) I did have fun buying the thing and getting all excited about discovering the potential. That's enjoyable. But buying for the sake of buying...or just waiting for something better before you buy? You'll be waiting forever. Thats like a guy that has a pen and paper, but demands to own a typewriter before he'll write a story.

I just don't get this mentality. Get something. Use it. Make things. The alternative is just... shopping. How's is that any fun? That's a serious question. I truly don't understand. If anyone wants to try to explain it to me, I'd appreciate it.

The fact you can buy an imaging device for $900 that trumps most gear film making masters from the 70's and 60's would have loved to have is incredible. Look, if you can't do creative stuff with a piece of gear like this, you got the problems, not the camera or lens. I love technology and equipment too, but if you want to actually do something creative with motion picture making, fretting so much about which camera does this or that the best-- man, it is such a complete waste of time. Although, to be honest, If you want bragging rights and affirmation that you own the latest and greatest imaging kit, that's something else, I guess. It does seem to be a popular pastime on tech-centric blogs. I'm just amazed though--and what a wonderful time for real legitimate filmmakers (the ones that actually do stuff) -- for less than 2k one can easily buy a camera, editing system, light kit, and audio package. What to do with all that capability? Use it or talk about it?

The Japanese might like it. They love higher frame rates in their motion pictures... But for the rest of us, Peter Jackson looks to me like he's turning into his generation's George Lucas; employing technology "just because" and that's ultimately detrimental to the storytelling. Of all the types of narrative genres that benefits from the alternate reality 24fps envokes, you'd think fantasy would be the most logical choice. I don't get if either. But it hardly looks cheap. The cinematography us too 1st rate professional for that. However, from what I understand, the shot frame on these films is 48fps which means that distributing it in 24fps for those that prefer it is an easy alternative...on the other hand, the loss of edge motion blur inherent in shooting native 24fps is a shame. I like that effect. Not good for green screen of course, but still that effect offers a great disconnect from "reality."

A full POV movie could work...but you'd need to be a very accomplished visual storyteller and disciplined director to make it viable. I doubt anyone dabbling in this rig has those qualifications.

I'm too old to give a shit about this.

Good lighting isn't about the gear, it's about knowing how to manipulate 'dem photons in an artistic way. Some of the best lighting set ups I've ever done have been accomplished with just a reflector. For reference you can always check out Barry Lyndon.

Vintage lenses just look great on people. I'm down with the old school on that one.

This is definitely a 'put up or shut up' kind of thread. Challenges are non stop making a narrative. I just finished a rough cut of a short shot in the Imperial desert as well, and some things just end up half baked...excuse the pun. I haven't had enough nerve to post it here as I still want to fix a few things, but it's admirable for anyone that is willing to create something and release it into the wild. You gotta start somewhere.

I'm going to go out and check on the 100 this morning @Bic Camera. I'm not entirely enamored with the camera being a fixed lens and all, but I've been looking to sell some of my old redband canon glass, and that would give me enough to buy the LX. For what I do, small fits my style and it's cheap, so why not? I don't expect it to be perfect and won't worry too much about a bit of moiré in a 4k image. For what it's worth, I'm shooting a doc on a Gx7 and a Gm1 while here in Japan, so I'm used to working with smaller consumer gear; prefer it, actually.

Pentax a110 lenses. Fun, good, and cheap. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentax_Auto_110

Nothing different than before. You need positive examples to learn and build your craft. Right now it looks like you're just shooting and editing without informed consideration. You could develop your craft at a university I suppose, but the most pragmatic way is by working with folks that already know how to do what you want to do...and do it well. I mean, I could tell you to go off and study Sergi Eisenstein for some useable theory on how to create effective montage, but why do that? The school of hard knocks and hands on is the fastest route to practical learning. If you can't find a crew to join, then I suggest you straight up copy an awesome production shot for shot. Doing another wedding soon? Find the best wedding video you know and do the exact same shots and the exact same editing. Gotta hone your craft someway. It's like becoming a musician. You start by covering your favorite songs, learn the techniques, and then grow from there. Good luck

So, it begs the question...what the heck did you do to it?

I'm on my 6th Pany cam at the moment. Haven't got the GH4 yet 'kuz I went with the GM1 and GX7 for a string of documentaries that began before the GH4 was released, but the reliability of their gear (even the consumer stuff) has been decent; can't complain.

Here's a cheap method and one way to skin this cat: Ultimately, the easiest way is to get good at it without any gear. Lots of practice.

For a lot of handheld I found one just has to "glide" as much as possible. I think this is easier for shorter people. The squat walk. The smoother you are, the smoother the shot is, is that's what you want. You just kind of learn to hand-hold to the best of your ability. Other things influence it a lot. Rig, mass, etc. Bigger cameras off-the-shoulder are actually better for handheld shots, IMHO. Maybe that's my broadcasting background bias. But, for instance, I mounted a lead pipe with a bottom weight to a DSLR camera --and used that mass as a steadying device for a lot of walking sequences. I wanted the shots to look like they were half way between hand-held and steady cam. Again, just depends what you're going for. The cinematography in a film like Dallas Buyers Club, or say Bourne Identity, is way more involved than just being handheld, obviously. It's disciplined movement of the lens in relation to the light and character...even if it's deliberately visually chaotic.

I'd just re-encode it to ProRes422 and then use it. An extra step, but it'll make your editing app happy.

Well, you could shoot 30p on the Olympus and conform it to 25p if that works. Not sure what you're shooting and if you're sync-ing sound, but I've shot the EM5 with a GM1 and GX7 on a 24p project and handled the frame rate mix in such a way. It was a project that didn't require audio though. I've dropped 30p footage straight into a 24p edit/sequence in the past as well. It's useable depending on your standards. Can the Euro cams accept the Americas firmware so the GM1 will shoot 30p? I don't know how that works. Is it hardware or software controlled?