mercer

To add, I’m sure someone will post for you to buy a GH5 and a Metabones speed booster for your Canon glass. And that is an option. But since you asked about the 5D4, I will say that there is a 4K crop and it is somewhere between 1.64 and 1.74 depending upon what site you read. This crop puts you just on the edge of the Super 35mm format but you may require wider lenses. Some aps-c Canon lenses will work if the shield is removed. Other lenses like the Sigma 18-35mm will work with no vignette... so some lens options open up. With the 3.5k ML Raw, the crop is similar to get constant recording... so that aspect is a wash. The problem with the C-Log on the 5D4 is that it is Canon installed, which means there is a chance that if the Magic Lantern team ever cracks the 5D4 for effortless 4K and plus Raw, it may not work with models that have C-Log. Good news is Canon Log is a great Log profile that really expands the dynamic range in an easy to grade Log profile. So if you’re only worried about today and not a hypothetical Magic Lantern 5D4, then Canon Log is a great profile. File sizes will be large with either choice so expect to buy some cards and hard drives. Good news is that CF cards aren’t horribly expensive and hard drives are cheap. Now with ML Raw you get a lot of other benefits like focus peaking and exposure tools. Although with the 5D4 and its DPAF you won’t need focus peaking. So I would say that you need to decide how much you need 4K? If you can get by with a majority of 1080p Raw and then some 3.5K for specific projects, then the 5D3 may be enough for you. But if you need 4K for everything, then the 5D4, 1DC, or if you can stretch it, a C200 may be your best bets. And I guess I’d be remiss not to mention the GH5 as an option. For the money... maybe even twice the money... it is an amazing camera. Good Luck.

It’s my understanding that the 3.5K Raw from the 5D3 isn’t a hundred percent refined yet, so for paid interviews it may not be your best bet, but I would have no problem using the 1080p Raw for paid gigs. I’m in the middle of shooting a short film in 1080p ML Raw and I couldn’t be happier. I’d take it over any consumer 4K any day of the week. With that being said, I am one of the few fans of the 5D4’s 4K on this site... I think it looks absolutely stunning and the Touch AF seems magical. But unless I had a client that asked for 4K, I would just shoot 1080p ML Raw. But since I am a hobbyist that shoots zero budget films... well working on my first zero budget film, I don’t have clients to answer to. Another thought would be a 1DC. In my opinion it is the best 4K image out there. The 5D4 is similar with the great AF, but the 1DC has that unquantifiable “mojo” I hear people talk about. But so does ML Raw. Hope that helps, but after rereading it... it may not have...

Do you have a link to your Arri color science, short film trailer?

Yeah for $200, it doesn’t look bad at all to get Cinema 4K. I’m fine with the IQ of the video you posted... looks fine on my phone. I would more be afraid of it not working. It doesn’t have the best of reviews.

Did you shoot and process any Raw from the C200? I’m thinking about renting one in the summer for a short film.

Thanks Alpicat... that looks real nice. I don’t know Resolve very well, but I may start to. Btw, I loved the 50D... it led me to sell all my other cameras and buy a 5D3.

You have the Soligor 35-70 2.8-3.5 in your arsenal? If so, would you give it a run on your beautiful Canon RAW beauty? No, I don’t have that one. I did have the Soligor 21mm a while back. They had a few really good lenses. I want to build three decent sets of lenses and I think I’ve narrowed it down to a set of Canon EF lenses for obvious reasons. The L glass is amazing... modern but with neutral character. I am also building an ai-s set of Nikkors. Right now I have the 35mm 1.4 and I am searching for an 85mm 1.4. I actually have a bunch of non-ai lenses but I want to sell and replace with the best ai-s versions I can find. And finally I am building a set of Super Multi Coated Takumars for that vintage look and b&w. I’ll keep a few random cool lenses, but 90% of them need to go.

I’m exaggerating a little... but not by much... sadly. Good news is, it’s a blast trying to sell a bunch of lenses nobody wants.

That looks great Juan. Will this work with CDNGs made from MLVs from the 5D3? I have found that most LogC workflows look beautiful with ML Raw.

@Zak Forsman nice set up, look forward to some video tests. Do you still shoot with the BMMCC? I imagine you’re planning a feature for the EVA1?

Yes, the GH5 is an amazing camera, but it’s still a consumer/prosumer camera in the cinema world, no matter the quality or features and to marry a $7500 lens to it seems a bit backwards, especially when you can get some used Super Speeds for a grand. And for every shooter that loves their GH5, I can find one that loves their a6500, or D750, or 5D4, or C100, or E-M1ii. With that said I actually like the anamorphic look a lot but they’ve always seemed more work than I want to get involved in. The single focus options are interesting. I’ve seen some great stuff with the SLR Magic and the Panasonic and for the GH5, they may make more sense? JMO. And the only reason I mentioned the other cameras was because you said you were interested in shooting Raw. Either way, I always enjoy the look of your videos. Just curious what you could do with other systems. For instance, your B&W Fuji Video is my personal favorite of your work. So as subjective as that is, your best work isn’t with the GH5 king.

Thank you, this is so well done. I love how you used practical, in camera effects for the scares. The zipper was brilliant. My only criticism is that I wish you used a different doll instead of Elmo because I think you could have a real winner with this short... similar to what happened with the Lights Out short, but due to legalities, the Elmo doll may hamper that. Either way, awesome work as usual.

@kidzrevil did you shoot with that set up during your GH4 days? Which old video was that?

So I found this video from the Anamorphic Store taken with a 5D2 and one of their custom single focus units. It looks pretty good on my phone...?

I guess it is definitely brave for a retired guy to spend most of his savings on an anamorphic lens. But again, not my money, so I don’t really care. However I would probably find a comparison of the Veydra lenses on a BMMC vs a GH5 to be a more interesting video than an Atlas Anamorphic. Or maybe some Veydra goodness on the previous mentioned LS300 or handheld on an Olympus... A $7500 lens on a $2000 camera doesn’t really intrigue me all that much. Hell for that money, why not spend your whole nut and get a used Alexa Classic and some Super Speeds? Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate Jon’s affinity for better equipment, but if I were him, I would just sell off all of my native micro 4/3 lenses before I jumped off that Atlas cliff. And even still, I think I’d be more interested in a Voigtlander and the SLR Anamorphic or one of those FM/VM anamorphics (if those combos are even possible) instead of that huge hunk of Atlas. But can anyone recommend an inexpensive, single focus Anamorphic for my 5D3 with either my Canon 35mm f2 or my Nikkor ai-s 35mm 1.4 as the taking lens? I know very little about Anamorphic lenses so something simple would be better and I guess with the IS of my 35mm f2, something light that I could go handheld with would be preferred as well (if that’s even possible?)

How dare you call me reputable?! It’s all a ruse.

Idyllic cobblestone streets... who says you ain’t a writer... Get a 5D3 if you want to try some Raw. Or a BMCC in m4/3 mount for some 2.5K Raw. They’re cheap as hell now on the used market. I don’t mean to go on and on about the 5D3 but that bastard was a game changer for me. I am not particularly talented at all this stuff, but I love it. I went through camera after camera trying to find a good fit with easy color. I was ready to stop altogether and go back to screenwriting only when I decided to sell as much as I could for the 5D3. You know how that story ends. I’m still not that talented but the 5D3 couldn’t be simpler. With an IS Canon lens or two and a hefty strap, I can shoot handheld with practically zero shake. Then ETTR (we won’t have to argue about that anymore) and hit record. It isn’t 4K but it’s the best image I’ve ever created and I am still rather sucky at it... lol. I still fantasize about cameras but instead of buying them, I just go and shoot with the 5D3 and forget about everything else. In the end it doesn’t really matter what camera you use. Just try and tell good stories.

Resist the temptation, Jon. For the money of the Atlas, you can buy a C200 or EVA1. I went through a lens buying phase a couple of years ago and now I’m stuck with a hundred lenses lying around I don’t use. Of course, I bought vintage lenses, so I didn’t spend all that much, but some of them are stinkers that are hard sells. I don’t know a lot about anamorphics but they seem to be a lifestyle choice that are entirely unnecessary for your street shooting. But then again, it’s your money and time... so do as you please. I would expand my cameras if I were you. To see comparison videos between your current lenses on an Olympus camera or a BMMCC would be interesting for your YouTube channel. Or pick up another branded mount entirely like Canon or Nikon or Sony. Shit, get an Ursa Mini Pro and shoot some Raw or ProRes. I don’t know if you have monetized your YouTube channel but you have enough equipment and reviews that an expansion of cameras or systems may make more sense than effing around with expensive anamorphics that most of your audience can never afford. Just my opinion.

Thanks Jonesy, I really appreciate that. Man, this movie is so Lo-Fi it’s kind of taken on a mind of it’s own. Due to a family medical issue, I lost some filming time this Fall and due to casting issues... nobody likes working for free... I am constantly rewriting the script to accommodate actors and tempt them for casting. Over the next month I am going to put together a 30 second teaser to try and drum up some interest from a couple actors I want to cast... so to make a long story short... soon hopefully. I’ll leave you with another screengrab from my last shoot and best location I have found...

Yeah, I saw that too. And that’s a good point since the a6500 isn’t known for a spectacular 1080p image, but it does have an insane 4K image. I was actually surprised by how good it looked. And to learn that it shoots at such a high bitrate. I figured it was using the same codec and bitrate as the 5D3 and 80D. I believe if you get the Canon Log version, it has about 12 stops. Without the Canon Log... maybe 10-11... but probably closer to 10. However I never felt that his video lacked DR... not that he was shooting in a high DR scenario. Rolling shutter isn’t great in 4K but neither is the crop at 1.64x/1.74x (depending on who does the math) but in 1080p it’s supposed to be a lot better with no crop. The 5D4 probably isn’t the best camera for you, I just wanted to show there are other options if you are not set on either the D750 or the a6500. If I were you, I would either go all in with a D850 or go down to a Canon 80D and bank as much money as possible over the next year until the next generation of cameras are released... Both Nikon and Canon are supposedly releasing FF mirrorless cameras next year. Nah, I’d probably buy a 5D4, but I have a soft spot for Canon cameras.

Interesting stats, I often wonder, since I watch most of these videos on my phone if I could tell the difference if a video was originally shot in 4K or in 1080p and if a good lens on 1080p would translate better on YT/V than an okay lens in 4K? I did recently get tricked into thinking a 5D3 Video was shot in Raw when it was really shot in regular Canon firmware 1080p. Even this video, I thought was 4K 5D4, but the guy shot it on the 5D4 in 1080... now the 1080p on the 5D4 is a pretty high bitrate MOV but still, I would have thought I could easily tell the difference between the two... even on my phone... Btw, he is a Sony shooter that recently switched to the 5D Mark IV.

However you make a great point @jonpais ... how do you think the majority of viewers watch videos online? And if you create content that is specifically made for those people, would it affect what gear you used?

My point being there is such a stigma about Canon cameras on these forums when Canon DSLRs have and still are being used on network television. I work in the trade show industry and easily 95% of all trade show videographers use Canon DSLRs or C100s. I’ve seen a few Sony’s and strangely, one BlackMagic Pocket. Obviously this is anecdotal, but I am just referencing what I’ve noticed on the trade show floor. And I would bet that other than this microcosm of pros, the majority of small budgeted videography is shot on Canon cameras... be it DSLRs or the C series. But back to the point, it is not my intention to persuade Mark into buying a Canon, I was merely stating there are options and if color and AF are top priorities, then Canon is definitely worth looking into. I only asked you if you’ve ever used a Canon is because I know how obsessed you are with color, so I thought you may enjoy testing out a Canon... be it an 80D or a 5D4. Maybe hold off on another couple Veydra lenses and give a Canon camera a shot... it would make a great blog post for you ?. I bet it looks great. I look at a lot of videos online and I mostly use my phone, but then when I find one I am particularly fond of, I’ll watch it on my 40” . I try to separate things because I can be easily distracted... so I have a laptop and iPad for screenwriting, a laptop for editing, and then I just use my phone for watching videos, posting/reading forums, Instagram, etc...

No, unfortunately I do not have a 55” tv or access to one.

@jonpais have you ever owned a Canon? Just curious, I know you’re a Panny guy who has dabbled with Fuji, but I don’t remember hearing if you started shooting with Panny, or like many of us, started with a t2i?