mercer

Well the GH4 is a 5 year old camera that was $1500 at release. And the FZ2500 is a 3 year old camera that was $1200 at release. I just don’t understand why the newer sub-$1000 cameras, with IBIS, do not have better 1080p?! With that being said, the FZ2500 is one of my all time favorite cameras. I have a search on eBay saved and will buy another one once I can find one for the right price. The 200mbps all-i is beautiful in that camera and it does 10bit 1080p externally. Idk, all-i codecs seem to have a thicker image and better motion than intraframe codecs.

Love your work, Panny!!! Do you know how the .mov all-i codec on the GH3 is? I still can’t believe you have to buy a GH5 to get the all-i codec from Panasonic... all of these sub-$1000 Panasonic cameras should have all-i 1080p.

You’ll always get the best image shooting at the native iso with BM cameras... CDNG, Braw, or ProRes.

??

Reread my comment. I didn’t say that those companies released 4K TVs too soon, I said they released 4K video recording in their cameras too soon. Just my opinion.

He has $500... so to me the obvious choice is a 5D Mark ii and ML Raw.

Yeah, it seems that way. It looks great... although I have had my first camera freeze ever since I switched to this build. It’s nothing that a power off/on doesn’t cure, though... so no big deal.

Yeah, idk, I think they are all the same. The problem occurred in 2014 when they forced 4K on us a generation, or two, too soon so Sony and Panasonic could sell some 4K TVs. None of the companies had even perfected 1080p yet... and they still haven’t. Andrew, with your skill set and talent, I really think it’s time you move onto a cinema camera. I doubt you’ll ever get all you really want from these hybrids. And with the size getting smaller, and the specs getting better, an EVA1, or whatever, would be a better choice. With that said, I agree with this silly RX100 update. Waste of engineer’s time.

I know you’re not a Canon fan even with ML Raw but I can say wholeheartedly that I will get better images with my Canon than my Micro. 14bit color Raw with only 12 stops of DR will give ME better results than 10bit color and 13 stops of DR. I’m sure a better colorist can eek out a better image with the Micro, but I’m not that guy and I really don’t want to be a great colorist... too many other things to worry about with a one man band production. With that being said, B&W seems to be the great equalizer for a hobby filmmaker like myself. @kye thanks, I always appreciate your insight. I’m really just killing time in between script pages and shooting days even messing around with post color work until I get a better post set up... but it’s still kinda fun to do even if it has no reflection on what my final film will look like. And yes, ML has a greyscale preview or you can set the live view to any picture profile you want without it affecting the final image... so I do use monochrome on occasion to see tones but mostly to see the focus peaking better.

Thanks, I bought it for a stupid price, so it was a no brainer. Of course, I remembered quickly why I went the 5D3 ML route instead of the BM route a couple years ago. But this will force me to sit down and put the work in. And I’ll still get the ease of ProRes. So, like you said, it will be great for certain projects. I think you’re right about the c-mount. Last year, I was forced to use my Canon 28mm lens and due to the circumstances, I took the time to learn the nuances of the lens and focal length and I think I’m better off for it. It’s been a long road but I’ve learned a lot about myself as a filmmaker and weirdly the joke I made earlier about a 50mm lens and a wide angle/telephoto adapter would almost suit me better than a collection of focal length lens sets... if I can get over my indecisive nature. Lol.

A 12mm lens is a 12mm lens. On FF, a 12mm lens would give the FOV of a 12mm lens. APS-C is 1.5x FF, so a 12mm lens on an APS-C camera would give the FOV of an 18mm FF lens. The Micro has a 2.88x crop, so a 12mm lens would give the FOV of a 35mm FF lens. But yes, it is confusing. I was watching some Spielberg films and learned he prefers 30mm and under lenses... now that’s S35, so I had to go backwards to figure out the FF FOV... my brain almost melted. Lol. But I really overthink this stuff... I’m half tempted to get a Speedbooster for 28mm f/2 and then get a Century Wide Angle converter and Telephoto converter... it would be a hell of a lot easier.

A 12mm lens would give the FOV of an 18mm lens on aps-c. An 8mm would be a 12mm. The SLR Magic is definitely a possibility if I can find one cheap enough. After further thought, though, I’ve decided I cannot justify using a lens that cost more than the camera. The Nikkor 20mm 3.5 on the BMPCC Metabones adapter would equate to a 35mm 1.8 in FF terms. I should add that I also have a Cine-Nikkor 10mm 1.8 c-mount lens. In my preliminary test, it wasn’t that sharp wide open but I only tested it for a few minutes around the house. I’m waiting for an IR Cut filter to give it a proper test and to see what f-stop it sharpens up at. Some positives are: it’s tiny, the focus has a short throw, I can handhold it steadily and there is zero focus breathing. And it looks cool as shit on the Micro. From some of the tests I’ve seen online, it sharpens up nicely when stopped down. If so, my 28mm f/2 speedboosted would give me a nice small two lens set with an equivalent 28mm and 50mm FOV. Here’s a photo of the Cine-Nikkor 10mm 1.8... As you can see, it’s very similar in design to the older non-ai Nikkor lenses... hopefully it will have the optical quality as well.

One of the issues I had when I originally owned the Micro was how big the camera grew once you rigged it out to make it functional... and I don’t mean fully rigged out with rods, bsseplage, follow focus, etc..., I mean a simple set up with the screen and the camera. Since selling my first one, a lot of add ons have arrived to make the camera a lot less cumbersome, so I don’t really foresee myself putting a matte box on a camera the size of a rubick’s cube, especially on a plastic native lens. I’m really trying to get this camera set up so I have a 28mm (equivalent) FOV because I can comfortably go handheld with just a strap. However, there aren’t many inexpensive options to obtain that wide of a shot. So, it looks like a 35mm FOV will be my go to “focal length” and your suggestion of a monopod with the feet should work great, thanks. Now the question becomes, should I go with a native lens... right now it’s between the SLR Magic 12mm, the Rokinon/Samyang 12mm or a Nikkor 20mm 3.5 on a speedbooster? As a reminder, my goal with the Micro, is as a barebones Cinema Camera that I can go handheld with, or rig out if necessary, but more importantly it’s purpose is to keep the kit as basic and cheap as possible with one or two lenses.

Thanks, and I agree. I am slowly warming up to B&W as a “why not” choice in my filmmaking instead of a “why” choice. I wont bore people with too many of the B&W conversions I did in the LR App, but the nuances in tones of 14bit color really helps to create a beautiful B&W image... much better than I am capable of doing with colorgrading. This shot was from a Nikkor 28mm f/2 lens. I graded it in FCPX with just the color board and some light curves. The B&W was converted in LR on my phone and I adjusted some of the Luminosity controls, added a touch of contrast and clarity... And this frame was shot with the Zeiss 25mm ZF... with the same workflow from color to B&W... I actually like the color version of those shots, which is a rarity for me, but I feel the B&W levels the field between my low rent hobby quality and something that could be seen in a real production... They still suck though and I have a lot of practicing to do. Anyway, it’s good to know that I can use LR in some capacity for future work. I assume once I get my new monitor/computer, I will download a trial version of the Adobe suite to see how I like it.

Same. 50mm on FF is the focal length I would choose if I could only afford one fast lens... and then I would save up for a cheap, slow 20 or 24mm for wide establishing shots or car interiors. The Micro sensor is a catch-22. On one hand, there is just something “magical” about that sensor but on the other hand, the crop factor makes it difficult to have a wide angle lens. And with native lenses, a lot of the interesting character in the sides and corners are cut off due to the crop. And even still, it’s difficult to find something that will translate to a 30mm or less without paying a small fortune for it.

At a certain point, I can only invest so much into this camera, my 5D3 is still my camera of choice for any major project I work on. I have some c-mounts that I can use and I have a growing collection of Nikkor lenses, so maybe a metabones speedbooster makes more sense... I saw one sell for $125 the other day. Well... to be fair... with the Micro you need to let in as much light as possible so a VND is necessary to minutely control the light and an IR Cut filter is an absolute necessity, so filter threads are kinda important.

Crazy enough, a few months ago I was going through my equipment and found a dozen old SD Extreme cards... I thought about the money I spent on them and it became one of the reasons I decided to buy another Micro. Shortly after that was when I found the trailer for that Cosmos movie that was shot entirely on ProResLT and with mostly one lens. I guess I was a little inspired by their experience and my circumstance... being cheap.

That’s true, but I am finding that 28 - 35mm is my preferred FOV and I rarely change lenses... I just zoom with my feet. The 12-35mm is an option for its OIS and the rare time I may need a 100mm FOV. They look great... is that with the NX1? I briefly had the lens with a GX85 a few years ago and liked it... and I especially like the price. It’s also something I can build on if I ever want the 21mm or the 7.5mm for wide shots. Thanks for the input!

I ended up buying a BMMCC for a steal and instead of a speedbooster, I was thinking about going with native lenses. I’m looking for a 12mm prime and have narrowed down my options to the Samyang/Rokinon cine, the SLR Magic 12mm 1.6 or the Olympus 12mm f/2. Any thoughts on any of those lenses? I should add that a friend of mine owns the Olympus 17mm, so I could borrow it from him if I need to. Also I have a Panny 12-60mm kit lens, so I could also pick up the 14mm 2.5 prime or the 20mm 1.7. I guess I could also swing the PanLeica 15mm if it’s head and shoulders above the rest. I bought the Micro to use for ultra short films and to mess around with so I want to keep the kit very basic... 1 or 2 lenses. I’m also considering the Panny 12-35mm 2.8 for the OIS and I would probably pick up the 20mm 1.7 for dialogue scenes and B-Unit shots.

Put a Moment Anamorphic on that bitch and go shoot a film.

Sony and Nikon’s AF looks electronic anyway. So who cares if they have it? If you want organic focus, pull it manually or use a Canon.

Thanks! Being a hobbyist, I don’t have a lot of time to practice, so unfortunately it’s been a slow path but it’s good to hear I’m going in the right direction.

That’s not too bad, I guess. I’ve been messing around with B&W lately and the controls in LR dwarf what I can do in FCPX... well at least it seems a lot easier. I graded the top shot in FCPX and then saved the frame, sent it to my phone and opened it in the LR app to do the bottom B&W... I’ll have to look around, maybe there’s a plug-in for FCPX that has similar controls as LR. Or maybe I’ll get a trial of the Adobe suite and give it a go. Thanks for your help! Thanks, that sounds cool. Of course, I love the clarity slider in LR, but I guess it’s similar to Midtone Detail in Resolve.

On my iPhone, the grass looks like burnt out, dead grass like you see in the middle of summer. I’m not surprised it’s a result of FilmConvert though, that program can be a little wonky sometimes.

I’ve never used After Effects but the sliders in Lightroom are so much more intuitive than hsl curves and wheels. The simple sliders in the LR app for clarity and contrast would be a breath of fresh air in an NLE. The Raw adjustments in Resolve just seem too... mathematical. Thanks, Kye... it sounds doable. Do you have a subscription for Lightroom?