Django

That's a bit of an old trope. Sony color science has made tons of progress and now with chunky 10-bit codecs you can get really nice IQ. As for overheating, not a problem on FX series which have active cooling. AF is definitely ahead of Fuji/Panny.

I'd still recommend XH2S if you're on Fuji system. It has the best (stacked) sensor out of those cams. 6.2K Open Gate with very low rolling shutter and ProRes. The AF & IQ will be a major upgrade from XT3. Film simulations should take care of you since you don't wanna color grade. FX30 features might not be that useful to you if you're not into grading or don't need TC etc. In that case you'll probably benefit more from the XH2S sensor, resolution & codecs. That said, you can't really go wrong with any of those 3 cameras, definitely top choices in that $2.5K budget range.

Keep in mind A7IV has very poor RS (26.8ms) so not really ideal for sports/action. 4K60p also has a 1.5x crop so it basically becomes APS-C & 4K120 is absent. If you add to that the overheating that makes A7IV a rather poor choice if you're planning on shooting beyond 4K30p..

Oh I know bro, I own an FS7 so I know its a workhorse. But FF and even APS-C mirrorless have more refreshed sensors so not really a surprise they handle lowlight or DR better. I still think the FS7 has a certain mojo to its IQ, just like older Canon does despite being inferior on paper/charts. And of course the Alexa is already a cult classic still in heavy use despite more recent ARRI cams with higher resolution/specs.

No I don't use much lighting when run & gunning. Most low light I do is concerts and events and I'll use the available lighting for realistic ambience. I mostly shoot fast prime lenses so not a big issue. On Canon I'll usually go with the Canon 50mm F1.2 & 35mm F1.4 wide open. On Sony I shoot with the Zeiss 35mm F1.4 & Batis prime series. And for zoom the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8. I also don't mind crushing blacks and using a little NR. Whatever works. If I get the FX30 I'd surely go for those new 7artisans T1.05 cine primes I was talking about the other day.

I can understand the FX3's uncropped 4K120 being a clear advantage but the "I like FF look better" sounds pretty arbitrary. YMMV. Personally I like the FX30 better for video because the 6K oversampled video, 26MP stills, S35 & FF third party lens support (with speed booster), the more usable dual ISO range, the less aggressive NR, and of course 50% more affordable price tag. In fact with the last firmware update, chances are it is going to be my next camera (just waiting on the next few Sony releases of which another FX body is rumoured to be coming by this summer with the new AI chip/features). By the way, was surprised to see French pétanque being played in NYC although I guess it is in fact its Italian bocce cousin!

yep 24p footage will aways look more cinematic than 60p footage as far as motion no matter the camera, sensor size etc. not sure what is so hard for you to understand. No, I'm just replying to people like you that keep quoting me on the subject. It's ok btw, we don't have to agree but if this topic upsets you so much, just stop arguing about it like the other guy did. we had already moved on until you came back to it..

Well sorry to disappoint ya mate, but what isn't clickbait on YT these days? 🙃 Title aside, I think his point is fairly valid, let's face it S35 has generally been at a disadvantage when it comes to low-light vs FF so having access to these new APS-C T1.05 lenses can certainly help mitigate low-light and shallow DoF when compared to FF. Yet another solution may be to use a speed booster. Also C300ii & FS7 are fairly old cameras, even the Alexa Classic/Mini was never really considered a "lowlight cinema champ". It gets noisy above 800 despite its huge latitude. Its a camera meant for controlled environments. In this sense, the FX30 could potentially beat it at its 2500 higher base ISO. But the Alexa sensor uses DGO tech not dual base ISO so really apples and oranges. And the C70's DGO handles differently than the Alexa ALEV, cleaner shadows but harsher highlight rolloff. I'm also not sure what you mean by FX30 is one stop less than "modern FF counterpart"? Because the A7S/FX3/FX6 FF sensor surely is more than one stop better at high ISO with its 12800 higher base ISO vs 2500. Depends what value we're comparing. Now of course in the end noise tolerance is subjective and some cameras have more pleasant noise than others. NR is also a big factor. One positive thing about the FX30 is it apparently has less aggressive NR than its FF Sony counterparts.

Its really going to depend on your lens choice and at what frame rate you're capturing. 4K60/4K120 is going to be a challenge in lowlight, especially with slower glass. Fast glass and/or a speed booster can help mitigate lowlight performance. I've noticed quite a couple FX30 users have been pairing it with 7Artisans new affordable APS-C T/1.05 cine prime lenses for such purposes:

not even tom cruise can approve !

Continuing its steady avalanche of camera roll-outs, Sony is expected to release 5 new E-mount cameras this year alone, including some sort of cine/video centric camera later this Spring and an FX10 by this summer with the same 26MP FX30 sensor but with AI processor (expect ZV-E1 features) plus an added mechanical shutter but no IBIS at an entry-level price. An oversampled 6K sensor should make better sense for the AI and stab cropping stuff.

Those attributes go without saying but I disagree about motion being "negligible for the viewer". If you have a +120hz TV from Samsung or LG its quite easy for you to test: activate clear motion (which artificially doubles the frame rate) on your favourite indie classic and watch it get ruined with disgraceful soap-opera effect. No lighting, framing, color grading or acting will save it from that. That being said, not everything needs to be "cinematic". Adding faux widescreen black bars is a form of frame crippling. I'm actually a fan of 3:2 & 4:3 open gate. Its quite refreshing not having the height cropped. Vertical makes sense on a handheld phone, that's about it. Fortunately open gate allows multi aspect ratios so its a win-win. Hopefully more manufacturers start implementing open-gate on video centric cameras. It has more uses than anamorphic support.

LOL.. lighten up man, why would I be annoyed over some random dude posting random videos of random people in a random widescreen 60p combo? Like I told you, keep doing you, this is just a topic of conversation. My opinion stands though, it looks goofy. You claim it is the future, will widescreen fluid hyper real 60p motion trend? I personally don't think so. Most people see 4K60p on YT and skip the video (it doesn't stream well on your average device). Netflix only does 24p/25p/30p. Some films tried 48fps and flopped. Clear motion on Samsung TVs usually gets disabled immediately. Old cine standard or not, audiences don't seem to respond well to those higher fps. Heck even hot vlog cameras like Sony's ZVE1 tout a 24p cinematic mode. Looks like young people are trying to emulate cinema, not soap operas. 60p motion will always have that budget network TV look that is associated with local news, sports, reality tv.. etc. It has nothing to do with "rigid beliefs" or any particular cinema standard. It is what it is. A certain aesthetic. And no amount of resolution, DR, CS, codec bitrate or aspect ratio will change that. Just accept it instead of being in denial about it. 🙂 Moving on to a related note, the FX30 V2 reviewer I posted earlier mentions the new DCI 4K option goes to 48fps max so unless he's mistaken how are you even shooting DCI 4K @ 60p?

I'm just giving you my honest opinion. If you can't handle it, don't post. There is no loosening up. 60p output = soap-opera, home-video look in my book. Again a good middle ground is 30p. Call me narrow-minded if you please but I'm afraid you are alone here on this one. But yeah keep fighting the good fight! As for equipment constraints? Any smartphone can do 4K60p today. 1080P60 has been in every consumer camera for over a decade. Consumer camcorders only used to shoot in 60p. It was the default standard on broadcast TV all during the late 70s/80s/90s and still today on certain networks. 60p is nothing new. But aside from fast action sports, news reports or Wheel of Fortune type TV shows I don't really see a use for it today other than slow-mo. But hey, maybe I'm wrong and you're on to something lol.

FWIW I don't do black bars for faux cine sake. Only if shooting anamorphic do those widescreen aspect ratios make sense to me, ideally using open gate. Same with DCI, the only point is gaining extra pixels on the side. If its just cropping in cam I don't see the point. correct which is why shutter angle is useful, just follow 180 degree rule.

So why the 2:39 aspect ratio if you are not attempting to ape narrative film? Surely you know that is the old historical Panavision/Cinemascope aspect ratio? Combining that with a sport-oriented 60p motion is just super odd. And I'm the one that cannot get out of a particular mindset? Mkay.. stick to your quirky formula. I dunno of anyone doing it like that but that's ok -you do you- I'm just trying to help you understand why me and others here find it so jarring. Me? I am not stuck in a "cinema mindset". The current standard for broadcast here in Europe is 25p. 50i is the old 80s/90s standard and has the dreaded soap-opera / home-video look. It is somewhat similar in the US although you have dated broadcast standards (FOX,ABC) still using 720p 60i. 1080p cable network uses 30p natively and premium sport channels can go up to 4K60p. So you see it has nothing to do with cinema actually. Personally I shoot mostly at 25p, sometimes 30p, rarely 24p. 60p/120p/240p for slow-mo only. This is pretty much the norm today.

99% people shoot 60p for slow motion purposes on a cine cam. here is for example your parade in 60p conformed to a more standard 30p timeline for slow-mo: 30p is a good in between if you want more fluid motion. Direct 60p output is what gives the dreaded "soap opera" look or "home video" look or "camcorder" look, pick your choice of attributes. The reason why a lot of sports is shot at 60p is to allow the editor to slow-down the footage during replay. The fast motion is also suited to fast action. Shooting humans at regular motion in 60p just feels awkward. That said you are free to do as you please and "innovate" with your faux cine/tv broadcast combo of high motion widescreen aspect ratio..

So the DCI 4K in this update is revealed to be fake.. it just crops the image to make it fit 17:9. You don't gain any width like on a proper DCI mode. This is so lame and not so different from the fake ZV-E1 cinematic mode. SMH Sony. Other weirdness:

Yeah typical consumer approach that harkens back to their roots in electronics. Nothing new but its getting worse with currently 9 full-frame alpha bodies to choose from. Also Sony are no longer alone in the mirrorless scene so it would be nice if they took cues from their competitors that mostly all offer regular updates. But as long as their consumers keep quiet and upgrade cameras at every chance like sheep they'll stick with that philosophy. I think it'll eventually backfire if they don't adapt as there are growing concerns over this but we'll see if they listen or stick to their guns..

Same when I read this was the major update that turns it into a proper cine cam I thought surely shutter angle is there. What's crazy is that its the most requested feature since cameras release and surely the easiest to implement yet no dice even though we're up to V3.0. Odd to say the least, considering every other FX/FS line camera has the feature built-in from the start. I guess this is further proof FX3/FX30 are managed under the alpha stills division. They haven't got their priorities straight..

@herein2020 Well its no secret Sony is the new Canon when it comes to cripple strategy. Like I've said before such is the syndrome of leadership position. Canon have actually been great with firmware updates recently and they include things like DCI, RAW internal in their upper end non cine line hybrids. Canon claim R6ii uses a tweaked version of Digic X with lower power consumption for less heat and longer recordings. It also has the latest DPAF II engine with AI deep learning. So I don't know how much can be ported over to R5, an older gen camera already pretty crammed with features and prone to overheat. But I digress, Canon segments as well and one should buy a camera for what it does on day one. Sony just feels extra greedy towards their customers with an avalanche of product releases pushing regular hardware upgrades instead of giving you via free firmware updates (FX3/FX30 3.0 features should have been there on initial release). Obviously its a smart business strategy until it backfires and ppl switch to other systems. Panasonic does have the best reputation plus they don't over charge their products here in Europe like Canon & Sony do. Yeah no open gate is maddening (also on Canon). They're only just starting to give out DCI options so Open Gate is probably yet another decade away. 🙄 Also only two de squeeze options (1.33x & 2x) on the new firmware which is super limited considering all the affordable 1.5x, 1.6x, 1.8x anamorphic lenses out there.

You seem to have a complete lack of perspective and nuance from people not in your shoes. See to me FX3 isn't really a trade up. Losing the EVF and stills UI isn't something I'm particularly interested in giving up on a compact camera as a hybrid shooter. Again for true cine needs I have an FS7 which by the way has DCI 4K, LUT support, Cine EI, TC and many more important things FX3/FX30 don't even have (ND's, SDI etc) since day one. These are obviously important features to me or I would not own such a camera. But in the end this isn't about me, this isn't about you. This is about Sony doing the right thing for their customers. Hence the complaints that again don't just come from me but from many users, including Sony ambassadors. If you truly do understand Sony's bad behaviour than I don't even know what you're trying to argue besides thinking you know best what's the right tool for my job. If I'm blowing hot air, you're certainly grasping at straws here.

Listen I did not create this thread, however it is a valid topic which I'm participating in. You on the other hand keep defending Sony's position over and over again. Says more about you then it does about me I'm afraid. I'm actually glad Sony is finally giving FX3/FX30 much awaited cine features. All I said if you go back to my earlier post announcing the update yesterday, was that adding breathing comp to FX3 proves it can also be ported to A7Siii (something you claimed earlier was not possible due to hardware by the way). Not holding my breath for DCI 4K as they've never put that in a non cine alpha camera. Oh and by the way I don't need to switch.. I have an FS7 for all my pro cine feature needs.

Yeah well I still consider FX3/FX30 alpha cameras, I'm pretty sure they are managed by the stills division not the cine line. In any case since they are branded FX and marketed towards that, I do think it is good Sony are finally giving those cameras actual cine features like DCI 4K etc. Why they are still withholding shutter angle is a bit of a mystery though.. Its like we can't give away too much too soon.

Do you work at B&H or something? Most people I know don't upgrade cams every 6 months. And what about those that are hybrid shooters or that require an EVF? Ton of pros hung on to their A7Siii for that. Not everyone is a 100% videographer. Not everyone is even a professional. That's beside the point really. And its not "whining" to express dissatisfaction to Sony with an obvious cripple hammer strategy on such a high-end product. Its the most effective way to get them to listen and perhaps reconsider. Kudos to the influencers and even Sony ambassadors that have the balls to do so. I also see no issue with switching systems over this, brand loyalty is often challenged over such policies. Everyone is free to do as they want with their investments. Implying otherwise is certainly not professional, unless you're on the Sony payroll of course.