Trek of Joy

I personally like the Hero7 with its stabilization. Though the OSMO Action has some really nice features too including the front LCD. Does he need the benefits of an action cam specifically? The OSMO Pocket is also a pretty amazing little piece of kit. I initially dismissed it, but with updates its gotten a lot better and after shooting with it I've really grown fond of it, I use it more than my GoPro. The thread here has a lot of great video samples. I'd get something that you'd want to use if it didn't pan out. LOL, great electric guitar debacle. I did the same thing with drums when I was a kid. I did get a guitar and stick with it, but after the drums debacle my parents said no to a guitar, had to get a job and pay for it myself. Been playing for over 20 years now, so it paid off. Anyway. Chris

My bet is "video" will be trying to make inroads on volume/growth opportunities like surveillance cameras and the automotive world. Supposedly the auto industry was on track for about 150 million cameras for automotive use this year before COVID, which is double the volume from just a couple years ago. I doubt they're buying Olympus to make a significant investment in an entirely new product segment for a small slice of a rapidly declining market, while also pledging to make a profit. They're going to leave high end video cameras to the likes of Canon, Sony and Panasonic. Just like Nikon and Fuji. Just my opinion. Chris

Thanks for the info, I have ND's so I can make it work at 640 to avoid expanded ISO's. The other thing for me is I'm not very good at properly exposing SLog, I'm trying to get the hang of false colors or using different zebra levels to get it right, but I definitely need more practice with my typical scenarios like landscapes, talking head interviews, and sunrise/sunset shots. I recently picked up a Ninja V so the exposure tools beyond in cam zebras are new to me. But I will try Slog3 and HLG in addition to standard profiles and the Cine profiles. Cheers Chris

Great interview, hopefully the FP sells enough to avoid being a drain on other resources. Cameras seem like a real passion project and they definitely take a different approach compared to the mainstream brands. Seems like a second generation of refinements, AF improvements and better processing could make the FP a real giant killer. Like others I'd like to see them move beyond the giant, wide aperture primes and the 2.8 zoom trinity. There's plenty of demand for smaller 1.8 primes as we've seen by the popularity of Sony's 20/35/85 1.8's and well reviewed third party lenses like the Samyang 45/75 1.8's. I love the rendering of the 35/1.2 - it looks like the best 35 ever made - I just don't want to carry it around all the time. Given the size of the new 85/1.4, there's hope Sigma lenses won't always be so damn big. I love supporting companies like Sigma, I'm glad they're around. Chris

I'm not speaking in absolutes, but some buy speedbosters to get shallower DOF or reduce the crop factor. That's why I said its an individual thing. I'm aware of the other aspects, but that's not what I was talking about. Yes there's no FF specific aesthetic, but there's no lens available that gets me the same thing I get with a 24/1.4 or 135/1.8 with smaller sensors. Aesthetic was just a poor choice of words for DOF at a given FOV. But again its an individual thing, I shoot with available light and I need photos for everything I shoot. For me FF has significant advantages over everything else, its the sweet spot of size/cost/IQ - for me. YMMV. Cheers Chris

Its such an individual thing, its an impossible discussion to have - hence the millions of mind-numbing arguments about equivalence. They're all tools that can get the job done. IMO the best balance of IQ with camera/lens size and cost is FF for stills and now - for me - video too. I need great AF, and really don't want to juggle two (or more) sets of lenses anymore. Now that FF cameras have some mind blowing video specs, its all come together - again for me. Personally I like the look of a fast wide, my 24 or 28/1.4 is my favorite, and I can only get that on a FF. Fuji's 16/1.4 and various m43 options come close, but its just not the same. I can't imagine the size of a Fuji equivalent to Sony's minuscule 24/1.4 GM since they said the 33/1.0 needed a tripod collar for support and was too large/expensive to make a reality. The new 50/1.0 is huge. I like the creative options with shallow DOF at times too, and again its much easier with FF. But I recognize everyone has different needs, I'm not trying to say one is better, I just prefer the IQ and aesthetic options FF gives me. The arguments against FF years ago - mainly big/expensive lenses and bodies - are a thing of the past when you look at the Tamron zooms and lenses like the Sony 20G, 24GM, 85 1.8 and so on - compared to Olympus Pro primes or something like that new Fuji 50/1.0. Unless you shoot Panasonic's S lenses LOL! Its easy to go small/light, or no compromise with IQ or speed and thanks to so many jumping in on the E-mount, there are more 3rd party options than anything on the mirrorless side. I'm deliberately ignoring DSLR stuff because I don't shoot anything with a mirror anymore. But when you look at the popularity of speedboosters, lots shooting sensors smaller than FF are still looking for that FF aesthetic. IDK, just my perspective. As always YMMV. Chris

Your needs aren't everyones. I just sent some stuff to an agency for print/digital work, a cropped image from the a73 that was about 16mp and they asked if I had a larger version. Sometimes I need a heavy vertical/horizontal crop for things like banner or sidebar type ads, so most of the image is thrown away. Even with 24" prints there's a noticeable difference between 42mp files from the a7r2/3 and the 12mp files from a7s2, I shot both extensively and its easy to tell which camera shot which image. This "normal viewing distance" stuff people constantly throw out is bullshit. I've found people constantly get right up against a print and look at the details, for me more is better and it has zero to do with poor composition. Its about getting the end product I want, even if I need to crop. Sometimes I look at a shot and see a second image that's completely different just by cropping a large chunk out. I shot tons of safari stuff and cropping to get details like a tight shot of a face or texture in feathers gives an entirely new perspective, same when I shoot automotive stuff. I do the same thing with landscapes too, lots of times you can just crop the foreground and get a dramatic sky shot without wasting sunrise/sunset light trying to reframe to get different angles. Most of the time I'm chasing a short window of perfect light, I don't waste it reframing and moving around, I just crop. I like the creative freedom more mp gives me. The s3 - for me - is going to be for video and social photos only. I need more mp for my regular work, the a73 is minimum for my stills work. YMMV. Chris

The R6 crushes it because Canon has a significantly larger user base, a vastly better lens selection thanks to seamless integration with EF lenses and class leading AF. Photographers buy more cameras than video centric users, and right now the L-mount options are limited and pretty overpriced compared to the competition. Panasonic was just too late to the game. The a7c and a74 will easily co-exist at similar price points, those looking for something more compact will go with the a7c, those wanting dual cards and more controls will get the a74. The a74 inherits bits from other cameras already in production, development costs are much lower, my prediction is it won't see a significant price increase, maybe a bump to something like $2198, but with the way the market is cratering who knows. I thought the a7s3 would be more like 3800-3900 and its 3500. I'm sure the s5 will make its users happy, but its still going to get smashed by Canon and Sony's ~$2k offerings. Chris

The a6600 is $1198. That’s a far cry from $2000. The a7IV isn’t going to get a $500 price hike as it’s a parts bin camera, it’s just cobbled together with tech developed from other cameras In a down spec body. The S5 is DOA for anyone that’s not a Panny die hard mostly because of its trash AF compared to the competition and other hits from the cripple hammer. The R6 and the now ancient a7III will easily crush it. And the a7IV is going to mop the floor with all of these, unless the a7c turns out to be something special instead of just a small FF body. I’m glad Panasonic keeps trying, it pushes Sony and others on the video spec sheet. But this camera with its crippled spec, chintzy EVF and lack of PDAF should be $1200, not $2000. Panasonic’s only way to make inroads is to beat everyone on price in the segment, not to be more expensive than the competition. If they can’t get class leading AF, this line won’t last past the second generation. Chris

I think many are waiting for Fuji to expand their IBIS cameras, odd they haven't given how many variations they have under the XT/XH/Xpro premium lines. Chris

The a7III also has just contrast, saturation and sharpness like every other Sony camera. Interesting there are so many more options to tweak the standard profiles now. I've been using Cine2 (over the seemingly more popular HLG) with the a7III to avoid Slog headaches and have a lower minimum ISO since I always shoot in the sun, its unavoidable in Florida LOL! Will be interesting to see how Cine2 and HLG translates to 10-bit 4:2:2 footage. Chris

No, I'm just getting it from B&H. As it stands I only have one Sony body and two lenses, the 12-24/4 and the 24 GM, I'll need the s3 and I think another Sony lens to get pro support - but I'm probably getting the 35/85 1.8's so that should get me there unless I go Batis 40/85 instead. My order was processed just a few seconds after it went live and this is such a niche camera its not going to be in short supply with almost 2-months of lead time from announcement to ship date. IMO if it had 24mp or so it would be far more appealing to more photo-centric users because of the EVF and AF advancements. But that just means we'll get it faster LOL! Chris

Fuji can't seem to get theirs sorted either, its hot garbage with the way the image moves. Sony's gyro data post stabilization looks amazing from the samples I've seen. IMO that's why the a7s3 only shows modest improvements over other current Sony bodies, they're focusing on refining the new gyro stabilization system.

XT-40 seems most likely, that model always follows the flagship XT by 6-8 months or so. Its about time to give it an update too with a better EVF and some body refinements. Chris

$1000 f/1.8 primes? I know pricing isn't based on competition and someone else's model since their costs are different than Sony and Canon and so on, but Panasonic is drunk with their lens prices. Meanwhile Sony has a range of great primes at 20/35/55/85 from $600-900, with the excellent 20mm being the most expensive. Its like they don't want people to actually buy the camera. They're not going to slow the Sony train with these and others like the $2300 50/1.4. At least there's Sigma with the excellent DG DN lenses. 1.8 have become the new 1.4 - but only in price. SMH. Chris

Yes, the 10-bit, all-i, S&Q 4k 120 and the HD240 are the options that require the CFA cards. I'm going to get one because I want the full glory of 10-bit and 240fps without long gop compression. For the rest I'm getting a couple v90 cards. On the a7s3 FB group people are constantly asking about the cheapest cards to use in this camera or if a v60 card will record XXX framerate in XX resolution. I never understand these questions, if you're spending $3500 on a body for your projects, don't you want reliable recording? The difference between a 128gb v60 and v90 card isn't much. You can get two Kingston or Prograde 128gb v90 cards for about $250, pennies compared to the cost of the camera and none of this nonsense about "will this card work if I'm shooting...." Anyway. Three more weeks till it ships... Chris

It wouldn't take much to have a raw internal version of the C70, just make it the new C100. Then they can do higher priced FF versions of the R5/6, just go with C5/C6. You can have lower priced models without raw and high frame rates and higher priced tiers with everything. I'll still wait for the R5 to be fully functional though. Chris

I bet this is the lower priced rumor, the $3499 camera. IMO, its Canon's response to Blackmagic and Zcam, with superior EF lens integration and DPAF. There's easily room above this with a no-limits version capturing internal raw and tiers using the R5/R6 FF sensors. The form factor is more appealing to me over the C1/2/3/500's, but still looks bulky. The only Canon I'll buy is an R5/R6 without all the fake issues. Chris

CR just posted about another upcoming FW update confirmed by Canon: Canon EOS-1D X Mark III Canon Log 3 option Lower bitrate option for 5.5K RAW video recording Lower bit rate option for all IPB video recording modes Canon EOS R5 Canon Log 3 option Lower bit rate option for 8K RAW video recording Lower bit rate option for all IPB video recording modes Addition of the 119.88 fps option for Full HD (1080p) recording

Canon gave R5 owners 5 whole minutes of extra potential recording time - they're clearly listening to customer feedback reaching Fuji level firmware improvements. Sarcasm. The DPreview video has the same results after shooting still photos, pretty much confirms its all artificial limitations. You have to wonder if they would have even done this without all the backlash and those looking into the issue. Keep holding their feet to the fire. Chris

That seems to be the case, but its a head scratcher. I was set to go all in on the RF mount with the R5, and RF lenses aren't cheap. I bought a R and the RF 24-70/2.8, I was set to get the holy trinity. I'll never buy a C300 - ever - as I need portability and the photo capabilities, but I was set to spend $10k+ and likely get the R6 down the line. More people buying into the system in a steeply declining market is a good thing as the lens lineup continues to grow, shame Canon doesn't see it that way. Chris

The "hack" only removed record time limits and the NTSC/PAL warning, all of which is no longer an issue with the current gen cameras. I seriously doubt the chance to sell $10-20 apps was derailed by someone bypassing that annoying NTSC/PAL warning. They said it was changes in code that made the newer cameras not compatible with the apps. Though I wonder if there was any profit in the apps, not sure if they sold in the volume needed to continue development, its not like smartphone apps that are downloaded by the tens or hundreds of million. Chris

Some tests and a review from Brandon Li. Chris

Nice. Did you use the Noam Kroll LUT's here? I've used the Leeming LUT with the a7III for the last year and a half, I've been really happy with the results. Unrelated, but I live in Florida, seems like a ton of these communities are popping up. Those shots look great. Thanks for following up. Chris

Quite frankly after seeing these tests - this is just an incredible hybrid camera engineering feat. I get why its crippled, but holy hell Canon absolutely smashed all competitors with this. You can bet Nikon is picking this apart to see how they brought it all together. If it remains artificially crippled I'm staying far away from anything Canon. A simple firmware fix can make this the beast Canon originally advertised. Unleash the beast and I'm back in. Chris