BTM_Pix

As a combo based on what was presented I thought the Samsung looked better but,yeah,there are are a lot of variables involved in the test that are influencing that

Nice test. The NX1+16-50 combo battered the XT-2+18-55 for me. I was watching it with trepidation as it was going along though thinking "I hope he didn't hang around Piccadilly Gardens to do the high ISO tests"

Cheers

And no doubt many garbage ones. Hence why I was asking longer term owners if they had any recommendations for them....

I've had mine a few weeks but had no time to really test it but I'm struggling without ND filters. What are you guys using? I was having a little mess around with it earlier today just learning to fly it really (frame grab attached) and I've got no issue with sharpness but without ND its hitting 1/4000th which makes it look pretty terrible in motion.

I have that exact MBA actually so thats an interesting test! My idea is that I can use the eGPU with my 2015 MBP then pass the project on to the MBA and hook it up to that to carry on so the cost will be shared between them I suppose. Food for thought about the Hackintosh actually Cheers

Don, have you got a "This enclosure definitely works with this graphics card and will be plug and play with FCPX/Resolve without modifying system files and rebooting in a certain order whilst standing on one leg" recommendation for an eGPU? I've got a couple of year old MacBook Air that got thrashed through getting one too many pitch side soakings (its screen looks like a lava lamp and its internal keyboard and trackpad can only type some sort of Klingon) but which I'd love to find some use for as a render station to hand stuff off to so my MacBook won't be tied up doing it and it sounds like the eGPU would be just the ticket?

Often the best position to be in when it comes to creativity though isn't it? Thats why most band's first albums are their best, because they wrote and perfected the songs without a clock or an accountant in the room.

I took one of these cheap shoulder/chest mounts on a flight a few weeks ago and when its folded for travel it looks uncannily like the sort of sub machine gun the French military use. Because I had so little space in my bag I had to lay it side down as well so in profile from the top down view of the x ray machine it looked exactly like one! So you can imagine my anxiety putting it through. They pulled the bag but not because of the massive gun shaped object but went off their tits because I'd left a travel size tube of toothpaste in there. I'm always amazed at the inconsistency between airports though about what they want you to take out separately. When I fly out of Spain I have to take absolutely every camera, lens and battery out to go through separately for no apparent reason as I hardly think ThinkTank have started lining their bags with lead so the x ray machine can't penetrate it. Yet flying back anywhere from the UK I have yet to find enough electronics that I can jam in a bag that fazes them. And believe me, I've tried. "Been buying every lithium ion battery that Amazon sell have we sir? No problem. Just make sure there's no toothpaste in there" Makes me think they make it up as they go along.

3 isn't a great range scale for a rumour is it? That only gets you from almost certainly true to could be true to no way is that true. Or from Elvis is dead to Elvis is alive to Elvis is alive and spearheading an alien invasion of 9 foot cyborgs in rhinestone clad jumpsuits. I might start a rumours site with a Spinal Tap scale where the rumours go up to 11.

Its definitely there when I click it.... Just to double check, I've refreshed the link on Mega So try this one, should be 79.6mb https://mega.nz/#!0zRB1QIJ!uycAhx4pUJ_E_sT37FmA40xanloyd0tNJa0OjVdcDsg

On thing I've found with the X-T2 Jon is setting the custom AFC mode to Suddenly Appearing Subject is very, very good at acquiring and releasing focus when you step in and out of the frame. And as if to be contrary to my own mantra of automatically just using AF when I'm doing my real job, because of the absence of any wide aperture long primes from Fuji I shot yesterday's one all manual focus with a Nikon 300 f2.8 on the XT-2. The quality of the EVF on the XT-2 and their focus peaking made it a breeze to be honest and thats a hybrid solution I'm probably going to try out on tonight's job which will be far more challenging light and subject tracking wise. It's a pity they don't offer that EVF as a standalone product to be honest

A few seconds excerpt of two of the original JLOG clips as requested by @Alt Shoo Cinema 2K ProRes 422LT https://mega.nz/#!0zRB1QIJ!uycAhx4pUJ_E_sT37FmA40xanloyd0tNJa0OjVdcDsg JVC's JLOG LUT is available here http://pro.jvc.com/prof/attributes/software_dow.jsp?model_id=MDL102318&feature_id=17

They're grabs from some footage. If I get chance when I get back from this trip then I'll put a small clip of the original jlog up.

Everything is a workaround and a compromise with AF at the moment trying to resolve the two basic truths which is that the camera is far smarter and faster than I am at nailing focus but I'm far smarter and faster than it is at picking what it should be focusing on. Its currently like my other half and her shoe shopping. I can get us to the shop far quicker and more efficiently than she can but have absolutely no informed idea whatsoever about what shoes to choose when we get there. The light field stuff will eventually solve the focus thing for us (and Panasonic's post focus function is a nod to that with stills albeit a simulation using high fps rather than something like the Lytro) so its just a question of finding workarounds along the route until the technology catches up to make that viable for motion at a sensible level. I doubt we'll ever solve the shoe thing though ! I do apply the end product of the endless tweaking of AF for stills in a just about still making actual money industry but yeah I'd certainly make more money tuning cars instead of AF !

Its interesting how when you're using a hybrid camera you'll switch your mindset when you switch your modes. On Wednesday, when I'm using the X-T2 for shooting some build up footage of fans around the stadium then it'll be in manual focus all the way but then as soon as I'm inside and flick the switch to stills mode then I'll be using every tweakable part of its autofocus system to the maximum I can manipulate it to in order to get the shots I need. I could probably do both equally as well using a common fairly simple AF setting to be honest but its just ingrained in as being 'the way you're supposed to do it' isn't it? Sticking dogmatically to both has caused me problems with missing focus when using manual in video and - just as problematic- disappearing up my own arse tweaking AF modes and custom ballistics and actually degrading AF performance. For stills, I often use a hybrid of constant AF-C for tracking players but then a quick jab on the AF-On button to zone focus if its a fixed action like a corner kick or penalty where the AF system can get triggered by closer players crossing the frame. It easy doing that with stills though as you just keep the focus point on centre frame and quickly point the camera temporarily where you want it to set the zone. Different for video where you need to keep rolling with the camera in a fixed position and its not always possible to use touch focus or even move the focus point selector stick if it has one like the X-T2. Thats why I'm interested in the Aputure lens regain focus system in that you can effectively use it to make two focus zones and rapidly switch between them and I think the way forward is for a camera manufacturer to incorporate that with multiple zones that perhaps have aperture and iso integrated into them. On the Ricoh GR for example, it has a Snap Focus function that you set at a defined distance and then select your aperture and shutter speed. It illustrates the depth of field in front and behind the focus point for that distance set with the aperture selected and then the auto ISO takes care of the exposure given the aperture and shutter you've selected. This means that if you do a full press of the shutter it won't AF but will take the shot on manual focus with those settings. If you do a half press, it will AF as normal. It makes it incredibly good for street shooting as after a little bit of practice you get proficient at estimating the best working distance to set the focus point at (and your increasing accuracy means you can set wider apertures) and you can take the shot without bringing your eye to the screen for long if at all in a lot of cases if you are trying to be stealthy. For a lot of run and gun video, as its akin to street photography in many ways, a two or three zone system like that operated from user buttons on the camera would be a good hybrid solution option for me. So I could have a near zone at say f2.8, a mid zone at f5.6 and a far zone at f11 and when I pressed each one it would change the focus distance, aperture but also the ISO to keep the exposure consistent and that way I could be confident that I could quickly get something in focus. I also think we might see some tag based AF being incorporated into hybrid cameras fairly soon. Either physical tags like the Soloshot system or screen based ones like on the Osmo Mobile or Mavic to track multiple subjects on a priority selection basis. The LS300 has a priority selection mode in its Face Detect AF but I haven't tried it as yet. People are used to it at the consumer level with things like the Osmo Mobile and the selfie drones and its one of those things that will filter up rather than down. Might not be for everyone but I could definitely see this sort of thing being a boon for people who shoot weddings to set the bride as the MVP in any shot she wanders through via a small wearable tag.

It looks brilliant. But they all do when other people are using them. When I get my hands on one it looks like I was shooting while walking over a path of upturned Lego and 3 pin mains plugs. Does anyone know if Pilotfly's place in Augsburg is an actual retail premises where you can go and try one and get help setting it up?

No, the C/Y>MFT speedbooster doesn't arrive til next week so I was manually speedboosting by stepping back a bit! Shot in Cinema 2K so I could have the option (which I used !) of the extra range on the long end using the Prime Zoom function. Its a push pull, which isn't ideal but its a hell of a lens for the well under £300 you can get them on eBay for. Some user reviews here http://www.photographyreview.com/cat/lenses/35mm-zoom/contax/vario-sonnar-t-28-85mm-f3-3-4-zoom/prd_84513_3128crx.aspx

I did of course mean the Contax Zeiss 28-85mm and not 24-80mm

Its the Aviva Stadium and used for both rugby and soccer.

Mmmm.... Collage app exported that with a saturation boost for some reason. Should've been a bit more subdued.

EDIT I wouldn't argue with that at all to be fair. In the right hands (not mine I hasten to add!) its a very capable little performer.

The face detect AF is just as good as the GH5 too I save the file locally and drag it onto the bottom of the reply. Not sure how you do it if its hosted elsewhere though.

Used the LS300 in anger a bit more at yesterday's job doing some quick pre-match build up stuff. Really hard contrasty light and I haven't tested enough to know how much can be pulled up if you ETTR and so as I was in a rush many, many highlights were harmed in the making of it! Cinema 2K, JLOG and Contax Zeiss 24-80