Drew Allegre

"Set everything up"...there is only one setting mentioned for FCPX, or am I completely missing something? “Show HDR As Raw Values” is mentioned 3 separate times in the PDF. I'm not seeing any other settings mentioned other than the EOS match LUT, which isn't related to the HLG color issue.

I think it has a ways to go before I'd feel comfortable even in a light drizzle, tbh. Here's a battery door issue: https://blog.kasson.com/a7iii/sony-a7iii-battery-door-weather-sealing/ And then this with the A7RIII: I moved to the a7III now instead of waiting for Canon/Nikon mirrorless, because I'm moving away from shooting paid work and more to personal stuff. I figure by moving now, I'm maximizing the value on some of my higher ticket DSLR items (keeping plenty too). In the a7III, I'm also getting a pretty incredible "use it right now" tool that fits the mix of shooting that I'm doing these days. While I do long for 10 bit or raw, the 8 bit workflow and quality are admittedly sufficient for filming my kid trawling around on his balance bike. I'm personally hoping that Canon will (if not a home run) get an extra base hit with their FF mirrorless. I love Canon, and I loved the 5D3 and ML. I just wish they'd put a "sensible" 4k codec in whatever their FF mirrorless camera ends up being.

I'm excited to see what Nikon has to offer. I've already switched from a 5DIII to an a7III, at least partly because I wanted to divest some DSLR gear before these new Nikon and Canon systems hit. Imagine...a full featured mirrorless camera with proper weather sealing! BMP4K is the camera that I want to use. The a7III (and presumably whatever Canon and Nikon are cooking up) is the camera that makes the most sense for me to carry everyday...true hybrids with tons of useful functionality and a reasonably good image/codec (at least we can hope in the case of CaNikon).

Haha, I've grew up in small town KS, so I'm quite familiar with the backroads of the midwest. One of my favorite games to play is to just drive and flip a coin at an intersection every once in awhile and see where I end up. I'm currently in Fort Wayne, which is actually surprisingly rich with interesting subject matter and local art, so really no excuses there. That said, I have relatives that live in the shadows of both Rocky Mountain NP and Glacier NP...none of them have made a trip this direction for the purpose of scoping out the local terrain. My first serious run with the A7III will be next weekend. I'm due to cover a car show in a pretty idyllic looking little town, so hopefully I'll do it justice.

I must be daft, because I can't seem to get the "PP2" HLG3 clips to show up correctly in an FCPX (10.4.3) timeline. What's strange is that the thumbnails for the clips look too bright in the media pane. However, they show the correct levels when I scrub the clip in the media pain, but then it goes back to the incorrect brighter levels when I drop the clip into the timeline. I do have "Show HDR as raw values" in Preferences. Is there something obvious that I'm missing?

Agreed. I haven't had a chance to do anything serious with mine yet (and I live in freakin' Indiana, so there's that). But a lot of the stuff out there, and the "cinematic" examples on youtube, are pretty bad overall. I think a lot of people are upgrading from a6500 type cameras and they're more vloggers than filmmakers. The second example you posted is particularly nice, I think that's the best I've seen.

Well, I just purchased an a7III, and which native lens did I pick up... The 28 f/2 of course. I probably would have gone with the Batis 25, but the 28 seemed like an appropriate place to start. Size and weight (and cost) are definitely considerations for me. Agree with much of your reasoning on the 28.

I have a feeling mirrorless AF will surpass and leave SLR AF behind (if it hasn't already). If anything, that will drive the switch.

Nikon/Canon going FF or pro level mirrorless means developing a new pro level lens mount, which is the first step to obsoleting the massive F and EF mount lens systems. It's probably not something either company is thrilled about or in a huge hurry to do. No one really want to use adapted lenses, even if they're OEM.

Anyone have experience with this error?? 5D3 1.2.3 4K Crop build When I try to load raw modules I get: "Linking... tcc:error: undefined symbol 'lossless_decompress_raw' [E] filed to link modules" Regular nightly build works with no issues. I've tried clearing the card, formatting, reinstalling. Can't figure it out. Posted on the ML forums, but it's been 6 days and my post is still sitting there waiting on approval from a mod.

Looks like the width could be an issue for gimbal use.

I use the Takstar on my 5D3 for scratch audio and find that it compares well to the Rode Video Mic pro. I've used the Rode many times and just can not bring myself to pay $200+ for it. I guess it's good that they finally upgraded the shock mount system. The old one with the bands was terrible. For boom-able condensers that should be pretty usable indoors, there are the Samson CO2s (about $100 for a pair), and iSK has a couple options below $60. I agree that a wired lav would be a great inexpensive option if your situation allows for it.

This kind of reminds me of comparisons between 5D3 H264 and externally recorded ProRes. People would post Youtube videos and look for minute differences in IQ when it should have been fairly obvious that the most significant advantages of recording externally to ProRes were seen in workflow and processing. Of course, it seems like today's NLEs/CPUs are much more capable of working with long GOP footage than they were a few years ago.

I picked up an Octava Mk-012 on ebay (and yes, I researched the Chinese fakes). It was supposed to be the "movie" kit with a hyper, but it came with a cardioid. Still sounds pretty damn good to me in my tiny little 8x10 room that I call my office. But I'm going to send it back or sell it, because I found another one on ebay with all three capsules for $200, and I had to jump on that. Should have it by next week. So, my audio kit has gone from basically an H4n and whatever I can borrow to a Zoom F4, UWP-D11 kit, and the Mk-012. Total expenses including cables, a decent pair of headphones, and a few odds and ends = $1300. I'm confident that this project is going to sound significantly better than it would have with an H4n and AT875r. Thank you folks! The back and forth has actually been helpful. Lots of things to consider from a lot of different perspectives.

I'm not sure if aftermarket is the right word, but I'm talking about companies that don't actually make drives. I do care what company makes the drive and what actual drive model number I'm buying. What blackblaze publishes are reliability of companies/model numbers of drives by actual hard drive OEMs. I would think reports like blackblase show that the make/model of the drive can be pretty pertinent. I'm sure LaCie and G-tech are using solid drives, but what drives are they using (LaCie is obviously a Seagate of some sort)? We have multiple people in this thread with reports of multiple LaCie failures. That's not a statistical sample by any means, but that doesn't make the 5 year warranty all that comforting.

I personally don't buy into aftermarket drives like G-Technology and LaCie. Neither of these companies manufacture hard drives. Afaik, LaCie is owned by Seagate, but it's difficult to tell what drives they actually use, and I haven't figured out what OEM G-technology uses. The key, imho, with any hard drive is redundancy/backup and cost-efficiency in terms of performance and life. In terms of longevity, nothing is a guarantee no matter what drive you use, so it kind of comes down to cost/performance. In the past I've mostly stuck with WD Blacks and Reds. My latest purchase was a pair of HGST Deskstar NAS drives, and they have done very well so far. My setup is pretty lowtech, actually. I just use a couple of USB 3 docks running through a thunderbolt dock (and Chronosync to backup). Makes it easy to switch out drives and keep a copy offsite.

I have a Zoom f4 and the UWP-D11s on the way. I'm going to try out a few different boom mics to see what works well for me. It seems like the lesson when it comes to mics is that the ideal (or bang for the buck) choice is going to come down to what sounds best with the subject's voice in the environment that I'm recording, and that's not something that's going to be listed on the spec sheet. I'll test what I can that is locally available, and go from there if I feel like I need to rent or buy something. I'm hoping to test and learn (play with) equipment for the next week or so, and then jump into recording. I appreciate all of the advice. Will definitely run both the lav and boom for the main interviews and anytime the situation allows.

The Crane 2 is a gimbal style stabilizer. There are many gimbal style stabilizers on the market, but the Zhiyun products have a pretty decent reputation. It would be considered a solid pro-sumer level gimbal. It's important that you find a gimbal that supports the weight range of the camera and lens that you want to use (minimum weight can be an issue as can maximum weight). A stabilizer isn't required. It depends on your style of shooting and what you want to do, and what kind of camera movement you're trying to achieve if any. There are many different kinds and styles of camera support that you could use: tripods with fluid heads, sliders, gimbals (one handed or two handed), steadicam or glidecam style stabilizers, cranes, etc.

Really great discussion, and I appreciate the advice. I picked up a UWP-D11 set on ebay, so that should give me a baseline. For the interviews of the main subject, I think I'll definitely run a boom mic, whether it is a condenser or a shotgun. I've read up on the shotgun mic issue, and I don't think it will be a problem. I definitely understand diminishing returns...trying to get some bang for my buck with this project for sure. I'm asking around locally to see if anyone has anything that I can borrow or rent. So far, it sounds like I have access to a Rode M3 or an NTG1. I've listened to some samples and really like the sound of the M3, but I'm wondering if that will work in my situation where I'll probably have the mic 18" - 24" from the subject.

My understanding is that ML builds on years of work put into the CHDK (http://chdk.wikia.com/wiki/CHDK). So, it would likely be a long and tedious process for someone to develop similar hacks for other systems.

I'd read that shotguns weren't ideal for indoors, but I think I was confusing super cardioid shotguns with hyper cardioid mics. I think I may look into renting or borrowing a hyper cardioid (I live near Sweetwater, so I'm sure there is someone I know who can loan me something), and then maybe I'll invest in a lav setup, because it's something that I'd personally use more routinely. You helped me onto the next step, thanks! '

What I’m saying is, if you want to have a logical, rational discussion, you have to define a framework for the discussion. You can bring pop culture and politics into the discussion if you want, but then you’re debating something other than scientific research and theory. Of course it’s a complicated subject. That’s why no one reads white papers or studies. There are hundreds of them, on different scales, testing different variables in different realms. If you read these things, it’s difficult to weigh one study against another, or to understand a broader context, or to understand the implications of the study at all for that matter. But there does appear to be a trend. People have meandering debates about economics and politics and how they feel about this or that. You can play the follow the money game or debate political responses, broad models, sensationalist representations of abstracts. But to what end? People are good at manipulating. I think that’s been established. Not sure who in this thread is advocating for binary thinking.

What kind of working range do you typically get with the UWP-D11? Would it be usable at the back of a church (for wedding work) for instance? I've seen some people say 50-75 feet, which would be kind of limiting.

You're missing a huge gap of rationality that roughly sees observable evidence (including objective scientific analysis of that evidence) and consensus among current experts working in the field, studies, etc. very strongly pointing towards one general direction of this debate, but does not argue that "all is proven" or "we know it all". To claim "we know it all" would be unscientific by definition and pretty irrational. The problem with climate science is that it's extremely broad, and science doesn't really work well for communicating about extremely broad problems and questions. Studies on climate science are very specific, isolating specific variables within observable envelopes. Experts one one study or phenomenon probably aren't experts on another. There are few people who can broadly talk about climate change with authority, and do so in a way that a lay person can understand. There are a lot of people who can and are willing to spout sensationalist claims. Also, debating solutions or responses, and the politics surrounding them have nothing to do with debating the existence or nature of climate change. It's a separate topic. If you want to argue something rationally and logically, pick a topic and argue on the merits of that topic, not some tangential issue.

I'm about to embark on a little documentary/memoir project, and I need to do some indoor, seated talking head interviews. This is a low/no budget project that I'm doing for a friend, but I need to come up with some audio equipment. The interviews have the potential for some emotion, and I want to capture the emotion in the voice if possible. I'd like to be able to either record to an H4n or directly into a 5D3. My first thought was to pick up a wireless lav set, either a Sony UWP-D11 or Sennheiser G3/ME2 kit. The thought was I can use these for weddings (which I do occasionally), so the cost is pretty justifiable. Could possibly add something like a Countryman B3 to up the quality a little. Would I be better served with a shotgun mic on a stand? If so, are there options that work well with the H4n? I'm considering something like an AT875r or NTG4+ which are reasonably sensitive and I believe will work fine with the H4n. Anyone have experience with these combos vs either of the above lav kits for a talking head setting? I also have an Instamic Pro, which can be used as a lav/backup, but if there's a way to monitor it, I haven't figured it out. I could potentially rent gear as well, but I would likely be looking at several rental dates.