newfoundmass

As it seems more and more likely this is real, I'm just filled with disappointment. I've got a hard decision to make soon: do I run my M43 kit until I have to switch systems or do I sell my kit now while it still has decent monetary value that I can put towards a new system? And what system do I go with? Ugh.

I do but shouldn't! 😭😭😭

It's so self sabotaging, because by doing this to your customers pretty much ensures that they're never going to buy your products again. I love my GH5. I love the XLR adapter. It is such a compact set up. I use it for everything from filming pro wrestling to interviews. I don't have to build up a rig unless I want to... just throw a lens on, connect the XLR adapter and you can get excellent results. No fuss. I WANT to stay. Give me a reason to! Can't lead the pack with specs now that full frame has caught up? Fine! Innovate in other ways! What's stopping you from putting a GH5 into a GX85 body? I'd buy two, along with a GH6! Nothing would delight me more than even smaller, lighter cameras! I'd carry one with me pretty much at all times! And I don't believe this notion that you can't sell a kick ass GH6 for less than a S5 because the truth is there's a segment of the full frame market that won't consider a M43 camera no matter what the specs are. Go for broke, fuck it! Or just give people what they want: I mean just adding phase detect AF alone to decent bumps in specs would sell a bunch of new M43 cameras!

If they release a mark II before a GH6 they might as well just shoot themselves in the head. I'll divest from M43 the day it happens. It's hard enough sticking with M43 right now, knowing it's uncertain future, but doing that would be a sure sign that the Panasonic we knew is dead. It'd be very unlikely that I'd go with an L-mount camera, the long term viability of that alliance makes me uncomfortable. It'd also be impossible for me not to view Panasonic with distrust if they screwed over their M43 users like that. Be honest and make your intentions clear, we deserve it Panasonic.

PayPal is owned by eBay. It made it more frustrating to sell though, as had to get my routing info and stuff in order to get paid. Instead I just haven't done it. Don't know if I will. Might just stick to Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace.

Hey Andrew, would you accept donations to help offset your losses?

Obviously a part of it had to do with free gear for reviews, but I'd first started hearing good things about SmallRig from long time posters in Facebook groups I am in. From there other known members posted YouTube reviews after seeing those posts. It wasn't until about a year later that the usual suspects started reviewing it on YouTube, starting with the familiar "I'd like to thank SmallRig for sending this to review" line. I agree with a lot of what you wrote, but Gerald isn't allowed to keep the cameras they send him. After he sends them back he has to buy them like everyone else. Obviously there is incentive to cooperate up an extent, so you're allowed to take part in the lucrative lifting of the press embargo day where YouTube is flooded with stuff, but Gerald still does his deep dive while everyone else does the typical YouTube lifestyle thing. I do agree there is a level of wanting to maintain good relationships with these companies that undoubtedly influences everyone to a certain extent. That does make me uncomfortable, even when it comes to Gerald, but I also don't want to paint everyone with a broad brush. In an ideal world these channels that have sponsors and generate considerable ad revenue would rent these cameras like many folks used to for their reviews.

Yep. It would seem that they agree to send you something even though you tell them you'll only do a video on it if you like it. Then they badger you about it. If you don't cave they'll eventually contact you again, offering more stuff, but then say they'll only send it if you review the previous items they sent. A not so subtle way of telling you that if you want free stuff you have to play ball. It seemed inevitable that this would happen, but it's still incredibly shady. It certainly puts a lot of pressure on smaller channels especially. I shudder to think the % of channels that have caved in. What's really baffling about it is SmallRig has already built a reputation for having an excellent cost/quality ratio. I don't understand why they felt the need to do this, they're already one of the largest companies when it comes to rigs/cages.

An interesting video. I don't completely agree with everything he says (I think brands sending free gear to folks has overall been a net negative, especially when it comes to the YouTube filmmaking community) but it is interesting to get a look behind the curtain at how these businesses operate. It's unfortunate too, because I've been very happy with my SmallRig stuff and to see them behave like this sours me on the brand.

Yeah, I think I'd tend to agree. The X-T4's IBIS from what I've seen isn't very good at all. I can't say that you might as well not have IBIS but it's probably the worse IBIS on the market since Sony improved theirs. The battery life is a nice bonus, but you can take care of that with a Power Junkie or other battery plate. The recording limit ultimately is what makes Fuji a no go for me personally, but until the IBIS gets better I'd probably need to add weight to the rig to improve stabilization even with the X-T4 to get somewhat closer to what I get with the GH5. I still though will use a shoulder rig sometimes with the GH5! Really though I'd run the X-T3 into the ground before upgrading. I'm not a huge fan of constantly upgrading cameras to the latest model. To me, you should squeeze as much out of a camera investment as possible. The allure of new gear is real, but I'm using a 4 year old GH5 and my primary reason for thinking about changing is concern over the M43 system, not that my camera isn't capable of doing everything I need.

I mean it doesn't mean they should stop trying to break into the market, but how many films are even filmed with Canon cinema cameras? I really don't see them used outside of corporate and doc work around here. I see mostly RED, Sony, and Blackmagic cameras used for most higher end and a lot of lower end, commercial/narrative work.

Yeah, I don't know that Panasonic is going to be doing any major firmware updates for the GH5 or the GH5s at this point in their life span.

What did trans folk have to do with any of this? You decided to rant about them for no reason. Pointing that out isn't an attempt to make you feel bad, you don't have that kind of awareness or empathy, it was a genuine reaction to an unhinged rant about trans people in a post about a camera. I'm not going to derail this thread and will simply move on and ignore you.

Ah, looks like my YouTube thread was lost or deleted. I was gonna remove some of the recommendations. 😞

That's why I also appreciate Caleb Pike. I know Andrew isn't a fan but he buys most of the gear he reviews, including old cameras. He also seemed to take people's criticism of the EOS R launch trip he took to heart and hasn't done any of those all expenses paid trips since. There are some decent YouTubers out there, which is why I tried to make a thread on here about them (some sadly should probably be removed now as they've become shills that only talk about things sent to them for free.) I wish Andrew and others would do more on there, as whether we like it or not it's kind of THE platform since the community that was once on Vimeo has dried up.

Maybe save that criticism for the Matti Haapoja's and Peter McKinnon's of YouTube and not the guy that does rather dry long form reviews and regularly criticizes the things you think he's trying to sell? I say this as a very vocal critic of the YouTube filmmaking bubble. I don't always agree with Gerald but it's ridiculous to act as though he's looking to maximize clicks and affiliate sales. His videos would be under 10 minutes and feature him pouring coffee (gotta get that pouring sound!), riding a one wheel around, and otherwise pretending to have a far more exciting life than he does, all while talking about how awesome x is and that you should definitely check those affiliate links down below! At least be fair if you're gonna criticize the guy.

Also I think this is a really unfair characterization of Gerald. Long form camera reviews, especially ones where he is critical of the camera he's reviewing, is not the best way to get views and affiliate sales. If his intentions were to maximize his views and affiliate link sales he is doing a terrible job.

I get some of the criticism but I don't think Gerald was unfair in his review. Sigma's doing some cool things but they're not for everyone.This is a peculiar release, I don't know a ton of people who would be in the market for this camera. Most people that need 61MP aren't going to buy a Sigma fp-L. Some will, and they'll love it, but it's not the ideal solution for most folks. That's not to say it shouldn't exist or that it doesn't do some impressive things, but it's a very niche market it's aiming for. Andrew comes from a different angle than Gerald. I think by sending Gerald a review unit Sigma wants to get as many different viewpoints as possible. I think that's to their credit. Varying opinions are a good thing and I want to see cameras in the hands of different people with different use cases. Just my opinion, though!

Agreed. I can't imagine you would need to push the colors around very much for interviews, so 10 bit shouldn't be necessary. I love that 10 bit is becoming regular but I think people overestimate how much they really need to use it.

You really turned this into a rant about trans folks?

Thanks for clarifying. My friend is going through a nightmare right now because Russian trolls have filed takedown notices on a documentary he self funded. They'll falsely claim a clip is being used illegally, which pulls down his video for the 30 or whatever days they have to file legal actions after he refutes it. Then when the video is finally restored another troll will do it all over again. It has happened 3 times so far, all because it documents Russian atrocities in Syria. It has made it pretty much impossible for him to recoup the tens of thousands of dollars he spent making it and he has no recourse other than going through YouTube's process since he's not an outlet like VICE that can reach out to YouTube easily and put an end to it.

You were correct until the "creator of the clip" part. Clips can be used for commentary/editorial and satirical purposes as long as you're using it in the proper context. I can understand being annoyed that someone used a clip of something you created and didn't ask for permission, but please do not abuse the system that is used to report legitimate violations of copyright. As someone that has quite a few friends that are documentarians, I know how often they have to deal with people doing that despite it falling under fair use.

This is by no means professional legal advice, however if you're using the content in an editorial manner it falls under fair use. That doesn't mean you shouldn't at least try to get permission. Even if you are within your right to use it they can file a takedown notice with YouTube. When that happens you have two options: accept it or refute it. If you refute it YouTube will inform the other party and they'll then need to go through the legal system to prove their case.

I thought they did away with the recording limits?

I think they went the SD route because there was some complaints about not having dual SD for the S1. I also think the S1H was targeted towards an audience that wasn't too keen on spending 50-100% more on new storage. I agree though re: external raw. I'm glad it exists but it's probably not something I'd use often.