MrSMW

They Live in a TikTok style. Yep, that’s about the sum of it.

I really liked the look of the Amazon Prime series, Tales From The Loop. To me, it had just the right balance of ‘vintage & modern’. A lot of it is the sets/location and lighting of course.

Kiwis and Aussies...and then there are those folks in Tassie 😉 Sweden and Denmark speak a different language but mostly understand each other. I’ve watched ‘The Bridge’ 🙂

Hmmm, opinions and all that, but I am pretty sure there is a lot bigger difference between European countries than there is between US States?!

Well I don’t have the 24-105mm f4 but it is a consideration and going back to one dedicated video unit plus two dedicated stills cameras vs 3x hybrids. If I did go to the f4 zoom, I think I’d be more inclined to go log and manually shoot 640 outdoor and 4000 indoor. With the f1.8 primes being just over 2 stops faster, 100-1600 works pretty well for me but I think log has maybe another couple of stops of DR over a standard profile? On the other hand, log is not so good with the AF on the S5 due to the lack of contrast? So I understand though not tested that theory myself. Yet...

Most of this kind of thing is wasted on most people most of the time. I make the effort to get something/anything to the best level I can and in a style that I like both for my own satisfaction and because that is what I get booked for, - my style/vision/presentation of my work. So I guess it comes down to what your work is and for whom.

I think I will wait until it comes out on streaming services...and then avoid it.

I have been meaning to investigate further just how dual gain works... Is it only in log then? Ie, the camera itself will only switch between 640 or 4000 as it sees fit and disregards all other ISO's, or something else? But yes, I (currently) shoot in the Natural profile though I am considering log after some further future AF and lens testing. So shooting with a profile, dual gain doesn't apply, ie, the best settings are not necessarily 640 and 4000, but whatever works best? My rule of thumb is always to shoot with as low an ISO as possible and I use a variable ND all the time outdoors during daylight plus indoors a lot of the time because I tend to shoot mostly wide open with fast glass. Ultimately for me, it's about finding the best balance of; workflow (log requiring more work), best picture quality (log if graded well without resorting to raw) and highest dynamic range (log I presume?). Currently quite pleased with what I am getting from the Natural profile, but if I can get a better result without creating a headache for myself re. workload, I'm interested in looking at it further.

Not a fan of monitoring in B&W here either. I (currently) shoot profiles (a tweaked version of Natural current choice) as I'd rather get as close a sense of the final result as possible. Each to their own and all that. Tried it with photography also and nah, it's not for me.

I need to test this dual gain ISO more as it’s new to me but for anything under 1600 which also includes everything outdoors during daylight hours, 100. Indoors, anything that is typically 1600 or over, just set the thing at 4000 and be happy. With f2 or faster primes, should work just fine? Maybe with anything slower than f4 after dark might be pushing it at ‘just’ 4000? I remember my first digital ‘pro’ camera maxed at 1600 but was pretty awful at 800 😂

Never had a GH5 so nothing to compare to in that regard but my perception is it’s better than the camera I replaced, the XT3. LCD that is, EVF seems about the same but nothing really that I have given much thought to in either case. How are you switching between stills and video? I have C1 set up for stills with every single thing I can do on and everything I can switch off, off. C2 I have set up currently for 4K 50P which is my standard for video. C3 for 4K 25P as one of my options because I have S&M mode or whatever it’s called configured for 1080 100p. With my previous Fuji’s I never did any of this because despite using XT3’s for both stills and video, I had units set up and dedicated to either but never both. I took the time with the S5’s to set them up as true hybrids. You can set pretty much any and everything in the custom modes so it really is a dedicated stills machine with one turn of a dial and then turn again, it’s back to being a dedicated video unit. Re. the focus peaking, I agree, it’s a bit shit and I think that’s connected to it being contrast based as anything with little to no contrast doesn’t show up in peaking so you need to judge it a little by eye. Not the greatest but I use AF far more than MF so not a real biggie for me.

I think the LCD isn’t too bad actually. The EVF is adequate at best. Pity they didn’t use the S1 one, but they had to cut corners somewhere I suppose. But the LCD I think is pretty decent and only exists to give an approximation rather than a true representation of what has been captured. Zooming in on pics to the max amount for one thing will always disappoint. These tiny screens just can’t do it. So yes, don’t judge anything in camera and try and avoid shooting Jpeg, especially in tricky lighting. But otherwise, the S5 for me beats anything I was previously getting from Fuji APSC which was/is excellent and far beyond the Nikon DSLR’s I was using previously. I do believe we have been at that point where most kit will produce the quality, for some years now and it’s more a case of being able to shoot at ever higher frame rates, lower light, stickier eye AF etc that is the only difference these days.

I think no one can dispute that 2020 sucked balls and especially for creatives. I personally managed around 5% of my booked work with the rest either postponing to ‘21 or cancelling outright. Some of those re-booked ‘21 jobs are already postponing to ‘22 and I am pretty sure that at least the first 1/2 of the year will either bail out of fear, or because they have to. Social media is mostly a cancer to me. Was prior to the virus and even more so now. I think the virus has done as much damage if not more so from the fall out and behaviour of others as the disease itself. I largely ignore the news. It is near pointless to consume and 90% doom & gloom and is another form of cancer itself. Cameras and gear, yep, it gets less interesting year on year but at the same time, with so much free time last year, like many others, I may have over-indulged. I think maybe I am more like Andrew than I previously realised... Nowhere near as political or opinionated 😉 but Sony leaves me cold and I am a fan of Fuji, Panasonic and Leica, plus the new Sigma lenses. So 2021... My main wish is my industry (destination weddings in France) actually gets back on track this year because otherwise I do not have a business or an income which would mean unless supported by the state, I am fucked. If it does...and it’s still a big if, I am currently aiming for an S5 based system for my hybrid work. Intrigued by the new Sigmas; 35 f2, 65 f2 and 105 f2.8, I’d like to use them if after testing, they work for me. The hardest task for this new year is probably trying to remain as positive as possible (or at least not negative) and that means keeping up avoiding the news and social media as much as possible. But otherwise, a HNY to all.

Not really sure what you mean? I shoot raw, for; subject, composition, framing, moment etc, ie with intent, but the resulting image is brought to life in Lightroom. The S5 has a nice clean starting point and you can do pretty much what you want after that. Having said that, because of what is now last year, I have shot less than 5% of the work I would normally do and most of that was with Fuji so not really used it extensively for photo.

I have hummed and hawwed over the possibility of an A7Siii over one of my S5’s purely for the CAF and...well actually that is it. Other than the fact that it’s twice the price and I don’t like what I have seen it capable of producing as much as the FF Panasonic, it’s not for me either. 4k 120p, or 100 in my case would be nice, but the times I’d use it, 1080 upscaled will suffice. Pretty sure I’d be very happy with the Sony, but I prefer the Panasonic’s. For low light stuff, the Panasonic’s also look better from comparison’s I have seen. No one camera ticks every box. At least not fully for me, but the S5 ticks the most.

If the II model had been launched as the original, it would have been a lot more popular, but then the same could be said for a lot of kit, but for many, the original Z6 just underwhelmed (compared with certain other options). Had something like the II been launched a couple of years back, I probably would have gone with it but it was only the lack of 4K 60 and twin card slots that put me off. The lack of 10 bit also, but that would have been my compromise. Well it’s still 8 bit, internal anyway and folks are waiting on the 4K 60, so still losing customers I suspect. Anyway, original Z6 at what are now much lower than launch prices...I like the look of the thing, the size, the weight, the lenses. Tried one briefly, but preferred the XT3 in every way except the lack of IBIS and the XT4 fixed that. So it’s not for me personally, but that shouldn’t put anyone else off and if you like it, great, go create with it!

One of the better/best ones out there...and most are awful. I’m going to give the -2 +3 a go next chance I get and see how that works out.

Back at you Andrew and to all.

Not possible in Covid-2020 and even after, they will all be shut forever soon anyway because of mobile phones + international popcorn prices that have got waaaaaaay out of hand. Facts.

In regard to the focus options, basically the same as any other equivalent camera. In regard to anything relatively static, it was is fine. More than fine...as long as it’s set up as best it can be, ie, speed and sensitivity tweaked or at least 0 and 0. Tracking, in non-tracking modes. Well as demonstrated by my test, it can be quite decent if optimised but it was only one test (albeit 2+ continuous minutes) and how it would work in 24/25 fps or log is another matter. Plus which lens. On a gimbal... I’ve seen plenty of decent gimbal stuff, but it is usually limited to a couple of seconds of slow mo so even shorter capture. The other thing about gimbal is if you keep the same distance to subject it should keep focus. It’s just tracking where it’s weak and only tracking. With the S5 there is only one way you are going to know if it will work for you and that is try one, test it and then take it on a real job and the latter is the only real test.

Oh and @herein2020 re. the 85, it can lock on and remain locked on unless being asked to track forward or backwards motion. What specifically do you need it to do?

Well I had a go with the 85 yesterday and tried it at both f1.8 and at f2.8. I really should have given it a go at f5.6 but didn’t think of it. Anyway, f1.8 gave pretty much the same result as f2.8 and it was OK. If the 20-60mm the other day at the long end and f5.6 was maybe 80-85% in focus for 2+ minutes, then the 85mm managed about 50%. At times, it stayed in focus for an entire sequence and then the second time, wandered off like a distracted child for no apparent reason. My single biggest issue is not getting the camera to lock on, it’s why it has to wander off?! I’ve seen a few reports that the 24-105mm f4 is the stickiest of the lenses available but don’t have one to try. I will repeat the test next time and alternate between the 20-60 and the 85 and see what happens. Oh and I ran a battery of + and - settings and couldn’t improve upon -1 and -1. The two wedding specialists I know of use respectively; Russell Kent-Wotsits (UK) -1 and -3 White in Revery (Merica) +1 and +1 ...according to what they have stated on YouTube, but may of course changed since. I suspect the Sigmas are not going to do as well but if any stand a chance, it will be the newer dg dn designated models designed for mirrorless and not adapted for mirrorless from DSLR designs as the rest are. Having said that, the APSC 56mm f1.4 I tested was utter shite so doesn’t bode well... No way am I buying a Sigma until I have tested my free 45mm...whenever it shows up...

It's called 'progress'. Whether we like it or not. Maybe evolution is a better term than progress. The one thing I am sure of is that cameras will not simply cease to exist overnight, but will instead be gradually replaced by something else. For sure people are printing less because they simply do not value it as they once did, mostly because more convenient options are increasingly available. It just is what it is and I personally just need to ride out 10-15 more years in the industry. I've never been interested in tech but the tools I need to do the job I need them to do and no more than I need them to do. 6k...never mind 8k? Nah. I like 4k and arguably even that is possibly overkill but for me it's the right balance. I hate changing kit also, I like familiarity. Right now, I am in a kit changing phase. It's not the best time, but then what is the best time? When it ceases to work or do the thing you need it to do is the answer. And this is something that bothers me right now and that is do I invest (more) in something more future-proof that will give me maybe the next 5 years of work, or spend less and look at it as more like a 3 year proposition. Right now, the cheaper/3 year option is in pole-position, mostly because I don't have the funds. If I had the funds, instead of S5's (which are superb by the way), I'd be looking at Canon R5 for stills and C70 for video...but needing 2 stills bodies + lenses for all 3 bodies, realistically, I'd be looking at 20k instead of less than 10k. But what's that got to do with phones? Everything and nothing. Maybe in 5-10 years, all of this current camera tech will be replaced by phone tech. Who knows...

Right, well I got so pissed off with both the eye/face detect and the tracking option, I wondered if there was anything else I could do. I tried everything from trying to create a timelapse of motion instead. I could. It was awful. I tried 6k mode and that kind of worked, but when it lost focus, it never regained it. So before finally biting the bullet and moving to Sony for my video (AF) needs, I thought I'd just try all the options that are not supposed to work. Such as 225-area AF. And it pretty much worked. At least good enough for my needs based on this one test. The kit and settings were: S5 + 20-60mm @60mm and f5.6, 4k 50p, 1/100th, variable ND, Natural profile (individual settings such as contrast & sharpness turned down mainly), 225-area, speed -1, sensitivity -1. Unless I happen to have hit upon the best all round settings for this kind of capture...which I doubt, I think there is still room for slight improvement... Really, the only area I have to play with now is the speed & sensitivity settings which I have played with extensively using pretty much every combination of pluses and minuses available, but only in the face/eye and tracking mode. I could test with the 85mm f1.8 and will when I get some more sunshine so I can back or sidelight as on a wedding day I can't control any of that such as if the bride is walking down the aisle at an outdoor ceremony with the sun behind her, that's what I have to work with, so my kit has to pass worst case scenarios. But the latter is not critical, ie, the 85mm f1.8 not working 100% in this kind of scenario would be a bonus rather than a need because as long as I can get a few seconds of it locked on...which I can, in any scene, it's enough. So AF summary based on my experience/testing and needs: A. For stills, it's not in question. It's not the fastest but it's reliable/accurate. That's an easy pass. B. For static video, ie, the subject is people doing things such as; hair, makeup, eating, drinking, talking, wedding ceremony etc, which is 95% of my coverage, it's again, an easy pass ie, this camera does not have a problem with anything like that other than in very rare situations, ie, is pretty much as reliable as anything out there for this kind of thing. C. For tracking AF, based on my above test, it's not 100%, but it's good enough for my needs for those 5-10 sequences on a wedding day (bride entrance, couple exit, confetti walk, couple walking shots, entrance to meal) provided I can replicate (and maybe even improve upon) what I managed in the video. I have been quite desperate to make this thing work, just as I once was moving from the Nikon D3s to Fuji X Pro1 with it's garbage AF. Why? Partly sheer bloody-mindedness, but also because the camera and sytem very much is just right. Top of the list are video quality and stills quality and it's as good as anything and better than most. The size & ergos and build are just perfect with the Smallrig L bracket to just bring the size and weight up a little. The lens options that are beginning to appear and more so in '21 are excellent. I'm still waiting on the complimentary Sigma 45mm f2.8 (I have been battling with Panasonic but it appears I have now won, probably just to make me go away) and that will be my next major test. I'm hoping the Sigma(s) will work for me in the hybrid role. I'm sticking with the Pan 20-60mm for all tracking pieces regardless and it's also my wide-angle stills lens so retains a place in my bag regardless. But I am really interested in the 35mm f2, the 65mm f2 and the 105mm f2.8 macro as these mirrorless designed lenses would complete a perfect line up for me. Various tests have shown however that within L Mount, native works best but we'll see and if the Sigma route doesn't work out, I'd be disappointed but more than happy with Panasonic's own new f1.8 lineup.

10 bit internal, 4K 60p in the case of the XT3. Extra battery life, bit of extra grip/heft and IBIS with the XT4. Great picture, video and stills.