MrSMW

Well I don’t know about the science of wave frequencies or anything at that macro tech level, but can confirm with 100% integrity that using a 1/8th mist reduces or eliminates moire. Because I use them on every lens all the time, for both photo and video and never have moire in either and I mean never. That’s hours and hours of capture plus thousands of exposures, every job, for 2+ years. There are possibly certain material types under certain lighting conditions where it might be forced, but I have not come across it in years. All my VND’s are Freewell 2-5 stop with built in 1/8th mist and for very low light when an ND is not needed, 1/8th mist Firecrest Bloom Gold. There is a trade off of course and that is a lowering of contrast, but I can not only live with that, but prefer it because it all adds up to part of my SOOC ‘filmic’ (less digital) look for video and the base of my ‘filmic’ (more real film-like) look for photo (which being raw requires a lot more editing than my video work). But otherwise moire has not existed in my world since the OG Lumix S5, so 2022.

I’d have gone with X1D3PO myself. But otherwise I guess they are filling that niche of pure photo camera? I’d have one as a my ‘one & done’ along with the new zoom lens, but I couldn’t justify the cost. Instead, 2x S1RII’s + 4 faster primes than the Hassie lens, for a total of approx 1/2 the price (paid approx €2800 for each of my S1RII’s and 3 of my lenses purchased used) and I can shoot 7.2k 30p open gate video. I haven’t looked at a single Hassie review yet, but will in time, just for curiosity, but it still won’t ever be happening for me.

I don’t see an end to AI either, - the complete opposite and it will take over huge chunks of all kinds of things with one person taking what was previously the jobs of perhaps dozens of people. I think it’s an unstoppable monster because when it comes down to it, what is right or good or any other factor, just gets swatted aside increasingly when it comes to both corporate and personal greed/entitlement. I’m looking forward to 100ft Ana de Armas with blue hair on neighbouring apartment blocks. I live in a cottage in the woods, but I live in hope…

No they don’t as such…but Sigma do and Leica have a 135 f2 APO in the works, but the price of that will make the Plena seem ‘cheap’. Just a couple of years ago, I thought the weak link in L Mount was the lenses and whilst I think there are a couple of holes still, I’ve gone round in a big circle and ended up with a set of f1.8 primes, the; 18,35,50 and 85 and with the addition of a 28-70 and a 70-200, over 4 bodies, I’ve got all bases covered for my needs, video and stills. For sure. I wrestled with all kinds of combos of brands, bodies, lenses and each time I thought I’d found my best set up, I found flaws if not outright issues. In the end, I decided to just go back to basics and creativity has shot up as a result. As has logistics, workflow and a load of other basics. I have no further needs and instead, only wishes and intentions and none of those are kit related.

Indeed, but when the reality is the majority won’t do anything, except perhaps grumble on social media, the outcome is inevitable and it soon becomes the norm. I still need to look at how I can get out of the Adobe model, but 2 things stop me: 1. Big discount due to someone I know and 2. Not so much laziness, but rather it bores me to tears having to learn an entire new workflow that would have to replace multiple pieces of software I have used for over a decade. Most don’t have the luxury of 1. so makes 2. even harder. But ultimately, unless a greater majority or even simply a significant number that can cause a serious dent, act, then companies will exploit that.

I am in that camp and very happy with the current offerings and the lens line up...so hope the ZR is awful so I won't *need* to flip to Nikon. But in all seriousness, I considered waiting out this entire year to see what the ZR might be, but I suspect it will have a few less things that I need/want in a system, so will probably be vindicated going all in with LUMIX. And even if the ZR is an absolutely cracking thing (which I suspect it might be), there will not be enough for me to flip and entire system. Nope, I've made my bed and I'm comfortable with it.

If folks don't like this, the solution is easy, - don't buy a VW. Other cars are available. But it won't happen because out of all the cars they sell per annum, a couple of hundred will complain on their favourite social media platform, a couple more hundred will buy something else purely because of this and the other near 9 million, will just shrug and accept it.

I don't know but wouldn't expect it to be much different and the Lumix might even be better. No evidence either way that I have seen or am aware of. But cost, size and ease of use. Obviously MASSIVE difference. I need AF for certain things and it's been more than goof enough with Lumix since the S5ii. For the times I don't need AF, I still tend to use it to acquire focus and then lock focus manually on the lens and when I've finished that scene, flick it back to AF. Same as turning cameras on and off after every clip or still, I do it subconsciously as in just trained myself to do this.

Ultimately a combo of trust/knowledge based on: build/lack of weather sealing + no mech shutter for stills + single card slot. Now arguably, 99.9% of my use, the lack of weather sealing/ultimate build quality, is not an issue. The single card slot isn't either as I have my S1Rii set up for stills to CF Express and video to SD. But mech shutter, or lack there of, dealbreaker. Probably with something like the Nikon Z8/Z9, it would not be an issue, but with the S9, it is. But then also to be fair, I didn't buy it for that, but simply tried it and it did not work so...

I considered getting one as my primary video unit but the cost plus the weight, but mainly the weight, put me off. Big time. I decided that for my needs, this would be a FAR better option full stop. And that is where it started and stopped for me, ie, massive overkill in so many ways…but for my specific use case which is a hybrid shooter. If I was pure video, it would be different and actually, I could see myself using one as a principal unit along with something static or semi-static.

If only it was lockable… I keep jogging it myself and then discovering I am shooting 1/80th or 1/125th when I have set 1/100th, but I suppose it is built to a price. I don’t mind needing a cage for video or a decent grip for photo so any next gen, the format is fine. I prefer modularity. I didn’t think the lack of a mech shutter would bother me, but it did when I tried using it for stills and got either quite a bit of jello effect and/or banding in certain lighting conditions. This reverted it for me to being a pure video unit. I would rather it was weather sealed but not a big issue for my needs. If it was going to be my only camera or camera type, it would need to be. I did almost sell it a couple of weeks back with that second S1Rii inbound, but then decided I might have taken my kit streamlining one body too far and it made more sense to keep it as at least backup due to the not so great trade in price. In the end, I decided to simply ‘repurpose’ my S9. That second S1Rii has not turned up in time for my next job I leave for later this day but when it does, both units will be fully hybrid use shooting 7.2k open gate and stills. My sole remaining S5ii with battery grip, lives on a sturdy video tripod and shoots 4k longer stuff where there is no fear of overheating or running out of card space or battery life. Not for my use. Just plain old reliable workhorse. I’d rather use the 6k mode, but for the 30 minute recording limit. My only crit for this unit. The S9 now lives on it’s very light but sturdy freestanding monopod (or lightweight tripod) for ceremonies and speeches and has 3 roles: longer fully stabilised clips, clips when I also need to shoot stills at the same time, gimbal mode (ie, highest e stab) and slow mo in 6k except for the latter two options which are about 2% of my needs. I think if I had sold it, I would have regretted it so now it has found it’s true role, I am even happier with it despite it’s limitations. Is it an A cam? It could be but not for me. It shines though as that second or third purpose unit where anything larger or bulkier would just be a pain. I miss my Zf and the A7RV I sold to go fully L Mount/Lumix, but have no regrets and genuinely am 100% happy with that decision with zero criticism of my new set up. It just works.

Husband and father.

I don’t mind…and in fact, welcome AI, if it is for specific tasks rather than replacing creativity. When it replaces the; pen, paintbrush, camera, then yes, strong dislike, but if it can reduce my non-creative edit time, then great.

And that is just Section 13b in building 21 on site 17. There’s also an entire empty facility just in case ‘missing’ deliveries from MPB via DHL, turn up.

I like perfection because you can muddy it up but as the saying goes, you can’t polish a turd. Anything I can do that makes my workflow better, enhances creativity because it allows a greater effort to be focused in that regard. I feel and have felt for a long time that the tools have been getting in the way hence the streamlining. Arguably the tools have been good enough for quite some time, but there have always been real world niggles. No excuses now, anything I don’t manage or get wrong is on me. Again, has been arguably for a long time, but being realistic, as a one man band hybrid shooter and with no manual, it’s been a learning curve and though that curve has flattened significantly long since the 15 years I started (shooting hybrid), it’s still a ‘work in progress’. And always will be.

All the footage on this one (between approx 1 minute and 2 minutes 15 seconds) was shot on the Zeiss 40-80 f3.5 handheld. I programmed 2x custom settings for the IBIS on the S5ii, one at 40mm and the other for 80mm and then only shot at these focal lengths. I bottled it for the wedding day and went back to Sigma and Lumix AF lenses, but I am considering bringing this lens back as part of my workflow for these day prior and day after parts of a wedding where I am not under any real time constraints and can afford to be more 'creative'... https://firehorsephotographyfrance.com/weddings/jenniedan

Nope, only have the 40-80. The only things I don't like about it are the highlights are a bit too glowy and it's a heavy little fucker!

Try it. It’s basically your any 5 personal settings at the turn of a dial. OK, in C3, also requires a menu selection of 1,2,3 but still, far FAR quicker then fannying about with actual settings etc. The only real issue in shooting hybrid as in flipping between stills and video, is ND’s. The options are: A. Shoot either higher shutter speeds, or with a greater depth of field, or, B. Flip up VND, or, C. Shoot stills with a VND, but on it’s lowest setting so if it’s a 2-5 stop, pretty OK actually, but if it’s a 6-9… I have tried all 3 and could make a case for and against all of these and use C. It’s OK usually with short clips, but longer stuff or matching multiple camera angles which always have a different WB… Each to their own, but you might as well pick an outdoor WB and am indoor WB and get consistency. It’s never exactly the same just as it isn’t with stills unless it’s just one single light source, but it rarely is and instead a balance of artificial and ambient and proximity and angles and all that physics stuff. Vlog and a baked in LUT has been a game changer for me. I still haven’t quite dialed it in and it will probably always be a work in progress but getting there and more than happy with it. It’s not Hollywood or even Indie movie colour grading, but I don’t have the time and am not being paid enough! Nope. Never shot in anything sub 4k even though I deliver the longer form stuff such as ceremony & speeches in 1080. The 7.2k out of the S1Rii looks fantastic to me and it’s my next area of exploration… 1. Nail down the tools. Check (finally) 2. Work on the next level of creativity from a purely storytelling perspective. 3. Work on the capture quality and grade ie, bringing that beautiful 7.2k into the process and that grade I’m still working on. I think we get to a point where we are at about 90% with every and anything and that last 10% is always a work in progress…

A little bit of trial & error plus fine-tuning in the final (all LUMIX) line up and I really did think the 28-45 would be perfect and Job 01 I was kind of OK with it but Job 02, it was niggling me and I flipped to the 50mm f1.8 just to see the difference and the penny dropped. I think even if they popped out a 45-90mm f1.8 with internal zoom, I wouldn't bother now as with a 35 and 85 (which is how I used to work pre L Mount, 90% of my work), I can real world do anything a 28-45 + 45-90 pairing can, but at 1/3rd the weight, 1/2 the size and 1/2 the cost. It doesn't but you can do exactly the same thing with C1/C2/C3 etc. For the brief period I used the S5ii for hybrid, I had: C1 outdoor stills (5600K) C2 indoor stills (4500K) C3-1 6k 30p 5600k Low auto ISO outdoor video mode C3-2 6k 30p 5000k High auto ISO indoor video mode C3-3 4k 60p e stab on 5600k auto ISO, gimbal-like / slow mo mode (obviously goes into crop mode for this) The photo/video switch on the new bodies simply gives you 5 options for each instead of 5 total as with the S5ii. Those were the 2 lenses and for the same reasons, I was using the year before last. I wouldn't trust the S1Rii statically, on a tripod, in direct sunlight, on a 30+ degree Celsius day, say filming a ceremony. Not tested it, but no need because I have no need and the S5ii does it just as well if not better, so right tools for the right jobs and all that. Unless you need above 6k video or stills above 24mp, absolutely no requirement for either the S1Rii or S1ii and even the S5ii can shoot raw for anyone that needs it to with a paid software download. I think if I had 10+ years left in the industry, I'd be at least looking very hard at raw video, but I haven't got 10 years and don't want to get into a whole new learning curve and massive hardware/storage updates for something my type of clients would never notice, so nah. Your plan for a pair of S5ii's with an S9 makes sense. I could live with 3, but having 4 in the end I decided now makes most sense with 1 permanent static (the S5ii) and 1 semi-static (the S9) with the pair of S1Rii's hybrid in the hand.

Carl Zeiss Vario Sonnar f/3.5 40-80 ‘push-pull’ zoom. I have that as my ‘oddball’ lens and used it a few times with an EF-L adapter with built in VND. Quite a few focal lengths covered there in a single lens!

For the S5ii, unless they slipped something in, no. And if they slipped anything in of slightest interest, they generally say, but I suspect they do sneak in little corrective things they don't wish to tell us about, but then again, probably only with the free firmware stuff?

More back-pedaling, it’s going back. Tried it for 2 jobs and actually, real world, I don’t actually like the size & weight. With the ability to take either 2 steps back or 3 steps forward, the less than 1/3rd the weight and 1/2 the size plus 1/2 the cost, 35mm f1.8 makes more sense. I ‘liked’ the 28-45 and really did think it would be perfect for me, but nah, going back to my roots and 100% primes for stills and hybrid but sticking with zooms for video. And sorry @Thpriest but that means keeping the S9! Shooting these last 2 jobs just reconfirmed what a joy it is to shoot free hand or on the freestanding monopod for all my run & gun clip work. Ridiculously light, quick and easy and probably the only thing I’d replace it with now is either a next gen S9, or possibly (but not this year!) third S1Rii. You can probably tell I am a bit of an S1Rii fanboy, but it just works for me…and I have barely touched the video side yet. Yes I would still rather it was an FX3/30 style body, but I’ll take what it can do what those cannot, every single day. If I change anything else this year, Mrs SMW will walk, so it’s; S1Rii x2 paired with any combo of; 18, 35, 50, 85mm f1.8’s (could do with something longer but not a ‘need’ as such) plus S9 with the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 glued on plus, S5ii with battery grip and 70-200 f4 for all static longer capture duty. 4 bodies, 6 lenses, 1 system vs what was at the start of the year, 5 bodies, 9 lenses, 3 systems, so a BIG improvement in logistics. I do have a single mint S5ii for sale, EU only, €1000 inc postage for anyone that is interested or quick enough as Monday it’s off to MPB…

I think this is the first time the S5ii can do raw and it was X model only previously? Considering the prices of used S5ii’s now, that makes it some piece of kit! I have a minty S5ii for sale if anyone (EU only) wants one, for €1000 inc postage, or it’s off to MPB within 48 hours…

Might/probably is a different result with Sony? But yes, I need to try Andrew’s LUT as soon as I can but mid season very difficult as it will take some work as I bake in my LUT so will need to bake in a second conversion LUT also and well, not got the time to play with that and thoroughly test at this time. But I will!

If you mean the Phantom LUT, I’d suggest Neutral. Utopia is next ‘best’ but I prefer the Neutral so I can then do my own mild creative grade over the top whereas the others are more a look. I tried the official Arri Log C3 my S1Rii came with but can’t get it to look as good as the Phantom SOOC even before any twiddling, but maybe that is just me…