MrSMW

Open Gate for sure. I have been using 6k 30p up until the last few weeks for this very reason, the ability to produce 2 productions from the same result. Just one being sub 1.5 minutes and 9:16. Having the full sensor height and using a 9:16 overlay when shooting was perfect…except being in a PAL region and being a fairly heavy slo mo shooter, shooting 30p has been a big compromise. Too big a compromise so I have gone back to shooting cropped 4k 50p which fixes my slo mo issue, but reduces my ability to produce that second social media production a bit… I’m looking forward to shooting that next gen of camera next year whoever it is with, but the Z8 has to be the strongest contender for me right now based on what exists.

Another disappointing (to me) rear LCD resolution. Dealbreaker? Not sure but as someone who exclusively works off the rear LCD for stills and video, it’s something of importance to me. The original camera intrigued me though being something of a fan of the rangefinderesque styling and this/these new one’s may be of interest…

Nice footage and grade, but it’s all sunset and as such, only showcases one very specific use case.

If I went for an R3, I’d get this lens, also because A. I think it needs a grip to balance the bastard of a thing and B. because the R3 is very light for a built in grip camera. Still a 2.5kg unit paired up…but that’s still lighter than my S1H, battery grip and Leica 24-90 I have been running about with all day at 2.85kg 🤪 But then I’m still considering I really need to get this weight down because it’s a bit nuts… In the end, same as it ever was, there needs to be a compromise somewhere…

My definition also. Some would add ‘conduct’ to that, but I think that that is a different definition of ‘professional’. The tools are not a benchmark and someone else’s opinion does not matter. Unless their opinion stops you from getting the or any other work with them. I am a full-time ‘professional’ and have been for over 20 years but have used all kinds of kit that would not be considered as such. Most of a season shooting all my hybrid video on a tiny pocket Sony RX100v (before switching to its bigger brother RX100). Most of a season (photography only) with a single card slot, original X100 with a pocketful of batteries. The tools I find are just the limitation. The RX100 was fantastic…except it overheated all the time and was not great in low light. The X100 produced the most sublime film-like images…but it was fixed 35mm and if stuck at the back of a church… But the sole source of my income and a pretty decent one. Some might argue it wasn’t actually very ‘professional’ of me to have relied on those ‘non-pro’ cameras, but exploration and pushing boundaries is part of the enjoyment for me. Today I am a bit more cautious but still take a punt every now and again… The other week I did so with a vintage zoom lens. I got away with it but flipped it at the mid point of the 3 day job as I knew it wasn’t working as I would have hoped. A professional making an arguably slightly unprofessional choice initially with an arguably non-pro piece of kit before making a professional decision to switch back to a more ‘pro’ piece of kit 😉

I hear you and will be sailing in that very same boat over this Winter… Pros and cons to each option… A single ‘S2H’ would be my preferred option to simply replace my S1H and then the pair of S5ii’s could remain in their role for quite a few more years. Nikon or Canon systems would just require massive investment so holding out for something from within L Mount which could be even Leica or Sigma. As things stand, based on what exists, I think the R3 body would be my number one, but the Nikon pairing plus adapted (and soon native) Tamron lenses pips it for me as a total system. If cost did not come into it, otherwise L Mount because it will simply be upgrading a single body but a system change…big bucks! Fingers crossed also for Sigma to pop out a compact 70-180 f2.8 in L Mount or something to rival the Tamron and Samyang 35-150. I am really enjoying the results from the Leica 24-90 paired with the Lumix 70-200 but they are big lumps of glass and really I just want a single f2.8 compact as it can be, 40-120. Wishful thinking…

I suspect your ‘niggles’ with the Z8 might have been more because of your Canon background and stuff…well it works differently despite being ‘essentially the same thing’. I remember being a Nikon DSLR shooter and borrowed a friends 5Dsomething equivalent to my D3 or D3s for a short period of time and thought, “your shoot with this piece if shit?!” But the reality was it was basically the same tool but I just wasn’t in tune with it. Ditto tried a Sony A7ii I think it was and another, “really?” moment but it was probably as good or better even than my Fuji X Pro2’s of the time. Fast forward to today. The R5 is probably better for my needs than my S1H and then the R3 better still with both Z8 and Z9 probably an even better pairing. Do I want to flip? Yep, but not because I need to today but because I need to for that next gen spec I actually yes, do need. I am pretty sure all of this stuff will meet my needs so it’s more a case of picking something and then getting super-familiar with it. For me, that means waiting 5-7 months, hope that Panny have an S1 successor out on sale and then getting my hands on one at the same time as a Z9 and an R3 and then making a final decision. I’m sitting in my camping car right now. Motorhome In English, RV in American. Previously I had/towed a caravan for my work away from home needs, (about 70 nights a year) but very first day I got it and drove it away from the dealers, I thought maybe I had made a mistake… Nope. It was just new and a bit alien. It’s like a glove now. I don’t miss the caravan at all and I won’t miss the 6lb 3 1/4oz S1H, grip and Leica 24-90 but boy is it a combo for the ‘23 season 😉

This is pretty much how us event shooters work to a T. With weddings especially, many folks like to think theirs is different and in some ways they are…but basically they are the same… Couple get ready separately followed by ceremony followed by congrats, drink and nibbles followed by meal and talking and dancing. When you have been to 800 of the things over 23 years in 15+ countries in every month and in every weather with many cultures and size ranging from 2 to 400… People are indeed creatures of habit with little variety in reality!

Plus no personal bias and doesn't judge you based on your choices 😉

You me and quite a few others…but a completely different topic methinks! 😉

Being serious, that’s actually quite interesting John and I will try it myself next time I have a question I need answering.

Was the answer to all of these, “Let’s get undone”?

Which is partly why I use a pair of them plus an S1H!

Cost cutting and I suspect 99% of users won’t experience overheating etc. I think somewhere like here with a mix of pros and keen enthusiasts, we consider these things more. I was ready to rubbish a stick on fan, but having looked at it, and the preorder price, thought it was quite decent actually and if it works and can make something like that new Sony better, then great. The Fuji option looks good also. But yes, part of me would like to see everything included but then every bit of kit would probably cost too much and could not exist in the marketplace?

Sounds like a wedding… The problem is though that AWB for anything like a ceremony or speeches can be a nightmare waiting to unfold. Imagine the scene… Camera set on tripod in church to capture a 40/45 minute ceremony and everything is set just how you want it. Except the sun starts dipping in and out of the clouds and even though it’s an indoor ceremony, it might be 2500 iso one minute and 4000+ the next, so the exposure keeps changing as does the WB. Much better to lock the WB and auto ISO. But that is just my experience. Short clips, easier to fix but as someone who used to use AWB, much happier now having consistency and that consistency is achieved from not checking every scene (PITA) but simply by having an indoor WB and an outdoor WB…which is easy to remember because for me, it’s a change from C1 to C2 as I walk through the door! Massively changed my workflow/requirement to ‘fix’ stuff!

Yep. Every time I have tried internet ‘advice’, my result looked shit. And nothing like I wanted it to look like. I recently discovered log. No really. Up until last year, Fuji or Lumix profiles all the way because I could get a ‘better’ SOOC image and the look I was after, and more consistently. But this year I switched to log and now have the SOOC look I am after with a bare minimum of tweaking needed. A SOOC look of course is a combo of factors: sensor, lens, any filters, exp, WB, LUT, in camera tweaks, etc. A consistent WB is key for me also and all my cameras are now set up with 3 custom settings: Log outdoors 5500k 640 iso VND Log indoors 5000k 4000 iso VND Flat profile low light 5000k auto iso removed VND The key factor for me now is workflow and consistency because that allows greater creativity in every other area.

I have never got on with any ‘action’ camera I have had and I’ve had 1x GoPro and 2x DJI Action. I have always fancied something like this though… https://www.back-bone.ca/product/h11pro/ I think we sometimes poo poo or overlook some of the smaller point and shoot and phone cameras dismissing them as not being ‘pro’ enough whether we are in fact pros or not. (Pro IMO is how you act and whether you earn an income from it regardless of the tools which are just that, tools). The main reason I think I have never got on with ‘action’ cameras is I don’t really use wider FOV’s but shoot mainly within 50-100mm but one of my favourite filming experiences to date was with the Sony RX100v. Except it overheated too much for my use…

You think that’s likely Andrew?! Society as you well know is always changing whether we as individuals like it or not. With every generation now, I think it’s happening faster than ever so where our grandparents had a lot in common with their grandparents, these days even having anything in common with your own kids is hard. I’m not saying ZERO connection, just the gap is increasing exponentially. Attention spans are decreasing rapidly as is effort. And the latter I find can actually work in a business aspect because those that are still prepared to make that extra bit of effort… Maybe you can’t fight the tide fully, but there are ways to slow it. I’m not interested in Facebook groups etc. If my kind of ‘stuff’ such as forums etc cease to exist, I won’t replace them. Maybe if I was a 20 or 30 something, but I can’t be bothered now…

1. Probably 2. Maybe 3. There does seem to be a majority ‘you don’t need anything new’ mantra in the photo community. There has always been a certain elitism in the photo world. 4. Not surprising. Almost every new person that joins this place asks a ‘what should I buy?’ question, gets many detailed responses…rarely responds to that themselves and is never heard from again. 5. To be expected I think. Tastes vary wildly.

Well from the perspective of someone who has never held one, or even an R5, for my needs, it is my current number one pick for a camera. Body. It’s the lens options where it loses out for me with what is offered by Nikon in Z Mount, but more importantly, what is coming or can be seamlessly adapted from Tamron. I’d go as far and say that if Tamron were available in, or could be adapted to Canon RF, it would be a done deal and I would switch without giving it any further thought. Re. 45mp, I went back to 24mp earlier this year from my previous S1R 47mp to S1H 24mp and honestly do not miss it or perhaps more importantly, notice any difference. The only reason today I would be interested in something like 45 or 60mp, would be so I could shoot my latest acquisition, a Leica 24-90mm and ditch the 70-200 and just crop from 45/60mp 90mm files instead. I presume the R5c has digital stab? That combined with OIS?

October or Nov, I could very well be!

I’m not sure I prefer using log to the profiles I used to use with Panasonic and before that, Fuji (Eterna). I’m happy enough with both the tools I currently have and the output, but looking at the next evolution of my own personal hybrid shooting and that is adding frame grabs into the pure video and pure stills mix. 4k doesn’t cut it. At least not to the standard I would wish it to be. From a couple of tests, 6k does but 8k would be even better for me, but no access to 8k as things stand. I have downloaded some 8k footage, but it was 25p shot at 1/50th and too much motion blur. Also it’s very difficult to judge when it’s not your own footage and of some ducks on a pond. One massive benefit of shooting profiles and cranking shutter speed is the ability to pull stills and so part of that equation might be a return to shooting profiles again… In fact, Fuji Eterna on the XT3 has probably been my favourite output ever. I have considered several times, a return to Fuji (XH2/s) just for that reason alone, but Nikon Flat also looks really good…but neither good enough to warrant a switch from old Pannyboy for that reason alone! A switch to be able to shoot 6 or 8k 50p full frame over 4k 50p cropped, yes and this is where my future ‘weakness’ lies with Panasonic. At least until the next gen is revealed…

Have you tried the Flat profile? I’ve read and seen some good stuff coming from that. Last day of a semi-working break and been doing some musing as you (I) do and the pairing of Z8 & Z9 are back on top (had a short dalliance with an imaginary gal called R3 and for her body alone, she would still be my pick, but lenses, less attractive), especially now that the Tamron 35-150 has been officially announced. I wish I could try one but as none seem to be available in La belle France…

Well I’d still be interested if they make it in L Mount and maybe make the few tweaks it could do with, but in The meantime, Leica 24-90mm f2.8/4 inbound… The Samyang is slightly heavier, longer obviously but not as wide (to be honest, it’s a better focal range for me than the Leica) and undoubtedly cheaper, even against a 60% off, excellent used Leica, but the Leica counters with being actually available. The 24-105 or in Nikon’s case, 24-120 are perhaps more natural rivals to the 35-150, especially the Nikon (but I have seen how far that thing extends and don’t like it) with the 24-105 and 24-90, being more like rivals for the traditional 24-70. And as I already have a 70-200 in the bag, the 24-90 makes the most sense to me right now, based on what actually exists. When/if the thing comes, and assuming I am still with L Mount, most likely I would trade in the 24-90 plus 70-200 because simply 40-120 is a perfect focal range I could live with and if a single lens could do that and a bit more, then why not? My only concern would be image quality… Cameras for me these days are less interesting than lenses as in they already meet my existing requirements (S5ii/S1H) or future requirements (R3/Z9/Z8, almost certainly next gen S1 line) but it’s lenses I always struggle with. As a hybrid shooter, I have a dual requirement and lenses that might get a pass for video (such as slightly soft but that’s OK because it’s ‘cinematic’ don’t cut it for me from a photography aspect) and especially for the second half of my season this year, I am aiming for the best image quality I can get as a priority. I am pretty sure the Leica 24-90 will help deliver that, but the Samyang potentially in the future, remains to be seen. Has to exist first of course!

Leica lens, inbound! Musing recently (over many things), especially the announcement of Samyang joining the L Mount alliance and the potential of the 35-150mm (but would rather have the Tamron based on reviews) and my ‘wounded’ S5ii, I have had to come up with a solution for the next 50% of my annual workload which takes place over the next 8 weeks. Dropping from 3 cameras to 2 whilst one is being fixed, is not an option. Renting is out of the question. Buying a potential non-L Mount camera was tempting but a bit too costly, especially as a camera is useless without lenses…and I only have L Mount lenses. The only recent cameras I’d consider right now are; R3, Z9 and Z8 and a lot of 💰 So I bought a used (excellent condition) Leica 24-90mm f2.8/4 from MBP UK at 40% of what the things cost new. Why? That itch needed scratching (this lens has been in and out of my shopping basket numerous times over the last couple of years), but more importantly, my non-AF functioning S5ii has meant my meagre lens options don’t work for my needs with the specific combo I own. Now I can have a bit of a re-jiggle lens-wise and for those that are interested in such things: Wounded S5ii gets the Sigma crop 18-50mm as a static plus sometimes gimbal unit. It’s video only and the AF just works in an auto sense so that’s fine and can go in to be fixed when my season ends. The fully functioning S5ii gets the Sigma FF 28-70mm f2.8 and is my principal roving video unit. It was hybrid use. It’s now video dedicated. The chonky boy (S1H with battery grip) gets the ‘new’ 24-90mm f2.8/4 for principally stills duty, all day long, but that lens gets flipped for the 70-200mm f4 for ceremonies & speeches and hybrid duty. The slight irony however is the combo of S1H plus battery grip plus 70-200 was already 2.5kg and bordering on the offensive, but the 24-90 is even heavier 🤪 However, use-ability and image quality trumps size & weight (within reason) and that extra 20mm over a 24/28-70 really does take it into portait territory so is a big plus. It won’t arrive for this weekends’ wedding, but other than the size & weight (a known quantity having the 70-200), I have a good feeling about this specific combo… Yes, I’d prefer it to be more compact and lighter, but we’ll see and it HAS to be the last tweak for this year because I really need some consistency now for the next /remaining 20 or so days of shooting.