MrSMW

OK @Andrew Reid or anyone else who may be interested, I have sussed it! Spanner Cog Custom Mode Settings How to reload custom mode Change recording mode OFF Et voila, any/all custom modes that you have set, will always retain your most recent setting tweak. I have all my Lumix cameras set up as: C1 = outdoor stills with WB set at 5500 C2 = indoor stills (only difference is WB 4500 default over my outdoor settings) C3-1 = 6k 30p outdoor C3-2 = 4k 60p outdoor C3-3 = 4k 60p indoor So if I say twiddle the WB in a certain scenario on one of my video settings and then flip to one of my stills modes and then flip back to video, it’s always whatever I was using last. I’ve just tested to make sure and it works. All my settings are not ‘final’ but more starting points or at least ‘safety nets’ so if I shot an entire sequence of video clips or stills at the wrong WB, at least there will be consistency for correction purposes. The bottom line, is that familiarity of your kit in order that you can spend less time thinking about how to do something technically and focus more on the creative side.

If on the basis I could not afford to switch to a Nikon Z9 + Z8 pairing…which I cannot really justify, my ‘budget’ option would be an XH2 paired with an XH2s. However, want an even smaller similar capability pairing, ie, one stills orientated and the other more video, but both hybrid, then the pairing of an XT5 with this new XS20 would be a great little set up, especially as the XS20 can take the add on cooling vent. Lenses? I’d have to go zoom for my needs and really only 2 contenders and I’d stick the Fuji 16-55 f2.8 on the XT5 and the Tamron 17-70 f2.8 on the XS20. The Tamron has a longer reach, is slightly lighter, but is not as sharp as the Fuji which is why I’d pair them in this manner. Real world 24-83mm FF equivalent stills and 27-105mm FF focal length video, both with no aperture changes. F2.8 light gathering with an equivalent f4.2 DOF. Would work for me. The other thing about Fuji is the SOOC results and I’d shoot Colour Neg for stills and Eterna for video. Personally though, I’d go for the XH2 and XH2s pairing and with battery grips just for the handling as I like the idea of dinky cameras, but for work purposes, nah, not very stable platforms or ergonomically good over long days.

There is a setting that fixes this…but for the life of me, I cannot find it. I know it exists as I discovered it a few weeks back and it worked. Since changed settings and aaaaaargh, can’t find it again. I think it’s ‘mode’ something. Otherwise back on with my S1R’s for the year.

Sorry, it was not 70 euros, but 90 euros https://www.amazon.fr/gp/aw/d/B0B4KN8ZR2?ref=ppx_pt2_mob_b_prod_image 2x Aperture Amaran 60x on 2x sturdy ‘up to 3 metre’ light stands, one with square diffuser soft box and with with a more focused ‘spot’ set up. Both/either can run off the mains electric (50m 4 socket cable reel) or off my portable Poweroak 500wh power bank, or battery powered (22 minutes at max output). Then I have the Rotolight Neo 3 which can be used either on camera (stuff like the dance floor) or lightweight light stand (stuff like bride and groom prep). I also have a Falconeyes (stoopid name!) F7 if I want to go even smaller or maybe set up a hair light or something for portraits, or slap it on the counter top for some nice side light during food service. Smaller still, 2x tiny Godox units that cost about 25 euros each. As with all these things, it’s about not having too much kit so everything has its place. Most of my weddings are outdoors with meal/speeches maybe 25-30% of the time indoors and that’s what the 2 biggest units are for, ie, mainly ‘outdoor’. The Rotolight gets carried around inside and if not needed, just sits in a corner. The other 3 are camera bag so can be used rapidly in any given situation. Almost 100% of my work is at private country estates (ie, not urban or city centres) hence why I can just park, live and work out of my motorhome on site and hence why the new trolly makes sense (I don’t know why I did not think of it sooner!) because it’s a single load and trip at the start of any job, and then reversed at the end. And for video this coming weekend, I’m trying out the 6k mode on the S1R. Yup, the 6k mode! They removed the 6k/4k mode on the newer S5ii but it exists on all the previous S cameras. It’s limited to 10 minutes but I don’t care about that because not including the longer form tripod static stuff, it’s only 10 second clips. And you can extract stills as it’s shooting 6k 30p 18mb stills but with the option to select any 1 of 30 stills in any second, or just keep the thing as a video file. I just need to go fiddle with the set up now as the S1R is easy (harness) and the S1H is easy (tripod) but the S5ii I have to MacGyver it so it can seamless transition from the other side of the harness to gimbal to tripod without changing base plates or anything. I’ll work it out… 🤪 I’d rather not be as by nature, I like consistency, but such is the nature of this particular beast, I have not been able to find it. But very close now… A Nikon + adapter + Tamron set up would nail it, but cost a bomb and I don’t have that kind of cash to invest this year. Going with a pair of S5iix’s and a single S5ii was going to be it…and still maybe, but as I mentioned above, what am I really gaining over using my current set up for the cost to change of 3000-3500 euros? Uniformity across the bodies yes and is a big thing for me, plus full frame 6k rather than a mix of APSC and pixel:pixel not quite 6k (more like 5.4k) and less than stellar AF on all bodies, but I only need it in one and have it with the S5ii. I’ll shut up now. I have gear to MacGyver… 😉

Not connected with anything above, I just cancelled my preorders for BOTH S5iiX's. Nothing to do with the camera per se, but I came to the conclusion that if I was going to be shooting 6k 30p 3:2 on the the things, then why not just stick with the S1R's which do 10 bit 5k 30p 3:2? OK, they crop pixel:pixel but that does not bother me and OK, they don't shoot log either, but they produce a really nice clean result in the Flat profile that I am used to working with. AF not needed as I have the S5ii for that. So why spend approx 3000-3500 euros to change? Well I decided it wasn't worth it and actually I gain/retain the 47mp S1R stills capability so that's something. I'm just going to carry on with what I have the rest of this year and wait until there is any sign of an S1R and an S1H replacement and then make any future decisions. So it's back to a pair of S1R's for hybrid on me at all times plus the S5ii purely video on gimbal/tripod for entrances, exits, couple and static stuff with the S1H purely video on tripod for just ceremonies and speeches, ie, most of the day I'll only be working with 2 units, occasionally 3 and at certain times, 4, but then 2 will be static at that point so other than the set up and switching them on, 2 really. I just bought (for 70 euros!!) however, a 4 wheel cart with a handle that I can load all my gear into straight out of the back of my camper/motorhome when at gigs and just trawl the whole lot in; tripods, light stands, light, power bank, extension cables, camera, - the lot...in one single trip. Saves 3-4 trips! Now that IS a worthwhile purchase. Especially as I have gone all in on my lighting now.

Actually I was just musing whether with firmware we could get the baked in LUT feature in the S1H because otherwise I’d use the old boy as my primary tool as other that that, it’s still The Daddy other than that and AF. If it’s possible, probably won’t happen…

Ah… I’m not so hot on the tech stuff and just could not get log to work for me for so long. Then something just clicked in recent months and now I’m getting something SOOC which is not the finished result, but a good clean starting point that is most of the way there, is consistent and doesn’t require too much further work other than my personal grade. Which is still a work in progress. I think it’s getting that right balance of using the dual native ISO settings, white balance and exposure with as much control and input on the lighting as I can. Probably why I’m not experiencing it then having shifted from the Flat profile I was using in 2022 (and Natural in 2021 and Fuji Eterna for several years before that) but definitely a log fan boy now. Next I’ll be doing Braw… Actually probably not…

He doesn’t disagree, but is no authority when it comes to cameras, brands or anything much really. Except maybe weddings. He knows far too much about weddings… 🤪😉 For me, it’s never been about the camera alone, but the entire package. The combination of all the factors balanced against the cost. My biggest compromise to date has probably been not spending enough and as a result, spending more in the long run because of that. There has not been a single year since I embarked on my hybrid path, which was back around 2010, I have not been wrestling with kit. I am now at a point where I am sick to death with constantly making ‘micro-adjustments’ within whatever system I am currently in (and really only been in 3; Nikon, Fuji, L Mount, with some sideline dabbling with Sony and Olympus) and have had enough. I said it somewhere on this forum recently that given a magic wand, I’d wave it today and magically have all my kit replaced with a single Z9, a single Z8 and 3 Tamron lenses and have reached ‘peak system’. But even though I know that ticks ALL boxes, it’s the wrong time of year and the cost (without the magic wand) is just a bit too high. So I am building a system around S5iix’s a single S5ii and my old workhorse S1H, plus Sigma lenses. Because it just works and is a zero compromise option other than… 1: It’s 4 cameras still and not 2, but the S1H has only one static job at 2 points and the S5ii is minimal use so for 90% of my work, it will be just a 2 body/3 lens approach. 2: Ticks every and all boxes other than I’d really like to try 8k raw video in order to pull hi res stills of it. I tried off 4k and it’s OK, but just that, OK. I have yet to try 6k and I will, but really 8k is where it’s at for that purpose. I don’t otherwise give a monkeys about 8k video for the sake of video purposes! But re. both video and stills quality, they can all do it and do it well and as it’s always been, it’s more about what you do with the tools than what the tools can theoretically do. It’s like the thing with phones and the question could you provide ‘professional’ results from say a wedding, video or stills and the answer is yes, easily, and no one would know…other than your clients and every guest at that wedding outraged at your temerity. I’m getting me some battery grips on my S5iix’s because that IS pro 😬

Interesting, but I’m not noticing any of this stuff… Either I’m not looking hard enough or it’s a non-issue. For me. Or I need my eyes testing… 6k 30p full frame 3:2 and 4k 60p 16:9 cropped, shooting LGOP, in camera, log with baked in Gamut V2 lut plus either 2-5 stop or 6-9 stop Freewell VND in 1/8th mist or after dark, just a 1/8th mist. Single S5ii while I wait for my X to arrive. And even then, by the time I have added my crappy grade and it’s been uploaded t’internet and the client watches it on their phone… But seriously, as above, maybe I am not being critical enough but I’m not seeing it…probably because I’m not looking for it.

Without question, that combo ticks all my boxes and the only compromise really, is the cost to change and then the hassle of enacting that change and all that goes with it. Wave a magic wand and quote, “instantus changus” and I’d go with that immediately. But as that is not reality, I’ll sit on my L Mount Alliance fence and see what those folks come up with over the next 6-9 months…

As the late Sir Alec Guiness once said in a galaxy far far away, “These are not the S2’s that we are looking for”.

What have you done @BTM_Pix ??!! You have made me cancel the preorder for one of my two S5iix’s is what you have done! I think the possibility of an S2R and an S2H are both too intriguing and too likely to overlook, so I can ‘get by’ with a combo of: S1H + S5ii + S5iix until such time as we know more. The sale of my pair of S1R’s can proceed as planned I think as they are already largely redundant in my above lineup. Just as soon as that damned S5iix turns up and still no word from my Frenchie suppliers…

Actually, in that case, I could probably cover all my needs with just 2 bodies and 2 lenses with the Nikon/Tamron combo. It has to be my number one option for 2024 if within the LMA, they don’t produce something that meets my needs. The appeal of doing it all with just 2 bodies and never having to change lenses is my holy grail. I can’t do it with L Mount because the lenses do not exist. The bodies I think will come, but it’s that Tamron 35-150 that just sits in it’s own space all alone. And even that 20-40… That is such a perfect indoor everything and outdoor landscape and architectural lens. The closest is the Sony but it’s f4 which outdoor is fine but indoors less so.

DIS plus shoot slightly wider intending to stabilize in post. FP-L with flip screen and full sensor 4k 60p or more because it’s capable? They also need to get that e:shutter only banding sorted because it was really bad when I tried it. Or are they still dicking about with that Fovean sensor they can’t get to work? I’d rather have an interchangeable lens version of the Q3 and Sigma could build it and are maybe working on it, but will they?

Drone hyperlapse is going to be a new thing for me from next week onward but yes, you are right in not letting footage drag in too long. Guilty! I used to do quite a bit of 5-10 second but other than opening or closing sequences, 2-3 is my new norm.

If I close my eyes and squeeze them very hard, can I pretend this does not exist? Previous desert island ‘EDC(amera) would be a toss up between X100V and Q2. Q2 would win were it not for lacking a tilt screen. Q3, now a clear winner for me (taking cost out of the equation) especially as the larger sensor now allows for even greater cropping over the previous option of digital cropping for Jpeg only in camera. As a video unit though? Nah. In a pinch maybe but no IBIS or cooling… But it does bode well for S1R replacement doesn’t it?! I suspect they will ditch the vanilla S1 and go S2H + S2R. If so, and they meet my ‘next gen’ spec requirements, I think without question, they would become my primary tools of choice in 2024 alongside a lone S5iix for static and gimbal duty. We’ll see…

Yes, the Megadap adapter is a genuine game changer IMO, specifically in regard to using Tamron e Mount glass on Nikon. Specifically, the 20-40mm f2.8 and the 35-150mm f2/2.8. Hello! The longer lens in the Z9 and it’s smaller buddy on the Z8 and away we go! OK, I’d switch out the 20-40 to the 28-75 for ceremonies and speeches at weddings, but it’s the only realistic 2 body set up I could contemplate. 100% not this year however! My window to do that expired last week and I’m 100% committed to remaining with L Mount for this year at least. I’m hoping that old Pannyboy will drop a bombshell with any S1H replacement but even that is not a done deal as there is a very certain spec I would need before there is any further change beyond S5iix as things stand. 6k 60p uncropped internal is basically any future camera for me, or until such time, not happening!

You and me both. It’s my only real gripe with the S5 series and was the deciding factor in me not going back to Fuji XH cameras over the Winter. Had some form of tilt been used, I would have jumped 100%. The only time I prefer a flip screen is shooting portrait orientation stills because it then aligns with the body. But the rest of the time; landscape stills and all video, tilted in line with the body!

I was thinking about hopping on a train to Paris to do just that…but then came to the conclusion I’d probably buy one. Then I’d need to get a Z9 and 3 lenses. And sell everything I have to fund it and it would still cost me the best part of 10k. Mid season. I came to the conclusion it would be utter madness! Sounds like an R3 would be better for you?!

I can do that in a day and not just over models, but entire brands 🤪 Z9 AND Z8 would be my preferred option here. A single body would not cut it for my needs and rocking a pair of Z9’s would be too much, but I’d have concerns over a pair of Z8’s. Maybe old Pannyboy will announce an S2H before you get to that shop and that might be a curve ball huh?! I don’t think they will or it would probably hurt S5iix sales and other than The Influenzas, I don’t know if anyone has their preorders yet. No notification regarding mine, but then France…

Well I used to shoot all my events at 50p so I had the option of real time at up to 50% slow motion and my productions were typically 1/5th real time and 4/5th slo mo. That’s all changing from next week as I’m switching to shooting 30p + 60p despite being in a PAL region. 30 is my new go to after research and testing with 60 being my option and productions will now be approx: 1/5th in real time + 1/5th at 40% + 3/5ths at 80% + probably squeezing in a flowing timelapse or two + some slow shutter drag stuff from late on. Throwing the kitchen sink at it? Kind of, but in a considered storyboard cohesive manner as in it’s all pre-planned such as; couple exit ceremony with confetti? Well that’s shot in 60 to end up as a 40% speed closer and fade out from the chapter ‘Ceremony’. Shoot for the edit basically. I’m setting up each of my cameras with 5 custom settings; indoor stills, outdoor stills, 30p indoor video, 30p outdoor video, 60p outdoor video. Timelapse and shutter drag stuff, I will just manually set at the time. I’ve spent too much time juggling kit in recent years intending to up my capture game but it’s been getting in the way of creativity/intent so some fundamental changes have been happening…

That takes me back 😂

Probably about the same… I’m just not a fan of big lenses and especially if they extend a long way. I was moving over to f1.4’s from my f2’s, but when they arrived and I put them on my cameras, it was a definite no. I’d rather shoot higher ISO, so I sent them back. The biggest lens I currently use is the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 which only extends about an inch max when zoomed out. Maybe I’m a bit odd, but I’d rather shoot 2 bodies with smaller lens to get the same focal lengths as a single body with a bigger zoom. I think of and use all zoom lenses as X + Y and not X to Y, ie, if the 24-105 was internal zoom, I’d maybe use it more, but then again, it’s really too extreme for my needs as I use zooms like primes, ie, only at their extreme ends so 28 + 70 = good, but 24 + 105 = meh. So my 24-105 sits in a bag most of the time as back up/wet weather. I would use an all prime set up if I could, but that eternal equation of number of bodies plus focal lengths required buggers the mathematics up! I would make an exception for Tamron’s 35-150 however because it’s just so versatile for my needs. But that would require a change to Sony or adapted to Nikon and that is not happening any time soon. So my current set up for my needs are: 28 + 70 zoom welded to Body 01 16 + 28 zoom or 90 with Body 02 18 (27) + 50 (75) APSC zoom welded to Body 03 (static and gimbal use only) I would like something like a 150 as a compact AF prime, but it does not exist in L Mount, 105 being the longest f2.8 (without going up to massive 135mm f1.8) or 70-200 zooms which are not for me. I really hope that Sigma come out with either: A. A compact 70-200 Contemporary I Series to pair with the 28-70, but actually a 70-180 like the available Tamron might make more sense and be smaller? B. An equivalent of the Tamron 35-150 except make it constant f2.8 as the f2 at the wide end changes very quickly and I would rather it did not. C. Get completely funky and do something like a 40-120 f2.8 with internal zoom and I would never buy another lens 😬

Liking the 6k 30p ‘open gate’ (3:2) on the S5ii… Testing it ahead of the arrival of that pair of S5iix’s due hopefully soon… I think I will probably be using it as my go to for the bulk of my work going forward because it does have an extra edge of detail over 4k and allows for better quality 9:16 highlight films using the same material, on top of my regular wedding films/videos. The only issue I seem to be having is my M1 chip MacBook doesn’t seem to like it much whereas 4k footage flies through it. Not sure what’s going on there… The baked in LUT works great so will also be using that going forward. Using the Gamut conversion LUT which is my preferred one and the footage coming out is nicer than using any profile with more DR. After some minor adjustments, it’s then just a case of the grade but I am much preferring getting an ‘a good starting point almost ready to go’ SOOC image. No ‘worthy’ examples at this time as I was just messing about really trying out some different set ups and getting round any potential flicker etc (using 30fps in a PAL region). It’s tungsten that is the only occasional issue but these things have synchro scan so as long as you don’t mind breaking the 180 degree shutter rule, you can tweak it any which way. Or just shoot 108/216/324 degrees if you know it’s just going to be awful. Most of my work is daylight plus some LED so not really an issue anyway.

Thanks for the update and good to hear it went well. And with the 24-105! Almost tempted to give it a whirl at my next wedding…except it’s my least reliable AF lens for stills in L Mount, but good for video. Not tried it on the PDAF S5ii…and probably won’t actually as it’s a bit big and bulky compared with my other lenses and juggling 3 bodies. I have got a non-pro event coming up on the Normandy coast around D Day (all that stuff is about 1.5 hours for me) and providing one of my battery grips has turned up by then, I may give it a go, - PDAF + Lumix 24-105 because I did some testing this last weekend up and around Utah Beach, but the 28-70 was definitely a bit short! As expected though, so on me. Thinking about picking up a 70-300 for that kind of thing. In fact, I’ll go and check prices right now 😉