Panasonic S5 User Experience

[MrSMW]

10 hours ago, herein2020 said:

That's pretty cool that you are using the S5 in so many different roles, when you have completed a wedding with the S5 I'd love to see the results.

Early Sep and I should have 2 to add to my portfolio.

The first is a 3 day American wedding here in France so should be good and is a full hybrid job.

The second 2 days but just stills.

I’m still toying with the exact configuration for hybrid coverage which is when I need 3 cameras; one for static full length stuff, one for roaming video and the third for stills.

In a pinch I can do it with 2 bodies and 2 zooms but there are compromises at key moments especially during ceremonies and that’s the weakness of the 2 camera approach.

3 cameras eliminates the compromise and despite these somewhat cash-strapped times, investing in my portfolio is still my best option.

I’m pretty sure I will run the following:

S1H + 35mm f2 indoor and in 4K 50p crop mode essentially gives me ‘50mm’ which I find is a look I like.

Switch to the 65mm f2 outdoors for a ‘100mm’ look. I am not and never have been a wider angle user and like to shoot either quite tight but if I want more context, back up to include it, but always with a longer focal length.

Handheld at all times as the S1H IBIS is just superb, unless I need to shoot stills at the same time such as first kiss, confetti etc in which case it quickly slips onto my freestanding monopod.

It’s my workhorse that produces 90% of the material.

Then one S5 gets the 24-105mm f4 and gets welded onto a tripod and does full rolling ceremony, speeches and any entrances, exits, first dance etc.

The second S5 with 28-70mm f2.8 is dedicated to stills and is a relatively lightweight compact and versatile combo and I do tend to switch to crop mode outdoors effectively turning it into a 42-105mm, at least in camera, with the ability to crop back out in post.

I would rather another S1H in this role however as I prefer it’s; build, ergos, dials, buttons, screens and…well everything really. Not to do the S5 an injustice, but the S1H is just better everywhere.

Tweaked natural profile for me also. I’ve tried log and can’t get on with it. Yes, in certain circumstances it can produce a marginally better result but is far too finicky for consistency and even with a decent workflow, a lot more time consuming. 

[MrSMW]

12 hours ago, herein2020 said:

but the S5 feels so awkward and foreign to me in photo mode that I am still hauling the 5DIV to every shoot that has a chance of needing images.

 I need to do an actual fashion or modeling or event shoot complete with different flashes, remote triggers, and lens setups to see if I can get used to the S5 for photos but my 5DIV literally feels like an extension of my own arm so its hard to even try anything else especially with the client standing there waiting for the next shot

Yep, I know what you mean.

I think one of the best things anyone can do is select the kit that best suits your individual needs and then just work with it as getting the most out of what you have often beats using something supposedly 'better' but less familiar.

It's why I have never really liked mixing kit, never mind brands, but I've never really gelled with any camera/lens combos until now.

I started my pro career with Nikon F3 film cameras, moved to F100's and then went digital, though at the time, that early digital stuff such as the D100 and D200 was awful, even for it's time.

I moved on to D3's and then D3S's but didn't enjoy lugging round those beasts paired with 24-70 and 70-200 which was the staple set up for many a wedding photographer.

So I moved to Fuji X Pro1's after enjoying the OG X100 when it first came out.

It produced some nice results...in fact I preferred the result over the D3S's but it wasn't as 'pro' a system.

From then on, I have kind of 'put up' with the Fuji X system and always hoped each new generation would be 'The One' for me and it probably would have been in early 2020 with the XT4 if Covid had not got in the way and wrecked my year.

Then it was rumoured that Panasonic was going to bring out this S5 and whilst not The Holy Grail, I suspected it would be a good fit for me.

And so it was and arguably a better platform for me (L Mount) over the XT4 based system I would otherwise have gone for and almost certainly using.

The S5 led to the S1H though. Billed as this 'video camera', but I don't think it is. I think it is instead simply one of the best hybrid cameras that money can buy, especially if you don't need more than 24mp.

My perfect combo right now would be a pair of S1H's and a single S5 but instead I have a pair of the latter and a single unit of the former so not so far off.

With 30+ hybrid coverage weddings booked for next year, I just want consistency now so may swap out one of the S5's for another S1H before next year's season kicks off in early April, but whatever I do or don't do in that regard, just remain with the system and not be tempted by any possible future S2H's, S5H's etc until such time as they exist and are available on the used market.

Kit is now just that good that familiarity I think is more important.

Those X Pro1's felt like toys back in 2012 coming from D3S's so yes, your S5 will feel 'less' than that Canon, but I got around that by NOT taking my Nikon's to the first wedding of 2012, not even as back up in the car, because I knew I might be tempted to revert to them and then I'd never fully embrace the new system.

I know without question, if I had taken those Nikon's, the Fuji system wouldn't have got past the bride prep stage before being booted out of the equation.

Sometimes you just need to go for it, trust in your kit and trust in your skills.

[DoorsFreak]

For those who have tried both the black magic assists braw and the ninja v’s prores raw, which one seems to be the better monitor/recorder for the s5? 

[herein2020]

16 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Handheld at all times as the S1H IBIS is just superb, unless I need to shoot stills at the same time such as first kiss, confetti etc in which case it quickly slips onto my freestanding monopod.

It’s my workhorse that produces 90% of the material.

Then one S5 gets the 24-105mm f4 and gets welded onto a tripod and does full rolling ceremony, speeches and any entrances, exits, first dance etc.

The second S5 with 28-70mm f2.8 is dedicated to stills and is a relatively lightweight compact and versatile combo and I do tend to switch to crop mode outdoors effectively turning it into a 42-105mm, at least in camera, with the ability to crop back out in post.

I would rather another S1H in this role however as I prefer it’s; build, ergos, dials, buttons, screens and…well everything really. Not to do the S5 an injustice, but the S1H is just better everywhere.

Tweaked natural profile for me also. I’ve tried log and can’t get on with it. Yes, in certain circumstances it can produce a marginally better result but is far too finicky for consistency and even with a decent workflow, a lot more time consuming. 

I am surprised that you like the S1H so much, I've looked at the specs on paper many times and on paper the S1H just doesn't seem like that big of a leap. Same sensor, same LOG curve, mostly the same recording options with many more thrown in that I don't really need  (i.e. All-I), and it does not do 4K120FPS. 

I am sure it has better ergonomics than the S5, but after adding the cage and a side and top handle the S5 fits like a glove for me. Without it, the S5 felt too small and light.

I know VLOG is one additional step but it really is incredible in difficult lighting situations and it literally takes me seconds to grade in post. In DR I just create 3 nodes (primaries, curves, false color), add 100% saturation, 1.17 contrast, then I pull down the lows to just touch off the bottom of the WFM, pull up the highs to just touch off of the top of the WFM then enable false color to tweak for skin exposure if any people are in the clip...done.  I then copy the results to all of the clips in the project and the only thing I tweak is the lows and highs as I go to each clip. I would estimate my grading process is about 5s per clip. On some rare occasions something looks off to me so I use the curves node to fine tune my grade or adjust the WB but that's it.

I know any time spent color grading is wasting precious time without adding to the incoming revenue but I couldn't imagine using anything else after seeing the results from VLOG. I've shot directly into setting sun and managed to retain the highlights while still retaining acceptable exposure on the model's skin. 

 

15 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Kit is now just that good that familiarity I think is more important.

Those X Pro1's felt like toys back in 2012 coming from D3S's so yes, your S5 will feel 'less' than that Canon, but I got around that by NOT taking my Nikon's to the first wedding of 2012, not even as back up in the car, because I knew I might be tempted to revert to them and then I'd never fully embrace the new system.

I know without question, if I had taken those Nikon's, the Fuji system wouldn't have got past the bride prep stage before being booted out of the equation.

Sometimes you just need to go for it, trust in your kit and trust in your skills.

 

Of course you are right, I think I have maximized the interoperability and usability of my current kit. As much as I'd like to further simplify, I will probably stick with this setup for quite sometime. Technically it is meeting all of my needs except for those times when I would like to have a second camera angle, but I really don't want to buy another S5 with so much uncertainty around Panasonic's future and the lack of CAF with EF lenses.

[MrSMW]

5 hours ago, herein2020 said:

on paper the S1H just doesn't seem like that big of a leap

Indeed and arguably a lot of the ‘extra’ that it has both internally and externally won’t be ‘essential’ to some but…

It’s all the little stuff that individually might not make much of a difference but when it’s considered as a whole…

For me, the sum of the whole adds up to elevate something that is good (S5) to something that is great (S1H).

Specifically, if the build is not actually better, the perception is due to it’s extra weight.

It’s size and grip for me is ergonomically better.

The on/off switch is in the right place compared with the S1 and S1R.

The top LCD.

The built in cooling. Try shooting extensive 4K in 30+ Celsius (in the shade) in direct sunlight with an R5!

For me, the best/perfect articulating screen.

The way each and every control works…They have done ‘something’ because it all feels better damped/higher quality.

The shutter sound. This is a bug bear of mine as someone who shoots a lot of stills and very few cameras have a properly damped shutter click. My old XH1 did and ‘upgrading’ to the XT3 made me wince. I never quite got past the XT4 being on order but believe it’s better than the XT3? The shutter sound on the S1H is sublime.

Twin SD over the S1/R option makes card management (and cost!) so much better.

To sum it up, it’s a bit like owning a BMW sports coupe and then being loaned a Porsche 911 for a week. Going back to the BMW which in isolation was great, makes you realise on what next level the Porsche is. And from that point, only the Porsche is good enough. And you want one.

Or maybe you are a Ferrari man (Canon) or Lexus (Sony) or Lotus (Fuji)… Porsches aren’t for everyone!

Like so many photographers, I have an itch for a Leica. Being realistic, I can’t buy into the system as a whole as it just isn’t financially possible, but for me, other than the legendary badge and a few details, my S1H is the better version of the Leica SL2-S.

This of course is just my experience and opinion.

Less than 1 week and it all gets to be put through it’s paces properly for the first time as a fully fledged system.

I have shot 4 crafts people for a day each, 6 styled wedding shoots, 1 small short wedding (stills only) and 1 big event, up to 2 cameras and various lens combos, ie, been trying to find out which combo works best.

I think it’s nailed down now and can’t spot (and don’t expect) any flaws in my set up as it’s just ‘new’ kit, old experience but with weddings, you can never really practice properly due to their nature.

Pity I only have 4 remaining and then another 1/2 a year off, but that’s my market and place we’re in where I live.

 

[herein2020]

16 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Indeed and arguably a lot of the ‘extra’ that it has both internally and externally won’t be ‘essential’ to some but…

It’s all the little stuff that individually might not make much of a difference but when it’s considered as a whole…

For me, the sum of the whole adds up to elevate something that is good (S5) to something that is great (S1H).

Specifically, if the build is not actually better, the perception is due to it’s extra weight.

It’s size and grip for me is ergonomically better.

The on/off switch is in the right place compared with the S1 and S1R.

The top LCD.

The built in cooling. Try shooting extensive 4K in 30+ Celsius (in the shade) in direct sunlight with an R5!

For me, the best/perfect articulating screen.

The way each and every control works…They have done ‘something’ because it all feels better damped/higher quality.

The shutter sound. This is a bug bear of mine as someone who shoots a lot of stills and very few cameras have a properly damped shutter click. My old XH1 did and ‘upgrading’ to the XT3 made me wince. I never quite got past the XT4 being on order but believe it’s better than the XT3? The shutter sound on the S1H is sublime.

Twin SD over the S1/R option makes card management (and cost!) so much better.

To sum it up, it’s a bit like owning a BMW sports coupe and then being loaned a Porsche 911 for a week. Going back to the BMW which in isolation was great, makes you realise on what next level the Porsche is. And from that point, only the Porsche is good enough. And you want one.

Or maybe you are a Ferrari man (Canon) or Lexus (Sony) or Lotus (Fuji)… Porsches aren’t for everyone!

Like so many photographers, I have an itch for a Leica. Being realistic, I can’t buy into the system as a whole as it just isn’t financially possible, but for me, other than the legendary badge and a few details, my S1H is the better version of the Leica SL2-S.

This of course is just my experience and opinion.

Less than 1 week and it all gets to be put through it’s paces properly for the first time as a fully fledged system.

I have shot 4 crafts people for a day each, 6 styled wedding shoots, 1 small short wedding (stills only) and 1 big event, up to 2 cameras and various lens combos, ie, been trying to find out which combo works best.

I think it’s nailed down now and can’t spot (and don’t expect) any flaws in my set up as it’s just ‘new’ kit, old experience but with weddings, you can never really practice properly due to their nature.

Pity I only have 4 remaining and then another 1/2 a year off, but that’s my market and place we’re in where I live.

 

 

Fortunately for my wallet the S1H is only available online and my previous Panasonic was a GH5 so for me the S5 is a step up from the GH5 in every way except the focus peaking and the LCD screen resolution.  If I had had a chance to actually handle the S1H I might have ended up with that based on your description of how much better it feels during real world use.

This is another area where I feel Panasonic is always on the losing end; none of their real cameras ever make it to the local big box retailers where you would get to handle them in person; instead you have to order online with blind faith and specs alone and hope whoever you ordered from has a very forgiving return policy if it doesn't meet your expectations. Canon, Sony, and even Nikon are better represented in this area.

[MrSMW]

Other than a few public trade shows, the last I visited about 10 years ago, I’ve bought every single piece of kit on-line since my Nikon film camera days nearly 20 years ago.

It hadn’t occurred to me until just now!

I did go into my ‘local’ camera shop, a city centre department store (2 hours away) just after the Nikon Z6 came out and handled as many cameras as I could while the opportunity was there, but otherwise…

[herein2020]

10 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Other than a few public trade shows, the last I visited about 10 years ago, I’ve bought every single piece of kit on-line since my Nikon film camera days nearly 20 years ago.

It hadn’t occurred to me until just now!

I did go into my ‘local’ camera shop, a city centre department store (2 hours away) just after the Nikon Z6 came out and handled as many cameras as I could while the opportunity was there, but otherwise…

 

Where I live there is a big box retailer less than 30min away where on a good day you can hold in your hands a Canon R5, R6, 1DXIII, Sony A7S3, Nikon Z6, etc. On a bad day just the R6, a 5DIV, EOS R, and no NIkon mirrorless cameras but still the DSLR versions. On no day can you hold anything from Panasonic except point and shoot camcorders and pocket cameras.

From that same retailer though you can walk in the store and order anything you want (or stay home and order online) and get a full 5yr protection plan against everything the manufacturer covers plus spills, drops, etc so that is where I typically get my camera bodies from. That's also how I got to test the Canon R6 for a week and return it penalty free.

[MrSMW]

Since some early Fuji models, my one handling session was; Z6, EOS R, EM1ii, S1 and XT3.

I was an XT3 user at the time and it felt like a toy compared with the others, but better built than the Nikon or Canon which we both very plasticky, the former in a cheap shiny way and the latter in a cheap more matte finish.

The Olympus I remember was comfortably the best.

The S1 I dismissed at the time as on first acquaintance, it felt too big after so much familiarity with the XT3.

That is my recollection of that one off experience of actually handling cameras in a store with an intention to buy.

Based on that visit, I decided on the not available at the time XT4…which is where I would still be today if it had not been for Covid…but then along came the S5 that picqued my interest and the rest as they say is history.

[herein2020]

20 minutes ago, MrSMW said:

Since some early Fuji models, my one handling session was; Z6, EOS R, EM1ii, S1 and XT3.

I was an XT3 user at the time and it felt like a toy compared with the others, but better built than the Nikon or Canon which we both very plasticky, the former in a cheap shiny way and the latter in a cheap more matte finish.

The Olympus I remember was comfortably the best.

The S1 I dismissed at the time as on first acquaintance, it felt too big after so much familiarity with the XT3.

That is my recollection of that one off experience of actually handling cameras in a store with an intention to buy.

Based on that visit, I decided on the not available at the time XT4…which is where I would still be today if it had not been for Covid…but then along came the S5 that picqued my interest and the rest as they say is history.

Being able to handle a camera definitely can be useful. It was in that very store that my complete distaste for all things Sony was born. The minute I picked up the A7II and it felt like a cheap plasticky gimmicky toy I knew I never wanted to own a Sony. I then went through the menu system (after owning Canon for years) and couldn't believe how bad the menu system was. 

The GH5 was the first camera I got completely sight unseen, followed by the S5. I dismissed all of the Panasonic S series cameras when they were released due to the new L mount and having to buy new lenses + the AF situation (this was prior to the EF adapter). 

In that same store I picked up the R6 and immediately liked how cheap it felt in the hands compared to the 5DIV; turns out my first instincts were right. I would have left it there on the shelf if they didn't have a return policy.

[MrSMW]

I forgot the Sony…

There was an A7iii at FNAC. Awful thing 😬

[TomTheDP]

On 8/15/2021 at 5:30 PM, herein2020 said:

In the GH5 with V30 cards I could not shoot ALL-I, it would fail to record after about 30s or so; all other modes I didn't have that issue.

Yeah the S1 can't do all-i so you are all good.

 

On 8/17/2021 at 6:45 PM, Thpriest said:

Spanish weddings are very chaotic affairs! The reasons I haven't used VLOG is that having to be extra careful with exposure is difficult (think extreme sun and shade) and I prefer to not have to adjust every clip in post. Nobody pays enough for that here.

I've found the S1 dynamic range is really good even in the natural profile.

[Thpriest]

I used to have a G-cup for my GH5, it really helped with my glasses and bright sun light. I realise it's what I miss most about shooting with the GH5. I really hope they will produce one for the S5.

[Thpriest]

On 8/19/2021 at 7:19 AM, MrSMW said:

Less than 1 week and it all gets to be put through it’s paces properly for the first time as a fully fledged system.

How did it all go?

[MrSMW]

On 9/1/2021 at 6:30 PM, Thpriest said:

How did it all go?

OK. I think...

Great clients, a good wedding (though a little 'thin' on a few things such as zero bridesmaids, best man, groomsmen etc) and it has been both 13 months since my last proper wedding which itself was 9 months since the last proper season...plus, it was the first proper wedding with the new system.

The AF held up to everything except extensive forward or backward tracking. As expected.

I didn't like the full ceremony static footage I did and was toying with changing how I do that anyway. This last job convinced me to do it differently from now on.

I still don't like the shutter sound of the S5's. Compared with the damped shutter on the S1H, it's no contest and it can be heard from time to time in the 'live' footage for the ceremony and speeches.

I think I'm done with the Wireless Go and just sticking with pocket recorders, lav mics and auto-syncing in post which is pretty much a one click job. The sound guy moved the speaking mic from where I'd reset it from where he'd originally set it and I didn't notice until after the ceremony started... Anyway, it's too reliant on proximity that can't always achieved and no way am I sticking that on anyone's lapel with a dead kitten on it.

The Sigma pairing of the 35mm f2 and 65mm f2 went pretty well.

I used the 35mm for everything indoors and the 65mm for everything  out but as I shot everything 4k 50p, they worked more like a 50 and a 100.

Liked the 35 well enough but loved the 65mm.

No ND's, just cranked the shutter speed.

The principal result can be seen here: 

Password = Lower Drive

It's 4k if you have the ability to watch in 4k.

A few niggles with my grading, but mostly due to A: shooting in the Natural profile, ie, not log, but mostly because B: I'm slightly rusty, not in my normal 'in season groove' and made a few questionable choices shooting certain scenes into the sun.

I was also shooting full stills (results not available yet though I have processed them and am happy with them) because that's what I do, - stills only, or video only or full hybrid and this was full hybrid. Just me. Always.

Summary: I reckon I need 5-10 weddings to really get up to speed with...well everything really. Kind of in the ball park with where I want to be based on intent and reality, but some rough edges I need to work on to get to where I want it to be compared to no one but myself and my own standards/targets.

Unfortunately, I only have 2 more to shoot this year, 1 in Sep and 1 in Oct and hope the weather plays nice for those as neither venue is very 'indoor' and these weddings are planned to be mainly outdoor affairs.

Next time, I'm switching it around a bit and going for a 2x S5 dedicated to purely video, mostly on sticks and using the S1H as a hybrid, but mostly for stills.

I think it will work better for me as a system.

Oh and moire...

Nothing in this vid (that I saw), but holy moly, my second job directly after this one, stills only, I went 2x S5 plus the Sigma pairing and it was great...except for the lack of a damped shutter and the bloody moire! The groom decided a tight hounds tooth waistcoat (vest to the Americans amongst us) was a good idea. The cameras thought otherwise. Wouldn't have been a problem with the S1H...

Oh and summary vs the XT3, my previous weapon of choice for both video and stills and that summary is the S5 is the 'better' camera in every department except colour. The files are 'better' from the S5, both photo and video but not in any way I can describe and it's not by much.

The XT3 wins for colour though. Maybe it's just familiarity of working with the evolving Fuji files from 2011 through 2019, but they are somehow just 'nicer'. Again, not by much and can't really describe it....and maybe it's just in my head ;)

 

[MrSMW]

Oh and there is a glitch near the start I need to sort and if you notice anything else, let me know.

[herein2020]

5 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Oh and there is a glitch near the start I need to sort and if you notice anything else, let me know.

Loved the video, the color grade looked great; I have never shot with the XT3 so unfortunately I can't really speak to the color. I do think if you try VLOG you may see a large color improvement. I think the "Natural" profile still bakes in more/different color than the VLOG profile and VLOG specifically does more than just flattens the image I believe it also uses the Varicam color science which is much better than any of the baked in profiles.

First I want to caveat this with saying your work is great and everyone has different editing styles and I think the video exactly as is would make the customer perfectly happy, but since you asked for feedback below are the very small things I would change:

1:00 - Static Shots: for my particular style I want motion at all times in video, I believe those were images so what I would do to make them flow with the video is add a slight ken burns affect, slight zoom in/out etc something to make them feel more like part of the video and to add ever so slight motion. When done well, people can't tell if it is an image or video since it is really brief

2:08-2:13 - I always try not to show people talking if I am also playing a voiceover especially the main speaker because the words look out of synch to me with the audio if I see people's lips moving during a voice over I would just use a different  shot there; also the jump cut is jarring since it is the same scene but with the people in different places; I would jump to b roll or something completely different to make it feel more natural.

2:43 - I would dip to black there or cross fade to the next scene for a reveal just to make the transition more natural feeling

3:12 - I would add more motion here as well, use fewer images so each one in on screen longer (to match the tempo of the music) and cross fade them to keep the same emotion as the audio track and sync the cross fades to a cue point in the audio track

4:08 - Just a tad of instability, I would add some post stabilization or drop to 50% speed to stabilize the last second of footage

4:35 - Great shot, but the IS corrections make the reflections of the lights jittery, maybe slow motion will make it less distracting or maybe you have a different angle you can use

Like I said, wonderful colors, shooting, editing and especially the way the drone color grade so perfectly matched the rest of the video I know how hard that is to do and I commend anyone who shoots weddings so I hope you view my feedback as just the things I would do if I were editing that exact footage.

The footage really showed off the low light capabilities of the S series cameras. I recently shot a fashion show promo video all at night with nothing but city lighting and it was incredible how well the S5 performed at ISO4000; that dual native ISO is a life saver. For one of the shots I dropped down to ISO3200 just out of curiosity and it was a horrible static mess, switched back to ISO4000 and it immediately went back to very clean.

[MrSMW]

@herein2020 thanks for the feedback.

I'm not one of those needy types that needs validation from others, - I'm quite confident and only need to please 2 people:

1: Myself.

2: My client.

In that order.

Always worked for me 'shooting for myself' rather than any client brief and this is why my clients book me, - because they do not want to be involved.

Probably wouldn't work so well for commercial clients and why I have so few 😉

But sincerely thanks for the feedback and pretty much most, if not all, absolutely valid.

This version is not quite the finished one.

Rather I just happened to pop it up on to Vimeo yesterday afternoon to see how it looked on various devices, but already intended to make a few tweaks to the grade here and there.

Re. log. I've been pretty opposed to it and other than the low-light, I do think I need to give it another chance and I was already 50:50 about giving it a go for my next job in a few weeks. I already have the Gamut in camera LUT loaded and in Premiere, so will probably do that.

Re. the stills, yup, already intended to 'Burns' them or similar.

Re. any talky bits not matching the audio, I agree and the missus flagged that one up yesterday, so it's on my 'to do' list.

I didn't notice the wobble, but I'll fix with some warp stab. 

Generally, at this stage, I usually just leave it now for a week and go do another job and then return to it with a fresh eye after 7 or so days. That tends to flag up niggles.

That drone by the way is from an original Mavic Air purchased early 2018.

It's been crashed at least 7 or 8 times, has chipped props, doesn't fly straight, drifts...and badly needs replacing for the 2022 season!!

Oh and that jittery light, - I think it was due to the 1/8th mist filter on the lens...and I really do need to remember to shoot at the native ISO's (note to self). 

But again, overall, in regards to the tools, the cameras, the merging of the S5 with the S1H...so an S5H would be my perfect tool.

I shall go tweak next week!

[herein2020]

13 hours ago, MrSMW said:

@herein2020 thanks for the feedback.

I'm not one of those needy types that needs validation from others, - I'm quite confident and only need to please 2 people:

1: Myself.

2: My client.

In that order.

Always worked for me 'shooting for myself' rather than any client brief and this is why my clients book me, - because they do not want to be involved.

Probably wouldn't work so well for commercial clients and why I have so few 😉

But sincerely thanks for the feedback and pretty much most, if not all, absolutely valid.

This version is not quite the finished one.

Rather I just happened to pop it up on to Vimeo yesterday afternoon to see how it looked on various devices, but already intended to make a few tweaks to the grade here and there.

Re. log. I've been pretty opposed to it and other than the low-light, I do think I need to give it another chance and I was already 50:50 about giving it a go for my next job in a few weeks. I already have the Gamut in camera LUT loaded and in Premiere, so will probably do that.

Re. the stills, yup, already intended to 'Burns' them or similar.

Re. any talky bits not matching the audio, I agree and the missus flagged that one up yesterday, so it's on my 'to do' list.

I didn't notice the wobble, but I'll fix with some warp stab. 

Generally, at this stage, I usually just leave it now for a week and go do another job and then return to it with a fresh eye after 7 or so days. That tends to flag up niggles.

That drone by the way is from an original Mavic Air purchased early 2018.

It's been crashed at least 7 or 8 times, has chipped props, doesn't fly straight, drifts...and badly needs replacing for the 2022 season!!

Oh and that jittery light, - I think it was due to the 1/8th mist filter on the lens...and I really do need to remember to shoot at the native ISO's (note to self). 

But again, overall, in regards to the tools, the cameras, the merging of the S5 with the S1H...so an S5H would be my perfect tool.

I shall go tweak next week!

So the mist filter is what created that matte look? That's pretty interesting, I've never used a mist filter but after seeing your video I might get a set. I'm always worried filters will do things to the footage in camera that I cannot fix later. I typically add the matte look in post by adjusting the curves and bringing up the black point but if yours was done in camera that's impressive.

Your audio was pretty incredible too, I've only shot a few weddings and the audio was pure stress for me. Trying to get the groom mic'd up and preventing clothing rustle and clipping is a pure headache in the chaos that is weddings. 

I have one of my rare ones next month and I plan on using a Sennheiser wireless lav mic into the XLR adapter in the S5 as well as a backup recorder in the inside pocket. If I can get one more Tascam off of the DJ's mixer I'll do that as well or maybe run another Sennheiser set off the mixer into the XLR module on the S5 as a safety track on channel 2.

Here's to hoping that Panasonic is working on an S5H. My only two wishes for an S5H is 4K120FPS and CAF with EF lenses. I was really hurting on that night promo shoot. I was shooting at ISO4000 F1.4 and had no time to manually focus as the models moved around so I will just have to use what I could get when they were in the focal plane.

[MrSMW]

Any look my video has will be a combination of:

Tweaked Natural profile; highlights down, shadows up, contrast down, sharpening down.

Use of a 1/8th mist.

No luts, just a basic tweak as required to each clip. This is why I may switch to log as my clips can be a little bit all over the place.

One single creative finishing lut on an adjustment layer that adds a ‘filmic’ look, dialed back to around 30%. Still playing with that one.

Plus in the case of the S1H, the OLPF that the S5’s don’t have.

So no single element but the combo of the whole.

Still playing with it and log might be the answer to take it to the next level and vision I am seeking to achieve.

Audio is easy. 

Or rather, I just use the KISS principal and primarily do not trust or use anything that is not mine, so no mixing decks etc.

Why? Consistency. Every wedding I go to is different and uses different systems and some have nothing to plug into anyway.

2 rules:

1: mic as close to the person’s mouth as possible, as in jacket lapel. Most of my work is outdoors and I can rarely get a shotgun etc close enough, especially if the person speaking regularly turns away.

2: always find out from the clients in advance what is happening and when and brief them re. audio, setting a focal point such as a lectern if there is going to be more than 3 people talking (though I sometimes hot swap mics discretely if needed).

I am far (FAR) from being an audio expert. I simply use 3x old (7-8 years?) Rode lav mics which I am going to replace at some point with some less Michael Jackson circa Jackson 5 fro mics with some more modern more discrete versions and 3x Sony pocket recorders that cost about £75 each off Amazon.

There is a bit of clothing rustle from time to time as I can’t keep those fro head lav mics off the clothing.

In principal, video and audio and stills, I just aim to keep things as simple as possible and as minimalist as I can with the least compromise which as a one man band, is key.

’My’ S5H is just the S1H version of the S1 so I’d go with; fan, OLPF, damped shutter for stills and higher screen resolution, otherwise not a single thing more I would want. Other than improved AF, but that’s a given 😉