5D3 RAW, FS700+SB, iPhone 5S cut together

[jcs]

Part of the learning process as a filmmaker is to try different cameras to see how well they work to and see how they cut together. There is no camera (yet!) perfect for all situations. Sometimes the camera you have on-hand is the best camera (or when the batteries died on your A-camera :) ).

 

Here we tested 5D3 raw, processed with raw2cdng (very fast but no vertical stripe removal yet) and ACR (first shot, outdoors at golden hour), Sennheiser G3 wireless, Oscar Sound Tech OST-802 mic (great value at around $110 for the kit wired for the G3)), FS700 + SpeedBooster, and iPhone 5S for the last shot (FS700 batteries gone). Canon 24-105 F4L used on both cameras, same mic.

Lighting (except first shot- only sun, no reflectors) was 2 6-element 'twisted bulb' high CRI fluorescent studio lights (sorry, don't have brand info anymore- they were low-cost) with diffuser material draped over lights.

 

When the host (Elena) saw the iPhone 5S footage, she exclaimed "I like that better than the Sony!", lol. Getting good color out of the FS700 is possible, but takes work (other folks have stated the same thing- even with a 7Q it's not as good as Canon (or Apple!) color processing (from what I have seen online so far)).

 

Here's 100% FS700+SB + Canon 24-105 F4L at F4, handheld with an HDV-Z96 LED light on camera. This was our first time shooting this kind of thing and the live audio ended up needing to be replaced with ADR (live quality was excellent with the Audio Technica 4029 stereo shotgun and Sony preamps, however the dialog had to be re-done). We used a Shure SM7B and a Focusrite Scarlet 2i2 for ADR (great preamps for the price- sold my RME Fireface 800* after getting this!), recorded directly into PPro at my desk in my home office (not a sound-treated room). I had not done this before and it was good practice (didn't try for perfect sync + some of the words were changed- kind of reminded me of old Clint Eastwood Spaghetti Westerns).

* The Sound Devices USBPre2 has more accurate preamps, while the Scarlet 2i2 is a bit smoother and well suited for vocal recordings. The Fireface 800 is a great, very stable product, however I never liked the preamps (and while the routing complexity will blow your mind (in a good way), it's so complicated it will blow your mind (in not a good way when things don't work :) )).

 

Here are the same clips on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheHotDishShow

There was a time when youtube and vimeo offered similar quality- it's clear vimeo is now better (too bad as youtube has more social/virality features).

 

We just shot another piece using 100% 5D3 RAW + Z96 light and G3 + OST-802. When we ran out of card space (2 64GB and 1 32GB Komputerbay), I pulled out the slower CF cards and continued with H.264. With good lighting I believe it will cut well with RAW, especially for internet delivery.

 

I picked up this viewfinder and mini rail system for $130: http://www.amazon.com/AUTHENTIC-KAMERAR-VIEWFINDER-FINDER-NIKON/dp/B00EAXU6UM/ (says Nikon but works perfectly on the 5D3).

 

I almost got the Zacuto for $300 but decided to try this first. I mounted a handle using the rails under the camera for balance: this setup works very well! Can't imagine the Zacuto or other brand would be any better in terms of optical quality and magnification ratio (2.5x)(Zacuto has anti-fog- not an issue so far in SoCal). Focusing wide shots is still an issue, even with ML peaking (have to punch in first). Really need an electronic viewfinder with full 1920x1080- I can easily focus when hooked up to an HDTV (no peaking even needed).

[maxotics]

We just shot another piece using 100% 5D3 RAW + Z96 light and G3 + OST-802. When we ran out of card space (2 64GB and 1 32GB Komputerbay), I pulled out the slower CF cards and continued with H.264. With good lighting I believe it will cut well with RAW, especially for internet delivery. 

 

Great videos.  You really nailed the audio!  I can make RAW look like H.264, but never the other way around.  The first video is very rich and nicely flat.  The second, with the FS700 just looks like video to me. 

 

Anyway, if you figure out how to get H.264 to look like your RAW, even for Internet delivery, please let me know ;)

[MattH]

I agree with maxotics.   I wish I had read first that it was the last shot that was the iphone as i was trying to look for crap quality shots the whole way through :).     Thank you for taking the time to explain all this.  I will definitely be returning to your post for your info on sound equipment.

[Inazuma]

Funny thing to say, but whilst watching the video, I inadvertently learnt a few new things about cooking :p Cool stuff, well done. Impressed by the 5S footage too.

To me, the Canon stuff looked like typical Canon DSLR footage. The Sony had more character, although maybe graded too harshly.

[sandro]

One thing is for sure: I'm hungry!

 

Anyway how could she like the Iphone footage better??? Something related to how she looked I'm sureee (I know how women think when watching themselves on video aahaha)