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My eye was particularly taken by his post about promising to cure relationship problems using black magic. On the basis of that, I've ordered an Ursa Mini Pro. I'll keep you posted on whether it does indeed stop the missus nagging me about doing more around the house.

https://www.slashcam.de/artikel/Test/Panasonic-GH5---8-Bit--10-Bit--4-2-2--V-Log-L---alles-OK--.html Next part of the Slashcam review, testing 8bit vs 10bit and V-Log L. Summary: They say there is some issues how NLEs interpret the white point and black point of the footage In Premiere Pro CC neither 8bit nor 10bit fit to the whitepaper from Panasonic. In Media Player Classic - Home Cinema the files look exactly the same In Davinci Resolve under OSX the files are different again, even in comparison to Premiere Pro on Windows In FinalCut X the files are practically identical but they can't really judge the white and black point because it gives % instead of values Latitude for grading with V Log is, as expected, better with the 10bit material than the 8bit. A lot less posterization when bending the image. They think both Adobe and Blackmagic have to fix compatibility within their software to really make the most out of the footage and be able to actually judge the 10bit V Log of the GH5

If it's anything like other blackmagic products the person will have died of natural causes by the time it's delivered

I have deleted and blocked 4 spammers in the last 2 days ! They do seem to be trying it on !

Everyone has opinions and everyone has their degrees of being right and wrong. On morality, technicality, articulating things etc etc. It's great that you can proudly say that you didn't give in to the greed of money, and that, unlike most blogs and sites that deal with independent filmmaking and gear reviews, you aren't saleable and no amount of money or fame can compromise your viewpoints. I guess one of the reasons the whole Cinema5D article about the GH5 is blowing up into their face, is because their credibility is not even remotely acceptable right now. People have started wondering why they even review products, if they have such obvious brands they are more favourable or faithful towards. Also, if a reviewer, in general, has any level of credibility. What everyone likes about EOSHD, is that you're incorruptible. Something your peers of the blog variety cannot claim.

That's a huge difference, holy cow

Commander Reid, following your dispatches all these years has been like visiting the front lines of the DSLR community where shooting truly magical cinematic images is within our grasp. You were the first one to show it was possible to mount vintage LOMO anamorphic lenses on a GH2 and how to hack the camera. That changed my world. I quit my day job, bought a GH2 from Andrew via Japan, and went out and made a feature film with LOMOs that is now coming out worldwide on March 20. Yep, that's a plug for the film, but it's also a testament to what Andrew has started and achieved here. You'll find him thanked in the credits. Can't wait to get my GH5 and get on with the next film.

"Like I say, I have loved my time writing EOSHD but I am thinking I might soon stop. What has tainted it has been the sheer snobbery of some of that pro-video industry. The poor attitude so many pro videographers in particular seem to have towards newcomers and enthusiasts and artists." For what it's worth, yours is the only website that feels authentic. We all know the internet is now just a brown stream of corporate content, so to have a place where things are real is welcome. Enthusiast used to have places to go in the past untainted by monied nonsense. Through a confluence of timing, ambition, and opportunity, and attitude, yours is a place that's remained "clean" from all of the corporate PR clutter. No small feat in this modern life. I'd suggest that if you decide to bow out as a guy writing content, maybe become the creative director --and then bring on board a select like-minded-few that might be willing to provide the same ethos that makes this place so special. Or curate the more interesting organic bubblings that arise from the forum and turn those into front-page blog entries featuring input from the main players of the thread. As for crusty snobby "pros" that bitch about people with "toys" that "don't know the first thing about making a film"... well, that sort of curmudgeon is a scared little snowflake because they rest their ego on the tech, which is always getting easier to use and better. Not exactly the best foundation in the digital world. There's enough of them to make a blizzard sometimes, but ultimately snow melts, doesn't it?

Here's a basic formula: When possible, take away all the light and carefully add light tuned for the story and emotion of the scene. Look at how often everything is dark, or overall not very bright in classic films. Paint with light. There are tons of books on this subject. Shoot at night and wet down the street. Set the frame rate to 24 (or 23.976), shutter 1/48 (or 1/50). That's for normal shots, you can go all over the place for emotional effect of the scene. Protect highlights so they don't clip and pay careful attention to exposure to keep skin tones in the sweet spot for your camera. Study film behavior for highlights and adjust your look in post to match the highlight and color response of film. Film generally never gets super white. Use a diffusion filter of some kind. Blur a little in post if necessary and add full resolution film grain (blur may not be needed if diffusion is used). Make sure there are no digital artifacts such as aliasing or Moire. Use depth of field to help tell the story by helping the viewer focus on what's important in the scene. If your camera has rolling shutter, make sure to move the camera in a way to minimize it. Try to make the scene a little 'unreal', in a way you would not see in normal everyday life. Like in a dream.

Perhaps a flex-arm solution could work. Such a set-up would allow you to hold the camera in one hand and adjust the monitor with the other hand. Here's the Manfrotto flex-arm: Here is some other gooseneck for a tablet: Here is the Lowel Flexi-Shaft (modular system): Here is a Matthews flex-arm: Here is some audio gooseneck selling at B&H:

I'm sure they will , the Arri became industry standard due to the look , work flow and ease of use , with Codex Vault you are a great work flow from set to edit , so a 2.5 K camera with less resolution than some of the cameras here on this forum produced cinematic images in the right cinematographers hands , so resolution and 4k are not essential , its the lenses lighting composition and story ...is it entertaining ! That makes it cinematic . anyone on this forum can produce wonderful cinematic images with a bit of care and thought

Hallo, to me it seems being the first video to show the big advantage of 10 bit vs 8bit on a Panasonic Hybrid! 8 bit is severly broken after the grade, whereas 10bit remains the gradation. Have not been able to detect this obvious difference on the GH4 with internal vs external recording. But as they say, always good to do ones own tests than waiting for others to do the hard testing work:) Also very nice news from the slashcam testchart: exellent resolution in HD mode up to 60fps, C300 level, better than its older Panasonic silbings. I must say, color science on the GX80 has greatly improved, first time I would accept footage ooc without grading. So color should be great too on GH5. Hey, I played it in 720p on a 27inch display. Even like that it look exellent. So GH5 definately is a player in the resolution department. Colors looked adequate not great though. Thanks for posting this video. It shows some problems in the dark areas. But even on FS700 underexposing SLOG when recording to an Atomos shows chunky pixelation as well, whereas my G6 on linear space did not. Still the FS700 is the vastly superior imaging machine! Isn´t it.

I couldn't say the last time I visited Cinema 5D. EOSHD and the community here gave me the courage to finally branch out from Canon to Blackmagic and Sony. One of the things I've always appreciated is how Andrew not only doesn't pulls any punches in his reviews, but backs up his conclusions with accurate information. Probably why I haven't been to C5D in awhile.

Yeah, it is doubtful I will get one, but I cannot deny how great of a camera it is for the money and since the OP asked about the best cam at $3000... the LS300 definitely has to be considered. Also, I read that they are planning a 4K 60p firmware update... unsure if it's true... but definitely another bonus if it happens.

I wish we could up our game a bit, this codec obviously has its limitations, high ISO performance is not great at all, the noise reduction is killing our video, and I just wish I could magnify for focus while recording. All in all, everything else is super amazing! Kino, you have to pull a rabbit out of your hut dude, don't you have any Balkanic super hacker friends?!

I agree with the previous two post. Basically you have the Samsung gear 360 and the Nikon KeyMission 360 as consumers and easy to use solution. You can create okish quality content that can still generate the wow effect if the subject/story is great but technically the result is far away from pro quality that we are used on video today. The potential is there but is just too early at this price point (200-500 USD). I have and use quite a bit the Samsung 360 and for the price is good for learning and producing some experiment. Next is the Gopro OMNI that produce better quality video but there is a much more work in the process. Cost around 5k USD Then Nokia Ozo that is probably today the best quality but is very expensive at 45k USD First thing to do IMO is to grab a google cardboard and look at many YouTube 360 videos available done with these cameras to get an idea. You need a phone with a great screen and remember to set the quality of the YouTube video to 4k before putting it in to the cardboard. Normally it defaults to a lower resolution. This is a good one to start watching (cardboard required to get a real feeling of the potential of 360 videos) this one was done with 6 Gopro's similar to the Gopro OMNI rig:

Please don't stop the blog! You are the anti-snob and we need a healthy balance of the forces. ?

I wanted to buy a cage for my Samsung NX1 long time ago, but the price used to be over USD$300 for all different options in the market. Today i just realized that the Varavon Armor II Standard Cage was only USD$50. Coudn't skip the chance Here is the link for the cage. I hope you will find usefull ARMOR II - NX1 STANDARD CAGE (50 bucks) https://varavon.com/collections/hot-deal-zone/products/armor-nx1?variant=1176714847 ARMOR II - NX1 PRO CAGE (60 bucks) https://varavon.com/collections/hot-deal-zone/products/armor-ii-nx1-pro-cage?variant=4096862915 PS: Sorry about my english. I speak spanish.

Here is some street videography taken in cinemascope with SLR Magic anamorphot 1.33x-40. As you can see rack focus works good and is easy to do. The combo with the prime lens is quite compact and lightweight. GH4 slow motion mode 1080p SLR Magic anamorphot 1.33x-40 on Pentax 40mm f2.8 at f4 Hoya ND filters music : Superpitcher "People" Lumetri (SL Bleu Intense (Universal)) + slight levels corrections Thanks to Andrew Chan from SLR Magic, Emmanuel, Tchie-Kung and Nina

Sure. You have to re-flash all 6 gopro cameras so they are unusable as normal cameras. (Can be flashed back, but it's cumbersome) Managing the data cards from 6 cameras is a pain. It comes with tweezers so you can pull the cards out. Managing power means plugging in all 6 cameras separately when in the rig to recharge their internal batteries. Nice thing is they are all synchronized for start/stop recording, but with each one having it's own power -- problems can occur. Note: you can get it with a V-Mount, but only if you buy it as a complete $5000 kit. If you have V-Mounts already, you CANNOT buy the power cable separately. Many have fried their OMNI units trying to jury-rig or buy a "compatible" cable for V-Mount power. It's annoying that GoPro doesn't sell these cables separately. Other GoPro array systems exist, but without a hardware sync, you have to deal with aligning them in post, which is a pain in a real production environment. The software does an okay job stitching, but I expected it to be better for the amount of money spent. I plan to sell mine (without cameras, just the rig). I just haven't gotten around to listing it on eBay. It's actually pretty good for where we're at right now with surround-video. But you have to avoid enclosed spaces, and since we do mostly cars, that's more of an issue for us.

I tried to find this already. As you say almost all have some issue or two. All will extend pretty much and if they don't the front will rotate. Let me know if you find one. A few Olympus lenses get close.

It's only better to have a taking lens with a front filter because you don't need to deal with step up or step down filter. Always go for the best taking lens regardless of front filter size. Only when going as wide as you can might it be a issue with slight vignetting in the corners.

You might consider something like the Lowel Tota-Tilter: There is no locking mechanism for the tilt -- it just provides constant tension. The pan would require loosening the black knob. You would also need a stud/baby-pin to mount it.

My favourite was this one about a powerful blackmagic mantra to kill a person.

In the vid I posted they said they were shooting on m43 with a vintage 35mm lens at f2.4. If they can get a usable m43 image at f2 that would be fantastic. I'm not bothered by a little softness. This might be a dumb question, but is it better to use a taking lens where the filter size is at or smaller than 52mm?

(GEAR PORN ALERT!) Could not help myself... Received this great new wooden handle from SmallRig today. Raw anamorphic aaton-style rack focusing all day now.

Question to me is, did C5D intentionally produce a misleading review. Maybe their conclusions are just wrong* because C5D is not competent or able to judge the product? * Maybe they should have said "We've tried x, y, z, but could not find a way to see a useful difference in 8 bit versus 10 bit recording" ? - instead of saying something IS. The Slashcam article shows the editors are possibly not ready to work with the GH5 10 bit files, I think C5D should have taken this possibility into account. Like one would not judge the RAW photos without having an updated RAW interpretation. From the over processed video comparing 8 vs 10 bit I do think 10 bit does help a lot. On the other hand I think the 8 bit's limitation acts as a noise reduction filter, whereas 10 bit records more noise/detail in the shadows. This may eat more of the available bitrate leaving less for the well exposed areas? I think with a good noise suppression setting in the editor you probably can have a more pleasing result from the 10 bit recording. BUT we will see!

Considering the guy can't clean his lens, or shoot two test shots at the same f-stop, not sure how much I particularly want to trust his results or how he's applying the color grade. That said, it makes sense to get banding from 8-bit log.

Well in my mind that would completely reasonable on Panasonic's part to go after them legally...to publish something as a review and then call a major feature "unusable" in a pre-production camera with, what many have concluded, were flawed tests, certainly would seem to get to the realm of legal liability!...for whatever their motivation was...I think in reality, C5D has hurt themselves more than Panasonic...GH users wait a long time for the next releases of the cameras...for perhaps the sole reason that they know in the next incarnation they get a lot...in a bulletproof platform to boot....not difficult to see from this thread who do and don't like the GH5...becomes obvious rather quickly...even if the "interest" in the camera is initially shown, the drop away rate at any perceived "flaw" in the camera, regardless of operator ignorance or error is instantaneous...for those who actually work with the GH cameras, this may just the most anticipated I can remember for a while....

EOSHD is perfect for what its suposed to be, a color profile that requires little to no grading/correcting, you either like the look or not but it works perfectly! Below is a test i did, first two clips are in SLOG2 graded with film convert, other two are EOSHD with no grading

Thanks for the link!!! Excellent read!!! i think cinema5D is now in real trouble and we should have a separate blog entry here to discuss openly their findings. B

Martin Wallgren's short ad for a Danish barber, shot in V Log internal, available light: The focus is off on a lot of shots but the video does show that internal V-Log is very usable indeed. Thanks for this. Google translate is funny: I'm using that one! Here's their comparison of 8bit (left) v 10bit (right), contrast stress test:

Hi Vladimir, so the new variable diopter that goes in front is really designed for M4/3 so I'm not sure it will work with APS-C. I have never used speedbooster yet. The good news is it's small and should work with other small 8mm scopes. I'm hearing 2 or 3 F stops sharper with variable diopter attached. F2 or F2.8 would probably be the limit but don't want to make any claims till I see. The last footage I posted looks very promising.

Nick Driftwood has built a 360 rig from 6 x gx7 and another rig from 6 x gh4s , making a 12k stitched image , I was talking with him last week about this , checkout his site dirftwood 360 , you dont need 4k cameras as you can stitch 6 x 1080p cameras

The Kodak is in the same ball back as the Nikon and Samsung basically a consumer quality camera that is far away from what professional work would require. Significantly better is a bold statement that I really do see and it has even more issues with stitching due to the cameras being more far apart. It is also cumbersome not being an integrated device but two separate ones with two cards two batteries..... Here a test between these cameras: http://360rumors.blogspot.com/2016/11/4k-360-video-camera-shootout-samsung.html Anyway it was a first good approach but it is at end of life, in fact Kodak has created a new model that removes the biggest flaw of the one that you recommend creating a single device with dual cameras like the samsung and nikon: https://kodakpixpro.com/Americas/cameras/vrcamera/orbit3604k/ But again all these consumers "dual" camera are not that great so I would spend less than possible for example 200 USD for the Samsung and experiment and once mastered the challenges of 360 video move up to a more professional rig. Samsung needs a Samsung phone to remotely control it but you can use it even without a phone as I do because it has a menu system in the camera. Nikon is more compatible with many phones but it has a challenging wificonnection and is more expensive. Also the Nikon does the stitching in the camera that has the advantage of convenience but you loose the flexibility to use 3 party software for better stich. Quality wise are very similar. I have a Samsung my colleague a Nikon. Apparently Samsung is about to update their 360 camera in the next month but at the moment is a rumors. For better quality you would need a 6 cameras rig that creates a 8k video and then have an 8k delivery platform. 4k for 360 video is not enough because you see only part of the sphere and you are zoomed in. Insta360 has created Pro 8K 360 around 3k usd that sounds like a possible step up but we need to see how it perform in real life.... http://www.insta360.com/product/insta360-pro/

Call me naive, but I think his explanation was perfectly plausible and made sense. I harken back to my NX1 days. I loved the camera's output but hated being locked into editing solutions that were not of my choice. At the time I was using Edius Pro and it would not take H265. Transcoding was a PIA, so I had to use a very simple program that didn't being to have the capabilities of Edius. Now that I'm using FCP, I'd be faced with the same dilemma, switch to an editing program not of my choice that does accept H265, or transcode. So I'm actually glad Panasonic stuck with 264 at this point.

Got something interesting here for fellow videographers in the later half of this video. The first part is just general run and gun footage from my NX1... a mix of 4K and 1080p at 120fps, slowed down to 24 fps. I can't remember the lenses I used there... but for the talking head portion I'm using my new NXL Speed Booster! I'm using my dual camera rig for the interview portion with the same lenses on both cameras (BMCC 2.5K and NX1). Each camera has a Super Takumar 50mm F/1.4 lens with speed boosters. Mitakon Lens Turbo II on the BMCC. The custom NXL Speed Booster from Italy on the NX1 (thanks Luca!). Because of the crop factors on each camera, the BMCC gets the close-up shot, while the NX1 captures the wider medium frame shot. The NX1 produced a better image with minimal fuss on this one. I didn't do a lot of grading on the interview footage. On the NX1 I pulled back the saturation about 20% and applied a finishing lut. On the BMCC I adjusted Lift + Gain, saturation, sharpened and applied the same finishing lut. I do like using my favorite lens on both cameras simultaneously. I will have more footage like this in the future. Cheers

Yes, you can just screw Aivascope in front of your taking lens. I think ultimately, you are going to want to use the new variable diopter with Aivascope, so no auto focus. I have not gotten info about if the F stop would be better with variable diopter but I think it will improve. Currently, I would not shoot below an F4 with Aivascope. With diopter I'm hoping around a F1.8 or F2. Thanks Flynn!

Sure @Kisaha, here are the exact commands I used below in red. Step 1: Analyze a similar good video file - Find a good video file for reference with the same resolution, frames per second, etc. When you analyze a file, the recover application will give you exact instructions on how to enter the next two commands (see image example below). My example command: recover_mp4_x64.exe SAM_0803.MP4 --analyze Step 2: Recover the streams from the bad video file - Enter the next command exactly as you see it in the results from the Analyze command... substituting the bad file in the recover command. This will extract the video and audio into two different stream files. result.xxx My example command: recover_mp4_x64.exe SAM_0804.MP4 result.hevc result.aac --drim5 --end 0 Step 3: Make a new video file using the two streams you extracted - Here you need to use 3rd party software to put the video and audio streams back into a regular video file. I think the most popular tool for this is FFmpeg, but there are many others. For Samsung cameras with H.265, I found out the hard way you need a version of FFmpeg that can handle that. The one I used successfully can be downloaded here: https://ffmpeg.zeranoe.com/builds/ Again, enter the FFmpeg command exactly as you saw it when you did your first Analyze command. My example command: ffmpeg.exe -r 24.000 -i result.hevc -i result.aac -bsf:a aac_adtstoasc -c:a copy result.mp4 --- Restated from above, here is a link to the great RECOVER TOOL from Dmitry Vasilyev: http://slydiman.me/eng/mmedia/recover_mp4.htm NOTE: For those that suck at that command prompt like I do, be sure to copy the recover application files and ffmpeg.exe file into the directory where you will be working.

This is exactly what I've been feeling. Thank you, Andy. And welcome back? I feel like I haven't seen you post in a while.

@mercer Try to try one first, even though it is a great camera, for me it is more a Canon C100 replacement (with some very original and amazing ideas though, like the prime zoom function, which really works!), the slow motion crops heavily (=unusable, anything above 50/60), the monitor/viewfinder aren't that great either (at least it has a monitor, forget the viewfinder though) and you probably need a metabones adapter (that's how we use it, no native m43 lenses yet, just tested a generic Panasonic kit the other day), we haven't managed to tame the J-log yet though, and I have read that an external recorder doesn't really do anything to the better image crusade. When we talk about the best image possible, probably all the aforementioned raw and higher bit cameras have more to say than this, still is a very capable camera of its own, with very interesting characteristics, and unbelievable cheap, it is a real video camera, that brings food to the table, and you don't have to sell the table, and all your furnitures to own one! Still, it doesn't have the BlackMagic magic(sic), neither the masochistic pleasure of shooting ML raw. Out of the 3, I would buy a second LS300 to replace some other cameras we use from time to time, but for a hobbyist chasing the dragon, maybe it is not ideal.

No, those previous post ignore the best alternative less than thousands of dollars and significantly better than the Nikon Keymission and the Samsung Gear 360 - the Kodak 360 4K dual. Test after test confirms this. For a good 360 blog, see 360rumors.com. https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=1235855&gclid=CKqv-P7AxdICFZaPswodvmQLPQ&is=REG&ap=y&m=Y&c3api=1876%2C92051677442%2C&Q=&A=details

Ian, if your taking lens accepts 52mm filters would the Aivascope just screw right in, no need for step up rings? Also, since you focus via the taking lens shouldn't autofocus work? I know you probably don't use autofocus, but the reason I ask is I'd be interested in using it for photography, not filmmaking. One final question. I know they recommend it for use with sensors no bigger than m43. Any idea how fast of an aperture you can use with m43 before the image is unusable? Wondering if f1.4 or f1.7 would be okay. No problem if you can't answer these questions, still appreciate you starting this thread.

We shoot a lot of 360 video on movie sets now, to capture behind the scenes. Our workhorse is the Nikon KeyMission 360. it's two 4K cameras. the overlap isn't that great so stitchig them together can be imperfect. but it's a good simple solution. Next step up is the Nokia Ozo ($45k). And most of what's in between are custom built rigs. But stitching those cameras together can be a big pain in the ass -- at the same time, having more overlap let's you hide things like the camera operator, etc.

I have a GoPro OMNI. 360 video can be a hassle to get right. Especially be careful with parallax issues. The OMNI, for example, needs a minimum of 4 feet on all sides, so tight spaces are a problem. The Samsung 360 is okay for a single camera solution, but I'd pause before offering it as a professional offering. The market needs to mature. For top quality you're looking at $50k USD and up for a system.

@Dogtown Yeah, I was very pleasantly surprised that no one tried low-balling me! A big reason why I don't rush sales, just ain't worth it. I'm trying to recuperate some of my cost, mainly since (unlike a bunch of them online) mine does have all the accessories to run, including over 1TB of Gemini cards, which seem to be a hard find at the moment. Lori (Vidgear.com) is currently assessing if the kit is worth her getting involved, but if not I'll put it back on eBay at a lower price, say, $3900 for the kit? The fellow I bought the lens from is still a good friend, and we are committed to never letting the lens leave our ownership.....it's an absolutely stellar lens. And yeah, if it doesn't sell, big deal. I'll still have a very good 1080 camera that I can move north with and film wildlife, scenics, and anything else I apply myself to. I'll miss out on the ergonomics and agility of a preferred camera, but I can always keep saving and get a GHx or something later for glidecam work. Again, the 2 "main" factors of this swap are: 1) file sizes vs. image, 2) camera size/weight/agility.

It's like you invite someone over to a prescreening of a movie that hasn't been audio mastered, and instead of telling you that there were issues with audio and hearing what you have to say about it, they publish an article to the world saying the movie is unwatchable. Then they make assumptions and state that the audio issues probably can't be fixed. Should anyone ever let this guy prescreen movies ever?

I think in this day and age Gear matters a Hell of a lot because, just like your A7s, there is a lot of cameras that can be bought for less than 2000 bucks, that a skilled person can make a film, documentary, Band video that you can look back at 5 years from now and say damn, that is really not too bad. This crap where you use a piece of shit camera is just that, crap. If you want to do this stuff pony up 2k for a camera rigged and just do it. There is too many great used cameras for 2k to make excuses. You are wasting your friends, paid actors time, and yours with a friggin Canon T3 in this day and age. Make a commitment to do the best you can do gear wise, give up smoking, drinking, eating out ,and buy a camera that stands the test of time. OK, off my soap box LoL.

Well to me, that guy lost all credibility, when he sold the BMPCC and bought a freaking Canon T3. If you can't make damn near a feature film with a BMPCC you need to find a new hobby! Blackmagic gave us poor folk a gift of a lifetime with both the BMPCC and the BMCC. And this guy sells it and buys a God Damn cheap ass Canon!! What the Hell! We are talking ProRes HQ, and Raw! That is what the big boys use. And you can also do it for maybe 650 bucks for the BMPCC, to a grand for the BMCC. And have a beautiful, creamy output. Jesus what does this guy want?? Now he has a GH2, Oh boy that ought to work. Mpeg output.