Andrew Reid

They're acting like the problem is new 🙂

https://petapixel.com/2025/12/03/sony-a7-iv-firmware-6-00-still-suspended-after-widespread-malfunctions/

2 hours ago, zerocool22 said:

I seem to be missing why this camera is so amazing, sure good update from the A7IV, but nothing groundbreaking. Or does anything to blow the competition out of the water.

It's not going to be groundbreaking as the standard model, leave that for the a1 II and a9 III which are indeed ground-breaking, especially that world first on a full frame global shutter sensor in a mirrorless camera.

The big appeal of the a7 V for me is:

Only E-mount and Z has the wonderful Techart Leica M autofocus adapter, which means ALL of my best lenses can now be used with back-button AF for stills.

When I go back to a Panasonic or L-mount camera, I have to focus it all manually, such a drag after you have experienced the other way.

Then there is the GFX 100, which is now my main system. You are happy to put vintage full frame glass on it, because it changes the look in a very nice way. It makes a full frame camera look like a crop. Darker, softer corners are the trade off - usually, I don't mind it.

So if I am to pick up a full frame camera it has to compliment the GFX 100, do things that can't - like the Techart adapter, an eco-system with the most adapters, the outright best mount, great AF, great ergonomics and colour (Sony have improved a lot in these areas), and Sony has a lead in terms of their outright best full frame cameras. Which means, should the a7 V borrow from the a1 II, it ends up rather good - which it is. Whereas, Panasonic's latest $3k cameras tend to borrow from the S5 II, rather than a higher-end $6k Panasonic, which doesn't exist (yet) and no S1H II either.

So Sony is attractive for a lot of shooters...

And over Canon RF mount, E mount takes the win by far in terms of the available glass, adapters and pricing thereof.

1 hour ago, Danyyyel said:

First time I see the reference to Fake RAw!!! Since when does the ZR has fake raw, in fact it is as RAW as it can be with zero noise reduction etc. I know the ZR does have its quirks, as lacking some good exposure tool for now in software and micro hdmi in hardware. But the RAW and image quality is their. 

It's repacked and rearranged sensor data, and it has heavy compression which changes the texture of detail in the shadows, and the noise pattern of the sensor.

Have a look at the word raw and what it means.

Raw means unaltered, unfiltered, unprocessed raw sensor bayer RGB data.

You only have that with uncompressed Cinema DNG on the Sigma Fp cameras.

And other fake raw codecs like BRAW are a hybrid codec, it is partially debayered-in camera.

Oh dear

https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/cameras/mirrorless-cameras/sony-suspends-new-a7-iv-firmware-this-is-why-i-never-update-my-firmware-on-day-one

How many people has Sony charged $800 to replace the mainboard, when the cause appears to be dodgy firmware?

The a7 IV bootloop occurs on V5.0 as well, so it's not just the new V6.0 that it's happening with as is being widely reported.

Apparently in the UK we are paying Trump's tariffs as well.

£2800 = $3696 USD

I just think it's an utter disgrace how the Japanese companies are treating their customers.

Their currency is at an all-time low vs the GBP as well, so when the foreign currency is repatriated back home they're making an enormous margin on the FX as well compared to pre-pandemic times.

The US market and corporate greed dictates the value of everything in the world, it seems.

The a7 V is quite a predictable upgrade, nevertheless it's excellent. It does however miss a lot of video features that are present on the Panasonic S1 II / S1R II for a similar price, and the cheaper Nikon Zr / Z6 III... No open gate, no anamorphic, 4K is still maximum resolution, no real-time LUT can be baked into footage, and of course Sony still has no internal RAW codec to call their own.

Still, this is a $3000 entry level camera so we can't be too greedy can we?

Compared to...

Sony a7 IV. The previous a7 IV is now even more of a bargain, it will probably go down even further in price used, most likely to region of $1200. Stills quality the same as a7 V and probably more than most people will ever need. Video quality is excellent but the rolling shutter is on high-side, that's one area as well as the Super 35mm 4K/120p where a7 V has an advantage.

Sony a9 III. Well, keep an eye on that used price as it's already not a million miles off what a new a7 V costs...

Sony a1. Again, the more powerful option vs a7 V albeit with a few of the new features missing, you can pick one up used in the UK for £2700, same price as a new a7 V. 

Nikon Zr. THE choice if you want fake raw.

Nikon Z6 III. Much more price competitive than the new Sony.

Panasonic S1R II. The dark horse. It does more. Price is high though and I much prefer the Sony body design and build quality.

Panasonic S1 II. Certainly has the edge on the a7 V for video, if not autofocus. More expensive, but again keep an eye on the used market prices.

Overall I think the a7 V is predictable - it's good that we have another partially stacked sensor option though.

Is the 16 stops in the room with us right now?

On 11/27/2025 at 9:12 AM, Jahleh said:

Well, if you do fast sports alone and want to capture the certain moment in slow mo when it happens if it happens at all,  the only way is to set the camera to tripod, hit record and go do the sports you do. 

Then you trim and save only that special moment, not the whole clip. Oh wait, with R3D NE you can’t do that at the moment🤯

I'm talking about in cinema, there's no use case for it.

Sports yes.

On 11/28/2025 at 8:19 AM, Jahleh said:

When S1RII came out I played also with the files Connor Maccaskill provided and they did look nice and cleaner compared to S5II footage I had captured during previous year or two.
Still, as I already had my foot firmly in the Nikon Raw camp, did not want to pay the difference to change back to Panasonic.

Did they finally revert to the original S1 image, and drop the over-sharpening?

I had to squint very hard to see the review amongst the advertorial at DPReview.

Nice firmware updates and nice specs.

Pity about the stuff Panasonic can do nothing about...

- L-mount is a not such a popular mount compared to Sony E, Canon RF, Nikon Z and Fuji X / GFX, despite having been released 2nd after Sony

- The price is wrong, it should be at the Z6 III level

- The competition is really fierce and has a very big loyal user base eager for more - A7 V will outsell the S1 II massively and the EOS R6 Mark III specs are really competitive with not a cripple hammer in sight, Nikon with REDcode, Fuji with the best sensors

- All the others have moved into Panasonic's video niche in a big way, so now Panasonic must stand apart without their biggest unique selling point (GH4 days are long gone)

I don't wish ill to Panasonic but they have majorly fucked things up in the camera market and all those great specs and generous firmware updates won't save them

It's all the marketing and planning team's fault, not the engineers.

For the loyal ones, enjoy the S1 II and S1R II, they're great cameras even if they won't sell very many.

It's been done.

The water damaged stuff requires a whole next level of repair skill though.

Must not be true then!

21 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

Hang on, if we have that coffee next week I’m not obliged to buy a camera off you am I?

You’re not turning Costa into some sort of camera Herbalife recruitment centre are you?

I have a rather nice Nikon Zf but you've probably already found one for 6 quid in Japan!

I have never understood why someone would shoot a 30 minute continuous take at 120fps.

It's absolutely fucking bonkers.

120fps is for slow mo.

If you slowed-down an hour long continuous take from 120fps to the cinema standard of 24p, it would last for 5 hours.

Who the fuck is sitting through that?

On 11/25/2025 at 6:26 PM, newfoundmass said:

I really do think the camera is the least important aspect these days though. Lighting, set pieces, costumes, locations, etc. are so much more important. Magellan could have been shot on pretty much any camera from the last 10 years and looked just as good, because everything else about it looks good and it's clearly made with skill and talent.

28 Years Later was a huge disappointment for me as a film (28 Days Later is one of my favorite films of all time) but it's still a gorgeous looking film that was shot on iPhones. If it was shot on a ARRI Alexa 35 it wouldn't have changed what I disliked about the film. And watching it, I didn't think to myself "jeez, this would've looked so much better if they'd film it on a better camera." A LOT of gear went into making it look as good as it does, but the camera itself was pretty low on the list, I think.

 

I'd argue it is the MOST important because without the camera, you don't have a picture.

It is the small differences between the latest sensors and codecs that's the unimportant thing.

In cinematography, our job isn't to worry about the costumes or set pieces, that's the job of someone else.

So lighting and camera are the most important for a DP.

What has happened is the gap between the top-end i.e. ARRI and the cheap stuff has closed up.

This has been going on ever since the start of the DSLR revolution so it's not a new thing but there's never been a smaller gap that exists now, for example between something like the Alexa 35 and a $1000 used Panasonic S1H.

By the way although Magellan has beautiful content and really nice camera-work, the sharpness of it and the deep DOF isn't everybody's cup of tea. It does look a bit too soap opera in parts of that trailer, I think.

It looks very different to an IMAX shot film.

So there's big differences between formats and lenses still...

The same cinema focal length for example on 16mm has always looked vastly different to same on IMAX or large format.

Also there are big differences in grading style, camera movement style, and so on.

I think most relevant for us is that you don't need to make a massive rig any more to get good results.

It's horrible having the weight as a one-man DP.

Probably why they used such a small camera on this.

New blog post:

https://www.eoshd.com/news/thousands-of-sony-cameras-are-mysteriously-failing-but-sony-isnt-telling/

5 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

Why not Leica as a good fit for Arri ?

They can keep it in Germany, use it as a platform to sell more of their cine glass and God knows they can be trusted to keep out the riff-raff from buying them!

Interestingly, though, both companies have a relationship with Panasonic so could be good news for the riff raff with a trickle down.

 

Leica could indeed be a good fit, or Blackmagic.

But they don't have the spare cash to throw at that big support network ARRI has and needs to service all those demanding bastards that use the gear.

I think it needs to be a bigger company like Sony or Panasonic.

Maybe Nikon bought the wrong cinema camera brand?

Should have waited 🙂

The gear doesn't matter thing is so boring, it does matter and you can't shoot much without it.

The GH1 opened a door, because the aesthetic on offer was very different to the small chip digital camcorders at the time or Mini DV.

It opened the door to all those interchangeable lenses, and there's a big difference in look between these lenses let alone between a GH1 and a Mini DV cam.

Actually you can tell the Magellan is going for a certain look too with the GH7 - it isn't Hollywood, it's documentary style and looks quite clinical in places with a deep DOF, which they didn't have to do but the Lumix lenses are like that and it works well.

So choice of gear, informs the look of what you're making and does matter greatly.

The difference in image quality between a GH6 and GH7 doesn't matter quite so much...

But the format of camera, and era of camera does.

The GH5S is pretty unique, largest multi-aspect sensor ever in a Micro Four Thirds camera, so larger and wider than the new GH7 sensor, the best low light performance, and it's basically a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K with same sensor but more features and it does double duty as a stills camera.

Only some of the Lumix bodies have gone UP... like the GX9 and GX80. You can get a GH5 for crazy cheap now, but the GH5S is much rarer.

I just have too many cameras though, and want to look at getting an S1H again or an S9 so I can make some real-time LUTs for it.

Because I will do literally anything to avoid eBay, I am willing to let some of my favourite gear go for knock down prices.

I have a mint GH5S which wants to find a good home 🙂

I also have a Nikon Zf if anyone is interested in some full frame Fuji-style shooting. This is loaded with my pre-release Fuji film styles for the Nikon Z mirrorless cameras.

£500 should do it for the GH5S and the Nikon Zf price is negotiable.

The stuff is in the UK - collect over coffee in the Peak District or Manchester. Or post within the UK or Europe. I'll be going back to Berlin soon.

I also have a couple of compacts which wish to depart the crowded EOSHD HQ and go on a shoot.

Canon G12 (CDD) and a Sony RX100 VA. Prices of those can be discussed below if you're interested!

The gatekeeper is talent.

Looks fantastic.

Any interviews with the cinematographer / crew out there?

They used Panasonic GH7 + Lumix 12mm F1.4 for most part

https://www.eoshd.com/news/in-ny-and-la-theatres-january-major-new-movie-magellan-is-shot-on-the-panasonic-gh7/

Probably because it wasn't ready for the Burano, time and technology marches on. A future Fuji GFX camera with a 12K sensor is an appealing prospect though. Full frame sweet spot I think is 8K.

I just think it's a form of culture rot and US cinema will go down with the ship. The west is in decline and it's time for China to take over at the top of the world order, and that includes cinema. Better start learning Mandarin.

On 11/21/2025 at 1:11 AM, BTM_Pix said:

I had a go with an FX2 yesterday.

The tilting EVF is great.

As are all tilting EVFs.

There's something about that 33 megapixel sensor. It's a sweet spot.

It also helps to shoot with manual WB as the Sony AWB doesn't just dial in the Kelvin it does a wild green/magenta bias depending on the light, and gets it wrong sometimes.

But the underlying image is REALLY good, if you don't mind a bit of occasional rolling shitter.