DPC

I've been doing a lot of testing on this and still haven't come up with a definitive answer. 

Current setting is Neutral 0, -5, -5, -2, Highlights / Shadows -3/+3. Then exposing as far as I can to the right, relying on the zebras not to clip. 

I started off reducing contrast in Neutral as much as possible but it seems to me that putting back mid-tone contrast in post is tricky (and pointless). So I leave it at O and count on the Highlights / Shadows setting to ensure I get as little clipping as possible at the ends of the tonal scale.

If you go for Natural with everything at -5 but Highlights / Shadows in a straight line it's still possible to get a flat image with clipping.

I'm also considering not touching Highlights / Shadows but using (heresy!) the iDynamic set to Auto, on the basis that it will do in camera what I end up doing in post anyway...

Feedback welcome!

Having looked at the Louis Du Mont videos, the images are nice but the skin tones (which is what I'm most concerned with) at 0:19 and 0:21 are

 too contrasty for my taste. 

I've just finished filming something using a Rode Filmmaker wireless lav mic running into a Sony XLR K2M on an A7R II. Listening carefully it seem as if, in the quieter moments, the noise level rises almost as if there was some auto gain control at work (which there can't be because it's absent on the camera). Does anybody have an idea what might be happening here? The effect is slight, but disturbing, especially when you have been listening to the same tracks for a week, editing ;-) 

I'm wondering if there isn't a difference between the degree of stabilisation that is effective for stills and what you would need for smooth video movement. For a start, I don't think IBIS will help keep your horizon straight...

They're so clever at Panasonic and Olympus... At each iteration of the flagship model I hope I'll only need one, but every time I can see a good reason to buy both.

IronFilm - No, as I'm a photographer the couple, family, just assumed I would be taking the pictures without asking or telling me beforehand. The GX80 and a 12-40 was all I had with me.

Google Ruslan Pelykh.

I have a Sony RX10 II which I use along with an A7R II. It has limits, mainly do to with Sony's menu and the small sensor. Deployment somewhat slow.Considerable advantages too: shared profiles with other Sony cameras, making matching easy; takes the same XLR attachment; good range fast zoom. (Most of) this was done with the RX10 II over the summer, testing out some of its features.

I bought an EM5 MK II based on the video specs as soon as it came out and, while it was a lovely camera for stills, never once used it to film anything other than tests because the moiré was so bad. This time I'm going to wait for real-life user reviews to come in first.

And having to leave movie mode if you want to set white balance manually, now that's just absurd (and very time consuming).

50 pages is a lot to look back through, but I don't remember seeing any settings posted here for a while.

After a lot of testing, I've arrived at Natural -3 -5 -5 -3, Highlights / Shadows -2 / +2 for video. iDynamic and iResolution off. Opinions? I reckon I'm getting better skin tones that with my Sony A7R II.

This is a great camera. The biggest problems are the (very) poor EVF and LCD and the lack of audio input.

Unexpectedly (I was a guest) I ended up having to shoot stills for a wedding with the GX80 yesterday. The quality of the images blows me away and being able to use a tiny MFT body is very liberating.

That looks great but I'm not clear exactly what it is. Is this a commission? Was there a client? Was it intended to be shown in a particular context? 

"I like to have full control over focal point, aperture, shutter speed, ISO and focal distance." Cool. But I think nowadays you can get most of that on the right phone with the right app. My point was really that the only lasting skills are ones not linked to specific technology. In my opinion.

My advice would be to spend as little as you can on gear and as much time as possible editing and shooting. Have you thought about just using a mobile phone with 4K and something like FilmicPro or Cinema4K? http://www.filmicpro.com/   http://www.theverge.com/2015/1/28/7925023/sundance-film-festival-2015-tangerine-iphone-5s  http://www.indiewire.com/2016/01/watch-teaser-for-matthew-cherrys-iphone-6s-filmed-nine-rides-dorian-missick-stars-162241/  

If we're getting on to Profiles in general, I'm a great fan of Paul Leeming's LUTS http://www.leeminglutone.com/

I have been trying out all sorts of PP combinations for my Sony A7R II, with varying degrees of success. Different gammas, different gamuts. Often producing footage that is difficult to grade. Skin tones are particularly tricky.

Today it occurred to me that I might be making things unnecessarily difficult for myself and I turned PP off and just used the Neutral creative style instead, all at "0".

Frankly, I think it looks better out of the camera than anything I've got using PPs so far. 

Has anyone else had a similar experience? 

If anyone reading this knows of good european professional insurance for camera equipment while traveling, please let us know. 

dahlfors - Next time I get robbed I'll make sure I'm in Sweden ;-) . I'm in France.

raphaelfranco - Sorry to hear that. Almost exactly the same thing happened to me in France and I know others who had similar problems on trains or in stations. It is a major problem and you need to be VERY careful.

Hans Punk - It's virtually impossible to find insurance that covers the transport of equipment by train, largely because there is no proof you have checked anything in. The best investments are lockable cases and some way to attach your bags together and then to something solid in the train. 

Thanks for all you replies.

Jonpais, your pragmatic reply about a happy client is more sensible than I am. I suppose it's just that I don't like technical issues forcing me into a particular way of working.

BasiliskFilm, I'm going to have to think about all that.  I know moiré comes because of clash between the frequencies of the subject and the sensor pixels but I've never really bothered to go much further than that. Last year I had GH4s and G7s. This year it will probably be A7Rii / RX10ii / GX80. I'm sorry I can't share footage of the problem publicly but I can find any that doesn't clearly show people who haven't given me permission or brand names. 

I had a long conversation about this with the technicians in a big rental house today. Conclusion : it's a problem and there's no real solution other than to warn the client in advance and try to shoot angles that attenuate the moiré.

jonpais, thanks but the first "here" suggests using film or rotating the camera, the second concerns screen scan flicker which is not my problem and the third, defocus your smartphone's camera, isn't really applicable either.

I wasn't clear enough. I would like to eliminate the moiré that appears on footage of LED screens when filmed.

Last year I filmed a corporate event where people spoke for two days in front of an 30m long wall made up of joined LED screens. This looked great to the audience but I had terrible problems with moiré. Some angles were simply impossible and the camera needed to be locked off on a tripod to minimise the problem. Spontaneous shooting was almost impossible. It was very stressful, especially because I'd been flown half way around the world to do it and didn't want to let my client down.

I'm going to cover the same event this year and, apparently, the same screen technology will be used.

So my questions are : (1) Is there any solution to this problem or do I have to live with it? (2) Does the choice of camera / sensor technology play a role? (3) Is there any on lens filtration that might help? (4) Am I right in thinking that the only real solution would be to cover the screens with an anti-moiré diffusion screen?

My research suggests that the real problem is that the screen used wasn't really appropriate for being filmed.

Thanks in advance!

Is there any reason not to use M (stills) mode for video? I'm getting sick of having to quit movie mode to do a custom white balance. Thanks!

46 minutes ago, Mattias Burling said:

What matters is what the spectators will buy. They are the once that makes money for the camera makers. Not the 50 pros but the 50 000 others in the arena.

Now, what do you think they will buy. Is it the same brand as they saw all the pros use? Or perhaps something from the company that makes their heat pump or old VCR.

My guess is the former.

BTW I work with professional photographers almost daily. So far I have never ever seen anything but Canon or Nikon. Unless we are talking light web content where its mostly compacts or phones. 

For my pro work this year I've been using either my Sony A7R II or Panasonic or Olympus MFT. Clients don't seem to care much what camera I use because they trust me and, frankly, I have much preferred using the MFT cameras. While Canons and Nikons are still the norm, I see an awful lot of Sonys and almost everyone I know has either a MFT or APSC "everyday" camera.

On 8/26/2016 at 7:28 PM, Damphousse said:

Don't hold your breath.

This is the gear room at Canon's London Olympics office...

And they did it again for Rio...

I somehow doubt Panasonic or Olympus have similar support infrastructure for sports photographers.

The people have spoken.

Yep, I've seen that / those. But the agency / wire world is a very specific case and I wonder how many of those photographers are buying their own gear?

I predict that in the next couple of years FF / DLSR will stop being perceived as required for pro photographers (it's already less and less the case). And that, with declining budgets for commissions vs the speed at which the equipment becomes obsolete, it's going to be increasingly absurd for most pros to invest heavily in gear. The only investment that makes sense is intellectual. So with specs like this Olympus and Panasonic really do have a card to play. The OMD EM1 ii and the GH5 could be massive hits. You really don't need 30 or 45 or 50 mpx.