Oliver Daniel

​That's a big shame really, as I don't have any need for 6k IMAX, 14,444 ProRes and 400,000 FPS. Lame update. When it says "Nice Shot", does it ever say "Really Shit Shot"? 
I was hoping for a built-in lighting setup on the sensor, where I could touch and drag up to 5 different lights and boost/decrease the ISO in my chosen areas. There would be no need for proper lighting anymore, or dynamic range. I wish everything was artificial. 

new firmware is on my nx1 - was so simple to install.  It has enabled 6k IMAX recording and global shutter and 14 444 pro res files and slo mo up to 400,000 FPS and made the camera say "nice shot" everytime I get a good shot.  I highly recommend upgrading.

A great idea shot on an iPhone will be a far better viewing experience than a mediocre idea shot on an Arri Alexa.
Ideas, ideas, ideas.... if I don't have an interesting idea, I don't shoot. These ideas come from everywhere - music, film, locations, experiences, personalities.... all moulded into one. These influences come WAY WAY before any camera gear choices. It makes for much more compelling and entertaining content in the long run. 

Thanks for the positive comments Maxotics. I made many suggestions on the day for comic effect, such as the girls pulling their faces and going cross eyed - the Director certainly has a zest for flesh! In the edit I did my best to offset the "porno" look even more by the repetitive edits and over-the-top effects. 
Also thanks for recommending me to other readers. I'm more of an ideas man with a love of the latest technology, so it all works hand in hand. Got LOADS to learn, and sites like this help me understand nitty gritty aspects I previously would fall asleep listening to. 
Here is one teaser image of the shooting location and setup on the FS7 shoot...
 

Don't be expecting an Andrew Reid review here! These are my quick thoughts....

An FS7 landed on my desk yesterday for a music video shoot.

The camera is built like a rock and the grip is very comfortable. Shoulder mounting was pretty nifty. I had a brief go of shooting things round the office - yep, got it!

We set up the band performance scene in a derelict swimming baths inside a lunatic asylum estate. The roof had fallen in, so plenty of light. 2 inches of water was on the surface and it was slippy. Ideal day for a new camera! ;)

I started shooting with Canon FD L Series lenses, the mount I had was shit as it didn't click into place on the mount but it stayed on solid. No gulpy moments!

I came into an issue straight away. When I turned the camera on, it would just freeze when loading the image. It was set to 4k 50fps, so to unfreeze I had to set it back to 25fps then back to 50fps. This started to become a major issue as every time the camera was switched off I would have to do this over and over again. Needs a fix fast!!!

Another issue was the responsiveness of the buttons. It felt like the buttons didn't work properly combined with slow software. This was tedious because the menus are ridiculously complicated. To change from 4k to 1080p 180fps feels like a lifetime!! They definitely need to work on this!!!

I filmed in Slog3, dynamic range is superb. You can also view footage with a LUT. I did in 709. Images looked great on the monitor, very clear and sharp. Peaking is very good too.

I held the camera for around 25 angles of a 3:30min song. All handheld for a frantic feel. My right arm was dead by the end of the shoot, and my back was punished. Expected really. Shooting felt right though. ;)

To get the most out of this camera, you need a lot of hard drive space. A 64gb card lasts 15 minutes at 4k 50fps. I filled 6 cards and dumped them throughout the day. As an owner, you will definitely need to factor in hard drives into the cost. You will need many.

I really loved this little feature with a light meter on the display to tell you if parts of the image were too high in exposure or too low. The function of a histogram but different. Quite nifty.

The footage looks great, very impressive. Very low noise. Clear and sharp. Dynamic range is fabulous. I can't release any images or footage due to confidentiality yet, but very pleased with the results. Will share on release.

My overall thoughts on first use is that the camera is a great piece of kit, but let down by some shoddy firmware which ruins the user experience. Sony really need to update it fast. This is a serious production camera and it covers so many bases. You can shoot in lower bit rates at 1080 if you wish, but to use the best features - you need a crapload of hard drives.

Once Sony sort out the firmware, this will be an excellent camera!

Great piece of filmmaking Oliver.  The girls' "porno" look detracted from the great comic ideas you put across.  I mean, if it was shot with the cast of SNL, for example (and boy could they use your talent) it would have been a huge hit.  As I have time, I will watch more!  (and I encourage all readers here at EOSHD to check out Oliver's stuff!)

Yes I did work on that video above. I was both the DOP and Editor for this piece - I went for a very comical, cartoony look with grunge and cheap effects to balance the tone.

I shot on the FS700 with just a Canon 24-70L 2.8. Did the job!

You are right - the shoot was hysterical in many ways. I never had a straight face. It's always like that on our sets, always really fun and humoured - none of this military shouty stuff.

The FS7 is completely different to the FS700. The FS7 is a very serious tool, built to last for years. I'll miss the FS700 but times are changin'. ;)

Yes I did work on that video above. I was both the DOP and Editor for this piece - I went for a very comical, cartoony look with grunge and cheap effects to balance the tone.

I shot on the FS700 with just a Canon 24-70L 2.8. Did the job!

You are right - the shoot was hysterical in many ways. I never had a straight face. It's always like that on our sets, always really fun and humoured - none of this military shouty stuff.

The FS7 is completely different to the FS700. The FS7 is a very serious tool, built to last for years. I'll miss the FS700 but times are changin'. ;)

Don't be expecting an Andrew Reid review here! These are my quick thoughts....

An FS7 landed on my desk yesterday for a music video shoot.

The camera is built like a rock and the grip is very comfortable. Shoulder mounting was pretty nifty. I had a brief go of shooting things round the office - yep, got it!

We set up the band performance scene in a derelict swimming baths inside a lunatic asylum estate. The roof had fallen in, so plenty of light. 2 inches of water was on the surface and it was slippy. Ideal day for a new camera! ;)

I started shooting with Canon FD L Series lenses, the mount I had was shit as it didn't click into place on the mount but it stayed on solid. No gulpy moments!

I came into an issue straight away. When I turned the camera on, it would just freeze when loading the image. It was set to 4k 50fps, so to unfreeze I had to set it back to 25fps then back to 50fps. This started to become a major issue as every time the camera was switched off I would have to do this over and over again. Needs a fix fast!!!

Another issue was the responsiveness of the buttons. It felt like the buttons didn't work properly combined with slow software. This was tedious because the menus are ridiculously complicated. To change from 4k to 1080p 180fps feels like a lifetime!! They definitely need to work on this!!!

I filmed in Slog3, dynamic range is superb. You can also view footage with a LUT. I did in 709. Images looked great on the monitor, very clear and sharp. Peaking is very good too.

I held the camera for around 25 angles of a 3:30min song. All handheld for a frantic feel. My right arm was dead by the end of the shoot, and my back was punished. Expected really. Shooting felt right though. ;)

To get the most out of this camera, you need a lot of hard drive space. A 64gb card lasts 15 minutes at 4k 50fps. I filled 6 cards and dumped them throughout the day. As an owner, you will definitely need to factor in hard drives into the cost. You will need many.

I really loved this little feature with a light meter on the display to tell you if parts of the image were too high in exposure or too low. The function of a histogram but different. Quite nifty.

The footage looks great, very impressive. Very low noise. Clear and sharp. Dynamic range is fabulous. I can't release any images or footage due to confidentiality yet, but very pleased with the results. Will share on release.

My overall thoughts on first use is that the camera is a great piece of kit, but let down by some shoddy firmware which ruins the user experience. Sony really need to update it fast. This is a serious production camera and it covers so many bases. You can shoot in lower bit rates at 1080 if you wish, but to use the best features - you need a crapload of hard drives.

Once Sony sort out the firmware, this will be an excellent camera!

Don't be expecting an Andrew Reid review here! These are my quick thoughts....

An FS7 landed on my desk yesterday for a music video shoot.

The camera is built like a rock and the grip is very comfortable. Shoulder mounting was pretty nifty. I had a brief go of shooting things round the office - yep, got it!

We set up the band performance scene in a derelict swimming baths inside a lunatic asylum estate. The roof had fallen in, so plenty of light. 2 inches of water was on the surface and it was slippy. Ideal day for a new camera! ;)

I started shooting with Canon FD L Series lenses, the mount I had was shit as it didn't click into place on the mount but it stayed on solid. No gulpy moments!

I came into an issue straight away. When I turned the camera on, it would just freeze when loading the image. It was set to 4k 50fps, so to unfreeze I had to set it back to 25fps then back to 50fps. This started to become a major issue as every time the camera was switched off I would have to do this over and over again. Needs a fix fast!!!

Another issue was the responsiveness of the buttons. It felt like the buttons didn't work properly combined with slow software. This was tedious because the menus are ridiculously complicated. To change from 4k to 1080p 180fps feels like a lifetime!! They definitely need to work on this!!!

I filmed in Slog3, dynamic range is superb. You can also view footage with a LUT. I did in 709. Images looked great on the monitor, very clear and sharp. Peaking is very good too.

I held the camera for around 25 angles of a 3:30min song. All handheld for a frantic feel. My right arm was dead by the end of the shoot, and my back was punished. Expected really. Shooting felt right though. ;)

To get the most out of this camera, you need a lot of hard drive space. A 64gb card lasts 15 minutes at 4k 50fps. I filled 6 cards and dumped them throughout the day. As an owner, you will definitely need to factor in hard drives into the cost. You will need many.

I really loved this little feature with a light meter on the display to tell you if parts of the image were too high in exposure or too low. The function of a histogram but different. Quite nifty.

The footage looks great, very impressive. Very low noise. Clear and sharp. Dynamic range is fabulous. I can't release any images or footage due to confidentiality yet, but very pleased with the results. Will share on release.

My overall thoughts on first use is that the camera is a great piece of kit, but let down by some shoddy firmware which ruins the user experience. Sony really need to update it fast. This is a serious production camera and it covers so many bases. You can shoot in lower bit rates at 1080 if you wish, but to use the best features - you need a crapload of hard drives.

Once Sony sort out the firmware, this will be an excellent camera!

Don't be expecting an Andrew Reid review here! These are my quick thoughts....

An FS7 landed on my desk yesterday for a music video shoot.

The camera is built like a rock and the grip is very comfortable. Shoulder mounting was pretty nifty. I had a brief go of shooting things round the office - yep, got it!

We set up the band performance scene in a derelict swimming baths inside a lunatic asylum estate. The roof had fallen in, so plenty of light. 2 inches of water was on the surface and it was slippy. Ideal day for a new camera! ;)

I started shooting with Canon FD L Series lenses, the mount I had was shit as it didn't click into place on the mount but it stayed on solid. No gulpy moments!

I came into an issue straight away. When I turned the camera on, it would just freeze when loading the image. It was set to 4k 50fps, so to unfreeze I had to set it back to 25fps then back to 50fps. This started to become a major issue as every time the camera was switched off I would have to do this over and over again. Needs a fix fast!!!

Another issue was the responsiveness of the buttons. It felt like the buttons didn't work properly combined with slow software. This was tedious because the menus are ridiculously complicated. To change from 4k to 1080p 180fps feels like a lifetime!! They definitely need to work on this!!!

I filmed in Slog3, dynamic range is superb. You can also view footage with a LUT. I did in 709. Images looked great on the monitor, very clear and sharp. Peaking is very good too.

I held the camera for around 25 angles of a 3:30min song. All handheld for a frantic feel. My right arm was dead by the end of the shoot, and my back was punished. Expected really. Shooting felt right though. ;)

To get the most out of this camera, you need a lot of hard drive space. A 64gb card lasts 15 minutes at 4k 50fps. I filled 6 cards and dumped them throughout the day. As an owner, you will definitely need to factor in hard drives into the cost. You will need many.

I really loved this little feature with a light meter on the display to tell you if parts of the image were too high in exposure or too low. The function of a histogram but different. Quite nifty.

The footage looks great, very impressive. Very low noise. Clear and sharp. Dynamic range is fabulous. I can't release any images or footage due to confidentiality yet, but very pleased with the results. Will share on release.

My overall thoughts on first use is that the camera is a great piece of kit, but let down by some shoddy firmware which ruins the user experience. Sony really need to update it fast. This is a serious production camera and it covers so many bases. You can shoot in lower bit rates at 1080 if you wish, but to use the best features - you need a crapload of hard drives.

Once Sony sort out the firmware, this will be an excellent camera!

I actually have on my desk right now - the FS7. I've not even turned it on yet but this thing is incredible. It's built like a rock and the grip is the best thing about it. Shooting a music video with a RAAAR RAAAR band on FS7 + a GH4 on a drone in a mental asylum with no roof tomorrow.
 
What was Shane on about again?  :P

I actually have on my desk right now - the FS7. I've not even turned it on yet but this thing is incredible. It's built like a rock and the grip is the best thing about it. Shooting a music video with a RAAAR RAAAR band on FS7 + a GH4 on a drone in a mental asylum with no roof tomorrow.
 
What was Shane on about again?  :P

I actually have on my desk right now - the FS7. I've not even turned it on yet but this thing is incredible. It's built like a rock and the grip is the best thing about it. Shooting a music video with a RAAAR RAAAR band on FS7 + a GH4 on a drone in a mental asylum with no roof tomorrow.
 
What was Shane on about again?  :P

I actually have on my desk right now - the FS7. I've not even turned it on yet but this thing is incredible. It's built like a rock and the grip is the best thing about it. Shooting a music video with a RAAAR RAAAR band on FS7 + a GH4 on a drone in a mental asylum with no roof tomorrow.
 
What was Shane on about again?  :P

Glad you got the FS7.
 
The more people keep buying the old 1080p stuff from Canon the more they are going to keep the 4K stuff in the vault and coast along. They can sell us a $5k 1080p camera and then also a $8k 4K camera at some point in 2015. Such profit. Please people stop buying dated equipment and reward the innovators like Sony...

I actually have on my desk right now - the FS7. I've not even turned it on yet but this thing is incredible. It's built like a rock and the grip is the best thing about it. Shooting a music video with a RAAAR RAAAR band on FS7 + a GH4 on a drone in a mental asylum with no roof tomorrow.
 
What was Shane on about again?  :P

I couldn't agree more with what Ebrahim was saying about clients being visually illiterate..

Most my clients prefer the images I've shot with the GH3 than the RED Epic. Some of the work experience guys can't tell the difference.

Also, I've lost count the amount of times I've gone round to someone's house only to see they have True Motion or Smooth Motion switched on.

Recently one friend was watching The Walking Dead with True Motion on - it looked hideous, cheap and like a substandard soap opera shot interlaced on an old home movie camera. I switched it off, and BANG - it looked superb, cinematic, edgy ang gripping. All he said was "it looks blurry now." Don't you find this interesting?

Only thing I don't agree with Ebrahim on is to "use IS lenses. Period." IS lenses are expensive, electronic and clinical. Sure that's great if that's what you want - but when you can pick up a Helios 44 for literally nothing, the non-IS options have much more variation. Just make sure you have a steady shoulder, tripod or stabiliser :)

Effective planning goes miles when making any video content. Sure you can pick up whatever camera and shoot something, but if you are looking to make a statement - pre-planning is key to making sure you have done your research and covered all bases.

On many very low budget productions, I admit I do "wing it" for lack of time. This is fine as the budget covers this approach. The bigger projects are a different kettle of fish, planning is key to success!

Always remember that you don't ever get hired because of your brand spanking new flashy camera, you get hired on your ideas, creativity, skill and personality. Your equipment choice is a part of that personality and creativity. Get it wrong and your project suffers.

Good luck!

Effective planning goes miles when making any video content. Sure you can pick up whatever camera and shoot something, but if you are looking to make a statement - pre-planning is key to making sure you have done your research and covered all bases.

On many very low budget productions, I admit I do "wing it" for lack of time. This is fine as the budget covers this approach. The bigger projects are a different kettle of fish, planning is key to success!

Always remember that you don't ever get hired because of your brand spanking new flashy camera, you get hired on your ideas, creativity, skill and personality. Your equipment choice is a part of that personality and creativity. Get it wrong and your project suffers.

Good luck!

You must have very low confidence in your own ability to come out with this stuff.

My clients don't come to me because of my secret tools. They come to me because I put much emphasis into the ideas and for my very stylised, visual style. They come to me for MY vision and how I apply that vision. My tool selection is just an ingredient of that vision.

People who work with me share information, talk to each other, borrow stuff, debate, exchange skills, ask for advice - because we are collaborators who have strengths and weaknesses, and we help each other to make better stuff. This is simple, basic networking - you never know who you will need in future!

I have no issues writing a blog post telling the whole wide world of amateurs and professionals about my entire music video production structure - from style to logistics. I'll be happy sharing because they will never have the same vision as me, and most importantly they may have something to share too which I can learn from and apply.

The secret sauce is your very self. Your ideas, your style, your personality, your skill, your results - it is this that clients buy. Have confidence in this and what everyone else is doing doesn't matter.

If nobody shared, nobody cared ;)

Wow, this topic is on fire!

I still shoot most of my stuff on my GH3. I get paid for it. Nobody complains. So the fact Canon have been reserved in their product features doesn't bother me in the slightest. It doesn't affect me at all.

Yesterday I shot on the FS700. The fact any Canon camera can't do what this camera can do didn't change anything. I got my shots. Client was very happy.

I think everyone needs to chill out. The options available now are ridiculous. Who cares what brand you use? Pick your camera, shoot and delight. :)

100% agree with you!

I'm sure that an old iPhone 3G would have more dynamic range then an Alexa in that situation with semi-naked ladies :P

You must have very low confidence in your own ability to come out with this stuff.

My clients don't come to me because of my secret tools. They come to me because I put much emphasis into the ideas and for my very stylised, visual style. They come to me for MY vision and how I apply that vision. My tool selection is just an ingredient of that vision.

People who work with me share information, talk to each other, borrow stuff, debate, exchange skills, ask for advice - because we are collaborators who have strengths and weaknesses, and we help each other to make better stuff. This is simple, basic networking - you never know who you will need in future!

I have no issues writing a blog post telling the whole wide world of amateurs and professionals about my entire music video production structure - from style to logistics. I'll be happy sharing because they will never have the same vision as me, and most importantly they may have something to share too which I can learn from and apply.

The secret sauce is your very self. Your ideas, your style, your personality, your skill, your results - it is this that clients buy. Have confidence in this and what everyone else is doing doesn't matter.

If nobody shared, nobody cared ;)