Oliver Daniel

This guy gets a lot of stick (probably for his young age) from the NoFilmSchool trolls and facebook camera police, but I have to say he brings up much more interesting knowledge and talks much more wisdom than the majority of other camera / filmmaking Youtubers. 
Simon Cade of DSLRguide:
https://www.youtube.com/user/DSLRguide
The channel has these qualities: 
Doesn't talk very much at all about camera specs and new gear, more what you do with what you've got.  Gives his own insights into his thought processes and inspirations.  Gives well illustrated creative and technical tips to his "beginners / enthusiast" target audience. Doesn't bullshit and is very open about the purpose of his Youtube channel. Very genuine and authentic fell to his content. and many more..... He also still films on a t3i / 600d - and does a bloody great job of using it for his Vlogs. He raises the point that he doesn't need another camera yet and would rather spend the money on other areas of his filmmaking. 

There’s definitely an advantage. 
The bodies are usually more compact. 
Lenses are smaller and more affordable. Also more choice. (Sigma 18-35!) 
Get closer to the subject for less money (crop factor). 
Easier to manual focus, not always crazy shallow. Probably more useable shots.
Not everyone likes the “gigantic” frame / shallow depth look. Easier to achieve deep focus look. 
More traditional shooting format. Still the standard. 

 

There’s definitely an advantage. 
The bodies are usually more compact. 
Lenses are smaller and more affordable. Also more choice. (Sigma 18-35!) 
Get closer to the subject for less money (crop factor). 
Easier to manual focus, not always crazy shallow. Probably more useable shots.
Not everyone likes the “gigantic” frame / shallow depth look. Easier to achieve deep focus look. 
More traditional shooting format. Still the standard. 

 

There’s definitely an advantage. 
The bodies are usually more compact. 
Lenses are smaller and more affordable. Also more choice. (Sigma 18-35!) 
Get closer to the subject for less money (crop factor). 
Easier to manual focus, not always crazy shallow. Probably more useable shots.
Not everyone likes the “gigantic” frame / shallow depth look. Easier to achieve deep focus look. 
More traditional shooting format. Still the standard. 

 

This. 
A lot of stills glass looks ace, however most have awful MF. Build in a rock solid follow focus dial onto the camera, with options to adjust sensitivity, speed, tension, program A/B points etc. Stills lenses reborn! (wait, doesn't the Ronin 4D have this?)
I quite like follow focuses with proper cine gears, but they are a bit annoying for handheld work. Can be a bit heavy when all combined. Great on the shoulder though, but i barely work from the shoulder these days. 
+1  for internal ND's. So fed up of screw on VND's that tint the image! I remember the RX100 having a digital ND. It worked well but there was only like 2 settings or something. Needs to be stepless like the FX6 but digital instead. 

I really like APS-C / S35 and I do miss it having been 100% full frame now for about 2 years. 
The lenses are more compact, more affordable and it's generally an easier format to work worth e.g you can keep focus quite easily while wide open. 
Fuji XH2S looks awesome to be honest, but as @Andrew Reid has let on - all cameras in this price range are now great. Still, nothing quite beats an A7S3 which excels at it's advertised specs with barely any shortcomings. Pretty much all Sony shooters will wait for the next one instead of jumping ship. 
I feel the major differentiator now should be in body design features. Something like a slimmed down C70 with a big screen (like a Pocket 6k) that is actually an external monitor / recorder that is cleverly designed to put anywhere on the camera with a customisable mount. Might get round RED's patent. More room on the body for heat dissipation. Removable EVF etc. 
Additionally, there's certainly more work to do on the "image feel". Maybe 2 modes where the setting / parameters or more digital video motion / sharpness, and the other for "cine motion" - more Digital Bolex cadence like. Not even sure if that's possible! 

Totally. 
We had a RED available for the shoot. Director wanted it and I said the Sony’s would be better. 
Why? 
Well, our crew was small and we needed to move fast as we had a day and a half to shoot.
Also, we didn’t have a very good lighting budget, although I intentionally didn’t want to use lots of lighting in this video because I wanted the bulk of the shots to look natural. A lot of it was done using bounced light from natural sources. 
The native 12,800 ISO allowed me to use only fire light and reflectors without having to bring in and constantly move around lights per shot. The fire was burning out fast, so we had to blitz it. It worked out. 
Had we shot on the RED, the shoot would have been a disaster. 
If we shot on the GH5/6 - it would have been “ok” but very murky and noisy. The picture would have suffered. 
So yes you are right. The camera is crucial. In this case, the merits of the Sony system allows you to work in a way that you would greatly struggle with using something else. 
After various experiences, I’d confidently say the Sony trilogy of “FX6 / FX3 / A7S3” is likely the best all-rounded system on the market. You can work in a unique way. The only challenge is yourself. 

Any time a “newbie” student type asks me what camera to buy, I just say get a GH5 and a set of cheap vintage primes. Then learn to frame and light 💡 

Any time a “newbie” student type asks me what camera to buy, I just say get a GH5 and a set of cheap vintage primes. Then learn to frame and light 💡 

Any time a “newbie” student type asks me what camera to buy, I just say get a GH5 and a set of cheap vintage primes. Then learn to frame and light 💡 

Funny this. One person did say “why are we shooting this video on just these small cameras, why not a RED?”
 My response was “although you’re underestimating their image, this project is not about the camera….” 
It was great to have the crew but it was still stretched. However, you can still achieve a lot with few resources. 

Totally. 
We had a RED available for the shoot. Director wanted it and I said the Sony’s would be better. 
Why? 
Well, our crew was small and we needed to move fast as we had a day and a half to shoot.
Also, we didn’t have a very good lighting budget, although I intentionally didn’t want to use lots of lighting in this video because I wanted the bulk of the shots to look natural. A lot of it was done using bounced light from natural sources. 
The native 12,800 ISO allowed me to use only fire light and reflectors without having to bring in and constantly move around lights per shot. The fire was burning out fast, so we had to blitz it. It worked out. 
Had we shot on the RED, the shoot would have been a disaster. 
If we shot on the GH5/6 - it would have been “ok” but very murky and noisy. The picture would have suffered. 
So yes you are right. The camera is crucial. In this case, the merits of the Sony system allows you to work in a way that you would greatly struggle with using something else. 
After various experiences, I’d confidently say the Sony trilogy of “FX6 / FX3 / A7S3” is likely the best all-rounded system on the market. You can work in a unique way. The only challenge is yourself. 

Totally. 
We had a RED available for the shoot. Director wanted it and I said the Sony’s would be better. 
Why? 
Well, our crew was small and we needed to move fast as we had a day and a half to shoot.
Also, we didn’t have a very good lighting budget, although I intentionally didn’t want to use lots of lighting in this video because I wanted the bulk of the shots to look natural. A lot of it was done using bounced light from natural sources. 
The native 12,800 ISO allowed me to use only fire light and reflectors without having to bring in and constantly move around lights per shot. The fire was burning out fast, so we had to blitz it. It worked out. 
Had we shot on the RED, the shoot would have been a disaster. 
If we shot on the GH5/6 - it would have been “ok” but very murky and noisy. The picture would have suffered. 
So yes you are right. The camera is crucial. In this case, the merits of the Sony system allows you to work in a way that you would greatly struggle with using something else. 
After various experiences, I’d confidently say the Sony trilogy of “FX6 / FX3 / A7S3” is likely the best all-rounded system on the market. You can work in a unique way. The only challenge is yourself. 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊
 

Thank you! 

Any time a “newbie” student type asks me what camera to buy, I just say get a GH5 and a set of cheap vintage primes. Then learn to frame and light 💡 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊
 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊
 

Budget was around £20k, and it’s in Dutch. 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊
 

Budget was around £20k, and it’s in Dutch. 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊
 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊
 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊
 

Hello all. 
In the appraisal of small mirrorless cameras, here’s a music video I shot, DP’d, edited, graded for Dit h artist Charlotte Wessels, ex-singer of Delain. 
Shot in SLOG3 and a bit of 2. 
Lenses used were Tamron 17-28, Tamron 28-75, Sony 24-105mm, Lensbaby Sol45, 7artisans 35mm and ProMist 1/4. 
Most of the video was lit with an Aputure 600d through 8x8 white diffusion and bounce / reflectors. 
Fire scenes lit by fire light only and a 2x2 silver bounce. 
Stick around for the credits. 😊