jase

4 hours ago, wolf33d said:

 

A7S II + canon FD 35mm 40$ lens. No IBIS, no AF, with Sony colors that people can't live with, no 4K. 

Just curious, but where did you find the specs?

Actually, I am really hoping that Apple is going to create FCPX for iOS, since FCPX is about the only reason why I still have my 2011 Macbook (which is kind of unusable even with 4k proxies)..

Now with this here:

23 hours ago, BTM_Pix said:

Although DuetDisplay is primarily pitched at using your iPad (or iPhone) as an extension monitor to your Mac, it can actually be used as the primary monitor to do what you are after.

There was an issue with one of the more recent OSX updates that stopped it working but I believe they have updated it recently to resolve it.

https://www.duetdisplay.com/#

I am really wondering whether this would be a kind of intermin solution... Getting an ipad pro and doing everything else except editing with it. Until FCPX isnt available for iOS I could simply use the ipad as a monitor for the Mini... any thoughts? afaik the eGPU solution doesnt really help FCPX.. is the Intel GPU any good or will i experience slow editing all the time?

Joshua, cant thank you enough for your tips! I always feel akward taking portraits, ending up not taking any at all - but with your tips, I have a good feeling getting those shots. Thank you!

In the meantime, FilmConvert just released their G85 camera profile.

@Mark Romero 2 thanks for your advice, however the Base ISO for SLOG is way too high for my taste.

In terms of keeping vs selling it: longterm, I will sell it and replace it with some A7 III or equiv. body, but not for now. Using compressor, the quality is still way worse than GX80 et al. - yet acceptable.

On 9/19/2018 at 2:47 AM, jonpais said:

He wanted to shoot with the Voigt 40mm f/1.2 E mount lens I think...

exactly and this lens is just 120% pure joy in use!

Interestingly, I found out that a two pass encoding from FCPX to compressor yields better quality than rendering ProRes directly from FCPX. So in the end, the result is better than expected, yet shows that the A7ii is quite limited:

Ok. I bought it, I used it and my conclusion is: awesome stills-wise, crap video-wise.

Within the stills department, this camera really delivers, in my opinion even the OOC jpgs are quite nice and my audience likes them a lot.

However, when it comes to video, this thing isnt up for the task, in no way this can barely touch my trusted GX80. While filming, it isnt that bad, in fact I would trade in the awkward rec button placement for the zoom-in while recording functionality any day. Also the dedicated exposure wheel is a nice thing to have and the mic-in is quite pleasing. BUT: the 50m XAVC-S 60p can only be used for close-ups where you get away with the lack of details. For any shot that needs detail resolving you can put this straight into the trashbin. And I totally exclude moire and/or aliasing from my equation, since I did not stumble upon it that much. Also the IBIS is no where near the Panasonic yet alone the Olympus counterpart, but I knew that before; so thats acceptable.

Just check this shot:

Ungraded (you already notice the lack of detail, this is not even remotely 1080p imo -> check the compression artifacts on the sign at 100%):

However, it turns even way worse if you only apply a subtle amount of grading (check again the sign / pants for nasty block artifacts):

In fact I never observed such issues with any of my previous Panasonic cameras, even the 720p of the GM1 i find more pleasing.

Wrap-up

I really gave this one an unbiased try, but in fact most of you were right from the start. Seems I need to get rid of this thing asap and get the A7iii instead although I sweared to myself to not pay more than 1k euro for a body anymore if you can spend it way better on lenses instead.

Voigtländer 40mm - where are the green skintones?

I shot this recently, nothing special. Yet I love B&W.

now if they make FCPX work with that Blackmagic eGPU thingy...

3 hours ago, webrunner5 said:

Not too sure you will be in love with a lens that is 40mm  f1.2 in FF? Not the top of my list in this digital age. On a film camera, well sure.

Please dont take this offensive, but why I am in love with a particular lens is not the subject of this topic. This topic is solely about whether the A7 II is really as bad as people tell. The result is that I will test this by myself :)

Thanks for all the comments. I came to the conclusion that I will try the A7 II since in Germany it is half the price of an A7R II (both used). If it as bad as nearly everybody is saying, I wont loose too much money reselling it, as @mercer pointed out.

14 hours ago, Mark Romero 2 said:

One thing I didn't see asked before is WHY you want to use the Nokton 40mm f/1.2 lens? what is so special about this lens?

I am basically in love with the 40mm focal length. The Panasonic 20mm 1.7 is permanently attached to my GX85, making it an awesome combo. However, the AF is quite bad compared to other m43 lenses and manual focus is a pain with that lens. At the same time I would love to have more DOF control in that focal length and I am generally in love with Voigtländer lenses - imho(!) nothing compares to them. And this makes the Voigtländer Nokton 40 1.2 quite unique - there is simply no other lens in the 40mm focal length range with such a beautiful manual focus combined with such an aperture.

1 hour ago, cantsin said:

Back to the A7ii... This clip has been shot by an extremely competent amateur filmmaker (who's also shot excellent material with the BM Pocket and A7s):

If you're happy with this image quality, buy the camera. (I wouldn't.)

Thanks, that definitely helps!

1 hour ago, BTM_Pix said:

If it were me, I'd be tempted to get the Leica M mount version of it instead.

Reason being that if you stick with Sony then down the line you can buy a TechArt Pro adapter and get it to auto focus and if you don't stick with Sony (or want to use it with other cameras) it can adapt to every other mount cheaply. 

Whereas with the e mount you would be locked in.

Steve Huff did a shootout between the two versions and found some differences but frustratingly it's not clear whether he did the retest with some setting changes that might have been the cause of it.

http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2018/02/22/quick-shoot-out-voigtlander-40-f-1-2-m-mount-vs-voigtlander-40-f-1-2-e-mount/

I did consider the M mount variant, but it lacks tue close focus and the automatic magnify option although i dont really care about the latter..

3 minutes ago, Laurier said:

You should get a a7rii or wait a bit a a7sii price will drop as well.

To give you an idea I sold my ursa mini 4.6k after getting a a7rii ( I initially got it for photo) because the it was excellent in video and could not justify keeping the URSA over it ( yes the URSA have better codec, but they both have fairly similar DR and the A7rii have better iso/autofocus /stabilisation and form factor)

A7ii is definitely great for photos, but as other said it s not great for video.

Thanks, maybe i just need to try it by myself.

36 minutes ago, webrunner5 said:

If you are into video you don't want a A7 mkII at all.

Did you ever use the camera? What are the things you didnt like if you had it?

23 minutes ago, cantsin said:

You're better off with a $500 Panasonic GX85 (with 4K & IBIS) than with the A7ii.

I actually own that camera. The point is I want to use that lens - and m43 cant offer me that.

3 minutes ago, cantsin said:

Why don't buy a first-generation A7s? That gives you decent video for about the same price.

Would buy one in an instant, but I am in need for IBIS...

I really really would love to use the Voigtländer Nokton 40mm f1.2 and therefore I am in the market for a Sony FF body. I dont want to live without IBIS (although I am aware it is not as great as the ones of Panasonic / Olympus) and I would like to invest as little as possible into the body, which means that the Sony A7 II is the cheapest solution, followed by the A7R II.

I know that @Andrew Reid reviewed the A7 II and found it pretty bad because of moire et al. On top of that, it is only 1080p and not 4k. However, I am not a pro by any means and history has shown me that my audience doesnt care whether I film in 720p with a GM1 or in 4k with a GH5. So my question is if there are any A7 II users out there that are/have used this camera and can tell me how bad it really is? I think I remember that @Mattias Burling reviewed it a while ago, but I cant find the post anymore...

Say your audience are your friends and all you do is filming stuff in your leisure time and you dont do any paid work, does the A7 II do the trick or should I really invest more money into the A7R II body? 

After seeing this:

I was wondering, whether there also exist a smaller grip so that one gets a dedicated button to get autofocus? Would make the micro a tad more usable for run&gun.

On 21.4.2018 at 9:34 AM, Matt Kieley said:

Looks like the Micro is already going down in price on the second hand market. I got one for under $700. This is my first test, also my first time shooting Raw. Love this little camera. My Micro and Pocket should compliment each other well.

Was this handheld? If yes then you are near to rock stable!

4 hours ago, flip21 said:

One thing is for sure, GH5/GH5s owners will loose their nerves, and get nuts, when their favorite and expensive panasonic camera price start falling down when we reach September 2018... they will get crazy about the fact that they loose so much money  in a couple of months or so....  eheh

Wow, just wow.

I feel so sorry for you for feeling the urge to state sth like that.

On 30.3.2018 at 4:50 PM, markr041 said:

Sorry for yet another hijacking @markr041 but I could picture this as an acceptable run&gun solution, yet using the BMMCC with the BM 5" view assist...

@Andrew Reid did you also try the BMPCC / XL version with the normal GH5?

12 hours ago, mercer said:

@jase didn’t know you had a GH3. Yeah give it a test. Would love to see it. 

I didnt had one. Maybe I will give it a spin

Since we have quite some people who love the thick 1080p image that the GH3 has created (I think it was @mercer and maybe @kidzrevil ?), I was digging around a bit in the camera settings and we also have a 1080p 24fps All-I 200mbit mode that also features HLG. Anybody ever tried that mode? If i wouldnt care about 4k, wouldnt this have an even more (relative) higher bitrate than the 400mbit 4k ALL-I? yes, this one has 400mbit vs 200mbit but 4k is also 4x 1080p in terms of pixels...

Maybe I will give that mode a shot.

10 hours ago, Geoff CB said:

Just got a 40mm 1.2. Haven't had a chance to test in video yet. But DAMN

40mm is just the perfect focal length for me, I like it a lot. When I heard that Voigtländer created a lens with such crazy aperture I was sold. If I werent that invested in M43 and preferred Panasonic over Sony, I would be tempted to make the switch just for this lens. Perfection.

22 hours ago, Brother said:

Got myself some new glass for Christmas. I do prefer native lenses but the Sigma Speedbooster combo works really well! Screengrabs from GH5 + Speedbooxter XL + Sigma 35/1.4 + Black Pro Mist 1/4. 

Edit. Oh yeah, thanks to @jase and @kidzrevil for introducing me to Black Pro Mist, and other, filters.

Need to buy that combo in 3 .. 2 .. 1 ..