IronFilm

An option I've embraced that really keeps things simple is to forgo AF in video production.  
How I shoot is exactly how you say you'd like to shoot.  It keeps it simple and once you train yourself how to be adept at manually focusing you'll find their are numerous techniques that'll carry the day.
Also, there's something wonderfully organic about getting shots that float in and out of focus and then have a human hand pull it sharp.  Now, to be fair, I am extremely short sighted, so it's actually a bit of a camera-operator super power I have.  I can look at a LCD monitor 2 inches from my face and really see what's going on in perfect vision comfort.
When I'm wearing my contact lenses and have to use "readers" eye-glasses to see things close the vision gets more challenging.
Anyway.  Manual focus.  Something to consider anyway.

Yes I remember this - Macgregor a very talented film maker was quite active on DVXuser back in the day

This film was quite famously shot with the Sony F35! Thus was already discussed a lot by folks such as us on various forums. 

he mentioned his work in a nano flash subforum and said that 8 bit xdcam codec is surprisingly good for post. but 50 mbits 8 bit 422 long gop for post for a pro series soap opera, really hard to imagine. 
it also reminds me how lucky we are now, we have so many good cameras and free resovle and cheap led llights. 
i really think crop mood with its true lossless ml raw and dirty cheap cameras can make things happen. it is just buried in so many good choices now. 
it is also unfortunately or fortunate to have a dp as a true full time career, since no barrier is left. 

"I've said it many times but its worth repeating - the amateurs who shoot the real world need the best specs but are given the worst, and the professionals who shoot on sets with dozens or hundreds of people to massage every aspect of the scene to look good to the camera need the least specs but are given the best."
 
yes.

And this is why ProRes 10bit 422 is plenty for even quite "high budget" productions to shoot in, and they don't "need" raw at all. 

And this is why ProRes 10bit 422 is plenty for even quite "high budget" productions to shoot in, and they don't "need" raw at all. 

Exactly, when it comes to just stills then for 95%+ of us an old body such as the Nikon D750 from eBay could meet 95%+ of our photography needs yet costs merely 10% of what a new Nikon Z9 would cost! 
The progress in tech for photography over the last couple of decades, especially in the past decade is:
1) has greatly exceeded the capabilities of almost all photographers
2) has somewhat stalled out, and is going at a much slower pace than digital photography was improving at in the 1980's / 1990's / 2000's 
Exactly, if you're on a shoot where you're doing both video and stills, it's much easier to jump between both if they're two different bodies. (especially the more complex it is that it becomes. What if for instance if the FX30 is setup rigged for video monitor + TC + audio etc, while the a6000 is setup to be used controlling external flashes?? You wouldn't want both of those combined into one!)
Plus like you said, all the many benefits of having two bodies to use for BTS / timelapses / second angles / etc 

And this is why ProRes 10bit 422 is plenty for even quite "high budget" productions to shoot in, and they don't "need" raw at all. 

And this is why ProRes 10bit 422 is plenty for even quite "high budget" productions to shoot in, and they don't "need" raw at all. 

Pretty much the same for me except I went Sony for full video and Canon for hybrid/stills work after being just Canon since Covid.
Atm it's ZV-E1/FX30 for pure video work, Canon R8/R7 for hybrid/photog or if shooting with Canon shooter.
2023 is an interesting year for me, got layed off in the beginning and decide to do just freelance, went to travel for 4 months this year which is the most I have done in my whole life.
I also started doing some photog work and man not have to carry that much gear is nice for a change lol.
Mavic Air (the OG) is my longest surviving gear so far, client still happy with it and I don't do much drones nowaday so I don't think I will upgrade until it exploded or something.
This year I might get the Osmo pocket 3 after renting it out for an event where I m mostly doing photo and some video. I was quite impressed with the result as I can't be assed to put my cam on the gimbal.
And I bought M1 max Mac Studio during boxing day clearance recently, the general speed and export speed increase by many folds vs my og MBA m1 with 7 core gpu and 8gig of ram. Now my MBA can enjoy some semi-retirement time lol, when I told ppl I been editing multicam 4k on this little machine ppl were quite skeptical.
 

Do DR next @kye as in when the manufacturer quotes 97 stops of DR, but it’s actually 11 when all the planets align.
I’m just messing 😉

So 4 then.

Sony always cracks me up with their stabilization claims. 7 stops!

I agree with the above 👆 thoughts as someone who shoots stills and video all day long at every job I do.
It is possible to use the same kit most of the time, but not all the time, something that has been part of the puzzle for me.
My own reality came down to there being 2 solutions better than any other and these were:
A. The twin body set up shooting min 6k raw to give me the ability to pull hi res stills, or,
B. The 4 body set up with 2 set up and dedicated for video and the other 2 for stills.
There was/is a 3 body approach but it actually required/requires more compromise than either of the above, for my needs at least.
Therefore having a dedicated stills camera with a secondary additional compatible video function makes absolute sense.

+1 for the suggestion of getting an older camera for stills, for the following reasons:
Older cameras are much less out-of-date for stills assuming they can shoot RAW stills (which is almost universal now) This will give you the ability to have one camera setup for stills and the other for video, with no fiddling around to change modes and adjust any settings that can't be recalled as part of a profile etc The concept of having a backup is a great one and one that I've implemented for my setup If you decide to shoot a second angle or BTS video or anything like that then you're set, even if you setup both on the same tripod and one shoots a wide and the other a close-up, there are so many uses You can shoot a Timelapse of a whole setup while also recording video of parts during the activity You can even do things like record with the FX30 from a distance and use the older one as a field audio recorder and have it close by with a lav running into it

What do you really need for stills? Could you just get a Sony a6000 on eBay for next to nothing? They'll then be each the back up stills/video camera for the other one! 

Holy crap. You made my day! 😂 @Emanuel I got two FS700, two LX10, two Bmmcc, an S1 and S1H, to name the twin cameras, not mentioning the single lonely units. 🙂 I can explain. I bought both of the LX10 cameras from a youtuber for an impossibly super low price 1.5 years ago, my second Bmmcc barebones in 2022 for 250, second FS700 in 2020 for 500, S1 december 2020 for a very low price back then. BUT, it all sums up to lotta money and I have a hard time to keep my kits nice and tidy and to even use em. I will HAVE to sell my S1 and one of the FS700 cams, maybe both. Lenses? Let´s not even start!

I dunno... I've just invested on a couple of NX500 units bought for US $200 each, my most recent camera purchase ;- )

Don't need to buy anything this year, I have more cameras than talent. Unless of course Blackmagic or Panasonic release an L mount 8K. That will help take my lack of talent to whole new levels and will be more clearly defined.

Happy New Year, dear friends! My year was ambivalent and full of lessons. Film bizz in Germany is very rough and ungrateful if you are trying to enter the field of large narrative projects. I had an accident, a branch falling on my head. They immediately looked for a substitute for the rest of the whole gig and they still have not paid me yet due to some mushy accounting routines. Canceled jobs due to reasons intransparent to me. Got taken advantage by an upcoming director, working for free in advance of a contract. 😂 But I am happy about the things I learned and my passion for video and film is bigger than ever.

There were a lot of ups and downs.
I launched my own pro-wrestling company in May. It has been very successful so far.
I've continued my freelance video work and it has gone well.
I'm pretty content where I'm at gear wise. I'll probably upgrade my B and C cams to S5IIs but overall I'm quite happy with the L-mount and feel pretty good about its future.
I was diagnosed with kidney cancer. Had my right kidney removed. No more cancer. If my scans look good in April I'll be officially considered cured. 
Flooding ravaged my community twice. It is still recovering.
So 2023 brought some real big highs and some real low lows. If it weren't for the election I'd almost be looking forward to 2024!
Happy New Year to all of you!

It went OK…
I ended up doing 21 jobs instead of the previous years 33, but the 2022 year workload was insane and a necessity after 2 terrible Covid ‘work’ years (ha, 6 jobs in 2 years).
2024 I have revised it down slightly even further to 15-20 and I already have 4 jobs locked in for 2025.
Volume-wise, I have no concerns.
Client-wise, as in the type, ditto. I have always been quite picky because otherwise…
Kit-wise, struggled again all year long. As a solo, multi-day, hybrid destination wedding shooter, I have some very specific needs.
It’s been an evolving process over many years based on the available tech each year combined with my ever-evolving approach and needs.
By the close of my 2023 season, I finally cracked it regarding kit with the final conclusion that a 2, 3 or 4 body kit could work equally as well, but glass was the key.
L Mount does not give me it so it has been a case of either ditch it totally, or split my photo and video needs into 2 different systems.
For 2024, I decided to do just that and then we will see how that goes.
My ‘perfect’ set up is with Canon, based around a pair of R3’s, IMO, the ultimate current hybrid body, but I can’t afford so…
L Mount for video and Nikon/adapted Tamron for stills:
Static video = S1H + battery grip + 70-200mm f4
Roaming video = S5ii + Sigma 28-70mm f2.8
Candid photo = Nikon Zf + 40mm f2
All other photo = Nikon ‘X’ + Tamron 20-40mm f2.8 plus Tamron 70-180mm f2.8
The ‘X’ being either; Z8, Z9, new Z6iii if it is available in time, or even another Zf. 
Other than that final piece of kit, I’m sorted and happy with all my set up, cameras, lenses, lights, audio etc and I’m well set up also with my motorhome/RV as a home away from home and mobile office.
Bring it on ‘24!
 

For most people most of the time at this price point. IMO.
An easier pick than the Zf as it’s more conventional but I am now of the opinion that Z Mount has the best lens options as it has all of it’s own Z line, all of it’s back catalogue F and all of Sony E, these latter two adapted with full AF capability.
The most interesting and least compromised kit at this price point today, is L Mount and Nikon.
The Zf is quite a big jump over the Z6ii when it comes to AF and IBIS and has the processor from the Z8/9.
I hope so because I am currently on that proverbial fence flip-flopping between Z9, Z8, another Zf or a Z6iii.
Ideally for its role, I would like a gripped body…but also a compact as possible body.
Pros and cons for each of the above, but that’s just my own personal dilemma, but pertaining to Daniel, yes, might be worth holding on a while and seeing what the Z6iii might be.
If it turns out to be a re-bodied Zf, then a lot of folks are going to be disappointed. Not because it won’t be a great camera…because that would be, but because folks always want more.
If it has a version of the Sony A7iv 33mp sensor, an updated Z6ii style body and the tech from the Zf, straight to the top of the class, especially if it has an optional battery grip that is better designed than the clunky Z8 option.

Do you have a cat?  They walk on the keyboard and can accidentally buy things.  My wife tells me that is quite common.