austinmcconnell

I'm just so confused as to whether you're both kidding and you both realize it, or if you're both kidding and only one of you realizes it, OR... if... just maybe... only one of you is kidding and this is the greatest topic of all time.

 

I haven't seen any artist around here so just get off your high horses, this is a gear forum.

Wowza... you don't think there are ANY artists here? None?  :huh:

I agree. This is a gear forum. Can't an artist also be a gear head? Or does that not fit into your rather limited view?  :rolleyes:

Full film is now up for purchase on Vimeo if any are interested.  :)

Still looks like camcorder footage to me. Tons of blown highlights..

That's because it is a camcorder. Just throwin' that out there.  :P

 

You really pushed the envelope with this old precious. I sold mine >yesterday  :wacko:

 

Time to change my avatar ...

'Old Precious' has a nice ring to it. I think I'll start calling it that by name!  :D

GREAT! Wonderful you achieved this with the tiny GH2! You(!) obviously don't need super-expensive gear and lenses and, and, and... 

This is also encouraging for other people. I was recently thinking about buying Canon 5D... I will stick to my GH3 I think :)

Thanks! I shot it on the kit lens and with two SLRMagic lenses. I'll be sticking with it until the GH4K is released, most likely. I'd like to try my hands on the G6 or the GH3, but with the 4K version on the horizon, it makes more money-sense for me to just bite the bullet and wait it out for a few more months. 

Thanks! Can't get the stupid thing to embed for some reason. Apparently 'copy and paste the link' is too difficult for me.  :P

I shot this feature on a GH2 this summer. It will be out at the end of January. Here's one of the trailers.

One other point… Canon's CEO took home $272 million in 2011. He's 77 this year I believe.

 

Do you really think a guy in this position has the same hunger to explore new technology as someone like Grant Petty, who has it all ahead of him?

I don't judge men I don't know. All I know is Grant seems to be getting off to a good start. So celebrate that. Canon cares zilch about your opinion, or mine. So why spend hours complaining about them on the internet?  B)

 

It's about time Canon actually THANKED the enthusiast DSLR video community for the manner in which we embraced Canon and allowed them to grasp the opportunity to launch Cinema EOS.

Who should they address the letter to? And most importantly... should we demand chocolates as well?  ;)

For me the argument before has nothing to do with Blackmagic's quality control. 

Ah... well it does for a lot of us. I don't think anyone here is unhappy that Blackmagic exists. I certainly love what they're doing RAW-wise. I can't wait for my production cam to come in. But I REALLY can't stand their business practices, and a lot of their camera design. They'd be the top camera to grab in my book if they'd fix basic necessities like having a Total Recording Time Counter (blargwhyisthismissing), In-Camera Card formatting, clip erase, improve the awful screen, etc.   and if they'd actually have quality assurance (see black spots fiasco, SD card randomness, white orb problem, lack of RAW on release, numerous sensor issues, shipping nightmare.)

I love the Blackmagic Cameras for pushing the technology forward. I just want them to actually get their products working, out, and reliable. I'm not a hater or a Canon fanboy for pointing these issues out... am I? I don't even own a Canon anymore! :lol:    

Perhaps the main quality control that should be happening is the one applied to a post before submitting to the forum.

I agree with you there, Andrew. Trust me. :)

Sheesh... can't believe folks are getting attacked for suggesting Blackmagic needs better quality control and basic usability fixes. You guys DO know it's possible to be a fan of something while at the same time not liking every little thing about it, right? Just because we want Blackmagic to make a few fixes doesn't mean we hate them and are Canon apologists. Not everything is so black and white.

 

One thing I do know about Rebels is they work as advertised on day one.  No glitches.  No constant firware updates.  No weird work arounds nor batteries, etc.

Amen! I love the forward thinking of Black Magic and Magic Lantern but I needs me some Quality Assurance. They've got some great advanced abilities, but they're missing basic usability necessities.  

I remember watching "Public Enemies" and thinking how a bad camera ruined an excellent movie with Johnny Depp and Christian Bale.

This. A thousand times this.

The technology that NBC is using for the 4K crop-able replays is not on all cameras. It's one wide angle shot that the replay OP can crop into. Not all the cameras are 4K and the OB is not recording 4K or using a 4K vision desk.

Correct. They're still trying to find an effective workflow for on-the-ground cameras operated by the photogs on the sidelines. There currently isn't an effective 4K capable camera to use in those positions, and until there is, they won't switch to total 4K. The point being, NBC is aware the technology is coming, and they're adopting it as quickly as possible to increase the visual quality of their broadcasts. Most likely the final domino in finally having true 4K sports in America will be when the cable companies buckle and agree to broadcast it.

Until we see the various sports channels pick up 4K, you can forget about any major interest in 4K sets for the home. It will be niche market for trend followers and film buffs.

NBC Sports is already shooting 4K, actually. They down-convert to 1080p, often using the extra resolution to 'zoom' during replays. The technology is there, but the issue is cable companies are not supporting it at the moment. It will take a while before broadcasting companies are willing to upgrade their workflow. You'd be surprised how many TV channels actually still only operate in standard definition because they don't want to shell out the money for HD. 

Look at the GH2 hack. Do you realise how simple this was? A few settings in the firmware between having 24Mbit IPB and 100Mbit ALL-I. If you can do that, why not do it? Because it confuses the average consumer who doesn't need it? So put it in a separate model and sell tons of them to filmmakers! Problem solved!

Camera companies must have Quality Assurance before something gets pushed to production. The fact that the hacked GH2 occasionally freezes, and will crash with certain kinds of SD cards is a huge no-no. Panasonic, like most camera companies, understandw that you make a product that is stable and reliable. I'm sure plenty of cameras companies could 'change a few settings in the firmware' and produce much better quality, but it's not stable. It's not reliable.

As for putting all of those things in a separate model, and selling them to filmmakers... that's what they're currently doing. They just happen to be charging an arm and a leg for those models. One particular reason is they must turn a profit. It's not as easy as 'sell tons of them to filmmakers, problem solved'. The 'filmmaker' market is a fringe market. Small. How do you define 'tons'? The target audience for that camera might not be of a large enough number to justify spending money on the production of a whole different model.

I understand the frustration of the lack of AMAZING cameras at an affordable price point, but this problem is not at all new. We're all confused, asking ourselves why they won't make the pro features at entry-level price, when the answer has never changed: it doesn't make business sense. The goal of Nikon, Canon, Panasonic, etc. is to make money, not to make your low-budget camera fantasies come true. This is the way it has always been, and this is the way it will continue.

Companies like Blackmagic should be commended for trying to challenge the status quo, but their lack of quality control and horrendous production snafus do nothing but make the case for why the big name companies are here to stay.

Nikon won't do anything as they are a stiils business.
 

Exactly. If we're writing open letters to companies complaining about lack of acceptable video features, I'd rather address it to Canon or someone who has a dedicated video market, and not a company that does not even specialize in that area.

Quick question... is anyone here upset that the Blackmagic cameras don't take traditional still photos? 

Nikon is targeting it's classic FF market,one of the few markets they have left but also one of the best they got: old retired white men with cash and nothing to do.

Blugh. Your racial stereotyping really bothers me. If you think labeling photo shooters like that is appropriate, I pity you. 

the main reason pompus Nikon users ask for no video mode is because they simply don't understand how to get good things from video. wedding photographers who can diversify and offer (good) movies of a wedding are stealing jobs from the guys who can't deal with pulling focus, working with limited DR, editing, sound etc.  People want more than just a bloke with a boring 28-120mm zoom and a marks and spencers suit.  If I were to be married I'd toss a coin between a guy shooting with a large format view camera or a photographer using a LOMO 75mm square front for stills.  

 

Enough about lack of video mode...  I wouldn't look at a Nikon until they bin their horrifically limited lens mount.  Why havn't they binned this horrible FFD and gone with a new mount and sturdy adaptor as sony have done with their e-mount to a -mount adaptors.  

 

This camera will only be bought by boring photography club members who only buy camera gear to take to their meetings and talk about it, rather than taking photos anyway.

 

on a positive note...  Damn I love the styling.  But the A7R is about a million times more sophisticated.  And a biliion times more usable in this day and age

Aww... photographers have feelings, too! Don't be mean.  ^_^

Yes Im sure that they never wanted to get into video thats why the main focus of the D4 and D800 launch was all about uncompressed video out through HDMI lol 

There you go. Nikon attempted a hybrid camera, with many of the features us video folks usually ask for. And guess what? Sales weren't there. Classic example of condemned if you do, condemned if you don't. When they make a camera with video featured, video shooters tore it a new one for not being good enough. When they say, alright, let's just make a camera doing what we know (still photos), we complain that they no longer have video, and we tear them a new one all the same.

 I can tell you all Ive heard from everyone around here anyways is that the sony a7r is the better choice over this because its more of a Swiss army knife camera. I want to make sure I bring the right tool for the job and this one is not it. 

I'm with you there. This camera is clearly not suited for what you need. But it is suited for their core customer base, and they might very well gobble it up. My girlfriend, for example, is actually very excited for this particular camera, because it has all the features she wants. I'm not excited for it because I would never use it. And guess what? Neither of us are wrong. We're just different folks with different strokes. 

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that Nikon's main focus is not, nor has it ever been, nor do they want it in the future to be video shooters. I don't really get this article, I guess. To me this camera makes perfect sense for their market.  Nikon is a stills company. Always has been. Why complain to them about a lack of 'acceptable' video standards when that is not a service they want to provide? If you want to shoot video, then use one of the many video options offered by other companies. 

Nikon likely sees little to no revenue (and thus, incentive) to seriously tackle video. No reason to write them a hateful letter about it.  :)

or is it better to go 4K for $1000. 

The Blackmagic Pocket is not 4K.

Yeah, yeah, so we know this thing is in the works. Any ideas on when we'll get an official announcement?