austinmcconnell

Shot this guerrilla style about a month or so ago for Project Greenlight. Thought I'd post it here, as it was really my first foray into 4K filmmaking. Learned a lot about handling the new workflow during the making of this.
 

Here's something I'd like to get feedback for from all you creative types. What methods do you use when coming up with ideas for your craft? Do you find yourself too distracted by the noise of things like instagram, twitter, Facebook, etc? How do you stay focused and make your work a reality?

This is a bit of a misnomer. The fast CF and SD cards required for raw video didn't exist 'years ago', which is likely why the DSLRs of yesteryear didn't have it as an option. Even now with the tech we have in 2014, raw recording is still very hit-or-miss and unstable. These cameras were released in '08. Developed with tech at latest from '07. It's not so much that camera companies were 'hiding' raw video... it's just that there was no way they could make it consumer-friendly. The tech did not exist then, in a stable and economical form.
 
But yea, the rest of your stuff is on point. 

This is a bit of a misnomer. The fast CF and SD cards required for raw video didn't exist 'years ago', which is likely why the DSLRs of yesteryear didn't have it as an option. Even now with the tech we have in 2014, raw recording is still very hit-or-miss and unstable. These cameras were released in '08. Developed with tech at latest from '07. It's not so much that camera companies were 'hiding' raw video... it's just that there was no way they could make it consumer-friendly. The tech did not exist then, in a stable and economical form.
 
But yea, the rest of your stuff is on point. 

This is a bit of a misnomer. The fast CF and SD cards required for raw video didn't exist 'years ago', which is likely why the DSLRs of yesteryear didn't have it as an option. Even now with the tech we have in 2014, raw recording is still very hit-or-miss and unstable. These cameras were released in '08. Developed with tech at latest from '07. It's not so much that camera companies were 'hiding' raw video... it's just that there was no way they could make it consumer-friendly. The tech did not exist then, in a stable and economical form.
 
But yea, the rest of your stuff is on point. 

Here's something I'd like to get feedback for from all you creative types. What methods do you use when coming up with ideas for your craft? Do you find yourself too distracted by the noise of things like instagram, twitter, Facebook, etc? How do you stay focused and make your work a reality?

Here's something I'd like to get feedback for from all you creative types. What methods do you use when coming up with ideas for your craft? Do you find yourself too distracted by the noise of things like instagram, twitter, Facebook, etc? How do you stay focused and make your work a reality?

Here's something I'd like to get feedback for from all you creative types. What methods do you use when coming up with ideas for your craft? Do you find yourself too distracted by the noise of things like instagram, twitter, Facebook, etc? How do you stay focused and make your work a reality?

I'd really like us to settle on an acronym for the thing. It's the Blackmagic Production Camera. BMPC. All this nonsense about BMCPC, BM4K, BM 4K, BMPCC4K. Blah.  :lol:

This is the weirdest sentence. It's like a loopable logical fallacy. 
 
Change the word 'despite' to 'because of' and it'll make sense.  :lol:

This is the weirdest sentence. It's like a loopable logical fallacy. 
 
Change the word 'despite' to 'because of' and it'll make sense.  :lol:

This is the weirdest sentence. It's like a loopable logical fallacy. 
 
Change the word 'despite' to 'because of' and it'll make sense.  :lol:

To be fair, this is two completely different angle setups at two completely different focal lengths, probably using two completely different lenses at completely different focus points. Not very scientific of a test.
 
I could make a GH1 look like it has better resolution than a RED if asked. 
 
Image sharpness, lighting, focus, lens quality, etc. can all make or break an image regardless of resolution. 

Just throwing out there that a sensor might be capable, but the rest of the internal components might not be able to handle it. I'm sure you could overclock a lot of cameras to get 4K recording, but the thing will burst into flames after a few moments. :P 

What BMD REALLY needs is to ship their bloody cameras.  ;)
But I agree. The sensor is the last thing they should be focusing on. How about giving users the ability to... I dunno... review/delete clips? Have a decent battery? Some kind of total runtime countdown? A myriad of basic camera features that any decent company would think to include in a quality assured product. 

External recorder price is far too high... not sure what the 4K 'add on' is, or why you would need it... but in my opinion you're missing out on:
 
- The added cost of workflow for using Blackmagic Production Camera (HDD, Capable Editing System, etc.)
- Quality Control of Blackmagic Products
- Will ship by the time we're all in the grave. (I kid... hopefully.)
- Additionally, I actually find it far more 'clunky' than the GH4, if the BMCC is any indication. The lack of buttons is actually MORE frustrating for me because I found myself having to constantly use that bloody awful touchscreen that I could barely see outdoors. Plus, no articulated screen. Plus, required a rig because handheld was too jittery. Plus, no ability to play back clips, delete clips, see how much time left on memory card, etc. So, yeah, this is a big big factor for me, and I believe should be for anyone who wants to avoid serious headaches on set.
 
Then again, the BMPC or other Blackmagic products may work swimmingly for you. More power to you! I have just experienced nothing but headaches on set with them, and ultimately got rid of them. I could not justify the lack of basic quality assurance. Having to stop every 30 minutes on set because of technical issues was frustrating for everyone involved, and I began valuing getting jobs done on time and headache free over the awesomeness of RAW.
 
The GH4 looks like the best thing an indie filmmaker could ask for at the moment, and the fact that I see people on twitter/forums complaining that it 'only does 96fps' is moronic. Some folks are never satisfied... even with the latest and greatest. 

Key word there being 'Recommendations.' This is not a requirement. This 'list' is meant to be a guide for the local stations when selecting cameras to purchase for their photogs who go out into the field. They select these cameras because they use a codec that plays smoothly with Grass Valley (the editing and ingesting software commonly used in TV news). The idea is, we need a camera that imports quickly into our servers so Jimmy the photog can shoot/import/cut/send to control room within minutes in case there is breaking news. Additionally, many journalists shoot and edit by themselves, having only hours to cut together their package for airtime. These folks aren't doing complicated edits, because they don't have any idea how, beyond basic cuts and voice overs. They're too worried about being dressed and prepped in time for their live shot to worry about color correction or anything like that. So these 'recommended cameras' are ENG cameras designed to do as much in-cam as possible, with editing an afterthought.
 
I'm guessing anyone mulling over the 'GH4 vs BMPC' decision aren't news photogs or multimedia journalists with the BBC. You're likely thinking about using it for documentaries. In that case, you'll have plenty of time to edit, color correct, etc. to get it perfectly cut together for broadcast. The '4.2.2 standard' thing isn't meant for you. It's meant for the company when choosing which cameras to purchase for their news team, so that they get the ones that play nicest with the control room, AND so they can have unified equipment in case a journalist's camera breaks, they wont have to waste time trying to figure out how to use a different model. 

Key word there being 'Recommendations.' This is not a requirement. This 'list' is meant to be a guide for the local stations when selecting cameras to purchase for their photogs who go out into the field. They select these cameras because they use a codec that plays smoothly with Grass Valley (the editing and ingesting software commonly used in TV news). The idea is, we need a camera that imports quickly into our servers so Jimmy the photog can shoot/import/cut/send to control room within minutes in case there is breaking news. Additionally, many journalists shoot and edit by themselves, having only hours to cut together their package for airtime. These folks aren't doing complicated edits, because they don't have any idea how, beyond basic cuts and voice overs. They're too worried about being dressed and prepped in time for their live shot to worry about color correction or anything like that. So these 'recommended cameras' are ENG cameras designed to do as much in-cam as possible, with editing an afterthought.
 
I'm guessing anyone mulling over the 'GH4 vs BMPC' decision aren't news photogs or multimedia journalists with the BBC. You're likely thinking about using it for documentaries. In that case, you'll have plenty of time to edit, color correct, etc. to get it perfectly cut together for broadcast. The '4.2.2 standard' thing isn't meant for you. It's meant for the company when choosing which cameras to purchase for their news team, so that they get the ones that play nicest with the control room, AND so they can have unified equipment in case a journalist's camera breaks, they wont have to waste time trying to figure out how to use a different model. 

I still for the life of me have no idea what people are on about when they say you must shoot in 4.2.2 to meet some television standard. I have worked in broadcast television for years and have never ever ever heard of something 'rejected' because it isn't 4.2.2. Ever. Matter of fact, when working for television news, I would personally shoot plenty of full news packages in 4.2.0. Nobody cares. They filter it through a switcher. It's not like if you shoot something internally with this camera and then give it to the BBC or another national news outlet they'll go, "WHAT?! YOU AREN'T USING THE PROPER SUBSAMPLING?! WE CAN'T USE THIS!" and throw it out the window. News flash, people: cell phone video makes the news every single day. YouTube clips are pulled. Half the national news packages in the feeds that are used in broadcast aren't even full 1080p. This whole 'BBC Approved Color Space' thing is a load of malarkey and is only thrown around by folks who have absolutely no clue how television broadcast works.

External recorder price is far too high... not sure what the 4K 'add on' is, or why you would need it... but in my opinion you're missing out on:
 
- The added cost of workflow for using Blackmagic Production Camera (HDD, Capable Editing System, etc.)
- Quality Control of Blackmagic Products
- Will ship by the time we're all in the grave. (I kid... hopefully.)
- Additionally, I actually find it far more 'clunky' than the GH4, if the BMCC is any indication. The lack of buttons is actually MORE frustrating for me because I found myself having to constantly use that bloody awful touchscreen that I could barely see outdoors. Plus, no articulated screen. Plus, required a rig because handheld was too jittery. Plus, no ability to play back clips, delete clips, see how much time left on memory card, etc. So, yeah, this is a big big factor for me, and I believe should be for anyone who wants to avoid serious headaches on set.
 
Then again, the BMPC or other Blackmagic products may work swimmingly for you. More power to you! I have just experienced nothing but headaches on set with them, and ultimately got rid of them. I could not justify the lack of basic quality assurance. Having to stop every 30 minutes on set because of technical issues was frustrating for everyone involved, and I began valuing getting jobs done on time and headache free over the awesomeness of RAW.
 
The GH4 looks like the best thing an indie filmmaker could ask for at the moment, and the fact that I see people on twitter/forums complaining that it 'only does 96fps' is moronic. Some folks are never satisfied... even with the latest and greatest. 

Literally no one on the face of the planet would ever want to work for you - you have some kind of anger issues. Also, did you just like, copy/paste the exact some post from earlier? I don't understand. You seem to be under the impression that throwing out insults at people makes you seem cool. It actually is the opposite. It makes you appear very small, and a little bit... y'know, insane. Be nice. Grown ups are supposed to behave better.  :)

External recorder price is far too high... not sure what the 4K 'add on' is, or why you would need it... but in my opinion you're missing out on:
 
- The added cost of workflow for using Blackmagic Production Camera (HDD, Capable Editing System, etc.)
- Quality Control of Blackmagic Products
- Will ship by the time we're all in the grave. (I kid... hopefully.)
- Additionally, I actually find it far more 'clunky' than the GH4, if the BMCC is any indication. The lack of buttons is actually MORE frustrating for me because I found myself having to constantly use that bloody awful touchscreen that I could barely see outdoors. Plus, no articulated screen. Plus, required a rig because handheld was too jittery. Plus, no ability to play back clips, delete clips, see how much time left on memory card, etc. So, yeah, this is a big big factor for me, and I believe should be for anyone who wants to avoid serious headaches on set.
 
Then again, the BMPC or other Blackmagic products may work swimmingly for you. More power to you! I have just experienced nothing but headaches on set with them, and ultimately got rid of them. I could not justify the lack of basic quality assurance. Having to stop every 30 minutes on set because of technical issues was frustrating for everyone involved, and I began valuing getting jobs done on time and headache free over the awesomeness of RAW.
 
The GH4 looks like the best thing an indie filmmaker could ask for at the moment, and the fact that I see people on twitter/forums complaining that it 'only does 96fps' is moronic. Some folks are never satisfied... even with the latest and greatest. 

Literally no one on the face of the planet would ever want to work for you - you have some kind of anger issues. Also, did you just like, copy/paste the exact some post from earlier? I don't understand. You seem to be under the impression that throwing out insults at people makes you seem cool. It actually is the opposite. It makes you appear very small, and a little bit... y'know, insane. Be nice. Grown ups are supposed to behave better.  :)

Chill out, dude. You're spittin' venom over opinions on a camera. 80% of the world lives in poverty. Perspective.  B)

For what it's worth, this is one punk that's more than willing to stay away from a toxic work environment.