fuzzynormal

​There's no singular answer. They're all good. It comes down to what kind of footage/style you're trying to get. If you can articulate that, then you can get some really good advice here. (Not from me though, but from other folks that seriously analyze the IQ stuff. I tend to believe it's how you use a camera, not the gear itself. This opinion of mine is in the minority so take what I say with a grain of salt.) At any rate, I tend to believe if you can't articulate in detail what you're trying to do, then the answer can seriously be: "get anything." This would be because you're not likely not going to be doing much considered or sophisticated shooting anyway. That being the case, just about any new camera will allow you to grab some pretty great shots. Except Fuji. Don't buy Fuji for video. Even that IQ is too lousy for me.

​FWIW, the EM5II is nice and all, but it's not going to give you the same functionality as a gimbal. I just use it for short shots kuz that's what I do most of the time. Short PR edits. But, if you wanted to do a looooong tracking shot following a character around and needed the camera to transition through some pretty aggressive moves and still keep things smooth, the internal 5-axis on-a-sensor isn't going to like that. I think you'd see some significant warping. You'd definitely want a more professional tool/gimbal in that case. Also, the EM5II is pretty decent IQ, but it's certainly inferior to a lot of other stuff on the <$1K market. Don't want to hijack the thread here, it's all just food for thought. Since it worked for me, maybe it would work for you. Depends. If you want to see a lot of words agonizing over the EM5II, this is where you should go:

There was a thread a few month back when the EM5II came out and I showed some Tiger footage I shot in Indonesia with an FF Equiv of 600+mm on the EM5. When I started using the 5-axis and realized I could quiet a 600mm focal length, it really got me excited for the tech. I'll see if I can find that. I think the great thing about this sort of camera is that it's just fun to use. The ability to grab easy static shots is what sold me on it --not even the simulated slider stuff one can accomplish, that's a bonus. I just needed to be able to hold a camera in weird places quickly, like over my head while standing on a chair ...and being able to do a shoot without sticks or setting up a huge (or small) gimbal is liberating. The camera is not for everyone or certain jobs, but it's been working well for me. Anyway, it's an alternative idea to buying a gimbal. You get a pretty kick-butt stills camera too, BTW. Just putting it out there. ​

​I kinda think the floating sensor 5-axis tech will be a standard thing in almost all consumer enthusiast cameras within a handful of years, and then continuously refined after that. We'll see how Sony does it next with their upcoming release. Anyway, I decided to buy this new cam instead of a gimbal; just knew it would fit my jobs more pragmatically --and for me it has. I've always been one to parse down my gear though. A lot of times when I show up on a shoot the folks tend to ask me "where's your stuff?" A small footprint is good for me, but other shooters like to (need to) make a statement when they're on set with their gear. Whatever works.

​Nah, I just do some Kesuke Miyagi' "kata" moves and the 5-axis stabilization in the EM5II smooths out the bumps. I literally gently sway my body while holding the cam or soft-feet-crouch-walk -- just like I would if using a glide cam or, I suppose, a Ronin. Doesn't take much practice to be honest.

​ FWIW, $900 bucks. Toolless and easy to set up. You just take it out the camera bag. ;-)

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​It'll be curious to see what the price of that camera will be in a few years.

Here's some stabilized footage I shot a few days back for a goofy corporate gig. Might give you an idea how certain moves and some very basic shots can be enhanced with the technology:

​This is very true. You have to be discriminating to discern it, but that can also be very telling and informative; always lots of scuttlebutt comments that have bad footage=bad camera, however. (and yes I just used the word scuttlebutt)

I have looked at the SLR Magic stuff as well. It is nice. But, since a speed booster and old glass will be less than $200, I think I'll stay on that pathway (for now). However, maybe a few SLR Magic lens rentals in the near future would be worth the time and $$.

​Moreover, I'd like to know how McClane made it through that night on top of Nakatomi Plaza without bending the rules of physics a little bit. ;-) Funny perspective, Rich. Speaking of old fashioned, watch some classic films from eighty to a hundred years ago for a little "yippie-kay-yay." I'd recommend this one: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0019760/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1 or some Keaton stuff ....before you lay down any more absolutes.

​I do entire shoots with 5-axis. I love it; works for me. I agree with your opinion that stabilization can look very artificial when the camera is moving. It's a tool on my EM5II that works very well for grabbing static shots without a tripod (which I do often) and for mimicking a short slider shot...but you have to practice at it, much like using a glide-cam type rig. For much of the corporate crap I do, I prefer a quiet lens. For those shoots I'm trying to keep what I do as neutral and transparent as possible. I don't want to call attention to my shooting and/or editing. I put their stories at the forefront and the production style is conservative. I also concur with your assertion, Implement the 5-axis technology in an intelligent pragmatic way and it's a wonderful thing. We all should keep in mind that a lot of shooters you see on the youtubes haven't a clue or are just messing around with testing, (5 minutes of walking though as park handheld? Who would use that in an edit anyway?) so judging by their work is a mistake. And let's be honest, a lot of prosumer enthusiasts can also be talent-limited, assuming that IS or OIS is some sort of panacea that'll make their footage wonderful. Um, no. If you stink as a shooter in general, your stabilized footage will do the same. (those Canadian guys from that camera store come to mind. They're gear geeks and can tell you the ins and outs of a camera's functionality, yes, but they're not the best shooters and the footage always looks subpar to what a particular camera can do.) Finally, don't forget, if your camera has 5-axis stabilization, you can always turn it off too.

Thanks. I'm more of primes guy myself, but that lens on a speed booster could be a nice option for fast production during a narrative film shoot. Lots of decent options with the FD's for sure.

​Yeah, I've done stuff with FD's on the FS700 and enjoyed the results, so getting 1 or 2 FD primes would be a nice addition to the pile of lenses that keep accumulating...

​Yeah, strictly m43 vids; a set-up for interview shots. Usually I carry around a FF Canon and a 50mm specifically for the talking head stuff, but was thinking about alternatives that might satisfy me --so I can stick with one cam throughout a shoot; interview and b-roll... and I like the longer portrait focal length, 70-85'ish-mm, so a 50 lens on a speedbooster seems intriguing. Of course, the extreme shallow DOF of Full-Frame allows some ease when making interview shots looks really nice, so anything that gets me into a similar aesthetic would be the goal. "Busy" bokeh is not a huge concern of mine, I'm not that discriminating. Just knocking the background out of focus as much as possible is my main concern. Sometimes I'll do interviews with my m43 45mm f1.8 Oly lens, and that's decent enough, but considering that with a m43 2x crop it works as FF-equiv. at f3.6 90mm, I'd like to try and go a little shorter and more "open" on the f-stop for interviews. The lens turbo is cheap as are FD lenses, so I might experiment and see. It's not a hefty investment. If I don't like it I can always re-sell I suppose.

​Indeed, and I already do this quite often. Seeing as how a speedbooster will get focal-length and f/stop numbers into similar territory as FF (or s35) equivalent counterparts, how it renders and bends the light differently is a consideration. Thanks for the other advice too.

Right, but on a m43 sensor going through a speedbooster seems like bokeh would be affected in some regard. Well, as you say, I'll see if I can;t track down that sort of combo via flickr.

"Smoother" in what regard?

Well, my old 50mm Nikon looks like hell when shot wide open. Too much CA and haloing. Figure I can find something a little cleaner though and still affordable. Lots of 50's out there. Some FD glass perhaps? Pentax SMC might be good too. Might be tough finding an old lens that's sharp @f1.4, but I'm not going for a pristine image anyway, just something that holds together decently.

So, I was considering something as a new lens for interview set-up on my m43 cams. Basically, I was thinking the Voigtlander Nokton 42.5mm f/0.95 might be a good choice. Simple, straightforward, good FF focal equivalent of 85mm f/1.9 which would look pretty decent for a talking-head portrait shot. However, that lens is a 1K buy. What about something on the budget side? If I got a 55mm f1.4. and put a lens turbo speed booster adapter on a m43 cam, which has a .7 crop and a 1 stop increase, wouldn't I end up in with similar numbers to the Nokton? Or not? That's a $50 lens and a $150 adapter. Aside from the bokeh rendering quality/characteristics which would probably be better on the Nokton, seems like the $200 set-up might be close enough to what I'd like to use for interviews. What happens to the DOF when using these adapters? Anything significant there? Anyone try this in real-life --or has run the numbers in the past to offer some insight? I'm not even really aiming to get something super-sharp when doing interviews, so soft edges are okay. I can accept those sorts of adapter limitations, just kinda wondering about the FF equiv specs of that lens/adapater rig on m43. Thanks in advance...

​Couldn't disagree more. I think it's a useful guide for an upcoming purchase. Especially for the uninitiated. If you read the entire post you'll see it actually advises considerations for "hot" cameras. His conclusions in this regard on on target, imho.

​Ah, good 'ol Shenzhen China. Man, what a weird place. You want to know what modern China is really like, that's where to go. For better or worse.

​Definitely not. Brand loyalty, a strong hard-wired-to-the-brain-physiological-effect that marketers have been successfully exploiting for generations gets in the way of rationality. Humans are irrational people when willingly or unwillingly ignorant --and they rely on those "gut-decisions," typically based on familiarity, in those instances. Advertisers know this and it's why advertisements/marketing is most often built not to actively sell product but to get the familiarity of the brand stuck in your mind in a welcoming way. After all, Coca-Cola ads never sell the actual thing, they sell happiness, love, and comfort. And to get it you're encouraged to buy the can/bottle with their logo on it. Same with imaging. You want to be a great photographer you HAVE to buy a" Canikon" ...because that's what just about everybody has familiarity with. You heard about it, you know people that use it, etc. So, as us filmmakers/photographers get more informed we can make more rational decisions. Newbies can't really do this as they don't grasp the details as well, so they'll most likely tend toward Canon and Nikon unless actively exposed to different ideas. This post is an excellent example of explaining those different ideas in the context of making motion pictures. It might seem redundant to us that have been in the market for awhile, but for somebody new to it, it'll be very helpful just as a way to understand how to consider things they've never considered. Good job on articulating those basics Ebrahim, it'll definitely help someone in the future! If I could up vote this or pin it to the top of the page, I would absolutely do so!

​Yup. For whatever reason, the Japanese strive for the fast frame rate aesthetic. Not sure how they got started down that path --maybe because of the big way consumer technology is tied to their national economy, those legacy developments during the old broadcasting standard (ntsc 60i) days affected the culture? I do know the "asadora" programming has always been hugely popular and they've been doing those @60fps since the early 1960's. Almost all of their "prime-time" programming would do the same. Imagine a mini-series like "Roots" or "Edge of Darkness" grabbing the popular imagination, but instead of it being filmed at 24p on analog film, it was all shot on 60i broadcasting cameras. The Japanese would do a lot of their stuff electronically. They're both motion pictures, but obviously look really dissimilar. Point is, the Japanese now typically prefer fast frame rates with pristine zoom broadcasting lenses over the cinematic look, and that difference translates into 60fps PR videos that tend to appear way too clinical to western eyes. So, all that sort of nonsense being said, just consider the context when looking at Sony PR vids. They're coming at imaging from a different taste.