Hitfabryk

The other thread on the forum about whether to buy GH4 or LX100 pushed me to do a test about this skin tone issues I'm having with the GH4, which I bought a few days ago.  I don't think the GH4 is a stinker, by any means, but I do believe there are color differences between it (the Live MOS sensor) and Canon/Nikon/Sony cameras (CMOS) that cannot be color corrected away--at least I can't do it.  Obviously, skin tone is subjective.  It may be "in my head" so to speak.  Anyway, I used Andrew's C1 setting and then corrected best I could in Sony Vegas 12 Pro.  I hope to do more test later, but for now, this test shows, at least to me, the "issue" (which may not be an issue to you, quite the contrary, I can understand why some would prefer the GH4).  What I can't take away from the GH4 is the 4K gives me REAL 1080 in sharpness--love that!
 

thanks guys- really nice to hear.  The outdoor shots because I didn't have ND for the lens I went to a f/8 on the lens and a 1/1000 shutter - bright bright daylight - shooting at 100 ISO - made it too sharp.
 
Yes it looks no different than c log when you see it ungraded.  Shooting at minus 10 contrast (on the camera) and -35 contrast in the wondershare transcode is quite amazing looking.  This is a super clean looking image at 800 ISO.  Even 1600 ISO looks great.
I am excited to sit down in the my studio and do some tests with in camera vs post saturation to see what feels better.  Also the newest firmware update does improve the color science and seems to make the auto white balance more responsive.  And need to play more with different IMPULZ luts profiles.  
 
I'm editing the 4k files on a mac - in final cut pro 7 then taking into resolve.  
The rolling shutter in 1080p - I haven't tested this mode yet.  I assume its doing an in camera down convert so I would hypothesize that it would be the same.
I haven't done a formal test on rolling shutter but I rate it around the Sony A7S mode in full frame or maybe the Canon 5D Mark II around - just with my eyes.
But again, rolling shutter can be stopped by making the camera a little bigger w a base plate like a zacuto rod system.  and also my holding stance is pretty poor.  I got away without having to shoot with a Canon 5D Mark II - I never learned the technique as well.  Also this was my first shooting test - I just opened up the box and started shooting.  My next video that I've been shooting over the past week - hopefully it's less shakey.  

​That's a big shame really, as I don't have any need for 6k IMAX, 14,444 ProRes and 400,000 FPS. Lame update. When it says "Nice Shot", does it ever say "Really Shit Shot"? 
I was hoping for a built-in lighting setup on the sensor, where I could touch and drag up to 5 different lights and boost/decrease the ISO in my chosen areas. There would be no need for proper lighting anymore, or dynamic range. I wish everything was artificial. 

new firmware is on my nx1 - was so simple to install.  It has enabled 6k IMAX recording and global shutter and 14 444 pro res files and slo mo up to 400,000 FPS and made the camera say "nice shot" everytime I get a good shot.  I highly recommend upgrading.

Hello douglaurent, regardless of whether you are right or not in saying the 1DC is "better" than the A7S, the argument is boring and frankly a waste of time. Both can capture lovely images. Leave it as that. 
I'm more interested in how the Shogun would benefit my work on a creative level, and if those benefits are enough to influence my next camera purchase. I change bodies every 2 years so it's time to choose. ?

Ok christmas day has just ended here in the UK, so let's move on to preparing for the new year!
What would you like to improve/change/develop/etc. in your filmmaking in 2015?
Here's my slightly drunken, sleepy, very-full-bellied attempt at a list (subject to change):
Make money from filmmaking. The time has come to throw myself in at the deep end ... More aerobic exercise. I started shooting my first major paid gig on xmas eve and was utterly exhausted by the end. I need more stamina! Get over my inhibitions. I'm a pretty shy person so I'm always in danger of choosing to sit in front of the computer editing video of the trees in my garden, or researching technical stuff, rather being out shooting and engaging with people (both of which are pretty much essential to a filmmaker!). This will be my downfall if I don't force myself to do it every day. No more camera purchases (other than perhaps a B-cam such as GM1 or LX100 to match my GH4) and no more camera "research" (i.e. fetishising). It's all craft and content for me for the next year or two! Create a clear division between work and play. It's all too easy for me to piss around with my toys and fool myself it's "work." I need to draw a line under the 'education' phase of my filmmaking journey and learn on the job from now on. My leisure time will be the better for this as well I think... That's enough to be getting on with for now I think! 

Uh-oh, it's still 2014 and I have another big moment   I saw a GH4 going down in price on CL and eventually bought it.  Didn't expect to like it, but a lot of people I respect think it a great camera.   The owner is putting all his money into an F7 for his documentary work (to simplify/improve audio).  Anyway, FINALLY, a freaking video camera that shoots a flatter more pleasing image to me.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE CineD.  It isn't RAW, but it's close to what I grade to anyway.  Also, the 4K is great for photography.  I take a frame grab in VLC and process normally in PS.  99% of all the photos people see of mine are on Flickr and for that, 4K is enough.  
Here's a photo of my daughter to give you an idea.  GH4 / Olympus 17mm, I think was as 5.6, at 200 ISO.  Cine-D.
I now need to go back and learn more from Andrew's GH4 guide
 

My biggest moment was bringing my A7s to Germany to visit my father in law. He had been stricken by Lassa fever in Sierra Leone eight years ago, rushed to Germany, was in a coma for 6 months, and ended up in a wheel chair for eight years. But then my wife and I got word he started walking in September. So we rushed out from Brooklyn to visit him in Germany. I took my A7s to shoot photos and film this amazing development. But I had to be mindful as he's a proud man (a physician and African Chief). I needed something that would be discrete and unobtrusive. With the silent shutter, ability to shoot from the hip and with no lights or flash, the A7s caught some of the most beautiful moments that I couldn't with another camera. Then when I showed him the technology and what it could do he was completely blown away - and of course got up and walked for the camera. 

Merry Christmas all! 

Merry Christmas

Have a great one, and cheers to my EOSHD friends wherever you are

4000 euros / 10,000 euros, difference is 2000 euros? EH!
Glad it's Sony mount. I can use my Canon glass on it AND my Leica M, PL Cookes, and no mirror to hit the back of my Pentax & Leica R stuff.
Shame at change of policy.
Really, you didn't.
Evidently.
I'm happy for you.
Do feel free to make your own list.
By treating the A7S the wrong way at post exposure & post, you are giving privilege to the 1D C.

I've already given you one.
Expose the A7S with the exposure meter on the LCD so that it is 2 stops over (to the right). Doesn't matter if ISO has to go up. Just do it.
Then in the grade, pull the blacks down so they are the same level as the 1D C shot.
Even better, use CINE 4 in the picture profile and Cinema, not S-LOG 2, for low light shooting.
You're bringing 2 stops under exposed mush out of the very darkest shadows and claiming that it looks bad. No s***!
I don't care what happens when you give 1000 chickens free chicken feed from Canon. The 1D C is not free it is $12,000 and the A7S is $2200. That may not matter to you but it does to everyone else.

to come back to the main issues of this thread, here are the results of my personal shogun tests and experiences:
1) do i need a shogun?  yes, except a too glossy display it seems to be a great, useful, future proof product which is a great companion to every camera even only as a monitor.  if they implement 4k60p as promised it could still be in the bags alongside with future camera releases in 5 years.
2) is the shogun better than its competitors like the (new) odyssey?  yes, when it comes to shooting good 4k footage.  aside from several detail features mainly because it has the only 1080p screen, which is helpful for 4k quality.
3) do i need the shogun for a specific camera?  for the a7s it's essential, as otherwise there's no 4k.  for the 1DC highly recommended because of all the peaking tools and having a flexible screen, although it doesnt work as a recorder.  for the gh4 it could go without as the onboard screen can do a good job, and the internal recording looks the same in real world.  for a c500 it technically would not work as a recorder.  for all 1080p cameras a cheaper monitor would do it.  the only 1080 job that makes sense with the shogun is on red cameras, who have a massive internal sensor crop when shooting 1080.  the shogun can finally allow 1080 wide angle shots with a scarlet or epic, although not with red raw codec.
4) which camera is the best companion for the shogun?  aside from the price, for lowlight and overall features it would be the canon 1dc.  for more than 5k and higher frame rates, it's the red epic (not dragon because of noise and redcode limitations).  as the red onboard monitors have some more camera-specific features, i would only use a shogun for wide angle 1080p master recording (see above).
5) which budget camera is best for the shogun?  right now sony a7s, because it tops the other competitors with its full frame and lowlight abilities.
6) after buying the shogun, which camera should i buy that i don't have yet?  probably none. if sony comes up with a sony a7s2 that has internal stabilization as the new a7, that would be a very useful new feature that tops the old model.   canon did show that they can deliver top quality (like with the lowlight abilities of the 1dc already two years ago), it's just a question of time when they make it available in cheaper products.  i think it might happen in 2015!  two days ago i received the new 100-400 lens, that is so good and sharp that i really think about selling my 200-400/4.  it mainly did show that canon now is willing to charge only 1/5th of the price of the same quality they did offer in expensive products two years ago.

I just tested it on the NX1 and I can get a very nice 4K feed working. Details coming on the blog.

​I am sorry, I do all my video work on PC(I used to be a Mac guy).....sooooo much cheaper

Yeah MPC-HC can play H265, but it needs CPU power. I downloaded the UHD files from imaging-resource.com when they first came out. My i7-3770 can play them, but all the cores are used up to 100%, and the playback is not perfectly fluid. I don't have a dedicated graphics card, but I guess it wouldn't help.
EDIT: just downloaded the newest 1.7.7, they made a huge improvement in HEVC playback. Now the core usage goes up to 60%, and NX1 UHD plays perfectly!!

The way it usually works is they have communications managers with a sub team and they gather feedback per region (Europe, US, Asia, etc.) even per country and filter this back to the base, where the Japanese or Korean engineers work to prioritise and finally implement the most requested features so it is very much about consensus.
What they really need is a guy like Steve Jobs using the products at base and whipping the engineers into getting it right, based on his dictatorship.
Sony and Samsung should simply hire 1 guy and as long as he's the right guy (filmmaker AND technical) they will dramatically speed up the process or improving & designing their cameras.
You only have to look at the basic handling flaws and imperfections present in all cameras to see that the design-by-comittee isn't working. And they spend millions on extra staff to collect all this feedback
For every good guy giving great feedback like Ed there is the counterweight of some idiot giving bad feedback or irrelevant feedback, like "this dial needs a lock because I'm too idiotic not to knock it by accident in my bag then not check it before shooting!" Or "video is a waste of time, move the record button the shoulder on the A7!"
Having said that I do have a contact at Samsung responsible for collecting feedback so I'll send him ours.

-
RIP
http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-30582761
Coincidentally, with no key on his illness, I had been watching the video of this concert earlier today:

Truly sad... : (

Thanks JG. Yeah really happy with colour from the Samsung sensor. The 120fps samples are coming soon, just need to finish the edit. They are shot from the number 28 tram in Lisbon, a vintage 1930's tram, which didn't quite go fast enough for 120fps so we're talking VERY slow here 

That's a pretty epic firmware upgrade.. Genuinely impressed with Samsung.
I'd buy this camera IF it had IBIS.. But unfortunately.. As appealing as the image may be, even with 4k I 1. Like shooting handheld 2. Don't want to buy Samsung lenses and 3. Don't have any Canon IS lenses to adapt (not even sure if it can adapt Canon lenses anyway)..
I DID buy E-Mount lenses for my a7S since it doesn't have IBIS.. And while I love the a7S I am eagerly anticipating a version with internal 4k + IBIS for my manual lenses. 
Still really impressed with Samsung though, like their philosophy and hope they keep pushing forward.

Thank you Andrew for telling the world about this camera!
****UPDATE: CRITICSM addressed! And a lot of criticism. I guess "Uh-Oh" won't get me a cinematography Oscar! 
I should have exported as 4k pro res hq files, not 1080p pro res files - may explain Moire on some shots. Opps. Also shooting at 4096x2160- only option I have - doesn't give me the option to shoot at 3840x2160 at anything other than 30p - maybe NTSC version so messes it? In Pal I can shoot at 3840 x 2160 but I do like 24p more than 25p. and that's the only option.
Let's address criticisms:
1. the shutter, oh god the shutter! Hey, it doesn't look any worse than the Sony A7S in full frame mode or the Canon 5d Mark II - how do we get around this - same technique - shoot with a baseplate and make the camera a little bulkier. You can still work with Jello - just work around it.
2. the moire! oh the moire. probably because of downconvert I did in wondershare - should have kept it 4k files and downconverted via resolve. I will shoot some resolution charts to see. Wondershare is a consumer-y transocding program. So I don't have that much faith in it.
3. the blacks are too black! WHY? --This is my style. I like blacks that are black. Not raised black levels. I like rich blacks. Did they clip? I will go back into resolve and check and redo. Yes okay it's too black. Oh well. I got carried away. So sue me - this is a simple test video, I'll regrade once I'm done putting out fires on camera nerd forums.
4. The dynamic range is garbage - garbage. This is my choice. Again I'll post it ungraded. There is about the same dynamic range judging by my informal eyes as the Red Epic. 12-13 stops. Andrew as EOSHD says the camera may eventually get 14 stops because that's what it can do in stills mode. So there is hope, if you like HDR like 14 stops footage which to me I don't like - I personally think too much dynamic range looks CARTOONY. But that's just me.
5. The blow out on the globe! OH MY GOD THE BLOW OUT - I probably didn't protect for the highlights. If I had a light meter the direct insane sun hitting the globe I would rate at f/32 and the globe underexposed parts at 1/4 at 400 ISO. What is the NX1's native ISO? Does anyone know?
H.265. It is almost as good as Pro Res 444 but at 1% of the size. 
eoshd.com/2013/11/new-h-265-codec-test-prores-4444-quality-1-file-size/
The Samsung NX1 is a $1500 dslr that can record 4k to H.265 - pretty much the most important video compression algorithm of the past decade. This is what the HBO geek comedy Silicon Valley I think is kind of about, in an indirect way.
Thanks to Andrew Reid and EOSHD.com for telling me about this camera, I bought this little plastic bombshell. I bought it because of him.
I used Wondershare to convert to Pro Res HQ and then took into resolve and applied a Impulz Slog lut 200T tungsten FPE to it, lowered contrast, and messed with the gamma curve. I screwed up on this app. Oh well.
I shot using these settings:
1. Color - kept at default
2. Saturation - Minus 3
3. Sharpness - Minus 10
4. Contrast - Minus 10
5. Hue - 0 - kept at default.
White balance: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
Lens: Nikon Nikkon AIS 35mm F/2 - old manual lens - work-horse.
I used Cloudy white balance which was dumb - everything was too warm, but not hard to fix in post at all - just slide in back down to that middle dot thingy.
I shot a lot at 100 ISO because I didn't have any ND - and also up to 400 ISO.
All the shots looked pretty damn good and clean so I could have gone up to like 800.
At first the "auto brightness" was on that changed brightness
I used neatvideo to sharpen up the footage - I love how neat video sharpens footage - looks so good and natural.
My conclusion:
This is basically looking like stuff I can get out of the Red Epic Dragon in terms of image fidelity . I mean, image and color and contrast wise. I use the Red Epic a lot and own 2 Red One MXs that I found in a dumpster - and this camera - the image looks better in some ways - well at least pretty much as good. I need to use charts but highlight handling and saturation feels better at this moment, in my gut.
Of course - the shutter - rolling shutter - it looks pretty bad. Pretty pretty pretty bad. Oh well. Get one of those stabilizer thingies. It looks as bad as the Sony A7S in full frame mode and as bad as the 5 D Mark II. But again, it's $1600. You get what you pay for. Smoke em if you got them. So it's a $1600 camera to my super informal test that feels on par with a $40k-$60k camera. Uh oh.
H.265 right now you have to use Wondershare to convert - they make it for mac and pc. Soon probably all NLE and Resolve and the sort will probably have h.265 as an option.
This camera is amazing. From Samsung - completely out of the blue. If you read Andrew Reid's reports on the sensor and the technology on EOSHD.com you'll see how groundbreaking this little plastic camera is.

Yes I did work on that video above. I was both the DOP and Editor for this piece - I went for a very comical, cartoony look with grunge and cheap effects to balance the tone.

I shot on the FS700 with just a Canon 24-70L 2.8. Did the job!

You are right - the shoot was hysterical in many ways. I never had a straight face. It's always like that on our sets, always really fun and humoured - none of this military shouty stuff.

The FS7 is completely different to the FS700. The FS7 is a very serious tool, built to last for years. I'll miss the FS700 but times are changin'. ;)

Download the 4K original here
NX1 is in stock at B&H ($1499)
The light in Berlin is dreary during winter, so I took the NX1 off for a break in the Portuguese city of Lisbon last week. This place has the best weather in Europe and the best light. A magical place.
It gave me a perfect chance to get under the skin of the NX1 - and see just what it can do in the real world.
Read the full article here

The best tests are minimally 'single blind' when you don't know which camera is which:

Alexa and 5D3R cut very well together and a typical audience member won't notice any differences. Again, no one is saying 5D3R matches Alexa. We're saying it comes amazingly close, and most people love the colors. Case in point: if Canon is the most popular stills camera due to their color science, it makes sense that RAW stills captured at 24fps are also very popular with audiences.
 
Regarding getting out and shooting, we've posted quite a few example videos of our work, do you have any examples of your work that could help us understand your idea of filmic?
 
Again, no one is attempting to prove the 5D is as good as Alexa- we're saying it comes amazingly close. I was recently in Atlanta and spoke with John Sharaf about cameras and filmmaking (his facility is very cool: http://www.sharaf.net/). I have been considering purchasing an ARRI Amira however after talking to him, it doesn't make business sense. He's in the rental business and most productions are renting cameras and lenses. Purchasing a single Amira for shooting and then making available for rental doesn't work. After spending money on advertising and once the camera is out for rental, additional clients call looking to rent the camera. Frequently not having cameras available isn't good business, so the investment then becomes purchasing more and more cameras (he has over 20 Alexas and Amiras and all the high-end lenses). After showing him our work on an iPad, the takeaway for indie productions was that for HD delivery, the A7S, GH4, and 5D3R are all more than sufficient. Even if we wanted to purchase an Amira, they're not generally available (perhaps John Sharaf was able to acquire them due to his relationship with ARRI).