Michael Thames

Uploading my first video from FCPX to Vimeo seems much, much better than Compressor 3.  I had some real bad problems with, I don't know the correct terminology, it's like a pulsating pixelated squares running through the top of the screen of the video.  I don't see any of this problem after uploading to Vimeo using the Vimeo share option in FCPX. 

I saw that, but does it work for an hour and a half long video with 20 different takes?  I haven't tried it yet.

 I got FCPX a week and a half ago and so far love it although I can't seem to find the sharpening filter,  looks like it's in Motion, any suggestions?  As we all know the 5D3 needs some help in this dept.  I used to sharpen with the custom settings in Compressor 3, looks like I don't need Compressor with the sharing options in FCPX..... or do I?  I'm coming from FCP6.

Lights are about a lot more than just exposure  :P

Yes, I've seen many how to do lighting videos.  I was making a little joke.  There are times though, where it would be nice to capture the natural light, I'm by no means an expert in lighting, and I think the guys who do the lighting are worth their weight in gold.  

I shot this Monday ..... I would have preferred to do it when the sun went down, but it is what it is.  Heavy Religious symbology almost to the point of freaking me out!  The guitarist Michael Chapdelaine is editing the audio and video as we speak over a hundred different takes. I shall post this video when he finishes, if you don't get fired from here before then. 

I think Andrew nailed it in that they're both good at different things. I've been looking at BMPCC and GH4 as second cameras. hey're so different it's really hard to choose...

 

I'd say if you don't like syncing or fiddling about get a camcorder of some kind! You could sell the 5Diii and put that GH4 money towards an FS100 or a C100, both produce a good image. That wouldn't solve your multicam woes though... Perhaps a Sony RX10 is worth consideration?

 

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Nice guitars Michael! I'm not classical player myself but I can certainly appreciate what goes into building such an instrument well.  I've been learning some fingerstyle too.

 

I also lead a double life! Here's me playing and singing in my two piece band. Well, more having a fight with the guitar than playing. Quite a different style... ;)

 

http://soundslikebro.bandcamp.com/track/less-than-three

 

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Thanks for the kind words!  I really liked your song!  You have a world class rock voice, and the song was an earworm, well crafted!  Two piece band just guitar and drums whoa, sounds edgy in a refreshing way.  Any music videos? 

I played drums since the 5th grade...... even though I play guitar, I liked playing drums in rock bands, you don't have to think about all those complicated chord changes..... ha ha!..... but I digress.

I love a good rock song, all my friends (clients) are either classical, flamenco, or jazz guys..... and I dislike jazz the most, jazz is just rock and roll with the notes all wrong. One good friend who is a classical turned, Jazzer, turned Ukelele, got sponsored by a ukelele manufacture in China and is now touring the world with his wife playing flamenco uke.  

Good luck with your other career, sounds like you are well on the way!  Both lives seem to complement each other well. As the saying goes, if you want the job done right, do it yourself.

The first video camera I bought simply to film me playing a 13 string guitar I invented.  During those years I knew only how to turn on a computer, and could surf the web.  My wife was the computer wiz.  Got the camera filmed something, plugged it into the little "Gateway" computer and nothing happened, it froze up!  My wife tried to help but knew nothing of this realm.  I told her I thought something was wrong with the camera, so I went down and bought a Canon XH-A1 at our local camera shop, ONLY because I noticed it had XLR inputs. Later I broke the news to her I needed a new Mac to run the camera....... she wouldn't speak to me for days!

I will Always keep the 5D3 because I like photography as well, and it's a good all around camera for video and photography.  I had two Canon HV-30's and the A1 with a Letus DOF adopter...... talk about a low light nightmare!   Last year I sold the A1 for next to nothing, because I couldn't deal with tapes any more..... skipped frames, dirty heads etc. 

If only these guitarists would do the Milli-Vanilli it would make filming them so much more creative, but so far It's all been live with a 100 takes. , and the editing nightmare begins!  Syncing up the right audio with each take.  Thanks God for Pluraleyes!  

I feel slightly embarrassed after all this I may very well get the GH4!  DOF aint everything I guess!

Okay you prefer a standard creamy/soft camera for close-ups, and hence the GH4 is not for you. It's settled. :)

Enjoy your 5D and make films. It's an awesome camera!

Not settled, I may very well buy a GH4, it seems it would complement the 5D3 well.  I'm waiting to see what the Sony has to offer....... I'm a low light fanatic, because I hate setting up lights.

From the bullet points OP made, it doesnt sound like there was any new info from that webcast except that Panasonic acknowledge the audio issue as a hardware problem.

 

@Michael: The thing is that I have not noticed as much love for the GH4 as you seem to have. Not that I love it either (pretty happy with what I have already). Every clip of the GH4 posted is met with quite a lot of criticism either about the sharpness, dynamic range, low light performance and/or colour. And then there's people like me who have shot with these Panasonic cameras and know their potential, so I do get a little frustrated at the backlash but meh, I cant change opinions so why bother caring so much? What I will agree with is that there are too many fucking GH4 threads. And that includes this one,

Ha ha!  I'm just old school I guess.  The most remarkable footage I've ever seen has come from the 5D either RAW or not. Perhaps I was seduced by content while watching I don't know, but, I think it's because the elite cream of the crop have used it and it's been the king of the hill despite the obvious problems.  

I know you have the GH4 and while I joked a little about your video being to sharp i thought it was very impressive. For landscapes, and open panoramic shots it is superb, alas my interest is in close ups of faces in low light situations, blown out back grounds, and a more rich and creamy look some would consider soft, but high resolution on faces is not flattering.

If I ever quit my day job and start a film career then perhaps I would add the GH4, but really at that point I would probably opt for the Blackmagic 4k, by the time that happens we'll all be going to work in flying cars.

To give him a little credit, he's definitely not as bad as that english guy Mark who had to be seen-off several months ago. The one who made vampire films (what was his full name?) Andy Lee would remember. He was a total nightmare. He just wanted to criticise the site and pick faults. He could hardly put a sentence together, which made it all really quite funny.

Crapping all over, chump, troll, bull in a camera shop.... remind me of the old dictum "In the house of a hanged man, one never mentions the word rope" 

I'm not stalking anyone mate. I came to this thread because it looked interesting. Then you crapped all over it.

 

If EOSHD isn't what you were expecting then why don't you go somewhere else?

If you and a couple of others would quit harassing me, I would enjoy it here..... 

I'm not stalking anyone mate. I came to this thread because it looked interesting. Then you crapped all over it.

 

If EOSHD isn't what you were expecting then why don't you go somewhere else?

Like I said, bugger off mate! 

Mod's please. There's a bull in the camera shop. Pull the trigger. You know in your hearts it's the humane thing to do ...

Matt, seriously why don't you stalk someone else..... this is getting old!

@Matt He's too entertaining to dismiss that lightly. Especially when he comes out and says that the Panasonic representative all but admitted that the 5DIII is a superior camera. 

In low light!  Can you read?

I haven't watched this, but as for the Panasonic rep seeming uncomfortable on screen (assuming this is the same rep as earlier videos): I much prefer his honest, factual style to the cheeseballs Panasonic hires to be their "Lumix Luminary" shills. He's knowledgeable and seems to actually shoot at least occasionally, and understands that the market these videos are reaching (serious amateurs/indie folks as well as pros) knows its stuff and just wants specific questions answered and problems addressed.

I liked him too!  I would almost buy one from him.... ha ha!   I also liked his honesty about the low light performance compared to the 5D3.  While the two other guys were talking like fine tuned politicians, the Panasonic rep. kinda stopped them, and came out and said it in plain English........ it's not as good as the 5d3.   

Very informative hour and half for both the plus and negatives. 

This is becoming almost surreal... and I take it your response to the video is to go out and purchase a... Canon 5D MkIII??

I joined this forum because it said EOSHD being I have a 5D3 I was interested.  Since I joined the forum I rarely see a thread about the 5D3 or any Canon.  If there is a thread it's usually about how outdated it is, how Canon won't respond to customers etc.  I do notice endless threads about the GH4, in fact just about every other one.  

So being an open minded person, albeit somewhat tired of the Canon bashing. I decided to take a serious look at the GH4, I'm not into the 4k right now but perhaps as things progress with my new computer, I will move in that direction, so this leaves me to look at the image which I find a lot of fault with, digitalized image due to the sharpness, a small sensor which doesn't deliver a shallow DOF as well as what I'm used to, and not as good in low light as what I'm accostomed to. 

If I dare bring up these issues I get slammed, and lectured to if you don't form a line and jump on the GH4 bandwagon.  Perhaps when the trolls quit slamming me, I'll quit bringing up faults with the GH4.  

We can get external monitors with peaking so the GH4 monitor and peaking and zebras are useless, also we can get external battery solutions so the internal battery is not needed, we can also buy external recorders so internal recording codecs are not needed. 

Having good audio in-camera with proper XLR inputs and audio meter/knobs is invaluable for many of us.

Plus: you definitely don't pay the 2000$ for two XLR inputs, as the Panasonic rep said, that would be a very expensive XLR module!

It has 2x 3G-SDI outputs capable of outputting 4K 10bit 4:2:2 signal to existing external recorders like the Oddessy Q7 and AJA Ki PRO and 2x HD-SDI outputs plus a Full HDMI output. It has build it audio meter monitor and knobs to control both XLR channels, and phantom power. Also a Timecode input.

It's a professional tool for professionals who exactly need these connections. If you don't find a need for it, no one is pointing a gun at your head to buy it. The camera is sold separately for 1600$! 

 

 

Got it...... thanks!

@Michael Thames So the GH4 sucks! Hurrah. So, what's your point?

You asked for comments, so that was my comment.  If I have a point it would be there are other cameras out there to consider than what being hyped here. 

BTW, I watched that video last week, I almost posted it as well. 

I accidentally it post before I finished.  I meant to say it doesn't have a lot of problems, but some work arounds 

If you're looking for a camera to compliment the 5D3 raw, I really like the Blackmagic 4k camera. I have both and have been mixing both footages together. They play nicely together

Thanks Somnag, I forgot about that one!  I came very close to buying the 2.5k instead of my 5D3, back in October.  Today I have something to do, I'll watch some footage of these.  If memory serves, I liked the image of the blackmagic.  I'm glad I waited because the 2.5K it seems had a lot of problems

I have a question concerning the audio XLR interface unit you purchase separately.  I had an XH-A1 with two XLR's....... in 8 years I think I used them twice.  The XLR's in camera strike me as somewhat outdated technology these days, I've always used external recorders, because at least the Canon XH-A1's had such low quality recording capabilities I think like 8 bit or something that even with XLR's it forced me to look for a better device.

Do people still used XLR's in their cameras?  Perhaps if you are just doing interviews?  For $2000.00 you can buy some pretty good portable audio interfaces these days. 

 

 

Every now and then someone with their head up their own backside comes on this forum, embarrasses themselves until they get bored then disappears for good. This guy is one of them. If he'd taken the time to read through Andrews recent articles and skim the forum threads, he'd have  been able to answer his own questions and not have so many people call him up on his arrogance ...

Spec sheets are boring to me, and I have to admit I don't like reading manuals.  I find I learn much more by apprenticing myself to a master, or to someone whom I look up to and respect.  In this way I seek knowledge about my particular craft.  

I am in the market for an additional camera because I'm tired of shooting live music on one camera and trying to make it look like it was shot with three cameras, there is a constant and annoying problem of sinking the audio and video with moving fingers, I don't do Milli-Vanilli.  I have learned a lot here, when I am not busy responding to you and Andrew's insults.  So instead of spread sheets filled with specs I look for actual hands on videos both pro and con.

It took me months before I pressed the buy it now button for my 5D3, I researched Sliders for weeks before I bought the "Shark Slider" as for audio equipment yes, again I research preamps, mics, audio software etc. 

You can call me a Troll, but I'm really not.  You and Andrew are the trolls.

In seriously considering the GH4 as a second camera, I have valid concerns over the digitized video look the over sharp image creates, in my research I was amazed to find many other "professionals" raised this issue as well,  But here if you address this, you get your thread locked and numerous insults thrown at you.  

I guess GH4 owners are a little overly sensitive about this so they have a knee-jerk response. 

Might've been funny if I'd ever used a blue mask in my life, but I grade all my footage manually.

 

I put a link to my work in my signature so that people know who I am, what I do and what level I'm at. It helps keep things real for me. Most people respect that. If Michael doesn't like my work that's fine, but I don't see him throwing his films around. Just his ego.

 

Every now and then someone with their head up their own backside comes on this forum, embarrasses themselves until they get bored then disappears for good. This guy is one of them. If he'd taken the time to read through Andrews recent articles and skim the forum threads, he'd have  been able to answer his own questions and not have so many people call him up on his arrogance ...

I sorry you had to defend yourself, I didn't mean for you to work so hard!  I see so many rather pointless videos on Vimeo of cameras on sliders with guys playing with the follow focus etc. and I wonder what's the point?  To show off their new camera? Perhaps a calling card to potential clients?  

 Just got Final Cut X with all those lovely video effects...... I know just how tempting it can be to double click to load the effect..... but I can't bring myself to do it. 

There was an interesting video I saw on youtube of a guy who saved a whale caught in fishing net, filmed on a cheap camcorder by his girlfriend. I find these type videos infinitely more interesting than 3 minutes of blue colored waves, or flowers going in and out of focus. As they say content is KING!  I guess my interests lay more around content than technique at this point in my life, perhaps it will change and I am trying to learn about video as much as I can, that's why I joined the GH4OS forum here, i try to remain open minded.

Between Crackpot (you) and Buzzkill (Andrew) constantly crashing my threads and causing them to close..... looks like eventually I will have to seek knowledge elsewhere soon.  There are soooooo many video forums these days. 

I don't make my living doing video, and my identity is quite solid and grounded in my artistic accomplishments out side of the video world that when you start nipping at my heels, I just laugh and say........ if you only knew.  

After shooting a video of Bach live yesterday and having to deal with studio quality audio as well as the video, which perhaps comes second nature to such an accomplished videographer as yourself, I find to be quite challenging and difficult...... I say to myself damn, why do I get myself involved in these projects, when I could be out on the beach filming waves, and flowers going in and out of focus.  

 I shall post my video here (if I'm still around) for you to judge and tear apart at your pleasure. 

The topic of art came up in my conversation with someone with whom I consider a great accomplished artist (picked by Segovia himself as one of the greatest living classical guitarists alive today), over the topic of video, or I should say film.  I said, I don't consider video as art, in the way of other art forms there is a minimal amount of technique involved, and the more money you have the greater your accomplishments are in the realm of film, during our conversation he somewhat set me straight and I came away thinking film is art, or lets say can be art, and I was thankful for that. 

What's the point of such forum if you can't criticize a camera.... who knows after all this discussion I might end up buying a GH4, and download Andrew Ried's Shooter guide. 

HAHAHA, you have to admit, the blue mask joke was funny.

 

But yeah… insulting the guy that owns the site probably won't get you far.

I think Andrew likes me here so he can have someone to kick around.  I'm shocked he hasn't pressed the "yer fired" button.  

I noticed in at about 1:15. 00 into the video the Panasonic rep said that many people thought the footage was too sharp using a Panny lens ..... I don't recall which one.  

I also saw the Panasonic rep say K4 won't hit the mainstream for another 4 years. 

Also after a lot of double talk the Panny rep admitted the GH4 doesn't preform as well as the 5D3 in low light contrary to what "the British Film maker " Anderw Reis suggest. 

That sounds like a bit of a stretch, even for this camera.

 

Nice video, BTW.

 

Michael   

 

This very well may be my next purchase! 

I don't think he's a troll. He's just a chump with more money than sense.

  I had a look at your Vimeo site  How creative a blue mask!  Perhaps some day you could provide us with a tutorial on how you achieved these remarkable results. I just want to apologize to you, for any wrong doing on my part,  and tell you I have never seen video more beautiful than yours.