Mat Mayer

1 hour ago, webrunner5 said:

... I am willing to cut him some slack. But I can see why it comes off looking  "dirty old mannish" at times.

But to keep posting that on here is I think probably is not the wisest thing to do. Time and place as they say. I have been to Vietnam and I know the women there look young as hell...

Totally disagree. It is up to the rest of us to ask Jon politely if we have suspicions about age and what is going on. A quick "how old is your model and what is your relationship?" would have nipped all the drama in the butt before it started. Assumptions should not be made about people, especially for something as serious as what some people had in their minds. And especially not for esteemed members of this community.

Jon buys and showcases awesome lenses and provides a great service all over this forum which I really appreciate. I hope he continues however he likes. It is nice having a good looking 20 year old woman in the videos. ?

On 19/04/2018 at 8:19 PM, mercer said:

Dang! A great example right there. That short film would not have had any more of an impact if it were shot on a Red. I haven’t had the chance to read anything about it, but I assume that was shot a while ago and those filmmakers have moved on to “better” cameras but for small projects, I can totally see why a simple 8bit codec is all one really needs.

I think they both have a GH5. One does marriages and some ads, one does non film stuff mostly and both are dabbling in drone videos for businesses. 

Thank you, we didnt have those instructions before 

Does anyone know the stock footage site which shows how many times images have been downloaded or bought? I remember posting it on here once but can't find it. 

Edit: Found it today- it was iStock who now don't show the figures to people looking for images. I wanted to check what themes sell the most, but it is easy enough to do.

That looks awesome. In the meantime is there a simple way to switch between normal and the hack settings? My wife said the hack limits the camera to only Cine D. 

You might just be surprised what will happen tomorrow. When things go public people often suddendly get their shit together and become all apologetic. I have done it lots of times. Most recently in a store when I wanted to upgrade a lens, but they had a silly, rigid policy. A couple of comments here and there and it was all sorted out in half an hour with the owner of the chain changing from being a prick to kissing my ass. 

Any idea when the next OS will be made? High Sierra has broken all our H.264 HD and 4K screensavers so I am torn between remaking them all (hundreds) or waiting to see if it fixes itself.

Thanks Jon.

I have been enjoying the 16 for casual photos but it is a bit big, so your vouch bodes well for saving it for video. It is certainly an improvement over my PL15mm, I just haven't been sure about the weight difference yet. I rock the Sigma 60mm f2.8 and am so happy with it that I dont think I need the better 75mm. Took a stupid amount of photos with the 60 today, as always. It gets great scores on DXO and has good DOF, plus it feels as good to me as the 1.4 Sigmas. At 3m away the f2.8 DOF is 20mm so it seems like the 75mm at f1.8 would usually be too thin DOF (for me).

Interesting stuff Jon. I would like to see your top 5 M43 lenses in order, or best of '17. Curious to see how all my M43 Sigma's stack up (probably mainly because I haven't had enough time with the Sigma 16 yet with it being Xmas.) Ignore the idots who feel the need to shit on other's equipment because it doesn't fit in with their blinkered view of what M43 should be. And the 4Kaphobes (not idiots).

Festive greetings 

New videos with the Sony version of the Sigma f1.4, it looks awesome to me again. Looks sharper (at least in the corners) and less CA compared to the PL15mm and much less perspective distortion compared to the PL12mm. https://youtu.be/kwz18qjjhgk and in the 2nd one there are comparisons to 2 Sony lenses. The Sigma has amazing edge sharpness at f1.4... 

I think this should be popular in people's homes instead of paintings and photo prints. I have a painting on the wall with a boat in a harbor and it would be so much better if the boat was simply bobbing up and down. We make them as 20 minute versions for TVs including fish and animals and stuff which couldn't be looped so fast like a cloudy sky, but many of the scenes could just be a couple of seconds- a wave on a beach, waterfalls and most nature scenes with just a little movement.

1 hour ago, Samin said:

I was considering to get this lens as I can get it around 400€ but damn that's big and heavy (around 400g?) Maybe I should go for Pana 15mm f1.7 instead. 

Does anyone here have Pana 15mm? 

Its a gorgeous lens to use and hold. But I think it is a bit overrated because it is so well made, with the aperture ring (which I always use).

I am expecting the Sigma to blow it away and will be happy to sell it as I have an alternative compact solution for photos (Ricoh GR). The 15 isnt bad, it is better than the sharp Panny 20mm and the other primes in similar ranges,  but it doesn't have the magic that the Sigma 30 1.4 has.

For maximum IQ the Sigma will almost certainly win in the corners and edges at wide apertures. Hopefully there will be some comparison reviews for confirmation. Jon saying it is like a longer PL12 is a massive indicator that it will be a big step up. Like when someone posted a yoga video in this thread and switched from the PL15 to the PL12 half way though. The difference was very noticeable.

5 hours ago, jonpais said:

Traded in one of my Sigma 30mm f/1.4 DC DN lenses for the 16mm f/1.4 DC DN. Total cost $250.00. I hope to do an unboxing video and post sample footage this weekend.

Can't wait. 

Back down to $249.

I am keeping my eye out for it on sale in the UK as I am guessing you have to pay customs duty on imports and with it being extra cheap maybe the UK customs will want to charge more?

15 hours ago, Cinegain said:

Well, I find there's already quite stunning value in both Leica 15mm f/1.7 (compact, option to use aperture ring for manual setting) and Olympus 17mm f/1.8 (tiny, MF de-clutch) already, which are both around that €449 price point as well. Personally I'm not sure if I'd be willing to give up those advantages for the bigger Sigma 16mm f/1.4 DC DN for that slight advantage in light gathering capability... and I'm sure the Sigma will be optically ahead of these two, also because it was meant with APS-C in mind as well, so you're cropping out the 'bad' corners, if there even would be any to speak of, but the Leica renders beautifully and with character and the Olympus is just so damn small and does just fine. So, it's tough. In this range I'd be inclined to pick the Leica. But it will depend on how the Sigma performs. The 30mm f/1.4 DC DN is a bit more of an obvious choice, as there is few 30mm but that are f/2.8-3.5 and otherwise ones that are off that focal length quite a bit and/or can't quite keep up in performance/value.

Been trying to sell my PL15mm since I heard the 16mm will be released. If it is as good as the 30 it will be miles ahead. The 15 is only a bit ahead of the Panny 20mm imo. The build quality and design, aperture ring and size make it a lovely lens to use, but the Sigma should be way ahead for IQ. Just like the 30 is way ahead of the Oly 25mm 1.8, Panny 20mm and PanaLeica 15mm. There is no special rendering that I can see in the 15mm, just a touch more contrast and sharpness. The Sigma 30 is so sharp it "shines".

Those 50mm f1.1 samples look pretty terrible to me (lack of sharpness wide open, ghosting, CA, messy bokeh), like all the lenses from that corner of the world (Meike, plus the no name ones that get rebranded by the likes of Zonlai/ Discover), except the super cheap CCTV toy lenses which are cool. If it had autofocus it would be a diferent matter but trying to manually focus with a 100mm equivalent lens at f1.1 must be a constant struggle and lot of work.

1 hour ago, jonpais said:

Surprised that the Sigma 16mm f/1.4 DC DN for MFT is being released alongside the E mount version. I thought we’d be in for a long wait. Even more surprised to learn that they rely on optical correction firmware, something I thought only  the original manufacturers’ lenses did. Haven’t figured out yet whether I should be disappointed or not... Does anyone have any information about whether the 30mm f/1.4 DC DN does the same? Are you interested in either of the 16mm lenses? Will knowing that the lenses use firmware correction affect your buying decision?

The 30mm has a firmware update you should install to fix distortion. Information at following link, I cant find the actual download link at the moment (they dont make it easy to find). The 16 will certainly need help with distortion and won't affect my decision. Looks like there was also a 30 firmware update for focusing with Olympus camera/s. I will just wait for a review or two before buying the 16mm with the 2.8 19mm reviewing much lower than the longer lenses.

https://www.sigmaphoto.com/article/notice-to-30mm-dc-dn-micro-fourthirds-users/

I was hoping it would be a video camera, a G80 upgrade/baby GH5 with the video features for HDR 4K. Is it necessary to have the 10 bit HLG 400 bitrate features the GH5 has to count as HDR 4K video?

If so, will have to get a big GH5. If not, the G80 is very reasonably priced in the UK at the moment (£529). With my damaged and customized G7 it would probably cost less than £400, or £300 or less for one in good condition.

Sorry I think I have the wrong term. The Thai salesman called it that but may have been referring to the action of snapping back the focus ring to make it manual. Its just the same thing as on the Oly 17mm f1.8.

1 hour ago, Mattias Burling said:

Snap focus?
Tell me more

(have been wishing for that feature in other than Ricoh cameras for years.)

On 25/10/2017 at 2:55 AM, Cinegain said:

Yup! Exciting! Sigma at it again, there's hardly any better value out there than their lenses. Though what I love about the Olympus lenses is that some have that brilliant de-clutch to get away from that god awful fly-by-wire. Yet... does it warrant the price? Guess it depends what you like/are willing to work with.

I just got back from the store where I specifically went to put the 25 1.2 on to see if I would be able to use the similarly weighted Sigma 16 as a walk around lens. The weight is too much for me, so will have to try and justify keeping the PL15 too.

I tried the snap focus [edit: I think this is the wrong term,  it's the same focus pull back action as on the Oly 17mm 1.8], for the first time, which was nice. The build quality is great. Autofocus didnt seem much faster (if at all) than the Oly 25 1.8, which is already excellent. The bokeh is absolutely bananas, amazing. I think the only reason I would get the 25 or 45 is if I did portraits or weddings, for the bokeh. 

I agree with Jon's video that the Oly 25 is not worth 3-4 times the price of the Sigma 30. I am fully happy with the Sigma and always amazed by the images it produces and light gathering. It sounds like Sigma made the PL12 and possibly had a hand in the Oly 25 PRO (apparently they certainly designed the Oly 75mm which was the king for a while), which is great for those who need those premium features, plus reassuring for Sigma fans that they are making the best lenses as well as amazing affordable ones. I hope after they make the 50 that they attempt to make something along the lines of the 18-35mm f1.8, because at the moment Sigma is the most exciting thing in M43, now that the GH5 dust has settled.

The 16mm Sigma will be 405g, just under the Oly 25 1.2 at 410g, which is quite an increase from the 265g of the 30. But as long as the image quality is on a similar level to the 30, it will be a must-buy. It has a bit of weather sealing too which is nice.

The PanaLeica 15mm isn't too expensive considering it is an above average quality prime. The design is lovely. I haven't really appreciated a lens design before this, so I think whoever made it at least had Leica in mind. I love having the aperture ring. Lost the Leica cap yesterday in a taxi. Maybe I will look for a Sigma one to replace it  

5 hours ago, Rinad Amir said:

Sigma 12mm 1.4 Art? series is coming up for MFT, i hope this beats current Leica 12mm 1.4 price wise ?

http://hi-lows-note.blog.so-net.ne.jp/2017-08-07

 

I really hope this comes to fruition. I will sell the PL 15mm in a second to complete my Sigma holy trinity: 12 f1.4, 30 f1.4 and 60 f2.8. If it is anywhere near as sharp as the existing lenses it will complete the most amazing value trio.

No. I love my tiny iPhone 5. So cheap I dont care if I drop it or get wet. Just get new battery or screen when needed. If they made one the size of the iPod I would get one instantly, I love that slim design.

1 hour ago, Dave Del Real said:

Much more excited for the new 4K HDR AppleTV.

Is that confirmed? I havent been following this stuff but that would be a giant leap. And I assume a G7 wouldn't be able to provide content but the GH5's new upgraded codec would be good enough?

Thank you @Benjamin Hilton this is all great information. I too use Natural but just wing it with the settings based on the scene and the lens. I have been having problems when underexposing. Currently trying to edit a very dark scene which is taking forever, so next time I will try Cine D to help with the shadows. I have not tried the curves yet so will also put that up. I feel like once I upgrade to a higher bitrate camera like the GH5 it will be much easier to avoid artefacts and macro blocking and whatnot from stretching the codec too much. 

9 hours ago, Benjamin Hilton said:

This is something you really need to test for yourself.  Every camera will react differently to under/over exposure, and the variable of exposing with a hardware light meter vs histogram vs internal meter vs zebras vs false color will make a big difference.  

If you can, setup several scenes in the typical environments you will be shooting in; low light, back light, cloudy etc.; (It is probably best to have a person in the shot as skin tones are the most important thing to monitor.)  Using the metering system and picture profiles you will normally use, expose your camera in 1/3 stop increments from 3 stops under to 3 stops over.  In post grade these clips to normal and look through them all side by side.  Also test different white balances, ISOs etc.; doing this you will learn a lot about your camera.

I have been testing the GH4 and G85 in this way in many different environments and with several different picture profiles for quite some time.  I test, then use in in the real world, then test again.  After hundreds of videos filmed all around the world in some of the harshest of filming environments, I feel like I have really hit the sweet spot with these cameras. 

This is a quick project we just released yesterday shot with the GH4 and G85.  Filming and editing was done in two days; shot entirely in natural light run and gun. 

 

 

Any chance of sharing the settings you used for that video or in general?