Geoff CB

tupp is 100 percent correct.

Had an older friend I invited to shoot BTS stills, he had said he had been on sets before. It must not have been many. 

He walked right up to the director in the middle of shooting and asked what the scene was about. He was kicked off set, I will never even mention his name to the director again. I don't talk to him anymore either, it was an important shoot day and he cost us time and my reputation took a hit.

Don't screw around, don't talk to the director, do your job. Or you will never work on that crew, or any of the crews that those people work on, ever again.

On film school: I echo what others have said, go to make connections for the future. Do not expect to walk out of film school and be directing features right out of the gate.

DoP's certainly do run their part of the set (camera and lighting departments). 

And while directors have a somewhat limited role during the actual shoot days in managing the details of running the set, they certainly do play a role in the pre production phase (a very large role in lower budget productions!).

And ditto Producers, they absolutely should understand more about the roles on set to make sure they're budgeting appropriately. Thus a bit of a diverse on set experience for themselves wouldn't go amiss! 
And so much money has been wasted and so many failures in the process too......    

If your doing that many weddings C100 Mark 2 or FS5. I would lean towards the Canon. Light files, great image, great low light. That camera was meant to shoot weddings. FS5 has that fantastic auto ND filter and you can use a speedbooster though.

Do not ever shoot without internal ND on weddings, dealing with external ND's are a pain in the ass when you have to move from indoor to outdoor quickly.

If your doing that many weddings C100 Mark 2 or FS5. I would lean towards the Canon. Light files, great image, great low light. That camera was meant to shoot weddings. FS5 has that fantastic auto ND filter and you can use a speedbooster though.

Do not ever shoot without internal ND on weddings, dealing with external ND's are a pain in the ass when you have to move from indoor to outdoor quickly.

tupp is 100 percent correct.

Had an older friend I invited to shoot BTS stills, he had said he had been on sets before. It must not have been many. 

He walked right up to the director in the middle of shooting and asked what the scene was about. He was kicked off set, I will never even mention his name to the director again. I don't talk to him anymore either, it was an important shoot day and he cost us time and my reputation took a hit.

Don't screw around, don't talk to the director, do your job. Or you will never work on that crew, or any of the crews that those people work on, ever again.

On film school: I echo what others have said, go to make connections for the future. Do not expect to walk out of film school and be directing features right out of the gate.

Why not just *key* the skin and color correct it? I made this an effect. With mix-slider, everything in one small window. 

• Up to $500  nikon 5200 - Sony a6000
• $500 - $1000 BMPCC - BMMCC
• $1000 - $1500 GH4 - FZ2000 (to be proven) - Samsung NX1
• $1500 - $2000 Fuji XT2
• $2000 - $3000 Digital Bolex (not built anymore)
• $3000 - $5000 Panasonic HX1, Sony A7S II
• $5000 - $10,000  Red Raven, 1DX MK II, 
• $10,000 and above... Panasonic Varicam LT - Arri Alexa - Red Scarlet W - Epic - ...

There has never been a good war. Not one. I think everyone can agree on this. There are going to be casualties - as much as we don't like it.

I believe Russia is directly what stopped the advance of the Saudi/Qatari/Turkish militias from over-running our military and over-throwing our government. Of course, this viewpoint is rarely, if ever, reiterated on Western mainstream media.

Regardless, people have the choice to believe me or not, I don't mind - my information comes directly from my family and friends on, nearly, a daily basis (thank God for free WhatsApp WiFi calls!). Everyone is ultimately entitled to their point of view.

And I agree with Andrew that not every other Syrian's experience of the war will be like mine, or my family's. Lines have been drawn, sides have been taken, and all of us have been caught between the crossfire in one way or another.

I believe Obama's choice of not using U.S. ground forces directly was simply because the U.S. cannot afford another ground war - both in terms of causalities, morale, support and financially (15 Trillion in debt last time I checked). Having failed in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya, the U.S. has lost its military deterrence - Obama bluffed, Putin called it. Further, post-Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya, they have also lost whatever credibility they had left as being morally conscious force in the world...

I'll be honest, guys, I find it very difficult to continue discussing this. I hate to sound weak, but it's rather emotionally draining. All I want is for Syria to go back to how it was when I was a kid. I had friends from all different faiths and creeds. People would celebrate each other's holy days as if it were their own. I didn't matter what part of Syria you were from, or what religion you happened to be born into. There wasn't even a concept of "Christian Syrian, Shi'a Syrian, Sunni Syrian, Alawite Syrian, Druze Syria, Jewish Syrian" - we were all just "Syrian".

And the awful truth is, you can see in my very own statements that even I have become a victim of this segregation - I have said, time and again, how I am "Christian Orthodox Syrian". The truth is, I don't like saying it - I just want to say "Syrian"...

All in good time. I hope.

so, film school. my question is this: what are your goals? to be a commercial director? a famous filmmaker? a great Artist™?
if the answer is the latter, that you want to be an artist who uses filmmaking within his practice, i would highly recommend going to "art school" and taking all the classes you might not have thought about taking: basic drawing, color theory, 2D design, ART HISTORY, etc. ykno those "foundation" classes that many art schools make everyone take even if youre majoring in film? these experiences will broaden the horizon of your creativity exponentially
"film school" is a different proposition. in general i feel like youll waste a huge amount of time at great expense. a KEY point to film school in our contemporary world is MAKING CONTACTS – in a place like LA. v few places like that, and theres tens of thousands of fresh film school graduates working at restaurants who can tell you that there are very few jobs in hollywood
if youre trying to create your own content, its a radically new era, you can do so much yourself, and broadcast it to the whole world. film school programs can be kind of nuts where you dont pick up a camera for the first year or something... imagine if i taught a drawing class with no pencils or paper for a year. people learn by doing, so just making ANYTHING will be hugely educational
??????
when i was going to art center, art school number three for me because i was pursuing an education not a degree, i was taking film classes, and the first day the department head asked, "When should you, a new person on a film set, tell the director your opinion?"
the answer was... NEVER!!!!!!! SHUT THE HECK UP!!!
lol ppl dont get that when theyre new, i understand, but that was on day one bc its literally one of the WORST THINGS YOU CAN DO. to me this is common sense but its whatever*
*the only exception is in terms of safety

tupp is 100 percent correct.

Had an older friend I invited to shoot BTS stills, he had said he had been on sets before. It must not have been many. 

He walked right up to the director in the middle of shooting and asked what the scene was about. He was kicked off set, I will never even mention his name to the director again. I don't talk to him anymore either, it was an important shoot day and he cost us time and my reputation took a hit.

Don't screw around, don't talk to the director, do your job. Or you will never work on that crew, or any of the crews that those people work on, ever again.

On film school: I echo what others have said, go to make connections for the future. Do not expect to walk out of film school and be directing features right out of the gate.

i think that is a great idea(I have a 4K monitor myself).
But I would make sure the monitor is:
o Around 40 to 43 inch. 
o Able to handle 4:4:4 color @60fps
I am waiting for an OLED monitor in the 40 to43 inch range which would be wonderful.
For professional color grading in Premiere (or other NLEs) use a separate mastering monitor avoiding the OS and GPU.
 

Preference for either the Sony or Canon's color science is subjective. The A7SII's advantages in low light and the 1DX II's autofocus are not. Each has its pros and cons, leaving it up to the project to determine either's suitability. Both are great cameras. I'd be leery of putting too much of an emphasis on the out-of-box image for either camera. Too many factors play a role in the final image. Neither camera is going to make your movie for you.

Nice, would maybe be useful in a wedding situation though...

Thanks for posting the footage. Just like the D750 image, very clean with a great organic noise. If the D760 offers 4K full frame like this I will have to buy it. D500 crop is just not worth it for me right now.

Makes me want to rebuy a NX1. Well done. Love Porto!

A big "bravo" to Andrew, being the one and only, still mentioning the NX system cameras.
Despite popular belief,
1) the cameras haven't self destruct, yet.
2) There are still new ones (that means, with new warranties that last from 1-2 years since purchase),
3) Samsung still services cameras (at least in Europe that I have positive experiences),
4) are still top overal hybrid cameras, for the reasons Andrew mentions plus 28mgpxls, 15fps, hack/mode scene achieving great things, battery life (anyone using 5-8 batteries for a7 cameras, will appreciate using half on NX, for the same amount of work), you have to grab one to realize the unbelievablr handling, and use one to appreciate the very clean and clear menu system and exceptional ergonomics.
Thank you Andrew for your unbiased opinions. To be fair and honest is becoming more and more rare in the new era of nationalism/financial instability/isolationism/alienationism/e.t.c

"Likewise when I invested – key word invested – in the A6300, had I known Sony would roll out the A6500 a few months later I would never have spent money on it. One should rarely wait to buy the tool you need, because there’s forever something newer round the corner, but it seems like every 6 months Sony make your last purchase a complete waste of money."

1) Oh COME ON. For two years you were yelling at Canon for not innovating. Now that they finally update your yelling at Sony for innovating to much with fast refresh cycles?
2) Cameras are not an investment in terms of resale value, camera's are in an investment into your art/business.

I've grown very tired of base Canon profiles ( C-log is excellent however). They are excessively warm, not true to life at all. Which is great if your shooting weddings all the time, but not all subjects are served with that type of color.

I find your comparison completely false. The Canon is using your custom profile GRADED and the Sony is using Standard, ungraded, and obviously underexposed!

But most of all, no mention of the IBIS and excellent viewfinders on the High-end Sony camera's?? I could never go back to only using the rear LCD, a non-tilting one at that!

"Likewise when I invested – key word invested – in the A6300, had I known Sony would roll out the A6500 a few months later I would never have spent money on it. One should rarely wait to buy the tool you need, because there’s forever something newer round the corner, but it seems like every 6 months Sony make your last purchase a complete waste of money."

1) Oh COME ON. For two years you were yelling at Canon for not innovating. Now that they finally update your yelling at Sony for innovating to much with fast refresh cycles?
2) Cameras are not an investment in terms of resale value, camera's are in an investment into your art/business.

I've grown very tired of base Canon profiles ( C-log is excellent however). They are excessively warm, not true to life at all. Which is great if your shooting weddings all the time, but not all subjects are served with that type of color.

I find your comparison completely false. The Canon is using your custom profile GRADED and the Sony is using Standard, ungraded, and obviously underexposed!

But most of all, no mention of the IBIS and excellent viewfinders on the High-end Sony camera's?? I could never go back to only using the rear LCD, a non-tilting one at that!

i registered just to like your comment. my thoughts exactly. 
i own the 1dx mark II as well (like many, i normally shoot on sony a7s, a7s2, fs700 etc). a couple of Andrew's pros made me giggle a bit. color flatter talent? you mean to say that a colder grade would be unflattering? lighting, make-up and distortion free focal lenght flatter talent. p.s. i even think the sony looks better in the first example for instance. 
next, it's 1,38x crop, which is closer to 1,4x than 1,3x, making it more similar to super 35 than full frame. also, it's far from having good dynamic range, it's decent at best, and there is no way any third party "log" profile made in canon's picture profile editor could come close to genuine canon's c-log. flattened neutral profile isn't log, it just lifts shadows, you cant make log with a curve in a rudimentary pp editor, it offers zero highlight gain.  the a7s is the one with impressive dynamic range, AND it has proper log. you can overexpose it 4 (!!!!) stops before it falls apart. canon is a goner at 2 stops over. 
it's a great camera with great straight out color, just like sony is way better at other things. but the fanboyism is strong here. especially seeing how you initially bashed the camera without even having had tried it. nobody forces you to update your sony gear, it's an investment in your creative nature, not in your resale value. just because there is something newer, doesnt mean you gonna get shot if you dont get it. i still use the original a7s and it's more than enough if you dont shoot high end commercial stuff + (and even then you could manage with an external recorder). 

yeah it's totally subjective. canon color is often praised for the skin tone, and i shoot a lot of people. having used both canon and panny for years, and sony more recently, i've seen a progression in how panny evolved their color. the gh2 and gh3 were much worse for skin tone, but the gh4 with my custom profile looks amazing in natural light. when i first got my a7s ii the skin tone was very underwhelming, but after tinkering with the profiles it's now spitting out images that are just as pleasant as canon, but not as overdone. i'm sure in post i can get the canon shots to match the sony in color, but there are other things that can't be matched, such as dynamic range and level of detail. so if i don't tend to use the canon cameras for a gig anymore.

"Likewise when I invested – key word invested – in the A6300, had I known Sony would roll out the A6500 a few months later I would never have spent money on it. One should rarely wait to buy the tool you need, because there’s forever something newer round the corner, but it seems like every 6 months Sony make your last purchase a complete waste of money."

1) Oh COME ON. For two years you were yelling at Canon for not innovating. Now that they finally update your yelling at Sony for innovating to much with fast refresh cycles?
2) Cameras are not an investment in terms of resale value, camera's are in an investment into your art/business.

I've grown very tired of base Canon profiles ( C-log is excellent however). They are excessively warm, not true to life at all. Which is great if your shooting weddings all the time, but not all subjects are served with that type of color.

I find your comparison completely false. The Canon is using your custom profile GRADED and the Sony is using Standard, ungraded, and obviously underexposed!

But most of all, no mention of the IBIS and excellent viewfinders on the High-end Sony camera's?? I could never go back to only using the rear LCD, a non-tilting one at that!

"Likewise when I invested – key word invested – in the A6300, had I known Sony would roll out the A6500 a few months later I would never have spent money on it. One should rarely wait to buy the tool you need, because there’s forever something newer round the corner, but it seems like every 6 months Sony make your last purchase a complete waste of money."

1) Oh COME ON. For two years you were yelling at Canon for not innovating. Now that they finally update your yelling at Sony for innovating to much with fast refresh cycles?
2) Cameras are not an investment in terms of resale value, camera's are in an investment into your art/business.

I've grown very tired of base Canon profiles ( C-log is excellent however). They are excessively warm, not true to life at all. Which is great if your shooting weddings all the time, but not all subjects are served with that type of color.

I find your comparison completely false. The Canon is using your custom profile GRADED and the Sony is using Standard, ungraded, and obviously underexposed!

But most of all, no mention of the IBIS and excellent viewfinders on the High-end Sony camera's?? I could never go back to only using the rear LCD, a non-tilting one at that!

"Likewise when I invested – key word invested – in the A6300, had I known Sony would roll out the A6500 a few months later I would never have spent money on it. One should rarely wait to buy the tool you need, because there’s forever something newer round the corner, but it seems like every 6 months Sony make your last purchase a complete waste of money."

1) Oh COME ON. For two years you were yelling at Canon for not innovating. Now that they finally update your yelling at Sony for innovating to much with fast refresh cycles?
2) Cameras are not an investment in terms of resale value, camera's are in an investment into your art/business.

I've grown very tired of base Canon profiles ( C-log is excellent however). They are excessively warm, not true to life at all. Which is great if your shooting weddings all the time, but not all subjects are served with that type of color.

I find your comparison completely false. The Canon is using your custom profile GRADED and the Sony is using Standard, ungraded, and obviously underexposed!

But most of all, no mention of the IBIS and excellent viewfinders on the High-end Sony camera's?? I could never go back to only using the rear LCD, a non-tilting one at that!

The picture comparison made me laugh! For your home scrap book, the canon is fine, its a complete mess, but fine. However, if you showed them to a client...they'd tell you to throw away the Canon shot & boost the saturation on the Sony.
If you do a comparison between 2 cameras, then you really need to level the playing field (use standard profiles on both cams, as was said above). I'm with you on Canon colour, but between the 2 pics, i'd go for the Sony (with some tweeking) or just take another go at the Canon one, so it looked better. The other problem, is that at the moment people are edging towards that neutral look (as in the Sony pic) - doesn't make it right, but if you want to make a living.....

I'm a fan of Canon skintones and especially it's auto WB which i find superior to the competition. I actually switched over from Nikon for this.
Andrew makes some valid points most of which I agree.. however to be fair to Sony, the comparison is an odd one since.. he compares Standard Sony profile to his custom Vivid profile.. which is rather intense! If one wanted to make a valid comparison about Canon colors vs Sony.. one really should have compared BOTH standard profiles (like TCS did in their Jpeg shootout). An interesting comparison would have also been Sony S-Log vs EOSHD C-Log.
For what it's worth I do own and sometimes use Andrews film looks (for stills never video) but they do totally alter the infamous Canon color science.. so again odd conclusion, although I get the point for him personally it's just a more favorable custom look then what Sony may offer SOOC..
Anyways no doubt 1DX2 is a beast of camera (and it should be at that price!) but I still find the A7SII is still damn desirable for it's class-leading low light abilities, FF zero crop 4K, IBIS, EVF, Slog..etc

Andrew, do you film professionally? It's just that you speak authoritatively but I don't think I've seen anything other than what you post here. To me the skin tones (especially on the train trip) look pretty awful. No client I have would ever approve that. The blacks are crushed to death and faces are red and over-saturated.