John Emery
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Posts posted by John Emery
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I need to look into a reliable way of testing their CRI. Can I do it with just a grey card?
I suppose you can use it as a reference, but I've never done it myself. I mainly trust my eyes when it comes to color... I just compare it to natural light (all my big lights are 5500k), or use my good old Canon dslr as a reference, and I do a skin tone test (my biggest obsession... skin tones). My older Yongnuo YN600 is clearly off, with a strong magenta cast. Now I use the Aputures as a reference (they all match perfectly), and when I bought the Excelvans I did a side by side comparison... and their light looks identical too. But like I wrote before, the problem is the warm filters, they don't match. So I'll just buy warm gels for both lights.
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I just found an awesome video review showing a short filmed entirely with the YN 300 and YN 600. They also showed using a diffuser for softer light. Do you find yourself doing this?
Hi Dustin, I bought the YN 600 (partly because of that same video), but it has a huge flaw no one talks about enough... its fan is very noisy! A dealbreaker for interviews! That's why I bought the Aputures... they're completely silent, and that's when I realized the huge magenta color cast the Youngnuos had. But Lintelfilm said the new versions are cri95... so just make sure you avoid that fan.
"But you can't run that on a battery". True, but in the last 5 years of shooting, I've never shot an interview or a project where I needed battery lights - there's always been power within reach, and when I've needed light outdoors, 2000 lumens wouldn't even register on the sensor.
All depends on your style and what you do with that light. For interviews I mainly use soft light, so a powerful LED in a softbox does the job. And I would say I've needed the batteries 60% of the times I've shot something the last 5 years (try start asking for power sockets, and start connecting cables everywhere in the middle of a wedding), and it has made my life easier 99% of the times. When it comes to lumen/lux... The Excelvans 1040S are 10000 lux each, not too far from a classic 1K. And they're going for 199€ right now.
I've used plenty of gear these past years, and I can say LEDs make my day... All depends on your needs. But the days LEDs where seen as less "pro" have passed.
- Lintelfilm and Cinegain
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For simple interviews (1 or 2 people siting together)... I would get this...
Aputure HR672S with a softbox like this as a key light:
The HR672 series includes an adapter that works perfectly with this type of softboxes (I position the LED facing out).
An Aputure AL-198C as a back light. I also recommend (if your budget allows it) a Manfrotto super-clamp and a magic arm so you can position it anywhere.
As a fill light I would get a big reflector (get one with black so you can use it as a negative fill too), with an adapter like this:
Now you just have to ad two cheap tripods to the mix...
I love LEDs because of the cable-less experience... it's priceless!
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Hi!
I've got 3 Aputures (HR672W, HR672S and H198C), all great performers... For new comers: the W at the end of the model name stands for "Wide", S for "Spot", and C for "Color" (You can change the colour temperature).
I was going to buy a Lightstorm LS 1S, because I wanted something a bit more powerful, but after looking around I finally bought a pair of these...
And I can say I'm very pleased...
They're built like a tank, very powerful (nearly twice the power of a HR672S), 95+ cri (great color... tested side by side, as good as my Aputures), they work with V-lock batteries (I get 3 hours of max power with a 177Wh Kayo Maxtar Battery), they've got barn doors, a good small remote control, and they're cheap (you can buy 3 for the price of a Lightstorm) but they don't look cheap.
Cons? A bit on the heavy side, a few plastic parts (but at least they don't feel cheap) and the warm filter doesn't match the aputure warm filters... and to be honest I don't know which one's more accurate (I'll use the transparent filters on both and ad a gel if I have to mix em).
I totally recommend the Kayo Maxtar Battery too...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00RN76282/ref=sr_ph?ie=UTF8&qid=1453008964&sr=1&keywords=kayo+maxtar
It comes with a fast charger (chargers in 2/3 hours max! not days like the NP-F batteries). I'm getting a couple more soon (that's if the Ursa Mini 4.6K ever comes out)...
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Now this looks interesting...
- Jonesy Jones, Jimmy, andrgl and 1 other
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Kinda on subject with cinematography and the like, did anyone notice the focus pulls felt a tad too quick? I'm not sure if my eyes deceive me, but there seemed to be a lot of focus breathing going on too. It's quite a pleasing aesthetic overall, just several quirks here and there in particular for me, but you can't please everyone.
Yep, I found them quite evident, and I could have sworn that some of the shots were a touch out of focus... but nice retro feel to it.
Kylo Ren is a great new villain. Nothing like him before in Star Wars. Temper tantrums with a light saber. Anakin had moments but his were more anger. Kylo's were more uncontrolled and wild. So stoked to see what Rian Johnson does with him.
I liked Kylo too. And yes, in Rian Johnson we trust, a perfect match for a darker Episode VIII!!
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Well, I enjoyed it a lot... but didn't love it. A bit like with the first Hobbit film, quite good but not LOTR level. I few things bugged me and didn't make much sense... Why did they kill Luke? Just kidding
, (Sorry, had to do it)... spoiler free... the biggest issue was the "abilities of (some) the Jedi" -
I was talking with some friends a few hours ago, all big Star Wars fans, and it was funny how all 4 of us had a different ranking of all 6 previous episodes. So I thought I would spice this up a bit:
Mine was: VI-V-III-IV-I-II
(VI and V would really be a draw... I think Empire is a better film, but Jedi just resonates with my childhood a bit more)
Yours guys?
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Still beta test... : )
Yep, still beta testing 5 months after
... It's looking better and better (a touch over sharpen maybe?), but BM sure knows how to test our patience. -
I was looking for a small one too. This looks decent...
Best slider I've ever used (and now I own) is the shark slider... Pricey, but truly worth it. It's 80 cm...
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Raven Footage
In: Cameras
I prefer the Red promo over the Ursa 4.6K clips any day... It is always nice to see a polished video (even with all it's clichés). They're cinema cameras, not DSLR's after all, so I want to see what they capable of in the proper pro hands. In the era of logs and color grading, it's too easy to misjudged a camera after seen someone else's random footage. By the way... still not loving the Ursa Mini 4.6K, and believe me... I want to with all my heart (and bank account).
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I have to say that I'm not totally convinced neither... nice DR, sharpness and so... but it's missing a bit of the cinematic/organic mojo of the other BM's (for my liking). It could be the color grading or how it was shot, dunno. Insiders are saying that they're still working on those colors over at BM, so... I think I'm just going to sit on the fence for a little longer.
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A last note for future, though:
when we have some doubts the best is to trace the historic of the poster; some other videos on Roman Lah's YouTube don't let much margin for third doubts, the guy seemed legit.
It's the first thing I do when I watch a test (specially if I've been waiting months for it), but he could always be making some type of point like "I can make a7sII/FS5 footage look like a Ursa", you never know. And it was strange that it didn't come from one of the BM guys... but anyway, we just talking about some camera footage here, not anyones honor... just some pixel peeping fun!
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I think this is worth sharing here...
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please note that I didn't mean any disrespect with the word "legit"... Just wasn;t 100% sure, as usually that aussie dude puts out the first footage
I didn't either... I suppose it's not too inappropriate in the era of internet BS.
By the way... There's loads of new info, clips and photos of the Ursa Mini 4.6K at:
- Raafi Rivero and Jimmy
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Some more clips...
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Both look great! I just hate the idea of paying for basic extras like the audio module (XLRs) on the red. If it was 10000 with everything (like the red one), I would think about it... but for around 7000€ you can have a completely usable Ursa mini 4.6k... I'm going for the URSA
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Whilst on the subject of LED, this was featured in blogs last year quite a bit. Fascinating for those who haven't seen it.
Very interesting! This could take lighting in a studio to the next level...
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Awesome modifier, John. Just what I've been looking for. This works well with spreading the light for the "S" model. It looks like I don't need an adapter ring for that, too. I might opt for the Andoer 95cm / 37.4in Octagon Umbrella Softbox with the Honeycomb Grid.
You won't be disappointed. It doesn't feel cheap at all, and you can use the light mount included with the Aputures.
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About the HR672S, I come from a photography background, and I've never worked with light that natively outputs a narrow angle of light (I guess the equivalent would be using a snoot for photography). I'd probably try to shoot the HR672S through a umbrella, or my 6' reflector---which, when stripped, doubles as a 6' diffusion sheet---for interviews. Or would a HR672W be more practical for my need?
Also, do you recommend the HR672C or just getting CTO gels?
Hi!
For interviews (or photography) I always use diffuse light. So having a spot light is better for 2 reasons: Stronger light output (the light's power is focused), so you can even compete with sun light in some cases. And 2nd, it's easier to control, the W (wide) sends light in all directions. I prefer to have control over it. I use mine with a softbox with a grid:
I would avoid the C (color) versions, because they have half the light output, as someone pointed out above. And the included warm color gels work fine. But it all comes down to your workflow. This review helped me out when I bought mine:
http://eriknaso.com/2015/01/11/aputure-hr672s-led-video-lights-first-look/
I have 2 Yongnuo 600 (the one with just 5500° K led, in order to have full power and not 300 led for 3200 and 300 for 5500) and one Dorr 820 LED (variable 3200°-7000° K): I find the Yongnuo very good, better then Dorr, no color cast problems.
II thought the YN600 didn't have a cast until I got the Aputures. Huge difference!! And worst thing about them... noise, when that fan kicks in, it can ruin a interview.
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Hi barefoot!
If I'm not wrong, the H528's are 88 to 95 CRI, not 95 (they just write 95 in the info). So you could see a color shift. I've got 3 Aputure lights: HR672S, HR672W and a smaller AL-H198C, and all 3 are 95+. I really like them... nice balanced light, with no tints, they don't overheat and they're completely silent. I also have a Yongnuo YN-600, and it's got a strong magenta tint to it, and it's very noisy. The HR672's comes with 2 NP batteries included (which ain't cheap), and cost around 160 quid. If you are going to bounce or filter your lights, I recommend the HR672S (Spot) model. It's brighter, and easier to control...
Light Storm looks great, but it's still a bit pricey (you can get 3 HR672's for the same money)... But they do look great!
Hope it helps!
-Portable-Photography-Background-Reflector/dp/B00KMOH26E/ref=pd_sim_sbs_421_13?ie=UTF8&dpID=41UCvUjoIbL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=1E1V3ACJ3EAXDBQY1CKV
, (Sorry, had to do it)... spoiler free... the biggest issue was the "abilities of (some) the Jedi"
... It's looking better and better (a touch over sharpen maybe?), but BM sure knows how to test our patience.
LED light starter kit
In: Cameras
Posted
It's 5500K (just double checked).