mercer

Maybe not old but there have been two generations since the G7, so it is a little long in the tooth. The G6 is another great example of old tech that still holds up today, thanks for mentioning it. I’ve never used one but I always liked the rounded design of the camera, it looks like it would fit well in the hand?

I’m in the middle of some projects, so I am going to wait until the spring or summer of 2019 to get one. I think this camera is pretty ambitious for BM, so it may not be ready by September anyway. So between my projects and my cautious nature, I’d rather wait to see what kinks the camera has before I throw down the money for one. Those Panasonic kit lenses, although slow, are pretty sharp even wide open. I had the 14-42mm, first version, last year during the second time I briefly had a Pocket cam. At the time I was looking for a get up and go alternative to my 5D3 when I wanted to be incognito, and shoot in ProRes for a quick turnaround in post. I did a test or two and decided to just roll with my 5D3... long story short... I had too much expendable income at the time... wish I had expendable income now. And although I could afford both cameras, my color grading skill set was better suited for the 5D3 and the few little things I would have used the Pocket for didn’t really justify the cost to keep it. Anyway here’s a short and dumb little, handheld test I did with that lens, a Hoya IR filter and a Bower variable ND. Surprisingly, the OIS was pretty decent. And even with the small sensor, on the long end, wide open, I could get some shallow depth of field. Turn down the audio... I should have in post. Lol.

This was the OG OIS Pocket lens some people recommended due to its power zoom through LANC. I never owned the lens but I’ve seen some videos of it on a BMPCC and it seemed pretty sharp.

I couldn’t agree more. 9 out of 10 times, creativity will trump technology. And although I agree you will have more options with a newer camera, I enjoy the creatively cost effective possibilities that older cameras afford. And some of those cameras can be had for peanuts now. The 1DC and C100 are still fairly expensive but are cheap compared to their original MSRP. A GH2 can be bought for less than $200. These are serious cameras that may not hold up against the best cameras available new today (except for the 1DC... that camera is as good as the best 4K DSLR/DSLM on the market) but they are also amazing tools and anyone on a budget could make an amazing film with one. I’m just using the GH5 as an example, you can insert any camera, but for the same money you can get a near mint condition C100 Mark I with DPAF... I think if I was forced to choose... I’d take the C100. Or if I was really strapped for cash and I had to choose between a GH2 or a GX85... or something similar... I’d take the GH2 everyday of the week. So my point being... there are some great cameras on the used market that are 5 years old and there are some great films shot with those cameras... and I thought this could be a fun place to remember those cameras and draw some attention to those films.

You mention the BTS, so I assume you saw this... but for others, there are some really cool tricks in here and well worth the 20 minutes...

I’ve been wondering when Sigma would start taking video seriously. I’ve read that the Foveon sensor has some limitations in that regard but with the popularity of their lenses for video, it would seem to be a perfect fit for them. The great thing about the P2 is the price. If you’re even remotely interested in video, you just cannot beat the specs at that price, and this will reflect in the bigger manufacturers numbers. I agree Canon won’t do it, but I also never thought they’d release the C200. And even with that camera’s flaws, 4K Raw in a cinema camera with DPAF, and every other luxury a cinema camera affords is pretty amazing from Canon. Obviously, I don’t know for sure but I would imagine the Ursa’s effect on the market, could have motivated them. Now how the P2 effects the market is to be seen, but I think we will see some great video specs coming from all of the companies in the next couple of years thanks to the release of the P2... it should be some interesting times ahead.

Wow, that would have been a nice payday... albeit a 30 year old investment. Yeah, when I bought my first DSLR for video, I couldn’t afford any native lenses, so I bought vintage ones and adapters. The first few I bought were Series E lenses but the first fuller set I had were Pentax Ms, and they were awesome. But then I got bit with the lens buying bug. But you’re probably right, some K version or M lenses are probably the most cost effective way to a decent set of vintage primes. Hell even the 50mm 1.2 is considerably less than the Nikkor... which is already considerably less than a fast Zeiss. Sadly, I probably have nearly one shelf’s worth of lenses the guy has in that photo.

Native is 800... even better.

What’s the native ISO of C-Log on the original C100... 500? I remember back in my t2i days, I would rarely push the ISO past 400 anyway, so that’s doable. I work in the trade show industry and I recently saw a C100 II in the booth I was working at. I was talking with the shooter and I realized I never really saw one close up. I couldn’t believe how small it was. He didn’t have the top handle attached, and at a first, quick glance, it just looked like a DSLR. So, you shoot narratives with it? Have you had any complaints about its lack of 4K? I’ve been working on a couple short films with my 5D3 and man are they getting expensive. I’ve been selling off a bunch of old gear to fund them but I’m starting to run out of good stuff to sell... so I was thinking about doing some low key, low rent video jobs to make some extra cash. If I do that, I’ll definitely want to have DPAF to make the process as painless as possible but I’ll also want to get a camera that I can shoot some short films with too. Since I’d start off small, I may go with an 80D but if I need to, I may be able to swing a C100. Hell, I don’t even know where to start really. The only reason I started shooting video is for narratives... but like I said... it’s an expensive hobby.

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.

@AaronChicago that was in camera codec, right? Did you ever test it with a Ninja? I’ve seen comparisons and haven’t noticed much of a difference but I assume it must help with banding. I used to mess around with a D5500 as a second cam, but the lack of focus peaking drove me and my 43 year old eyes crazy. Anyway, the Flat Profile held up to some grading and worked well but there wasn’t much latitude, so I started using tints a lot more in FCPX and they worked brilliantly with the footage. I assume with C100 footage, I could use a similar approach after correcting C-Log.

What do you use it as a B-Cam for? I mean, what’s your A-Cam?

I am... this... close... to maybe buying one. I know the Mark II is a more versatile camera... but there’s just something about the original.

The 35mm f/2 was one of the lenses I regret selling. I had a great copy I only paid 70 bucks for. I had it for a year, sold it and nearly tripled my money. Of course now it’s hard to find a good copy for less than $200. I had sold it in favor of the 35mm 1.4, but since realized I should have kept the f/2 instead. The 1.4 is special but my copy had a weird color shift wide open... blues looked brown. Obviously I could correct for it, or stop down, but at that point I should have just kept the f/2 because my copy was pretty sharp wide open. Oh well, you live, you learn. Since I last replied, a half hour ago, I started looking at some of the original SMC Pentax lenses. I think they’re referred to as the K Versions in Pentax circles. What I find interesting about them is they’re supposed to be the same optical formula as the Takumars with better coatings, and they didn’t use Thorium, so there is no risk of the common yellowing that some Takumars have. I briefly had the 50mm 1.4 and 35mm 3.5 a few years back and they were pretty amazing. As I said in a previous comment, I only have a couple Series E lenses and some old non-ai’s, so I’m not really invested in Nikkors right now... My other option that kinda intrigues me is slowly collecting some old Canon FD L lenses and then getting the Ed Mika conversions done to them. I had a Canon 50mm 1.4 that was converted and I really liked how they easily rendered a vintage look with similar color characteristics as their modern EF siblings. I don’t know... just thinking out loud. My GF could not care less, so luckily for you, you’re stuck reading my musings... lol. And yeah, the Sigma looks good. And you’re right it could act as a fast modern 55 or 58mm lens. Are you definitely getting a Pocket 4K... I’m kinda undecided now. I’m definitely not going to be an early adopter, so for now, I am going to continue to enjoy my 5D3. What happens next year, when I’d be ready to buy one, who knows? It’s insane to think about what could be available. Although unlikely, for all I know, a Canon FF mirrorless could have 1080p RawLite with DPAF... that would become a no brainer for me. For my style of shooting, I’m really interested in getting a camera with DPAF, but for the money, the P2 is pretty special. But then I’ll be pondering a new lens quagmire. Ugh. Lol. Anyway...

I’ve always had a soft spot for Sony and the FS line, and that video is proof why... really nice. I love how you didn’t use any LUTS. I struggle with post color, and I’ve recently stopped using LUTS all together and started watching a bunch of tutorials. It seems in the long run, it will pay off, even if it’s a more difficult process.

@BTM_Pix they both look nice... but damn that Nikkor! I’ve been exploring all of my lenses and lens options over the past few months. For financial reasons, I’ve sold some I wish I could have kept and tested some I wish I never bought. And in the end, for my manual lenses, I’m gonna end up going full circle back to ai-s Nikkors. The price/quality ratio really is unmatched on the used market. I hope to keep everything in the f/2 range and that 105mm looks brilliant.

So just because the sensor is capable of Dual ISO, if they don’t implement a circuit, there would be no trace of it embedded in the hardware of the sensor? Which leads me to ask... is the implementation of Dual ISO hardware or software related?

Even without the Dual ISO implementation I would suspect that there may be a bump in DR somewhere in the higher ISOs.

Good to know thanks. I had the 12-35mm with the OG Pocket and it seemed okay. Most likely I’ll use c-mounts or maybe I’ll get a Voigt. I saw a few videos and the Panny 14mm f/2.5 looked pretty good on the original Pocket as well.

It is pretty amazing what can be done with this camera. I still have mine. I paid $175 for it during the original fire sale. No real reason to sell it, so I figure I may start messing with Magic Lantern on it. I did try Raw on it a few years ago but I really couldn’t get rid of the pink dots without chroma smoothing and the IQ took a hit. With the new leaps of SD cards and ML Raw, it sounds like some interesting things for the future. But the crazy thing I’ve noticed is that even the simple 3x Bitrate bump does wonders for this camera. @Matt Kieley has some great samples. Sure it isn’t Raw but for small, fun little videos why put up with the added workflow?

I was having a discussion in another thread and like I usually do, it got off topic. So rather than step on the other OP’s toes, I decided to make a new thread. About once a year, usually when a new camera is announced, I become nostalgic about the cameras of yesteryear and I realize how many great cameras have been on the market the past ten years... WOW... has it been almost 10 YEARS since the beginning of the DSLR Revolution or as Andrew Reid likes to call it... “the democratization of filmmaking?” I’ve been lucky to test out a few of those cameras, but there are a bunch that have eluded me. Maybe I am feeling nostalgic as I watch footage from my 5-6 year old camera but it seems there are some gems that are still available both new and used on the marketplace. Part of me wants to test them all before the new models make those fossils extinct. So I figured I’d love to hear some of people’s favorite cameras over the past 10 years and maybe some videos to show those cameras at their best. I posted this in the other thread but I can’t stop watching the first and last couple minutes of it. It was shot on the original C100 and to me looks as cinematic as they come... And here are a couple from the GH2 that makes me smile every time I watch them... Please share some of your favorites and if you were forced to shoot with an older camera... which one would you choose?

This looks great, I can’t wait to watch it! I’m going to make another post about older cameras and how they’re still viable today so I won’t step on this post’s toes anymore. Hopefully people will link to some samples like this. @sanveer sorry for the off topic.

It’s on my list of films to watch. In regards to your last statement... I can never tell if you’re poking fun or actually giving a compliment due to the language barrier but I tend to just accept the positive interpretation. Lol. With that being said, while I enjoy all of the benefits of new technology and cheap cameras discussed in posts like this, there are so many great cameras from yesteryear available for next to nothing now. And any one of them is capable of creating beautiful visual stories. In some ways, a $1500 C100 sounds more appealing than a $1300 P2. And in every way, the same story told on both cameras will have the exact same visual and emotional impact.

Keep at it Danilo, maybe write a one minute short film to propel your tests. When I got my 5D3 and started shooting ML Raw on it, I jumped into a short and I was forced to not only learn the ins and outs of the camera but also to think more about composition and light. In the end, I think it really helped. Good luck and please keep posting your progress... there aren’t many C200 owners on this site.

Hey Emanuel, I’ve seen the trailer before but not the film. However, I do love that look. Do you know which hack they used? Yeah, I know about Tangerine, but I think it was made by actual filmmakers. That statement really could have had... insert camera here... it was more a point about chasing every new camera that comes out. And no matter how hard or long you chase, somebody is going to put something amazing out with next to nothing. And the more I think about it... the next to nothing will end up getting more press and street cred in the end.