mercer

And wrapped the ends of the antenna with aluminum foil.

I tested my a6500 today for the first time. I'm pretty sure I will be using Cine 2 most of the time, but I was curious about SLog3, even after hearing all the horror stories of using it with an 8-bit codec. After reading up on it, I was aware that SLog should be exposed by + 1-2 stops with a lot of folks saying 1 2/3 stops is the sweet spot, especially since the meter will not register anything over 2 stops. So I attached my trusty Minolta 28mm and my strap and headed out with a couple freshly charged batteries and a fader nd filter. Well, I learned quickly how difficult shooting Slog is on the a6500 in the bright midday sun. Between the darkened 4K screen and flat, muted profile, the LCD is nearly impossible to see. But the real tricky part was holding the + 1 2/3 stop. I was shooting in an area filled with pockets of bright sun and sky and curtains of shadows. With the camera's meter set to multi, I found that even the slightest move to the left or right and the meter would erratically jump between + 1 stop all the way to the blinking + 2 stops. It did the same with the spot meter. Also with even the slightest of adjustments to the ND filter and the exposure would jump +/- a stop. And this is where I stumbled upon this little trick. I'm sure a lot of you may be aware of it, but some may not... I went into the menu and check that I was at 800 ISO and noticed an Auto ISO option with a right arrow to modify settings. Curiously I chose it and surprisingly it allowed me to choose both 800 ISO for the minimum and maximum ISO. Ok... I'll bite. I then quickly noticed that the camera wanted to keep me at +/- 0 on the meter, so curiously I pressed the exposure compensation button and even though I was using a manual lens from the 1980s, the camera let me compensate exposure to + 1.7 stops, I still had to ride my aperture and/or ND filter, but now the meter would blink as soon as I wasn't at + 1.7 stops and it also seemed to accept the micro adjustments to the filter and/or aperture more smoothly. This simple little trick made exposing SLog a lot more easier for me. So after shooting a couple dozen clips, I can see why SLog3 is not recommended with an 8 bit codec, especially when I found the black veil of banding death on any shot that showed a good bit of blue sky in it, but I did manage to get a few good shots and I find the 5-axis IBIS to be as good, if not better, than the Panasonic variant on the GX85. And as long as you don't move too quickly, the RS is pretty much tamed by the IS. Here are a few shots at my first attempts with the a6500 and SLog3. I just quickly ran it through the FilmConvert standalone app before chopping a little off the front and back of the shot. One shot I left a little wiggle at the beginning of the take to show how the RS reacts to a quick movement with the IS on. Sorry for the poor color correction/grade... and boring rack focuses...

Hmm, that is so very odd. Why would Panasonic list it on their spec sheet and also list a footnote that they are only available in Creative Movie Mode? Strange. Thanks for taking the time to look.

Nice images and color!!! Sorry, but according to Panasonic's specs, the CineLike profiles are available in creative movie mode... do you shoot video from a photo mode? Also it seems the 5-axis hybrid IBIS is not available in 4K, but your shots seemed pretty steady... were they handheld? If so, the OIS is great. Anyway thanks for sharing! It could be the pocket cam I've been looking for.

Yup most are fast lenses and a lot have declicked apertures. Most of those were shot with the G7, except the last one which was with the BMMCC.

@kidzrevil everybody has different needs and different standards... I applaud your standards, but the one point that hurts your argument is that I think your XC10 work is your best looking footage to date. I'm sure part of it is the high bitrate 4K that comes out of the XC10, but even still... you owned the poop outta that camera.

A Kern Switar 25mm f/1.4 should work on micro 4/3rds. Over at personal view there are threads upon threads about c-mount lenses.

I have a set of Cosmicar TV lenses at f/1.9, a couple Kern Paillard, a couple Fujinon TV lenses, a Meopta Openar 20mm and I have two Angenieux but the ones I have won't cover the G85 sensor. C-mounts are tricky for coverage. With the GX85 and G85 and GH4 opens up a little more usability due to the extra 4K crop, but to be safe you will want to keep your c-mounts at 25mm focal length or more so they won't vignette. Canon makes an old TV-16 25mm f1.4 originally used for their Scoopic 16mm cameras. 1" Television or TV c-mount lenses will usually just cover the sensor with a 12.5mm lens, but every c-mount is different. I did extensive research and trial and error to know what will work or not. The other issue with TV lenses is that a lot of them will not fit into a c-mount to micro 4/3reds adapter so some will need a little modification. Others won't have that issue. If you stick with lenses made for S16mm or 16mm cameras at 25mm or above they usually will fit in the adapter. There's also a cheap made in China lens called the Fujian that sells brand new for 20 or 30 bucks with a c-mount adapter that is a pretty cool little lens. But it's an effect lens at best. If you want quality look for either Zeiss Jena Tevidon lenses (Matthias has a great review of them) Fujinon, Kern or one of those canon. Vintage lenses for video has a review of the 13mm Canon on a BMPCC... I don't think that lens will cover the G85 but it will give you an idea of IQ of the 25mm.

I know there's plenty of GX85 footage floating around, but here are a couple videos I shot handheld a while back... This was shot with a Minolta 28mm and a Cosmicar 25mm TV lens. I colored it with FilmConvert but it ended up a little more saturated than I had planned... And here is another one I shot using the Monochrome L setting. I used a Rokinon 12mm cine lens.

@markr041 OT question... do you have the ZS100? And if so can you tell me anything about it's quality. Does the hybrid 5-axis work in 4K? How is the CineLikeD? I have been searching for a small p&s for a while now and other than the slow lens, the ZS100 seems to tick most of the boxes.

Wait a minute, stop the presses... Canon 1080p is considered soft now...

Then again everyone and their mother are going to sell off their 1DCs and C100s and BMPCCs to buy the new GH5, so your work may be more differentiated by keeping the 1DC.

I thought there was a test performed somewhere that showed no benefit using a Ninja Star over the internal codec?

Are you creating user names so you can answer your own questions? I was gonna say it was a canon in B&W to prove a point that without the color you get a soft image? But since you're a Panasonic man, I would say it's a GM1?

I see your point and respect it. I enjoy testing cameras and attempting to find one that fits perfectly with my style and plans. So far, I have not found the perfect match. But I really hope people do not listen to a word I say about anything, even if I knew everything... which I obviously don't. Look at specs, look at samples and then if they are still unsure, rent one or purchase from somewhere that has a good return policy. All I can say about the XC10 is that I really enjoyed the camera and had to push it to a high ISO to see the ghosting. Or it's very possible you guys have better eyes and standards than I do. For what it is, a native ISO point and shoot cinema camera, I think a lot of filmmakers could do worse.

Yeah... that Helium footage looks pretty stellar to me. The reflection of the flashlight of the mirror illuminates her face pretty nicely and then when she shuts the compact and the little poof of dust hits the flashlight beam... really nice. With that being said, the G85 may not be Helium level, but I have been very impressed with what you guys have been getting out of her. Really nice work all around.

Haha, now you're just being argumentative. Plenty of people, yourself included, got amazing results with the XC10. @Lintelfilm and @BenEricson were both getting consistently great results with the XC10. I think both sides of the coin are valid arguments and Canon should have to answer for the pitfalls and the unreasonable high cost of the camera, but we also got a lot of goodness in that camera as well. If I was a wealthier man, or if the camera was priced at a grand, I would still own mine or buy another.

I will probably give pro color a try, your samples look great. But conversely, isn't the point of Pro Color to give Sony a more Canon-like palette? Idk, I find Sony colors to be kinda interesting, they almost have a 16mm film-like color to them. But in the absence of a capable Canon camera at that price point, I guess a Canon-esque color palette makes sense and well worth the price of admission.

My a6500 arrives today. I had the 6300 back in December and I convinced myself not to like it, so I returned it, but after reevaluating the footage, the image is undeniable. In the long run I am glad I returned it, because it now forced me upgrade to the 6500 with it's touchscreen af and ibis. Now I just need to work out the kinks with the color profile settings. After my brief time with the 6300, I preferred cine2 with cinema color and the usual tweaks, but I still have some more testing to do... and pointers? I assume tweaking the yellow and magenta will help with skin color?

The color looks great. Slog?

Thanks for the link! A lot of good interviews on that podcast.

Yup, I replaced my non-ai/ai lenses with their newer ai-s versions for the shorter focus throws. I know a lot of people prefer the longer throw but I find the ai-s work better handheld especially with peaking. I did the same thing with my Minolta MCs and picked up their MD counterparts.

Looks so cool, man! Do you edit with Premiere and color with the Lumetri Panel?

Why rent when you can just buy one... I finally saw The Revenant and then watched The Witch, both shot with the Alexa and available light and both look so freaking amazing. I think The Witch used Cookes but I'm not a hundred percent sure on that. I know how you feel, if I were a better operator like some of you guys are, I would be drooling over that pro equipment. My new obsession is the 1080p/4K Raw from the FS5... hell even the in camera 4:22 1080p looks great... I'll never afford to be able to shoot with it, but damn is that a nice image. However it did tempt me into buying an a6500... The AF and IBIS on a Super 35mm sensor was just too damn appealing... I couldn't resist. However, I can't even imagine what it would be like to shoot with an Alexa... way too much camera for me. Good luck with it!!!

FS5 with Raw upgrade?