mercer

Of course the lcd is a major issue and you aren't the first person I have heard who have had issue with it. Like I said, I don't have one... So is the issue it is just too dark in general or due to the angle you hold the camera makes the screen too dark?

Hey guys,
Not sure if anyone has pointed this out before, but last night I was messing around with my Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 on my Sony A7S. Once attached to the A7S, I reminded myself that I was going to have to switch it to APS-C mode. However, to my surprise, the lens wasn't vignetting, even though the A7S was still in full-frame mode. Eventually, it did vignette, but not until around 24mm. I concluded that between 26-35mm, this lens is absolutely fine for full-frame sensor use. You can even get away with 24mm, which produces a very slight vignette (if you letterbox your footage, it would hide the vignette at 24mm).
Anyway, just thought I'd point it out.
Enjoy!

It sounds awesomely annoying. I have been mad at myself for the better part of a year about not jumping on the BM pocket last summer.

Matthias, that is one sweet piece of Zeiss. My question is... Do you find the lens or the bolex has more to do with the look of that video? Did you do any grading? The reason I ask is because the video looks so filmic. I would almost believe it was film if you swore by it. Very nice. 

Honestly I think some people need to either cough up more cash or quit whining so much and learn the benefits of patience.  VLOG will come out or they wouldn't be beta testing it now with these guys.  Panasonic knows how important it is.  If they didn't they will know it when they look at the Ursa Mini.  The price difference between an entry-level Mini and introductory price GH4 is so low that they have to be worried.
If you think that VLOG is mandatory you either have the wrong camera for the job or you haven't learned how to expose properly.   The most impressive VLOG demo in that video is the side to side comparison outdoor with a bright background sky that's blown out.  Go get yourself an ND grad.  Jesus.   You have to learn how to work within your limitations no matter what camera you bought.
I bought a GH4 for personal projects because for the most part it's easy to use, has 4k and looks pretty damn good out of the box.   For my high-end projects I do the same as everyone else - work out the budget and part of that is renting high end lenses and cameras.   When your looking at a multi-million dollar budget, the cost of renting your cameras comes to practically zero.

Now stop whining and go create some awesome stuff with your GH4, A7S, Pocket Camera or whatever.  It's all good.   Remember that the Wachowski's could have made millions even if the only version of the Matrix they had was an iPhone video.
 

Good lens and good friend. You should look into some old c mount lenses... They pair nicely with the pocket. How do you like the pocket camera?

Hey no problem, man. Good stuff Keep at it. What lens did you use on your pocket cam? I almost bought a pocket camera last year when the sale was on but I flinched, thinking they were just dumping inventory, for a newer model... Instead they released a firmware update that fixed a lot of the negatives for me. Oh well, my Canon eos-m still works. 

Okay, I forgot to add one critique, it really isn't something you did wrong, because there is no wrong in these types of pieces. But in the middle, there was one or two cuts where you cut from one shot of the ocean to a similar angle of the ocean. I prefer it when you cut and show a completely different angle or a completely different image. 

I liked it. You had some nice shots and a good command of the camera. If anything, I may have liked to hear some ambient sound of the ocean or the breeze, just to add a little more of a haunting feel to the piece, but all in all good stuff.
If if you're interested in narrative filmmaking, how could you use that footage and turn it into a story? 
You have about a minute. What if I told you, it had to be 3 minutes long? What could you add to it, what story could you tell within the parameters you have already created?
But as is, it is good. 

I think this is really pretty - you cpatured a really gentle mood. I love mist in the morning.
Keep it up - glad you had the courage to share!

Hi guys,
I've lurked on this site for some time, building up the courage to grab a camera and make something, well I finally did it! I would really appreciate it if you would give it a quick look, it's less than a minute long, and let me know what you think - I'm especially interested in constructive criticism!
 
I was out for a walk and I thought there was a house fire, in the distance I could see this billowing white, what appeared to be smoke. I got to the coast and this stuff was just rolling in off the sea, I assume it was mist or fog. It only penetrated about 20m onto land so those of us on the beach were in this weird twilight zone.
I grabbed my camera and just started shooting, no plan, no gear - I was using a Blackmagic Pocket, the screen was unusable so I was framing and focussing completely blind. I think I did quite well in the circumstances.
When I got my footage home, I made this out of what I had, I wanted to portray the eeriness of the event, and I wanted it to build slowly, hence the transition to black and white from colour, which I am quite pleased with. Let me know what you think, how I could have done better, what you liked etc, but be kind, it's my first video that isn't a family home video!

​
​Thanks so much, really appreciate the feedback!
I agree about the ambient sound, I agonised about putting it in - spent a good hour carefully crafting the audio I got into the piece but it was in camera only and it detracted from the ambience too much. What I would have given to have my zoom with me!!!
There were two stories that I saw - there was the lone guy meditating on the path at the start and end, but he got crowded out by dog walkers and people throwing stones so he left. That was the story I was focusing on during shooting. Then there was a story I only picked up on after, when I was reviewing my footage. Out of the mist came the rowing boat and the guy rowing it hauled it onto the beach, turned it over and started repairing a hole in the bottom. In my mind I can imagine he got into trouble in the mist, aimed towards the shore and prayed, perhaps being guided by the voices of the people playing on the beach. I definitely am mostly interested in narrative work, and I do need to write a story and shoot it next, something simple and easy to build my skillset!
I do take your critique on board too, watching it back with that in mind, it's really obvious!
Thanks again! I do appreciate your help!

Okay, I forgot to add one critique, it really isn't something you did wrong, because there is no wrong in these types of pieces. But in the middle, there was one or two cuts where you cut from one shot of the ocean to a similar angle of the ocean. I prefer it when you cut and show a completely different angle or a completely different image. 

I liked it. You had some nice shots and a good command of the camera. If anything, I may have liked to hear some ambient sound of the ocean or the breeze, just to add a little more of a haunting feel to the piece, but all in all good stuff.
If if you're interested in narrative filmmaking, how could you use that footage and turn it into a story? 
You have about a minute. What if I told you, it had to be 3 minutes long? What could you add to it, what story could you tell within the parameters you have already created?
But as is, it is good. 

I feel the more you shoot, the more ideas you will have. You will become familiarized with your equipment and learn what it can do and what you can do with it. Sometimes, I will just drive out to a nearby state park and do some lens tests. The physical act of messing with lenses and equipment frees my mind to concentrate on ideas. Don't concern yourself with rigs or follow focus, just throw a lens on you camera and press the little red button.
You'd be surprised at what you can do with just a camera and a lens. If you're feeling fancy bring a small monopod with you so maybe, just maybe you can get some b-roll. And if you're really lucky, the way the sun hits a puddle and the reflection of the flare off the rippling water might just inspire a shot. Sometimes something as simple as a shot can inspire an entire concept. 

jcs, I assume that was a link to your work. It sounded good. Interesting green screen shots too. your Hollywood stock footage and Hooray for Hollywood interlude was funny. The narration sounded very nice. 

I'm glad I paid less than 20 bucks for it. But like you said a lens is a tool. If I can get the aperture unstuck, it can make a nice little fx lens. 

Yeah, that lens was sick. I was just telling a friend of mine that Kubrick's lens choices, and in some ways, creations, was the perfect marriage of craft and creativity. I loved how he used the nasa lens and then had zeiss make a wide angle attachment to go over it, I would imagine you would lose a stop of light, at least, so I guess that .7 f-stop lens was the perfect fit.