Phil A

You can try slashcam.de for videography related stuff or for mirrorless systems and lenses also dslr-forum.de

I know that the go to solution for creating lower thirds, effects, etc is Adobe After Effects but I wondered if there is any viable alternatives? I know that you could basically do all the same within Blackmagic Fusion which is also free now but the learning curve is crazy steep. Is there any simpler tools with less range of functionality? I feel like DaVinci Resolve has a big gap at this point. So far I create transparent images in Adobe Photoshop to use them in the NLE but you obviously have no real options for animation or anything then. I find it surprising that no one tries to fill the gap for a more consumer/prosumer oriented solution.

Seeing how there is nothing in the video that needs changing of focus while using a wide aperture, I don't see how you would be limited by using an adapted lens. The only advantage with using the native Sony glass is using it wide open with AF-C ... but then the A7s anyway has a bad autofocus system so you probably wouldn't want to do that to begin with.

I think he means in your OS, not scaling in your monitor. I have a Lenovo laptop with a 15" 4k screen for travelling and within Windows 10 I have the scaling set to 250% because at 100% scaling you are nose up to the screen, giving up on hitting anything with your mouse clicks.

Well, I took it on trips (weekend and extended) to Switzerland, Italy and Ghana so far. For actually carrying around when I plan to use it I put it into my camera sling bag which is the Ari Marcopoulos from Incase. I have the a6300 with a small lens mounted on it and put it in top down. It still stands out like an inch or so but that's acceptable. Takes me 10 seconds to take it out and start rolling. This way I can fit the crane, the a6300, the kit lens, the 35mm 1.8 and/or 50 1.8 and a bunch of additional batteries easily into the bag. You can also squish in a Rode VideoMic Pro or a 5" field monitor but then it gets tight and you will have to assemble when you take it out of the bag. For the actual travelling I have a typical, ugly camera backpack by CaseLogic. I take the Crane apart and it easily fits into it. If the batteries are in it you always have the risk that something bumps the power button and the crane goes full potato in your backpack. I really dislike typical black nylon camera bags but there's not much choice for sufficiently sized, stealthy bags for urban use.

Weight under the camera won't help to balance it, the lens is just too light. I used the crane with the 16-50 kit lens, 35 1.8 OSS and 50 1.8 OSS and you can balance all of those but the moment my a6300 is in the smallrig cage it's not possible anymore to balance it because the lenses are too light in comparison even if I move it all to the front. What you could try is to add a screw with some washers as extra weight into the bottom lens support thread facing forward from the camera as was suggested in this thread before. Tried to balance the a6300 with the Zhongyi lens turbo ii and a Samyang 35 1.4 this weekend but couldn't get it to work in the short time I had before heading out. I'd just wish Sony had the lens lineup of Fuji for their APS-C line. Would love the 16mm 1.4 or 23mm 1.4 wide open but with Sony's good AF-C for gimbal use.

Some of the best review/tip vids I've seen lately @mojo43 , way better than watching a 15 minutes unpacking. Thanks! What backpacks are you guys using that can swallow up the Zhiyun crane? Both my Incase sling and my CaseLogic backpack have a small bit of the grip sticking out if I put the crane in head down. I've solved my mounting problems / desires now with getting a new quick release system that is rather light, quick and affordable. I've bought a whole bunch of Cullmann Revomax RX448 clamps and plates. I have clamps on my crane, on the ballhead for my tripod, one on top of a manfrotto quick release plate for my fluid head (which also is the mount for my LCD viewfinder loupe and fits into my shoulder rig) and on a mini tabletop tripod that serves as a stand for the crane but can also fold together into a grip for handholding the camera. Now all I need is a way to mount my field monitor and maybe a rodelink receiver to the crane. Guess a super clamp with a magic arm will be the best solution. What a pity that the crane has no accessory thread on the side like some other one hand gimbals. The a6300 is borderline flying blind on the crane thanks to the dimming screen.

Minus the fact that the memory cards won't be able to record 14bit 4k RAW because it's only a CF + SD card slot and you have no CFast. You'd need the 1Dx II for that and we already know that so far ML never did the 1series.

Edit: Nevermind. So there's still no sample pictures of the new focal reducer.

Can't answer most of the stuff but these two. - Lens choice is second to none, Fuji has the best system of APS-C lenses, especially considering that they have a whole set of f/1.4 lenses. Downside is the focus by wire, but you'll get that with basically all lenses native to the mirrorless systems (helps with autofocus speed). There's no IBIS and most lenses don't have stabilization either but then none of the two could replace a gimbal or steadicam anyway. The X-T2 has less jello indeed than the A6500, roughly 30ms vs 39ms, there's still some discussion I think if the boost mode with the battery grip actually helps further. So it's on the same level as for example the A7s II. It's ok and useable but not ideal. The 1080p mode of the NX1 spoiled me completely on that front unfortunately so I can hardly adjust to the A6300 rolling shutter (which is quite good in 1080p on the Sony but the image way worse).

I don't think you consider how industrial development for these kind of products works as a whole investment. It doesn't matter if the material for the sensor is the same as the Sony one or Canon one. Companies have expenses for research and development, prototyping, etc. which is all humongously expensive, then you will often face manufacturing issues in the first time with the result of discarding whole batches or (worse) to recall the first products for replacement or fixing. You have to factor in that many research projects might also plain fail, the investment being a complete write off, so these will have to be compensated by the successful products, too. As a result, new technology that is cutting edge will always be crazy priced to recover the cost asap and allow you to innovate further before competition can catch up to your level. Will it be commodity priced in 3 to 5 years? You bet, but by then the investment for that product generation or technology is paid off and you made profit on top (or you filed for bankruptcy) and you already work on the next big thing. Alternatively, companies cross subsidies. Don't you see how many companies don't rely on that camera business (poor Nikon though) but actually make not too impressive financial figures that are mainly sustainable due to cross subsidizing within these huge corporations (Sony makes everything, Panasonic is in many field, Olympus is strong in medical equipment, etc.). The same happens in many field, not just cameras. Look at how life science companies have to price their drugs with a huge profit so they can recover cost before the patent protection runs out and other companies can produce and sell generica of the drug for a fraction of the price with none of the research efforts. But yes... I want better tech, too. Maybe I should get frozen and be thawed on 20 years? Sometimes I feel development goes in completely wrong directions with cameras but that's maybe because I look at my needs/wants and not at the manufacturers' market research data.

I'm not saying it's a bad camera, I'm just saying besides nicer out of camera colors (which most people then "destroy" with haevy handed LUT usage) it has nothing that an A6300 doesn't have, except it's 400 to 700€ more expensive. I have to agree that you can make great stuff with any camera, since I shoot more than I read forums I actually don't even care about 8bit, I work around rolling shutter and actually never had my Sony overheat since the firmware fix a while back even in the African heat. Never had anyone comment negatively on Sony colors either, also know people shooting with Canon and their dreaded low resolution 1080p with no one ever asking about it, etc. There's of course no perfect camera. Size, weight, price, codec, bit depth, rolling shutter, sensor size, low light capabilities, lens choice, there's so many factors to pick your poison. I'm just sometimes amused by the fact that we (I include myself) bash one product for shortcomings but are totally fine to accept others, I like the X-T2 (considered getting one as I still have the 23mm 1.4 catching dust, amazing lens) but I'm kinda surprised it is seen as such a strong contender.

I just can't really understand the exceeding praise for the X-T2 for video to be honest. Yes, the Fuji colors straight out of the camera are nice. It's an amazing camera for photography (except for the X-Trans being sub-optimal with Lightroom). But the rolling shutter is basically the same as NX1/A7s/A7r and everyone hates on these cameras for having "too much" rolling shutter (shooting handheld with the NX1 IS a jello fest). It shoots the same 8bit 4:2:0 footage like the others, it can't even do log internally (and everyone hates on Canon for omitting CLog from cameras). After all this is a 1700€ APS-C camera and I feel like it's just "me too" when it comes to video. Sometimes this forum baffles me. Some manufacturers get so much more leeway than others.

I hate the screen dimming even more than the overheating. I'd rather the camera overheat 10% quicker but I can actually see what I shoot.

I'm sticking with plasma until OLED reachs more affordability. I feel not too great about spending $$$ on a latest-and-greatest 65" LCD that actually has worse image quality than my Panasonic Viera from forever ago. I also feel like HDR/10bit needs maybe 1 or 2 years more to maturity, the main reason I postponed spending on a new TV this year.

The GX8 weighs 490g, what is the kit lens for that camera? Is it the 14-42mm Mega OIS II? That has 110g. As a reference, today I balanced the A6300 (410g) with the 35 1.8 (160g) and the problem is that the lens is too light to actually use my camera cage. So I think your problem isn't solved by adding even more weight to the camera but flipping the mounting plate to have the motor on the left side so you can move it even further forward?

Use a quick release plate under the camera, use a camera cage, a lot of possibilities. I really used the Crane the first time in Venice a week ago and loved it. Surely beats my shaky handheld footage even though I still have to practice walking better. Just wish it was a hint shorter to better fit into my camera bag.

Just balanced mine and tried it out, seems to work fine but I'll test some more. Quick question: do you guys screw the camera right to it or what quick release system do you use?

On Amazon Germany it's currently discounted from 779€ to 623€ in the kit with the remote and little case. Mine arrives Saturday and I won't be home until Tuesday

Same rolling shutter = no interest. Keeping my a6300, which is kinda liberating. We'll see what the next A7 brings or maybe Blackmagic has a surprise at NAB next year.

+1 In Germany it sells used for around 2000€, if it has the AF upgrade sometimes slightly higher. The used C100 II goes for roughly 3000€, so I'd probably directly go for the II at these prices.

Agreed but it's still the priniciple of economies of scale. How many 3rd party battery grips for the Canon 5D III did they sell and how many grips for the BMMCC do they expect to sell? The more you produce, the cheaper you can be. Not to sound negative, I would love to have a grip with controls because I think the BMMCC is so much cooler than the BMPCC. There's actually a thread over at BMCuser where the user Stelvis 3D modelled the rig of my wet dreams http://bmcuser.com/showthread.php?18560-micro-camera-custom-grip-rig-breakout-uber-build

But the 1080p on the A6300 isn't exactly amazing, I wouldn't buy that camera to shoot Full HD with it. We'll see if the A6500 has better image quality in 1080p but I wouldn't get my hopes up. I tried to cut 1080p that I used for the lower RS together with downscaled 4k for a test and the quality difference was really showing, not yet convinced it's a viable solution. I didn't test them side by side but from my feeling the 120fps on the A6300 is also worse than on the NX1.

To be honest I'm not. Look at the cost of a good quality wooden grip, that's 200-500$. Then consider that people expect it to have a bunch of buttons, which would put it at the higher end of that scale. Then consider how many people have a BMMCC and how many of those would buy the grip? I think the market is too small. In general I feel kitting out the BMMCC into a great handheld system doesn't really make sense for price reasons. Many people consider this the minimum setup: BMMCC 1000€ Monitor 500€ Cage 100€ Speed Booster 850€ OLPF 350€ That already puts you at 2800€ which probably kills the attractivity of the BMMCC to rig it out as a fancy handheld camera if you don't already have the stuff lying around from a BMPCC. If you would add a fancy handgrip for 500€, you might as well have directly looked at buying an Ursa Mini when we ignore size/weight differences.

Even raw files can have some form of processing, e.g. noise reduction or downscaling (example is for example RAW, mRAW and sRAW on Canon cameras). MagicLantern also saves raw data which is not identical to the full resolution the sensor has.