Django

Fun thread, always neat reading other peoples perspectives when it comes to tools for certain jobs! I don't specialise in event coverage but I do have a few lined up this summer so interesting to get seasoned pros weighing in while I'm in active prep mode. Now obviously everyone has their own particular preferences when it comes to gear and lens choice in particular. I don't think there is a right/wrong way to do it just use what you're most comfortable with to get the job done. Zoom lenses seem most popular for event shooters for obvious reasons, I'm just not a big fan of them, especially wide range ones like the popular 24-105mm F4. While I understand the versatility of such lenses they are often big, heavy, slow & optically inferior. All concessions I'm usually not ready to make no matter the convenience. The 24-70mm f2.8 is imo a much better compromise but hey to each his own. I also learned photography shooting primes, often with just one or two lenses. Mostly on 35mm point & shoot. Later a nifty fifty because they were cheap. My lizard brain is just wired to certain focal lengths. And that has carried over through to videography.. I guess its a cine thing also. My favourite focal length and prime combos do vary depending on task & situation so I can't really recommend a single one. For example its the 28mm Summicron that lives on my Leica M9. I mostly do street photography with that setup so its the focal length that best resonates with me for that type of work. 28mm equivalent is also what most smartphones use as their normal lens and for a good reason. Bit wider than 35mm but not as much distortion as 24mm and under. On Sony, a Batis 25mm & 85mm is usually my preferred combo. As with APS-C crop and clear image zoom I also get a pretty full range in between and over. On Canon, its a fuller range of primes and zooms. Most of my lens collection is EF/L. Mostly wide to mid. I've stayed away from telephoto zoom lenses because of size, weight and cost. I usually work in intimate settings and am not afraid to get up close & personal with my subject. Obviously some gigs like sideline sports shooting or other remote applications may forbid that but that's just not my scene or style of shoot. Well like I've just said the 28mm lives on my Leica, so I honestly don't think he's necessarily "taking the piss". While I would probably not shoot an entire wedding with that setup, I have witnessed actual 'world famous' photographers that work with just a couple primes, if not just a single lens. I've never thought of it as particularly pretentious or restricting. I think it can actually be quite liberating. And of course it does give a consistency within a series which can be useful. Obviously "art photography" or even studio photography is very different from event or wedding, so tools may vary. But again there is really no right or wrong way. Also flash photography was mentioned and there is nothing wrong with that either, it can be quite creative other than having a functional purpose. Working with primes or even just one prime means traditionally being quick on your feet which isn't always ideal or practical but with high resolution and cropping is bit less of an issue. The Leica Q series had an interesting approach with the 28mm prime and various fixed crop modes emulating other focal lengths thanks to a 47mp sensor. Of course not close to being the same as using dedicated primes but a cool concept nonetheless for an ultra minimal setup. I know a couple famous pros such as Greg Williams use the Q2 exclusively for red carpet events. This is an old concept that simply takes into account the human eye that has a focal length equivalent of about 25mm, an angle of view of around 50mm and an aperture range equivalent of about f2 to f8. So staying within that range with a prime or two would subconsciously emulate the human vision on a 2D screen or paper (since this concept harkens back to pre-digital days).

Are you talking about stills? Because the e-shutter has no incidence for video and the Z8/Z9 stacked sensor will only give you less RS. Not to mention the other benefits like RAW/ProRes/8K.

Maybe you can, the Z8 has two USB-C ports..

you sure about that? its my understanding there is a 2.3X crop only when shooting 4K120p in N-RAW as its 1:1 but h265 offers a binned no crop 4K120p. at least that's according to dpreview.. who yes have an actual Z8 review despite being officially deceased, strange times: https://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikon-z8-initial-review

Yeah its a very cool accessory for sure! Also interesting for me to note in that video that you can switch to APS-C (DX) mode on the fly to punch-in during recording . That's awesome, I don't know of other systems allowing that kind of live crop functionality aside from clear image zoom which is similar but different. To be fair though Z9 has built-in vertical grip, bigger battery, better weather sealing, ethernet, GPS etc. Its a flagship sports/action D5 type body. Z9 will also not overheat and has longer recording times. Quite a few reports of "hot card" and overheat warning on Z8. Z8 is really a R5, A7RV competitor. Not R3/A1/Z9. Pretty amazing they did give it the same specs as their flagship. Puts pressure on Sony & Canon to deliver stacked sensor tech in their next equivalent products!

A very cool feature I'd missed that came with the 3.0 Z9 FW is this "Hi-Res Zoom" which is basically what I assume is the equivalent to Sony's clear image zoom tech but with oversampled 8K to work with and zoom control can be set to lens control/focus ring. This is really sweet for prime lens shooters like myself, effectively doubling the focal range. Great way to make use of that extra resolution.

Kind of a strange philosophy to release the exact same camera specs in a different body but I'm not complaining. I do wish they'd added N-Log2 with a flatter curve. The menu system seems a little dated. No SSD support. No open gate. Some reviews claim the AF acts weird. I dunno how I feel about no mechanical shutter despite the fast read-out. Then there was that article Andrew wrote about the RAW not having much DR.. But all that nitpicking put aside it still seems like a killer cam for the price. Stacked sensors are the future. Will it be enough to draw me back into Nikon, tough call. I'd have to try one out. I haven't even seen a Z9 in the flesh but I assume the Z8 will be more readily available, at least lets hope so. Anyone know of where to find some Z9 RAW or log footage online?

4599€ in most EU shops.

Embargo lifted. Its got same video specs as Z9 so you get N-Raw, ProRes Raw etc. Pretty sweet camera!

I hate being tethered to recorders, its clunky, requires another set of batteries and zaps the whole point of IBIS equipped mirrorless: handheld portability. If you're always shooting on sticks I guess its just an extra step to your rig but if you wanna go handheld it kinda sucks. So its not just the setup time, its a clunky affair. Nikon really put its users in a corner with the lack of internal log. Its why I never considered those cameras despite being a long time Nikon shooter with still a couple nice vintage F-mount lenses left. Then you have the limited upgrade path, basically Z8/Z9. Expensive. And no cine line. All these could be valid motives to switch systems. As others noted, only you can decide what your best move is. If you think you can swing a Z8 down the line, maybe better to wait and do option 1. F-mount glass is definitely a good incentive to remain in the Nikon ecosystem. We often gush over new bodies but its the lens collection you wanna be thinking about longterm.

Agreed on no crop 4K60p being an essential feature to me as well. I don't want any type of sensor crop when changing frame rates (no matter sensor size). The original R6 is still a good deal for that for under $2K. Overheating is present but somewhat manageable. R5 is coming down in second hand prices to the point where its a solid alternative to all these other newer releases in the $3K region. Its biggest competitor remains.. A7Siii if 8K isn't required. It has the full HDMI, much better DR, lower RS, better non binned 4K120p and of course the passive cooling meaning its still less prone to overheating than an R5.. and of course the third party lens options. This is currently Canons biggest con. Of course Nikon Z8 will be announced next week and will probably beat all these FF cams with stacked sensor 8K60p, ProRes etc. But will be a $4.5K camera..

The A7Sii was quite seminal being the first FF 4K mirrorless with IBIS that could literally see in the dark. Noise was never an issue with that camera since it had such great low-light performance across the ISO field. The real problem with these earlier A7 cams was the horrible AWB in mixed lighting combined with so-so CS. Andrew had a classic hilarious YT video about the A7Sii zombie skin tones. Sure you could somewhat correct it in Davinci but 8-bit really isn't the best for heavy color correction not to mention the waste of time. Daylight shooting not so much an issue but the camera had a few other cons brought up in that video such as slow AF, harsh highlight roll-off, poor battery life, build quality issues etc. Still for the current used price its a great little budget camera if you find one in not too battered state (they honestly haven't held up well) and don't shoot much mixed lighting. The A7iii fixes most of the A7Sii issues both in build, battery life but also AWB/CS. Also uses oversampled 4K for more detailed current IQ. But they still go for +$1.5K used. Not bad but not phenomenal considering you can now get a 10-bit cam for not a lot more from other manufacturers..

Yeah I had similar experience with the R6, learned how to get around overheat but it was a constant stress and I vouched never again but for casual shooting, travel etc was never really a concern. The ZV-E1 during my one hour test did shut off while in the menus with no warning which is what made me think initially the battery had died, but it was still on default normal temp setting. When set to high I didn't get an overheat warning but I didn't stress the camera much. I've done some gigs in China with an FS7 + A7iii. Needless to say the A7 was the only camera used in public. Looks like you'll be able to put the ZV-E1 through its paces on your tip. Don't forget to grab a VPN beforehand so you can access google and such and hopefully give us some feedback! Safe travels.

Interesting, you had some pretty harsh comments towards this camera (so did I tbh) but it sounds like you're warming up to it after trying it out! The overheating is really dependent on the ambient temperature and how long you shoot. 65 degrees is pretty mild/cool and shooting 10s to 2mn clips with intervals isn't going to stress it much either. This camera might turn out to be ideal for your particular needs/shooting style but I'd be curious on your feedback on a warmer day (+75F).

Its a little crippled compared to XH2/XH2S... but its leap and beyond an XT3/XT4/XS1O etc. XS10 is a good choice for most compact affordable Fuji but with that comes mediocre battery life and probably so so AF. Always a trade-off somewhere!

An XE4+XS10 would still run you more than an XT5 which Fuji has shrunk the size to a fairly compact form factor, and offers better specs. You could just get that and pancake lens for travel, and use bigger lenses for other situations like video work. An XT4 could also work if you wanna save some bucks and you're ok with a slightly bigger body. My dream Fuji combo would be XH2S+X100V. But I probably won't be going that route being tied to other systems.

Agreed. Also let's not confuse "cinematic" which has become a general buzzword today and actual film simulation which is what Fuji gives you inside its X series. Fuji film simulations are based on actual 35mm film stocks from their own film legacy. This isn't just a LUT as you can tweak it in-cam and even set grain size etc (albeit only in photos). These are known as Fuji recipes. For video the most usable one is Eterna based on the Eterna cinema film stock. This is a unique in-cam approach compared to other manufacturer picture profiles which are often pretty basic if not cliché. Fuji have a clear advantage since they have actual Film heritage. Being able to preview these looks and tweak them while shooting is ace creatively speaking not to mention fun. SOOC baked profiles is often overlooked by most manufacturers. I'll mostly shoot log for video and RAW for stills because of this but with fuji cams SOOC film simulations is a great alternative. Definitely a major incentive of going Fuji!

tried out a bunch of cams but forgot about the R8, might have to go back and check it out.. what's the overheat limit like @ntblowz ? also I've never tried "HDR PQ". what are the benefits compared to log? baked-in look with similar DR?

So I just tried the ZV-E1 among other recent releases and here are some quick thoughts: The build quality is better than I thought, nothing like the previous toy-like ZV cams and much closer to current A7 series, probably closest to A7C. Unit carries a certain weight so balances ok even with bigger (prime) lenses. Very minimal design and button layout. While this may seem like a con its also a pro, kind of reminds me of Leica philosophy. Yes sometimes less is more. Set the shutter speed with the dial, aperture with the thumbwheel. Zoom with the rocker switch. Jump to stills/video/S&Q with the mode switch. Just about everything else is done on the touchscreen like a smartphone. This is where things start to go a little sideways. The tiny 3" display and small fonts of the settings require precision, and the Sony menu and overlays don't help. But it is still more handy than most other A7 cameras with their limited touch capabilities. By default just about everything is automatic, like a smartphone. Basically point & shoot. And it works pretty well as in no major jarring issues. The AF is top notch, I tried several lenses including my F1.8 Zeiss and it didn't skip a beat.. smooth AF, pun intended. No surprise about the IQ, its an A7Siii sensor. Clear image zoom via the rocker switch is killer though, really like that function lifted from FX3. Tried the AI reframing stuff, didn't gel with it. Applies a huge crop. Now about the overheat. After 15mn of shooting 4K60p indoors using lowest bitrate codec, the camera shut off with no warning. I thought the battery had died lol. That was on the normal level heat setting, so I put it into high and didn't run into the issue again but I was shooting short clips, changing lenses every 5 minutes and didn't spend more than an hour with the unit. I didn't have a fast card so wasn't even able to test out the higher bitrate settings or ALL-I. The camera did feel warm after about hour. This pretty much confirmed my suspicions through the reviews that this camera is not fit for pro/extended use but rather casual shooting. I still find the price of 2799€ pretty bonkers for a camera with no EVF, single card slot, zero cooling, no mechanical shutter etc. But the IQ and snappiness is impressive. That being said, it does make the A7SIII feel somewhat sluggish & dated. And all this tech in an A7 body would be nice. I guess its a good preview into what's to expect in upcoming higher end Sony bodies..

..and great affordable Nikkor glass (from AI-S to AF-S) to adapt natively. Nikon have a much longer F mount legacy lens series than Canons EF that goes all the way back to the 70s and that are compact and really well built.

For photo none of their cameras overheat and with the latest lenses, AF is pretty solid. Its really only for 10-bit video at high resolution/fps/codecs that the XT5 will give you issues. But for the casual use you're doing plus SOOC shooting it could work. At this point best bet is indeed to try and rent one and see if it works for your particular needs.

As they cram more features and chips inside similar ultra compact bodies designed to support 8-bit FHD originally, we are going to get more and more overheating problems on the video side. Of course this is where Sony will upsell you an FX30 with FF body and active cooling.

The XT5 uses the 40MP XH2 sensor. So yeah very different sensor to the XT4. But they have reduced the size of the XT5 so that it matches the XT1. This results in some crippling for the video side due to heat management. 6.2K & 4K60p max. And it overheats pretty quickly, much more than the XT4. For this alone, I wouldn't go near it unfortunately as I do like the retro dials and form factor. But for casual use it may not be so bad. The AF is I've heard slightly better than XT4. The sensor is nowhere near the performance of the stacked sensor inside XH2S.

The Fuji film simulations combined with X-Trans sensor is what gives Fuji its singular SOOC filmic look. There is one often overlooked tradeoff which is chroma noise smoothing that can give mushy colours especially in Flog. You probably won't even notice it though if you're not shooting log. Then there is the sharpness that some perceive as too intense even at the minimal setting. But YMMV, some people like it. The main gripe many people have about Fuji for video is their lenses aren't really suited for manual focusing and up until XH2S the AF was rather dodgy. It is much improved and seems sticky on XH2S but still some quirks persist. Perks aside, XH2S still has one of the best sensors around with 14-bit readout, 6K and open-gate. And very chunky ProRes files. But if you don't need such high-end specs/performance and don't even shoot log or grade then I don't really see much point investing in such a cam. Might as well shoot on any older cheaper 8-bit model..

Z9 was announced during COVID and had a 9 month shipping delay due to global parts shortage which led to continuous backorders. This is no longer the case so the same scenario shouldn't repeat itself. Z8's should also be produced on a larger scale as it is less of a high-end niche camera than Z9. flip out displays on mirrorless bring tons of issues including failure points and side port blocking and for me zero advantages as I never use the selfie position. Unfortunately most video oriented mirrorless have all switched to them so its nice one company has resisted. The Z9 probably has the most versatile tilt hinge display mechanism too, hopefully included on Z8.