Django

That's what so-called pundits where expecting three years ago when the original R6 dropped. Still hasn't happened, not even in the sub-$4K range. So who's going to do it? Sony? Nope, they won't put a new FF sensor that will cannibalise their best selling A7IV inside a $1500 camera. Besides FF 40K60p 10-bit sensor won't work in the tiny A7C body. Panasonic? They just released S5ii, have S5iiX planned with no FF4K60p and they don't do $1500 cameras. Who's left.. slow-poke Nikon? We're still waiting on Z8 (a $4K camera). 
Like it or not Canon have been pioneering quite a number of things in their mirrorless range, including 6K/8K internal RAW cameras. Something only the $6K Z9 can currently do. So yeah sometimes you just gotta give them credit where credit is due. Too easy to just dismiss it by saying no big deal, someone else will do the same soon when they've literally proven to be years ahead. 

Check out Lok's R8 test, he sticked it in his oven set at 37 degrees Celsius and it ran for an 1h10mn in 4K25p after what his SD was full and he stopped testing it, the new temp meter was only at about 3 bars. The R50 overheated immediately upon turning on after his initial 5mn off warm up. R8 battery life was I think 53mn (you'll have to check) in those conditions which isn't great but not totally bad.
Totally understandable. Not too many scenarios for the EOSHD crowd to go for an R8, we're not really the target. Places like Cined, Gerald Undone etc haven't even bothered reviewing it. Heck even the R5/R6/R5C barely get any traction. Canon is absolutely hated on by pundits. That said, on the field, or even right here, most Canon users are working pros, shooting silently and getting paid while others circle jerk over their bonus features shooting alleys and trees in glorious anamorphic splendour and wobble free stability. Being slightly facetious here, I think all cameras are pretty great right now compared to just a generation or two ago.

Ok have been using and testing the S5ii for a few weeks now as a replacement for Canon R6 and am overall very happy with it. Will be selling the R6.
I did consider getting the R6ii but it was nearly £800 more expensive than the S5ii and still had some of the issues I had with the R6 - namely micro HDMI, no external monitor when using the touchscreen, and still the relatively poor DR of Canon mirrorless 
The new R8 also came into the picture but no IBIS and poor battery life meant it wouldn't work for me.
I looked at used R5's too but was put off by the 30 minute record limit, micro HDMI, lingering doubts about it still overheating and relatively poor DR with higher price tag and added expense of new cf express cards.
Back to the S5ii and I've really enjoyed using it. Where I feel it is better than the R6 is...
IBIS - this is big for me and didnt realise just how much better it is than on the R6. Has really helped speed up the filming process grabbing handheld shots I wouldn't have the confidence to do with the Canon.
DR, again quite a big difference, image feels fuller and cleaner than R6
Full size HDMI - again for me a biggie. I tried using a micro HDMI clamp on Fuji Xt3 and it still broke. I detest micro HDMI and has no place on a camera that claims to take video seriously. 
External monitor works whilst still having access to a fully functioning touchscreen of the camera. You can also put luts on the monitor image. All very nice for my ageing eyes 
Audio - this is the first mirrorless camera where I feel comfortable recording sound internally on important stuff. The 96khz 24 bit with line level and decent preamps I think make all the difference. I use Sound Devices mix pre-d for XLR on the base of the camera. I know Panasonic and Sony and now Canon using Tascam have an xlr audio adaptor you can attach to the hotshoe but that seems a crazy place to hang xlr cables to me and looks like an accident waiting to happen. Am very happy not using external audio and syncing up.
AF for video - using the Sigma adaptor my EF lenses work on the S5ii just as well as they do on the R6. This has been a bit of a surprise I thought the R6 would still be better for AF but for my uses I think they are about the same. The S5ii sticks to its subject just as well. For stills I haven't really tested too much - for sports or wildlife fast moving stuff I presume the R6 maybe better but that's not what I photograph. Am still waiting for Capture one to be able to use RAW on the S5ii but have been very happy with the jpegs so far. Am aware the R6ii has improved feature with subject only that maybe better now for video AF
Lenses - I got the 20-60mm and 50mm 1.8 with the S5ii at a good price. They are both great lenses for video - well built, silent and fast AF and come with good quality lens hoods. Drives me mad that with Canon you have to buy an L lens to get a hood. The 20-60mm is surprisingly good, 20mm is a great bonus when traditionally these zooms start at 24mm. The zoom ring is quite firm but solid and won't extend under gravity like my 24-105mm L lens is prone to do. I love the 50mm it has a nice big dampened focus ring and is a good size and weight on the S5ii, feels nicely balanced. Am using it way more than I ever did the little plastic 50mm stm lens I have for the R6 which was slow with AF and cheap feeling focus ring. I think these silent focusing Panasonic lenses are better for video than most of the noisy Canon lenses i have.
Crop mode in apsc the S5ii is sharper and cleaner than the R6, handy for extra reach 
Colour - I really like working with vlog in Resolve and feel it is more malleable than the Canon R6's clog3 which has less DR to play with and has some strange cut off going on in the shadows.
One thing I will miss about the R6 is the Meike vari nd filter adapter I used which was great when using EF lenses and better and much cheaper thsn the Canon version. I hear that Meike are making one for the Panasonic so will be keen to get that so long as it works as well as the Sigma adaptor does.
R6 has 4k 50p full frame but I don't use it so no big deal for me - obviously for some it is important 
Anyway that's all I can think of for now, hope someone finds it useful
 

Check out Lok's R8 test, he sticked it in his oven set at 37 degrees Celsius and it ran for an 1h10mn in 4K25p after what his SD was full and he stopped testing it, the new temp meter was only at about 3 bars. The R50 overheated immediately upon turning on after his initial 5mn off warm up. R8 battery life was I think 53mn (you'll have to check) in those conditions which isn't great but not totally bad.
Totally understandable. Not too many scenarios for the EOSHD crowd to go for an R8, we're not really the target. Places like Cined, Gerald Undone etc haven't even bothered reviewing it. Heck even the R5/R6/R5C barely get any traction. Canon is absolutely hated on by pundits. That said, on the field, or even right here, most Canon users are working pros, shooting silently and getting paid while others circle jerk over their bonus features shooting alleys and trees in glorious anamorphic splendour and wobble free stability. Being slightly facetious here, I think all cameras are pretty great right now compared to just a generation or two ago.

Are you serious?
We should compare to cameras that may be released in the future and thus we should be here saying that is meh release because it will be surpassed in the future?!? Because you, alias Nostradamus 🙂, thinks that in 6-12 months there will be (and I actually hope so) better cameras in this class?

But yes if you remove the super sampled 4k with no crop 24-60p, the great AF, the fast still fps, the 10 bit log, the good rolling shutter, the hybrid hot shoe, it is a crappy release... but guess what great AF and great 4k 24-60 image with AF is what many people want.  

I have also a prediction then, with the "next 6 to 12 months camera on the same price brackets" people can take artifacts free, rolling shutter free and noise free image, by using 0 space on the card compared to the R8 because it does not exit 😁

You don't like canon and is fine but I really don't get what is your contribution here as it not facts based and only hypothetical future predictions that does not help anybody that needs a camera today. 

Canon has changed a lot on the video side and most of the new release have really good video capacity with great AF:

C70 4k RAW
R5 8K RAW, 4k 120
R5c 8K RAW 60P with Cinema OS
R3 6K RAW 60p
R6, R6 II, R8 super sampled 4k 60 10bit CLog 3
R7 super sampled S35 4k 60 10bit CLog 3

Times are changed from the Canon that was not innovating and holding back tons of features on the video sides. Are these camera perfect no, are their competitive in their respective price bracket yes. Just a few years ago RP and R where really meh released for video.

The fact that a 1500$ gives you most of the feature that the others much more expensive cameras give you is the good story. And let's not discuss on the stills side that for the sports/actions photographer a R8 will do better in many scenarios than 6k$ 1Dx III (and I owned the 1Dx III)

 

We can only speak about what's out now. We can sure hope Sony will refresh the outdated A7C specs but they will have a big challenge with heat management in such a tiny body. 
Also keep in mind the original R6 that also came out three years ago already had things like FF 4K60p 10-bit, thanks to its sensor coming from the then flagship 1DX3. Its an interesting move from Canon putting flagship tech inside a low/mid tier camera and it sure has paid off (R6 is their biggest seller).
I am focused on that feature because I find it so impressive that a $1500 camera can do it. Again you have to step up to a $4K A7SIII to do it in Sony land and its not even an oversampled image! I think not even the S1H can do it in Panny land. So its no small feat.
But sure we can talk about other things like the low rolling shutter and DPAF2 that crushes the S5's DFD.
But in the end the S5 and R8 target vastly different customers, it's pointless to even compare them.
You seem to fail to understand camera segments. Again the R8 is a cut down R6ii or an upgraded RP, however you wanna see it. They made some hardware choices to reach that $1500 entry-level price point. But aside from IBIS on the video side there are no compromises as far as specs. You get everything from the R6ii. You even get some things that aren't in the R5. This is a good philosophy and one can only hope Sony will follow. AFAIK Panasonic don't play in that $1500 FF segment so again pointless to even compare.
 

We can only speak about what's out now. We can sure hope Sony will refresh the outdated A7C specs but they will have a big challenge with heat management in such a tiny body. 
Also keep in mind the original R6 that also came out three years ago already had things like FF 4K60p 10-bit, thanks to its sensor coming from the then flagship 1DX3. Its an interesting move from Canon putting flagship tech inside a low/mid tier camera and it sure has paid off (R6 is their biggest seller).
I am focused on that feature because I find it so impressive that a $1500 camera can do it. Again you have to step up to a $4K A7SIII to do it in Sony land and its not even an oversampled image! I think not even the S1H can do it in Panny land. So its no small feat.
But sure we can talk about other things like the low rolling shutter and DPAF2 that crushes the S5's DFD.
But in the end the S5 and R8 target vastly different customers, it's pointless to even compare them.
You seem to fail to understand camera segments. Again the R8 is a cut down R6ii or an upgraded RP, however you wanna see it. They made some hardware choices to reach that $1500 entry-level price point. But aside from IBIS on the video side there are no compromises as far as specs. You get everything from the R6ii. You even get some things that aren't in the R5. This is a good philosophy and one can only hope Sony will follow. AFAIK Panasonic don't play in that $1500 FF segment so again pointless to even compare.
 

The simple fact is video quality on R8 should be better than any other similar price camera because of supersampled 4k60p from 6K sensor, not just uncropped FF4K60P with line skipping or pixel bining or S35 crop.
Some Cinema cameras don't have IS, AF, and need to be rigged with external battery, but I don't hear ppl bashing hard out on those short coming.

Yeah the R7 as a B-cam to your R5 may work better for you and all the others that chose to buy an R7 for whatever reasons suit them. Other folks just might not want a crop sensor on their EF/RF lenses. 
And yes there are compromises with the R8. But as gt3rs pointed out, the R6ii takes care of all of them. you just have to pay extra. The R8 is a cut-down R6ii, wether or not it appeals to you is a different matter but rest assured there is a target market at that price point. As someone else pointed the RP is still a big seller on Amazon and such, despite super outdated specs.

I do think what's interesting is that video is finally starting to become equally if not more important than stills for the general public. surely the influence of YouTube, social networks etc. Everybody wants to get into it, do slomo, grade their footage. This has the beneficiary effect of camera manufacturers putting higher video specs than previous generations inside low-mid tier bodies. Its a real change in policy for companies like Canon & Sony that used to really cripple hard on video specs to protect cine lines. I still think FF4K60p in 10-bit with Clog3 is quite a nice surprise in an entry-level FF mirrorless. Yeah its no big deal for all those of us with R5's, A7SIII's, S1Hs etc but think of the little guys 😉 

I do think what's interesting is that video is finally starting to become equally if not more important than stills for the general public. surely the influence of YouTube, social networks etc. Everybody wants to get into it, do slomo, grade their footage. This has the beneficiary effect of camera manufacturers putting higher video specs than previous generations inside low-mid tier bodies. Its a real change in policy for companies like Canon & Sony that used to really cripple hard on video specs to protect cine lines. I still think FF4K60p in 10-bit with Clog3 is quite a nice surprise in an entry-level FF mirrorless. Yeah its no big deal for all those of us with R5's, A7SIII's, S1Hs etc but think of the little guys 😉 

Wow the R8 has the same sensor and specs as the R6II including FF uncropped 4K60p in 10-bit Clog3 as well as DPAF2 with subject detect only. It even keeps the handy photo/stills switch. Only thing missing is IBIS. But for a whopping $1K less. That's quite a deal if you can forego IBIS or maybe need a B-cam for your Canon setup. Oh yeah and recording time is supposed to be 2 hours instead of unlimited which is imo a pretty ok compromise. Let's find out about overheating..

Its quite logical really, most Youtubers shoot solo so they value things like face/eye AF. Whereas Hollywood uses manual glass and DPs have dedicated focus pullers. AF is not at all necessary.
What's "manual autofocus" by the way?

Agreed, EF L glass has never been cheaper and is still great. I also have some RF STM primes and they're cheap and compact, have IS and macro. It is a bummer no more third party lenses from Sigma and such though..

Yeah the R8 hardware isn't crazy but remember the R6 had the 1DX3 sensor and R6ii improved on it and this is what you get inside R8. I still find it pretty crazy you get one of Canons flagship sensors inside a $1500 camera. They didn't gimp it video spec wise either giving it face only detect, a feature not even present in the R5.. 

Yes FF oversampled 4K60p uncropped. 15ms RS. DPAF2. 
Those specs are higher than anything the competition offers. 
You have to step up to 4000€ A7SIII for uncropped 4K60p (and its not oversampled). 
No IBIS and lightweight body could be an advantage to some shooters.
By the way, I love how R8's body gets slammed for not being "ergonomic" yet the Sigma FP gets a pass. Double standards.

Wow the R8 has the same sensor and specs as the R6II including FF uncropped 4K60p in 10-bit Clog3 as well as DPAF2 with subject detect only. It even keeps the handy photo/stills switch. Only thing missing is IBIS. But for a whopping $1K less. That's quite a deal if you can forego IBIS or maybe need a B-cam for your Canon setup. Oh yeah and recording time is supposed to be 2 hours instead of unlimited which is imo a pretty ok compromise. Let's find out about overheating..

There are cost saving measures for sure and of course FF 4K60p will surely overheat under long shooting.
But at least is has FF4K60p which neither S5II or even A7IV offer. DPAF2 will also be way superior to S5II AF.
Another strong benefit is the fairly low RS (15.2ms in FF / 9.5ms in S35).
So for $1500 its imo a great offering. Competition is healthy for us consumers no matter what system you're on.
 

Yeah some people will probably prefer the absence of IBIS. Lok's channel shows some pretty convincing handheld Vlog footage with lens IS and EIS. No wobble. He also does an overheating test in his oven (!) and the R8 never overheated after an hour so that's also pretty convincing. I was also worried about battery life with the smaller battery but his test shows an hour of recording time in 4K25p which isn't too bad I guess.. plus it has USB-C charging for longer tripod use. Overall this might be the best value FF camera..

Straight from the sales materials so mileage may vary regarding the accuracy of the adjectives but here are the details.
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EOS-R8
24.2 mеgаріхеl full-frаmе СМОЅ ѕеnѕоr fоr bаlаnсеd dеtаіl & реrfоrmаnсе Duаl Ріхеl СМОЅ АF ІІ ѕуѕtеm rесоgnіѕеѕ & trасkѕ ѕubјесtѕ wіth ѕhаrр fосuѕ Ехсеllеnt lоw-lіght реrfоrmаnсе wіth а mахіmum ІЅО uр tо 102,400 -6.5ЕV АF ѕеnѕіtіvіtу thаt fосuѕеѕ іn lіght еquіvаlеnt tо hаlf-mооnlіght 40fрѕ еlесtrоnіс ѕhооtіng & 6fрѕ wіth Еlесtrоnіс Fіrѕt Сurtаіn Nеvеr mіѕѕ wіth 30fрѕ RАW burѕt mоdе & 0.5 ѕес рrе-ѕhоt Аdvаnсеd НDR mоdеѕ fоr bоth ѕtіll & mоvіng ѕubјесtѕ А truе hуbrіd сараblе оf оvеrѕаmрlеd 4К vіdео uр tо 60 fрѕ Full НD uр tо 180р thаt іѕ реrfесt fоr ѕlоw-mоtіоn еffесtѕ Саnоn Lоg3 fоr іmрrоvеd соlоur grаdіng аt роѕt-рrоduсtіоn Ѕmооthеr fосuѕ-рullѕ wіth fосuѕ brеаthіng соmреnѕаtіоn 2.4GНz Wі-Fі & Вluеtооth соnnесtіvіtу ѕtrеаmlіnеѕ wоrkflоwѕ UVС ѕuрроrt fоr fullу flехіblе wеbсаm uѕе & ѕtrеаmіng Wеаthеr-rеѕіѕtаnt dеѕіgn fоr unіntеrruрtеd ѕhооtіng Соmрасt & lіghtwеіght buіld fоr еаѕу trаnѕроrtаtіоn Body Only - £1699
with new RF 24-50mm IS STM Lens - £1899
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EOS-R50
Еntrу-lеvеl саmеrа wіth 24.2МР АРЅ-С ѕіzеd ѕеnѕоr Соmрасt аnd lіght fоrm fасtоr wіth еrgоnоmіс grір Flех thrоugh frееlу uѕіng thе 3” Vаrі-Аnglе tоuсhѕсrееn DІGІС Х Іmаgе Рrосеѕѕоr fоr ѕіgnаturе Саnоn lооk Duаl Ріхеl СМОЅ АF ІІ ѕуѕtеm dеlіvеrѕ ріn-ѕhаrр асtіоn АF Тrасkіng іdеntіfіеѕ humаnѕ, аnіmаlѕ аnd vеhісlеѕ 4К UНD 30р vіdео rесоrdіng fоr іnсrеdіblе dеtаіl Мultі-funсtіоn ѕmаrt ѕhое fоr орtіоnаl ассеѕѕоrіеѕ UVС ѕuрроrt fоr hіgh-quаlіtу vіdео саllѕ оr ѕtrеаmіng Вluеtооth аnd Wі-Fі соnnесtіvіtу tо kеер уоu ѕhаrіng АРЅ-С lеnѕ dеѕіgnеd fоr Саnоn’ѕ ЕОЅ R-ѕеrіеѕ Іdеаl fоr trаvеl & fаmіlу рhоtоgrарhу оr еvеn vlоggіng Рrасtісаl 29-72mm (35mm еquіvаlеnt) zооm rаngе 4-ѕtор орtісаl Іmаgе Ѕtаbіlіѕеr fоr ѕurе & ѕtеаdу ѕhоtѕ ЅТМ mоtоr аllоwѕ ѕmооth, ѕіlеnt & ассurаtе fосuѕіng Body Only - £789
with RF-S 18-45mm Lens - £899

with RF-S 18-45mm and RF-S 55-210mm IS STM Lens - £1,099

with RF-S 18-45mm Lens Creator Kit - £949
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Canon RF 24-50mm f4.5-6.3 IS STM Lens
£ 379
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Canon RF-S 55-210mm f5-7.1 IS STM Lens
£ 479
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Full details for the R8 here :
https://www.canon.co.uk/cameras/eos-r8/specifications/
Full details for the R50 here :
https://www.canon.co.uk/cameras/eos-r50/
 
I don't have any skin in the game but I wonder whether the R8 that give pause to those switching to the more expensive S5MkII, albeit it that the R8 lacks IBIS ?
They seem to be pitching the R-50 as the new EOS-M but, again, I suspect the lack of IBIS will be a big miss for the crowd that they are going after but the two kit lenses for it do have OIS so maybe not.

Yes you can do that, I just tried it. If you set a custom button to "autofocus lock" then when you're use the focus ring it stays in manual mode until you click "autofocus lock" again and it will go back to AF.

I don't find it tedious or convoluted at all, you just have to learn your AF system, set it up in an intuitive way that works for you and practice. After a while it becomes second nature and can become a very powerful tool. A big part of using AF is also knowing when to use it and when to disengage it, I always have a dedicated button to toggle it on/off. Of course it helps how reliable your AF system actually is, if it randomly hunts or switches to another subject, you are screwed. Again that's why subject detection isn't always the best approach. That said I do shoot MF all the time on manual glass, my FS7 and BMD cams. Hate it for handheld run & gun, love it for controlled scenes / static tripod shots. I do like to shoot wide open on fast primes so yeah critical focus is always a concern of mine. YMMV.

This post is available on my blog a little more nicely formatted: Link
Trailer for the film
The making of RE:ACTING
Two weeks ago I wrote a post talking about how we shot our micro-budget short film. I talked about how we planned and shot one scene in the film.
I got some questions about where exactly the $3000 budget went, so I'm going to start this post by breaking down our costs.
Food & snacks for about 10-15 people per day (cooked in the evenings after the shoot) - $500
Camera equipment was mostly lent to us for free, but in order to move quickly we also had to rent two zoom lenses for seven days - $450
Props & costumes - $400
Location costs (parking, location rent etc..) - $400
Post-production - $1250
Keeping the budget this low was only possible because we were able to borrow a lot of gear, being smart about planning and making deals with other companies.
For example, we planned the shoot in June because that’s the month most Swedes are on vacation and we managed to get sponsored by a production company that did not have anything scheduled during the shoot, they would let us borrow most of the camera and lighting equipment for the whole production.
Additionally, we managed to save costs on props by negotiating a deal with a company that rents out police gear for film, including cars. Usually this would cost a lot as police gear is highly regulated, but we were able to get what we needed for one day of shooting in exchange for doing a short production for the company.
Another place where we had to get creative with costs was locations. As we wanted to shoot a total of 26 scenes in 13 different locations, we had to choose and plan our locations and scenes carefully. Not only did they have to come for free or at least very cheaply, we also had to get to three locations per day with a small crew.
In the last post I talked about scene 3 in the film and how we shot it in about two hours from arriving at the location. After Scene 3 we drove about 20 minutes to the next location to shoot Scene 22 where we transformed an inconspicuous location into something that would work for the production in more ways than one.

Schedule for day 4 of the shoot
Scene #22
Scene 22 is a police interrogation with the main character Karl, where he finally gets the courage to act well and completes his character arc.
The good thing about interrogation rooms is that when you really look at them and how they appear in films, they're just rooms with neutral-coloured walls and often a one-way mirror.
We realised that all we needed for this location was a white wall and enough space to fit a table and chairs. I figured the common room in the basement of my apartment building would fit our needs, and we could rent it for just $30 a day.

The corner where the bed is standing is where we shot this whole scene.
Doesn’t look like much when you look at it like this, but just dress it up right and light it with intent and you can make anything work.

Dressed up and lit.
When I scouted this room there were several things that made me feel like this was going to make a good location:
Few, small windows, making it easy to block out sunlight
Big space, fitting the whole crew without problem
Access to a bathroom and a kitchen so we could break for lunch here. (which we did)
Bottom floor, so we could get our equipment in and out of the room quickly.
We shot during the daytime, so we had to block out the light from the windows and ended up using just an Astera tube with grid for lighting as well as a floppy for some negative fill.

Floor plan & lighting schematic I made ahead of the shoot
For this scene we chose to shoot from a 90-degree angle to emphasise the movement when Karl leans forward and takes control of the situation.
In contrast to the rest of the film which is shot around 28-35mm, we chose to use a tighter lens to make Karl appear more cramped up and put on the spot.

Acting tough

Being out-witted
These are the two shots that run for most of this scene, and the third shot is of Karl's friend and dim-witted drug dealer Josef who is (poorly) trying to talk his way out of the situation.

Josef, the drug dealer
This shot we chose to do from head-on with the police in silhouette instead. This is both because Josef is acting as comedic relief in the middle of a tense scene and comedy genereally plays better in a wider shot, and also because we wanted to sell the feeling of it being an actual interrogation room more.
Rounding up
This interrogation room scene is a simple scene but I still think that many good principles were applied in its planning. We kept the lighting simple, we got a location that was close to the other two locations of the day, we didn’t have to do a lot of rigging, and in the end we shot it in a way that made it a lot more interesting than you’d expect when you saw the room for the first time.
So, the next time you’re faced with a scene that you don’t have the budget for. Take a step back and consider what the essential parts of the scene are. Then try to be creative with lighting and blocking to enhance your location. If you do this you can often get away with shooting a scene that you thought was out of your budget.
In the third part of this series I’ll give another example of how we got away with shooting a scene that on the surface seems impossible at this budget - an interior scene in a moving car during night time.

Josef, shocked that we pulled it off.
Again, feel free to reach out to me if you have any specific questions.

Sounds like some of you have been on Panasonic too long. Soon you're going to be nostalgic about DFD contrast AF. j/k
He's done videos about how to master DPAF way back during C100 days. And he's right, just like for photography, AF is a tool that demands technique and control. I have an entire camera configuration and method for video AF. I don't believe the camera should ever be in full control of AF, but rather the other way around. Sure many video AF noobs often just rely on auto subject detection but that is not recommended on a pro level. Even the smartest AI can't guess what you want in focus. The operator should always be in control, even when using latest-gen AF.

Its quite logical really, most Youtubers shoot solo so they value things like face/eye AF. Whereas Hollywood uses manual glass and DPs have dedicated focus pullers. AF is not at all necessary.
What's "manual autofocus" by the way?