BTM_Pix

The best thing about the MBSB is that it gives you the opportunity to mount big pro Canon L lenses on a small M43 camera. The worst thing about the MBSB is that it gives you the opportunity to mount big pro Canon L lenses on a small M43 camera. Invariably they completely unbalance it and the AF on the MBSB just doesn't cut it as far as I'm concerned. Is there a compelling enough Canon lens in my collection that I would simply have to have on my GX80 for example? Not really. The Sigma 18-35 is probably the one thats it worth having for but there are enough native lenses that I'm more than happy with and if the AF isn't up to snuff and you are manual focus anyway then Veydras, Voigtlanders etc are a bit more compelling anyway. What its good for is acting as a universal reducer for my Nikon, Contax Zeiss and M42 lenses via the additional cheap converters to EF and its also good on the JVC LS300 for putting longer lenses on where its a bit more appropriate use case. I was expecting the AF on the MBSB to be significantly better than the cheaper alternatives. It might well be but its still very lumpy as far as I'm concerned so I'd go with the cheaper adapter and put the extra money towards native stuff.

The slate tone can be set to high and its duration is around one second so a combination of measurement and timer will stop transient sounds from tripping it. Probably The DR10X doesn't have the slate function unfortunately . The recommendation of the 10SG was also for ease of use of it being a self contained unit if someone doesn't already have a shotgun microphone and/or to reduce complexity of setup with cables etc. for things like GX80 to keep it stripped down.

I think that's the best all round option as well to be honest.

The solution to that problem for Panasonic cameras is that the Tascam mic has a slate tone it outputs when you press record on it which can be used to automatically put the camera into record. I just haven't released it yet .....

I've had the 14-24mm for years and to be honest I've always felt a bit odd because I've never loved it as much as everyone else does. It took a really big smack when I was shooting the Tour de France one year and was locked at 14mm for a long time because I only ever used it at that focal length anyway! For that reason, if I had to buy it again today I'd probably take a good long look at the Sigma 14mm f1.8 prime. The Tamron hasn't been on my radar though and I could probably part ex my 14-24mm and be a little bit ahead of the deal.... I'd have to polish out the tyre marks on whats left of the lens petal first though

What I would say about the Ninja Star is the same objection you've come up with yourself which is that it'll undermine the rocket in your pocket aspect of the GX80. Its a compact solution for a DSLR like a Nikon D800 etc but not for a GX80! The other drawbacks are carrying an additional battery (though it does only sip power) and charger if you're traveling and although the CFAST cards are cheaper now but still not without cost. There is a third option if all you want to have is your GX80 to have a mic input for a small shotgun mic and that's to get a Tascam DR10SG integrated shotgun mic and recorder. If you want to use other sources like lav mics then its obviously not going to do the job for you (although they do a version that is exactly that as well) but if you are just looking to get a G85 or Ninja Star to record a small Rode shotgun with or some such then this is a much cheaper solution (about £130). As it automatically records two streams at different levels, it will also be a bit easier to use if you are running about solo grabbing shots on the GX80. Quality wise its much of a muchness with the cheaper Rode ones IMO. It can be used without the additional mount arm if you want to keep it lower profile by the way.

No, I've never used it. My few experiences with Tamron lenses has been that they are very good optically and great value for money but a bit rough AF wise and build quality wise but they look to have upped their game with that one. I can see why it would appeal with that range because of the 4K crop on the D500. The filter situation is a killer though. Don't get me wrong, its no bad thing building a collection of the square filters because they'll last you a lifetime and grow with you but they are adding so much outlay if you are only going to use them with this one lens and will make things a lot less stealth

The Fotodiox WonderPana system will let you mount filters on it. https://fotodioxpro.com/products/wpcore-tmr1530 If you get the FreeArc Core package you can then put 6.6 square filters in. Welcome to the world of expensive filters though

No, the electronics to drive the lens are external (the little attachment that looks like a PocketWizard) so the camera thinks its got a manual lens attached. With the 18-35, I set the IBIS to 24 and it works effectively enough for both ends. With longer focal lengths, especially those with much larger zoom ranges, that isn't as effective. An example would be a neat lens I picked up at a bargain price recently for the JVC LS300 which is a 35-350 Canon L. With a focal reducer, its a brilliantly versatile lens but that versatility of being 3 lenses is offset by having to change the IBIS setting every time if I use it on the GX80. But I'm not going to be doing zoom pulls with it so its not really an issue for me to go in the menu and quickly change it when I change focal lengths (as I say I'm using it more or less as 3 fixed lenses). And the flip side to that is if I use it on the Metabones (which saves me having to do that) the AF is erratic and it is fond of hunting so, for me, thats worse. You can speed up the process significantly by assigning the IBIS control to a function key so when you change zoom position you can press the function key and change the focal length much quicker than burrowing round in the menu for it. As @Jonesy Jones says in his post though, for how he works this is non negotiable and thats why you need to try them yourself to see what suits. The other frustration because there is no communications between the camera and the lens with the Aputure is that you need the handle to change aperture on the lenses whereas the Metabones does this through the thumbwheel like it would with a native lens. So, neither solution is without its issues ! Its really frustrating actually that a company like Sigma which has all of the pieces of the puzzle optically and electronically to make speed boosters doesn't make them as they'd be far more readily available in stores for people to try. Whereabouts are you in Spain?

Maybe you might want to look at the Aputure Lens Regain system as an alternative. It'll give you the lower light and FOV reduction and aperture control of the EF lenses and if you're used to manual focus only anyway then the focus control might be a good halfway house for you. Yes its essentially manual but the two programmable hard stops might work well for you for zone focusing as well as being creatively useful for focus pulls. If nothing else it will give you hands off focus control of the Sigma which is no bad thing for a few reasons with that lens. Its a lot cheaper than the Metabones as well but its a bit bigger because of the wireless interfaces. I have both and if I only had to have one then, for me, the AF of the Metabones isn't impressive enough to choose it over the Aputure.

Yes, sorry I misread the question as it being switchable to and from 16-235

Its an inoperative command so won't yield you anything But its http://192.168.54.1/cam.cgi?mode=setsetting&type=colormode&value=vlog_gamma No, this is set internally in the camera and not by app control so there isn't an external command for it.

I think there'd be a pretty big market for it. For people with LX100 or GX80 you're getting edit ready ProRes and an audio recorder. That takes both of those cameras to another level, particularly the GX80. For everyone else, the edit ready ProRes would be very attractive even just based on how many threads pop-up on here recently for workflows/computer requirement headaches to handle 4K. Having ProRes from the get go takes care of a lot of that pain. Well, until you have to buy all of those hard drives ! The drop in CFAST prices since the original Ninja Star appeared also means the timing is better for it now as well. As far as I'm concerned, BM have the right spec with the wrong screen size with their VAs as 4K on 5" would be better for compact cameras and Atomos have the right spec on the Ninja Assassin but the wrong screen size too as maybe it shouldn't have one at all like the Ninja Star. So for me at least, whichever of them does 4K on a 5" screen or 4K on a no screen will win.

My experience with the specific Metabones that you are after for M43 cameras is mixed. The work I'm doing on my hardware focus controller for Panasonic cameras has involved me creating a calibration procedure and the number of focus points for a native M43 lens is on average around 200 depending on the lens. On an EF lens via the Metabones its less than half that. And often much less than half that. This doesn't mean that it doesn't focus necessarily just that its very coarse in its points and the camera is returning some errors from it when trying to drive it too quickly between points. Now, all that might not seem to necessarily matter in terms of normal operation because I'm doing something completely different with it but it does tally with what I'm seeing from it when I am using it in normal operation where it is being a bit skittish. And this is using it with a variety of lenses from Canon including some short and long L lenses as well as more lower end ones like the nifty fifty and EF-S lenses but also the Sigma 18-35 1.8. Optically its fine, the aperture control is fine and the AF is generally OK but I would definitely advise that you try one out with the specific lenses that you will be using it with and see if it is right for you. Unfortunately, thats tricky depending on where you are as even in London I found nowhere that I could demo one.

I stil have no idea what its all about. Some speculation on Reduser that the screen might be similar (if not actually based) on this. Even if its not, its worth watching for the very cool intro tune, the older presenter's strange safari suit and the outright contempt he and the co-presenter appear to have for each other.

It wasn't much better there ! I'll be back late November for about a week so I'll give you a shout.

Its interesting you should mention this as I hadn't been to Berlin for about 18 months and when I was there a couple of weeks ago, I was in MediaMarkt at Alexa thinking "I'm sure the camera department used to be much bigger than this". It seemed the same story at their other places and Saturn as well and it was quite a stark difference in such a relatively short space of time. The nosedive of the exchange rate during that intervening period wasn't helping the vibe either !

At that price, if you hate it, you'll get your money back on it all day long. Oddly enough - if as most 1DCs its got sub 20K clicks on it - you could probably make a profit selling it to someone who wants a 1Dx as you won't get any change out of £3K for a similar one of those. And the 1Dx is likely to have had a much tougher life so the 1DC would be a much more attractive proposition. I have a rapidly expiring Nikon D4 and the at these prices the 1DC is batting its eyelashes at me as exactly that sort of proposition. I have enough short to medium Canon glass to use it for work alongside the Nikon for long stuff and of course I get a massive bonus feature thrown in with the 4K. I already get some open mouthed reactions from other photographers when covering games with a combined Nikon and Fuji setup but its nothing compared to doing it with an unholy alliance of Nikon and Canon! I did it a few years ago and people looked genuinely frightened at what might happen

Read the spec sheet, saw all of the things it doesn't have, saw the price, know full well I have zero lenses for it..... Still did this

The only thing to bear in mind with the lens throttles are that there is no ND0 setting so you'll always be losing some light. If thats going to be an issue for you (doubtful with the camera you're putting it on!) then you'll need to carry 2 adapters. I only have the dumb version for M43 so I don't know about the AF aspect with the smart one you're looking at but the ND performance is very good and its a neat product. As an aside for anyone looking at one of these for M43 mount, its actually an EF to M43 converter and they supply it with the converter to EF of your choice. So when I ordered it as M42 to M43 it actually is two separate pieces which is great because to use it with Contax Zeiss or Nikon lenses, I just take the M43 to EF part off and replace it with the C/Y to EF or Nikon to EF. Without any adapter I can of course use it with EF lenses as well so essentially its 4 adapters in 1 for me. Plenty of reviews on YouTube including this very nice one from our very own @Mattias Burling

OK. This is a Nikon 200-400mm f4 on a Nikon D800 and a Panasonic G7 via a dumb adapter. Not exactly inspiring content but its too hot to venture out beyond my balcony at the moment ! The top right frame is the D800 at 400mm f4, the bottom left is the G7 at 400mm f4 and for comparison the bottom right is the D800 frame cropped to the same FOV as the G7 is giving. So the answer in terms of absolute quality I suppose depends on the lens but, comparatively speaking, this should be a good yardstick to show you whats possible. The cropped D800 is still a fraction better but we are comparing two radically different cameras here (let alone price difference) so I wouldn't let that put you off and certainly not in terms of resolution for video. For what its worth, I have actually experimented with an M43 camera (an Olympus OMD10)on a long lens during a cricket test match. For the uninitiated, a cricket test match lasts for 5 days so leaves plenty of time for experimentation to relieve the long periods of tedium covering it In actual fact, I had it on the Sigma 300-800 so it was capable of a ludicrous amount of reach and the images were competitive but the lag was too much to deal with but with something like a GH5 I might be tempted to give it a go but it'll be manual focus only for me as my long stuff is Nikon. Anyway, what I would recommend is to put it on a decent tripod (as opposed to this junk I've just had it on for this quick test) with decent adjustment as it will be completely unbalanced having such a tiny camera hanging off the end.

Give me 15 mins and I'll do a couple of frames for you.

To be honest, there'll be a version for that too as its just a remap exercise. Bit trickier in terms of getting one that has the right combination of switches, pots and faders and also that is a) readily available (these things drop on and off the market) b) a reasonable price and c) compact. The target price for people to pay to source all the stuff is less than £40 and the bluetooth ones fit that perfectly. The middle ground is an XBOX type controller that I've sourced which has nicer sticks (two of them) and might be more appropriate size wise with bigger cameras like GH5. There won't be anything stopping people having both though so they can use the bluetooth ones for stealthier setups and the XBOX type one if they're using a rig etc.

And if you would like to help by voting on what functions the controller will be used for then please see this thread

And if you would like to help by voting on which controller to use that would be great