Mark Romero 2

I'd just like to be able to shoot some video in non-deserted situations with my FS5, that I bought during the first lockdown!

I am pretty happy with my S1. The only potentially NEW cameras that interest me really are if the a7 IV comes out and it is basically an a7 III with 10-bit 4:2:2 and maybe 4K 60fps, and probably more importantly, better ergonomics and menu / ui. 
Otherwise, still thinking of adding an S5 / GH5 / another S1 (instead of using my a6500 as a B cam).
I guess personally I am more interested in lighting and audio at this time. The S1 is pretty much a better camera than I am a camera man, so I have a lot of catching up to do before I find it deficient in any area for me.

I am pretty happy with my S1. The only potentially NEW cameras that interest me really are if the a7 IV comes out and it is basically an a7 III with 10-bit 4:2:2 and maybe 4K 60fps, and probably more importantly, better ergonomics and menu / ui. 
Otherwise, still thinking of adding an S5 / GH5 / another S1 (instead of using my a6500 as a B cam).
I guess personally I am more interested in lighting and audio at this time. The S1 is pretty much a better camera than I am a camera man, so I have a lot of catching up to do before I find it deficient in any area for me.

I personally believe that one of the reasons / the main reason that the S5 doesn't have all-i is because it just can't handle it... maybe the processor is different, maybe it is just a heat dissipation issue. I mean, the S1H has a fan and weighs, like, 27 pounds for a reason.
Sure, the GH5 has All-I but the sensor is half the size of a full frame sensor, and with the S5, Panasonic has somehow managed to fit a full frame sensor in to a body that is slightly SMALLER than a GH5.

Doh, I wrote that before the coffee had kicked in this morning and for some reason was thinking exteriors...and then later thought, don’t be so dumb man, you intend to use the 20mm wide end for your interior bride prep room shots and that’s only just wide enough for stills.
So indeed, you really are looking at a 10mm or similar or not shooting 4K 60P, or even not the S5 at all.
Maybe with all that Canon Glass, R6 is a better option?

Makes sense though the performance on the M1 macs are just too good to pass up. Just got one for $850. I can probably sell my PC for over $1000 easily and it'll actually perform better than my PC at least for my applications. 

I dislike codecs that only work on certain systems too. I like the idea of RAW though. I prefer RAW on the S1 vs say the P6K as I can get 4K RAW off the S1 in S35 mode. While on the Pocket 6k I have to shoot in 6K or else crop in more. The 1.5X crop on the S1 is actually a wider FOV than the P6K. It seems the Mac M1's can smoothly edit 4k even with several adjustments applied. This will be huge for me. 

I pretty much ALWAYS do this but 99% of my shots are on a gimbal (in my real estate videos).
Also, I tend to do this for drone shots as well.

Yeah unfortunately its not uncommon for clients to request 4k. A job I worked on recently the client even requested 6k, though he was turned down as 6k on the Canon C500 MK2 is only in RAW and its simply wasn't feasible storage wise. Though there are certainly a good number of projects that only require HD. ALL-I is nice for editing without a doubt, though transcoding isn't too big of a deal. Its one of my favorite things about the Z-cam, I can record prores in camera at any frame rate. Really wish Pana would get a prores license. I am considering an Atomos Ninja but again the internal recording is so good its hard to justify it. But yeah storage......  2.8k in prores HQ on the Z-cam is becoming my go to. 
In terms of youtube compression it doesn't love shadows, which there were many in that video. I am pretty sure in the Potatojet video his vlogging camera was a Canon M50 or something of the like, probably shooting on auto. So really not a fair comparison against an Alexa. His subject matter was a little more interesting IMHO than the video I posted. No doubt the image on an Alexa is superior to anything coming from any mirrorless or cheap "cine" cams. A Panasonic S1 or Pocket 6k with Sage's Alexa LUT is really quite something though. I've oddly become very attached to small form factor cameras. Well I guess there is nothing odd about it, who wouldn't like them. 
 

I feel there are 2 main reasons to add new features to cameras down the line.  The first which I feel applies to the GH5 and the initial upgrade given to the S1 was that features were added later when they had resolved any issues, adding such features would cause in the camera software.  The ALL-I was added to the GH5 6 months later and probably not included on initial release as they hadn't quite finished working out some of those issues in implementing it.  Other cameras get external RAW I feel for similar reasons.  Otherwise why not include it on initial release.  
Another reason to add features is to bring a camera more in line with other newer models.  The S1 got a recent upgrade no doubt to help separate it from the S5, which would otherwise have eclipse the model.  
I'm not sure any of this applies to the S5.  Unless a cheaper fullfrane comes from Panasonic, unlikely; then there's no reason to give the ALL-I codec.  Even with the GH5, we were promised ALL-I on release, even though we waited 6 months for it.  No such promises have been forthcoming on the S5.

Nice work.
My only question is: Models got money for video? I thought models would fall just south of local musicians when it comes to resources available for self promotion...

Typically the parents do. Especially right now the parents aren't paying the talent agencies, the runway show fees, the travel fees to get to the runway shows, the acting classes etc.  since it is all shut down in most parts of the country; and a lot of models are trying to go the YouTube / Instagram route so business is pretty good for me right now.
The musician situation is why I don't shoot many music videos; too much work for what is typically next to no budget. Sorry, you just can't get a car, mansion, and a private helicopter in your music video with a $500 budget. There's still niches where money can be made if you are in the right area at the right time but the hard part is finding them.
Another big one right now is livestreaming and recording smaller versions of events for companies and a lot of companies in my area are updating their websites with more photography and more video to try to reach their customers who are shopping/researching remotely; so business in those areas is also doing pretty good for now.

Nice work.
My only question is: Models got money for video? I thought models would fall just south of local musicians when it comes to resources available for self promotion...

The S5 is a great camera and if you want to give it a look that is less digital then I would say add a diffusion filter to the lens like a black promist and color grade in Resolve if you are not doing it already. Since the camera has no AA filter you can then add some gaussian blur to soften the image further in post. There are many great film emulations out there now for purchase that will help you get a filmic look. Juan Melara's Kodak FM 2393 Powergrade, Tom Bolles Cineprint 16 Powergrade and the Dehancer resolve plugin are all great tools at different price points. Color grading is more important than camera choice and you can definitely see differences no matter where it is displayed. Now that youtube displays in 4K on an iPhone film grain looks a lot nicer on phones as well.

Modeling work is big in my area in Florida, nearly an endless supply; I shoot fashion shows, runway shows, model promos, designer promos, branding shoots, etc. nearly year around in between real estate, corporate work, and other types of events and in addition to all of the video work I also offer a wide variety of photography which is why I love the S5. When I set up my kit I need to be able to shoot just about anything and for now my S5 and Canon 5DIV together can get just about any job done. Who knows, one day it might just be two S5's, but for now I still rely heavily on my 5DIV for photography.
I would love to move to more artistic type shooting such as creative shorts like some of the really cool projects that have been posted here, but unfortunately they don't pay the bills in my area.

Thanks, I guess I wasn't waiting long enough, I tend to hit Enter the second I post a link.
 
Here are two recent videos shot with the S5. The images in the videos are taken with a Canon 5DIV. All natural light only for the video portions.  The audio is using the XLR module via the lav mic. I have found that the XLR adapter seems to be a bit more problematic with the S5 than it was with the GH5 especially getting it to work with the Sennheiser wireless kit. I once had to restart the camera to get the audio to start working after turning on the Sennheisers and I had to disable ALC in the camera because it kept shutting off the XLR input even though the audio was not peaking.
As far as film look vs looking too digital, I don't really focus on things like that, I feel like on a cell phone which is where most of my videos get watched, the audience just couldn't care less so I can't let myself try to achieve things that my audience won't pay more for. I do miss my GH5 MFT Voigtlanders though, they had this look that was way more pleasing to me than I've been able to get out of the Canon and Sigma lenses. I just picked up some ProMist filters that I'm going to try out on my next daytime shoot; if Voigtlander made L mount or EF mount lenses I definitely would consider getting a set. Which does bring me to my last point which is I don't think it is the sensors which make the image look too "digital", I think the lenses have a lot to do with it as well and no matter how much post processing you do, if you start with a difficult sensor/lens combination it's never going to look as good as if you had a lens that got you 90% of the way there in camera.
 
 
 
 

Beautiful work!!! Really nice job.

I pretty much ALWAYS do this but 99% of my shots are on a gimbal (in my real estate videos).
Also, I tend to do this for drone shots as well.

Thank all for the positiv feedback.
In this clip i made a try to get away from the digital look..
 
  

Same setup as above, except with a DJI Phantom 3 Advanced for the drone footage:
 
 

Old Canon video cameras used to shoot low shutter too. I remember shooting 15 fps hi-8 video for my "dramatic" moments.  That's not really step printing though.
I did stumble across a neat little in-camera effect back in the day.  Shot 8fps shutter with my XH-A1 and then would ramp up the footage in post.  Lots of camera blur, and if you filmed your subject moving in slow-mo, it looked like stop motion animation.

I think that Wong Kar Wai was kind of the king of undercranking. (Thinking of "As Tears Go By" and "Days of Being Wild" in particular... not sure if he used it up as much n his later works though).
 
Can we undercrank with digital cameras??? I think on my S1 I can shoot at 24fps but then have a shutter speed of 1/12th of a second. Will have to try it. I'm such a sucker for late 80's Hong Kong Cinema. 

I'll give my personal thoughts on each brand, one by one:

Zaxcom:
The Nova is a very new product, I see almost no chance of a "Nova 2.0" coming out this year. 
Deva 24 is a little older than Nova, but also their highest end product which thus has a longer life cycle, I see it as unlikely there will be a Deva release in 2021. 
Could Zaxcom release a product which is between Nova & Deva 24, or below Nova? I doubt it. 

Sound Devices:
The 8 Series is their latest range, I don't see any chance whatsoever they'll be ending the 8 Series in 2021 and replacing it with something newer. No chance at all. 
Could the 8 Series be added to??? Is there space to squeeze in a product in between an 833/888/Scorpio? Nope, I don't think so. (but then again, I've been surprised before, when the 888 came out in between the 833 & Scorpio)
Could an 8 Series recorder come out below an 833 or above a Scorpio?? Seems unlikely. Scorpio is already their most expensive ever product, and if they released a product below the 833 that might put it too close in price to a MixPre10 underneath it? (but hey, perhaps I might be wrong, and a "Sound Devices 811" will come out? A mini sized 833, with 1x XLR + 3x TA3F all for say just US$2.5K??  I doubt it, but that's an example of how an odd ball product which might come out and surprise us) 
Now as for the MixPre series, all bets are off here, as Sound Devices has been putting out new updates and variants to this at a furious pace in recent years. As while I "guess" they will not bring out any new MixPres in 2021, I'd also not be surprised either if one (or more!) gets announced. 

Sonosax:
Their SX-R4+ has been around for a while, time for an update? But then again,  Sonosax is an extremely small company, and it is to be expected their products will have long life cycles between updates. 

Aaton:
Cantar X3 came out in 2014 (and the Cantar Mini in 2017). You'd think that after 7 years that perhaps an update is coming? But not necessarily, the X3 still seems to be very popular, you never hear of anybody leaving X3 for something "better/newer" and the X3 is still attracting new users to the platform. Plus as a high end premium product (it is after all the most expensive field recorder there is) we can expect that it will have long life for its product cycle. Perhaps next year we might get a hint from Aaton that the "X4" is under development?? Maybe. But I'm not expecting a new field recorder to be released by Aaton this year. 

Nagra:
Nagra Seven came out waaaay back in 2013, surely it is time for an update? Nagra VI is even older from 2008!
But no, won't expect an update to these in 2021. Nagra has more or less abandoned the film market, as they're focused instead now on the high-end audiophile market. Verdict: Nagra is AWOL.

Tascam:
The DR680mk2 & DR701D are now both looking totally outclassed in the budget end of the market once the Zoom F8 came out. 
And the Tascam HS-P82 is from 2009! Was a nice machine, but looooong overdue for an update. 
While I'd like to dream that Tascam will bring out a product in the mid range as an update to the HS-P82, and new low end product which is competitive in the new "Zoom F8 Era", I don't see any sign of life from Tascam that they'll do that. In 2021 I expect Tascam to be AWOL. 

Roland:
Take everything I just said about Tascam, and appeal an extra heavy dose of skepticism and pessimism. 
As nope, I do not at all expect an update from Roland to their R4 Pro or R44. 
Am definitely expecting Roland to be AWOL in 2021. 

Fostex:
Take everything I just said about Roland, and times it by ten. 
Fostex will be AWOL in 2021. 

Zoom:
The Zoom F8n came out in 2018, but that's wasn't a major revolutionary update to the F8 but rather a half step refresh midway through the F8's life cycle. 
The Zoom F6 came out in 2019. 
2020 didn't see anything from Zoom in the F Series (unless you count their mini bodypack recorders as part of their "F Series", which technically they are), thus could we see a new product in 2021? I think perhaps so. As these are products which could see a faster refresh cycle, there won't be an F6n in 2021 (as the F6 is the newest), but more likely a replacement to the F8 series.... a "Zoom F9"?? As the F8 is the oldest, and the F8n was a minor refresh. Personally I'd love to at least see a Zoom F4n, an F4 with a few tweaks (such as pro line level outputs, ditching EXH-6 for inputs 5 & 6 instead using 2x TA3F, further UI tweaks, adding bluetooth, USB keyboard without needing FRC-8, etc). But it seems Zoom believes the F6 is the true replacement for the F4 (which is not true at all!), thus I'm not counting on an "F4n" arriving. But something like a "Zoom F8n Pro / F9 / F10 / etc" seems reasonably likely in 2021

RØDE/Deity/Saramonic/BlackmagicDesign/AJA/"Unknown"/Etc:
This heading is for all of those wild card unknowns from companies which have never before made a field recorder for the film industry.
Such as, could 2021 be the year we see a "Chinese F8" field recorder? A low low priced field recorder like the F8, but from a Chinese brand. I doubt it, but we've already seen a couple of Chinese companies dip the edges of their toe into the water with Saramonic (their Saramonic SR-VRM1 & SR-Q2M) & Deity (with their Deity BP-TRX) making mini recorders, thus is a bigger field recorder next? Again, I doubt it, but this is an example of the kind of "surprise" we might see in 2021. Likewise, Blackmagic Design already makes video recorders (with their range of Blackmagic Video Assist recorders), is an audio recorder next? I doubt it, but who knows. Likewise with that other Australian company: RØDE. What might RØDE have planned? They're an audio focused company, will they surprise us with an audio recorder? And while on the topic of BMD, what about their competitor AJA? They've build video recorders too, might AJA surprise us? I doubt it, who knows though. 
As I bet 2021 will have a surprise from us, most likely from some unknown left field company which I haven't even mentioned yet. But of those that I mentioned, perhaps most likely (or rather "least unlikely" is a better way to describe it) would be Rode or Saramonic in my wild guess of an opinion? But if Rode did this, it would be a product unashamedly aimed at the YouTubers/videographers. And the Saranomic field recorder would be dirt cheap yet surely also be a huge steaming heap of sh*t (but perhaps after a few generations would evolve into a "not terrible" product). 
 
 

Thus in brief summary, I'm not expecting many major field recorder announcements in 2021, aside from "a Zoom F10" plus maaaaaaybe a MixPre and quite likely some kind of left field announcement none of us are even expecting. 

This is the trailer for a new wedding website. I have to reframe some shot, was made in rush 😁.
what do you think ?
All shot S1 with Canon 35 1.4, 85 1.2 on MC21 4k50p natural profil 

Thank you. 4k 50p. Yes the 35 1.4 II is not so old, but has a good 3D Pop, the 85 1.2 II is a bokeh beast ...