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KnightsFan

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  1. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from Davide DB in Arri is the new Adobe   
    As much as subscription models suck for us individuals, they are often preferable for businesses, even regarding software like Adobe. Obviously Arri's target market is rental houses, and the comment earlier about a rental house passing those temporary upgrades to customers is quite likely the intent.
    It's worth spelling out the difference between subscription editing software and camera upgrades, though. With Adobe's product, if you stop paying, you can't open your old projects. In Arri's model, if you stop paying, you can presumably still open files shot with those upgrades. Losing access to the creative work that you've already done is a big difference.
  2. Like
    KnightsFan reacted to eatstoomuchjam in Arri is the new Adobe   
    I only made it about 5 minutes through the video before I got bored with it so maybe he addresses some of this after that.
    But I'm not sure why it's news that Arri give people an option to buy the full camera or a base model that disables some features until they're enabled.  That's been a thing for a long time.  When one buys the base model, there are options to pay to  enable those features on a temporary or permanent basis.  It's one of the reasons that when you see used Arris for sale, they'll frequently say things like "includes high-speed license" or "includes raw license."
    Speaking for myself, I kind of hate subscriptions in general for this kind of thing, but that is very much mitigated by having the option for a permanent license.  I still don't like it a lot since (in most cases), it's not really reducing the camera price.  In the case of things like the GH4/5, it's not like Panasonic would have needed to charge more for the camera if they just threw in vlog-l.
    In Arri's case, I suspect that the decision was pushed by big rental houses - if I'm a rental house, a reduced cost base model lets me buy more cameras.  Add a license to enable certain features and I can just tack that onto the price of the rental.  Renting for a week?  X dollars.  You want raw on that rental?  Add Y dollars.  Camera reaches end of service life, the buyer can turn on any feature they want on a permanent basis.
    I don't love it, but it's not terrible.
  3. Like
    KnightsFan reacted to Ilkka Nissila in Arri is the new Adobe   
    In Arri's case they offer (1) Alexa 35 with all features included in the purchase price, (2) Alexa 35 base model with the most commonly used features enabled, and (2a) subscription to optional features that you may need for a specific project, (2b) permanent licensing of those features that you want to keep, so the subscription is just one option and permanent licenses to those features are available if you want them. 
     
    I don't understand what the issue is. Having more options in how the payment is made is good and means more people/companies will be able to afford the stuff. No one is complaining that leasing or renting cars (or getting a taxi ride) are available in addition to the option of purchasing and owning a car. Public transport tickets are available on a single trip, load value, or pay for use for a period of time basis. Again no one is complaining about the existence of these options. Why then is subscription software or firmware as an option a problem?
     
    I think people are complaing about these things because they don't understand that software development costs money and if you want to continue developing a particular piece software in the future you probably need to keep those same people who developed it continuously employed so that you can do it efficiently in the future. If you have to let the people who developed something go, to add features, the cost is multiplied because no one new initially understands the existing code. The subscription model works best for software because it enables continued employment so the knowledge of how the software works internally is not lost.
     
    Today since operating systems are continuously changed, the applications software also needs frequent maintenance. So for Adobe the subscription model works best. They are able to maintain broad hardware support and have a huge library of cameras and lenses that are supported in terms of raw processing and lens corrections. The subscription cost is really low for the (still) photography software kit (LR + PS) and while the other stuff is kind of expensive, it was always expensive even in the then-thought-permanent license era. And as there are free or inexpensive options available for the tasks which Adobe prices expensively (Davinci Resolve instead of Premiere Pro), there is something for everyone available in the market. 
     
    What would be much worse is that people rely on a particular product and have a lot of material made with it and suddenly those files could not be opened or edited as a result of the company making the software ending their operations or support of the product.
  4. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from eatstoomuchjam in Fav AI outcome out there...   
    If you think that it is unethical to copy a commercial movie and personally sell those copies without the permission of the movie's owner, then it's hard to imagine how it could be ethical to use that same movie to train a model that is then sold without the permission of that movie's owner.
  5. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from eatstoomuchjam in Fav AI outcome out there...   
    There's a pretty big difference between one person stealing a screenplay or synopsis, and scraping the entire internet to make a generalized tool that billions of people use daily. Both can be unethical, but it's a few orders of magnitude difference in how many people it harms and to what degree.
    I believe that we should create technology for its own sake. I don't want to halt AI progress. There just needs to be a way to ensure that it benefits all people, particularly the people who (unwillingly/unknowingly) contributed to creating the models.
  6. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from John Matthews in New L-Mount Lumix (cinema?) Camera   
    There's no chance I'll get one, but I don't think the S1II is that bad. Price is too high, but as I said a few pages ago, tariff disruptions drive all prices up.
    I'm curious whether the S1IIE uses the sensor from the S1 or from the S1II. It's quite a bit cheaper. Newsshooter says "partially stacked" for the S1IIE, and it has 4k120, so I wonder if it's got the faster readout of the S1II. If so, that's a decent discount for losing 5.1k60, raw, and DR boost, non of which I really care about, while (maybe?) keeping the features I like: faster readout, full size HDMI, 32 bit XLR adapter, and non-jangly neck trap loops.
  7. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from eatstoomuchjam in New L-Mount Lumix (cinema?) Camera   
    The leaked price (if correct) might reflect tariffs and that uncertainty, in which case other manufacturers might raise prices on both new announcements and existing products. Value comparisons this year might not be as useful as usual.
  8. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from eatstoomuchjam in Our "ally" in the USA just bazooka'd the UK film industry   
    Do you think it applies to ad revenue collected from YouTube videos shot in another country? What about ad revenue from ads shot in other countries? Does Google pay the tariff on their ads, or does the advertiser pay it when they sell a product?
    Do you think it's about what is in the shot, or camera placement? Ie if I stand on the US side and film something across the border, is it a US shot or not? What if I place a giant mirror across the border and film it, giving the exact perspective of the camera being placed on the other side?
    Well Canada is the 51st state, so no tax. Obviously.
  9. Sad
    KnightsFan got a reaction from Thpriest in New US camera import tariffs - 25-50%   
    I wrote a similar post earlier, maybe in this thread, but a hurdle to overcome in the US is that a significant portion of our population believes that the more credentials a person has, the less trustworthy they are. This includes professors, reporters, researchers, and other experts. It applies especially to those in academia or have higher education.
    If the head of the IRS with 20 years of experience says that more auditors leads to more revenue, and explains how auditors find discrepancies and why it takes time, and shows historical data to back it up, many Americans will automatically believe the opposite. If an anonymous dude in a Dinesh D'Souza doc says that a person he can't identify dumped 20 extra ballots in a mailbox, it's believed--not in spite of lack of rationality, but because of it.
    This isn't without analogy in the rest of the world. In some way, it's a logical extreme of believing that "street smarts" is better than "book smarts," which is commonly believed in many places, and is true in some situations. However, many Americans are aggressively uneducated, and ideologically see education itself as wrong. ("Education" here means a thought process that uses data and logic to draw conclusions, not knowledge of specific trivia). Personal truths, often derived from religion and specific personalities/influencers, are held to be truer than empiricism, the scientific method, and data, while any appeal to rationality is rejected as part of the deep state conspiracy that every academic is part of.
    Once a person intentionally rejects objectivity and rationality, their actions cannot be explained as being out of personal interest. They often actively vote against their personal interest, because their worldview rejects data and analysis.
    And, to be clear, there are still rational people here, including many Republicans and conservatives. But we've reached a critical mass of the voting public that we now have elected officials at every level, from local to president, who also reject rationality.
  10. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from Juank in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    I saw that! I appreciate you coming back to this thread to let me know!
  11. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from eatstoomuchjam in New US camera import tariffs - 25-50%   
    Stock market had a massive surge after most of the tariffs were paused. Imagine how much money you could make if you knew that would happen 30 minutes before it did.
    It's generally fascinating how much wealth is created or destroyed with no change in goods or services produced.
  12. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from mercer in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    I saw that! I appreciate you coming back to this thread to let me know!
  13. Like
    KnightsFan reacted to mercer in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Think you mentioned the C500 II... on B&H Deal Zone today for $4999.
    https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1633519-REG/canon_3794c002_eos_c500_mark_ii.html
  14. Like
    KnightsFan reacted to Snowfun in New US camera import tariffs - 25-50%   
    If an (unintended) consequence of all this nonsense is  “buy local and buy less” then that will, I think, be a good thing.
    Not protectionism. Not jingoism. Not anti-globalisation. But nevertheless possibly better for the planet and for our own health & wellbeing. 
  15. Like
    KnightsFan reacted to Andrew Reid in New US camera import tariffs - 25-50%   
    Yeah, it's all quite obvious to us but apparently not to Trump voters, who only know the goal is to promote American manufacturing but don't understand the reality.
    The reality is that American manufacturing even when it's on US soil requires suppliers across borders, and all over the world. Raw materials that cannot be sourced in the US. Trading partners with cheaper labour - Mexico, Vietnam, China... And supply chains in Canada just across the border for automotive manufacturing and more...
    So even when you have dismantled all of this, aside from the fact US manufacturing will collapse if you do, there's the clear-as-day problem of wage levels... It just isn't economical to make large volume electronics (or much else consumer-wise) in the US due to the average wage level vs places like China and Vietnam. Foxconn employ a city's worth of millions.
    It's the big elephant in the room every time Trump bangs on about protecting American jobs and bringing manufacturing back home.
    What is the cost to the consumer?
    If he succeeds then consumers won't be buying much as it will be 1000% more expensive.
    Yeah, can you imagine TSMC bringing their fabs over to the US... The world's most expensive relocation for what... zero political stability, massively higher wage bill, there isn't even the talent pool for stuff like semiconductor engineering - it's mainly in Asia. They will not convince their best people to leave Taiwan and go and live in a hostile environment for foreigners (sad to say that about the US, isn't it?)
    And the other problem is that the US government, in particular Trump himself are making themselves look TOTALLY economically illiterate and completely untrustworthy in terms of managing the US economy, which scares off the investment even more.
    He wants maximum leverage for the upcoming talks with 50-odd countries.
    The danger here is that the damage has already been done.
    US untrustworthy.
    Global supply chains and shipping disrupted in similar manner as COVID.
    Inflation and supply problems beginning to mount up big style in only a short few days.
    Trillions wiped off stocks.
    And more shit... All for a supposably 'better bargaining position' in trade-talks.
    Then there's still the chance that they will just end up fighting with China rather than striking a deal and the trade-war rumbles on for years, leading to a military confrontation and devastating unemployment and poverty all over the world, but especially in the US and China.
    All because of one idiot and the idiots who thought voting for a convicted economically illiterate crook was a good idea.
  16. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from Ninpo33 in New US camera import tariffs - 25-50%   
    The uncertainty really defeats many of the stated purposes. If the goal is to promote American manufacturing, manufacturers need to know that the tariff will be in place for their entire company's history. Even simple items like clothes take time to build large-scale manufacturing for--why would anyone invest in a factory if the tariff could be gone next year? Let alone complex items like cars or chips, the ones that we would actually want to build and export. I mean I don't necessarily look at low-tech industries and think, gee, I wish our country was built around competing with child labor sweatshops.
    Of course that's disregarding that the tariffs are also claimed to be leverage to get better deals (ie designed to be removed when a deal is struck) while simultaneously a source of federal revenue (ie designed to be permanent).
  17. Haha
    KnightsFan got a reaction from andrgl in I ~LOVE~ the new snow white movie   
    I'll be honest, when I saw your topic title, I was legitimately hopeful that it was actually good, because as much as I dislike Disney, I am all for any movie being enjoyable. Now I'm sad.
    However, I read the comments on the trailer, and they got me smiling again, so there's that.
  18. Haha
    KnightsFan got a reaction from mercer in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Same as I said about the UC12k, its big and heavy, and eats batteries. Used Alexa classics are so cheap, I'd rephrase and say that I'd get a Pyxis over an Alexa because cost isn't an issue.
  19. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from eatstoomuchjam in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Same as I said about the UC12k, its big and heavy, and eats batteries. Used Alexa classics are so cheap, I'd rephrase and say that I'd get a Pyxis over an Alexa because cost isn't an issue.
  20. Thanks
    KnightsFan got a reaction from majoraxis in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Fantastic announcement! I'm not a fan of the side screen, and I don't need 12k or even 8k, but a $5k FF camera with <10ms rolling shutter in high quality codecs and (subjectively) amazing color is sweet! Although I suppose we don't know for sure whether the readout speed is the same as the UC12k.
    The two additions that I would like are NDs and 32 bit dual gain audio. Ideally, NDs could be handled with an L mount version of this. https://www.metabones.com/products/details/MB_NDEF-E-BM7. 32 bit audio is of course very easy with the minor annoyance of syncing in post. Another recent announcement was the H5studio, which has a builtin wireless receiver module, which I find extremely interesting.
    So all things considered, this basically hits everything I'd want from a cinema camera, with a few accessories.
     
    While probably not something I would get, I'm quite impressed with the camcorder handle and grip. What a great idea (this is me patting myself on the back--I 3D printed something similar for my Z Cam. Of course mine was shit execution, but it was the same idea).
  21. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from eatstoomuchjam in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Oh, cool! I'm super excited! One of my primary hesitations about the Pyxis was rolling shutter, but CineD tested the 12k sensor at just 5.5ms in 8k and 4k, more than fast enough. My writing partner and I are considering the UC 12k for our next project, but frankly, a Pyxis body fits a small crew better. If it's identical to the Pyxis with that sensor for $5k or less, it may be a winner for us!
    (Our other ideas at the moment are: used Red Komodo for ~$2.8k, or C500 Mk II for ~$5.2k, with the obvious benefit of the C500 being NDs + included EVF)
  22. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from newfoundmass in New US camera import tariffs - 25-50%   
    Agreed, but a large part of the reason people feel that they are being talked down to is because they are wrong about facts, and then any attempt to explain those facts is perceived as being talked down to. There is a large range to how much "opinion" is in a given "fact". So I'm not talking about, "forgiving student debt will lead to a better economy," as that is not as clear a fact. But it is difficult to discuss whether burning fossil fuels contribute to climate change, or whether reducing the size of the IRS will lead to fewer taxes being collected--all without hurting the feelings of someone who is dead set on being factually wrong.
  23. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from Juank in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Oh, cool! I'm super excited! One of my primary hesitations about the Pyxis was rolling shutter, but CineD tested the 12k sensor at just 5.5ms in 8k and 4k, more than fast enough. My writing partner and I are considering the UC 12k for our next project, but frankly, a Pyxis body fits a small crew better. If it's identical to the Pyxis with that sensor for $5k or less, it may be a winner for us!
    (Our other ideas at the moment are: used Red Komodo for ~$2.8k, or C500 Mk II for ~$5.2k, with the obvious benefit of the C500 being NDs + included EVF)
  24. Like
    KnightsFan got a reaction from MurtlandPhoto in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Oh, cool! I'm super excited! One of my primary hesitations about the Pyxis was rolling shutter, but CineD tested the 12k sensor at just 5.5ms in 8k and 4k, more than fast enough. My writing partner and I are considering the UC 12k for our next project, but frankly, a Pyxis body fits a small crew better. If it's identical to the Pyxis with that sensor for $5k or less, it may be a winner for us!
    (Our other ideas at the moment are: used Red Komodo for ~$2.8k, or C500 Mk II for ~$5.2k, with the obvious benefit of the C500 being NDs + included EVF)
  25. Like
    KnightsFan reacted to zerocool22 in Blackmagic NAB 2025 Preview - 4th April 2025 4pm BST   
    Seems to be the pyxis 12k. (Doesnt seem to have internal ND, and only braw. No prores) just saw the banner on the NAB windows.
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