newfoundmass

The Ninja V is a great option since you'll be upgrade proof. If you're not worried about jumping up to 4K any time soon then the Ninja 2 is a very good option and is really, really cheap used. I literally never got rid of mine because of how little I'd get for it, so I still use it as a monitor.

You probably don't want the 1560 then ha ha. I've found I much prefer it over a bag since I can roll it around. I do suggest you switch out the wheels though! I'm so much happier after switching mine. The default ones aren't great, at least not on the generic one I got.

I just switched from a bag to a knockoff Pelican 1560 case, mostly because I haven't been happy with any of the camera bags I've had. Even with a M43 set up it just feels like I'm putting too much in there with my usual kit. I don't mean to sound lazy or like a wimp, but at 35 years old I don't feel as young as I used to, and honestly lugging around a heavy bag(s) before I even start an entire day of filming sucks. I can fit three Panasonic G/GH cameras, three battery grips, three 12-35 lenses, a 14-140 lens, three Tascam TM-2X mics, a Movo VXR10 mic, my Azden XD wireless mic, my Sennheiser XSW wireless mic, a couple audio recorders, a couple extra lavs, my Azden SGM-250x shotgun, my Saramonic SmartRig+ XLR adapter, two Aputure AL-M9 lights, my headphones, and cables and batteries. I could realistically fit more in it if necessary because it's so deep (it comes with 2 layers of pluck and pull foam.) It has a pull out handle so I can roll it and I can also travel with it when needed! For shoots where I don't need my lights and stuff I just have that, my tripods, and a regular backpack to carry my laptop and other random stuff. I can bring it all in one trip from the car. My back thanks me! The one I got on eBay is listed as 22" Weatherproof Marine Rolling Case Drone Camera Gun w/ Pelican 1560 Style Foam. I promise this isn't me selling them lol.

I believe the SD cards are capable of recording RAW. And I think they went with two SD cards for uniformity and popularity.

This does not sound appealing at all.

I don't know why people always talk out of their ass on here.

IronFilm I think knows better than me but... omni lavs generally have more natural sounds. Cardioid can also have issues if not properly placed on the subject since they're more directional.

I'm intrigued by what Panasonic has up their sleeves for the GH5 but honestly it'd take quite a bit to get me to upgrade any time soon. At almost 3 years old the GH5 still does everything I NEED (not want, but need) in a camera. When it's all said and done it will have easily paid for itself at least 10x over, at a minimum. Disagree on the mediocre part, agree on everything else! Ha ha! If you don't need the cinema specific features and unlimited record time, absolutely. The GH5 is a decent stills camera but the G9 is superior in stills in every way. It's their flagship M43 stills camera for a reason!

I don't know who to trust anymore!

Those Purple Panda lavs are really great for the price! I'd definitely reach out to Rode. That's unacceptable.

Yeah, low light on most of these drones isn't great. You can only get so much out of these tiny sensors.

These updates definitely make the G9 a more capable video camera, especially for the price. If they'd been able to get rid of the recording limit I'd have heavily considered getting one to replace my G85 for event shooting. The GH5/GH5s still has the advantage with their professional video/cine features, but the G9 has definitely been turned into a little beast of a camera. I'm guessing the recording limit is still necessary to prevent overheating? These updates though remind me how much Panasonic fumbled the G95. Outside of the recording limit this pretty much makes the G9 a superior video camera than the G95 for essentially the same price, no? Plus you get the impressive stills capabilities to boot.

I'd prefer higher bit rate over more custom controls, if I had to choose one or the other. For $399 you can't ask for too much when it comes to DJI. If you're looking for more advanced features in that price range maybe look into the Power Vision PowerEgg or the HUBSAN H117S Zino?

You also need to be careful, as cheaper gels also melt.

Correct. They also don't vary much at all light to light, so you can mix and match pretty easily. I've gone the daylight LED route for heat reasons, but Tungsten lights are great.

You can often see postings in larger areas, like NYC, that are literally giving them away so people don't have to go through the "hassle" of selling/disposing them. We're such a wasteful society.

The absence of other features I understand, given the limitations and compromises needed to make such a small drone. Not allowing 24 fps though feels like they're blatantly crippling the drone's capabilities so lower budget filmmakers have to spend more if they want 24 fps. I'm all for offering a low cost option, because like I said in a previous post not every release is geared/targeted for us and that's okay. But removing something like that feels very petty and a play straight out of Canon's playbook.

I will say DJI not including 24 fps is lame. Just saw that in one of the reviews.

Good call! Share your thoughts once you've put it through it's paces!

It really depends. Screen size is a huge factor, for one. The smaller the screen the less apparent upscaling is. I think most people would have difficulty differentiating between 1080p and 4K on a 55 inch 4K screen unless they were literally a foot or so away. I know I do! Streaming is a whole different animal too. If you upscale 1080p to 4K and upload it to YouTube it'll look better than native 1080p because of the boost in bit rate that comes with 4K. I've actually done similar with standard definition video, upscaling it to 1080p for the better bit rate because it looks better on YouTube. My general opinion is that bit rate is overall more important than resolution, both in production and delivery. When it comes to viewing content I just care that it's watchable, resolution is ALMOST irrelevant. Very few of us will ever be able to afford an 8K TV that's large enough to actually benefit from all that added resolution. I don't even have a place in my home to put such a monstrosity! 🤣

The Minolta is a lovely, lovely lens. Those Rokkor lenses are among my favorites. Wide open it's a little soft. Still useable, I think, but it really shines starting at around f2 and is tack sharp at f4. It has lower contrast than modern lenses but that's not too unusual for vintage lenses and I often find that I prefer the look. Plus you can easily "fix" that in post. My biggest complaint with these Minolta lenses is the flaring. You'll wanna get a lens hood for outside shoots for that. The build quality is great, the focus ring is smooth. Just a really, really good lens. Haven't used the 7artisans but I've heard decent things about those lenses when factoring in the price. I'd be surprised though if it matched up with the Minolta.

I'm less interested than I've ever been in getting a new camera. I'm still curious of what's coming out, and there are times when I'm very much tempted by something, but I expect to get a lot more out of my GH5 before I upgrade. Realistically I think I'll get at least another 3 years out of it before making it my B cam. I've started selling quite a few of my lenses lately. I always felt like I needed a large lens collection, but so many just weren't being used or had things I didn't like about them. I do think I'm going to start building a set of matching primes, likely out of vintage lenses, I've just gotta figure which ones I wanna go with. Getting the most bang for my buck is important. Lighting is something I've found myself investing more and more into. I picked up 3 Godox SL 60w lights, as well as a few smaller lights that I can use in a ton of different ways. I'm also getting ready to get some Glow soft boxes from Adorama. I've used them before and they're so great. One of the best values out there today.

The primary reason I won't jump on this is the bit rate. That's the deal breaker for me personally. If they'd gone up to 100mbps I'd be all over it. 40mbps though is too low; you can't work with the footage much in post at that bit rate and it has to struggle with fast movement/details I imagine. Still it's an exciting look into the future.

I have an old phone that I use specifically for filmmaking apps. I understand your frustration but there's alternatives out there.

Budget wireless really depends on your uses. A lot of people will bash budget options because they don't match the performance of higher end options, but for really basic stuff they're often fine. I have an Azden system that's under $200 (I got them on sale a couple years ago for $129 on B&H) and I've had virtually no problems with them, but I also have only used them in situations that fell well below what their specs say they're capable of in terms of distance. I did use them in a venue Friday that had about 300 people all using cell phones and had no problems with interference even though they're 2.4ghz. That made me happy! I'd say if you're within 25 to 50 feet of your camera/recorder and with a relatively clear line of sight you can get away with using a lot of the budget systems. Your mileage will vary when it comes to audio quality (that though often has to do with the mics that come with those systems and can be remedied with nicer ones.) Currently I have the aforementioned Azden XD system and a Sennheiser XSW set. Both are under $300; the Sennheiser is quite nice, though unfortunately doesn't allow you to limit the output so it runs too hot for my GH5, which won't allow me to lower my preamps any lower. I've looked into getting the Sony UWP D11. You can find some good deals on them used. My biggest fear is buying a more pricey system only for the frequencies to longer be useable as they get purchased by private companies or phased out, but that might be an irrational fear.