MrSMW

Response: here’s a link how to download the firmware update. 🤪 My third rule of business is employ at least one person who can read.

Yes, they are painful enough as they are (bless ‘em) but to watch it back in ultra slow motion…to the point where the camera overheated and died just before little Jonnies only line, would be terrible.

I’m not really sure about some folks expectations here with this or many other camera releases. It’s an ‘enthusiast’ camera with a few ‘pro’ bits but is not intended to be, priced as, or sold as a pro level or cine camera. So what’s the issue?! The ZV Wotsit was probably a bit over-priced, but otherwise is another example of it is what it is, but isn’t a rival for a Red because it’s not intended to be.

Exactamundo! Their help desk has not been overly helpful so far. I described the issue in trying to update the adapter using both my Mac and PC and 2 different cables and 2 different ports and the only response I received was, quote: “Sorry but our Software update is not compatible with Mac OS will only run on Windows OS”. OK, very factual and narrows down my choice of devices from 2 to 1 but otherwise provides zero useful information 😏 I have put in a request for something slightly more helpful. At least they didn’t take long to respond unlike DXO who can take months. So long you bought other software and forgot they existed. My first rule of business is don’t be shit. My second rule of business is don’t be a shit.

Ello Ello... .EF-L firmware update New firmware to fix issues with S5 MkII. Black screen issue. Both regular fusion and ND throttle fusion. If I could only get my PC to actually recognise the adapter when it's connect via USB... Doesn't auto pick it up and tried 2x ports and 2x cables and nada. Anyone know where on PC you need to go to find something like this manually? It might be the fix to this situation... Sounds like it might be...

Even better, use a shoulder harness from someone like Holdfast also and you can use that kind of set up virtually hands free as the harness provides stability each side and the bulk of the weight goes down the monopod into the belt/your chiseled 6 pack.

I already tried just the Fotodiox with the Meike cine lens and it was slooooow. I would not have put up with that previously so know it was not a problem before…but that was with the S1H. The S1H I have moved over to the primarily (but still hybrid during ceremony & speeches) stills role because despite what it’s marketed as, it’s just the better stills camera over the S5ii. IMO. Juggle juggle juggle. That’s how it is for me and my specific needs… The options are: A. Carry on with the combo I have been using last few weeks, but it’s one lens away from being ideal. The ‘one lens away’ is just the single 28-70 when I really need a pair. Might just have to bite the bullet and buy one, but would prefer to wait if poss and see if Sigma pop out the supposed 70-180 long overdue… B. Find a way around being able to use this vintage lens because other than the total dealbreakers 🤪 it is a really good option. On paper… C. Take a closer look at that DZO 35-80 which is now available with drop in filter system… D. Chuck it all in and move to Asteroid City.

OK, quite a few dabs… I made the over-enthusiastic approach of fixing the adapter wobble before investigating the slow start up issue. It’s actually more like 10-12 seconds which is far too long for my needs and I can’t find any solution to it or the continual request each time if I am happy with the IBIS setting. I could switch the IBIS off and assign it to a function button but then that is another step to contend with. It’s game over before I ever got going with it. Shame because the combo of baked in Phantom LUT, 6k 30p 3:2 and how that lens renders wide open at f3.5 is…was, pretty much bang on. The potential or actual aesthetic output however cannot compromise my real world wedding day workflow and sadly it does. It’s a bit weird though that I can’t find any reference to the slow start up time in any written or watched L Mount camera topic. I am sure there is a way to kill that IBIS question on start up though as I am 99% sure I found away when I used a Meike cine lens for a couple of jobs. But for now and this wedding, until I can…or even if I can, answer these 2 issues, it’s back my previous method of working. Maybe I should investigate the DZO 35-80mm T2.9 because although it’s a bit of a lump…and not cheap, it is available in L Mount…I think, so I would not have the issues I am currently having. Only one other thing I can think of is updating The Fotodiox adapter to see if that makes any difference but something, somewhere is causing this ridiculously long start up time. But I’m out of time for this next job 😏

Well, the last piece of the puzzle turned up today and so I gave it a whirl. The CY-EF adapter is waaaaay too loose so I gave it a few dabs of the old superglue and sorted that. No resale of that lens now unless someone wants it in EF mount 🤪 I had already tested the image quality and the IBIS at both 40 and 80 mil and it works fine. IQ very nice on the single outdoor test I gave it coupled with baked in Phantom LUT. It gets a pass for at least this weekends 1.5 day wedding as my main filming camera. The other S5ii as above will be doing longer static and AF duty. The S1H exclusively stills. Should be good…or maybe I will come back cursing the thing Monday… 2 ‘issues’, one of which I believe I can sort: 1: Takes an age to start up now as in black screen for like 5-10 seconds. Anyone know if there is a way round this? 2: It then asks if you want the set focal length. I managed to delete that question previously, though that may have been with the S1H, but it anyone knows the answer to that one…

I don’t seem to be able to link it, but I Googled Sony FX30 vs Komodo and there is at least one video on YouTube. I haven’t watched it but I suspect the Red is a much bigger unit to start with and then needs rigging out. Possibly not one for a day out with the fam but the FX30 with a small zoom such as the excellent Sigma 18-50 f2.8 might be. For personal, I’d go 30 but for work, the 3 just for the full frame.

Well the lens has arrived already, but no test this week or shoot this weekend as the CY to EF adapter has been delayed until Saturday 😏 I have the Fotodiox built in VND EF-L already but this little project will have to wait until next week now… The lens looks good for an old-timer. Excellent condition, relatively small and chunky and about the same size as the Sigma 28-70 which is good as that is what it’s going to be mainly paired with: S1H + Sigma 28-70 f2.8 stills, option Lumix 70-200 f4 S5ii + CZ 40+80 f3.5 video 6k 30p MF S5ii + Sigma 18-50 (27-75) f2.8 video 4k 60p AF, option Sigma 16-28 (24-42) If all goes to plan…

Nice. What lens did you use and is it log, the grade etc. We need to know this kind of stuff?!

I knew it. I went to Perth WA for an entire week once and it was just too quiet. You could pull up for instance and park right outside a restaurant on a Friday evening without a problem. There was a big movie being filmed around the same time elsewhere and they needed a lot of extras, so it makes sense now why the artificial city of Perth was so quiet. My brother lives there now. Says he does but now I realise that is a lie. My own family lie to me. What is this world coming to? Must dash, I have Aslan and Mr Tumnus coming round for breakfast shortly. Conspiracy theorists 🤣

I have tried a couple of cine lenses but didn’t really get on with them, especially for hybrid use, but if I only shot video, for sure I’d probably be using a set from someone like DZO or even Sigma, but the latter are a bit pricy. Before I pushed the button on trying this 40+ year old lens, I was considering the DZO 35-80, but the cost size and weight put me off. It’s 1.5x the weight of the Lumix 70-200mm f4 which I somewhat grudgingly have because I need it, but only use it at 3 specific times on a job. The thought of using that 35-80 all day long, well just 🤪 The CZ 40-80, around 600g so probably around 700-750g with the adapters and is more compact than my 70-200, a nice balance of heft for stability but not taxing to use all day. Just been eyeing up the CZ 80-200…but I’m not going to get ahead of myself!

Speaking of movies to be inspired by, the 3 that I am most looking forward to this year are: Asteroid City Openheimer Dune 2 I guess I have a thing for deserts!

The convenience I don’t need so much working with 3 cameras as one of the others is dedicated to AF, but yes, IQ will be interesting… From what I have seen, the 30-70 looks pretty good, but the only real test is how it looks when you shoot anything yourself. The 40-80 will be especially interesting because I can’t find anything so that means it’s either very rare, or hasn’t caught on. Or is just a bit shit. My other concern though is over this thing called ‘character’. From what I have seen with so many vintage lenses, is too much ‘character’. The Helios 58mm f2 for instance. Waaaaay too much ‘character’ for me and I have seen it in a direct head to head with the 30-70 and for my tastes, the results from the zoom looked just like I’d want them to and the Helios like some weird surreal absinthe fueled dream 🤪 But we will see. If it works, then great but if not, it was a 330 euro hit including adapter, but I’ll get 90% of that back re-listing it back on eBay. The Sigma’s that I currently use are often described as being a bit sterile, but I like them. A bit sharp but a 1/8th mist takes that edge off and this is where I am hoping that a more ‘clinical’ but older vintage lens might take some of that digital look out of that modern sensor and lens equation without having to resort to filters or in post.

It’s borderline deal-breaker for me. Some think the S5/II is great but to my ear it sounds loud, thin and cheap, but the entire S1H shutter mech is just sublime, from the damping/actuation through the sound and as someone who only uses mechanical shutter… If the S5ii had this shutter mech, the S1H would have gone as it would have been just enough to warrant 3x S5ii’s. But it doesn’t and at the price the S5ii is, can’t really expect it to.

The thing with contrast detect AF is that it does tend to be slower than equivalent phase detect cameras, but not by that much other than in low light conditions but it does tend to be highly accurate. When I first switched from Nikon DSLR, I was pretty horrified about the Fuji X Pro1’s lack of ability to lock on to anything that moved forwards or backwards. First wedding, no processional or recessional shots in church because it just failed and err, I should never have trusted it that soon. Or at all. The results I was getting…when it locked on however, along with various aspects including the colour science convinced me to keep using the system and future firmware improved things a bit, but after a few years, I do wish I’d waited for the next gen as just like when moved from film to digital in about 2005 (?) with the Nikon D200, it really was too soon. But CDAF for the last 10 or so years has been pretty good and no real world difference to PDAF for stills other than on the most extreme situations.

I’ve never had an S1 but have used extensively; S5, S5ii, S1R and S1H. For video, all ‘good’. For forward tracking, ie, someone walking towards you, depends on the lens, the settings and the aperture, but in 4K crop mode, f4/5.6/8, pretty good actually, but if it loses the subject, it’s game over. Unless it really goes wrong like someone walks in the way, the S5ii is of course a lot more reliable than the non-PDAF models. For stills, real world not a lot in it. I have shot thousands of frames at (each of) 45+ weddings with L Mount and it’s both fast and accurate. If I was shooting sports, there are much better options such as Sony and Canon, but as long as we are not talking subjects charging around zig zagging, any of the S line are great but as above, IMO the S1H is the pick of the bunch for stills. Not max detail commercial or studio work, (because that is the S1R’s forte) but for events and people, S1H for me on pretty much every level; size, weight, ergos, shutter damping, speed, results. Just superb. Plus it’s superb for video as a secondary role 😉 Otherwise yes, also waiting to see what the next gen will be because there is something specific I am looking for…but that is another story.

I’ll just use reconfigure the C1-3 custom modes but instead of settings for stills and video as I do now, base it on custom IBIS focal lengths. Or the lens might just be crap and go straight back on Ebay! I think it should work out OK actually, but we will see…

I was thinking start with as a ‘correct’ as possible conversion LUT such as yours and then develop my own grade on top and then create my own conversion inc. grade LUT unique to me to export and then use either baked in in camera (preferred) or in post. Currently working with the ‘Arri’ conversion LUT from Phantom and then the creative Kinetic LUTS from Gamut and to be honest, the combo is not far off…but I would prefer to develop something that is unique to me. However, Phantom also do some film emulations from Kodak and Fuji (Eterna) that do look pretty good I have to say. I do think I need to move away from Premiere and start learning and using Davinci. But not mid season!

This is the single most part of the whole filmmaking process that interests me right now. It took me the best part of a decade to get the right combo of tools that would allow me to best shoot hybrid weddings. Hardly the epitomy of filmmaking I know, but for the one man band with bills to pay, what I do. All that time, I was also working on my technique, lighting and the output, but have been somewhat hamstrung by the capture process due to continually juggling the tools for workflow purposes. As a result, the reality has been some of the capture process was not what it could have been and that’s OK. There’s no manual for what I do so it has been a process of trial & error. Now that I feel I have that working in my favour, I have been able to turn more attention to lighting, my big ‘thing’ for this year and that is going well so far but not quite where I want it to be. Again, it’s a bit of a juggling act as, as above, 1 man crew vs a 500 crew. Or even a 2 person crew, but the financials don’t work so it’s just me and the reality is one person shooting video and stills can only do so much in real time. And this only leaves two areas for further exploration and development. A: Pulling stills from video, initially in addition to shooting both, but perhaps potentially, only from shooting video. I think the latter is doable now due to the tech that is in a camera such as the Z9, but a different topic… B: Which leaves the colour science/grade part of the equation. It’s the part of the process I have paid the least attention to and need to work on the most. Once my season ends, it’s finally time to put myself into ‘grade’ school. Thanks to @kye I have also subscribed to Cullen Kelly plus a few others. Thanks to @hyalinejim looks like there’s a good starting point for S5ii log now, so that is going to get a whirl. Intrigued by raw, I think I am going to have to bite the bullet and get an external monitor and the paid Braw upgrade for my S5ii’s regardless of whether Lumix bring out a Z9 rivaling S2H before next season or just go Nikon. Either way, an external monitor and any kind of rigging other than a cage and side handle plus shotgun mic, is about as far as I would prefer to go. I’m realistic about it at the same time. Will raw and Resolve and sheer time, effort, understanding and application, plus further improved capture and lighting technique make a difference? Sure, but it won’t make my 2024 wedding films look like Dune, but as the saying goes, shoot for the stars and you might just hit the moon. My end goal is to be able to shoot a baked in look, min 6k 50p, 3:2 format that will then be my only source of video and stills from one roaming and one static camera. I don’t think that is too far away and indeed, could be done today. Just not by me. Yet…

My OCD prefers round numbers based on 10 so 20/40/80/160mm would be my preference so zoom lenses; 20-40, 40-80 and 80-160. Then f stops as: 1,2,4,8,16 so being realistic, f2 for my 20-40, f2 for my 40-80 and f4 for my 80-160. Plus all filter sizes the same while I’m at it. Under 500g, around 750g and no more than 1000 for the big boy. This is my open letter to Sigma 😉

@kye do you ever sleep? Or are you a vampire or at least something of a night owl because I thought you were in the US but post regularly during our Europe daytime?!

Agree. There have been a lot of boring and conventional focal length lenses in recent years, the; 24/35/50/85, 24-70, 70-200 in full frame. Yawn 🥱 Back in the 70’s and 80’s we had far more interesting stuff like; 30-70, 40-80, 28-85 (albeit that one being variable aperture yuck) and recently from Tamron; 20-40, 35-150, 70-180 plus those interesting APSC Sigma 18-35, 50-100 f1.8’s. I’d happily sacrifice a bit of aperture speed for size & weight, even focal range, especially with something like Tamron’s 35-150 f2/2.8, so something like 40-120 constant f2.8 because who cares about f2 for a couple of mm?! For me it’s been the one weakness of L Mount, boring as f**k focal lengths and/or lenses that are too big and heavy. I look at Sony e Mount and Nikon Z with envy. I need an R2D2 projected Princess Leia moment with a message to Sigma about being my only hope…