MrSMW

Just went and looked at the CL again. I had forgotten it existed actually though it was on my radar once for stills. What put me off at the time was those lenses. And the prices etc. And that I could have an equivalent X Pro2 kit for half the price. Those 3x f1.4 Sigmas make it a whole lot more interesting but I think if it’s not actually illegal, it’s like crossing the streams putting anything but pure-bred Germanic glass on any Leica? Verboten. Slightly tempting...but only slightly. I’d rather go X Pro3, but then, I’ve chosen the S5 for a reason. The ONLY thing that is going to piss me off is if after investing 4 of the things by next Spring...and that is only happening if 2021 is definitely on as a working year, that they announce they are going PDAF. Because used prices will plummet. Having said that, I have done my maths and the calculation is 3 years working life = 250k turnover of work for a 10k kit investment, so even if I have to chuck them away after 3 years, I will have had my money’s worth.

Ah yes, the expensive and slow crop Leicas 🤑 The Sigmas on the CL however might be interesting for stills...

This. My own 'aesthetic' choice is for the camera to remain static at all times. I do not want it to move as much as 1mm. My clients probably wouldn't be, but I am hyper-aware of camera movement in anything I watch. If it's following a character, OK, that's 'natural' as are several other techniques, but for myself, I just want the scene to tell the story. If that makes sense.

L For pretty much most people this would make no sense (using crop lenses on FF bodies) and whilst I moved to the S5 from the XT3 for full frame stills, I will continue shooting 4k 50p for everything with the S5. Why? Partly so I can slow any piece of footage really easily but also because my focal length for video is mostly anything from 75-150mm in FF terms. This less than 300g lens gives me 85mm @ f1.4 which for me indoors, is just about perfect and with the full frame Panasonic 85mm f1.8 for outdoor use, I'll get something more like 125-130mm. A lot of wedding videographers seem to like using a 70-200mm f2.8 for outdoor stuff, especially ceremonies etc, but these are 1-1.5kg lenses. I know I will be happier with the sub 400g 85mm f1.8 (when it arrives) and with 4k, reasonable latitude to punch in further if needs be, ie, I can skip lugging a 70-200 around. I'm pretty much a prime person anyway and position myself based on certain focal lengths instinctively through use of said focal lengths. If/when I use zooms, it tends to be as 'twin lens primes', ie, at the wide end or the long end but never anything in between. This is why I was considering the Sigma 50-100mm f1.8 because for my needs, it's a 'twin prime lens' of 75mm and 150mm in FF terms. Except it weights exactly half a ton and then there is still the adaptor to consider... My experience of such weight on a freestanding monopod is the taller it gets, the less stable it becomes and the danger is toppling and just moving it around all day is takes it's toll. Back to the Sigma 56 though, as far as I am aware, the trinity of; 16, 30 and 56 are the only native L mount APSC crop lenses? I will get the 16 next Spring, purely for dancing. A 24mm equivalent f1.4 is perfect for that for me and I will probably pick up the 30mm also to complete the trinity, for static evening speeches in the dark other than a few candles, which some clients like to give me to work with! I will have the 56 in a few days so look forward to testing it. YouTube is full of reviews and tests of this lens on Sony crop bodies and M4/3 bodies but basically nothing on L Mount, but even from the Sony stuff, it looks perfect for my needs.

A crop is just a crop whether in camera or in post. There is no other voodoo going on.

Still waiting in France... Received notification a week or so back it was on it’s way and then a few days ago, “due to incredible demand plus Covid plus blah blah blah, sorry, delayed”. Still, it’s a 500’ish currency lens for free so can’t complain too hard.

Not 100% 🤪

Mine are 90% outdoors and typically 30-40 degrees Celsius in the shade...but people like to do everything in the sunshine, especially if they are Brits and for 10+ hours. Light and portable is my friend! I have been known to drink 5+ litres during that time and I’m not exactly unfit...

As above, if you simply switch into APSC mode, compression will not change as it is just a centre crop, ie you lose...or simply see less width and height that you just did in FF mode. Your crop is 1.5x not 1.6x which is a Canon sensor crop and nothing to do with the lens.

@TomTheDP I could attach some lead weights to the bottom of my camera? 😬 But seriously, the massive advantage of using a freestanding monopod, light or heavy set up, is that whilst that is rolling, I can shoot stills at the same time, ie, it’s like having another me with me. Weight does indeed stabilise, but it also fatigues and for the last couple of years, my filming combo of; monopod, cage, body (XT3 and prior to that XH1) powerbank, adapter, lens, added up to quite a bit to keep picking up and moving one handed for 10+ hours. I decided to put my money where my mouth is and ordered the Sigma 56mm this afternoon. I don’t need it right now, but need to play/try it and already have a 58mm VND, so also ordered a cheap 55-58mm step up ring. Body and lens, 1kg / 2.2lbs in American. Mucho lightweight even on the monopod!

Oh and one other thing, I pretty much hate camera movement. Any. So IBIS for me is for stills and why I need to stick with mono or tripod for video. I've tried everything switched on including the e:stab and it's good. Very good. But I still see movement and it bothers me. My style simply is not handheld look, never mind pans or gimbal type work. If I shot pure 100% video, then maybe, but I shoot 50:50 stills video and I have to draw the line somewhere in regard to what I can achieve. And just personally prefer the static shot where the subjects move and provide the interest.

It's really simple. I have mine set up C1 for stills and C2 for video, so just a flick of a switch. And even with a variable ND at it's lowest 2 stops, on the stills side it's actually quite a good thing as it eliminates my need to shoot super-fast electronic shutter mode speeds in bright sunlight wide open. But no, it's not that, but more the solo hybrid shooter in the real world aspect. Most of the day I can flit backwards and forwards between stills and video as there is enough time, but then there are times when I need to do both at the same time which means freestanding monopod (over tripod for speed). Real world though, getting a camera off a harness and onto a monopod and back off and on and off and...see what I am saying, - it's a faff thing! Instead, one camera, one lens (zoom or change primes from time to time) dedicated to the job and then just set up and use the stills cameras to do their job. So it's not so much a case of I can't make it work, but rather a case of I can make it work better if I keep certain tools dedicated to certain jobs. The 24-75mm f2.8 for me, not the 24-105 f4 (f4 is pushing it for my needs), but this lens is on the monopod and working at the same time capturing clips whereas the 20-60 is on a tripod and capturing longer form video statically and remotely, ie, I need 2 bodies with a lens each to do this job. However, I am now veering back towards primes for the filming/clips role; the Sigma 16mm f1.4 for dancing, giving the same width as the zoom, but 2 stops faster, the Sigma 56mm f1.4 as my indoor general purpose lens and 85mm is actually my 'ideal' for most of my indoor work and then the Panasonic 85mm f1.8 as my outdoor 127.5mm equivalent lens. All 3 add up to about the same cost as the single 24-70 and combined, weigh about the same, but on the monopod, all combos are MUCH lighter, the wide Sigma the same width but 2 stops faster and the 85mm, a decent amount more reach outdoors. It has been weighing (pardon the pun) on my mind that the 24-70 is a bit of a beast, but I think this prime option will work better as it offers more flexibility and in summary, a 24, an 85 and a 130mm, 2 of which are f1.4 and the latter f1.8 vs single lens 24-70mm f2.8.

Definitely what works for you is always the ‘right’ answer. I rarely shoot video wider than 50mm and yes, my only real criticism of the 20-60 is it’s 3.5-5.6 and I would rather it had been a constant f4 even it it had been a little bigger, heavier and more expensive. Also forgot to say, focus clutch on the 24-70 f2.8. Love that and will suit my needs perfectly which is AF at weddings only for confetti, entrances and exits, ie, when I have to shoot stills at the same time and the subjects are moving towards me. Rest of the day manual and the zoom in peaking is quite decent on the S5 though could be a bit stronger?

Having said that, I am not ruling out going with 3x S5's and 1x S1 come next Spring instead of 4x S5's, purely to have that S1 in the dedicated static no record limits, video role...

Yep. Or at least how I saw it and was considering. But then I looked at the price of an S1 now vs an S5 and weighed up what the S1 would bring me that I needed over an S5 and the answer was unlimited recording. And that was not a sufficient enough answer when I factored in all the other 'stuff' I was getting with an S5, mainly in the size & weight department. I am not exactly uber-obsessive about every last nanogram etc, but it all counts and adds up. Ultimately it's what works for our own individual situations and these things can depend on what kit you already have, but if starting from scratch... Well that offers up more choice.

Even Leica lovers are laughing. I don't knock shit for the sake of knocking shit and was quite interested when they first started talking about this back in around 2004 or whenever it was. But in 2020, they just jumped the shark that was eating a Q2 that a dentist had been surfing with.

Say it isn't so?! I love this lens. It's not fast and so a bit limited in low light, but it works for me in a number of ways... Static wedding ceremony and speeches lens with a focal range equivalent to 30-90mm. OK, I need to test that long end at f5.6 but I always throw some constant light on the top table/speaker so even outdoors in the dark at 6400, I think we'll be OK. Think...I need to test, but used to use a 1" camcorder which was about equivalent f64 or something... Then it's my 20mm wide angle wedding landscape/architecture lens plus wide establishing room shots such as bride prep, 30mm if we're talking 4k 50p video. Also, it's my personal/travel family lens when we get back to things hopefully next year. OK 60mm isn't that long for stills but for family stuff it will be fine and my last personal camera was an X100 and that was 35mm equivalent. It's solid, it's compact, it's weather resistant...it's extremely limited on a proper landscape shoot as I found out just before Lockdown 2 so looking forward to the 70-300! But it's useless piece of shit if it's just going to be gathering dust! Speaking of the f1.8 quadrilogy, but original plan was for one of each, all of which would get used, but the 24 was never going to be quite wide enough for when I need wide angle video (dancing) and the 85 not quite long enough for ceremony stills and if I was using it for such, then I wouldn't have anything long enough for the ceremony. The conclusion was I'd need multiple copies of the 85, something wide than the 24 and I'd have to do some juggling of lenses throughout the day and although the very thought of zooms hurts my soul (deeply), I also have to be realistic in regard to my specific needs as a solo hybrid shooter on a typical 9-15 hour wedding day. The answer I came up with is it had to be zooms and on tripod and freestanding standing monopod for video and essentially the good old combo of a 35mm + 85mm prime for stills except in my case the combo of 20mm + 45mm + 105mm. Which is slightly different but does not require any lens changes all day long on any camera, stills or video. But as the saying goes, no plan ever survives it's first encounter with the enemy. I think this one has a good chance however as it's not really a 'new' plan, but yet another evolution of what came before. I actually tried to squeeze the Sigma 50-100mm f1.8 into the mix but including tripod collar, mount and adapter, it would have been a 2kg beast of a lens, but one which with one twist of the zoom ring, could have been a 75mm f1.8 or a 150mm f1.8 (in 4k 50). But I'd be lugging it about all day long and coupled with the camera body, monopod, powerbank strapped to monopod, from (lighter) previous experience, it's actually a bit much for a sololist also juggling stills, audio etc. Samyang cine...damn, I missed that one but no, must resist, I have looked at every other option from cine-modded Iron Glass through Voigtlander through the Sigma APSC trilogy of primes etc etc etc. Sticking to plan. For now...

Just for the sake of some S5 talk... 😉 Pretty much finalised my set up for 2021 and going forward...and it isn't exactly as I originally intended... I've dropped my requirement for hybrid use of a camera on the fly, ie, flicking back and forth between stills and video...and instead, having identical hybrid camera bodies, but they are going to be designated either; photo, filming, video or hybrid. This means 4 bodies instead of 3. Aaaaaaaaaargh, more expense, but it's more important that I get real world usability for my specific needs. So here's what and why. I reserve the right to change my mind further down the line if needs be, but for the moment: S5 + Sigma 45mm f2.8 for 'medium-wide' stills. This is my version of a 35mm lens in that I prefer to work just a little more backed off so 45 gives me a tiny bit more reach and compression. My free 45 hasn't arrived yet and recently received a delay blah blah blah notification from Panasonic Europe, but hopefully will soon. S5 + Sigma 105mm f2.8 as my portrait/tele lens for stills. It's a teeny weeny bit long for indoor use, but outdoors, will better suit my slightly more backed off approach instead of an 85mm, though I will lose the previous 135mm ability I had. I'll just have to crop. S5 + Panasonic 24-70mm f2.8 as my filming (monopod) workhorse. Because I shoot 4k 50p for all my clips, this is effectively a 36-105mm which is perfect because it more or less matches my stills camera focal lengths above. I really wrestled over so many options or combinations in regard to this one but in the end it came down to the max flexibility of a 'one and done'. S5 + Panasonic 20-60mm f3.5-5.6 for static (tripod) video but also as my wide angle stills lens/unit...which is convenient as the only time I need this function is when I'm not recording video, ie, this combo will be the only true hybrid use. But also not really because those times are different, though all on the same day. Currently, I only have the one single body, the kit lens and the 45 on the way and it's enough to do the few commercial jobs I have booked, but delayed for this Winter, but the closer we get to next years wedding season...if it happens, I will start spending the cash. It will still all fit my single backpack ethos, including 1x lightweight lightstand, light and audio gear, though I also will have my small/medium camera bag which carries all of the latter plus; batteries, powerbank, chargers etc. But what about those lovely new f1.8 primes??!! The 85mm I have on pre-order. As much as I love them for size, weight, faster aperture etc, unless I go back to juggling lens changes all day, I can't make it work. I'll keep the pre-order for now and at least try the thing, but can't see a business case for keeping it. Just for info/fun/out of lockdown boredom.

S5 for me and it keeps everything even more incestuous other than the batteries.

Nah, it’s about an hour max. Average clip is 10 seconds and I don’t watch every single one as some are repeats and if the first one was what I wanted, skip to the next clip. This way I only import into Premiere clips I will probably or definitely using.

It’s fugly.

OK, no problem. 1: Shoot with intent in the first place. I rarely shoot anything 'just because' and if I know it's going to be garbage, don't bother in the first place. Once I know I have what I want which is typically, A: the obvious and B: the more creative, I stop shooting that/any scene and move on. Net result, from a typical wedding day, I might come back with 300+ clips. 2: I'm shooting 2 cameras: The first is designated 'filming' and is for capturing clips and is on a freestanding monopod. The other is designated 'video' and is for longer stuff ie, the ceremony and the speeches and lives on a tripod. The latter also records the master audio using Rode Wireless Go. 3: Get back from the job and download cards. 4: Start watching footage straight from the folder and I simply note all clips that have potential and scribble a few notes if needs be in regard to how/where I am going to use certain clips or something else specific. 5: In Premiere, dump the ceremony footage and audio onto the timeline. Add the ceremony lav mic audio. Auto-sync. Cut & delete master (the Go material) when and where individual lav mic material is better such as readings and vows. 6: It's a single viewpoint piece, so there is no visual material to mess with, just the audio. Add a fade in and add a fade out. Export, job done. There's no 'grading' as such as I don't shoot log though I may make a global adjustment to exposure or contrast etc, but nothing that takes longer than a couple of minutes max. Seconds normally. 7: Repeat same process for speeches. Couple of hours max and these 2 productions are finished. 8: Chop & copy the vows out of the ceremony plus a few key lines from each of the speeches and dump all of these onto a new timeline for the 'Wedding Film'. I have already chosen which 2-3 tracks I will be using which I did on the previous job I was editing photography on, ie, I listen to Artlist.io whilst editing photography and marking favourites for potential future wedding film use. I then group tracks into blocks of 2 or 3 to make approx 8-12 minute productions and choose one for whatever film job I am about to start based on 'feel' such as "this one felt a bit more lively" or "this one suits something more gentle" etc. 9: So dump my 2-3 tracks on the timeline which now has these tracks plus synced/finished footage/audio from vows and speeches. 10: Start dragging over clips and building the story based on 2 factors; chronological order of events and the soundtrack. It doesn't take long to add and cut 50-100 clips. 11: Tidy up all the material into one cohesive whole other than any grading or transitions or ducking etc. 12: Tweak each clip in order as in 'grading' except in my case, it's not really grading as such as all I am doing is making a few minor scopes adjustments mainly, add any transitions and duck anything that needs ducking. 13: Export and watch through and then go back to make any final adjustments and add titles. I can't think of anything else really. The bottom line for me is that having come from being a photographer, I think and work like a photographer who just happens to be capturing longer versions of my photography in addition to my photography. It actually requires very little thought, barely more time on the job and obviously more time in the office, but not these weeks and weeks I hear some folks talking about. And as I said before, I don't overshoot, I don't dither, I don't procrastinate and naturally am very efficient, do not get distracted easily and work extremely quickly compared to most. I hope that helps!

Video is you friend here 😉

Interesting...and I appreciate this is a slight digression, but for me 8-12 hours filming = about the same in the office. Commercial or wedding, within 1 working day, I have started, finished, exported and uploaded a typical (for weddings anyway) 9-12 minute wedding film plus second full ceremony & speeches production. I will however typically spread that workload over 2 days just because I can and won’t deliver to clients for at least 7 days if not longer because I tell them it’s about a week’s work to give my worth more ‘value’. This could be because I am a very efficient person by nature, do not procrastinate and work to my own brief and no one else’s. Yes, even commercial.

Self-regulation is the answer on an individual level. I’m not sure which is worse though, Fakebook or MeTube...but probably the latter as for so many it just seems to be a soapbox for people to spout their vitriol. Both my mother-in-law and father have been banned from various groups and I am ‘friends’ with neither. Which says a lot. YouTube has some really great content. Some exceptional content in fact. But also a million tons of shit and I’m not sure what is worse, that million tons of shit or the misinformation purported as fact from so-called ‘experts’.