MrSMW

GH7 or S1 replacement for sure.
I hope it’s the latter because it’s far more interesting. To me anyway 😉

I ‘traded’ (off-loaded to the wife) my M1 14” at the beginning of this year for an M2 Max with 64GB ram 16” because the old one was barely faster than my 7 year old gaming desktop PC.
A good test was batch editing a typical wedding of say 700 raw files through DXO PureRaw tidying up noise and detail.
Overnight on my PC, around 8-10 hours?
Same thing failed every time I tried it on the M1 chip MacBook.
With this year’s M2, 40 minutes maybe?
It has transformed my workflow and as someone who spends a lot of time working away from home Apr-Sep, it’s been brilliant.
I use it with 3 external SSD.
One for photo, one for video, one (armoured) backup for both.
My only wishes were it was slightly less laggy for video editing because yup, there is some (but that may be me not having it set up right?) and I wish the screen was bigger than 16”, but as an all in one, photo and editing machine, at home at the dining room table, or in the office or in the motorhome, it’s a great/essential tool for sure.

If you are paying 💰 sure, but actually, nah, as a set up, too big, too heavy and I don’t need 4 Nikon cameras.
All I need is my faux vintage camera, a single Z8 and if flipping entirely over to Nikon for everything, then a single Z6iii.
And if a Z6iii is not available and in my hands by end of March 2024, then I will be sticking with my L Mount set up for all things video.
And what if Lumix pop out an S2H or S2R in the meantime?
It won’t make any difference. Maybe one day down the line, but at least not in 2024 because it’s lens choices that are primarily driving my decisions.
L Mount has great glass, but not for the way I work. Not without big compromise and that’s what I am sick to death of, - trying to work around it and being continually frustrated all season long.
Brand affiliation is way down my list of important factors. This is a case of which tools are best suited to my specific need within a specific budget.
Right now, there are two options.
I’d rather go all in with one single brand (in my case single camera brand Nikon and adapted lenses from Tamron) but 99% as happy to stick with a Lumix/Sigma plus Nikon/Tamron for 2024.
 

Which is not a mirrorless hybrid so not even in the conversation.
The Z9 is a MUCH better platform for those lens selections and the OP’s list of requirements and needs.
Personally speaking, if only considering my own needs and if I was looking at a 2 body set up and only a 2 body set up and Nikon, hands down the Z9.
But as someone who has settled on a 3 body approach (if I do go fully Nikon), based on my needs and lens choices, just a single Z8 can be one of my workhorses as part of a triumvirate (had to look up the spelling of that) of:
Z8 40% of my stills work + 10% of my video needs
Z6iii (assuming one appears before end of March ‘24) 0% stills and 80% video
Zf faux vintage camera, 60% stills plus 10% video
If I did my sums correctly, the above accounts for 100% of my stills work and 100% of my video.
Ballpark figures but more or less correct.

Which is not a mirrorless hybrid so not even in the conversation.
The Z9 is a MUCH better platform for those lens selections and the OP’s list of requirements and needs.
Personally speaking, if only considering my own needs and if I was looking at a 2 body set up and only a 2 body set up and Nikon, hands down the Z9.
But as someone who has settled on a 3 body approach (if I do go fully Nikon), based on my needs and lens choices, just a single Z8 can be one of my workhorses as part of a triumvirate (had to look up the spelling of that) of:
Z8 40% of my stills work + 10% of my video needs
Z6iii (assuming one appears before end of March ‘24) 0% stills and 80% video
Zf faux vintage camera, 60% stills plus 10% video
If I did my sums correctly, the above accounts for 100% of my stills work and 100% of my video.
Ballpark figures but more or less correct.

Being in a similar dilemma but having actually used both R5/R5C & Z8 here are my thoughts.
R5 pros: Good battery life, IBIS, AF, 8K30p, RAW
cons: h26x, low DR, sub-sampled 4K60p
R5C pros: 8K60p, XF-AVC, dual base ISO, Cine line features (LUT support, assist tools etc), active cooling.
R5C cons: poor battery life (better in latest firmware but still not great), no IBIS
Z8 pros: 8K60p, compressed RAW, ProRes, stacked sensor, lockable IBIS. 2X zoom/crop modes.
Z8 cons: aside from some AF issues nothing major! 
Right now as far as specs, the Z8 is in my opinion the clear winner. Side by side, the IQ on the Nikon is substantially cleaner (less noise) and has superior DR. With ProRes, IBIS and a fast stacked sensor its just a really powerful all-rounder. My only gripe with it is the AF isn't as sticky than Canons and with portrait stills it often misses the eye if you shoot wide open with fast glass.
Color wise, Nikon is more neutral and less contrasty. This is good if you like to grade/paint. Canon is better if you want SOOC results and the skin tones are the best in the game. C-log is more filmic than other logs including N-log but C-log3 on the R5/R5C has less DR than N-log. 
Lens/system wise is where things get specific and personal. Different rendering & price points with native lenses.
But where Z-mount wins is that you can adapt pretty much any glass to it, including EF. RF is a lot more closed so if you wanna adapt, Nikon is the way to go. RF has some fantastic unique lenses but they are so expensive!
FWIW I've been shooting Canon since the 5D mark 1. C100/C200. EOS R, R6. I'm a Canon guy.
I'm seriously considering switching to Nikon after trying out the Z8. The 8K/4K IQ is simply stunning and with ProRes it cuts like butter on my intel iMac Pro. I could adapt all my current lenses: EF, E-mount, Leica M and Nikkor AI-S. And the new S line lenses are pretty great too. 
Either way you can't really go wrong, I got amazing results out of the R5/R5C. You just have to be more careful with exposure because of the limited DR and they aren't low-light champs either. Ergonomics and menus are also better with Canon, its a more intuitive shooting experience. And you can get away with minimum tweaking in post, slap a LUT and you're good if you're on fast turnover.
 

I accidentally skipped winter one year, with a couple of overseas trips in the northern hemisphere happening to be over the coldest part of the year.  I didn't realise it until the following winter what I was like "Gee, it's getting cold/wet now...  it hadn't been like this since....  hang on a second!!"
If I won lotto, I'd do that every year 🙂 

All those wideos gone, but at least Kai and Lok live on independently elsewhere...

Had them both, RX100V and the ZV1 and both brilliant little, genuinely pocketable cameras which I have used as part of a set up or solely for wedding video.
The only real issues I came across were low light performance and overheating, but otherwise great bits of kit.

Yes, red box around the frame and you can set up a tally light also.
Re. the on/off switch, - just goes to show we all have different preferences. I like where it is on the S1H and hated where it was on the S1R!
I wish I could go to a 3 identical body set up for the muscle memory...but I doubt it will ever happen for me now as my next set up will either be 3 different or 4 different bodies...but hey ho 🤪

This for 23 years.
Since I moved to a payment up front system (for me it’s 1/3rd at the time of booking, 1/3rd 6 months to job date and final 1/3rd 1 month prior), I have never had a single issue with payment.
But payment of course is not the whole story and booking the ‘right’ kind of clients is the rest of it.
OK easier said than done in some industries and some financial situations but as Kye says, having a contract with T&C’s is key when it comes to any dispute.
Not opinion or any other factor, but what does the contract state that in my case reads, “We the undersigned have read, understood and agree to be bound by the T&C’s of this contract”. The T&C’s are essentially 10 points on a single side of A4 for clarity.
In business, some folks will try and test you from time to time and it feels personal and there is always that concern in your mind about how far someone might take something and whether your case will stand up.
But if it’s clear and it’s factual and you remain calm and professional, they always go away empty handed.
I have been tested I think 7 times now out of 800+ clients and despite the threats and blustering from some, not a single one took it beyond that when I said very politely, “no”.
Sadly it is just part of running any business and you have to make sure you have covered your own back.
Fortunately…at least on my case, awful people are a rarity.

👍

I don’t know and have never considered it…
I always move the record video function to the main shutter button and use the video record button as an fn.
I assume you have the red box on record set up?
But apart from that, I have hit record before in a fast paced situation only to discover I didn’t…or double-tapped…or am actually stopping the recording but have a minute or so of blurry footage of the ground 🤪
The S1H plus the S5ii are a super good combo for video which is why I have a bit of a dilemma when it comes to shooting hybrid in 2024 and going forward. 

Not used any of these cameras, but currently transitioning from L Mount to Nikon for stills and maybe the whole hog, depending on whether a Z6iii turns up, what it is and when…because I have a season and once it begins, I will not be making any changes.
My current set up is:
S1H + S5ii + 28-70 + 70-200 video
 Zf + 40 + adapted Tamron 20-40 + adapted Tamron 70-180 and waiting until the new year to purchase a Z8, for stills.
ie, 2 sets of kit, one for video and one for stills.
If the Z6iii comes out and is available before the end of March 2024, I will buy that, get another adapted Tamron, the 28-75 and sell the 4 pieces of L Mount I still have.
Why? 3 cameras plus 4 lenses all with cross compatibility will work better for me, also a one man band, compared with 4 bodies and 5 lenses that are not all interchangeable.
If I had the funds though, a pair of R3’s, one paired with the 28-70 f2 and the other with the new 24-105 f2.8.
Far too much for my budget though at 18k before trade in and lacks a longer lens which I might get away with not having, but probably ought to have, so 20k+
It all comes down to our individual needs and preferences and these are mine.
I think the Z9 is ‘better’ than the Z8, but I’m trading that ‘betterness’ (ergos, battery life, less likely to overheat) for being a more compact and lighter beast plus cheaper.
But take cost out of it, as above, that exact Canon combo. And I used Nikon for 10 years professionally and have never owned a Canon camera. This set up is just the best currently available for my needs. At least theoretically… 😉

I was just skimming the news this morning and the verdict was:
Ukraine vs Russia
South vs North Korea
Israel vs Hamas...and maybe others
China vs Taiwan/Japan/US
A straw thatched buffoon vs an old man
The United Kingdom.
YouTube comments
Other assorted fuckwits
Random shit
I think I'm going to go back to doing what I did during Covid and that is stop looking at the news completely. Because it's utterly depressing.

I was just skimming the news this morning and the verdict was:
Ukraine vs Russia
South vs North Korea
Israel vs Hamas...and maybe others
China vs Taiwan/Japan/US
A straw thatched buffoon vs an old man
The United Kingdom.
YouTube comments
Other assorted fuckwits
Random shit
I think I'm going to go back to doing what I did during Covid and that is stop looking at the news completely. Because it's utterly depressing.

I cannot say much but give you two dear forum friends a hug in spirit and from my heart. This forum has been a comforting place for me as well. A puny little camera, nobody took serious back then for video, but you image lovers did, was my rock to hold onto in the roughest of my times, a black small GX85, my dearest trusty video mate. I filmed butterflies with it and my parents garden. I will never make fun of anyone filming flowers, except when they do it with a Leica.:)

Nothing short of total armageddon will change that.
Your Leica Q3 vs my VW Golf GTi. Fight me.

Plus I hate change...though it is inevitable for some things.
The key to what I do though is making everything as simple as possible and as bulletproof as possible.
The Rode stuff I use is 'prosumer', but in something like 200 (?) jobs, it's earned a place with me.

I was just skimming the news this morning and the verdict was:
Ukraine vs Russia
South vs North Korea
Israel vs Hamas...and maybe others
China vs Taiwan/Japan/US
A straw thatched buffoon vs an old man
The United Kingdom.
YouTube comments
Other assorted fuckwits
Random shit
I think I'm going to go back to doing what I did during Covid and that is stop looking at the news completely. Because it's utterly depressing.

Nothing short of total armageddon will change that.
Your Leica Q3 vs my VW Golf GTi. Fight me.

Batteries. Yuk. One more thing to charge and everything I own is internal battery.
Thanks for the suggestions but the original Rode Micro and WG have served me well for however long it’s been, (6+ years?) and for my needs, just work.
So better the devil you know kind of exercise with a large dollop of KISS.

Give a serious thought to the Deity Theos system it's only just came out. It's very affordable, not much more expensive. (especially when you factor in the extra cost factor of buying lavs for the Rode GO)
More range, better design, more features, also is internal recording (for non-Americans, such as yourself). 
https://deitymic.com/products/theos-digital-wireless/ 
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1779378-REG/deity_microphones_dtu0253d56_theos_digital_uhf_wireless.html
 

Nothing short of total armageddon will change that.
Your Leica Q3 vs my VW Golf GTi. Fight me.

Sorry to hear about your medical issues and great to hear you are on the road to recovery.
I echo your thoughts about this place.
My last few weeks have been spent at my Mother’s bedside as she drifted away to her passing.
In times like that of huge change and trauma we look for constants to keep us connected to “normal” life.
In that respect, checking into here every now and again to find everyone having the same circular arguments was oddly comforting.
And I honestly mean that with love.