Clark Nikolai

Interesting. I've been working in REC709 for the sole reason is that I'm just not ready to jump in to REC2020 and the learning curve that it might have. I also might need a new monitor or something. At some point I'll learn all about it as it seems to have huge advantages over REC709 and I want to have them. (Another thing that I want to one day learn about is ACES, another big scary thing.) My D16 has a colour space that is like HLG called Bolex Wide Gamut. It keeps the full dynamic range of the image but isn't flat looking like Log would be so is watchable even before using a LUT or something. Here's a white paper about it. https://digitalbolex.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Bolex_Log_Bolex_Gamut_TechSum.pdf

You're right I was. I'll clarify better what I mean. While they're all a little monitor with a loupe some are an approximately 3" LCD with a loupe (meaning the whole thing is big) and some are an approximately 1" OLED with a loupe and the whole thing is smaller. I see they exist as part of DSLRs and such but I'm wanting to get something like that separately so my whole rigged camera package isn't so big. The ZCam EVF could work I suppose. For my purposes there's no rush on this. (Still need to figure out a small shoulder rig anyway.) I've tried a Cineroid and it's way too big for my taste.

Yeah likely some type of Thunderbolt protocol likely to have both power and video signals through it. Just a guess. The Z-Cam one and most of the Portrays EVFs are just small LCD monitors with loupes. The Oeye-Red EVF is more like what I'm thinking.

The Pyxis looks good. No mention of global shutter so probably has rolling shutter of some amount. The thing I'm intrigued by is the USB-C EVF. I find out now this has already been out but I wasn't aware of it. Can it be hacked so it can accept HDMI and used on other cameras?

I had another thought. Since the patent (if I understand right), is for 4K and above compressed raw recorded internally, then a camera could be made that recorded internally to 3.99K compressed raw and so not violate the patent. Many people only shoot 4K to stabilize in post and to punch in and deliver in HD.

At some point both costs of SSDs will be so low and data transfer rates will be so high (Thunderbolt 4, etc.) that it won't matter much in practical terms if raw files are not compressed. I could see new cameras saving internally in uncompressed raw, (ProResRaw or uncompressed BRaw) which would not be subject to the patent. At one time shooting HD was super expensive, now it's super cheap, the same with 4K and other things. If the cost of media is within the budget of a production, and the transfer times for copying the cards is short enough for the shooting schedule, then it doesn't matter.

What would be useful is if a camera manufacturer designed the cameras to be switchable. I don't know how it all works but I get the impression that with CMOS sensors there's a trade-off between global shutter and dynamic range. If that's really the case then it would be good if a cinema camera was able to switch from one to the other. One setting would be global shutter but lower DR, the other would be higher DR but with rolling shutter. Then it would depend on the scene being shot, (and the lighting) which one you would choose for any given set up.

It looks cute. I think it might be mostly a fashion accessory (but it also takes pictures). I like how it's small. It's kind of wild that a camera "for kids" is 44 Megapixel. Odd that there's no bluetooth to transfer to your smart phone or tablet. I'm an adult and I would consider this for some situations like travelling and my photos aren't so important.

It's a great camera. Now, imagine it with global shutter and raw recording.

What I'd like to see is a tiny OLED viewfinder that would connect with HDMI and 12volt DC. There are a few nice EVFs that connect to proprietary hot shoes such as the Canon EVF-DC2, FUJIFILM EVF-GFX, Sigma EVF-11, Sony FDA-EVM1K, etc. however they aren't able to be used with other cameras. I'd like to see something like this, or an adaptor from the hot shoe connectors to HDMI and D-tap. Then if you have a cinema camera you're not left with only huge EVFs (which are really just small monitors with a loupe.) The one that seems to have this potential is the Sigma EVF-11. In pictures it shows what looks like a USB-C plug, two pins, then what might be a micro-HDMI. It might be possible for there to be an adaptor to use this.

Oh, I'm dreaming of even more. I'm thinking of internal raw recording in a camcorder. (It would likely have to be uncompressed raw because of Red's patent but if I'm dreaming here it would be ProResRaw and/or BRaw.) I'm thinking of the type of narrative filmmaking where you have actors and all but the filming situation is such that you don't have much control over the setting (or much time with the location). You need to set up fast and get the shots and move on. A camcorder is perfect for that. It would need some type of timecode jam sync for any external audio recorder(s).

I agree. There's an ergonomic thing with camcorders that I'd like to see done again but with raw or something. I still shoot with an eight year old Sony HD camcorder because it's so easy to use and produces beautiful results. 5-axis image stabilization, 20x zoom lens, 5.1 stereo mic, etc. The only drawback to it is that it records to H.264 only. I had a wish that they would make the same thing but that it would record in some type of raw format. Storage is so cheap nowadays that they could put in a 1 or 2TB SSD and it would still be affordable and hold a lot of footage. I would not hesitate to shoot a feature narrative on such a thing if it existed.

I've taken almost a month to respond to this. I wanted to get it right. Now I'm just doing it even if it isn't. I find this website sometimes is the only one that has some careful thought anymore. I appreciate what many of you write here. I like that I can contribute.

My take on it is I'm thinking of size when shooting. To not have it bulky, it's probably better to have three smaller batteries than one big one. If doing that then you'll already be switching batteries on a long shoot so it's okay if some non-OEM batteries don't have the full capacity that the OEM ones have. I agree with ac6000cw that some mid-range non-OEM batteries would allow for a good quality vs price balance. I've had good experiences with Wasabi brand (but there are others in that price and quality range that are likely similar.)

A better word for them would be parameters. I remember kd lang saying how she used to do performance art but because you can do anything with that it wasn't fun and creative, she then turned to country music and it having so many conventions she was able to mess with it in interesting ways. In improv Jazz music they don't just play whatever, they have a key, a time signature and a riff that they then play around with. It ends up being more creative than it would be. So limitations are good for creativity.

Wow! Very impressive reel. Bravo!

Thanks. I'm very happy with them. I see them as little slices of life. The pink sky thing started as a way to tie that footage with the later shots where the sky really was pink. Kind of spooky and science fictiony. The Digital Bolex is great. When I first got it I wondered if I would regret the purchase and that some other camera would be better for me (I was also looking at the BM Ursa Mini 4K) but now every time I see the results I'm so glad I got the D16. (Look at the gold leaf on the harp when the sun hits it in Practise in the Park.) A few years ago when I got it Digital Bolexes were coming up on eBay (and even craigslist) every few months but now nobody seems to be selling theirs anymore. After trying all the settings I now leave it set at 200 ISO with 180 shutter angle. I use Bolex Gamma profile so in post I really just need to conform the highs and lows to REC709 and the shot looks great. (It took some experimenting to figure this out.) I use Color Finale Encoder to import into Final Cut. It's 2K but scales up to 4K really nicely. I wish they had made their proposed c-mount lens turret. It came with some very high quality prime lenses but it's time consuming to switch them. After using a bag I had I realized how awkward it was to work with it and didn't find any case I liked so ended up learning how to make a case and designing one. It works very well. I can be up and rolling in less than a minute. I have a 16-75mm zoom on the camera, with pockets that hold a 10mm and a 135mm. That's enough for most things. It's a depressing time in the world and it can seem like there's no reason to bother making art but then one only has to look at history and see what world conditions much worse than now that people lived in and yet they still made art. I would say for me it gives me hope and feels good to be creating a bit of beauty in a world that keeps throwing more things at us to deal with. There's much more competition at festivals now so it's harder to get your film selected than it was before. I used to have several screenings a year but now very few. (I started to wonder if I was becoming irrelevant then realized I always was irrelevant.) Just last night I got word that my new film has another screening coming up, so yay!

2023 was pretty good for me in regards to photography and cinematography. One of my jobs ended and it was nice to have more time for my own art projects before some other work comes up. My skills with the D16 Bolex has really improved in the past year. How to expose, which settings to use, the post production process, made LUTs for it, its limitations, camera movements that work well and movements to avoid, etc. When it's not the best camera for the job and when it is. Started a feature length experimental film. (In the "city symphony" genre.) It's going very well. I've made a small kit that I can take anywhere easily without help from others. A case with the camera all assembled and a small carbon fibre tripod that fits in a backpack. This means that when I have a couple of hours I can go out and shoot some footage and not need to arrange a time with anyone else's schedule. I'm pleased that I've managed to average at least one shoot a week. I hope to finish this spring and (and for the first time ever hold a test audience screening.) The past few years I've been having my old raw footage video tapes digitized and I've been remastering my old productions. An experimental-narrative art video I did in the 1980s got a screening after all these years and that was really nice. One actor was there (the other I found out has passed away.) This was the project that back then led me in the direction of film and video (and away from some other interests I had.) My newest film after having no screenings, finally got a screening at a small festival and the response was very good. I went to the festival and the experience was useful for me to feel like what I'm doing matters to others somehow and not just something for me to pass the time. Didn't buy any new gear and concentrated on using what gear I already have. I gave an old HD camcorder away to a friend who is of low income but wanting to produce something. It was a good exercise for me in learning that I don't need so much stuff and won't miss some of it if I no longer have it. I hope he makes something interesting with it. I've been learning how to make LUTs. I'm still not fully happy with what I've made but each one version I make I get closer to what I want. (I want to be able to see in my outboard monitor precisely what I'll get in post. Almost there.) Shot some music videos for friends.

I can dig both approaches. Some things having manual everything on a camera allows you to get the shot looking really nicely. (If the camera responds to that and gives a great image because of it.) It takes more time though and just won't be fast enough to record certain events. Other cameras that are automatic, have image stabilization, auto everything are great for events where you don't have control and just have to record stuff. It gives a different look but that's still appreciated footage. We live in a golden age of so many very good cameras that for a relatively low cost we can shoot something. (It does also mean more people are shooting and producing so there's more competition at festivals, etc. ) The choice people have now is no longer whatever they can get their hands on or can budget for but what look they want or what type of situation they're going to be shooting in.

This is totally in keeping with the circumstances that Brian Eno was in when he invented(discovered?) ambient music. https://www.openculture.com/2021/03/brian-eno-explains-the-origins-of-ambient-music.html The sounds from outside became part of the music.

Hollywood has always been and continues to be formulaic. Occasionally some new things are introduced, like influences from New Wave or graphic novels, but then those aspects just become part of the palette of options.

This is a tough question. There isn't any single camera that I'm aware of that has it all or is "right" for every situation. But if I had to pick then I would settle for something like a 4K Sony or Panasonic camcorder with the fancy balanced optical stabilization and 5.1 microphone. But a fantasy camera for me would have palmcorder ergonomics (or a VX1000 shape but smaller), the image quality of an Arri Alexa/Digital Bolex, global shutter, raw recording (ideally in camera,) 4K, high frame rate (for slo-mo mostly) all at a price that I can afford. We can dream..

I wouldn't call it a dud. It does what they designed it for. The only bad things about it are the viewfinder and the weight. (Okay, so the cranks are kinda stupid. Could've just been regular knobs.) It was never intended to be a fully automatic easy to use camcorder replacement. It's not a replacement for a video camera, it's a replacement for a film camera. I disagree that it's horrible to use. It's just a fully manual camera which takes knowledge, training and patience. (and an external EVF.) It's not the ideal camera for some types of shooting but for the types of shooting that it's designed for it does it very well.

Super 8 is very niche but still alive. Not many people want to buy an expensive camera just to have a "look" for a dream sequence or flash back scene. I can totally see a camera like this getting some rentals in shows where they can't afford to mess around with old equipment that might fail on the day.

It's only considered cinematic because we (viewers) associate it with drama and we do that because of how things were in the past. Drama was always 24fps and live video was always 30 (in NTSC countries). We got used to that. Nowadays dramas are in 30fps and 60fps. I remember when drama was starting to be shot with video cameras and it seemed wrong at first for drama to have a "video" frame rate but now it doesn't anymore. People are used to anything. So all that's left is choosing a frame rate for a "look".