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How well do you rate the Sony F5?


norliss
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I'm (hopefully) nearing the end of a short documentary with eyes on my next project, a short drama (thriller) piece. The look of this one is super-important and I'm weighing up camera options.

I'm certainly not averse to having to rent a camera and very much like the idea of shooting RAW for the first time which is why the forthcoming BM URSA Mini 4.6k appeals.

However, the company at which I'm employed has (amongst other things) two Sony F5 cameras (not currently upgraded to shoot 4k) which I think would be possible to use one either FOC or for a nominal rental, using my own set of Contax Zeiss primes modded to EF mount.

So my question is: which of you have used the Sony F5 and what are your opinions of the image it is capable of?

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EOSHD Pro Color 5 for Sony cameras EOSHD Z LOG for Nikon CamerasEOSHD C-LOG and Film Profiles for All Canon DSLRs

I've heavily considered the f5, but unfortunately there isn't much of a community for it.  The f3 and even f55 are more popular it would seem.  As such, there isn't a ton of compelling footage out there , but in my research I found it to be a pretty fierce competitor to its contemporaries. 16-bit raw with a recorder! Flexible mount. Ten bit out of camera. Good low light . 14 stops DR. Slog 3. Well built. What's not to like?

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I strongly disliked the F5 when I used it, but I used it shortly (however extensively) after release. A lot of my issues with it (drifting timecode sync, weird menu options, awkward ergonomics, weird codec) have been addressed. I also didn't care for the image, but Sony has released an Alexa-emulating Gamut for it that should be much better, and if you rate it at 1000ISO instead of 2000ISO it doesn't look bad, and that's still pretty fast for base ISO. It has some nice technical stuff, good slow motion, low skew, superior DR to the C300, dSLRs, and the non-Dragon Epic.

What do you want it for? For a "film" look I don't think anyone would recommend it. For doc work, I would much prefer the C300, which is what most producers request for doc work at the sub-Amira level.

Rent it, you might have a better experience than I had. It's not bad, just disappointing in a very "Sony" way.

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F5 was for a long while the best value mid range camera there is for owner ops.

 

But the arrival of the FS7 has killed off some of the appeal of buying an F5.

 

But if you want raw and a PL mount then on both counts an F5 will be much superior to an FS7

(I've been on shoots with an FS7 /F55 / F3, no F5 yet however! Strange. I'd like to upgrade from my F3 to an F5 one day)

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Thanks for your replies, guys.

In all honesty, a large part of the appeal of the F5 is/was the potential to use it for free (or for a nominal amount). That said, I very much want a 'film' look; indeed the look of this piece is of paramount importance and it may be that this isn't the right tool for this job….

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45 minutes ago, IronFilm said:

It is a fantastic camera. Especially check out slog3 with LC709a

 

If you can't make great content with the F5 then it won't be the camera's fault! :-P

Good to hear! 

FWIW I take a big interest in cameras/lenses, although I'm not a DOP or cameraman. I'd love to get someone who is a very talented & skilled DOP for this shoot...

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On February 27, 2016 at 4:22 AM, IronFilm said:

It is a fantastic camera. Especially check out slog3 with LC709a

 

If you can't make great content with the F5 then it won't be the camera's fault! :-P

Show me one piece of great looking content shot with an F5.

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3 hours ago, Policar said:

Show me one piece of great looking content shot with an F5.

all subjective of course, but I liked this a lot. it is a lot about the grade with a camera in this range. and "filmic" might still be up for debate

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2 hours ago, Liam said:

all subjective of course, but I liked this a lot. it is a lot about the grade with a camera in this range. and "filmic" might still be up for debate

How often do you film ducks at the pond? I agree the footage looks nice, but this is just camera tests... Are there any actual pieces out there?

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5 minutes ago, BenEricson said:

How often do you film ducks at the pond? I agree the footage looks nice, but this is just camera tests... Are there any actual pieces out there?

right, but there just aren't many people using the f5 really. I made sure there were skin tones in there that looked alright before deciding it looked good. the kid on the bridge is a good shot I thought. I'm not sure the best way to find good material, I'm hoping there's good stuff out there I'm unaware of, but if there's none at all, that might say nothing of the camera. are you asking for a narrative? a good story can make you ignore a bad image, if you're looking for a good image for your good story, I don't think you need to see a narrative on the camera you're considering..

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On 26/02/2016 at 9:11 PM, norliss said:

Good to hear! 

FWIW I take a big interest in cameras/lenses, although I'm not a DOP or cameraman. I'd love to get someone who is a very talented & skilled DOP for this shoot...

Just fly me in from NZ :-P

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4 hours ago, ade towell said:

123625593

this guys stuff is pretty good

 

https://vimeo.com/123625593

Some of the better I've seen. Still has some plastic skin and oversaturated highlights, but mitigated on set and embraced in post rather than poorly hidden. He's got good taste. That looks fine. The video of flowers just looks pretty because it's flowers in shallow focus, but the color and tonality are... meh.

The F5 is in a weird place. It's not an Amira and it's not even a Dragon. It's too inelegant to be a C300, though technically it's superior. I don't hate it, but I can't think of anything for which it would be my first choice. FS7 and C300 Mk II would take the cake for me as regards similar cameras, Alexa mini if you have more money; C300 if you have much less. Not here to hate, just here to recommend even better options given the current landscape...

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