5d mkiii vs the Sony

[morgan_moore]

Everyone has different needs, I record to cards so no HDMI issues, sound synch has never been an issue for me - I always record sound externally, and there's only a one stop difference in DOF between the 5d3 and FS. In terms of holding focus the difference between f4 on a FF and f4 on a 1.5x crop is pretty insignificant. Move the FF to 5.6 and you have the same DOF, not really a big deal.

Absolutely - everyone does have different needs. Certainly synch sound is an option - but when you seen the youngsters goofing with an H4n with flat batts that becomes pretty painful - a proper paid and equipped sound operator is of course a great option

As for the HDMI - I make an assumption - to hold focus you are going to need an external monitor of some form - driven through the HDMI port - I make this assumption for both the FS100 and DSLR cameras.

Now there are two distinctions between the FS100 and the canons - on the FS100 the HDMI is large and well placed - unlike the canons which have a mini HDMI in a vulnerable position close to the operator in most builds - and this is important and little known - if the HDMI wobbles not only does the operator lose his vision but with a DSLR the shot is cut and lost - with the FS100 the HDMI lead can be pulled and the shot is not cut - a major difference IMO

It is my personal experience that once you lose a couple of important paid for shots due to HDMI wobble on a DSLR you will not feel that it is professionally responsible to go near them again on an important shot - ever

Now I do own a D600 and a Nex5n, and they are useful - wonderful - videography tools - but mainly used in rigging where the hdmi is removed before rolling and focus is checked using the pre-roll magnification facility - ie I would use them for car mount - tight spots or a wide Broll interview cam - of course with wide shots moiree comes in to play but the speed trade off of mounting these light cameras overrides that in many situations.

S

[David G. Smith]

Focus was always a problem, for me, when I shot with a DSLR (Canon T2i, even with a Hoodman loupe). With the FS-100, the focus peaking function in the on board LCD is a God send. While I do use an external monitor every time I can, I have shot "Run n' Gun" with the FS-100, using vintage manual lenses, with just the on board LCD monitor and the supplied eyepiece/loupe and have nailed the focus without issues because of the focus peaking. I won't go back to a DSLR just because of the on board focus peaking on the FS-100. Life is too short, ya know.

The only time I have had an issue with the FS-100 focus peaking was a shoot I was on where I was shooting a live band on stage. I normally use the red peaking, but the band switched to red lighting on stage and the peaking could not be seen. I took a second and switched the peaking to the yellow peaking and went back to work with out further issue. For that shoot I was using a 28 - 105mm f 2.8-3.5 Vivitar Series 1 zoom, and spent most of my time at 105mm/f3.5 and did not have any issues with the focus. I do not think I could have done that with a DSLR, even with an external monitor. An external monitor actually would have been a burden on that shoot as it was a run and gun situation.

Everyone to there own needs, absolutely. For me, I need a proper video camera, and the the Sony FS-100 is that, in spades.

[photochris]

Forgot to mention Magic Lantern adds video camera features such as peaking, zebras, and a magnified view box that makes it a snap to check/keep focus while recording - along with false colors, scopes and so on. Lots of the ML features cannot be duplicated in anything else in this price range without an external monitor. There are also a ton of other useful features that make life with a 5d much better such as an intervalometer, live bulb, HDR modes, rack focusing, custom exposure modes and more.

[jcs]

I purchased two 5D3's when they first came out. I already knew it was soft from Tonis' example footage posted before launch. I found that post sharpening made the footage decent. When I received my cameras, I knew I would have to post-sharpen to get rid of the excessive blur. There was a huge backlash for the 5D3 softness when it came out. Not many folks really listened when I posted that post-sharpening could help the 5D3 provide a decent image. I did some test shots showing post-sharpening works: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkFmhKoUEv4 . Folks commented it shouldn't be necessary to post-sharpen, post-sharpening took too much time (lol), post-sharpening looked bad, etc. Very few folks accepted that the 5D3 provided decent resolution and sharpness if post-sharpened. Some folks even removed the OLPF and posted results. Interestingly, while I was able to post-sharpen their example footage to almost match the no-OLPF shots, I could not quite get there. OLPF removal ended up being a dead end, though. Later I emailed Philip Bloom and he tried it and posted the results- instantly post-sharpening became the accepted solution for the 5D3's softness. The interesting lesson in social psychology is the power of suggestion. When an 'unknown' makes a statement, even when accompanied with examples and proof, the message isn't really heard or accepted by many. When a known 'tastemaker' makes the same statement, many folks instantly believe it. While this makes sense, the point is that folks are best served by doing their own research and tests, and seeing for themselves what works, regardless of who is saying what.

When I read the Metabones whitepaper for the Speed Booster, I knew that from the physics of the design that it should work as per the paper, and ordered one right after the announcement. I had read the reviews of the FS700 and felt along with the Speed Booster it would make a decent upgrade for the 5D3, allowing me to continue using the Canon L lenses I owned, providing a full frame view very similar to the 5D3. When I received the new gear, a quick test showed that the FS700 + Speed Booster and a little color post work could look very similar to the 5D3's 'magic', only sharper, more detailed and cleaner (Nanoflash rocks in low-light and fast motion- no low-bitrate H.264 compression artifacts). The Speed Booster is a 1.09 crop- not quite full frame, but close enough, and the bokeh is very similar to the 5D3 with the same lens: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H46dqOxVBIk. The extra T-stop of light is very trick and useful.
It is also very welcome to be able to directly plug in a good mic directly into the camera and get a high-quality, low noise result. It's possible with the 5D3, however a decent preamp (Sound Devices, JuicedLink, etc.) is required (more gear, more complexity).

Combine the slow motion, built in ND's, ability to use autofocus and smooth servo zoom lenses, and it's easy to see why the FS700 is such a great upgrade for the 5D3.

The FS700 isn't perfect- it's not quite 1000+ lines H, V, and diagonal, more like ~900 lines of resolution H, ~1000 in V and 1000+ in diagonal (interesting design): http://www.eoshd.com/comments/topic/...a-resolutions/ (still better than the 5D3's ~800 resolution), and it does weird stuff on high-contrast, low detail edges (looks like a bug to me)- fortunately rare and most folks won't notice (perhaps the firmware upgrade for 4K (really 2.xK) 12-bit RAW will fix this bug).

The only thing I miss about the 5D3 vs. the FS700 is the stealth factor. Most folks think the 5D3 is shooting stills however when they see the FS700 they know it's video (and sometimes ask if I'm shooting for TV- unwanted attention).
Looking forward to the April firmware update for the 5D3. Like many others, I'm hoping that they'll include other needed features, however all we can expect is usable 422 out via HDMI. If the 5D3 improves as much as the FS700 did recording externally for fast motion and low light, it will be a welcome improvement for the 5D3.

In summary, an FS100 with a good picture profile (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread...icture-Profile) is already an excellent upgrade to the 5D3. FS700 with stock picture profiles (as well as even better custom versions such as http://noahyv.com/v2/fs700-picture-profile-guide/) is an even greater upgrade. As expected, cost increases with performance and features.

[morgan_moore]

Rigging up my new D600 Ive just remembered another 'critical flaw' of DSLRs for film making

The single 1/4 thread to mount by - meaning the camera can spin when used with a follow focus

The FS100 has a multitude of threaded mount points in comparison.

Yes - the 'problems' of DSLR can be beaten by HDMI clamps, cages, sound recorders and the like - but these items are so expensive as to fast make and FS100 seem cheap..


S

[squig]

Rigging up my new D600 Ive just remembered another 'critical flaw' of DSLRs for film making

The single 1/4 thread to mount by - meaning the camera can spin when used with a follow focus

S

Get a really right stuff quick release, the lever one is the bomb.

[morgan_moore]

Get a really right stuff quick release, the lever one is the bomb.

Sure - that would work - but not cheap especially if you change cams (ive gone from 5d2 to d600) - its just part of the 'unseen' cost of DSLR shooting

S