Exposure control on 5D Mark II

Emanuel

Emanuel

Cross-Examiner
Posted three hours ago:


http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1032&message=30332040&changemode=1


«Theres been lots of threads about how you can't set the aperture for video on the 5Dmk2. Particularly with regard to using wide apertures in daylight shooting.

One method is to use lenses with aperture rings. eg. nikon lenses via an adaptor.

However theres another way I found which seems to work with AF Canon lenses so long as you choose an aperture and ISO setting which is "within limits" and has a shutter speed of over 1/40th. sec.

1)With the camera NOT in live view - Select Aperture on the mode dial
2)Choose the aperture you want to use.
3)Set the ISO you want to use.
4)Go to menu - choose Live View/Movie func. set
5)Choose LV func. setting
6)Choose Stills+Movie
7)Choose Exposure simulation
8)Press the Live View button
9)Focus
10)Press the AE lock button
11)Press record

This seems to work so long as the shutter speed isn't below 1/40 sec.

I've shot a lot of footage in bright sunlight using lenses wide open f/1.8 f/2.8 etc.

Following these steps the video records in the selected aperture. You can check this by slightly depressing the shutter butter.

Also if you set the on/off switch to the Quick control dial switch you can make +/- adjustments while shooting (It changes the ISO speed)

Hopefully I've not missed anything out. If anybody knows a simpler way that would be useful.»


~ David Martyn
 
Last edited:
It isn't necessary to be so hard. You can customize it. As simple as that.

It also works in manual mode. Even though just for wide apertures:

«Manual mode seems to work as well:

1)With the camera NOT in live view - Select Manual on the mode dial
2)Choose the aperture you want to use.
3) Choose the shutter speed > 1/40th
3)Set the ISO to Auto.
4)Go to menu - choose Live View/Movie func. set
5)Choose LV func. setting
6)Choose Stills+Movie
7)Choose Exposure simulation
8)Press the Live View button
9)Focus
10)Press record

The affect of depth was clearly there with bright sunlight

I panned from a very bright to a dark area and the picture wasn't underexposed as it changed the ISO accordingly to what was needed.

I made custom function of this under C3 and all you need to do now is just select the dial C3, then go to live view, focus on the subject and start recording....»


http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=30337039


Going with a shutter speed faster than 1/30 and slower than 1/125, you'd be able to mimic the 180 degrees 1/48 shutter and have acceptable results in a suitable software method for the 24p conversion.
 
Emanuel said:
It isn't necessary to be so hard. You can customize it. As simple as that.

It also works in manual mode. Even though just for wide apertures:

«Manual mode seems to work as well:

1)With the camera NOT in live view - Select Manual on the mode dial
2)Choose the aperture you want to use.
3) Choose the shutter speed > 1/40th
3)Set the ISO to Auto.
4)Go to menu - choose Live View/Movie func. set
5)Choose LV func. setting
6)Choose Stills+Movie
7)Choose Exposure simulation
8)Press the Live View button
9)Focus
10)Press record

The affect of depth was clearly there with bright sunlight

I panned from a very bright to a dark area and the picture wasn't underexposed as it changed the ISO accordingly to what was needed.

I made custom function of this under C3 and all you need to do now is just select the dial C3, then go to live view, focus on the subject and start recording....»


http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=30337039


Going with a shutter speed faster than 1/30 and slower than 1/125, you'd be able to mimic the 180 degrees 1/48 shutter and have acceptable results in a suitable software method for the 24p conversion.
Click to expand...
Seems obvious it can be a solution. Thank you Emanuel. Any D50 MK2 photographer can check it please?
 
I thought you could simply:

-Set the aperture in Av mode

-Hold depth of field preview button

-Unlock the lens (contact between the lens and camera) which will hold the aperture you set in Av mode.

-Then go to live view and record.

I thought this was a confirmed way to set aperture in the 5DII. No?
 
f64manray said:
I thought you could simply:

-Set the aperture in Av mode

-Hold depth of field preview button

-Unlock the lens (contact between the lens and camera) which will hold the aperture you set in Av mode.

-Then go to live view and record.

I thought this was a confirmed way to set aperture in the 5DII. No?
Click to expand...


Disconnecting my lens just doesn't seem like a nice option personally.
 
Joseph Stunzi said:
Disconnecting my lens just doesn't seem like a nice option personally.
Click to expand...

Seems better than the other 10 step process. Personally, I think unlocking it is safe. I don't think the lens is going to fall off. It's got about two inches of travel before it comes off. Seems like a good option if it works.
 
Personally, I'll be using Zeiss ZFs with a Nikon to Canon adapter or Zeiss Contax lenses with a Contax to Canon adapter if I ever get the 5D2. Personally, I think it's primitive technology.

I'd rather not risk my lens falling off and go through 10 steps. They're not really that bad once you get into it. I did it when testing the 5D2 in Chicago.
 
Oh my goodness, are a few of you used to read the other posts?

Should I post it in capital letters?

Read it 1st before posting please. Here is again:

Emanuel said:
What 10 step process? The same you can customize in a dial step?

«I made custom function of this under C3 and all you need to do now is just select the dial C3, then go to live view, focus on the subject and start recording....»

Before any assessment, take a better reading on this link already above-provided, please:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=30337039
Click to expand...
 
Since some most recent tests have been showing how far this method can be misleading:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=30343107

http://cinema5d.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=270&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=20#p3041



Here's the best method, then:

http://www.vimeo.com/2530166

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=30357231&changemode=1

http://www.cinema5d.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=277


Here's an interesting review by cameralabs.com pointing the same solutions route (+ use of ND filters as we all know or can guess):

«The 5D Mark II shoots all video in a fully automatic Program AE mode regardless of what position the Command dial is set at. So the camera automatically sets the shutter, aperture and ISO sensitivity itself with no direct manual control over any of them. There’s also no control over the metering or colour space, nor is there any noise reduction applied, but the movie mode does adopt the current White Balance and Picture Style, along with applying Peripheral Illumination Correction, Highlight Tone Priority and Auto Lighting Optimizer if enabled. Thankfully, the Mark II also allows you to apply exposure compensation (which tends to adjust the ISO value), along with locking the exposure, both of which provide a certain degree of creative control.

The movie mode may be automatic, but various requirements and preferences make it unlike shooting stills in auto. For example since adjusting the aperture results in audible clicks and visible jumps in brightness, the 5D Mark II will avoid changing it while filming unless it really has no other choice. For the minimum disruption it first adjusts the sensitivity (with the complete range of 100 to 6400 ISO at its disposal). It’ll then adjust the shutter speed, with Canon quoting a range between 1/30 and 1/125, although we found it sometimes reporting slightly slower or faster speeds. Then if all else fails, it’ll change the aperture, normally in big jumps, such as from f5.6 to f16.

You can see what values it’s chosen for the aperture, shutter and ISO by half-pressing the shutter release during Live View, so long as you’ve previously configured the Live View function to Stills and Movie, and the screen to Movie Display as mentioned above. You may however be surprised by the Mark II’s selections at times.

With a top shutter speed of just 1/125 (or thereabouts), the camera frequently chooses a very small aperture under bright conditions. Without intervention, we found the camera regularly filming video at f16 or even f22 on Sunny days (see menu grab above). This of course throws any initial thoughts of a small depth of field out the window. While the 2 Megapixel resolution of 1080p means diffraction is less of an issue at such small apertures, there are additional concerns over sensor dust becoming more visible – indeed the tiny hair seen in the anti-dust section of the previous page became an annoying fixture in the corner of most of our outdoor footage, when automatically shot at f22. If you download the clip we've provided at Vimeo (see later), you'll see it in the top left corner.

Take the Mark II indoors where you’d hope its fast lenses and large sensor would have a big advantage, and you’ll often find it increasing the sensitivity to as much as 3200 ISO rather than slowing the shutter or opening the aperture. So with your first filming attempts, you’ll probably end up with a huge depth of field outdoors and disappointingly noisy results indoors. But as anyone who’s watched numerous professional clips taken with the 5D Mark II knows, there’s obviously some ways around it.

A number of workarounds have been discovered including setting the desired aperture in Av mode, before shooting video with the Live View screen set to Exposure Simulation rather than Movie Display. Another solution we found reasonably effective for acquiring a small depth of field is to first point the camera somewhere dark, then lock the exposure as soon as the desired f-number is displayed. As mentioned above, the Mark II often makes big jumps in the aperture value, but it’s quite easy to persuade the EF 24-105mm to jump from f16 to f5.6 or f4.0. We also found the EF 50mm f1.2 would open up to f2.0 or even f1.2 when pointed at something sufficiently dark.

At this point, the Mark II will also almost certainly have increased the sensitivity to 1600 or 3200 ISO, inevitably resulting in a gross overexposure when you recompose your shot. The trick now though is to turn the thumb wheel to apply negative exposure compensation, reducing the ISO with each step; hopefully you’ll have enough steps to get the desired exposure. We found starting this process with the compensation set to +2EV before locking the exposure gives you greater latitude for subsequent reduction.

While this technique can work wonders for combining larger apertures and low ISOs for clean indoor results, there’s less opportunity outdoors under Sunny conditions. The fact is with a relatively slow maximum shutter speed (and a habit of selecting slower speeds than it needs to), the camera will have little choice but to match it with a very small aperture even at 100 ISO. If you want a small depth of field under bright conditions, you simply have no choice but to fit neutral density filters.»

[ LINK ]



For faster shutter speed and certain kind of 'Saving Private Ryan' style, more info here:

http://cinema5d.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=208&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=10#p2444

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/canon-eo...shutter-speed-1-40-1-8000-iso-workaround.html
 
The fact that the Mark II shows you your shooting info (aperture, ISO and shutter) during LiveView makes it totally possible to get manual control by "tricking" the camera. For us over in D90 land, we just mess with it till the exposure looks decent...no clue what our camera is actually doing.

GRRRrrrrrr. :Drogar-Mad(DBG):
 
Well, after a while we'll know, even if just by self experimentation and experience with it.
ND filters work for both cams.
 
alexandroff said:
with nikon 1.2 or 1.4 manual primes and nikon to cannon body lenses adapter, am I correct to say that I will have a full manual control over aperture and will only have to worry about getting the camera to do the right shutter/iso?
Click to expand...
I don't have the camera yet. But everything does seem to indicate that anyone can infer it. You should be 100% correct.
 
What about using a Nikon or Zeiss manual prime lens? Then, I assume, all you need to worry about is shutter speed. Does anyone know about the shutter speed control on the MarkII?
 
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