5D MKIII specs

[squig]

Lucas Pfaff (@camerarick) is shooting a short with my extended-DR picture styles this weekend - he said "I need any stop I can, it's a subway on the outside with BRIGHT windows I'll keep you posted if it worked good!" - let's see how it goes...
http://twitter.com/#!/CameraRick/status/180778879047307267

With the MKII or MKIII?

I suspect that cinestyle was actually designed for the MKIII to be shown at NAB last year but was delayed due to the Tsunami. So far it seems like there is a lot of MKIII stock available suggesting that Canon have been building them for a while. Canon also probably held off with the release because MKIIs have been selling well and Nikon hadn't released the D800. The biggest problem with cinestyle is noise in the shadows which the MKIII largely addresses.

 

[cowpunk52]

And even then... well... C300 seems like a mistake more than ever now... mark my words in this post.

I just finished shooting for four days at SXSW with two C300's for NBC. The camera is so far from being a "mistake" that I can't even begin the fathom the rational for posting something like that.

 

[Emanuel]

Yeah I think you'll find almost all of the examples so far are shot with EOS glass. EOS vs Leica glass is night and day.

Even EOS glass. It is not all the same quality. Any difference in aperture, use of extenders for example, brings a change, sometimes noticeable.

 

[Kholi]

haha, well if you look strictly at IQ and work only in controlled environments maybe (and even then it is arguable IMO).

But I can give you the basic difference between the MK3 and the C300.

First time you take a 5DmkIII you will say: "Good! About time! Finally!". When you watch he footage you say: "Ok! Phew."

First time you grab a C300 you say: "Wow! What?! No way! Ahhh, clever. Incredible. Haha! Wootwoot. Hmmmmm....that is sweet." When you watch the footage you will say "Incredible! I need to dial that sharpness down. Whoa, that codec is awesome!"

So when you need the soft, over saturated FF look and you are happy with all the bitching and rigging the DSLR shooting gives you, fine. I see not many big steps in the MK3 so far especially with the steeper price, but at least it seems safer to use it with fewer dealbreakers in the image.
The C300 has so many features that are helping you as a cameraman and producer you need to consider those features in the price as much as the IQ alone.

I just finished shooting for four days at SXSW with two C300's for NBC. The camera is so far from being a "mistake" that I can't even begin the fathom the rational for posting something like that.

Sorry, I didn't mean in comparison to the 5D or anything like that.

Right now it sounds irrational. Definitely. A month ago the C300's price was justifiable. I hope NAB brings a severe price cut.

 

[cowpunk52]

I hope NAB brings a severe price cut.

I can say with 100% certainty that it will not.

 

[alpi69]

Yeah they won´t cut the price on the C300 and/or 5D. Maybe they bring a C100? maybe dropping the audio/LCD module which has the features (waveform, verctorscope, XLR, etc). Who knows, buit they won´t touch pricing of current devices. Why should they. The C300 sells like crazy...or at least they cannot deliver all that are ordered (3 of my friends are waiting for theirs and they paid in beginning of February).

I guess if a company brings news it is Panasonic. They are a bit left behind Sony and Canon after they started it all with the AF100

 

[Kholi]

You'd be surprised these days. Aren't we constantly? Seems like every few months one of these companies is trying to up the anti a bit.

 

[PappasArts]

You'd be surprised these days. Aren't we constantly? Seems like every few months one of these companies is trying to up the anti a bit.

Exactly. You can't predict with certainty these days on much. Just look what Sony did with it's 10bit S-log 422/444 option. once it cost $3,300 for the upgrade. Now it's just standard. This I'm sure was a response to Canon's C300 which has a bang out image. I got what you meant about the C300. It will be under cut sooner than later by other products. The product life cycles are so short these days compared to years ago.



Pappas
http://pappasarts.wordpress.com/
http://twitter.com/pappasarts

 

[cowpunk52]

You'd be surprised these days. Aren't we constantly? Seems like every few months one of these companies is trying to up the anti a bit.

To be honest (and i'm just disagreeing for the sake of conversation here), I think we're not surprised constantly. And that's the major problem. I've noticed a huge surge in complaining and dissatisfaction with new products over the last couple of years, and I contribute much of it primarily to unrealistic expectations. The word 'game-changer' is thrown about with reckless abandon, until people get their hands on a product or read it's official spec sheet - and the they realize that it doesn't have all the secret magic sauce they thought it would. With every new hint of an announcement as of late, I see people predict that it will be the perfect camera at the perfect price point - and it never is. Maybe these idealistic expectations all started with red's 3k for $3k announcement that never happened, and subconciously we're all still expecting it to be right around the corner. But it's not - instead, reality is; and it's making a lot of people on this forum and many others obviously upset and frustrated.

Oh - and the reality that's always hanging around the corner? It's the fact that features & performance come at a price. Just ask Jim Jannard about that.

 

[Kholi]

Yeah, well... okay~!
Just saying, things become outdated pretty fast these days. C300 is awesome, if it's gonna stay that price more power to it..

We'll see who does what in a few weeks.

Exactly. You can't predict with certainty these days on much. Just look what Sony did with it's 10bit S-log 422/444 option. once it cost $3,300 for the upgrade. Now it's just standard. This I'm sure was a response to Canon's C300 which has a bang out image. I got what you meant about the C300. It will be under cut sooner than later by other products. The product life cycles are so short these days compared to years ago.



Pappas
http://pappasarts.wordpress.com/
http://twitter.com/pappasarts

Sing it.

 

[squig]

We'll see who does what in a few weeks.

You know something don't ya?

 

[Kholi]

I know that it's almost warm again in LA and I am almost done with a sixth draft. Next feature, this year.

 

[cowpunk52]

Yeah, well... okay~!
Just saying, things become outdated pretty fast these days. C300 is awesome, if it's gonna stay that price more power to it..

We'll see who does what in a few weeks.

I don't think things go outdated as fast as you're thinking, especially as you go higher up the price/performance chain. And the C300 certainly won't be undercut and price dropped by it's own division when there are December orders that still aren't filled, when the PL-mount version hasn't even started shipping - and certainly not 2.5 months (by the 4/15 announcement) into it's launch date! Things may move fast these days, but not quite that fast. yet.

People should remember, when speculating about any possible Cinema EOS product announcement, that Cinema EOS is "Built from the ground up for the serious filmmaker" and is "Canon's commitment to provide professionals with the tools and support they need to tell their stories" (emphasis added). I don't know how you read that, but knowing Canon's pricing history, it doesn't make me think 'cheap.'

You're right, though, we'll know in a few weeks. But I'm just gonna start bracing now for the sh**storm of angry forum members who think that no camera should cost more than $6k because that's all they're willing to spend :evil:

 

[Kholi]

I'm personally not speculating about anything Canon. They're always slow.

Also think that you should be willing to pay for the goods, but eventually what was good last year will be outdated. And, yeah, they do go outdated that fast these days.

Maybe not within its own brand, but definitely outdated. If you look at what the C300 is, it was pretty much dead when it was released, but the IQ always speaks for itself to a certain extent. I wanted one myself, love how it handles, it's a fun and great camera.

 

[mico]

Years ago filmmakers like Cassavetes took their own money and a standard 16mm camera and went out and made their movies because they had something to say. They didn't care if standard 16mm was softer and grainer than 35mm. It was all they could afford and they happily lived with it because they felt lucky to even have a low cost option. And even without the accolades they would soon receive for their work they primarily won the best prize of all, they did what they wanted the way they wanted. Now theres a plethora of cameras that can put to shame the regular 16mm cameras Cassavetes used for a fraction of what those 16mm cameras cost to just rent, like the 5d MKll, and the anger seen so frequently lately might just be from people who have nothing to say.

 

[cowpunk52]

If you look at what the C300 is, it was pretty much dead when it was released

Ha ha - It has a funny way of being backordered by a few months for being a DOA camera! Orders placed today might not even see delivery until mid-summer.

yep, the C300 is pretty much dead.

 

[cowpunk52]

Now theres a plethora of cameras that can put to shame the regular 16mm cameras Cassavetes used for a fraction of what those 16mm cameras cost to just rent, like the 5d MKll, and the anger seen so frequently lately might just be from people who have nothing to say.

I personally think that a lot of people imagine a steady stream of perceived obsolescence as an excuse for inaction. 'Something better is just around the corner, so I will wait for that,' ad infinitum.

 

[squig]

I think the C300 is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what Canon can do with cine camera development. It's an area they just fell into by accident so they've had some catching up to do. Canon have had a RAW video patent for a while now and they have a lot more R&D resources than RED and ARRI. They also design and manufacture their own sensors. The MKIII isn't the holy cine grail and anyone who thought it was going to be has been smoking too much crack. However it already looks like a big improvement on the MKII and mine is heading for retirement.

 

[Kholi]

Ha ha - It has a funny way of being backordered by a few months for being a DOA camera! Orders placed today might not even see delivery until mid-summer.

yep, the C300 is pretty much dead.

I can see the rest of my post went ignored. Oh well. Happy shooting, CP.

 

[cowpunk52]

I can see the rest of my post went ignored. Oh well. Happy shooting, CP.

I apologize for being a bit selective in my quote - and fully recognize that you appreciate the IQ of the C300, specs withstanding. That being said, I guess that we're getting into the semantics of what does it mean to be 'outdated?' How does a camera that ticks every broadcaster's requirements right out of the box become outdated in 2 months and change (allegedly)? When does a camera become outdated? When a company tells us it is? When a new model comes out from another manufacturer? From the same manufacturer? When it's initial MSRP is discounted? When it is discontinued from sale? When broadcasters change their specifications? When it's image quality is so intensely surpassed by newer models that it looks like video taken with my new smartphone?

Is the AF100 out of date? The FS100? The EX1? The XF105? Red MX? F900? PMW350? HPX3700? 5d mark II? 7d? GH2?

I'm not being facetious, don't get the wrong idea. Given the nature of our discussion, I think these are legitimate questions. My personal opinion is that none of those cameras are currently outdated. They all have strengths and weaknesses and fit a certain bill of production requirements - and can easily produce quality results that can stand the test of time.