I have moved up from a DVC30 to the AC90 and have only used it a few times and need the practice. A friend of mine wanted to shoot a video in his back yard. I figured I'll really test the camera out and see what it does in bright sun with dark shadows. I have posted the video on YouTube if you want to have a look. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5n_TJqcBxg I new I would have a problem with the sun and then zooming in on a dark area. I use a 7" portable tv for a monitor for framing and watching the meters. I used scene 4 and first set to auto. I wanted to see what the camera would do zooming from sun into dark. Not too good. What was nice was I am able to push the iris button off and on when filming. When I would zoom in I manually set the iris, but when zooming out I would let the camera set the iris. When looking at the monitor the dark was really dark and the bright was almost over exposed. I just trusted the meters and hoped for the best. I'm not the best cameraman, I just shoot what is in front of me and adjust as I go. I guess that is run and gun? When I got back home and looked at the footage I was pleasently surprised. I did notice some focusing problems when I zoomed in. I was about 10 feet from the black forge and about 20 feet from the green forge. Maybe this will help someone who is thinking of getting the camera and wanted to know how it performed in these conditions.
AC90: AC90 in direct sun with dark shadows.
- Thread starter jimith
- Start date
The difference between the highlights and low-lights is mostly a factor of the dynamic range of the camera. You are dealing with an 8 bit camera with probably just 8-10 stops of dynamic range like the Cannon 5d Mark II. When you say its "not too good", that statement doesn't seem to have a reference. Not too good as compared to what? I do see you have some experience with the iris, but if you are relying on Auto Iris that is a very lengthy discussion, where the bottom line is pros rarely use Auto Iris. The main reason is few cameras are yet as smart as we are. I've not seen one where it adjusts quickly and perfectly to some small object in the distance, but rather they favor the overall amount of light coming in. If you read Barry's book he talks in length (over 3 pages) about proper exposure. You are making a big mistake to rely on any type of monitor to adjust exposure unless it is displaying the histogram and zebras (was that the meter you are referring too) or are you looking just at the f stops? I rely mostly on the histogram (its up all the time), I use zebras for 100% and 70% and I use the spot exposure meter. I make sure what I am looking at is "all in the histogram" and not off the screen to the right or left. Too me the histogram is so vital I wish it was a full screen. I really watch what happens to the histogram (especially when things are low lit) so I can get a feel of what I am loosing image wise. Based on all those factors I can then manually adjust the iris. Even beyond that I have an external monitor with false color and that too will add to the judgement I make on the iris setting. I wish I had a WFM because I would be looking at that too! I do some run and gun work and what most of would do with this camera is if we are in a hurry start rolling on full auto, then switch to manual iris and adjust. Then to manual focus. One other observation, you need to be using an ND filter in the light you were working with. I can bet your Auto settings were messing with your shutter speed, and its own variable (and somewhat goofy) ND. Are you able to keep the iris below 6.8 or 8.0 at the very least? If not then a added ND is required for best operation. Your talent and his shirt are over-exposed (because there is no detail in a large area of his shirt... its just white) which is quite a mistake so I am pretty sure you did not adjust with 100% zebras on. Finally I enjoyed the interview. All the pretty colors and equipment. It was neat to look at.
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My main reason for posting was to show how good the camera did in extreme contrast by someone not use to using the camera. "Not Good" meant the auto iris didn't show the dark when I was zooming in, sorry for the confusion. I wanted to see how the auto iris worked because I'm busy and can't alway use the manual functions. Because the dark was very dark I was afraid to use a ND filter. Could have I used a ND filter and still been able to get enough light in the dark areas?
