FS7: After over a year...you guys still liking FS7?

The lack of TC in without the extension is pretty bad but I think I'll get around it in the future by going out to PIX-E or Shogun Flame or simlar and syncing to that when needed
 
for the fellas not using the handgrip, how are you going through the menu quickly? using the menu on the body? doesn't that take too long?
 
Yes menus buttons on the body but I have a user menu with direct access to the stuff I need, plus the various buttons on the camera mapped to what I need, plus various all files saved for various setups.
 
Ben Scott said:
What?

TV sets in 'store mode' all showing the same thing look vastly different and tend to the garish side of things in order to stand out.

Canon's 'Standard' profile has a bold hifi edge that is great for a lot of applications but not necessarily my bag. That said if shooting log that all goes out of the window.
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I prefer to log`n grade but some times you just dont have the time, and ive yet to find a bakeable LUT that i like.

The Canon standard profile is GREAT for family photos. And other events where theres really no incentive to post-process everything. Its much better than the phone, and in many cases, its exactly the phone camera that documents day to day situations.

When the need to post-process the FS7 colors arise, you sort of price yourself out of the cheapest work because Canon shooters can just offload decent looking material to corporate clients. While FS7 users dont get the same luxury unless you have found a LUT you really like. But even then, your white balance will be skewed since you only really have 3 options.
 
Martin.G said:
I prefer to log`n grade but some times you just dont have the time, and ive yet to find a bakeable LUT that i like.

The Canon standard profile is GREAT for family photos. And other events where theres really no incentive to post-process everything. Its much better than the phone, and in many cases, its exactly the phone camera that documents day to day situations.

When the need to post-process the FS7 colors arise, you sort of price yourself out of the cheapest work because Canon shooters can just offload decent looking material to corporate clients. While FS7 users dont get the same luxury unless you have found a LUT you really like. But even then, your white balance will be skewed since you only really have 3 options.
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Really sorry to say but this isn't true unless you haven't taken the time to get to know your camera.

Watch the F1 and you'll see the pitlane is absolutely filled with FS7s all going out live and not being graded before broadcast and looking great.

From the live stream stuff I have done to the big corporates where I am not involved in post I have never had an issue with this.

As long as you know what you're doing, the FS7 just works.
 
Martin.G said:
I prefer to log`n grade but some times you just dont have the time, and ive yet to find a bakeable LUT that i like . . . (edit) . While FS7 users dont get the same luxury unless you have found a LUT you really like. But even then, your white balance will be skewed since you only really have 3 options.
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Why limit yourself to LUTs? The camera has a great Custom Mode with dozens of paint menus and custom white balance controls that go where LUTs never could. I know there are others who are going to disagree, but I will tell you that 99% of whatever you can do with a LUT you can better with a scene file . . . and more.
 
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I don't know if I agree with Doug about " 99% of whatever you can do with a LUT you can better with a scene file." But my experience is that you can make a scene file look quite good and I've never had a complaint about mine. Granted I have my own matrix settings but there are plenty out there to try out. The anti-Sony Look people really go way overboard about this.
 
Doug Jensen said:
Why limit yourself to LUTs? The camera has a great Custom Mode with dozens of paint menus and custom white balance controls that go where LUTs never could. I know there are others who are going to disagree, but I will tell you that 99% of whatever you can do with a LUT you can better with a scene file . . . and more.
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Thats the thing. Ive tried some scene files too and i still dont like what im getting.

Its hard to explain, because its all down to preference and taste. It has nothing to do with how popular the camera is with TV broadcast or sports broadcast (to be honest, i really, passionately hate the look in almost all tv broadcast programs, typ. REC709). Its just taste. And we can argue until we die, theres no way to agree.

I have never been blown away by the initial footage coming out of the camera.

Im not a stranger to the idea that it might just be my taste thats difficult :-)
 
Martin.G said:
Thats the thing. Ive tried some scene files too and i still dont like what im getting.
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Understandable. But then why not get into the menus and set up a scene file that you DO like? I'm not saying you can tweak it until you get the look of Alexa or something, but there is a huge range of WYSIWYG looks that can be created with a scene file that would look as good as any LUT or whatever Canon look someone wants to emulate. The camera has all the ingredients for the recipe, you just have to decide how to mix and bake them.
 
The biggest limitation with scene files is that there is no way to desaturate the highlight roll off in the HG curves, IMHO saturated highlights scream video look.
 
Thanks Nirv, I was waiting for you to say that. I almost predicted in my post yesterday but I decided to let you say it for yourself. In my experience this is not a problem, and if that is the only argument that can be made against using scene files, it should not stop anyone from using them instead of baking in a LUT. The advantages outweigh.
 
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Doug Jensen said:
Thanks Nirv, I was waiting for you to say that. I almost predicted in my post yesterday but I decided to let you sat it for yourself. In my experience this is not a problem, and if that is the only argument that can be made against using scene files, it should not stop anyone from using them instead of baking in a LUT. The advantages outweigh.
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Glad I didn't disappoint ;)

There are highlight desaturation settings for the REC709 curves in the Paint menu which don't work with the HG curves which is a shame because the Paint menu does offer a lot of scope for making an excellent baked image along with WB.

I wasn't suggesting anyone not to use Scene Files, I have several Scene Files for various shooting conditions but I prefer the baked LUT approach as that gives me the highlights I prefer if (I have to bake a look in camera.)

The fact there are a myriad of different approaches to shooting with the same camera is a great strength and unheard of in a camera of this price before.
 
And it explains why the idea of using scene files and paint menus to create a nice finished look in-camera so foreign to some people. Most cameras from other manufacturers just don't have the horsepower to do it so it's not how they are used to working. Some folks just want to punch in a LUT and walk away -- same as they do in post. And just like real grading in post, scene files require a little more effort to create and fine-tune to your taste, but it is worth it.
 
Doug Jensen said:
And it explains why the idea of using scene files and paint menus to create a nice finished look in-camera so foreign to some people. Most cameras from other manufacturers just don't have the horsepower to do it so it's not how they are used to working. Some folks just want to punch in a LUT and walk away -- same as they do in post. And just like real grading in post, scene files require a little more effort to create and fine-tune to your taste, but it is worth it.
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You're trying hard to make it sound like punching in a LUT is the cheats way out and of course some people do just download someone else's LUT load 'em and go but there are many others who are painstakingly crafting their own looks for post or burning in camera. The FS7 suits whatever 'tradition' you or your workflow requires and neither is the wrong way just same same but different.

I don't know of any other camera at this level that allows burning of LUTs even the C300 II doesn't (AFAIK), for me it's a huge selling point and I wish Sony would consider it for their Video camera line too along with SLog3/CineEI recording.
 
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