B-Cam, GH1 or 5D Mark II?

L

lbigdogg

Member
This is a touchy subject in the respective forums, so I thought I would look for help and opinions here.

My uses: mainly event and high school related stuff, maybe some narrative work on the side if i ever find the time. what i want is a camera that i can use with the hmc150 and that has
1. great low light capabilities
2. and easy to get shallow dof.
3. a nice bonus would be more zoom than the hmc150

Gh1:
Pros: lower cost, being able to use a variety of lenses, small form factor, variable frame rates and resolution, great battery preformance, easier match with hmc150?
Cons: mud, harder to find (though I am willing to wait a month or so), not nearly as good as a still camera, low bitrate, low light preformance still up in the air.

5d Mark II
Pros: slap your momma gorgeous video (will that be hard to match with the hmc150?), fantastic low light, great still camera, still lots of options with canon/tamron/etc lenses. and available at bb stores with no interest financing (negates the higher price somewhat)
Cons: jello ( but wouldn't i use the hmc150 for those kinds of shots), record times, higher cost, no variable frame rates (yet?) or variable resolution (not a big deal).

just thinking out loud, appreciate opinions and especially all the help i've gotten here over the years i've been lurking. so, what would you get?

g.
 
I don't think either of these cameras will make a good b-camera to the HMC, it will be pretty difficult to cut between the two seamlessly.
 
These type of questions get asked here all the time... You can find more on some older posts.

Honestly, it depends on your personal needs. If you are doing a bunch of concerts, events and weddings like me.... I shoot with 2 HMC150's, We just sync settings and I know the footage will look amazing and exactly the same.

If you want to get all crazy artsy shots (that you have to buy expensive lenses for) then get a SLR.

Of course I would get the Mark II. I only use canon for PICTURES.
 
I have the 150, and just bought the 5D. I'll be using it at a wedding week after next.

My predicament is what the Canon's footage is going to do to my Panny footage. Will it be so stellar that my 150's video will look like crap by comparison?
 
D.R. Gates said:
I have the 150, and just bought the 5D. I'll be using it at a wedding week after next.

My predicament is what the Canon's footage is going to do to my Panny footage. Will it be so stellar that my 150's video will look like crap by comparison?
Click to expand...

I don't think so, I think they will cut together fine. Just vary the distances as two side by side images will magnify the differences.

Between the GH1 and the Mark II, IMO its really just a matter of what you can afford. If you can afford the Mark II, get it. Its a higher end camera in almost all regards. But if you can't afford it, the GH1 may be a good second choice.
 
You're right, that mixed fairly well.

Of course during the ceremony, it's easier to tell which is which. The Canon's CMOS rolling shutter make that fairly evident.
 
I think it should match pretty well and if not, then just utilize each at it's strenghts. I'd put the 150 as the wide shot, get the Mark ii on the close-ups with the narrow DOF and should look pretty nice.
 
too swing the conversation the other way a bit, i'm really liking some of the footage that is coming out from the gh1 now. i don't think the low bitrate would be that big a problem with the kind of closeup shallow dof shots that Justyn is refering to. and i would think the footage would match fairly well with its brother panasonic hmc150. i love the look of this footage http://vimeo.com/5226497 shot with a simple fd 50mm lens.

g.
 
I too have seen great video from the GH1.

Just because I bought a 5DM2, it doesn't mean I won't be checking out that little puppy when it's available stateside and we hear more reports from users.
 
i too have been pondering an HMC150 and 5DM2 combination for event videography. i think with color correction and strictly using both cameras to their strengths (hmc150 for panning/wide shots and 5DM2 for close ups and cutaways) the footage should be pretty seamless?

:undecided
 
I asked about the HMC150 vs. GH1 comparison because I own the HMC150 & Canon 5DM2. I've only had the HMC150 for four days now. I'm currently on a shoot and so far the HMC150 looks like CRAP compared to the 5DM2.

I'm hoping I have something set wrong on the HMC150. I'm shooting PH 1080/30p with a few tweaks to the "Scene File" settings.
 
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uh oh, i would love to see a snippet of your 5DM2/HMC150 intercut footage if get the chance.
 
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