Best camera under $5000

I would vote against the BlackMagic 4K sensor. I don't think you're going to like the low dynamic range on that one. The 4.6K should be more than fine, but it's out of your budget.

And since you're already shooting Sony and don't mind a non-video-camera body, I would say, one of these:
* a7S II (it shoots 4K slog2 with slog3.cine color; the internal codec is good but not great) (it only shoots 4K in full frame mode, which means you need new glass)
* a7R II (very similar to the a7S II but without slog3.cine color; it shoots top-notch stills, no idea if you have a use for that) (it shoots great 4K in APS-C mode, you can keep using your glass; rolling shutter is very bad in 4K APS-C, though)
* a7S with external recorder (shoots 4K slog2 but without slog3.cine color) (it only shoots good 4K in full frame mode, which means you need new glass)
 
derbrocks09 said:
Red One MX.

They can be had really cheap these days.

I'd take one over any blackmagic camera anyday.
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Hah as long as you dont need 1080p monitoring/live and you like taking lots of breaks while the camera boots/restarts. Also, the power and media cost might push you over budget.
 
They are not looking for a cheap camera, but for a camera for low-budget projects. That's not the Red One MX, if you ask me.
 
The thread is to some extent pointless as all cams have pros and cons..

Ursa/Red - cheap, great images heavy and annoying to use
FS7 versatile
FS5 uber versatile, maybe weak images
A7 small light some image and usability pros and cons
GoPro.. tiny etc

S
 
Get a Samsung NX1 with 16-50S and 50-150S for less than 4K and call it done. Fantastic video AF, gorgeous 4K, excellent battery life and great stills if you need them.
Gladly accepts a dumb EF adapter so you can use Rokinon manual focus lenses if that is your thing, and you could save money on glass. So, theoretically you are into a
great 4K body for $1100 or so. Never mind what you have read about Samsung stopping production, this camera performs.
 
With your very tight budget but high demands, you'd need to compromise somewhere.... as it is just for smaller jobs where you're not sending out the FS7, surely you could compromise on the 4K requirement?

If so go with a Sony PMW-F3, it can be found for US$2K on the second hand market (or less!! I got mine for only US$1.2K earlier this year). Does one of the nicest images there is from a 1080 camera, very good low light, XLR inputs, interchangeable mounts, and has s-log just like your FS7.

The A7s mk1 is also going very cheap second hand these days, I'm tempted to get one as a B cam to my F3.

If you *must* have 4K, then grab a Samsung NX1. Best one there is at its pricing point!! Or get the even cheaper Panasonic G7, more or less the GH4 but at an even cheaper price point (though if you want 10bit output, get the more expensive GH4 instead).

http://www.eoshd.com/2015/02/samsung-nx1-vs-canon-c300/
http://www.eoshd.com/2014/11/samsung-nx1-review-glory-technology/

If low light doesn't matter, give the URSA Mini 4K a look. If you can stretch the budget then get the URSA Mini 4.6K (but by that point you might as well get an FS7!), or if you can only stretch the budget a little bit.... get the FS5 (but the price is so close to an FS7... why not just get a 2nd FS7??? And it has so many limitations, and only 8bit 420 4K). No doubt the FS5 is a very nice camera, but when its price is so close to the FS7... it can be a tough choice! I kinda feel similar about the A7s mk2 (or A7r mk2), it is so pricey... yet the FS5 is heaps and heaps better for a little bit more? (but then why not get an FS7.... and so the slippery slope starts! And you're back where you started, with another FS7! ha)

Thus my conclusion in the end is: get an F3 or NX1, they're dirt dirt cheap so if you only use it for a year or two there will be no regret! And by that point 4K will be more mature and you can pick up a bargain on the cheap (perhaps another FS7 or F5 or URSA Mini 4.6K at a very reduced price secondhand will then be affordable for you, or you could get an A7s mk2 for next to nothing in two years time! Or by then some kind of amazing A7s mk4 will be out?? :-P ).

What I mean by "4K being more mature" is that it is still very very early days in terms of high quality 4K cameras on the market, we're only just now seeing quality 4K cameras (with 10bit 422 at least) appearing in the mid range level pricing. Which is the Sony FS7 and URSA Mini 4K / BMPC4K (though these last two are not so great in low light... and not as good dynamic range). Or you can count the Canon C300 mk2 as well if your pricing definition of "mid range" stretches up that far. (can throw in Sony F5 / RED Scarlet MX / RED One MX as well, which are showing up secondhand at cheap enough prices) Point is, it still is only a fairly small selection number of cameras, many of which are still many thousands above your budget for a camera.

But give it another year or two and that will change, and they'll get cheaper and better, thus my point about getting an F3/NX1 for a year or two for now.
 
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Samuel, do you know if the 4K production camera has moire problems? Someone told me the pocket cam does, so I wondered about other BMD camera products as I am not that familiar with them as I am all other brands.

cheers,
 
starcentral said:
Samuel, do you know if the 4K production camera has moire problems? Someone told me the pocket cam does, so I wondered about other BMD camera products as I am not that familiar with them as I am all other brands.

cheers,
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No idea, sorry

(guess, without having tested it: it probably has some aliasing/moire issues, but nowhere as bad as with the pocket and the 2.5K, and definitely less of an issue for me than the very limited DR; I'd rather get an a7S II, a7R II, NX1, or even RX100 IV or RX10 II)
 
starcentral said:
Samuel, do you know if the 4K production camera has moire problems? Someone told me the pocket cam does, so I wondered about other BMD camera products as I am not that familiar with them as I am all other brands.

cheers,
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I believe I recall that the 4k camera doesn't have nearly the moire issues that the pocket and 2.5k cameras have.
 
abreu-canedo said:
Sure, FS7 would be ideal. 2 matching cameras is ideal. But that is more than twice the budget the OP has expressed.
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Well, B&H quote less than $8,000 for the FS7 - so more than the budget, but hardly twice as much. And.... you've got to think of cost savings that may be made via commonality of accessories, batteries, media, etc. And... resale value. The FS7 is likely to hold it's value reasonably well, and whilst it can't be guaranteed, I'd have more confidence in it than certain other cameras.

abreu-canedo said:
Also, different brands is just a matter of growing comfortable with the system...like anything. I am often going back and fourth from different systems and I take it upon myself to be professional. I suppose whether that will be an issue is up to the op to decide.
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But different brands often means differing ranges of accessories for each brand, it's not simply operator familiarity. If you are working for different clients - using their equipment - then going back and forth between different systems may be an operator inevitability. But why make your life more difficult if you don't have to?
 
harddrive said:
Well, B&H quote less than $8,000 for the FS7 - so more than the budget, but hardly twice as much. And.... you've got to think of cost savings that may be made via commonality of accessories, batteries, media, etc. And... resale value. The FS7 is likely to hold it's value reasonably well, and whilst it can't be guaranteed, I'd have more confidence in it than certain other cameras.


But different brands often means differing ranges of accessories for each brand, it's not simply operator familiarity. If you are working for different clients - using their equipment - then going back and forth between different systems may be an operator inevitability. But why make your life more difficult if you don't have to?
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Sounds good. Well, I was just trying to chime in, hoping to be helpful to the OP. It was my opinion on what I though he might do. You have a different opinion, you are free to voice it. I'm not interested in arguing about who's opinion is best. In any case, I hope this helps the OP, I guess.
 
starcentral said:
Rx100 M4 amazed me until I read 5 minute max record time. Is it true?
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I love my RX100 IV but it's clearly NOT the answer to the question in this thread. As a B-cam, sure, it's great. But just the size of the buttons would turn most people around here absolutely crazy in 5 minutes.

Regarding the time limit, shooting 1080p24 or 1080p60 it's the usual 30 minutes, but yes, it overheats in 5-to-12 minutes if you're shooting 4K, or 1080p at 120 fps. Here.
 
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