C300: Canon C300 Mark II Announced & Pre-Order List at Texas Media Systems

Distribution is irrelevant and has very little impact on my decision making process. What is relevant is the wants/needs of my clients and the creative treatments I submit to them. As a director/dp that services a few different markets(sports, fashion, commercial and pharmaceutical) and travels heavily, I need to be flexible and so does my tool set. I understand there is an abundance of videographers "bemoaning" for features they will only use shooting raindrops in their backyard, but I am not one of them.
So your clients are specifically asking for 4K 60p? What is their reasoning behind wanting that? There's only really three reasons for 4K that I can think of; 1. for 4K distribution so it will be sharper than upscaled 1080p, 2. for 1080p distribution where the ability to crop in post is desired, 3. just to sound cool and with the times, so basically a (marketing) gimmick. Which of those reasons are your clients wanting 4K 60p for?

What are you currently using for your apparently heavily needed 4K 60p needs? Sony FS7? Or is it a feature that your current camera doesn't have that you hope to provide to future clients on the basis of thinking they'll want it?
 
IDX AT-E2CMKII V-Mount Battery Adapter for Canon C300 Mark II

IDX AT-E2CMKII V-Mount Battery Adapter for Canon C300 Mark II

IDX announced a V-Mount Battery Adapter Plate for the Canon C300 Mark II.

IDX AT-E2CMKII V-Mount Battery Adapter Plate $225

AT-E2CMKII-Web-Product-Image-500-x-400.png


PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
  • V-Mount plate for Canon EOS C300 Mark II
  • Allows direct mounting of any high capacity IDX ENDURA Lithium Ion battery, while an integral DC cable with a genuine Lemo connector supplies battery power directly to the camera
  • (2) 50W D-Tap Outputs (unregulated) available for powering wireless transmitters, on-board recorders, lights, monitors, ect.
  • Mounts directly to the IDX A-CP(A) Universal Cheese Plate or any other suitable mounting plates on industry standard camera support rod systems.
  • Flexible mounting with 3 mounting hole configurations.
​Cable Output Voltage: 16.8~12V DC / Max Current 10A (120W)

D-Tap Output Voltage: 12~16.8V DC
Max. D-Tap Output: 50W per port
Cable Length: 12 inches/30cm approx.
Dimensions: 3.24(w) x 5.59(h) x 0.47(d) inch.
82.5(w) x 142(h) x 12(d) mm

Weight: 0.49 lbs. / 222 g.
Included Accessories: M3 x 8(mm) screw x 4

 
So your clients are specifically asking for 4K 60p? What is their reasoning behind wanting that? There's only really three reasons for 4K that I can think of; 1. for 4K distribution so it will be sharper than upscaled 1080p, 2. for 1080p distribution where the ability to crop in post is desired, 3. just to sound cool and with the times, so basically a (marketing) gimmick. Which of those reasons are your clients wanting 4K 60p for?

What are you currently using for your apparently heavily needed 4K 60p needs? Sony FS7? Or is it a feature that your current camera doesn't have that you hope to provide to future clients on the basis of thinking they'll want it?
Discovery's tier 1 level requires "big boy" 4k at 60p.......a ridiculous amount of data, especially in a reality show situation...

Jim Martin
EVSonline.com
 
Discovery's tier 1 level requires "big boy" 4k at 60p.......a ridiculous amount of data, especially in a reality show situation...
I don't know what Discovery's tier 1 is, but it sounds like you're saying one unique example is indicative of a future trend, which I doubt is a near term trend that will become a norm across networks and online distribution.
 
@Eric : It is just another creative tool, nothing more. Same as the dpaf, it doesn't replace a focus puller, but it does make life a little easier and gives us another wrench in the box. 75% of the time I'm shooting 24p, so no issues there but that 25% over crank is a crucial feature. I profile a lot of professional athletes that live all over the globe and 4k/60p 2k/120p are GREAT tools to capture them. They are fast, they are strong and they look great slowed down. These features will also age a little more gracefully over the next few years.

Having spent a s*%t ton of money renting this past year, it makes sense to go owner/op route. I decided on a budget of $20-25k and the mk II was a strong contender(own a great deal of Canon glass/bodies already) and I love the image quality. I knew there was no 4k60p which wasn't a deal breaker, but seeing how poor the 120p footage looks is most certainly a red flag. This camera looks to be about $19-20k ready to shoot and doesn't even offer an over cranking option. Sony enabled 4k internally on the f5 via a firmware update, my rant was a poor attempt at getting Canon to do the same :)
 
Sony enabled 4k internally on the f5 via a firmware update, my rant was a poor attempt at getting Canon to do the same :)

Sony got caught. It was a simple hack. I think it was kind of oversight in the part of Sony that they got caught. Hack the C300 Mark II to get 4K 60p and I am sure Canon too will be forced to offer it. If you can do that, then may be a couple of years later, Canon will be happy that they get more sales because of that hack induced 4K 60p. :D
 
... I profile a lot of professional athletes that live all over the globe and 4k/60p 2k/120p are GREAT tools to capture them. They are fast, they are strong and they look great slowed down...

Plus, there's a need for higher frame rate for a lot of machinery and special effects that Discovery does. I assume the "animal planet" is big on that as well for reasons beyond pure aesthetics.
 
It really boils down to spending $20k and being comfortable with what the camera will provide for the next 18-24 months. For documentary/news/narratives I'm sure the existing spec will make it a great option. As for my particular needs, I'm afraid this is out of the running.
 
I wasn't debating the need for high frame rate options; I was debating the need for 4K high frame rate options.

I don't consider 60p to be a "high frame rate". I view it as a slight over-crank and pretty much an industry standard feature, especially in a $16k professional camera. When they announced no 4k60p I turned to the lower resolution 120p(this I would consider entry level high frame rate).

It really boils down to spending $20k and being comfortable with what the camera will provide for the next 18-24 months. For documentary/news/narratives I'm sure the existing spec will make it a great option. As for my particular needs, I'm afraid this is out of the running. 
 
In the mean time, I think people will rely on the Odyssey 7Q+ to do the 60p at 4K........
With a different camera, as I am under the impression that it doesn't output 4K 60p. I believe Mitch Gross falsely thought it did early on but was later clarified that it didn't.
 
With a different camera, as I am under the impression that it doesn't output 4K 60p. I believe Mitch Gross falsely thought it did early on but was later clarified that it didn't.

The camera will only output 4k 30p in raw , but maybe they will release firmware to enable higher framerate possibly? I guess we will have to wait and see what canon does, if it is even possible.
 
Oh cool, I'm glad to see they added the light meters to the batteries. Those weren't on the earlier models that Philip Bloom and others were using.

Terry, do you expect a back-order and scarce availablility on batteries or will Canon likely be providing plenty of them to fulfill the C300 Mark II orders?
 
I'm hearing that the new batteries will be constrained.

BP-A30 are in stock as of today.

BP-A60 are back ordered.
 
maybe they will release firmware to enable higher framerate possibly?
They haven't yet, and I wouldn't expect them to in the future.

It was one thing the MKI owners have constantly asked about is a firmware update for 60p, but it never happened.
 
With a different camera, as I am under the impression that it doesn't output 4K 60p. I believe Mitch Gross falsely thought it did early on but was later clarified that it didn't.


Buy a used C500 and Odyssey 7Q for under $10K you will have your 4K 60p, 4K 120p, UHD 60p, 2k 12bit, ProRes etc. You can't beat it for the money.
 
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