C100: For those weighing up the C100/300 vs Blackmagic

Well I sold my BMC and bought a C100. Couldn't be happier. Overall the C100 is the better camera for me. Then, the ML team gave my Canon MK3 RAW, so even better for me. Now the ML team is cracking 14 stops on the MK3. Soon the ML team will give the MK3 possibly 3.5k (just need faster cards).

Everyone is talking about "will it ship"? How about, "lets see at least a frame grab of the BMC4K"? Keep in mind neither of the two new BMC's have RAW upon shipping (nothing wrong with Prores). If BMD can't put audio meters on the BMCv1 as of late, how long before you trust them with compressed RAW release?

Not hatin BMC's. I just want a camera that works and is supported by repair centers and that are available... If I need the BMC, I know where to rent it. But the C100 is mine and works wonderfully.

Another note.... I got used to an all in one package with my AF100 (ND, Exposure aids, peaking, XLR) for large chip cameras. I bought it to cure the HDSLR faults (External sound, vary ND, evf, exposure aids, etc...). I felt like I went backwards with the BMC. Sure, the image could be great (minus the moire) but man, I went even further backwards in that I "HAD" to have those things to make the camera even function decently. Without argument of color space (RAW vs AVCHD), I took the steps forward again with the C100 and the image is great 98% of the time. For me anyway....

???
 
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Yeah, I was hoping to wait out for the ultimate camera, that could be made, but meanwhile.... in reality land...

Life goes on, some decisions are made today, and some for the future. Tyranny of the urgent, hindsight is... and all that jazz.

The initially disappointing 5d3, has become quite the love child again. I look forward to what it can do (and maybe get one), and wish the 1D-C could too.

The C100, despite my disliking it, is an incredibly good horse to have in the barn. As it can get you through majority of projects, and then just rent when circumstances require it.
 
I believe the 4k production camera does have an active EF mount, according to b&h. Also the sensor size is super 35, so like a crop sensor, meaning MFT lenses won't cover it, so it has to be an EF mount.

I think you do have a point with the MFT version of the BMCC camera regarding its passive mount, but according to Mr. Brawley's website, implementing an active mount would require a major overhaul of the camera.

They're all good cameras with their pros and cons...most certainly canon's cinema line of cameras are a more mature product, but blackmagic certainly has the aggressive pricing and cutting edge features, and they are very new to the camera market. The market will influence how these products develop, and considering how quickly things have been progressing, I think we're all in a good place.

I remember when the RED One came out. Very controversial. Werner Herzog hated it. Many loved it. Had some serious problems. But it had a great picture. In comparison, Blackmagic might seem brisk, robust, and cheap!

One last note, anybody considering the C100 should look at the atomos recorders to capture 422 from hdmi.

Cheers!
 
independent said:
I believe the 4k production camera does have an active EF mount, according to b&h. Also the sensor size is super 35, so like a crop sensor, meaning MFT lenses won't cover it, so it has to be an EF mount.

I think you do have a point with the MFT version of the BMCC camera regarding its passive mount, but according to Mr. Brawley's website, implementing an active mount would require a major overhaul of the camera.

They're all good cameras with their pros and cons...most certainly canon's cinema line of cameras are a more mature product, but blackmagic certainly has the aggressive pricing and cutting edge features, and they are very new to the camera market. The market will influence how these products develop, and considering how quickly things have been progressing, I think we're all in a good place.

I remember when the RED One came out. Very controversial. Werner Herzog hated it. Many loved it. Had some serious problems. But it had a great picture. In comparison, Blackmagic might seem brisk, robust, and cheap!

One last note, anybody considering the C100 should look at the atomos recorders to capture 422 from hdmi.

Cheers!
Click to expand...
My mistake. Probably too drunk again in the camera store. Yes, the BMC4K has s35. See, I guess I'm not that interested after all in it....
 
James0b57 said:
Yeah, I was hoping to wait out for the ultimate camera, that could be made, but meanwhile.... in reality land...

Life goes on, some decisions are made today, and some for the future. Tyranny of the urgent, hindsight is... and all that jazz.

The initially disappointing 5d3, has become quite the love child again. I look forward to what it can do (and maybe get one), and wish the 1D-C could too.

The C100, despite my disliking it, is an incredibly good horse to have in the barn. As it can get you through majority of projects, and then just rent when circumstances require it.
Click to expand...

For sure. For me though, I got pretty tired of attaching peripherals on the HDSLR. I've seen some nice stuff from the 1Dc, but I hear the rolling shutter is nasty in the 4K mode.
 
I was part of electronic manufacturing and have closely seen what all can go wrong. It is not easy. So good that Blackmagic is trying to get these cameras out. However, getting qualified and experienced people to man the critical positions is very important. It seems blackmagic doesn't have the right talents, else they would have known how difficult it is.

Tactically it is a good thing to announce two new cameras to divert attention when you are facing difficulties in the first. However, such tactics can only buy you couple of months and not more. So it is understandable that large retailers are exasperated.

As a customer, it would be prudent not to base your projects on their cameras. Give them time and may be after a year they will get their act together. Competition is good for us as customers. However, lets be realistic in our expectations.

I am shooting with C300 and wanted a BMC version 1.0 with EF mount. However, moire is something that I can't deal with. It is better to have equipment that works for us now.
 
As with RED, I´m giving BMD much more leeway than the "old" companys, since it`s first generation technology.
I mean seriously, for everyone who had to cope with U-matic and Beta back in the days, this is a golden age.
I too went for the C100, not because of BMD taking too long, but after realizing that I was so fixated on getting the best possible IQ, that I kinda forgot
I need a camera that behaves like a "video camera" 90% of the time and a camera that behaves like a "film camera" only 10% of the time.
 
For most people who actually shoot for a living, the camera that you can actually purchase and that has a proven track record will win out every time. You cannot afford to have production issues with a camera. We all have had the occasional problem but heaven help us if we get a reputation of having problems with our gear. In my market the original Red camera had several problems on location on a few commercial shoots and it was shunned until the Epic came along. BMCC cameras will be experimental until they have a proven record.

I don't give any company leeway with my business. I don't care who they are, Sony, Canon, Red. They have to provide a product that works, period. The value factor is always in the eye of the beholder because of their specific needs, clients, etc.. I am glad of the competition, but I will never bring a BMCC product on set until they are delivering product, backing up that product with service, and creating a product that works for me. Simple.
 
^Exactly, I see that happening with people I talk to in the conventions that I've been to... it's logical that pros whose livelihood depends on the reliability and efficiency of their tools would pick mature, proven products. On the flip side, others who can tolerate drawbacks for bleeding edge equipment will do so, whether it's shooting test videos, shorts, music videos, or narrative.

But really, both kinds of shooters push the technology, one for reliability and the other for advanced features. You could see the same with PC and Mac up until recently. PC's always pushed technology, but were sometimes unreliable...Macs were expensive and were more limited, but were reliable - every editor cut on a Mac until recently. But then they would play games on a PC.

Good times
 
well. I think 5D3 fits all of my raw needs, C100 serves me better for income.

most of us on this forum are limited to a crew under 5 people, mostly 1-2 people.

for this kind of crew I do not think BMC could make more money than C100.
 
Honestly, the same can be said of the GH3.
I got so tired of trying to spend my budget on a pair of new cameras that I got two GH3s as slo mo cameras with the existing 5Ds to fill the gap temporarily and, surprise, they rock in 24p too.

One of the things I like about DustyL is that he's used the cameras he offers opinions on and doesn't dump on the ones he's not using.
Because of the IQ and design of the C100 and our collection of L glass, I was almost there with it and his adoption and opinion reinforced that.

But with all the change in the air I decided to wait on the BM4k as an option.
In the meantime I grabbed the Olympus, 12mm, 45mm and 75mm lenses and a couple of loupes for the GH3s and boy do they deliver nice images.
It's incredibly light for flyng around and most importantly, the 50Mb codec really does grade well.

So it's a wealth of riches and if the new BM camera really delivers then that will be great.
In the meantime, we're shooting project after project with just the GH3s and, aside from a little moire that I experienced for the first time on a TV soot this week, it's been all good.
And really, really light and small.
 
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