Going from HMC-150 to AF100 has not been easy but I am learning ...

S

szimmer

Well-known member
Hello,

Just wanted to share my experience for those who are not "professionals" but are striving to learn and improve their skills like me.

My jump from the hmc-150 to the af100 has not been an easy transition but after investing in some essential accessories I am learning a lot.

I have Canon EF lenses (EF S 18-55, EF 70-300 and EF 28-135 lens) for my Canon 7D. They are quite slow. And to be honest I never quite understood what that meant until I got the af100. But with the proper lighting, the quality of the video improves dramatically even with the slow lenses I have.

My major problem in the beginning when I got the af100 was how to get accurate focus. I quickly learned that I needed to buy some type of follow focus and an external monitor. Due to a limited budget I went with the D|Focusv3 follow focus and the HD70H 7HD Lilliput monitor. I am really impressed with both and already I am able to focus much better with both of these accessories combined with the focus assist on the camera.

After mounting all my new accessories, I noticed that my Libec LS-22DV tripod has reached its limit. I never noticed it before when I just had my HMC-150 on it, but the tripod is not very stable. If you shake the handle even just slightly, the head of the tripod shakes too much. Looks like I need to upgrade my tripod to a REAL tripod in the near future.

Anyway, I look forward to learning more and this forum has helped a lot in the process. Below is my proud setup. :)

Af100_A.jpgAf100_B.jpg

Simon
 
That's great news. I'm a 150 user and moved to the Gh2 and my shooting buddy has the 100 so I can use that quite a lot... one ting I'd say about your set up is that it might just be the balancing and such that you have going on here. Seems like you are way too back heavy and the weight of everything doesn't look like it's been supported right over the tripod itself. Maybe I'd say to move the follow focus up and bring the heavy weighted part of the camera directly over the head.. if that' possibly. It might also be necessary to get something diferent to mount but that does seem to be wonky on the balance... If that's also all that you are going to be running on the rods, you could probably go with some shorter ones, or maybe mount some other things to it as well...

just my .02. How do you like it so far? My 150 stays in the bag and doesn't see much shooting these days... i also tend to shoot more with the Gh2 than the 100... maybe that'll change as we land some bigger gigs...
 
I use the same monitor on a jib, be careful, the Lilliput is not that high a resolution monitor. We've checked focus with it on location only to find it wasn't as sharp as it should have been when we get back in post. That's a lot of camera for such an inexpensive monitor.

How do you mount the Canon lenses and how well do they work on the AF100?
 
Hello Justyn and ChuckS. Thanks for your replies.

The rods seem a bit long but I also add my video audio mixer in the back with a tripod clamp that I bought from jag35. I would only use that for an interview where there is no panning.

GH2 I am sure is a great camera but the audio issue would bother me too much. I love having xlr inputs.

ChuckS - great point on the monitor. I always match what I see on the monitor with the focus assist ON in the LCD monitor. When I have my glasses on, it matches quite well.;) But thanks for the warning.

One thing is for sure, I need to practice much more.

I use the $30 fotodiox lens adaptor. I got it from Amazon. You can't control the aperture (though you can set it via a canon 7D or similar camera) and of course there is no autofocus. I wish I could afford the Birger mount and wireless follow focus but that is just not in the budget right now.

I would agree my mount is not the best and wish I could place my camera over the tripod instead of off it but I realized that too late. :( But I still think my tripod seems sketchy. Even without the camera mounted, the head really shakes a lot when moving the handle. Oh well, it will work for now.

Thanks for your inputs and enjoy your weekend.

Simon
 
Hello,

Unfortunately, my experiment with the af100 failed. I am selling my AF100. I just don't have enough time to learn how to use the af100 to get good results. I knew the risks going into it. Oh well, next time I will stick to a video camcorder like the hmc-150. The af100 is too much camera for me. I wish everyone all the best with their af100. And if you know someone looking for a good deal on a barely used af100, please contact me! Thanks!

Simon
 
szimmer said:
Hello,

Unfortunately, my experiment with the af100 failed. I am selling my AF100. I just don't have enough time to learn how to use the af100 to get good results. I knew the risks going into it. Oh well, next time I will stick to a video camcorder like the hmc-150. The af100 is too much camera for me. I wish everyone all the best with their af100. And if you know someone looking for a good deal on a barely used af100, please contact me! Thanks!

Simon
Click to expand...

That's too bad but if you're serious about taking your films to the next level (depending on what you shoot), the AF-100 is a necessary crash course for things you'll eventually have to learn like pulling focus and changing scene settings for a shot. I never used a manual SLR lens in my life before the AF-100 but as each month passes, I feel a lot more comfortable with it and my footage is amazing! I'm past the point of no return and will probabaly never be able to go back to an automatic lens or use small sensor again. I personally inspire to one day be shooting on something like RED but you need the skill and the AF-100 is a good place to start.
 
Hello Brent,

I hear you and that was one of the reasons I bought the af100.

But since I bought the af100 in January, some things have changed in my life. The big one being I am volunteering full-time for our non-profit called Aguayuda. We provide water and education solutions to rural communities in developing countries. Also, a video camcorder like the HMC-150 (which I own) is easier for documenting our projects in remote areas like the north coast of Colombia for example.

If you would like to learn more about our work, our website is at:

www.aguayuda.org

Thanks for the input. I do feel sad about selling it but I think it is the right decision for now. If you know of anyone who needs an af100, please let me know! Thanks!

Simon
 
@szimmer: If you do a lot of run and gun doc work, I can imagine the HMC150 working out much better for you most of the time. However, have you had a chance to try the Panasonic 14-400mm lens with autofocus on the AF-100? This would allow you to strip the AF-100 back down to HMC-150 weight range and also alleviate some of your focus worries. The light sensitivity would be comparable to your current EF lenses. You might find that the camera then becomes very similar to the HMC150, but with the option to slap on a shallower lens in more controlled environments.

To go shallower, you could try out the 20mm f/1.7, though on autofocus, I recommend shooting at least f/2.0 or higher as f/1.7 is too much for the camera to track properly.
 
Hi Jamesc!

I thought about it but my budget has hit a limit. :(

I will stick with my HMC-150 and hope I can sell my af100 soon.

Thanks for the advice.

Simon
 
Simon, what rails and follow focus are those?
I also use the Fotodiox, with 2.8L EF lenses, while waiting for the Birger.

Good luck with your sale, have you posted it on the Marketplace?
Sorry the AF didn't work out for your purposes, keep learning with the 150!
 
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Sorry to hear it didn't work out with the AF-100. I had the same tripod for about a year while saving for something better. My suggestion is to get a tripod with a better balancing system. The LS-22 has no counterbalancing or sliding plate mechanism and if you have a front- or rear-heavy rig it's really annoying to use.

Good luck with everything. :)
 
Thanks Modus!

It was a good learning lesson. If you know of anyone that wants to buy a brand-new af100, let me know.

Thanks!

Simon
 
I think those coming from a film background will find it much easier to relate to the AF100, and once you master it you may find film easier to understand and to work in.
 
Did you make use of Barry Green's AF100 book? I am about to take the plunge into the AF100. Still selling or sold
 
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