GH3 Making the swiitch to GH3 from Video Camera...Must HAVES????

Would an ND filter be needed at all for most indoor shoots? (Regardless of lens).
Jim:
My experience has been exactly the same re: personal messages. Do you have any links to ceremony samples using your GH2?
I liked the reception dance, but I don't know that it was the best example of shallow depth of field ( which is the primary reason I am making the switch). Certainly other elements of your shot was great: lighting, focus, framing, audio, etc.
 
You won't need an ND for indoor, but it's a good idea for sunny outdoor shots.

I don't really get any bokeh during the ceremony. My lenses aren't fast enough.
 
Bern Caughey said:
I don't film weddings, but do a lot of B-Roll, & some documentary, with the GH.

A MatteBox will need to be rail mounted for use with a 12-35mm. I tried an ultralight 4x4 clip-on, & even without filters, it caused poor zoom response. I'd opt for screw-ins NDs, & perhaps a Heliopan Variable when speed is most important. I carry B&W screw-ins, & a pair of Heliopans, for the 12-35mm, & 35-100mm., but before purchasing any filters consider waiting until there are more GH3 tests available. I wouldn't want to spend a bunch of money on filters to only find out the camera needs IRNDs.


Bern:
Can you please provide a link to a good MatteBox and also a good Variable Filter for this 3/4 lens that will be used with the GH3?
If I get a good Variable, would I still need a MatteBox?
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I don't use a MatteBox on the GH2 very often, & mine is an older rail mounted Chrosziel I've had around for years. Haven't stayed up on the current offerings.

If your going to use the 12-35mm, & switch lens often, which I imagine will be the case in weddings, I suggest you skip the mattebox entirely.

Indoors you'll rarely, if ever, need an ND. Outdoors in daylight you will.

Without a mattebox you'll need screw-in NDs. The 12-35, & 35-100, both have metal threads, & I wouldn't worry about wearing these out, but be careful not to cross thread them.

Screwing in filters can take a bit of time, but generally not much more than dealing with a mattebox's larger filters. Your mileage may vary, but I'm pretty quick.

But if your outdoors, & the light is shifting, or your moving around a lot, standard screw-in NDs may be more of a hassle then a Variable. I use Heliopan's Variable NDs, & suggest you choose only high quality versions too, as most the cheaper variables degrade sharpness, especially at longer focal lengths. Also the cheap versions tend to shift the color much more than the quality.

But even high quality variables can cause undesirable reflections, &/or flare, since they consist of two polarizers in one housing. Any time two filters are stacked there is this risk, no matter if they're screw-in, or mounted in a mattebox. The more filters that are stacked, the bigger the risk.

There's also the issue of polarization. While Polarizers are useful for knocking out reflections, or darkening blue skies, in some circumstances this is not always desirable. They also tend to deaden skin so you rarely see them used on beauty campaigns. And on wide-angle lenses they may darken part of the sky, but not across the entire frame.

This is why standard NDs are often a better choice. There's no free lunch, so I carry both styles, though out of convenience I tend to use variables more for B-Roll.

With any of the screw-in solutions you will not need a mattebox, but should still use lens hoods. Screw-in NDs fit inside the standard OEM lens hood, but variables will not. Unfortunately it seems the Heliopan Variables available in the USA do not feature front threads, so cannot accept a screw-in lens hood. There's a long thread on how to order a version that does, but these come out of the EU.

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthrea...iopan-about-the-variable-ND-filters-good-news

My use is much different than yours, & I've decided to use USA version for convience, & the fact my dealer gives me a great discount, but if the GH was my primary camera I'd want to use lens hoods.

I only use Variable on the GH as my bigger camera has built-in NDs. I have two 58mm Heliopan's, one each for the 12-35, & 35-100. Any other lens I might use, say the 100-300mm, gets fitted with standard screw-in NDs as I don't need to move as fast with that lens. In your case I'd get an oversized Variable ND with front threads, & a rubber screw-in lens hood. The screw-in lens hood can easily lead to vignetting, so that is why I suggest an oversized filter, but you'll need step-up rings to adapt it to your lenses.

Many users choose to get a single 77mm Variable NDs, & use adapter rings to fit it to a variety of lenses. Look at reviews for quality Variables. I believe Tiffen offers one with front threads, & wouldn't consider any lesser versions. Lastly be aware that to avoid vignetting the front threads of a variable are larger than then the back, so if you get a 77mm Vari-ND the rubber hood will need to be 82mm or so.
 
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I've shot about 2 dozen weddings in the past year or so, mainly with gh1/gh2, but also with canon DSLR's, so hopefully I can give you some info that will be applicable. I'd hate for you to buy gear that you don't need, and won't actually give you any better quality.

1. If you're mainly focused on the gh3 for reception, you absolutely don't need the fader ND, because you'll have the opposite problem, which is needing light when you don't have it. Receptions always require the fastest lens possible, and you'll want a wider lens to catch the action. There are some times when my only option has been to shoot with a 50 f1.4, because its the only lens I have that's fast enough to do the job in low light, but it's usually too tight, so it's a compromise. Dancing is hard to capture (besides a head and shoulder shot) with a 50mm.

2. Audio. Don't wast your time with a stereo videomic (i'm talking about the stereo videomic pro, not a shotgun mic). It just doesn't make sense. If you're trying to capture ambient sound (I'm not talking about speeches, dialogue, etc), the panasonic gh cameras do a great job of that. For a reception, even the video mic and videomic pro (shotgun mics) won't give you decent audio either -- you just won't be close enough to the action, and they won't do a good job a capturing important dialogue. Your best bet is to use a recorder from the DJ's feed for speeches and toasts, and lav mics for other important audio. I run RCA to 1/8 cables from the DJ feed to a zoom H1, and use a lav mic into a zoom H1 in the person's pocket for other dialogue -- I've use both the $17 AT lav, and the $250 Rode lav -- the AT is passable, the Rode is way better. Any "Ambient" audio you need will be fine out of the camera.

3. You really want to keep extra gear to a minumum for weddings (no matte boxes, etc). You need a small, invisible footprint, and by the time you get the extra stuff setup, the moments will have passed.

4. Lighting -- If it's not bright enough, you can get an inexpensive led panel off amazon that will mount to the top of the camera. If you're going this route, don't point them straight at the action -- it looks horrible. Aim the up to bounce the light off the ceiling. You should be able to get an extra stop or 2 that way. You could mount it on a stand as well -- whatever keeps you from doing the straight on, deer in the headlights look with lighting.

I've got a short trailer up from a wedding I did a few months ago, but there's not reception footage in it -- all the audio is either ambient straight from the camera, or captured with the H1 and $17 lav mic on the groom (even the pastors audio came from the groom's mic). Everything here is gh1/gh2
https://vimeo.com/46289977
 
MJ:
Awesome footage!
Does use a glider/steady cam? If so, which one(s)? I loved the shot with the shoe laces.
for receptions, do you recommend the
Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 or the
Panasonic 25mm f/1.4?
 
Ianscreations said:
MJ:
Awesome footage!
Does use a glider/steady cam? If so, which one(s)? I loved the shot with the shoe laces.
for receptions, do you recommend the
Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 or the
Panasonic 25mm f/1.4?
Click to expand...

Thanks for the compliments. I use a konova slider a lot, and 2 of the shots there were a cheap steady cam that I immediately returned because it ruined the shots. It was one of the cheaper opteka handheld ones, and it actually arrived broken the day before the shoot. I've since used a few other units that I like a lot more.

For lenses for reception, I've never used either of those, but I would say the 25 f1.4, only because it's slightly faster. There are a lot of times for me where it's so dark at a reception, the only choice is to shoot wide open to keep your ISO at a reasonable level.
 
therealmj said:
Thanks for the compliments. I use a konova slider a lot, and 2 of the shots there were a cheap steady cam that I immediately returned because it ruined the shots. It was one of the cheaper opteka handheld ones, and it actually arrived broken the day before the shoot. I've since used a few other units that I like a lot more.

For lenses for reception, I've never used either of those, but I would say the 25 f1.4, only because it's slightly faster. There are a lot of times for me where it's so dark at a reception, the only choice is to shoot wide open to keep your ISO at a reasonable level.
Click to expand...

Thanks! What ISO do you find reasonable? What would you not exceed?
 
Ianscreations said:
Thanks! What ISO do you find reasonable? What would you not exceed?
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I don't know (and neither does anyone else yet) how well the gh3 does in low light. I don't like going above 800. I'll go higher if I absolutely have to -- whatever the next step after that is (haven't used my panasonic at a wedding for a while). Everything after that seemed pretty noisy to me.
 
Ianscreations said:
I imagine I also need a good mic. Should I get the Panasonic? I was thinking of this one: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/744768-REG/Rode_VIDEOMIC_PRO_VideoMic_Pro_Compact_Shotgun.html

Any other MUST-HAVES? I figured I can always slowly build on once I get better used to the camera and workflow.
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This would be the way pro.............

JuicedLink RM 333

857043.jpg


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