Need help with a new t2i purchase purely for video use

N

Nick Navaro

Well-known member
Ok. I've read as much as I can without going crazy. Recently got an EX3 and very happy. But want to get a t2i for places where the size of an ex3 is frowned upon, airports etc

After all I've read the t2i seems best for video with the Magic Lantern firmware.

Is this viewfinder appropriate? Or are there better/cheaper ones available...

http://store.zacuto.com/Z-Finder.html

And what about a matte box? Any recommendations. Don't want too much lens flare.

And the big one - Just want one good all-rounder lens for now.. Needs to be good in the dark/fast and wide for for location/establishing/landscape shots.

I may put a rode mic on it for those opportune moments..

Can anyone recommend a good set-up? Lens need most advice with.

Thanks
 
Couple of other questions...

Will this lens slot right on the t2i or will I need an adapter

http://www.google.co.uk/products/ca...e=UTF-8&cid=5444089796323557512&os=tech-specs

What about memory cards - Are 32GB class 6 cards ok?
How much video will fit on one?
Would I need extra batteries? How long does the stock battery fully charged last?

Where in the UK is a good place to order everything from? Anyone know a good dealer?

I'm looking for

Canon T2i
Lens - possibly sigma 30mm
Zacuto viewfinder
glidecam
rode mic

Can you save still and video on the same card at the same time?

Thanks
 
Yes you can fit the video and images on the card at the same time. Just make sure you get a large card if you plan on putting both on it. I say 16 gigs or more.
 
I would save your money on the zacuto finder and buy a 60d - the convenience of the tilting lcd is brilliant, and for me, manual kelvins are a must. You'll also get the intermediate quieter iso's - 160, 320, 640 etc etc. I would buy the Tamron f2.8 17-50mm zoom (the non-vc one) as an all-rounder - it's a pretty good focal range and it's sharp glass.

my 02
 
Forgot to mention - in 12 months, I've had no failures with Transcend 16/32gb class 10 memory cards.
 
I would not say the T2i is the best for video with the firmware, I believe the Gh2 would have that covered out of the box - beyond speaking of video quality, the Gh2 is also better in the fact that it has manual audio, a swivel screen (which I think is incredibly useful), no aliasing/moire and also a billion features that help out video production. If Panasonic isn't for you, I'd at least suggest a T3i, I just don't think the T2i hack is useful enough to justify paying $800+ for a camera that is literally worth less than $500 compared to it's same-priced-but-better cousins, the T3i and 60D. The during-recording zebras may make the the T2i's hack worth it for you though, in which I'd suggest just trying to find the T2i used for around $500.

Concerning lenses, I don't recommend the T2i's 18-55 kit because it really doesn't have a good enough range, I would simply suggest the 18-135mm IS that comes with the 60d (and I think the T3i). An aperture of 3.5-5.6 is the best you're going to get unless you go the prime lens direction, in which prime lenses are horrible for on-the-go because of how severely shaky they are. Combine the 3.5-5.6 with an ISO of around 800 and a good picture style, and you should be good for daily use. Or if you want to go with the Panasonic GH2, the lens selection becomes much more expensive and much less useful, but with that direction, the 14-44 IS kit and the 45-200 IS are the only two cheap lenses from Panasonic's stock. If you are a filmmaker and require portrait-esque faces, the 45-200 should be your first buy, and if you are for documentary or vacation, the 14-44 may serve you better.

About a matte-box, it's just going to add to the size and attention the camera gets, I'd say that a simple rubber lens hood would reduce flare just as much if you can find a larger one, and about the Z-finder, personally, I just set my screen to the brightest setting when I'm outdoors and it does fine, but it's up to you. My motto is only spend money on things that you know benefit you, because there's much more important tools down the line.
 
Thanks for all the info.

Ok, so if I went for a 60D, is the tilting screen sharp enough for perfect focus? I really don't like all the out of focus stuff you see nowadays- must try to avoid that.

Can the files be transcoded to prores with canon software?

I really want a lens that goes to a 1.4 stop for filming in very dark places - what do you say? Any zooms that reach 1.4, and hold focus when zooming out??

I didn't even know you could get a rubber lens hood! Link?

Thank you so much
 
I simply cannot work with the t2i (or any DSLR) without some sort of magnifying hood. In full sun, there's no level of screen brightness that works (and man, why would you even want to mess with that in full sunlight when a loupe gives you a blacked out viewfinder that also aids in focusing?) Focusing in any situation is hugely improved with one. I use the Cavision, about $179 (plus a $28 adapter plate). Some don't like it because the focus is fixed, I've never taken it off.

I've personally got no need for a swivel screen. If I'm using a crane, a ceiling mount or some whacked out angle, I just hook the thing up to the 5" Marshall (lots of folks love the waaaay cheaper lilliputs but the little Marshall is a pro piece of gear), or in a studio situation I have a 22" Samsung HDTV on a roller stand (man - you can FOCUS with that thing...) For me the loupe trumps the swivel screen by a mile, and on my rail setup it's not an instant-remove kind of thing. YMMV.

A matte box does help you with one thing you totally, absolutely need with a DSLR - ND filters. You can take a bunch of screw-ons with you (4x4's are pricey and a matte box sorta kills your "undercover" shots) but I like the ease of the matte box.

The other thing I can't live without is a follow focus - even the jag-35/D|Focus works surprisingly well. I use those little spring-clip paperclip things as focus stops, works great.

I'll have an HMC/T2i spot on national cable next week (or so I understand) - you can do really nice work with the thing.
 
Michael Carter said:
I simply cannot work with the t2i (or any DSLR) without some sort of magnifying hood. In full sun, there's no level of screen brightness that works (and man, why would you even want to mess with that in full sunlight when a loupe gives you a blacked out viewfinder that also aids in focusing?) Focusing in any situation is hugely improved with one. I use the Cavision, about $179 (plus a $28 adapter plate). Some don't like it because the focus is fixed, I've never taken it off.

I've personally got no need for a swivel screen. If I'm using a crane, a ceiling mount or some whacked out angle, I just hook the thing up to the 5" Marshall (lots of folks love the waaaay cheaper lilliputs but the little Marshall is a pro piece of gear), or in a studio situation I have a 22" Samsung HDTV on a roller stand (man - you can FOCUS with that thing...) For me the loupe trumps the swivel screen by a mile, and on my rail setup it's not an instant-remove kind of thing. YMMV.

A matte box does help you with one thing you totally, absolutely need with a DSLR - ND filters. You can take a bunch of screw-ons with you (4x4's are pricey and a matte box sorta kills your "undercover" shots) but I like the ease of the matte box.

The other thing I can't live without is a follow focus - even the jag-35/D|Focus works surprisingly well. I use those little spring-clip paperclip things as focus stops, works great.

I'll have an HMC/T2i spot on national cable next week (or so I understand) - you can do really nice work with the thing.
Click to expand...

What do you mean the focus is fixed?

What's a 5" Marshall?

What's a screw-on?

Why does the Magic Lantern have rack and follow-focus? Can't the T2i do that anyway?

Apologies for the heavy level of ignorance.

What's a video camera? lol

Thanks in advance...
 
The fixed focus on the Cavision viewfinder means you cannot adjust the diopter (the lens you look through to see the LCD) which is really only a problem if you wear glasses or are near or far sighted.

A 5" Marshall is a portable LCD (measuring 5" diagonally) which is used to judge exposure, focus, & composition in a more accurate way than the cameras LCD will allow.

A screw-on (in this context) is a filter that screws onto the front threads of the lens.

Magic Lantern has a rack focus feature which allows you to set the start and end points for focus and have it adjust focus during the shot when you engage it. You can do this without magic lantern by manually focusing, but you might take a few attempts to hit your critical focus perfectly.

A follow-focus is an extra piece of equipment which attaches gears and a crank to the focus ring, allowing you to adjust focus more smoothly, more precisely, and continuously (without having to reposition your hand.
 
mr bill said:
I would save your money on the zacuto finder and buy a 60d - the convenience of the tilting lcd is brilliant, and for me, manual kelvins are a must. You'll also get the intermediate quieter iso's - 160, 320, 640 etc etc. I would buy the Tamron f2.8 17-50mm zoom (the non-vc one) as an all-rounder - it's a pretty good focal range and it's sharp glass.

my 02
Click to expand...

This guy is clearly not familiar with magic lantern.

The T2i with ML does all that... manual kelvin, intermediate iso (even possible to limit selection to "good", ie forum recommended values only), and everything the more expensive cams can do, plus a bunch of things they can't (live zebras, histogram, focus peaking, false colors, even a beta form of actual auto focus!). Personally, being able to turn off analog and digital audio gain to record clean sound WITH LIVE MONITORING VIA HEADPHONES in camera is enough to never want another camera that doesn't support ML.

The only advantage to the 60 as far as features go is the swivel display. Compared to all the golden features only available to ML, on a camera a few hundred dollars cheaper, its a no brainer. I think you'll deal without the swivel.

Meanwhile, follow focus is a cool test feature in ML that allows you to use the up and down buttons while filming to adjust the focus motor if you have an AF lens. I prefer the feel of a good manual focus wheel, but some cheap autofocus lenses like the 50mm 1.8 have small and difficult focus rings, which is where this feature comes in handy.
 
Viewfinder is a great help but you mentioned on your post you want something that doesn't look like a video camera. If you throw the Zacuto or any viewfinder on it'll get attention. Is that what you want then?
 
@ Nick Navaro
Ok. I've read as much as I can without going crazy.
Click to expand...
Seems untrue. There is plenty of info on what you are asking in the threads. I don't think you read much and got lazy. Ha just joking.... kind of.
 
Zacuto is a must. I love mine. Well worth the price. It makes all the difference in the world in certain conditions. But I would check out the 60d. What do you shoot? If you are like MCarter, you don't need the swivel, but if you shoot a lot of run and gun type of things, it can certainly be useful (I've wished for it myself at times). I went with a Sigma 17- 50 but really wish I could get the same 2.8 with a 17 to 105. But I have a prime 85 for the head shots. And a 70 - 200 for the rest.

But the T2i is a great camera. You can't go wrong. You can always sell it, if it breaks, it's cheap enough to buy another one. But I sold mine for a 7D. I needed the environmental sealing and frankly it's got a bit more technical range of features. But either will do you well. Heck any of them will do you well. Just remember that NAB is about to happen. Should be some new cameras rolling out. Waiting is recommended!
 
Thanks for the info. Yes I'm familiar with all the things deltoidjohn explained, just not the terminology of some of it used here. Well I won't be using it to make full on short films as such. But it may come into use for some music videos. It will be a B cam to an EX3 with a Ninja. The EX3 is great and the workhorse. I want the t2i for more arty and surreptitious stuff- establishing shots, landscapes, from in a car or in an airport... I'll probably get a glidecam pro 4000 too for the music video end. Or can you recommend something else.. Blackbird was mentioned before- is that better than a glidecam pro 4000?
 
draven4 said:
@ Nick Navaro Seems untrue. There is plenty of info on what you are asking in the threads. I don't think you read much and got lazy. Ha just joking.... kind of.
Click to expand...

Haha.. Yes, but you read one thing, and think, right I've got it! Then further on someone totally dismisses it and you're back to square one! :-/

It's difficult deciding when you haven't actually used all the stuff together, and doing that before buying when you're really busy is next to impossible....
 
Nick Navaro said:
Blackbird was mentioned before- is that better than a glidecam pro 4000?
Click to expand...

All of my research for a small & light stabilizer has pointed me to the blackbird - mainly from googling reviews and forum posts (wish I could recall all the "why's", but that was a while back).

I keep almost pulling the trigger, but in the last two months I've bought too much gear and been shooting mostly in-studio TV spot stuff. Next music video I do I'll get one though. I do like when the UPS guy shows up with gear. (He's really gotten to know me; the last case of big matthews stands showed up, he said "quick, get it in before your wife gets home!")
 
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