Rodney Charters ASC on HDSLR's, and more

Wow. This is the best DSLR interview I have ever listened to.

I plan on putting this in my sig or at least posting it everywhere.

Rodney Charters' view on DSLRs is incredibly accurate, and highly respectable. The entire thing is what Barry and the rest of us have been trying to say this ENTIRE TIME.

Especialy from 6:45 on when he gets into Alexa, which is the camera I want to be shooting with when it drops.

I love his words on this, and those who keep spitting his name out at every corner should be listening to what he's REALLY SAYING HERE.
 
Yeah, there's something for everyone in that interview. He really, really likes the imagery from the Canons, then the interviewer asks him about video cameras with DSLR capabilities and he sneers and says "I don't trust Sony to make a cam that looks like film." He then goes on to really praise the Arri Alexa. At about 13:00, he explains why the Canon isn't going to be the camera for an 80-foot screen, that the Alexa is the camera that he wants, and the Canon is "a struggle", with a big budget he says that you may not like the look you get from the Alexa, you may prefer the "slightly grungy" look from the Canon. He says the jury's still out on the Alexa, but the results he's seen so far are "astonishing." He says the Canon has "its special niche", calling them "great B cameras, stunt cameras, and plate cameras, and if you want to go shoot something on the side, on the weekend, they're great for that as well."

He says he'll always have a 5D around, it's his "notetaker", makes "beautiful stills" and it's great to have along. He said that he'd "probably use it quite often on a movie "if he had another camera as the principal camera", but that he also "might shoot whole shows on the Canon, or whatever else comes next" (he says they have to solve the banding, the codec, the rolling shutter.) Sure sounded like, if one was reading between the lines, he and others have been demanding a raw codec from Canon, and if you're really reading hard between the lines, it sounds like he's implying that they've heard the message loud and clear and that maybe it'll be a possibility some day.

He definitely thinks the Canons are extraordinary because the price point is opening it up to many people who never would have been able to afford something like this.

He says that Nikon will be back, and Panasonic's 4/3 chip is a contender, but he simply likes the 5D because its sensor is larger. "the ability to shoot with a VistaVision chip is just too much to resist."
 
Rodney Charters Video interview on DSLRs, Alexa and RED: a MUST watch and LISTEN!

Rodney Charters Video interview on DSLRs, Alexa and RED: a MUST watch and LISTEN!

http://www.macvideo.tv/camera-technology/interviews/index.cfm?articleId=3224564

Please, I implore you, watch and listen very intently to what this man is saying.

This is a sticky-worthy video, IMO, but I'll let the mods decide.

Topics Covered (by opinion):

-The 5D and Image Acquisition
-Benefits of the 5D in Broadcast television
-Experiences with the 5D
-The Arri Alexa (as the tipping point in Film vs Digital)
-Sony (in brief)
-BIG SCREEN PROJECTION
-How is the market changing?
-The Tools and Applications
...and more.
 
Kholi said:
Especialy from 6:45 on when he gets into Alexa, which is the camera I want to be shooting with when it drops.

I love his words on this, and those who keep spitting his name out at every corner should be listening to what he's REALLY SAYING HERE.
Click to expand...
Exactly. He acknowledged the shortcomings (which YOU'D have been bashed for around here) while saying they weren't deal-breakers but you had to be aware of them. He sounds really excited about the Alexa. It's going to be interesting to see how it progresses. I enjoyed the interview as it seemed very balanced.
 
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I am stoked on Alexa. Without taking sides, more-so than I am about Epic and have been. The first footages of Alexa were eye-popping.

The fact that it's a cheaper camera is also great, it'll be in range of a lot of shooting I do which is awesome.
 
Barry from the other thread, summarizing a few key moments in the video:

Barry_Green said:
Yeah, there's something for everyone in that interview. He really, really likes the imagery from the Canons, then the interviewer asks him about video cameras with DSLR capabilities and he sneers and says "I don't trust Sony to make a cam that looks like film." He then goes on to really praise the Arri Alexa. At about 13:00, he explains why the Canon isn't going to be the camera for an 80-foot screen, that the Alexa is the camera that he wants, and the Canon is "a struggle", with a big budget he says that you may not like the look you get from the Alexa, you may prefer the "slightly grungy" look from the Canon. He says the jury's still out on the Alexa, but the results he's seen so far are "astonishing." He says the Canon has "its special niche", calling them "great B cameras, stunt cameras, and plate cameras, and if you want to go shoot something on the side, on the weekend, they're great for that as well."

He says he'll always have a 5D around, it's his "notetaker", makes "beautiful stills" and it's great to have along. He said that he'd "probably use it quite often on a movie "if he had another camera as the principal camera", but that he also "might shoot whole shows on the Canon, or whatever else comes next" (he says they have to solve the banding, the codec, the rolling shutter.) Sure sounded like, if one was reading between the lines, he and others have been demanding a raw codec from Canon, and if you're really reading hard between the lines, it sounds like he's implying that they've heard the message loud and clear and that maybe it'll be a possibility some day.

He definitely thinks the Canons are extraordinary because the price point is opening it up to many people who never would have been able to afford something like this.

He says that Nikon will be back, and Panasonic's 4/3 chip is a contender, but he simply likes the 5D because its sensor is larger. "the ability to shoot with a VistaVision chip is just too much to resist."
Click to expand...
 
I like how he stressed that the image you get out of these cameras is very close to what you get out of a $100,000 camera. But he goes on to say what seperates the pros from the average everyday Joe is "lighting." I've always agreed with this.. No matter the speed of these DSLRs...what seperates us from folks like him is in lighting.
 
Ian-T said:
I like how he stressed that the image you get out of these cameras is very close to what you get out of a $100,000 camera. But he goes on to say what seperates the pros from the average everyday Joe is "lighting." I've always agreed with this.. No matter the speed of these DSLRs...what seperates us from folks like him is in lighting.
Click to expand...

good point
 
Blaine said:
I enjoyed the interview as it seemed very balanced.
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Agreed Blaine. And thats something that I hope people take on board as well. I really want to discuss this or that about different cameras, yeah it can do this but here theres an issue. Sharing knowledge on this forum is and could be one of the strongest tools. But all too often it breaks down.

And on another side note, I wish people would spend as much time on story as they do money on the latest and greatest.
 
I think this thread may deserve a title change and a stick in a more appropriate part of the forum... at least the link to the video anyways...

Barry kinda said it there when he said it has something for everyone in it.

I particularly liked the part about referring to his 5d as his notetaker... Not in reference to that camera specifically, but in reference to having a camera that you can treat in that way... Just always have with you...
 
Yeah, I posted it in the DSLR forum. I totally agree.

This ought'a pretty much squash all of the arguments once and for all... I hope.
 
I really like the F23. And I'm salivating to operate the F35. Charters is fantastic because he has shot everything and he isn't afraid to integrate the newer technologies into his shows. I think the F900 could leave a lot of people wanting, but I just can't see how the other two Sony cinema rigs leave him wanting (for much!).
 
Jason u can change the title to whatever fits, the reason i chose tht particular language is so tht it will grab people's attention :) and when am i gonna get tht tee ?? :)
 
do I owe you a shirt? my bad... oh... yeah... ok, I remember... I'll locate your address and try to ship out this week... I still owe a bunch of quest festers t-shirts as well...

later,
Jason
 
Such a great interview and touches on so many points that you've posted in other threads, especially in regards to using the right tool for the job.

I have to say all his points resonated with me - I personally come from the still photography world, in college I DP'd some short films for friends in the film department because I had a good eye for composition, lighting and exposure, but really missed the control of an SLR vs. something like a Canon XL1.

About a year ago I had an idea for a feature film that I decided to write and produce, at that point I had no idea what I'd shoot on (hadn't ever really followed the video camera industry) - but started talking to a pro photojournalist friend of mine who was doing documentary work with the 5DmkII and it was just so exciting to think that for so little money a camera that could compare in any measurable way at all to shooting film was possible on a micro budget. Ultimately I chose the GH1 over the 5D, but regardless, what I most love about the HDSLR movement is the democratization of really, really good tools at a price point that virtually anyone who has the drive to make a film can afford - I'd shoot a Red or an Alexa for FF35 in a heartbeat given the budget, but what's mostly game changing about the DSLR is the control it gives the cinematographer for so little money and image quality so good that the format becomes basically irrelevant and unobtrusive - the images don't stick out like video, they aren't as good as film but they do help us break beyond the "video-look" at a very low price point, I think they remove all of the biggest barriers to telling a story on a low-budget - there are still many, many weaknesses and to think they're ultimately as good as film, a red, an alexa, in terms of pure image quality is naive, but these new HDSLRS can get more of it right than they get wrong if you've got a good DP.

The points are well made, obviously these are tools as A cams for micro budget productions or where you simply can't physically use something larger, and B cams on bigger budget stuff (if at all) - why one would try to argue that the 5D/7D/GH1 is better all around than cameras that are so much more expensive and designed to be used on films with real budgets is beyond me, they're all great tools and they all have strengths in one respect or another and they all have their place - I always just step back when I'm watching my footage and I sometimes have to pinch myself that something of this quality is so affordable - there's so little point in arguing about which of these is better when they're all so damn good and amazing for the money - I'll gladly shoot on any of the Canons or the GH1, we're so lucky to be in this field at this time.

No more excuses, just get out there and shoot!

(And light!)
 
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Barry_Green said:
He definitely thinks the Canons are extraordinary because the price point is opening it up to many people who never would have been able to afford something like this.
Click to expand...

Hey Barry, someone else feels the same way about Sony I do. LOL. I'm telling you man, it's a trust issue. I love the Canon camcorders and HDSLRs too. Price point and image, all the stuff I said in Filmman's thread.

-Nate
 
thisisapocalypse said:
what I most love about the HDSLR movement is the democratization of really, really good tools at a price point that virtually anyone who has the drive to make a film can afford - I'd shoot a Red or an Alexa for FF35 in a heartbeat given the budget, but what's mostly game changing about the DSLR is the control it gives the cinematographer for so little money and image quality so good that the format becomes basically irrelevant and unobtrusive - the images don't stick out like video, they aren't as good as film but they do help us break beyond the "video-look" at a very low price point, I think they remove all of the biggest barriers to telling a story on a low-budget - there are still many, many weaknesses and to think they're ultimately as good as film, a red, an alexa, in terms of pure image quality is naive, but these new HDSLRS can get more of it right than they get wrong if you've got a good DP.
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This.

I don't think I've heard anyone ever call the DSLR's image quality truly comparable to the RED or Alexa, I think the main point is that it's still really good. And for some projects, not all, it's perfectly good enough - not just as a compromise - but in the end, shooting on a higher end camera may not deliver significantly better results for the cost.

It will depend on the project, obviously, but I don't think calling anything shot on DSLR's as not good enough is fair. The image quality is great for a lot of purposes, and that's what matters.
 
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