Should I be selling my Letus?

Douglas Villalba

Douglas Villalba

Well-known member
With all this new cameras coming out I am thinking that if I don't sell now I will probably get stock with a lot of useless equipment.
The Panasonic GH1, Canon 5D Mark II and Nikon D90 is just the start.

What are guys going to do?
 
Well... do you plan on buying a GH1 or other DSLR to replace your current setup? Seems like that would be the important question. I wouldn't, as I don't like using VDSLR cameras unless I have to, but that's me.
 
Another question is if you intend to use it again in the near future. If not, you could sell it, and just sit and wait until another (better) solution hits the market and meets your needs. Lots of different options on the horizon, not just VDSLRs.
 
I guess the most important question is, do you need something else right now? Do you have projects on the horizon?

If you don't plan on shooting for the next couple of months, then perhaps selling your gear and getting the best value for it is your best bet. Not point in having something sitting around and collecting dust if you can get some cash, save up and get the next best thing when you need to shoot.

I don't have any projects except the feature im working on, so once that is finished, ill definitely be putting stuff up for sale and working on scripts, ideas, stuff like that. And probably by the end of the year ill be ready to start shooting again when other generation of gear are out for the public.
 
Is your Letus still making you money? If it is, will selling it lead to more money from the VDSLR you replace it with?

Are you willing to put up with the workflow of the VDSLR's? They all have issues, from mic inputs, to manual mode abilities, to the framerate/bitrate they use, to chip overheating issues.

I'll be buying my first adapter in the last third of the year most likely. I looked into a VDSLR solution briefly... and while they all take great images, for what I would be using it for, it would be far too much of a hassle. But each person/situation is different.
 
From a current 35mm Adapter and HPX170 owner, along with a GH-1 in my hands...

If you still make a fair amount of money with your Setup the answer is: no, you should not sell or even think about selling off your adapter gear. What's a fair amount of money?

Determined by frequency and rate.

If you do not make a fair amount of money with your setup the answer is: probably. Why bother with a huge setup like that when a VDSLR can turn out pretty good results. Let's not be silly: all of these adapters are workarounds in general.

Option C: Get both!!!

VDSLR Cons:

- POST WORKFLOW - Huh? Someone help us all
- SUBPAR COMPRESSION - Yeah, Mkii is great... but still needs help
- ODD IMAGE ANOMALIES - WTF aliasing destroyed my image. Oh, and so did stairstepping or a not-so-stellar implementation of AVC-HD
- MONITORING -- Uhmm... I hope you like people standing over your shoulder. No LiveView on GH-1? Not even SD? What?
- MONITORING 2: Always in the eyepiece -- Oi, anything outside of the GH-1 = Neck pain


Adapter Setup Cons:

- SIZE -- Longer than any other system out there. We work around it.
- LIGHT CONSUMPTION -- Still aren't as fast as a Native system. We work around it.
- RESOLUTION -- Sub EX-1, the resolution is not to die for. We work around it.
- ODD IMAGE ANOMALIES -- Soft sides sub Letus Ultimate. Abberations. We work around it.
- GRAIN AT HIGH SHUTTERS -- Sub Ultimate. We work around it
- DUST IN J00 IRISES -- G35 is the acception. We work around it.
- LIMITED DR -- EX-1's not too shabby I suppose. We work around it.

What else am I missing?

Audio input straight to camera is cool. we've been doing without before video and even now with RED. The Zoom H4N costs 350.00 and accepts Boom Mics. You can mount it on your VDSLR, mount the boom and still be smaller than a 35mm Adapter setup.

And yet, none of this really matters if you're making a fair penny with your CURRENT setup.

Douglas, if you can afford to include a GH-1 in your kit, I would say keep the best of both worlds. You may be able to justify the expense with just two jobs and you can work it, have it pay itself off. And you can use the glass on both cameras.

I still can't bring myself to get rid of my HPX170 _ Letus Ultimate because of the rentals this thing brings in. But I may not shoot with it myself anymore unless requested.
 
Yes, pick up a VDSLR and use both. I use the 5D and I really like the ease of getting the shallow DOF (with Nikon manual lenses of course), but I still use my XHA1 a lot with and without an adapter.

For reselling, I think there will always be someone who would buy it if you decide to sell it down the road...BH still sells regular DV cams (GL2, DVX, etc etc).
 
Who pays for your work? (lot's of sarcasm here)

1) Clients who in my experience have no idea what type of camera you're using as long as it looks cool (which a DSLR does not)?

2) Your peers who judge your work based on what camera rig you're using?

Hehehehe. Honestly, I've thought about the same thing. But I think it's WAY too soon to consider selling. I'm guessing we'll be safe for at least another year (probably 2-3 years or more). Letus has been selling the Extreme for a long time, and it's only now that people are starting to really take advantage of 35mm adaptors. It will take just as long for people to warm up to a camera with a built-in adaptor (in my opinion).
 
All very good points.
I like how Kholi broke it down. I have a big problem selling my used equipment. The one camera I sold was to one of my "student".
I still have an HV20 that I mostly use as a deck for HDV. I also have a Sony FX1 wish I use for multi-camera events along with a Canon HX A1 and the HVX with Letus Extreme.
I personally don't mind the size of adapter rigs. To me is more about resolution and light sensitivity.
I just think that in today's economy it would make sense not to keep adding to my inventory.
 
I hear you! I know that in my post I said that keeping the best of both worlds would kind of be the better way to go...

Since then I've actually listed my HPX170 and it's pending for sale tomorrow.

After the Heineken gig and a few other tests it kind of showed me where this niche is going. I'm going to keep my Letus Ultimate for now, but the HPX170 has run its course for me.

I factored that my HPX170 doesn't even get used by me anymore, because when I can shoot ANYTHING I am shooting it with a RED and now (happily) a GH-1.. So the HPX170 sits and sits and gets rented here and there. For a decent amount.

When my rental group finds out they can just PURCHASE a GH-1 kit for under 2000.00 and get marginally better results than they would out of an HPX170 and Adapter setup, then why are they renting my kit for the same amount a week? They an just by a GH-1 and never spend money on rentals again. It'll pay itself off for them in ONE job.

And then the Heineken Spot came along and really just solidified what I was already thinking. Not that the adapter market is over because it isn't, but that most renters are going to become owners of these VDSLRs and will use them on small projects instead of adapters.

For me, there won't be anything to rent my adapter combo out on so it's time to move on while the prosumer market still loves the HPX170 and it'll fetch a decent return.

The fact that my GH-1 will literally be paid off this coming week with another rental means that I can purchase a second one. I have a Zoom H4N for audio, a rather decent full set of glass that I'm adding too steadily, NDs and filters, a bookbag for it all and cheap storage medium...

You know where I'm going.

About Light Sensitivity and Resolution: I went and shot a Music Video last night with the GH-1. Exterior night to be exact, and here was my wattage breakdown:

2 x 150w Cool Lights HMI's
1 x 150w Arri Tungsten
1 x 1K Arri Tungsten
1 x Bootleg Kino Diva light

This was to light a FULL band performance. Drums, piano, two guitarists and the lead signer on a stage beneath some trees.

I was terribly afraid of the kind of light I'd be getting out of the three HVX/HPX cameras, and it was well justified. The HPX170 ended up keeping the Ultimate and a 50/1.4 on it, just barely squeezing by with minimal settings, the two HVX200's had the adapters ripped off and went naked.

The GH-1 sported my favorite 28-70/3.4~5.6 Zoom @ 200 and 320ISO while I literally floated around the stage catching bits of performance. I've never had so much fun shooting a music video in my short career. And I didn't have to struggle for light OR resolution, man.

It's really hard to go back to an Adapter Combo, but I'll keep my Letus Ultimate for now. Otherwise, I'll be shooting everything GH-1 or RED.
 
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