The FREE DVXUser Guide to Magic Lantern RAW (NOW AVAILABLE!!)

Stephen Mick

Stephen Mick

Totally Usable
Filmmaking friends,

Welcome to the home of what (I hope) will be a helpful and constantly-updated resource, the Free DVXUser Guide to Magic Lantern RAW for the Canon 5D-series cameras. (We have a lot of love for 60D, T2i, and other cameras, but we had to narrow our focus to the full-frame cameras to get things started.) This will (eventually) be a complete and comprehensive guide to using ML RAW firmware, from installation, to shooting, to editing, to the final output.


At the moment, we've got about 40 pages of Magic Lantern goodness to get you going. The current version covers installation, setup, and basic shooting with ML Raw. There are links to the firmware and apps you'll need, troubleshooting tips and tricks, and a complete break-down of the key settings and menu items you'll want to know about. Here's the link to the current version…

http://www.dvxuser.com/guides/ml_raw_guide_5DIII_full.pdf

We're busting arse right now to get the additional sections completed, which include Advanced Techniques with ML, Key Accessories, and Workflows/Editing. We'll be shooting some how-to videos on every topic we can think of, so bear with us as we get those shot and posted over time. Basically, we want this to be something you all find invaluable as you shoot with ML RAW.


Keep in mind this is a work in progress, and will continue to be "in progress" for as long as there are updates to the ML firmware. I'll do my absolute best to keep it updated with new information, new workflows, and other cool new stuff as it develops. But I'll need your help to do that. Where you see things that can be improved, please let me know (via PM). When things in the ML world change, but change isn't reflected in the User Guide here, let me know and I'll get to it as quickly as I can. We want your suggestions, your ideas, and most of all, your help. This isn't going to be perfect, but we hope it's helpful, and best of all…it's free. So you won't be out any cash if you think it sucks. :happy:

And it goes without saying that big, big thanks go out to the folks at Magic Lantern for making all this possible. You can always find the very latest information and firmware builds on their site…

http://www.magiclantern.fm/

Finally, thanks to the members who have helped (and will continue to help) put this together. I owe each of you a beer. :beer:

I'm going to sticky this thread, but let's try to make sure it doesn't take discussion away from the many other ML threads we have going. Keep those other threads going, and try to use this one only for suggestions on how we can make this even better.

And please, share this. Send it around. Let people know it's here.


Cheers, and shoot it up!
 
I passed by Austin last weekend on the way to San Antonio and was about to take you up on that beer. :beer:

...but I was drivin so maybe next time. I like the layout of this guide.
 
Okay, ML users… We're live!

Below is a link to the current version, covering installation, setup, and basic shooting with ML Raw. There are links to the firmware and apps you'll need, troubleshooting tips and tricks, and a complete break-down of the key settings and menu items you'll want to know about. Here's the link…

http://www.dvxuser.com/guides/ml_raw_guide_5DIII_full.pdf

We're busting arse right now to get the additional sections completed, which include Advanced Techniques with ML, Key Accessories, and Workflows/Editing. So stay tuned!
 
I've just posted an updated PDF (same link above) that includes a quick-start guide for the 5D2, as well as a complete step-by-step install guide for the 5D2.


Sorry for the delay on the workflow section. It's taking longer than originally anticipated. :D
 
7D Magic Lantern Raw Video development

7D Magic Lantern Raw Video development

A1ex recently found the raw buffers on the 7D, with this developement, the 7D suddenly moved from LimboLand to the fore.
Right now its already capable of shooting raw in burst mode, this is a similar development path as the 5D.

New modules are being added and developers are scrambling to compile the raw_rec module to allow the 7D to offload the Raw buffer
to the CF.
I have high hopes on the 7D as A1ex did a benchmark and the write speed is fast. Faster than the 5D mkII.

Another good thing going for the 7D is, just like the 5DmkIII, it can shoot DUAL ISO, this trick done by Alex has increased the DR on this cam.
If it also get ported to the raw video module, that would make the 7D awesome. -again.

Once the modules are stable we'll try to include an updated guide to include the 7D.
 
Last edited:
I've updated the Guide (same link above) with the new workflow section, including a complete (I think) tutorial on using Resolve. Enjoy!
 
Stephen, thanks for all the hard work that went into making this guide. I spotted a couple of errors and I just wanted to let you know about them.

1. Ok, this one is pretty huge because it could be dangerous. Why does your guide say to install the ML firmware in movie mode and where did this guidance come from? With every other Canon DSLR and every other Magic Lantern build, the guidance from the developers was always to only install with the camera set to M in photo mode, not Liveview and not in Movie shooting mode. I cannot find any reference to this "Make sure your camera’s mode dial is set to Manual, and that the LiveView switch is set to the Movie Camera icon." anywhere other than your guide.

2. You say to set the still photo mode to s3 jpeg, but the latest guidance is to set it to raw for best results with ML raw video on the 5D3.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the feedback, CD.

1. I'll double-check my sources on the proper mode for installation, but I seem to remember reading in at least one or two places to set the LiveView switch to Movie Mode, and the Mode Dial to "M" (manual). I've used this method each time with my 5DIII, and it's always worked perfectly. But again, I'll double-check.

2. At one point I believe the thinking was that setting the still photo mode to S3 JPEG eased the internal processing going on in the camera. But again, I'll double-check this and revise the guide, if necessary.


SM

Celluloid Dream said:
Stephen, thanks for all the hard work that went into making this guide. I spotted a couple of errors and I just wanted to let you know about them.

1. Ok, this one is pretty huge because it could be dangerous. Why does your guide say to install the ML firmware in movie mode and where did this guidance come from? With every other Canon DSLR and every other Magic Lantern build, the guidance from the developers was always to only install with the camera set to M in photo mode, not Liveview and not in Movie shooting mode. I cannot find any reference to this "Make sure your camera’s mode dial is set to Manual, and that the LiveView switch is set to the Movie Camera icon." anywhere other than your guide.

2. You say to set the still photo mode to s3 jpeg, but the latest guidance is to set it to raw for best results with ML raw video on the 5D3.
Click to expand...
 
I think #2. To set still to raw, is for the 5D3 only. I read a1ex mentioning it's different for each camera model. I know on the 5D2 is jpeg. If you have a fast CF (1000x) it doesnt matter if is L or S.
But this needs to be confirmed yet, as its still being discussed in the forums last time I saw it.
 
A couple of other points about using Magic Lantern on the 5D3. These are things that should be in any Magic Lantern guide. This stuff has been glossed over by the developers and all the hype and promotion around on the net. Full disclosure is better as these are things people should know before taking the plunge.

1. To use Magic Lantern on any Canon DSLR, you have to enable the bootflag. On the 5D3 and the 5D3 only, this is an is an irreversible permanent change to the camera. Once you do it you can never go back. The problem? It slows down the camera start up time by about two seconds. You no longer have instant response if you let the camera go into soft off mode. The only solution is to turn off the power saving feature and use more batteries, or be prepared to wait longer for the camera to start. It's a big problem for event and sports photographers who need a camera with nearly instant wake up time.

2. Magic Lantern only supports the old 1.1.3 firmware version on the 5D3. There were 13 bug fixes in addition to the AF @ f/8 and clean HDMI out features added. You want those things and Magic Lantern, so sorry you can't have it.

3. This relates back to point one, if you ever need to sell the camera, you cannot remove the bootflag, so the new owner will be stuck with the same slow start up problem in point 1.

It has been a HUGE error on the part of the Magic Lantern team to choose not to work on the 5D3 bootflag removal issue and to not get it working on the 1.2.1 firmware. I cannot overstate how poor this decision has been. The biggest problem with the Magic Lantern team is they are video guys and don't care that much about still photography other than timelapse. Things like AF with f/8 lens converter combos, slow wake up times, bug fixes in the AF micro adjust, AF with flash at dark receptions and events, etc., etc.
 
Last edited:
Celluloid Dream said:
A couple of other points about using Magic Lantern on the 5D3. These are things that should be in any Magic Lantern guide. This stuff has been glossed over by the developers and all the hype and promotion around on the net. Full disclosure is better as these are things people should know before taking the plunge.

1. To use Magic Lantern on any Canon DSLR, you have to enable the bootflag. On the 5D3 and the 5D3 only, this is an is an irreversible permanent change to the camera. Once you do it you can never go back. The problem? It slows down the camera start up time by about two seconds. You no longer have instant response if you let the camera go into soft off mode. The only solution is to turn off the power saving feature and use more batteries, or be prepared to wait longer for the camera to start. It's a big problem for event and sports photographers who need a camera with nearly instant wake up time.
Click to expand...


CD,

I read a poster over at ML forums reply re slow restart time with ML on the 5d3. Since I don't have the mk3 can you try testing not having an SD card in the camera and just CF to test if this is still the case?
He mentioned the camera will start faster if you use CF. This might be a solution albeit temporary if you use it for stills and video, taking out the SD with ML when shooting stills and plopping it back in when taking ML videos.
 
Thanks Ted. I should explain my experience with ML on the 5D3 is limited to recent rentals that were using the August 6 build. My personal 5D3 is not hacked because I just cannot take the risk that I will be forever stuck with the slow start up and inability to revert back to stock behavior. The majority of my work is still photography and thus my never ending frustration with the ML team. At this point I have to concede that ML for the 5D3 will forever be stuck on the 1.1.3 firmware and with all the problems mentioned above will not be installed on mine.
 
Last edited:
C D,

Sharing a test posted at the ML forums on the start up issue with the mkIII.

Load time:

0.1s = without bootflag

1.25s = bootflaged, no sd card

1.75s =bootflaged and ML bootable sd inserted.


Maybe this will help mkIII owners to decide before installing ML if they can live with this penalty or not. Video users probably won't mind this, photographers would.
 
Just wanted to say thank you for putting together this guide. I just picked up a 5Dmk3 and haven't done ML yet. It looks like the project hasn't had much movement in the last several months as I now understand ML has a build that works with the latest firmware 1.2.3. At any rate, I'm sure this guide will still be useful and just wanted to say thanks!
 
i am very thankful for ML
it shows us a way to better quality
but my question can we rely on it in pro work
till now i am still testing and i am impressed by the results
thank You
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top