What would you do?

cdevarona

cdevarona

Active member
Ok so i just sold my HPX500, and since im not doing so much ENG work anymore, and since scarlet is a little out of budget now ..

Im between doing two things..

WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

Wait for canons 4k DSLR or go with AF100 at $4,545. I know the AF100 has been out for a year now so im wondering if it would be a bad idea to buy into it now. What do you guys think?


thanks!
 
Do you want to shoot video with a DSLR?

Is onboard audio important to you?

Do you have any lenses for a AF-100 or a Canon DSLR?

These are a couple of questions to ask yourself first. Going from a ENG camera to the large sensor camera is like starting over. You will probably have to add another $2K to your budget with either choice.

What do you intend to shoot? thats important to know as well.
 
Well yes I shoot video. Own 2 sennheiser lavaliers that i use.

See the thing is the lenses I have are Canon old FD lenses. They are nice lenses but i would need to use an adapter on whichever camera.

Still have my mattebox as well.

I guess my real question is whether or not to hold off on buying the AF100..

Ahh i know i need a cam but am hesitant to the AF100 i don't know why.! ahh
 
Ahh i know i need a cam but am hesitant to the AF100 i don't know why.! ahh
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Maybe you just dont have an identifiable need or use for any camera ...because if you did, it would make the task of finding one that suits...easy!

What I would do is keep the money in the bank. ( seeing as you asked)
 
cdevarona said:
Well yes I shoot video. Own 2 sennheiser lavaliers that i use.

See the thing is the lenses I have are Canon old FD lenses. They are nice lenses but i would need to use an adapter on whichever camera.

Still have my mattebox as well.

I guess my real question is whether or not to hold off on buying the AF100..

Ahh i know i need a cam but am hesitant to the AF100 i don't know why.! ahh
Click to expand...

The Canon FDs are difficult-to-impossible to adapt to Canon EF but simple to adapt to MFT. If you can afford the AF100 and you want to shoot instead of worry about shooting I would pull the trigger. The AF100 is a complicated feature-deep camera the more you can work with it the better the results will be. Its still the best value in a large sensor camera. If you don't like it you can always sell it and you will probably lose less than if you rented.
 
cdevarona said:
Well yes I shoot video. Own 2 sennheiser lavaliers that i use.

See the thing is the lenses I have are Canon old FD lenses. They are nice lenses but i would need to use an adapter on whichever camera.

Still have my mattebox as well.

I guess my real question is whether or not to hold off on buying the AF100..

Ahh i know i need a cam but am hesitant to the AF100 i don't know why.! ahh
Click to expand...
What I meant to say is shooting video with a DSLR can be a pain so are you willing to deal with the short comings.
Maybe rent one for a day and see if you like it. It's a different shooting experience.
 
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I own an AF100 and will not be selling it when our Scarlet-X arrives. Furthermore...if I would have needed to sell my AF100 to buy the Scarlet-X I probably would not have made the purchase. The AF100 is an amazing camera with the best of both ENG and cinema characteristics. I would not plan on replacing a great "professional video camera" with any DSLR from Canon, whose first priority is and always will be shooting still photos.
 
cdevarona said:
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
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I bought one.

Oye man, if you're that undecided, rent one from Budget for $295 or Midtown for $350.
I doubt they have FD adapters, though. I have one FD (50mm f/1.8) and a $35 adapter- works fine, and a bunch of EF lenses.

Shoot all day (or even weekend), interiors, exteriors, different settings, use the waveform, avoid blowing out highlights, see what you think.
Couldn't tell if you've shot DSLRs or not, but it's a very different workflow in the field changing lenses, very different from a servo zoom ENG lens (even if you don't zoom).
Test drive... see what you think, but I think it's hard to beat for the price.

Buena Suerte!
 
Sounds like you don't have any immediate projects or a particular need for either one and being as you're undecided you should probably just wait. You're asking a question that's like asking should I buy an SUV or a car. One looks and drives completely different from the other. Figure out what you need the most and go from there.
 
FD lenses give great results on the Panny, in some ways better than the native Lumix lenses. Great glass as well. You won't be able to use them on an EF mount dslr, and you'll (presumably) have the same audio and monitoring issues on the new canon as you currently have on the 5d. The C300 is an awesome camera (I've had a go on it) but I'm guessing the new dslr will be a good deal less exciting. But who knows? I'd say get the Panny, you won't lose much if you sell it in 6 months.
 
HI,

As others have suggested, see if there's a rental house near you. If so, hire an AF100 and see if you like it. If you have enough shoot days coming up that it makes sense to own, and you liked it when you hired it, buy one.

Personally I find the AF100 streets ahead of dSLRs for video shooting. It isn't the image quality, that's about on a par. For most situations, the Canons in my opinion have nicer skin tone handling but the AF100 has no Moire, which is either irrelevant or a deal breaker depending on what you shoot. It is the production workflow, monitoring and general level of control you get from the AF100 that really smokes the dSLRs. Audiobars, waveforms, XLR inputs...

I've just ordered a Scarlet, having rented a RED One and loved the RAW workflow and the way it FINALLY lets me get the colours I really want and the monitoring info I REALLY need (clipping RAW on the sensor). This is not surprising, I'm primarily a stills photographer so RAW RGB workflow is what I do. I've just edited the first of the three shorts we shot on hire day and LOVE the process, soooo much control over colour and tone curves!

I found the R1 too bulky for comfortable one-man-band operation. So I decided a Scarlet would probably be a better match to my requirements than a second-hand R1. I have no idea how long it'll take to get here, and which features will even be working when it does... and I'm absolutely keeping my AF100 for the foreseeable future.

It'll be a B-cam to the Scarlet as well as a backup in case the (possibly beta-bug-prone) Red firmware games cause issues while they shake the firmware down. The degree of image control in post isn't as good and it doesn't suit my workflow as well as I think RED will, but the AF100 is still a kick-ass camera at a great price.


Cheers, Hywel.
 
Hywel said:
It'll be a B-cam to the Scarlet as well as a backup in case the (possibly beta-bug-prone) Red firmware games cause issues while they shake the firmware down. The degree of image control in post isn't as good and it doesn't suit my workflow as well as I think RED will, but the AF100 is still a kick-ass camera at a great price.
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Smart man!
 
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