why someone would choose the 7d for a feature film?

B

billygraydon

Active member
- I would just like to know what the 7d has over cameras such has the hpx170 and the ex1/r.
- What benefit do these camera have over the 7d? besides the sound etc. ?
- What I am basically asking is why would someone buy an hpx170 or ex1/r over a 7d? or vice versa.

p.s. this is for shooting a feature film.
 
The 7D is much less expensive, and has the shallow-DOF look.

In pretty much any other possible category, the professional video camera would have the advantage.
 
The 7d like more VDSLRs has wobble/jello so handheld at anything but wide angle lenses is difficult.

Usable in camera audio is impossible because of the AGC though this is circumvented by using a separate audio recorder or possibly by the upcoming Magic Lantern firmware.

Form factor of 7d is a for SLR-user and not a camcorder user.

The HPX170 and EX1 don't have any of these problems.

The 7d has it's advantages like small size, lowlight, and interchangeable lenses.

These are just a few of the pros and cons. Looking through this forum will tell you a lot more.

Best,
Andy
 
The 7D has the following advantages...

• the shallow depth of field will improve an actor's performance.
• the low light sensitivity replaces the need to consider luminosity, color and composition.
• the AGC negates the need to "ride sound levels".
• the compression codec makes it instantly "internet distribution ready".
• jello/wobble cuts down on the amount of handheld you'd otherwise employ.
• gives you something to argue about on message boards.
• it feels really good owning new stuff (until the next new stuff comes out).

The HPX170 and EX1 have the following disadvantages...

• they're old.
• they look like videocameras.
 
If you don't push the limitations of a V-DSLR system, and you want good shallow depth of field (my definition of good being easily obtained without an adapter and true bokeh rendition) then using a 7D or any other V-DSLR cam has some great advantages. Nope you can't use them for anything that requires long recording time. For anything creative where you don't usually do takes more than 30 - 60 seconds long then they are a great tool because of the look you can get. Heck, even George Lucas is going to use a 7D for a new film.

http://movies.about.com/od/moviesinproduction/a/red-tails.htm

Steve Weiss just shipped a Tactical Shooter system to Mr Lucas so they could adapt it for the 7D.
 
What's funny about threads like these is not 5 yes ago people were asking who would ever make a feature on ex 1 or 170 type video cameras.
 
Yeah it's great to see how things change over time. One thing that these VDSLR cams have done for me is that they have forced me to actually go out and make something real with them. Nobody cares about test footage from a DSLR like they did with test footage from the myriad of DOF adapters out there a year back.
 
octopi_films said:
If you don't push the limitations of a V-DSLR system, and you want good shallow depth of field (my definition of good being easily obtained without an adapter and true bokeh rendition) then using a 7D or any other V-DSLR cam has some great advantages. Nope you can't use them for anything that requires long recording time. For anything creative where you don't usually do takes more than 30 - 60 seconds long then they are a great tool because of the look you can get. Heck, even George Lucas is going to use a 7D for a new film.

http://movies.about.com/od/moviesinproduction/a/red-tails.htm

Steve Weiss just shipped a Tactical Shooter system to Mr Lucas so they could adapt it for the 7D.
Click to expand...

I'd be surprised if it were being used as anything more than a director's viewfinder that can also record and be used on a personal basis to study the scene in a different fashion. Just my guess, though.

Answer to original question: Money and Selective Focus.
 
lenses

lenses

For me the biggest advantage is the interchangeable lenses. Partially becuase it gives you more DOF options but also because it FORCES you to think like a director of photography. Which lens do I need to get the shot im looking for? This question has never really entered the minds of video people... but its what directors and DPs from film have always been asking.
 
octopi_films said:
Yeah it's great to see how things change over time. One thing that these VDSLR cams have done for me is that they have forced me to actually go out and make something real with them. Nobody cares about test footage from a DSLR like they did with test footage from the myriad of DOF adapters out there a year back.
Click to expand...


I agree. This low cost camera gives people a chance to have the quality and ability to get out there and make films.

The 7D and ANY other Camera, will inherently have their flaws but thats part of a filmmakers ingenuity to overcome them. For example a lot of people complain about the jello/wobble effect and say handheld is impossible on these DSLRs, but I respectfully disagree. Check out this webseries I just shot:

Ike Vs. Vin

Just about the entire thing was handheld on the 7D, save for a few shots where we setup sticks because there was only two of us.
 
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Tim Joy said:
One thing to add to that--

Stealth factor.
Click to expand...

At one point I used to think this, but honestly it just depends on what you're trying to accomplish. The "Stealthier" the setup, to me, the worse the results in all aspects. Shaky camera action, shoddy audio, etc etc.

The more solid the setup, the less stealthier, the better everything turns out.

My rig weighs like fourteen pounds (14 Lbs) now... it's definitely not stealthy but it's steady and ready for production.
 
billygraydon said:
- I would just like to know what the 7d has over cameras such has the hpx170 and the ex1/r.
- What benefit do these camera have over the 7d? besides the sound etc. ?
- What I am basically asking is why would someone buy an hpx170 or ex1/r over a 7d? or vice versa.

p.s. this is for shooting a feature film.
Click to expand...

The real question is, why not?

The 7D far surpasses "true" video cams from perhaps 5 years ago that were used to shoot many features.

With the right workflow, the results would be exceptional.
 
Mark Harris said:
What's funny about threads like these is not 5 yes ago people were asking who would ever make a feature on ex 1 or 170 type video cameras.
Click to expand...

Five or six years ago "good" cameras (F900, VariCam, Viper etc.) were $125K or more soe a lot of would be independent film makers used lower end broadcast cameras and then the DVX100 really got people excited.

The great thing about today is that you can now get a variety of "good" cameras for $45K or less. Yes each of them have different limitations, so get a couple of them. I have seen some amazing footage from the 7D and sub 10K cameras (and some bad stuff too).

So if I had a limited budget and I'd shoot as much of my project that made sense for that camera and either rent or buy a different camera to fill in the rest.

It still isn't perfect but there are a lot of ways to mix and match cameras, workflows and accessories. Someone will produce an outstanding movie on the 7D, just like I'm sure someone produced amazing content with a pinhole camera, its going to happen. If you've got the right idea then why not you?
 
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