At just about $5,000 for a fluid head alone, Sachtler's Video 18 S2 costs more than the cameras owned by most people who read this blog (and just about five times my daily shooter, the Sony a6300). But if you want to know why it costs so much -- or how good it is (spoiler alert: incredible) and when it makes sense -- read on.
Read more$500 Sachtler Ace Matte Box vs. $20 Neewer Matte Box. Yes, It Makes Sense to Compare Them.
UPDATE: PLEASE NOTE CORRECTIONS IN "NITS" SECTION AND AT BOTTOM OF THE POST
If you use your hybrid video/stills camera to make movies, at some point you will likely find the limitations of your still photography lens hoods. You may get as far as dedicated video cameras and geared cine lenses, in which case you most likely won't even have a lens hood. This is when matte boxes matter, and you can start cheap: $20 will get you one made by Neewer. But at some point, you may want more. The Sachtler Ace Matte Box is a good place to start.
Read moreBlackmagic 4K Video Assist: Basic 4K Recording Wrapped in a Robust All-Metal Case with Beautiful Screen, Excellent Touch Interface
If you're looking for a 4K recorder/monitor combo unit for your hybrid mirrorless or DSLR, Blackmagic's 4K Video Assist deserves to be on your short list. It has a bug that needs to be addressed (see below), but the price, display, build quality, dual card slots, dual batteries, and dead simple touch interface make it a unique value in the market.
Read moreSachtler vs. Zacuto vs. FOTGA -- or Why the HECK Would Someone Spend Five to Ten Times as Much on a Freakin' Baseplate When You Can Get a Perfectly Usable One for $60? THIS is Why.
This is why it makes sense to find the optimal compromise between price and performance for the core components of your gear (camera and lenses): you're going to need a pile more dough for everything else. But "pile" is a relative term. Welcome to episode 2 of what I'm now calling our Goldilocks series, where this time we look at baseplates - a category I used to think was beyond mundane. I was wrong.
Read moreHasselblad X1D: Is This the Camera that Will Save Hasselblad?
Just six months ago I wondered if Hasselblad -- among other beloved photography brands -- would "...fade, like old photographs, into the sands of time." Fast forward to April of this year, when Hasselblad announced a brand new H6D in 50 and 100mp versions, coupled with the best software interface in a camera I've ever seen -- and an eye-watering price of $32,995 for the 100mp model, body only. Now Hasselblad as announced another new camera, the X1D at $8,995 (body only). While the X1D has the same sensor and user interface as the H6D-50c, it is roughly one third the price and less than half the weight. What does this mean for photographers -- and for Hasselblad?
Read moreIf You Want to Understand the Hasselblad X1D in a Single Image, This is It.
Much more coming as I'll be hands on with the X1D later today. But it looks like they've taken the best user interface in the business from Hasselblad's own H6D -- along with the sensor in the H6D-50c (or something very much like it) and put them in a body about the size of a Sony a7r II.
At 725g (camera with battery), the X1D is about 100g more than a Sony a7r II, yet crams in a much larger sensor.
If you want to understand the X1D in two images, here's the second image which reveals what it is not:
More to come shortly!
CAME-TV's Argo 3-Axis Gimbal Reminds Me of 1956's INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS. Cool!
I'm on a real 1950s sci-fi flick tear: everything seems to remind me of one of those movies. Especially the Argo: can you spell INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956)? But bear with me, because this analogy may be more apt than you think. Unless you prefer the 1970's TV series THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN. And no, this is not going to be a typical gimbal review.
Read moreFollow Focus Face-Off: Cinegears vs. Aputure vs. edelkrone Starring the Sony FS5, Veydra 85mm T2.2, Panasonic GX8, and Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM
From left to right: Panasonic LUMIX GX8; Aputure DEC LensRegain; Canon 50mm f/1.8 II; edlkrone FocusONE Pro; Sony FS5 with 18-105 kit lens; Cinegears Espresso Mini Controller; Cinegears Wireless Focus Controller; Cinegears combination gear motor/receiver
If shallow depth of field was the first milestone in the acceptance of DSLRs and eventually mirrorless in the realm of movie-making, racking focus must have been right behind it, vying with 24fps for runner-up. Amazing how the landscape for follow focus tools has evolved, from touch focus on smartphones to heavy, full metal jacket high torque, high precision wireless follow focus controllers costing thousands. In true Three Blind Men and an Elephant fashion, we take a look at two very different wireless follow focus controllers from Cinegears and Aputure, plus my own personal standby, the very manual Edelkrone FOCUS ONE, now updated.
Read moreFrench Production House BigFly Does Incredible Aerial Footage
I first profiled Guillaume Juin's work at planet5D back in 2014 and was so impressed that I interviewed him some time after that. But as is sometimes the case, priorities and schedules conspired to push publication so far back as to lose the window. I've been feeling guilty ever since. But Guillaume recently took the wraps off his new aerial video company BigFly, and I'm excited to share his new reel with you.
Read moreAnother Nail in the Coffin of Entry-level/Budget Enthusiast DSLRs? Sony RX10 Mark III Takes On the Sony a6300 with Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8
I didn't think I'd like this camera: I'd chosen to buy Sony's RX100 Mk IV last year when I faced the choice. But then I returned that camera when I realized it didn't have enough reach and I didn't like futzing with the pop-up viewfinder (I loved everything else). Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago, when an RX10 Mark III loaner showed up on my doorstep, in the middle of my on-going love affair with the Sony a6300 and a just-arrived Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 - a true rock 'n roll combo. So I did the obvious - I pitted them against each other during a family portrait shoot. I’ll cut straight to the chase: the Sony RX10 Mk III is so good – and so close to an a6300 with the already-legendary Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 - that if you can’t get amazing photos with it, the problem is…ahem…do you see it coming… YOU (or, in my case, me). Even bigger: the RX10 Mark III may be another nail in the coffin of entry level/budget enthusiast DSLRs.
Read moreDeals Up the Whazoo? Yep.
I don't pay much attention to deals, but the folks over at B&H sent me a pile of links (yes, I get coffee money if you use them, thank you) and it looks like there are some big opportunities if what you're looking for is among them.
Read moreSuddenly, in a Crazy World, Anton Bauer Makes Batteries REALLY Interesting
We are creatures of our environment. Same with products: they are a function of the time and circumstances in which they are developed. Have you ever faced the problem of carrying gear to an airport boarding gate, getting hassled about excess baggage and the need to check your gear due to an over-full flight, only for everyone to realize you CAN'T, you're NOT ALLOWED, to do that because they contain Li-ION batteries? Anton Bauer has an app for that. Well, not exactly...
Read moreWith the Arrival of VR, Pixel-Peeping Traditional Cameras Seems so...2015
If you haven't already done so, go out and spend $20 or so for one of the many Google Cardboard virtual reality (VR) viewers. If you want to spend more and you have a Samsung Galaxy, you'll get a vastly superior experience -- and really get what's happening -- when you buy the Samsung Gear VR headset instead. In either case, get ready. VR is the shape of things to come. Suddenly, pixel-peeping is so 2015.
Read moreFirst Images from the Sony RX10 III May Make Me Change My Mind About Super Zoom Cameras
Whenever I hear about 20x, 25x or even more lenses on smaller sensor cameras, my eyes glaze over. They're going to be crap, right? Umm...well, I've only had the Sony RX10 III in house a couple of days and I've had a lot of other things going on, but these first few images -- straight out of the camera, no nuttin' -- look pretty damned good. Then again, for $1,500 they ought to.
Read moreSony’s FS5 is the Best Get-It-Right, NO FUTZING AROUND Interchangeable Lens Video Camera for the Money Out There Today. Here’s Why.
Those of you who know me will remember that I’ve drooled over the Sony a7S II and again over the a7R II, yet my favorite camera these days is Sony’s a6300. I put it in my bag as I headed to Oaks, PA last month, part of a team covering a Bernie Sanders event (this is not a political post, don’t worry). I got some great footage with it. But the camera I chose as my primary was Sony’s FS5 with their Sony E PZ 18-105mm f/4 G OSS lens. Here’s why.
Read moreSony Audio Gets REALLY Interesting [NAB 2016, Episode 8]
Sure, Sony cameras -- now even Sony lenses -- are white hot. But Sony audio? That's so...1990's, right? DEAD WRONG.
Read moreWildlife Photographer and Videographer Bertie Gregory - and the Sachtler Video 18 S2 [NAB 2016, Episode 7]
Vegas + NAB = one of the largest gear porn fests on the planet, but it's ultimately about the people. Meet Bertie Gregory, a 22-year-old wildlife photographer and videographer phenom working with National Geographic and Sachtler in pursuit of his dream job. And while you're at it, meet Sachtler's just-announced 18 S2, an update to their highly regarded 18 S1 fluid head.
Read moreOne Year and a Bunch of Scar Tissue Later: Blackmagic's Dan May on the URSA Mini 4.6K, Plus New, Shipping Products
Blackmagic's URSA Mini 4.6K was the camera many of us were waiting for: all the goodness of the original URSA but much smaller and lighter; a 15-stop dynamic range, 4.6K sensor; and a switchable global shutter. Only problem was, it didn't ship - until now. And even now, there's no global shutter. I sit down with one of my favorite imaging industry execs, Blackmagic Americas President Dan May to learn what happened. He also talks about new, shipping products: the $895 4K Video Assist 7" Recorder/Monitor and the new $1.795 Studio Viewfinder.
Read moreBlackmagic OS 4.0: The New Standard in Sub-$5,000 Video Camera Software User Experience [NAB 2016, Episode 5]
I was blown away by the new software user experience (UX) of Hasselblad's H6D, and now Blackmagic delivers a dramatically enhanced software UX in its URSA Mini, a dedicated video camera. Call it the new standard in sub-$5,000 dedicated video software UX, confirming that a sea-change in usability is underway. It's about time.
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