Zacuto Revenge of the Great Camera Shootout and other News

The second part of Zacuto's Revenge of the Great Camera Shootout 2012 has been posted. To recap:
In Part One of Revenge of the Great Camera Shootout 2012 you were presented with unlabeled footage of a complex party scene designed by Bruce Logan ASC, the test administrator. We heard form legendary DP’s in the industry talking about what being a “cinematographer” really means to them; in many cases challenging us to rethink our understanding of camera technology and how it relates to filmmaking–and how all of that relates to talent, creativity, collaboration and experience.
In this episode you get to see the reactions of audiences to the tests, and you also learn which camera was which:


After watching it, these were the takeaways for me:
  1. How subjective any test and comparison is
  2. How different DPs set things up differently, so the results were even more subjective.
  3. It's really impossible to produce a completely unbiased comparison
While a couple of cameras visually stood out as "not so good" (the iPhone and 7D had some visual issues) it was a lot harder to pick between the rest; which was obvious from the responses of the audience members.
The best and worst thing about this is how subjective it is.
I'm starting to wonder how much longer we need to do these comparisons. For the last few years the question was always: can digital rival film? I think we're really beyond that now. Now it's as much about ease of use, workflows, and personal preference as it is about actual performance differences.
Unless you're risking a mistake you're just repeating yourself, you're not adding anything, you're not growing.
Perhaps more interesting was hearing the discussions, and hearing the Cinematographers talking about their work.


NeedCreative Podcast Ep. 4 - It Is What It Was
The fourth episode of the NeedCreative Podcast with Jason Sidelinger and Paul Antico has been posted. This episode features Matthew Allard of Al-Jazeera English talking about his experiences in filming cinematic news. Topics include:
  • An update on the Under 3 Min Film Challenge - Sean Meehan's new short and what it meant
  • Moving from news and documentary work to narrative
  • Bashing people online - why it happens, why it shouldn't
  • Camera Fanboys and why they're all very silly
  • The C300 and the new WFT-E6 Wireless Adapter
  • Matt's experience with the new Sony NEX-FS700


July 24th BOSCPUG: Adobe CS6 Production Premium with Al Mooney
This months Boston Creative Pro Users Group meeting should be interesting for anyone using Adobe software. You have to register to attend, and my understanding is that it could be sold out soon.
BOSCPUG



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sony GV-D200 review

Image
Sony GV-D200 I've been using a Sony GV-D200 deck to transfer old Video8 and Hi8 tapes. Some of these tapes are over twenty years old, and no longer having a Hi8 camcorder that worked I was concerned that if I didn't do something about transferring them to a more modern format soon, I might never be able to. While Sony no longer make camcorders that use these tapes - that I know of - Sony does still sell the GV-D200 deck (or Video Walkman, as it's sometimes labelled.) They also offer the GV-D800, which is almost identical but adds a small LCD screen for about $120 more. I didn't think I'd need a screen since I was using this to capture to the computer, but you will need an external monitor when you first set it up. Physically, the device is small. At 5 7/8" wide, 5 3/8" deep and 2" high, it's the smallest video deck I've encountered. I used to have a Video8 deck that I thought was small; and it was twice as deep and twice as high. The t...
Read more

Response: Which iPhone to Get?

Image
In response to my iPhone musings, I got the following reader email which actually sums up a lot of my second and third thoughts too: You might have a point about the fancier camera, but otherwise I would buy the smaller model. Its screen is about the same size as that of my Nexus 4, and I don't feel at all like it limits me with a too-small screen. But I do sometimes stretch to get my thumb the reach to the other corner of the screen. It is plenty big for a phone. A phone is a pocket thing. (Well, in my case it lives an ancient REI soft sunglasses case that I have on my belt.) Ubiquitous, handy, convenient, almost always with me. Small is crucial for all of that. Certainly a large screen is cool, but you need a place to put it: don't break a fundamental feature of a pocket phone by getting too big. That is what your small tablet is for. I have my phone with me almost always. I have my Nexus 7 tablet with me nearly as much. The bigger screen is great, yet it fits in some...
Read more

Should you buy the Sony NEX-FS100 Kit Lens?

Image
The Sony NEX-FS100 is available in two configurations: B & H : NEX-FS100U Camcorder only $4,999 B & H : NEX-FS100U (with 18-200mm lens) $5,599 But what does that extra $600 get you? It get's you this: Sony 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 Zoom Lens for NEX Camera This lens is also available separately for $799.99, so at $200 off you'd think everyone would be jumping on it. But not so fast... In his article about switching from the Canon 5D Mark II to the Sony NEX-FS100 , Paul Antico  at Need Creative says of the kit lens: 7) Its 18-200 F3.6-6.3 kit lens absolutely sucks and should be avoided (thankfully, you can order it without one) [ 1 ] But is it that bad? At B & H 's site, 43 reviews give it an average of 4.6 out of 5 stars. That's not a bad rating, though many of these people are using it for stills, and the most common complaint noted is how large and heavy it is. Of course this feeling of size would be exacerbated when you put it on a tiny camera ...
Read more