Crooked Path Blog

Oh my. Canon announced that it will be announcing something historic on November 3rd. What could it be? The announcement is in Hollywood, so no doubt it’ll be a new camera. Perhaps the 5dMkIII? Wide open camera is betting it will be a 4k 35mm CMOS camera around $15k. Any thoughts as to what it is? Regardless…we are in exciting times!

We filmmakers sometimes get caught up in what cameras were used to shoot various things.  What it was edited on.  What was used to color it.  There are several high-exposure people/companies with well-done camera comparisons on the internet…some of the asking us to guess which camera was used to shoot the material.  I make comparisons and try to decipher which camera is used all the time!

Besides it’s fun to compare…it’s in our nature to do so!  5D vs RED.  ARRI vs. GENESIS.  MAC vs. PC.  FREDDY vs. JASON.

But sometimes I need to get back to the foundation of what I do and what inspires me.

Here are three short films every filmmaker should watch.  You can do so while having your morning cup of joe, or right before tackling a project for some inspiration.  Three short films that puts it into perspective, at least for me.

3 guys, 44 days, 11 countries, 18 flights, 38 thousand miles, an exploding volcano, 2 cameras and almost a terabyte of footage… all to turn 3 ambitious linear concepts based on movement, learning and food ….into 3 beautiful and hopefully compelling short films…..

So what camera were these shot on?  A 5d?  A RED?  35?  iPhone?  Its capturing the enjoyment of life.  It’s all about what plucks the right nerve, and evokes emotion in the audience.  The recipe of so many things to make one perfect dish.

So what camera were these shot on?

Who cares?

6 months ago I was turned onto Leica lenses and decided to give them a try.  Bump forward 1 month, and I had sold all my Canon and Zeiss glass for a full set of Leicas.  I use them on Canon DSLRs and our new Sony NEX-FS100, and they can also be used on other CMOS cameras like the Sony F3, Panasonic AF100, and even the RED camera.

So what was so great about Leica R series lenses that made me make such a drastic move?  I’m glad you asked!

IMAGE

CONTRAST: Leica R series lenses tend to be less contrasty than, say, Zeiss lenses…but they hold sharpness just as good.  One could argue that the contrast in Zeiss glass is what makes them appear so sharp.  By having an image that is less contrasty is great for someone who grades their footage in post like me, because there is more information to work with, and when contrast is added in post, that sharpness is enhanced beautifully.

WARM AND CREAMY:  There’s a reason why Shane Hurlbut, ASC loves Leicas and sys they hold up on the big screen better than most other lenses.  The sharp, low contrast is a big help but these lenses have a creamy look to them that just look filmic.  They tend to push about 200 degrees to the warm side too.  Besides, Panavision lenses are essentially Leica lenses wrapped in a cinema body.

BARREL DISTORTION:  Anyone who’s shot down a hallway or through a door frame with some popular lenses have more than likely experienced barrel distortion.  This happens when the optics in the lens tends to round the edges of the frame.  The wider the lens, the more round the edges get.  Leica’s just don’t have that issue.

BOKEH:  Bokeh is the characteristics of the image that is out of focus.  The Leica lenses all have stop-sign shaped bokeh due to the 6-blade iris.

BUILD:  These lenses are typically older and made of metal, and built like tanks.  They do not have modern coating in them so they tend to flare very easily…which I like since it’s a nice option for effect and I can always flag the lens to reduce this.  They all come with a metal telescoping hood that helps too.

FUNCTION

BREATHING: Many lenses “breathe” when you focus them, which is a term used to describe the slight zoom in/out that occurs.  Leica lenses don’t do that as much…but it varies.

FOCUS THROW:  On my Canon lenses, the focus throw is about 180 degrees around the lens, and the focus ring keeps spinning, not stopping when the focus hits infinity or macro.  The focus throw on Leica lenses go about 340 degrees around the lens, have hard stops on them, and have a tight, fluid motion ideal for a follow focus.

TURNING LEICAS INTO CINEMA LENSES

FOCUS GEARS:  Because of the long focus throw, I use “zip tie” focus gears that wrap tightly around the focus ring and are secured by two little zip-ties.  You can purchase yours here.  I don’t recommend using the plastic lens rings again because of the long throw.

DECLICK THE IRIS:  This is something die-hard people do for their lenses, but it’s only useful of you plan to change iris settings WHILE shooting.  Check out Duclose where you can send your Leicas and them converted.  I don’t recommend trying this yourself!

ADAPTERS:  There are many adapters out there.  I have one of Leitax adapters on each of my Leica-r lenses and they’ve been great.

LEICA RESOURCES

CANON DSLR COMPATIBILITY:  The back element of Leica R lenses sit closer to the sensor than Canon glass, therefore you need to refer to this chart before purchasing to ensure the mirror will clear.

SHANE HURLBUT’S LEICA LIST:  Read all the comments below this article…some great insight into the performance of Leica lenses from the POV of a Hollywood ASC!

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Here’s a trailer for a western short film I shot with Leica-r lenses on a Canon 5dMkII:

When I was at NAB…the highlight of the convention was looking at my next possible camera.  (And dinner at AquaKnox in the Venetian…but I’ll save that for another blog post) What I found out is that I am crazy about the new FS100 and was glad to see something that (finally!) came out that has the following points which are most important to me for my next kit camera:

1. Exceeds the image quality of the 5dMkII, in terms of dynamic range, resolution, and low-light.  (The AF100 does not exceed the 5d in any of these points…took me 45 seconds at NAB to see this)
2. Was relatively affordable compared to DSLRs.  (The F3 is 13-18k…whoa)
3. Was small like a DSLR.  (No other camera is small!)
4. Returned features to a camera that I have had to work-around in the past 1.5 years while using my 5dMkII.

I also couldn’t tell much difference between the FS100 and F3 while playing with them at NAB, shooting their mock location set and playing with the settings…which even further solidified my FS100 crush.  But I still wondered…why is the F3 about 3 times the cost of the FS100?  I mean the images are similar…they use the exact same imaging sensor…why would anyone want to shell out the additional $$ for the F3 for cryin out loud?  Even the preview I saw of the Zacuto Shootout (to be released in June) didn’t answer that or have comparisons for me as the FS100 wasn’t around when they shot this.

Well, Philip Bloom released a comparison video shoot that FINALLY shows these cameras in a REAL WORLD comparison.  No charts and graphs, thank God.  I mean, if I went off charts and graphs only, I would have dropped my 5d off a high cliff somewhere in the Nevada desert.  So here’s the video:

AF100 vs F3 vs FS100 Part 1: The Real World from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.

I had a little trouble comparing the footage because they’re so far apart in the timeline and it was hard to scroll the Vimeo player back and forth to switch from one cam to another.  So I’ve taken the liberty of taking screenshots of the comparisons of all four cameras for you to download and compare yourselves.  Keep in mind these are grabs from the 720p video as Philip didn’t create it in a 1080p project.  I don’t really know why…but I still think you can tell the differences quite well.

So you wanna hear my take?  Too bad…here it is anyway!  

1. It is clear the SONY F3 has a superior image.  Finally a video comparison that shows what 15k can buy.  It is NOT just like the FS100.  The detail is much clearer, and the dynamic range seems optimized and very…dare I say…filmic.  Check out the camera’s zoomed in shot under the bridge.  You can see the detail in the waves…the other cameras show not detail whatsoever.  The dynamic range is impressive…barely blows out any highlights while maintaining shadow detail.  This is also the only camera the offers an S-LOG option for maximum latitude in post for color grading.  The only problem is price.  For this camera, PL lenses,
2. The SONY FS100 seems to be the best bank for your buck.  Clearly has more detail than the 5dMkII, can maintain shadow detail and not blow out highlights better than the AF100, and just has a nice sharp image without having that video-ey fake sharpness look.
3. The 5dMkII has fantastic dynamic range but sadly lacking in detail.  I know Philip shoots with sharpness all the way down…which to me seems to blur the image and mess with the compression.  I found in my tests that a setting of 2 is the camera’s sweet spot.  But I STILL don’t think it would look as sharp at the FS100 and F3.  This camera however will remain in my kit.  I still think it has alot to offer…mainly because it’s so stinkin’ cheap and (oh yeah) it happens to take some of the best still pictures on the planet.  The main downside of this camera to me is the codec.  Even the new Technicolor profile can’t get past this major caveat.  The compressed codec does not allow for alot of pushing in terms of color grading in post.
4. The AF100 doesn’t quite measure up to any of these other cameras as far as the 4 points I listed above, except for maybe price.  First, I don’t really understand why they created something called a micro 4/3 sensor.  Why they didn’t just go for  APS-C like a 7d or F3 or FS100 or something that’s been around for decade like Super 35mm is beyond me.  This created too much focal distance for each lens and also minimizes depth of field.  This also throws dynamic range out the window…as you can see in the footage the AF100 blows out highlights in every shot.  The camera also seems to have some detail…but it looks artificial and video-ey like Panasonic took their soft/fuzzy HVX200 look and added sharpening to it.  This camera just doesn’t work for me.

So there you have it.  It looks like the FS100,  the best value for the camera, will be a part of my arsenal this summer, with my trusty 5dMkII in hand as a “B” cam and also stills cam.  I usually get my hands on these cameras before I purchase, and I’ll be able to do an informal 5d vs. FS100 shootout.

Director’s viewfinders are awesome at deciding which lenses you want to use for a shot.  But let’s face it…even if you’re willing to shell out $200-5000 for one, chances are they aren’t configured for the full frame sensor of the 5dMkii.

Well I don’t use a finder, so I created a chart of popular focal lengths to help me decide which lenses I want to use for particular shots.  After awhile I was able to guess pretty accurately but I still like to refer to the chart now and then.

I also created a second page, with the anamorphic (2.35:1) crop applied to the frame.

I highly recommend creating your own chart for each lens and keep it handy.  You can also download the PDF of my chart:  5DMKII_LENSOPTIONS

I’ve watched Sony and Panasonic announce cameras that finally bridge the gap between DLSRs and Camcorders.

First of all, there’s one thing about this camcorder that I can’t get over.  I’m not a fan of the Panasonic GH1, I think the quality of picture is what is most important and Panasonic just doesn’t have nuthin’ on Canon.  This camera is most likely going to emulate the GH1, but hey, they had me at HD-SDI outputs for uncompressed recording!

Looking at these specs, I’m quite impressed.  The SDI outputs being the most tempting, but factor in the variable framerates and conveniences that we’re used to on regular video cameras and I’m starting to calculate in my head how much a month I need to put aside until this baby comes out!

Two things that would prevent me from nabbing one up next year are:

1. If Canon puts together a full frame 5d/video camera hybrid, and/or
2. The AF100′s picture looks like the GH1′s…including those annoying vertical lines in high ISOs and the overall obvious picture quality (when compared to the Canons).

Enough of my talking…onto the good stuff!

It appears that the current beta of Magic Lantern isn’t working on the new Canon 5d firmware 2.0.7. I decided not to update to 2.0.7, because I rely too heavily on Magic Lantern benefits.

Here’s the message from Trammell:

I updated my 5D Mark II to 2.0.7 this morning and ran the old 1.0.7 based dumper on it. It is odd that Canon has not enabled any of the security features on the 5D’s firmware files, in light of their intense efforts to protect the 7D.

Attached is my preliminary IDC file for the ROM0.bin image (loaded at 0xFF80_0000, as usual).

I’m making my way through the 2.0.4 stubs.S file to locate the new symbol locations and hope to have an update beta for 2.0.7 sometime in the near future. My real job has been taking 150% of my time and I haven’t had any spare cycles to hack on any of my cameras. As Mark Twain said, the rumours of my demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Trammell

So a new beta should be up relatively soon.  Until then, I recommend holding off on the 2.0.7 update until its ready.

Shane Hurlbut, ASC along with Canon sponsorship set out to set people straight.  The 5d is KING!

Shane was the Director of Photography for films like Terminator: Salvation, Into the Blue, The Skulls, We Are Marshall, and Drumline.  So why is an established Hollywood cinematographer decide to shoot 1 feature, 20 short films, and 12 commercials with this camera?

Shane said this about the film:

“When the rumors about the 24p update for the Canon 5D were swirling, I was perfectly happy with my cocktail that I had perfected on the Navy SEAL film; 30p and then Twixtor to frame blend. Then, commercial production companies and the ad agencies started to inquire about needing 24p because they could not deal with the rendering time of all the Twixtor files, the 7D started to rise as the premium capture. That is when the aha moment happened for me. I wondered, why is everyone asking for second best when the Canon 5D is king? At that point, I knew I had to be a proponent of the 24p upgrade and to shoot something with it that would bring people back into focus about the camera that started it all.

So Lydia Hurlbut negotiated with Canon to sponsor a visual short produced by Hurlbut Visuals and Bandito Brothers Productions that showcased the 24p firmware update in the 5D to remind everyone of the power of this amazing tool. A tool that can inspire out of the box thinking. ”

Vietnam scene with HV Elite Team Members Darin Necessary and Bodie Orman

HERES THE FILM: http://usa.canon.com/dlc/controller?act=GetArticleAct&articleID=3409

Check out Planet 5d for more information with crew quotes and info on the behind the scenes. http://blog.planet5d.com/2010/04/the-last-3-minutes-brilliant-new-shane-hurlbut-5d-mark-ii-short/

This is a common question asked to me many times.  So why not make it a blog post, right?

First of all, there’s really no reason nowadays not to get a high definition camera.  If you need standard-def for any reason, you can always down-convert it.

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There’s really 4 levels of video cameras, including a new breed that are sort of in a league of their own:

1. NEW BREED: HDSLR Cameras (Still cameras with amazing video capability), $1000-5000
   

   Canon HV20

2. Consumer cameras you buy at Walmart and Bestbuy, $300-2000
3. Prosumer cameras you buy at pro shops like B&H and Adorama, $2500-8500
4. Professional cameras you buy from B&H (sometimes) or from special dealers (like RED), $15,000-$250,000

#1: DSLRs require a lot of knowledge in photography and need many workarounds to use properly for video production.  They have an amazing picture for the cost, but are truly in a league of their own.  The knowledge base needed to use a DSLR is different than using a video camera or film camera.  I don’t recommend it for a starter camera UNLESS you’re already a photographer who understands the basics of these cameras like ISO, Depth of Field, Exposure, etc.

There’s no doubt that at this time Canon DSLRs are the way to go.  So which Canon DSLR?  Here’s Shane Hurlbut’s (ASC) recommendations:

How do you chose which of the Canon cameras to buy? Honestly, to make a movie, you need all three.

The Canon 5D Mark II is analogous to a Panavision Platinum or an Arricam. It is the best sensor to deliver filmic imagery with Vista Vision depth of field.
The pros:

• large sensor with the best megapixel size to deliver the closest look to film
• shoots PAL
• it has the most latitude of all the cameras
• compact and just the KING OF THE HILL

The cons:

• no high speed
• shallow depth of field (more difficult to focus)
• vignettes on all cinema style 35mm motion picture camera zooms and up to a 35mm cinema prime lens.

However, I still believe the 5D to be the best in HDSLR capture hands down. Why drive a Yugo when you can drive a Porsche for $800 more?

The Canon 7D is equivalent to a 435 for slow-mo and a wide lens camera for use on a crane if you are using PL or PV mounted lenses.
The pros:

• high speed at 60fps at 720
• shoots PAL
• smaller sensor for better depth of field (easier to focus with)
• Can use all Cinema style PL or PV mounted glass; does not vignette

The cons:

• more inherent aliasing and moire problems
• a sensor with more contrast and less latitude.

The Canon 1D is the low light, shooting available, turn night photography on its head camera and knowing how to work with less camera.
The pros:

• a very sensitive sensor for low light
• anamorphic sensor that delivers a beautiful depth of field
• uses less light
• more robust body
• heavier
• longer battery life
• high speed with less rolling shutter issues

The cons:

• skin tones tend to be very magenta, not good
• sensor contrast is not as filmic
• it looks like video
• more expensive
• bigger body
• not as compact
• cannot get as low to the ground with the battery cache at the bottom of the body.

#2 is fine for alot of stuff but will usually do not look very professional in the final video or on the set.  Quality depends on the operator. I’ve seen stuff shot on a Canon HV20 that looks like Hollywood (and HAS been in Hollywood films), and I’ve seen stuff shot on a Sony F23 ($250k) that looks like total crap because the guys using it had no idea how to use it.  It’s all about the lighting, the proper manual settings on the camera, the editing, and the color grading. That’s 1/2 the process…don’t forget about audio: Microphones and proper usage and sound design/editing in post production.

You will be taken more seriously on a set with #3 and #4.  If you plan on being hired to be a videographer/DP…you will need to give clients the perception of professionalism and value.  These require a knowledge and training to use and is not recommended for a starter camera to learn on.

If you don’t have alot of experience…then start with consumer. Start reading the forums like DVXuser and DVinfo. Learn how to use the manual settings in the camera. Let me say this again.  TURN OFF THE AUTO GAIN, AUTO IRIS, AUTO WHITE BALANCE, and AUTO FOCUS.  If you don’t know why…you need to learn and it would fill up a gigabyte of space to write it in this post.  You can find the reasons in those forums.  Get to where your knowledge beats the camera you have…then upgrade to prosumer. Rinse and repeat.

Remember that in this industry, cameras are outdated and replaced with better/cheaper versions within about 3 or 4 years.  Plan on upgrading in that amount of time.

That’s the best advice I can give when people ask me “which camera should I get.”  In my opinion, it’s all about what you’re planning on using the camera for and the level of camera that fits your level of knowledge.

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CHECK OUT: COMPLETE IDIOT’S GUIDE TO 5DMKII CINEMATOGRAPHY