Anyone shooting DSLR video?
- This topic has 29 replies, 14 voices, and was last updated Dec 14, 2009 at 11:25 pm by
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Wondering if anyone on the board is shooting video with their dslr and what their experience has been so far… ? Been seeing some VERY cool stuff!
I will be once I get the new body later this month. I’m itching to get out and have both bodies in use. One set for general stuff with the 24-70 and the new with either the 500 (stills and video) for wildlife or one of the 85mms f1.8 or 1.2 for stills/video when fishing.
Post and editing wil be a big undertaking but none the less Im really hoping for some good material
Seems that the demand for digital artists who are capable of wearing more than one hat might have more opportunity. I have really been looking hard at picking up a 7D and a bit of gear to get me started. I was curious what other people here saw as basic essentials.
I’m thinking you could do some really nice wildlife video with the 500 … I watched a African wildlife video, done on the 5D, yesterday that made me wonder which lenses they were using.
Please post your results once you start playing around. I’d love to see what you do.
Couple of links you might find interesting …
http://www.cinema5d.com/index.php
http://www.mikekobal.com/blog/ – nice comparisons of the 5D and the 7DThanks Corey, will check those out.
At this point Im only theorising but I’m planing on approaching it much like I do my still photography.
Wildlife/nature type stuff
1Dmkiin with the 24-70 for landcapes.
1DMKIV with the 500mm for vid and stills.
What really excites me is the mkIVs capacity for low light. Early test shots that Ive seen at high ISOs are fantastic. So during those false dawn/first light times I hoping to get some good animal behavior vids ( initially all I’ll shoot vid of). Regardless having the *option* to shoot stills or vids with a 500mm of wildlife is tantalising. I’m *hoping* to have a crack at some Owls taking voles this winter for example.But what I’m really itching todo is some fishing while armed with both, and each set up for different types of shots.
I’ll continue to use the 24-70 with filters as my work horse at f4.0 to f11, shots on the fly stuff. Then will have one of the two 85mm lenses on the mkIV, wide open ( at f1.8 or f1.2) for portraits with dreamy backgrounds or vids depending on whats happening around me.
Re the 7D.
It’s a great bod and even has a couple features I wish they’d have incorporated in the mkIV. The people I know (about half a dozen) shooting with it, all love it, although none are shooting vids that I know of.Fly max is starting to shoot some of their vids with the 5Dmkii
I have shot one clip of a few rising rainbows under a bridge, but still havent taken it off my camera
I ve been filming some random things with my D90 but found out it’s not real easy to keep the focus point correct.
I’ve shot with a dedicated video cam a couple of years ago. Major problem was twofold. Files are massive and there is an enormous difference between editing vid and editing photo sequences . Two very different skills and in some some ways very much conflicting in terms of vocabulary I found . I’m sure there are maybe better editing software approaches, but I used Premiere and After Effects and found the whole experience so mind numbing I tossed the cam in a cupboard for the kids to discover at a later date:)))
I’m not so sure a “photographer” would make a good “videographer” and vis a versa so I find the trend towards combined bodies rather interesting.
Will
Neal: I actually don’t know how long I’ll be able to resist… lol. Story boarding, setting up shots, timing, premiere, after effects .. All sound like a blast to me. I cant wait to get a new body and dig in.
I have some experience with videography and audio is a BIG component of videos. The shots can look gorgeous, but if the audio stinks then the whole video stinks. I think that is the major limitation to shooting video with DSLRs. If you are planning on just playing music as the audio track, you can be ok. However, if you want any dialogue you will need some sort of external mic set up. The editing process is a completely different animal from still photography. I think the video capabilities of these cameras are an exciting possibility, but, as with anything, there are going to be some trade offs and compromises and no one solution that fits everything.
Now that we have big sensor video capture with an assortment of lenses we already own, it looks like a fun thing
I have been asked to provide some video in addition to my usual imagery the last few years by various clients. I have also had website clients starting to ask for high(er) quality video for inclusion on their websites. Which is actually what got me going in this direction in the first place.
A DP who shoots some of the projects I edit did another 7D shoot over the weekend and came back said he’s over working with the DSLR/video cameras. I think he did a show for TLC that’s premiering this month that was shot on the 5D MkII, but I could be wrong. I know he said they’re hard to shoot with handheld.
I have another friend that shot a music video recently on his 7D and it didn’t look all that impressive to me… but then again I’ve seen absolute crap footage shot on the RED one camera too. I’ve also seen some amazing footage shot on both. It all comes down to how you use the tools, I will say low light on the 7D looks great.For $1700, you can get a good DSLR with video capabilities, that ain’t bad. Even if you don’t use it for video it’s still a good still camera.
http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramChad: I was hoping you would jump in on this thread and that you might have some insight. I agree, most of the handheld footage I see it looks like it would be a PIA to get a steady shot. Do you think it would be worth the extra cash to get a few relatively inexpensive supplemental tools like off camera audio, steady cam, and some sort of glidetrack type dolly?
At the end of the day it adds an *option*. As a “photographer” having options is powerful, it’s not alot different than having a few lenses that allow for different things to choose from. Which ever lens best suits the situation/application is the one you mount. With out the option to switch to a faster, longer, TS, macro your limited.
I don’t see this as being all that different. It increases for lack of better words your artistic options with regards to how you want to record/portray what ever is that’s in front of you. As Chad said, any of these are still great bodies, just now you have the option to shoot vid as well as stills
Cory the guys at Fly max are using some kind of support called a spyder. Before getting the 500mm I used to use a Bushhawk. My body and 500 is too heavy for a BH, but I can see it helping with lenses lighter than the 500.
Another option which likekly what I’ll do given Im planning on doin some with the 500 is a Gimbal mount. Likely a full gimbal but may opt for a sidekick. Personally I think a Gimbal is the best coarse
I believe Redrock is has a full support system for the 5D MkII that provides follow focus, matte box, handles, etc. I think that would be useful for serious video use of the camera. Of course that is stuff you’d want to have on a regular video camera when shooting as well. I’m sure you could use a shoulder mount system with these camera’s as well. I’d think that would be a must have, but I prefer shooting with shoulder mount cameras instead of handheld ones.
I’ve seen some amazing work from Still Motion Studios out of Canada. They do weddings with the 5D MkII and a glidecam rig. Using a steady cam system is an art within itself. I’ve tried one recently and was amazed at how horrible I was! To my defense, the HVX camera I had on it was too heavy for the arm I was using and it wouldn’t balance/support the camera, so I’ll chalk it up to equipment issues 😉http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox Instagram
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