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2K BlackMagic Pocket Cinema Camera, active m43, $995
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  • I'm guessing BMPCC will be able to get the same look with the same lenses since it's the same sensor.

    It definitely will have the same look. I'm just hoping the detail will be roughly the same... somewhere around a 900-line measurement would be good enough for me.

  • So Cinema DNG is "disabled" then ...It seem like he was Unable to select it in the video @7:45 matthere posted hmm......Dont get me wrong pro res is cool but this seems....fishy

  • I think my Old Nikons with the speed booster on the pocket cam will compete with the Zeiss. They already look awesome on the GH3 without the booster.

  • @kholi

    I thought the bmcc mft hasn't shipped yet.

    Thought only protypes went out to testers.

    If you got one let us know, where did you get it from? Some people think its even cancelled.

  • Slow down, Kholi is a beta tester. I've seen his camera.

  • Don't know if already discussed...

    This camera has an "active" m43 mount.

    Lens like the Panasonic 7-14mm has distortion and barrel correction made in camera. it works for pana and oly bodies also for video.

    Should I expect to get this correction on BMPCC camera too?

    Without in-camera distortion correction that lens is pretty useless.

    Thanks

  • @Brian202020 , can you make some tests with Lumix 12-35 lens on BMPCC ? Film and Video mode ?

  • @TGDude, @Kholi

    I started out with the Nokton 25mm, then sold it because I soon found out it wasn't the most practical piece of glass on a film set. I started collecting a suite of Contax Zeiss and Zeiss Zf lenses, and today, i only shoot with Zeiss.

    I love the flat profile in the clip. Try grading it, it's going to look awesome. And yes, Zeiss is different from the Nokton. Amongst Zeiss lenses, again the look and feel would differ, for instance, Vario-Sonnars yield more resonant and brighter colors than say a Planar or Distagon. But by and large, the Zeiss signature is fairly consistent, even when you put Contax and modern Zeiss alongside one another.

    I wouldn't say if Zeiss is better than Nokton, they each have their distinctive look, but for narrative work, Zeiss is par excellence.

  • @kazuo

    Could you possibly post some frame grabs from your various Zeiss lenses?

  • when shooting anamorphic with this camera, either 1.5x or 2x , i came up with that the widest lenses we can use with out vignetting is around 19-20mm when shooting 1.5x and around 28mm when shooting 2x , has anyone else came up with this ?

  • Where is a good place to pre-order from? I know B&H is accepting, but I imagine everyone is ordering from them. Would going with an alternative be better?

  • Thanks @kazuo

    What focal lengths are you using?

    I typically buy one prime for "normal" or slightly wider than normal FOV and zoom with my feet, while getting fast glass to maintain shallow DOF while standing back farther. That's the reason I went with Voigt 17.5/0.95. That works well with both GH2 and presumably the BMPCC.

    A lot of those Zeiss ZF lenses, according to my searching, have a max aperture of 2.8/2.0, which I think would be cool on a GH2, but I'm not sure about BMPCC. I typically shoot at F/2.0 - F/2.5 on a GH2 in daylight for the look that I like on medium-closeups.

  • Gonna try to fit the responses in one post for you guys:

    @killagram

    I've only used the 25/0.95 Voigtlander on my MFT Blackmagic so far, and that I do have footage of BUT I want to revisit the comparison I did between the SLRMagic 25 HyperPRime and the Voigtlander 25. I will definitely try out the 17.5 if I can get my hands on it. I'm not a huge fan of it, to be honest.

    Sort of restating this, but I also prefer the SLR 25 Hyperprime over the Voigtlander 25 mostly because the SLR is sharper wide open, and I like the quirky "cinema" like build. The Voigtlander is definitely a tighter lens in terms of build, and has a more neutral cast versus the SLR Hyperprime 25's warmer cast, which puts the Voigtlander into a more "Zeiss" realm. Price may or may not be a consideration for some.

    The 17.5/0.95 looks the same, to me, but the reality's that it's the only 17/0.95 out there (isn't it?) or at least around that price range, so it gets a pass regardless.

    @TGDude

    I understand you, about Zeiss. I've mostly shot Zeiss in my "career" or whatever one might call it, haha. And, from there, it's Cooke. New Zeiss optics all carry a very distinct feel, one that's highly sought after by many. It's an expense, no doubt, but it's a very good look. Ultra PRimes are my favorites.

    A few of the Blackmagic clips up are with Zeiss ZEs and that specific project I'm actually finishing up post on today, it's a fake horror trailer/short film that we used as a camera test, self motivator, and a youtube channel launcher so it'll be up within the next few days if not today if you want to see various situations, focal lengths, run-n-gun with the glass.

    @Trumpetman

    I own a few old Nikkors and I do not like them on BV1 (Blackmagic V1). This is the first time where I've come to the conclusion that it's time to put away the old glass and pick up some newer samples. Having a look at some test images of Contax Zeiss (full set, german copies, all the fast primes) side by side with Zeiss ZE/ZF's from BV1 showed that. But, it's a preference.

    Speed Booster is going to be a good choice, though.

    @Chaos123x

    Yeah, what Vic said. My MFT's a Pre-Production/Production run camera aka I'd be a tester for sure. MFT-BV1 isn't cancelled at all, but I can see how some people might fear that due to the silence.

    @LongJohnSilver

    It's a smaller sensor, so it may not be an issue. WE'll have to see. It'll be one of the first things I test when I get my camera.

    @Kazuo

    It's strange, but I think the SLR 25 is actually more practical than the Voigt 25, but I guess that's up to the individual. I do prefer Zeiss over Voigt, hands down.

    Really looking forward to getting my own Pocket and Production cameras.

  • @kholi It will be interesting to see. If the perceived resolution of the pocket cam doesn't match up to the GH series then the Nikons might tend to soften it up too much, but hopefully the added sharpening of the booster will help out the Nikons in this case. The Nikons are perfect for helping tone down the razor sharpness of the GH3, getting it much closer to an organic film stock look. Ironically, the pocket cam may match up better with my Lumix lenses which I never use on the GH. Because of its dynamic range it is already closer to a film look and may, as you suggest, be better matched with sharper modern lenses. We will know in August, hopefully!

  • @kholi

    I'm hoping the silence is due to a active mount upgrade. Day one purchase if it does have it. I'm still torn between the pocket and the bmcc mft.

  • I'm hoping the silence is due to a active mount upgrade. Day one purchase if it does have it. I'm still torn between the pocket and the bmcc mft.

    I was torn too until I factored in the cost of a new workstation capable of editing 2.5K raw. My Late 2009 iMac doesn't have USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt or a powerful graphics card and can't be used as an external monitor for a new PC. I've gotten spoiled by 27" 2560x1440, so I'd have to buy an equivalent monitor for the new PC. I'd also need a good SSD reader and some backup HDDs and either an HD-SDI monitor for the cam or that HDMI to HD-SDI converter.

    Edit: I'm now planning to invest the $ into upgrading my workstation. I'll have to do it eventually anyway. I'm not going to get BMPCC. I'll get either 2.5K or 4K.

  • @Trumpetman -- I'm pretty confident about the resolved detail matching GH3 and GH2, however out of the box the "sharpness" won't be there. The only in-camera processing option's shooting VIDEO dynamic range, which means there's no extra added sharpness, unlike the GH3 etc. As well, no internal noise reduction going on.

    So, I can imagine that some of the first things we'll hear about are "Why is my GH3 sharper?", and then we'll have this discussion a few hundred times as the transition on the low end begins.

    Simultaneous conversation also includes Noise and Noise Reduction.

    As far as glass matching, I've never been a major fan of Lumix lenses but I do think they'll be a hit here. Just a thought, anyway.

    @Chaos123x

    That's a difficult decision. Pocket is going to be great, but I do really enjoy shooting with MFT BV1. I acquired an EF BV1 from someone that didn't want to handle the workflow and was more suited to getting a GH2, so having both for a while I do like MFT for the Hyper Fast Glass.

  • Say, @Kholi where did you preorder? I'm guessing it doesn't matter that much.... I'm thinking either B&H (everybody and their mother) or Abelcine (maybe fewer...) or HotRod Cameras (definitely fewer, but a lot fewer coming in).

  • @qwerty123 Definitely HotRod Cameras. And try some smaller shops if you're in the LA area.

    Also, try quiet US States... believe it or not, I recommended to a friend to go to his local shops and try to preorder EF-BV1, he got his camera like ONE week later than his preorder, while everyone else was still waiting. Oof.

    Adorama, as well.

  • @Kholi I ordered my BMPCC on the second day after announcement from B&H you think I might get it in the first shipment? I think the BMPCC will match the GH2-GH3 in sharpness.

  • @TrackZillas

    Let's remember sharpness is not the same as resolution. GH3's equipped with internal processing in that regard, BPC won't be.

    Earlier the pre-order, the more likely you are to get it I'm sure. There were a lot of Preorders the day of at BH though!

  • @Kholi Just placed my order with HotRod... They charge for shipping, unlike some other places (I'm on the East Coast, USA), but I figure it's good to support "the little guy," and I'll likely (hopefully) get it sooner than if I preordered elsewhere.

  • @Kholi so that means the BMPCC will has greater resolution than the GH3 than am I right.. Love the way the images look on the Pocket camera soo similar to his bigger brother BMC. Man if I would of known I would of ordered though Hot-Rod as well, but I believe I'll get it from the first shipment to B&H.

  • @TGDude,

    I have the Zeiss 18mm f3.5, 28mm f2, 50mm f1.4, 60mm Makro f2.8, 85mm f1.4, 35-70mm f3.4 and 28-85mm f3.3-4.

    I use them with a set of Schneider Century 4x4 filters, and the resulting imagery can be quite astonishing.

    The 18mm is good for wide shots, even on a m4/3. I use both GH2 and VG20, so the lens is versatile depending on the nature of the project. If I'm shooting an architectural commercial, then I would go with the VG20, which gives me a 1.5x crop.

    The zoom lenses are fantastic for run and gun. Having said that, they hold their own very well with regard to narrative work. I recently shot a 20min dramatic film with only the 28-85mm on a GH2. I acquired 97% of the footage with this piece of glass, and shot the rest (interviews) with the Makro lens.

    The result was quite good really, and colleagues and fellow professionals couldn't quite believe i didnt use a prime lens.

  • The 35-70 and 28-85 are v nice lenses indeed (apart from being dust hoovers) lovely sharp and Zeiss character. The 35-70 is parfocal also - some contax zeiss tests here with the speedbooster.