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2K BlackMagic Pocket Cinema Camera, active m43, $995
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  • Since there's no storage space duration counter, are you guys just taking a swag on how much is left and change cards based on that swag?

  • @Kazuo

    You can see some aliasing for sure, and moire. It's not as big'a let down as the 2.5K when you run into aliasing/moire, that thing can be very depressing (I've been on Mosaic Engineering's rear-end about the filter, and it's close, really close), but it's there. Primarily on edges.

    However, it's likely that most people wouldn't notice and strangely enough, chroma noise reduction in Resolve still cleans the moire up leaving only the aliasing. It's not a perfect solution, but temporary and usable until Mosaic can dissect a Pocket Camera to deem whether or not it's worth an OLPF treatment.

    I think your comparison to film is about, perhaps S16 when projected. It's got an overall pleasant texture to it, but it's also very very detailed.

    @Flaaandeers

    I'll post over in the lens thread about the 25/0.95 and 12/1.6 -

  • @kholi

    I know what you mean. Actually, film is the same: not razor sharp when you actually sit at the front row of the cinema and peep at the pixels.

    But when you projected BMPCC footage, did you see any aliasing? Stair stepping, jagged edges? Sounds like true progressive frames

  • @nomad Thanks for the input! You're absolutely right, we'll continue there then.

  • I love the cage. I really don't understand the use of wood and how it's somehow become associated with the BMD cameras as a handling surface. I look at them and all I can imagine is blisters.

  • The SLR Magic 25mm is really nice on the BMPCC, since it uses only the sharpest area of it. But to keep things easier to find, can we continue lens discussions on the other thread?

  • @kholi What about the SLR Magic glass on this camera? Sharp enough? Nice overall image? Good combo? Thanks!
    That Viewfactor cage looks really nice, btw.

  • @matt_gh2

    So far I think it's a really great image. I've started to lose my nostalgia over film, but cinematic is important to me and I think the combination looks cinematic. The Sigma doesn't really have much character, you can get it to flare and the flares are purplish (which I like), but outside of that it's a very honest lens.

    I like the combo because it's providing a really good base to color, and in the event that you don't want to do that it still looks really good with just contrast, saturation, and white balance.

    Biggest things for some people might be the size and weight of the lens, and focus throw. If I were using an AC without a wireless that couldn't basically remap the focus to a longer throw along with hard stops, then it may not be ideal. If I'm shooting by myself, especially handheld, the focus throw is actually preferable to me.

    Won't work for everyone, but like you the range is perfect for me on the camera, and also on the 2.5K although I am pretty on about the prospect of SIgma releasing similar quality in a 24-70/2 stabilized zoom. The extra range never hurts!

    vfcomete.jpg
    1000 x 670 - 213K
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    1000 x 670 - 152K
  • @kholi Those 3 shots from the Pocket with Sigma 18-35 look very interesting. That was the combo I'm interested in, so thanks for posting those. Do you have any videos posted by chance of Pocket with Sigma 18-35? (I guess with this sensor its equivalent to using 27-52mm on GH2, which for me is great as I generally use a 28 and a 50 on my GH2.) So what do you think of this combo for narrative filmmaking? Thanks!

  • I bought two Patona batteries @nomad mentioned above including a Patona charger. The charger has no indicator and therefore I have to guess but I think it's about a little more than 1,5hrs for a complete charge.

  • I think he's using the sharpness setting in the blur, mist, sharpness panel.

    The short was shot ProRes, so he couldn't use the debayer sharpness setting in the CinemaDNG raw tab, least not that I know of! xD

  • @kholi, thanks for the clarification.

  • @kholi, if he's using Resolve 9 then that's accurate about sharpening starting at 50, but in Resolve 10 it starts at zero (in the RAW tab) so 47 would be fairly pronounced. Not necessarily off the charts, though. Since 10 just came out, he probably was using 9 I would imagine, but I figured it was worth mentioning.

  • Adrian Ford playing "By Way Of Cuba" at the Bon Marche Studio @ UTS - filmed on a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera (BMPCC) Using a Carl Zeiss 9.5mm Super Speed Mk I on Thursday 19th September 2013

    Rough grade in Resolve then rendered to 720P in Vegas Pro 11

  • @BurnetRhoades

    Actually, yes, I think it's because the 2.5K RAW is rather sharp when paired with the same lens. As well, the RAW from the 2.5K is sharper. Not offensive at all, I really like it on that camera as well, but noticed that the Pocket Camera had a softer overall look.

    I believe the new debayer firmware update will turn out sharper images on both cameras, which is kinda scary because of the moire on the 2.5K. Pocket Camera's moire's a lot more tolerable, though.

    Here's a folder on google drive with three tiffs, taken from resolve. Zero sharpness applied, 800ISO, just a white balance adjustment after a LUT I'm building, Sigma 18-35 @ 2.0 and this isn't the sharpest the lens gets. Will explain later, but it can definitely net a bit more sharpness at 2.0.

    https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B8-f-XPnmOp6WGVVdGo1d2ZKelk&usp=sharing

    Sorry for the mundane examples.

  • Wasn't it previously reported (maybe even in this thread) the BMPCC resolved more detail than a Driftwood hacked GH2? I don't understand these competing sharp and soft reports. Your's sounds more consistent with what I'd expect, @kholi, given the BMPCC sensor is a discrete 1080 with no oversampling.

    Is this maybe "soft" based on working with other cameras, like the BMCC 2.5k? David Slade had similar comments for the Alexa on Hannibal because they were shooting ProRes and not RAW, so it was 1080P. You can tell the difference between the episodes he was directing and the rest of the series based on look and lighting style and his liberal use of Nik Sharpener.

  • Not sure how you check your Patona batteries, most knock-offs are not as advertised, but I do have genuine Nikon 1020's and the listed charge times are 2-4 hours. I believe the BMD supplied battery is also pretty legit, it takes about 1.5-2 hours to charge, which is close to the advertised one-hour and fifteen minutes charge time if charged in the camera.

    I am pretty sure the charger's also a genuine charger, but it could be defective. I'll check with the distributor that I bought it from.

    Thanks for testing your charge time.

    @kazuo

    I've seen my knock around Sigma 18-35 footage on a 30ft screen (DI/finishing bay, Barco), that's not exactly theatrical but there it looked pretty damned sharp without any sharpening applied. I think next week I'll be able to go over to the ArcLight with a DCP of footage to take a look at it.

    I think there's ample amounts of detail, but it's not "sharp" or edgy. Again, I'm probably not making much sense here.

  • @kholi

    Pp use sharp glass and then mediate the sharpness with filters to create soft focus. But here, it seems BMPCC by default is soft, no matter what kind of glass you slap on. The test will be to enlarge the footage and play it back on the big screen to assess detail and resolution. One can always increase sharpness in post, but this is technically not the ideal way. The acquired image should always be pristine sharp.

  • As promised, I tested the charging more carefully. I don't have Nikon batteries, but compatible ones made by "Patona" claiming 1020 mAh and actually holding a tad longer than the BM one.

    After one hour with an empty batterie on the Nikon charger the camera says 92%. After one and a half hour the charger goes steady green (maybe 5-10 minutes earlier, I didn't stare at it all the time) and the camera says 99%. I needed to let it trickle charge a lot longer to see 100%, but who cares.

    So, either the Nikon batteries communicate somehow differently with the charger, or yours has a problem.

  • This camera is definitely soft, even with very very sharp glass, however it's a different kind of soft and the actual moving images coming right out of the camera, as ProRes, are very interesting in this aspect. It nets PLENTY of detail, but it's soft in the sense that it isn't overtly sharp.

    I suspect when more people begin to use sharp glass to offset the softness, they'll feel like it looks more "cinematic" because of the general softness that sort of... uuhhmmm... what's the word, like, "coats" the natural sharpness of the lens being used.

    It's hard to explain. But, having the Sigma 18-35 on the camera or say Zeiss Compact Primes, or Superspeeds (MKIIs) really brings out a certain kind of life in the images.

    Anyway, yeah, the Resolve sharpening settings can be confusing at first, but it's simple once you know it.

    Edit: I guess I should hurry up and shoot something worth posting, and just do a write-up already.

  • Lol, what I chose to read

  • FYI it's not 47 percent, it's 47 in Resolve, that's three points out of a total of 50 that he could have gone.

    Trust me, it's barely any sharpening at all.

    I never go below 47 (the lower the number the more sharpening and it starts at 50), 47-48's typically good enough.

  • @griplimited thanks for that info. I could see that it was sharpened. 47% wow. Personally I think he could have backed off a little...but it didn't matter...twas a nice short.

  • I got some 1200mAh on amazon... they are 1200 for sure just like Gh2 not 1020. As soon as this "Succut" Or whatever its called Holiday thing is over(B and H is closed) I am going to switch my order to the MFT BMCC so I may be just selling all my batteries I ordered.

    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0065MMH7Q/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1