5DmkII quick review

Dan Chung · November 23rd, 2008, 08:09 PM

Josh,

Here is the flicker video as promised YouTube - 5dmkII flicker.mov

Dan

Don Miller · November 23rd, 2008, 09:00 PM

I enjoyed the video so much I forgot to look at it technically.

Daniel Bates · November 23rd, 2008, 09:10 PM

Ouch, that is a lot of flicker. I hope the next generation of video-capable DSLRs will borrow some technology from their camcorder siblings to reduce that effect.

Dan Chung · November 23rd, 2008, 09:18 PM

Thanks Don, praise indeed.

Daniel, that is a worst case flicker example. Most of the time it worked just fine, I'll keep an eye on it for sure though.

Dan

Tyler Franco · November 23rd, 2008, 10:34 PM

Excellent stuff... Dan. Blacks do seem crushed still, even after the steps you took. Regardless though, these images are great and every now and then this camera hits a shot and it's "golden," like the profile of the man drawing the face.

Looks like I need to hit up eBay and start looking for old manual Nikon lenses.

Ryan Koo · November 23rd, 2008, 11:40 PM

Thanks so much for posting that Dan! Great job, it looks terrific. The video is so incredibly clean that it's plain to see we're witnessing a new dawn of low-light videography. Of course one starts to also understand why Canon is crushing the blacks -- it makes it even cleaner, getting rid of potentially noisy shadow detail.

For the earlier commenter, to be filmlike you would WANT to shoot at 1/60 if going for a filmic look -- for 30p, that would be the equivalent of a motion picture camera's 180-degree shutter. 1/30 is equiv to 360-degree shutter and is one of the reason 5d footage to date looks so much like video -- 1/60 30p will look a lot more like 1/48 24p than 1/30 30p.

Here's to hoping someone hacks this thing. No one's hacked a DIGIC IV yet, though:

For Developers - CHDK Wiki

John Sandel · November 24th, 2008, 12:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan Chung

You can lock exposure with adapted Nikon lenses the same as Canon EF ones.

Dan, thank you for reporting to us on your findings. What kind of adaptation do you mean, here?

Josh Dahlberg · November 24th, 2008, 12:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan Chung

Josh,

Here is the flicker video as promised YouTube - 5dmkII flicker.mov

Dan

Very much appreciated Dan. That does look nasty, but as you point out, a worst case example.

Love your footage of Beijing. Gave me a real sense of being there, I could almost taste the air.

Another question if you have a chance - clearly for video the 5d is going to require work-arounds and will be of limited use for some applications; equally clearly it has massive low-light and DOF control advantages. But as an experienced EX1/3 user, what are your initial impressions of the resolution / colour rendition / and latitude of the footage you are seeing?

And are you having any luck stretching the blacks and desaturating the colours?

You're doing everyone an excellent service Dan! Thanks, Josh

Josh Dahlberg · November 24th, 2008, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Sandel

Dan, thank you for reporting to us on your findings. What kind of adaptation do you mean, here?

I believe Dan is referring to simple adapters that allow you to connect Nikkors etc to EOS lens mount. These can be bought very cheaply online (under $30). This means you can mount manual Nikon AIS lens to the 5D Mkii with no optical quality loss, and they retain metering information. This is cool because old Nikkors can be obtained cheaply, they have great optics, and manual aperture dials (unlike EOS lens).

In other words, no physical adaptation of the lens itself is necessary, just a cheap adapter between lens and body.

Dan Chung · November 24th, 2008, 03:50 AM

Ryan,

I would like to be able to force the camera to a 1/60th but I can't really see how easily in uncontrolled light conditions.

Josh,

I'm going to hold off on making a judgement on how 5DmkII footage compares to that of the Sony EX until I've had more time to test it. Initial impressions are that the EX still give more lattitude and a crisper image but I reserve the right to amend that assesement.

Yes the adapters are nothing more than Nikon or Contax to EF adapters. For Nikon G lenses you need these Nikon G - Canon EOS Adapter

Dan

Josh Dahlberg · November 24th, 2008, 04:11 AM

Thanks Dan,

A little off topic, but I did a little scan through your work for the Guardian - you do an amazing job, at times in immensely traumatic conditions; I imagine you must see a lot more (and live a lot more) each year than some of us do in a lifetime.

I'm glad you're taking a little time out to keep us all posted on your new toy,

Josh

Bob Thompson · November 24th, 2008, 04:40 AM

Dan,

Great footage you really captured the night atmosphere of Beijing. Did you find that you attracted less attention on the streets by using a still camera against a video camera. I normally have found that a video camera attracts a lot of on-lookers

I was surprised that you did not have more 50Hz flicker from the fluorescent lights but maybe with large banks of fluro they are on different phases so maybe that has helped cancel out the flicker effect

Steve Mullen · November 24th, 2008, 05:18 AM

Dan, just wonderful footage and a really great job of editing.

Beijing looks so different than it did in the mid `80s when I was working there. Wow!

I watched the Nikon night footage and I was not horrified as I expected to be given the negative comments on the Nikon. I could almost see the extra noise as film grain.

I sense we are on the verge of sea change, much like when DV arrived.

PS: Since I can't afford the Canon or the Nikon (I think) I'm seriously looking at trying the Casio EX-F1. What I like about it, compared to any $1000 camcorder, is its manual focus lens-ring, a power zoom level (to zoom-in fast to get focus) and a button that locks exposure. (Or, locks both AE and AF.) As long as everything stays constant during each shot, I can use the Media Composer CC that has the ability to create gamma curves to "fix" most exposure errors (if they occur).

Don Miller · November 24th, 2008, 09:30 AM

Most Contax (Zeiss) lenses will also work on a 5D via adapter. Many Olympus lenses fit too. My daytime lineup for video is looking like:

14-24mm Nikon with special adapter (G Nikon have no aperture ring)
35-70mm Contax with dumb adapter
70-200mm Canon, taped if necessary

It's rather bizarre that Canon has designed a camera that encourages users to buy Nikon glass.

Don Miller · November 24th, 2008, 09:33 AM

I would be interested in seeing a typical histogram of night shots out of the camera. Also, any 1080p torrent files?

November 24th, 2008, 05:18 AM	#43
Steve Mullen HDV Cinema Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Las Vegas Posts: 4,007	Dan, just wonderful footage and a really great job of editing. Beijing looks so different than it did in the mid `80s when I was working there. Wow! I watched the Nikon night footage and I was not horrified as I expected to be given the negative comments on the Nikon. I could almost see the extra noise as film grain. I sense we are on the verge of sea change, much like when DV arrived. PS: Since I can't afford the Canon or the Nikon (I think) I'm seriously looking at trying the Casio EX-F1. What I like about it, compared to any $1000 camcorder, is its manual focus lens-ring, a power zoom level (to zoom-in fast to get focus) and a button that locks exposure. (Or, locks both AE and AF.) As long as everything stays constant during each shot, I can use the Media Composer CC that has the ability to create gamma curves to "fix" most exposure errors (if they occur). __________________ Switcher's Quick Guide to the Avid Media Composer >>> http://home.mindspring.com/~d-v-c

November 23rd, 2008, 08:09 PM	#31
Dan Chung Major Player Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Beijing Posts: 665	Josh, Here is the flicker video as promised YouTube - 5dmkII flicker.mov Dan

November 23rd, 2008, 09:00 PM	#32
Don Miller Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Chicago Posts: 706	I enjoyed the video so much I forgot to look at it technically.

November 23rd, 2008, 09:10 PM	#33
Daniel Bates Regular Crew Join Date: May 2006 Location: Daegu, Korea Posts: 180	Ouch, that is a lot of flicker. I hope the next generation of video-capable DSLRs will borrow some technology from their camcorder siblings to reduce that effect.

November 23rd, 2008, 09:18 PM	#34
Dan Chung Major Player Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Beijing Posts: 665	Thanks Don, praise indeed. Daniel, that is a worst case flicker example. Most of the time it worked just fine, I'll keep an eye on it for sure though. Dan

November 23rd, 2008, 10:34 PM	#35
Tyler Franco Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 172	Excellent stuff... Dan. Blacks do seem crushed still, even after the steps you took. Regardless though, these images are great and every now and then this camera hits a shot and it's "golden," like the profile of the man drawing the face. Looks like I need to hit up eBay and start looking for old manual Nikon lenses.

November 23rd, 2008, 11:40 PM	#36
Ryan Koo Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: New York, NY Posts: 92	Thanks so much for posting that Dan! Great job, it looks terrific. The video is so incredibly clean that it's plain to see we're witnessing a new dawn of low-light videography. Of course one starts to also understand why Canon is crushing the blacks -- it makes it even cleaner, getting rid of potentially noisy shadow detail. For the earlier commenter, to be filmlike you would WANT to shoot at 1/60 if going for a filmic look -- for 30p, that would be the equivalent of a motion picture camera's 180-degree shutter. 1/30 is equiv to 360-degree shutter and is one of the reason 5d footage to date looks so much like video -- 1/60 30p will look a lot more like 1/48 24p than 1/30 30p. Here's to hoping someone hacks this thing. No one's hacked a DIGIC IV yet, though: For Developers - CHDK Wiki

November 24th, 2008, 03:50 AM	#40
Dan Chung Major Player Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Beijing Posts: 665	Ryan, I would like to be able to force the camera to a 1/60th but I can't really see how easily in uncontrolled light conditions. Josh, I'm going to hold off on making a judgement on how 5DmkII footage compares to that of the Sony EX until I've had more time to test it. Initial impressions are that the EX still give more lattitude and a crisper image but I reserve the right to amend that assesement. Yes the adapters are nothing more than Nikon or Contax to EF adapters. For Nikon G lenses you need these Nikon G - Canon EOS Adapter Dan

November 24th, 2008, 04:11 AM	#41
Josh Dahlberg Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Wellington, New Zealand Posts: 513	Thanks Dan, A little off topic, but I did a little scan through your work for the Guardian - you do an amazing job, at times in immensely traumatic conditions; I imagine you must see a lot more (and live a lot more) each year than some of us do in a lifetime. I'm glad you're taking a little time out to keep us all posted on your new toy, Josh

November 24th, 2008, 04:40 AM	#42
Bob Thompson Major Player Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 340	Dan, Great footage you really captured the night atmosphere of Beijing. Did you find that you attracted less attention on the streets by using a still camera against a video camera. I normally have found that a video camera attracts a lot of on-lookers I was surprised that you did not have more 50Hz flicker from the fluorescent lights but maybe with large banks of fluro they are on different phases so maybe that has helped cancel out the flicker effect

November 24th, 2008, 09:30 AM	#44
Don Miller Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Chicago Posts: 706	Most Contax (Zeiss) lenses will also work on a 5D via adapter. Many Olympus lenses fit too. My daytime lineup for video is looking like: 14-24mm Nikon with special adapter (G Nikon have no aperture ring) 35-70mm Contax with dumb adapter 70-200mm Canon, taped if necessary It's rather bizarre that Canon has designed a camera that encourages users to buy Nikon glass.

November 24th, 2008, 09:33 AM	#45
Don Miller Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Chicago Posts: 706	I would be interested in seeing a typical histogram of night shots out of the camera. Also, any 1080p torrent files?