Accessories for 5D2...
 

Well Im finally going HD and I'm 99 44/100% I'm going the route of the 5D2.

Just starting out with the things, what all do you feel are indispensable accessories to go with it?

Especially lends batteries and microphones. (Ive heard on board sound sucks on it)


TIA for your help. Im sure I will be around this forum for a while!!

What type of shooting are you planning to use the cam for?

Do you already have a good set of sticks?

What are you using now and what equipment do you have, mikes, lights, filters etc?

There are lots of different ways to use this cam, a little more info would help.

Title changed from "? re 5D2..." to "Accessories for 5D2"

Please avoid ambiguous thread titles on DV Info Net.

Here's what I bought right away for mine... a 77mm Hoya UV filter to protect the front element of the kit lens, a pack of 3" HoodSkin overlays to protect the LCD display, and a Tamrac quick-release neck strap.

Must haves
-A good sensor cleaning kit
-An external microphone with windscreen, if you are shooting anything that requires good or outdoor sound.
-A 50mm f1.4 lens
-some sort of stabilization
-a 32gb CF card (or 3 of them)
-2 extra batteries
-black electricians tape to cover the 5D and markII logos, so people won't come talk to you about your camera while you are in the middle of shooting video, ruining your audio.

The only tidbit I got to offer is buy 3x 16gb cards, instead of 32gb. The maximum about of video you can shoot is 29 minutes and 59 seconds, which equals out to about 16 gbs. Have fun with the 5dmii. It's a beast!

I don't know where you got that number from. The maximum file size (FAT32 limit) is 4GB which equates to about 12 minutes of 1920x1080p recording. I do agree on multiple cards rather than putting all your eggs in one basket though.

Good tip! :)

A 4GB movie file could have different lengths according to its content(e.g. a continuous black shot is much smaller than one with a permanent change of subject and background). So, no matter how big is your file, the movie length could not go over 30 minutes - according to camera specs. The 12 minutes limit is based on an average compression rate for the h.264 codec.

So, your shot is limited either to 12 minutes(if it occupies 4GB), either to 30 minutes(if the file size is smaller than 4GB).

God help us all!
Christian I. Ionescu

The 30 minute limit does apply if you use the 640x480 recording mode. Has anyone actually used this? I know I haven't.

weddings
 

Weddings is mainly what im filming

The 4 gig limit only applies if you do a continous shooting, but if you do a run and gun, stop re-frame and shoot like what Im doing, the limit depends on your CF card capacity. I shoot weddings and I am using a 32 gig CF card and it records approximately about an hour.

I've switched to a 38 revolver and just edit out the single shot to the head. I try to take the guy out before he says a word.

Rickey, you can film over an hour? Wow, I didn't know that was possible. The sources I read that from must've been wrong. Thanks for the correction guys.

You can film up to an hour or so on one card - but not continuously. The recording will stop every 12 minutes or so.

Fortunately, with the new manual control firmware, you can immediately hit REC and only lose a second or so. (Previously, if you did this, your settings could change between shots.)

30 minute limit
 

It will record for 29:59 continuous only with the 640x480 then stop. Anything else at 1920x1080 will record only 12-14 minutes because of the FAT32 limit.

Canon told me that the 29:59 was because of tax and import laws. Everything that can record over 30 minutes continuously is considered a video camera and costs more to import in some countries. The 14 minute is well just the FAT32 issue.