New Footage shot with the BMPCC

[John McCully]

Regarding the hype nobody is ‘guilty’. No crime committed and I did not say nor mean to imply that Blackmagic were guilty of anything. Au contraire! They introduced a new product that caught the imagination, seriously, and if my memory serves me correctly didn’t it win a prize and was it not the star of the show?

Good on Blackmagic I say. And furthermore they were upfront, quite clear about it, that this product would produce footage softer (but very nice mind you) than the original BMCC.

And Noa, +1, other than that I have placed an order already. The form factor also literally asks this to be the camera of choice (rather than the BMCC) when the going gets rough; for instance think swamps, mountains, wildlife in the wilderness, and for us old farts just getting oneself there is something of a challenge - small and light is not only desirable but the only way to go. That’s what captured my imagination when it was announced. Horses for courses indeed.

And the price is right! If it was 10x like the competition I would certainly be in a wait and see mode too. No big deal. I’m just a tad disappointed that the footage I have viewed thus far has not been to my liking and presumably intentionally disallows critical examination. Now I understand why (I think) so this discussion, certainly from my point of view, is timely and helpful.

While right now June delivery that my dealer is talking about seems optimistic the really important point, and no doubt Blackmagic and JB would agree, is that at the end of the day when it hits the street it is well done.

[Jeff Troiano]

I have pre ordered one of these, and am very excited. No camera is perfect. But the thought of 13 stops of dynamic range, with proress and a compressed raw, for $1000. i cant wait and look forward to seeing more footage as we go along.

[Al Bergstein]

Having just returned from 8 days in the Grand Canyon on the river, using an eos m (quite well thanks), i agree that i would have loved a pocket 4 k. What's the battery life like, and what are the batteries?

[Frank Glencairn]

there is not Pocket 4k.

There is the Pocket (HD) and the 4k, that has the normal BMC body..

Batteries are the standard Nikon type.

Originally Posted by Jason Lowe

This will be incredible for run and gun work, shooting in urban areas, and stealth work.

Run and gun work with no autofocus, using just that tiny LCD with no viewfinder? Not a good situation messing with a manual focus only camera when you absolutely have to get the shot quickly, or the opportunity is gone. I can understand when you have some time to pull focus while setting up the shot for a documentary, for example, but not for run and gun work.

[Frank Glencairn]

You need to use a fast, wide (10-16mm) lense anyway for handheld, unless you don't want to shoot Blairwitch 3.
So focus should not be too problematic.

[John McCully]

I have been looking at lenses for this cam and concluded that, as you said Frank, wide for hand-held run-n' gun especially if the lens does not include image stabilization, but I also concluded that when shooting where light was more than adequate, outdoor daytime, then fast is less desirable as shooting wide open will result in shallower DoF making accurate focusing much more critical. I would have thought a wide lens shooting, 10 - 16mm for sure, at around f8 depending on the lens might have been appropriate, and much less expensive as a side benefit.

Now, shooting indoors by candle light (hardly run-n’ gun) is another matter.

And I hasten to add I am no expert in these matters by any means, so please feel free to set me straight.

[Jason Lowe]

Originally Posted by Ed Arszyla

Run and gun work with no autofocus, using just that tiny LCD with no viewfinder? Not a good situation messing with a manual focus only camera when you absolutely have to get the shot quickly, or the opportunity is gone. I can understand when you have some time to pull focus while setting up the shot for a documentary, for example, but not for run and gun work.

Walk slowly and gun, maybe?

[Jeff Troiano]

I'm loving the idea of using this camera for indie film making. Small form factor, with raw and 13 stops of dynamic range. Looking forward to doing some narrative projects with it. Eventually ill get the 2.5k camera as well. I don't think I need 4k.

That photo with the Arri 18-80 lens is awesome. Looking forward to outfitting this a little bit.

[Evan Bourcier]

Originally Posted by Ed Arszyla

Run and gun work with no autofocus, using just that tiny LCD with no viewfinder? Not a good situation messing with a manual focus only camera when you absolutely have to get the shot quickly, or the opportunity is gone. I can understand when you have some time to pull focus while setting up the shot for a documentary, for example, but not for run and gun work.

It's totally doable. Look at the amount of run and gun shot on t3is and 7ds. It's just an acquired skill.