EOS Utility for monitoring?
 

I have been playing around with different monitoring possibilities and have come to the conclusion that EOS Utility on a Mac is completely useless for video. The video is extremely choppy and has a tendency to choke up my MBP. Is this what others are finding out as well? Or is there something that I'm missing? It is a great concept and it would be incredible if we could actually use EOS Utility to monitor, control the camera, and capture shots.

With that said, I am on a mission to find other monitoring solutions. I have an Ikan V8000W SD monitor and it is practically useless for pulling a sharp focus. It is OK for framing even though the image gets stretched, but I need a solution that will work for both.

I hooked the cam up to an old Sony Trinitron 4:3 TV that I have and something like that would potentially work for both, except that it is not very portable and would not work on a shoulder-mount rig, although it would be hilarious to see me try it.

Is everyone else just using the built in LCD Monitor?

My two cents.

For set up shots, as done in making films, the best bet is to use the HDMI output to preview your focus points and and then timeing and hitting those marks during the shot. Follow focus units and focus levers will help there.

For mobile event type shooting (using a shoulder brace), I see no resolution other than a Hoodloupe type magnifier and shooting wiht the LCD. I have actually built my own for that purpose, and with a lot of practice I am starting to be able keep things in focus. It is important in those situations to shoot a little higher up the FStop scale so the focus plane is not razor thin.

For stablizer shooting where you eye on a viewfinder is impossible, you use the lcd or and attached monitor, a wide angle lens with a deep depth of field and set it to a point that the depth of field range is in the range that you will be keeping in focus.

Great answers Chris

I learn something handy every time I come back to this forum. It's ace.
thanks

Avey

Has anybody looked at this? It's the iPhone DSLR wifi controller. I wonder how it would work shooting video on the 5d.

iTunes Store

Thanks for the suggestions Chris, but I guess the main thing that I am looking for is for a way to give my clients the ability to monitor the shoot. Basically like a director's monitor setup. Most of the clients that I have been working with recently are serious control freaks and require to see the shoot as it goes down. If I try to justify using the 5DMKII and tell them that there is no way for them to monitor, they will flip.

Big problem of course. If you plug in a monitor, no LCD for you to shoot from. Most likely you would have to split the SD signal out, runing a small sd monitor on your rig, and a bigger one for the client. Not sure how you can split the HDMI, and when you go to shoot then it goes whacko changing definition and aspect ratio. Definitely one of those things we want Canon or Hudson to take care.

Warning on the SD out, to, if you are feeding sound into the camera, the SD out, if plugged in, created a whine in a signal that is transferred to the mic line in.... Might be some way to shield, but I definitely know it is related to that.

It's not as exciting as it sounds. What the developers don't make totally clear in the description is that the camera still needs to be tethered to a computer via USB unless you have that $1000 Canon WiFi connection gizmo.