Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Newsshooter FS5 review is here:

Sony FS5 review: A grab and shoot camera for the large sensor era

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Fir those who have the FS5, what cards are you all using?

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Just shot a bunch of 4k with an old PNY 64GB U1 class card from my A7s - seemed to work just fine, even though I thought you needed the U3. For that matter the 128GB (U3) versions are on sale right now at a variety of places online for $39.99 each. I'm planning on getting a few.

I shot for 3 hours tonight at a professionally lit collegiate choir concert and I'm starting to get the hang of the camera. It'll take some more time to gather my thoughts, but overall I'd say it's a good progression from my C100s. Sideways in some ways, but for the most part a nice little camera. Transcoding to ProRes proxy right now in FCPX because there's no way that my personal 13" Retina Macbook is gonna play this stuff. Just too processor intensive. 2013 i7 + 2014 5k iMacs at work can handle about 2-3 streams before they start to choke.

Also, it looks like a cool Bolex or something when you put a grip underneath :)

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

First impressions here with the FS5 using the MTF B4 adapter with a B4 lens with a doubler. Pictures look very acceptable indeed. Very comparable to an FS700 or an FS7 using the same setup. Totally useable.

Then we tried the FS5 S16 crop mode with the 2x disengaged on the B4. On an under scan monitor you could see that the circle magnification even though only designed for a 2/3" sensor did in fact cover the S16 centre crop. BUT and a BIG BUT... the chroma aberration (CA) was woeful, absolutely horrible. Made the whole setup totally unusable.

If one wants to use B4 lenses on the FS5 or the FS7 it looks like you will have to buy Mike Tapa's dedicated MTF B4 to S16 E-mount adapter or something similar. Not the cheapest of solutions at around US2,250 but there again if you need that capability and can earn $$$s with it maybe a worthwhile investment.


According to Mike the optical path and beam convergence of B4 lenses that are designed to work through beam splitters has been corrected for proper convergence on this new adapter when used on cameras without beam splitters (prisms).

The S16 crop mode of the FS5 and the FS7 looks like it is only going to be useful with the S16 lenses it was designed for unless you are going to use a dedicated B4 to S16 adapter.

A fascinating camera the FS5. A cross over that's more of a blend between an FS700 and an X70 rather than an FS7 and X70. Still evaluating!

Chris Young
CYV Productions
Sydney

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Both these work well.

Amazon.com: Sony 128GB SDXC UHS-1 Class 10 Memory Card (SF128UX/TQN) (OLD MODEL): Computers & Accessories

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...ilpage_o01_s00

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Dave, I bought a large bundle of these 64GB Sandisk Extreme Pro SDXC cards. They are rated at 95MB/s and are very reasonably priced. Sure, you can buy even faster SDXC cards - at much higher cost - but these work just fine for 4K. I always buy Sandisk cards and from a reputable source and (touch wood) I've never, ever had an issue with any of them.

SanDisk Extreme Pro SDXC UHS-I Memory Card: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Thanks all for advice on cards.

Now to figure out whether to look at the kit lens or whether to buy the metabones booster and use with my canon 24-105L ...

And whether the Wasabi batteries work ...

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

I think if you already have the Canon 24-105 L IS F4 I'd go with the Metabones Speedbooster to turn it into a pretty decent F2.8 with great range.

I bought the Sony Kit lens. I also bought the normal Metabones MkIV adapter as I already have a Canon 17-55mm IS F2.8 (which is a great lens image wise, just not ruggedly built)...plus various other Canon lenses in my kit (Canon 10-22mm, Canon 100mm L HIS F2.8 Macro, Canon 70-200mm L IS F4 and a Canon 1.4x Extender). The IS on the 17-55mm is superb (and quiet) for hand-held work, it's just that it's sometimes not long enough for run-n-gun...but the superb Clear Image Zoom on the FS5 solves that!!! And there is the 2x centre crop mode option too for any quick "punch ins" (but I might just do that in post if needed). I can also see me doing 2-cam shoots with both my Canon C100 and the FS5 so wanted more than one lens in the "critical FOV range".

The Sony kit lens is decent if not spectacular and is even more difficult to focus manually (because of the nature of its design) than the Canon 17-55mm. But it's quite nice having it zoomable by the FS5 grip's rocker, or the lens side control (not that I ever zoom when rolling... apart from maybe a very slow/creep zoom). The Sony kit lens image stabilisation and overall "balance" on the camera seems pretty good.

There is a thread already running on here just about lenses for the FS5 so have a look at that too Dave, link below:

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-xdc...enses-fs5.html

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Andy - I can see advantages for both lenses.

Canon better built, better focus feel, faster (with speedbooster), a bit shorter (with speedbooster .07x) and a tad wider.

Sony has full auto functions such as push zoom, and has slightly better range.

Cost of Sony lens about the same as the Speedbooster.

What do you think of difference of image quality?

I suppose Speedbooster leaves one open to using other Canon EF lenses ... more selection than Sony.

PS - like you i love my 17-55 ... aside from sucking in dust, and being a bit short on the tele side of things.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

For those who haven't ordered yet, the FS-5 is in-stock at B&H right now.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Dave, been so busy since my FS5 arrived I could not say with confidence. Some very quick/rushed stuff I have done suggests the Sony lens is worth the money....

But if you really want the FS5 to "sing" it looks like it will sure be capable of it with some nice, fast glass. I just don't have personal evidence yet to prove that statement.

Big decision for me, right now, is do sell my beloved PMW-300 workhorse to buy some of that lovely glass?

I would sure like other opinions on this aspect from those that might have the FS5 and some great glass. Great thing about the cam is the mount makes so many lens options possible.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Andy, how are you finding the Metabones adapter? No issues with the electronic communication? I'm thinking of buying the same one, although there's also a Commlite adapter for around $100 that is reviewed very well
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Commlite-Foc.../dp/B00DW0EV2I

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Not even had time to take it out of the box and put it on the cam yet!

If editing goes well tomorrow and I meet a critical film delivery deadline I am hoping to try it this weekend...Sunday maybe...definitely not Saturday - as me and a dozen mates, and no doubt a lot of alcohol, are going on a steam train to Lincoln :-)

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Definitely worth a read...

The Sony FS5: A C100 shooter’s verdict

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Found this interesting information in the X70 firmware thread! Just in case any new FS5 owners might miss it thought it worth posting here too!

Link to the source thread here:

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-pxw...ml#post1904469

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

My FS5 arrived this morning! So I've spent the day playing with it. Very impressed in general, with a few minor concerns. Manual focus on the kit lens is very difficult to get used to, but I think I will be able to work with it.

The next step for me is to find a workable picture profile. The standard profiles all seem to roll off the highlights extremely harshly (except for the log profiles that require grading). It's something I've noticed with other Sony cameras too. So I'm going to do a bit of reading - ideally I want a profile like the Wide DR profile on the Canon C100. Something that is usable straight out of camera, with good dynamic range, nice highlight roll off, flat enough to grade, etc.

On another note, I wish the camera had a waveform monitor. I find them much easier to read at a glance compared to the histogram.

I'll be using the camera a lot over the next few days - so if anyone has any questions, ask away.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Mike Watson - did you receive the Wasabi batteries? If so, how do they work?

Thanks!

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Took the words out of my mouth, Dave. They arrived an hour ago, I charged them up, they work fine.

Amazon.com : Wasabi Power Battery for Sony BP-U60 and Sony PMW-100, PMW-150, PMW-160, PMW-200, PMW-300, PMW-EX1, PMW-EX1R, PMW-EX3, PMW-EX160, PMW-EX260, PMW-EX280, PMW-F3 : Camcorder Batteries : Camera & Photo

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Some very impressive run-n-gun, low light footage of the demonstrations in London this week.

Sony FS5 tested at anti-war protests: real world, low light, broadcast quality results

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Definite barrel distortion and softening with Center Scan on, albeit at high ISO's.

Does anyone hear fan-noise like I do? And not because it's running hot. You won't hear it under most (busy) shooting conditions but I have taken this baby to bed a few times to read the manual and push some buttons and I could hear a very distinct fanning noise. Something that would be picked up by an on-camera mic...

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Yes mine has fan noise - but it's very quiet, barely audible. You really have to put your ear next to the camera to hear it, at least on mine.

On another point, one which I brought up at the beginning of this thread, I read somewhere on one of the forums of others mentioning the slight play in the side grip, even when locked. So it seems this is a Sony "feature" ;-)

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Mine has fan noise but barely audible. I very much doubt the internal mic would pick it up, but I will do a few tests.

I've also got a bit of play in the hand grip, but it doesn't bother me too much. My C100 had some also, so maybe I'm just used to it.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Well after shooting with the FS5 for two full days in a row, I must say I absolutely love it. I'm even getting used to the sluggish manual focus. A few random things I've noticed:

- Auto focus seems to be very good. I've never used auto focus before, but I found myself using the "push AF" button quite often. It's not super fast but it's very smooth, and I even used it a few times to rack focus (manually focus on foreground subject and then AF to background - it's generally much smoother than using manual focus on the stock lens).

- OIS is good on the stock lens. I used it handheld a few times and was happy with the result. I would never have done this with my C100.

- In terms of picture profiles; Cine1 (PP5) seems to be very good for outdoor/bright daylight shooting (it does a good job of preserving the highlights, and even blown out highlights look natural). I also modified PP6 to use cine4 gamma, which seems good for low light (more detail in the shadows). The cine profiles seem to have a lot more dynamic range than profiles with the REC709 curve, without the need for intensive grading like you would with SLOG.

(Alister Chapman's 2.5 hour FS5 seminar was a Godsend for figuring out the picture profiles and how to work with the gamma curves).

- I love the variable ND filter. It is incredibly smooth and can even be used when recording to change exposure. When shooting in good light I have been at f4 most of the time and use the ND filter to expose.

- The picture seems to be relatively noise free up to about 3200 ISO. I personally didn't need to go above 2500, even indoors with no additional lighting.

- There's a hidden button behind the hand grip. It's really handy to assign peaking to it.

That's all for now. I'll probably think of more later.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Hi Jody,

Good to hear you enjoy it so much.

I shot some stuff for a doc yesterday and found myself struggling to find a proper way to shoot from the shoulder. I used a slightly modified shoulder rig I had for my GH4 but it was not well-balanced. Very (front) heavy with the Sigma 18-35, external mic and wireless receiver. I thought I could shoot handheld for docs but holding it at shoulder height for extended periods with the above mentioned setup is impossible. I ordered one of those belt-fit support rods and will keep a close watch on shouldermount solutions for the FS5.

I shot an indoor scene through the viewfinder and with focus peaking the focus was sometimes not quite on, most likely because the background was only a few meters away. Probably better to turn it off in small spaces following people around.

I used Cine4 for this scene and am anxious to make the footage shine in FCP X. What have you done to your footage in your NLE?

Contrary to your experience I'm not too impressed with the autofocus on the kitlens. It was worthless when shooting puppies walking towards the camera. Even though they filled most part of the frame or where right in the middle, the lens focused on the background. I've had better results shooting football players from a much larger distance. Autofocus does not like close, moving subjects? Maybe I should have used the 'push auto' button more often...

One annoying thing: when using the VF on a rig (without the eyecup, which I find too flimsy. You press against it and it blocks part of the view) my headphone cable protruded into my chin, almost preventing me from pressing my eye fully against the VF.

I'm very curious to hear (and perhaps see) what you shot and how you postproduced it.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Hi Jeroen,

Interesting comments.

I'm very happy with how the image looks using PP5 (cine1). I spent the day in a manufacturing plant shooting machinery and factory workers, so a relatively dim environment with a lot of harsh highlights to deal with (windows, lights, etc). I'm happy with how it looks straight now of the camera. I don't think I'll need to do much grading (probably just play with the levels, add some saturation, add some sharpening) but nothing unlike what I've done with my C100 for the last couple of years.

I'll find a nice shot tomorrow and make a short before/after grading clip if you're interested. Grading isn't my strong point but I'll do my best. I'm also interested to see how others deal with it too.

And yes, I've noticed the same issue with the eye cup blocking out part of the VF. A slightly smaller eye cup would have been good. However the VF is SO much more usable that the one on my C100, so I'm happy.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Yes, I would like seeing what you shot, Jody. Did you only shoot with the stock lens?

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Yes stock lens only, I'm waiting for my EF adapter to arrive.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Hallo
which is the maximum ISO that have a decent image on FS5,i have Sony A7S this camera is very good and 32000 iso..
I saw a C100 test against Mark II,Canon colors are wonderful..autofocus is perfect,even ISO is ok..


thanks

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

+ 1 here . Im not the greatest with post and grading so Im looking for a nice all round profile for out of the box situations. Does any one else have any PP settings that would like to share :-)

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

You may find this useful:

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

This one compares FS5 and C100MkII.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

I shot 2 gigs today.1 xavcl 50mb 30p
The other 4k 100mb 30p
PP4
Ive been shooting with an ex1r for years and it's served me very well.
But the technology has improved drastically. This camera shines on all fronts.Picked it up from my vendor
today for my testrun.It was a breeze to set up.As always I shot all manual.
Surprisingly,the stock lens worked very well.Focus was easy to lock,the zoom was very good,being able to a very good slow one,no issue at all. The LCD was xtremely sharp.I only wish I could use my hoodman loupe
on it but the LCD design prevents that.
Oddly when I went hdmi to my ikan in hd,the picture was dark,this after having my ex1 connected with a perfect image.it should b the same....?
When I was shooting 4k, with cards in relay mode,with 3 minutes left on card a, the card icon A appeared and started blinked,even after recording began on card b,and when I stopped recording it kept blinking.
I have 1 more shoot tomorrow.
I'm glad I didn't pull the trigger on the x70.
I will b making the plunge on this jewel.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

I had preordered this camera, but cancelled because I needed UHD for a documentary before it was available. I bought a JVC LS300 and set it up for my shoot (since I have a bunch of MFT lenses for my Pocket Cams), and after some minor problems was very impressed with the results - it's a much better camera than I thought it would be... Far superior to my C100 in 1080p and probably at least as good as the Sony in 4K (the specs are actually better).

However, I am still considering the FS5, mainly because I'm nervous about the construction quality of the JVC - it's a little flimsy feeling and I work handheld, fast, without an AC... I can't complain though, because it's already paid for itself on the two jobs I've shot, and it'll always be a good BU.

I gave my C100 to a student intern, but kept the 24-105 and 17-55. My question is - does the EF- E Metabones adapter work reliably with the FS5? I bought an EF-MFT for the JVC and it is very flaky (iris control freezes), and I've had terrible customer service from Metabones (I'm stuck with it because it was 30 days past B&H's return policy before I discovered the problem).

Before I ever buy another Metabones product I want to be sure it's reputable - and if I go for the FS5 I want to use my Canon lenses.

I forgot to ask - several here also have/had C100s. Do the two zooms I mentioned "act" parfocal with the adapter on the FS5 the way they do natively on the C100 (and on the Pocket Cams with Speedbooster)?

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

I have the Speedbooster and a CommLite EF - E-mount. Save yourself some money and get the CommLite for 80 bucks. Very solid with my 24-105 and 70-200.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Haven't heard of the CommLite EF - E-mount, I'll check it out...

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

I am reading reports of some people having "iris not working" issues with Canon lenses and Metabones MkIV adapter, even when using latest Metabone's firmware version...I have all the necessary parts in my bag, i.e. FS5, MB MkIV adapter and a few Canon lenses and will look into this asap.

Same MB version etc. seems to work fine on FS7.

(Frustratingly, not had time to even look at/take my FS5 kit out of my bag for nearly two weeks (!!!!) but will try and investigate this later this week - once I have hit some challenging edit deadlines for a big client).

Hoodman Loupe/FS5
 

Hoodman looking into a modified loupe for the LCD on this camera. had a long talk with Bob and xplained that this lcd has a cable going into the bottom of it.
I use on my EX cam and its a must for me, makes focussing so much easier.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

Jim that is great news, I will pre order if I can

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

I'm actually very pleased with the usability of the VF. I haven't had any issues focusing with it. A loupe would be nice but I personally don't see it as essential.

Re: Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions
 

I shoot a good deal or sports and other outdoor activities and the LCD is often useless depending the the brightness and angle of sun. also toying with the idea of moving the grip forward and tossing it on my shoulder from time to time