Sony PXW-FS5 - Initial User Impressions

[Steve Rosen]

Thanks Olof - so, after perusing that list it seems that the Sony FE 28-135mm F/4 OSS G PZ is probably the best bet for all purpose shooting. It's big, kinda slow, and not very wide, but it's probably the closest native E mount zoom to the popular Canon 24-105, which is a similar.

It's also $2,500, which is okay if you subscribe to the "investing in glass is future proof" theory - a theory I no longer believe as I stare around my office at a pile of MFT lenses that are all dressed up with no place to go.

[Mike Watson]

Depends on what you shoot, but I'm a big fan of wide shots, and 28mm on a crop sensor like the FS5 is a 45mm equivalent. Pretty tight for a wide shot.

I couldn't make it work as my main lens.

[Ray Lee]

The way the focus works on Sony E mounts is a real bummer, the 50 and 35 1.8 are super lightweight, razor sharp, the way the focus ring feels is really nice... with the FS5's digital zoom would be really useful... but that focus!, turn the ring to the right 20mm and the focus point changes maybe 4 feet then move it back to the left the same 20mm and the focus point might be 40 feet off. Its sad because not only does it seem like it could be fixed (its all electronic) but it could actually be a really nice improvement over other SLR lenses by programing a nice long focus throw. I would buy a few... right now, I kept the 50 but I would re-buy the 35 and add the 18-105, 10-18

Sony makes some really odd choices especially when it comes to accessories... like they don't want to take my money or something. Why remove the tabs on the FS5 LCD? should have kept them and charged me $200 for a decent loupe, why make the cable built in to the LCD? I know I will break it and its either to long or to short... why not charge me $50 an extra cable? external monitors, iPhone screens, going for $1000 and the Gratical for $2500... you'd think SONY could make some pretty slick screens if they wanted and even offer some neat tricks with the proprietary connection (focus magnification from the grip) I really love this little camera and think thats why these little things feel more annoying than they did with my other cameras

[Mike Watson]

Originally Posted by Ray Lee

Its sad because not only does it seem like it could be fixed (its all electronic) but it could actually be a really nice improvement over other SLR lenses by programing a nice long focus throw

This is what I've always thought. Couldn't this huge flaw be fixed with a firmware update and then be a huge selling point?

[Walter Brokx]

Silly question:
where can I download 2 (short) 10 bit 4:2:2 HD clips from the FS5?
I'd like to compare the performance of my hardware and compare the codec while pushing it in post.

(It may be 2 20 second shots of some street: doesn't need to be fancy at all.
It may be the dullest thing ever :-p )

[Andy Wilkinson]

Just a further quick update on my FS5/Metabones/Canon lenses post from 18th Dec (Post #96).

I have now got the Canon 10-22mm lens working as per all the other Canon lenses I tested, i.e. Iris control via the little side thumbwheel and/or controls on the handgrip in Direct and showing the Wide-Tele indicator, (Manual) focus distance etc. on the LCD. However, Push Auto Iris still does not work with this lens - you get the error message. Not sure... but I suspect I might have accidentally knocked the sliding Hold switch to the Hold position when testing with that particular lens the other day - it needs to be in the OFF position to enable the F stop adjustment.

However, and very importantly, this seems a bit flakey as sometimes I can adjust Iris and sometimes not - it's almost as if the lens goes to sleep...I'm investigating.

[Steve Rosen]

Andy - what you're describing is similar to what I'm experiencing with the EF-MFT Metabones on the LS300 - only my iris control works less than 50% of the time, and will stop working for no apparent reason, which really makes it useless for anything but play.

It's weird, because on the Pocket Camera with the Metabones Speedbooster everything works - (well, occasionally you do have to remount the lens to restore contact, but that's relatively rare) - including IS. The 17-55 on that camera becomes the equivalent of an f1.6 13-30 on the S16 sensor, and the IS makes the fumbly little Pocket a great cruiser.

I wonder why, if that technology is working with the Speedbooster on the cheap little Pocket, it doesn't with the standard "smart" adapter on the more sophisticated cameras.

[Steve Rosen]

Mike, as I said, 28 certainly isn't quite wide enough - although I'm not a big fan of wide-wide lenses, I do have a 12 that I do use on the LS300 occasionally (although I usually ramp the VSM up to 80%).

But, the point I was alluding to is why I'm really on the fence about this camera... It's mainly because of the limited lens choices. I don't care much for auto-anything, and have been really turned off by "smart" adapters, so, other than primes, that doesn't leave much.

Despite being a JVC (which admittedly has a reputation for QC issues) the LS300 is the perfect camera for my type of work (documentaries, often handheld) because of it's ability to use the quite good Olympus and Lumix zooms, as well as native and dumb adapted MFT primes. And for those interested, the AF on both the 12-40 Olympus and 35-100 Lumix work quite well, which can be a lifesaver - even for an old schooler like me when focusing wide with the Olympus in 4K.

I pre-ordered the FS5 before buying the LS300, and intended to switch to the Sony as soon as the JVC paid for itself - which it did in about three weeks! But Sony really has to do something about the amateurish functional usability of their lenses - which might be okay for the ubiquitous soccer-mom, but have no business on a camera designed for professional use... Or at least they could cave in and give a nod to Canon by making their own EF-E adapter.

[Andy Wilkinson]

Originally Posted by Andy Wilkinson

Just a further quick update on my FS5/Metabones/Canon lenses post from 18th Dec (Post #96).

I have now got the Canon 10-22mm lens working as per all the other Canon lenses I tested, i.e. Iris control via the little side thumbwheel and/or controls on the handgrip in Direct and showing the Wide-Tele indicator, (Manual) focus distance etc. on the LCD. However, Push Auto Iris still does not work with this lens - you get the error message. Not sure... but I suspect I might have accidentally knocked the sliding Hold switch to the Hold position when testing with that particular lens the other day - it needs to be in the OFF position to enable the F stop adjustment.

However, and very importantly, this seems a bit flakey as sometimes I can adjust Iris and sometimes not - it's almost as if the lens goes to sleep...I'm investigating.

Just a quick update on this. So far it has worked fine every time I've tried that (and all my other) lenses - which isn't very often as I've been busy (with family/holiday stuff). So I've been unable to recreate the problem with the Canon 10-22mm and the Metabones IV - let's hope it stays that way!

On another point, I'm sure the battery I left on my FS5 had about 30% remaining when I packed it in its bag a day or so before Xmas (in this case a small, new BPU-30 rather than the BPU-60s I have loads of). Took it out of the bag this morning and the battery was completely flat. Cam was definitely switched off (unlike my old EX3 from a few years ago where the switch was so finicky that it would occasionally be left on!)

I may have remembered the remaining level wrong... but is anyone else noticing battery drain on a switched off FS5?

[Jeroen Wolf]

I just checked my (very old) BP-U60 on the FS5 and it's dead. It has been on my camera for a week or so. There is battery drain but not way as bad as on my EX3...

Anyway, it's best practice to disconnect your battery after a shoot.

[Michael Stevenson]

Originally Posted by Andy Wilkinson

Just a quick update on this. So far it has worked fine every time I've tried that (and all my other) lenses - which isn't very often as I've been busy (with family/holiday stuff). So I've been unable to recreate the problem with the Canon 10-22mm and the Metabones IV - let's hope it stays that way!

On another point, I'm sure the battery I left on my FS5 had about 30% remaining when I packed it in its bag a day or so before Xmas (in this case a small, new BPU-30 rather than the BPU-60s I have loads of). Took it out of the bag this morning and the battery was completely flat. Cam was definitely switched off (unlike my old EX3 from a few years ago where the switch was so finicky that it would occasionally be left on!)

I may have remembered the remaining level wrong... but is anyone else noticing battery drain on a switched off FS5?

I have both the FS7 and the FS5 and I definitely get battery drain on my FS7.

[Mike Watson]

I'm curious what everyone's doing with the dual slots.

I'm currently only shooting on A, and swapping out when I get to the end of a card/project. But I was considering getting a big (128 or 256) SD card for slot B, and just leaving it in there - then shooting on both cards at once. The A card would be the one I would take out and edit with, and the B would just stay in the camera and act as a backup until it filled - at which time I'd either format it, or swap it out with a second big card, then go back and forth.

Thoughts?

[Olof Ekbergh]

I put my 128 in the A slot and use that most of the time.
I keep my custom camera setup on both the A and B, but the B is not reformatted nearly as often so I pretty much always have my setups. I also back up my setup to my MBP.

I can also see when I need to hand off a card at the end of a shoot, then I would dual record and sell the A or B card to the client, and still have a copy w/o any copying. Nice.

I currently have a dozen 64's and 2 128's.

I also often shoot with an Odyssey O7Q+ and then I always record that as well. It is a great directors/producer/client monitor

[Mike Watson]

The camera specs (from B&H) read:

The camera has a built in Wi-Fi capabilities that enables live streaming to PCs, tablets, and smart phones. When using content Browser mobile, the user can even control the camera wirelessly

I can get my phone to control the camera, but when I do, the viewfinder is blank so you can't see what the camera's doing from the camera anymore. The way this is written, it seems like I should be able to just watch from a tablet/phone without control. Has anyone made this work?

[Jody Arnott]

Originally Posted by Mike Watson

I'm curious what everyone's doing with the dual slots.

I'm currently only shooting on A, and swapping out when I get to the end of a card/project. But I was considering getting a big (128 or 256) SD card for slot B, and just leaving it in there - then shooting on both cards at once. The A card would be the one I would take out and edit with, and the B would just stay in the camera and act as a backup until it filled - at which time I'd either format it, or swap it out with a second big card, then go back and forth.

Thoughts?

I always shoot on 2 cards simultaneously. I once had an SD card fail during an event shoot, and since then i've never shot on a single SD card. The risk of failure, while minimal, is still too high in my opinion.