Greetings. I'm a filmmaker from the old days, back when we actually shot film, who loves the idea of the 5D and has shot a few short projects to get a feel for the camera. I would love to praise it as the next great thing, but there's a couple of major flaws with it that keeps me from doing so. I've read discussions about the flaws somewhat, but what I really want to know is your educated thoughts on whether or not Canon is going to address them with a future release that is coming soon. I can't afford to buy a camera now that I'll have to upgrade from in a few months; I also can't wait forever. Your wisdom is appreciated on the following:

FOCUS
If you could start recording video, then invoke that MAGNIFICATION feature that blows the image up in the viewfinder, focus, and then UN-MAGNIFY without a break in the recording, the 5D would be an infinitely greater product. But you can't- and the focusing, as many have pointed out, is crap. I've tried those attachments and they just magnify blurriness; when you're shooting handheld concerts or a documentary in the jungle, a separate viewfinder is not possible. The viewfinder on this is good enough, if only I could focus with video the way one can when shooting stills. I would think this is an easy fix- but maybe I'm wrong. Expert opinions?

SYNC DRIFT
I realize that, in theory, no two digital devices are going to sync up perfectly without a Word Clock. The reality, though, is that usually, this is not a huge issue. I've used enough different setups over the years to know sync drift in the digital world is often negligible, or at least easily workaround-able. Not so with the 5D, which seems hell-bent on drifting a ridiculous amount quickly. I shot a music video with the singer lip syncing to a cd; every take would drift a different amount of several frames by the end of the 3 minute song. THREE MINUTES! Not a big deal with a music video, I guess, but with the live concert, forget it, there was no way to stay on a musician for too long. I don't understand why the camera should be so off, other than, of course, it's not really a video camera- but still. Time-stretching the audio is not an acceptable workaround for the obvious reasons of quality loss, especially with musical performances. This seems like a glaring flaw, one that Canon would want to address soon... but again, maybe I'm wrong. Yes? No?

MEDIA
Not so much a flaw as just a concern, that SDXC seems to be the card everyone is turning to, which makes me think the compact flash format will be a thing of the past soon, which makes me think one should wait for the next Canon SLR with this media and start from there. Yes? No?

There's plenty of other "I wish it had this" features, like Timecode, but whatever- these are not deal-breakers. Focus and sync are. Without them, the camera becomes very clunky and useless to me- a compromise in the end quality. I'd love to jump on the bandwagon, but I can't... yet. If anyone has strong evidence that these features will or won't be addressed anytime soon, I would appreciate hearing it.

many thanks in advance!

-David

I manually sync live music from a second source to my 5D2 footage without incident on a regular basis. I'd wager a bet that problem has more to do with workflow than the camera itself.

I thought that perhaps something was happening in the conversion of the original files to Apple Pro Res 422, or it was something Final Cut was doing when cut into the timeline (some kind of automatic 30 to 29.97 conversion?) or some bizarre but simple answer, but all tests gave the same result, and another filmmaker I know who's been shooting live music often said this was a "known issue" and his solution was to always time-stretch the audio by some small percentage... if you think it's workflow, can you venture a guess where?

30 fps native H264 files from camera -> apple compressor into same-size Pro Res 422 (non HQ) leaving audio and fps the same (30) -> new project / sequence in FCP 6.x, sequence setting set to same - Pro Res 422, 30fps, 1080...

other complaints on the forum made me think otherwise...

David,
I think it's also relatively accepted to convert 30p to 29.97 and then you get a better synch. Don't get me wrong, it's a problem for me too but not that bad. I think keeping it 30p might be the workflow issue.
Bill

If you're dropping it into a 29.97 timeline, or cutting with other 29.97 footage, then you have to conform the 30p to 29.97 and tweak the audio. Get that right and you'll have no problem. I can't comment on your specific scenario, but I pretty much guarentee you that's the issue. Remember, audio has no framerate really. The 30p audio on the 5D2 is fine and will sync fine, but if your NLE or your workflow is changing it to 29.97, then of course, you'll have to do something with your audio. And yes, our lives would be easier if Canon would just release the firmware already!

Nice thing about NeoScene is they are conforming and synching sound to 29.97 for us when we convert to the Cineform intermediate file we use to edit.

I get the theory there, but wait- here's what's going on (FCP 6.0.5):

Clips are Pro Res 422, 30 fps.

New timeline. I cut a 3.5 minute take into it- FCP tells me the sequence settings don't match the clip, should it make the settings the same as clip? Yes. Okay. Clip looks great. Check my sequence settings now- ProRes 422, square, 1080i with 16:9 un-checked. Timebase is 30, and there's no option for me to change this- it is SET at 30.

option 2- new timeline, and I manually set it to ProRess 422, HDTV 1080i, square, 29.97, 16x9 unchecked. I tell FCP to leave the settings alone. Everything is the same as sequence 1 except the frame rate.

In both cases, the singer is in sync at the start, and behind by 5 frames 3.5 minutes later. If I slide the audio over 5 frames, in both cases, the end is fine, and the beginning is now off (obviously.)

I must be missing something obvious, if you guys have no (or minor) sync issues. But what?

I think its the clips at 30fps. I am on a PC but when I convert to cineform using neoscene, the clips become 29.97...
Bill

okay, sorry, i was misunderstanding. convert the original clips when re-compressing to 29.97 and hope canon fixes this!

got it. if anyone has any clue as to how long we have to wait, feel free to chime in!

thanks, y'all...

The sync problem is a bug in FCP that relates to how it interprets audio on import based on the current timebase you have selected. It's an easy fix, you just need to create a custom easy setup with the correct settings - Bruce Sharpe has details in this blog post:

25 Hour Day: DSLR Dual-System Audio: The 99.9% Solution (http://brucesharpe.blogspot.com/2009/06/dslr-dual-system-audio-999-solution.html)

The really key part of this that I don't feel is completely clear in that post is that once this is screwed up for a project there seems to be no way to fix it in FCP. For this to work you need to select the correct easy setup and then create a new project from scratch - changing it after the project has been created won't fix things.

Once you have things set up properly you won't have to worry about sync at all, it just works. I've synced over 30 hours of footage this way over the past year without a problem. It won't help if you're mixing timebases (i.e. 30 and 29.97 in the same project) but as long as you are editing just 5D footage it's all you need to do.

Yes the audio sync is a known bug in FCP.

Absolutely no drifting issues with on-camera audio or audio recorded by a 2nd unit regardless of it being a 1min or 15min clip dropped in to Premiere Pro on a Mac, but I do get those issues in FCP what little I used it.

Canon will never change media since compact flash is the standard for still photography and this is first and foremost a still camera.

I totally agree with the LCD zoom and wouldn't think it would be hard to actually have work you would think. But since you're a filmmaker from the old days when you used film, you wouldn't think this be an issue for you anyways since you could never do this on what you used to use back in the good old days.

thanks for the responses- very helpful. It's true that 16mm cameras did not have LCD monitors, but they did have viewfinders that worked very well. Can't really do that with the 5D. I'm not stuck on film, I just want something that works well enough to replace it at a fraction of the cost! We're ALMOST there...

It's true that 16mm cameras did not have LCD monitors, but they did have viewfinders that worked very well.

That's not my experience -- the 5D LCD with a Z-finder along with the 5D's magnifying tool beat any of the 16mm I've used.

-- peer

thanks for the responses- very helpful. It's true that 16mm cameras did not have LCD monitors, but they did have viewfinders that worked very well. Can't really do that with the 5D. I'm not stuck on film, I just want something that works well enough to replace it at a fraction of the cost! We're ALMOST there...

Well, actually, at least for prefocusing you can. Just don't turn on live view, and look through the view finder to get a true through the lens look, just like on a 16mm camera.

As Peer mentioned though - focusing with the LCD & magnifying functionality is far more effective than focusing through the viewfinder. I just don't think the focus screen in this camera is really intended for manual focus, not sure if you can get a classic ground glass screen for it - although that would probably cause problems with autofocus for stills use.

Edit: looks like you can get split-image focusing screens: http://www.focusingscreen.com/index.php?cPath=21_98&osCsid=e6c51981627e25e15b727b3b265450fb

Canon needs to enable this feature via firmware:

Rather than hitting a button multiple times to cycle thru all the magnification modes, they should allow the button to be configured so that when you hold it down, it zooms in, and upon release, zooms back out. The current three-push cycle is very tedious and introduces a lot of camera shake if you're looking to zoom-in quickly to check focus.

Canon needs to enable this feature via firmware:

Rather than hitting a button multiple times to cycle thru all the magnification modes, they should allow the button to be configured so that when you hold it down, it zooms in, and upon release, zooms back out. The current three-push cycle is very tedious and introduces a lot of camera shake if you're looking to zoom-in quickly to check focus.

That's genius, and then they should let you do that WHILE recording.

They should be paying us for this.

wow.. that would be nice!

Presumably there's a technical reason why you can't use this function when filming. Otherwise it would have made sense for Canon to do it on the XH A1.

Zooming in would be slow. The x5 and x10 process is quick.

No when I say zoom, I'm not talking about zooming with the lens.. the button will enable x5 or x10 only when held down..

potentially, it could also be delay sensing where a quick press allows the normal cycle. And holding it down will allow a quick x5 or x10.

That's what I'm saying- as I said originally, I think the magnification function is great. But if you can't do it while recording, it's mostly useless. In my (admittedly short) experience with the camera, it's the single-most quality-compromising flaw to the 5D. Setting exposure and shutter speeds on the fly can be tricky, but with enough tests, you can get a good idea of what you're going to get in most lighting situations. No biggie. It's the inability to focus quickly and properly that really kills this camera.

I think the magnification function is great. But if you can't do it while recording, it's mostly useless. In my (admittedly short) experience with the camera, it's the single-most quality-compromising flaw to the 5D.

Wow. Obviously people are different, and hence, have different needs. I for one would put at least 10 other shortcomings ahead of the "magnifying while recording" feature.

The way I usually use the magnifying tool is to first check focus point A, mark the FF disk, and then focus and mark for spot B. Then I'd just look at the disk while pulling the focus between the two.

It's the inability to focus quickly and properly that really kills this camera.

Since pulling focus is obviously your main concern, I would assume you already got a follow focus and a z-finder..?

My Camera -- manhandled by Jessica on Vimeo

-- peer

Very thankful for post #10 and the 25 hour blog post dealing with audio drift - saved my ass :)

Canon is not going to change the 5D to fix the flaws you mention. They have enough problems with bugs. Most of the issue you address will improve with the cine cameras released over the next year.

DSLR is just a short phase before we get real video cameras with large sensors. I guarantee all the players are working furiously to produce these new cine cameras.

It's best to assume the 5D will remain what it is currently, and use known techniques to handle the issues you mention.

MEDIA
Not so much a flaw as just a concern, that SDXC seems to be the card everyone is turning to, which makes me think the compact flash format will be a thing of the past soon, which makes me think one should wait for the next Canon SLR with this media and start from there. Yes? No?
-David

I really hope and pray you're wrong on this one. Compact flash cards have been standard in all pro still camera's for ages and I surely hope it'll stay that way. The SDHC cards, with their floppy, vulnerable construction, would'nt last two shootings in the environment I use my 5D's in. If Canon has any sense, they'll stick with CF cards.

A camera was caught in a net that had been in the ocean for over a year. The CF card inside was still working and the captain who found it placed some photos from the card on the internet, a friend recognised the pictures and got in touch with the orginal owner of the card. He'd accidently dropped his camera overboard the previous year.
Now I wonder if an SDXC could perform the same feat?

CF cards are nice and bit more sturdy than other flash based media (for camera's). But I've had a problem with the (CF slot) pins on the inside of two different Canon (non-video) DSLR's with them bending. This has happened to me twice. And no, I'm not jamming the cards in abruptly or roughly; just normal input and eject.

This is one advantage the SD cards have the advantage of not having to rely on pins to make contact. Just slide in and it locks into place. Also, they have a smaller form factor.

Not saying one is better than the other, both have their pro's and con's.

A camera was caught in a net that had been in the ocean for over a year. The CF card inside was still working and the captain who found it placed some photos from the card on the internet, a friend recognised the pictures and got in touch with the orginal owner of the card. He'd accidently dropped his camera overboard the previous year.
Now I wonder if an SDXC could perform the same feat?

That's a good story, do you have a source or link to this?

Here you are Steven, not the original one, but another one even longer in a differnt case than mentioned above:

Submerged camera holds functional memory card two years after accident -- Engadget (http://www.engadget.com/2007/11/17/submerged-camera-holds-functional-memory-card-two-years-after-ac/)

Here is the original 1-year account that I reffered to (from the BBC):

Photos retrieved from memory card found at sea (http://www.digicamhelp.com/learn/essays/memory-card-yields-photos-after-year-in-the-ocean/)

MEDIA
Not so much a flaw as just a concern, that SDXC seems to be the card everyone is turning to, which makes me think the compact flash format will be a thing of the past soon, which makes me think one should wait for the next Canon SLR with this media and start from there. Yes? No?

I'm thinking the same thing, at least the last part about waiting for the next VLSR. I have the 7D and am eying the 5dmk2 but I think I'm going to wait till a new full-sensor one comes out....whenever that is.

Is there anything on the rumor mill when a new full-sensor is coming?

I would like to see all the same issues fixed that you mentioned above.

heh, CompactFlash is not going anywhere anytime soon. Revision 5 has been introduced already....

"The CompactFlash Association has announced a new specification that brings 48-bit addressing, which increases the current capacity limitation of 137GB to 144PB -- as in petabyte. For the mathematically impaired, that breaks down to around 150 million gigabytes, or six million single layer Blu-ray discs. It also supports up to 32MB per transfer action, compared to 128KB today. "

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CompactFlash
http://www.techspot.com/news/37977-compactflash-50-spec-brings-144pb-capacity-limit.html

Its going to be a loooooong ride and its(CF) here to stay!

CF cards are nice and bit more sturdy than other flash based media (for camera's). But I've had a problem with the (CF slot) pins on the inside of two different Canon (non-video) DSLR's with them bending. This has happened to me twice. And no, I'm not jamming the cards in abruptly or roughly; just normal input and eject.

This is one advantage the SD cards have the advantage of not having to rely on pins to make contact. Just slide in and it locks into place. Also, they have a smaller form factor.

Not saying one is better than the other, both have their pro's and con's.

I suspect there's something wrong with the pins in your camera. Over the last 10 years, I have had 14 digital professional camera's (Nikon + Canon) with CF, working with some 40 cards, and I've shot about 200.000 images during that period. I never, and I mean never, had a problem with any of the CF-cards. I even lost data only once, when I removed a card without 'ejecting' it first from my PC. So I would certainly call CF 'foolproof' and trustworthy.

fortunately there is another way to focus, but unfortunately it is another major flaw of the camera (and one that can't be fixed)- moire. Since pictures out of the 5d are often crawling with moire, just make sure there is a bit of a crawl on the plane you want in focus and you can be sure that it'll be in focus!

Liam