questions for nex 7/5/5n/5r/c3 shooters

i am SERIOUSLY thinking about buying the nex 5n as an upgrade from a point & shoot "walk around camera" that can do double duty as a b cam with my fs100.

to those who have shot motion with the nex c3/5n/5r/6/7, i have several questions:

do you usually shoot 24p or 60p?

in movie/video mode:

are there any focus aids?

peaking?

expanded focus?

live histogram?

does your nex overheat?

if so, how long before it overheats? how long until it cools and can be used?

do you use an adapter allowing other lenses and mounts?

if so, does metering work with your non e-mount lens?

is there any form of focus confirmation with your non e-mount lens?

do you have any favorite movie lenses? (e-mount & non-e-mount)

do you employ an external mic with your rig?

are the audio level controls effective?

are there any picture profiles ala the fs100?

have you been able to successfully colorgrade the fs100 and nex footage?

what do you do with the mts file?

transcode via clip wrap to pro res lt?

would you purchase your nex c3/5/5n/5r/6/7 again?

i know the above seems a bit overwhelming.

any and all info you care to share is appreciated.

be well.

rob
smalltalk productions
nyc

I have an NEX-7 and am inercutting it with my FS100 and 5DII even as we speak. I think the NEX-5N (there is a 5R model out now) might be better for video because the 7 crams way more pixels into the same size chip and its low light performance isn't as good as the 5N.

But when I stick a faster lens on (via an adapter), it's OK. I have a Nikon to E-mount adapter. With the E-mount you can use any lens you can find an adapter for. I also have the Sony 18-55 and 70-210 lenses and they're not great but better than you'd expect for the price.

Focus aids--yes. It has a great peaking feature, works as well as the FS100 in that regard. Expanded focus with the Sony lenses but I don't think there's any way to make it work with other lenses. You just start to focus manually and the image automatically zooms up.

I always shoot 24p on everything with all cameras.

Yes, histogram.

When I first got it, the heat light came on after about 27 minutes when I tested it with the camera just sitting on a desk. It let me start shooting again after about 5-10 minutes. I'm not sure if it got hot or if it was the fact that the light comes on before it should. Camera wasn't unusually hot to the touch. Then I did it again on a tripod and no heat light the second time. I've never shot for that long on a real shoot, so I don't know if it's still doing that or not. If you plan on shooting long events, you should have a regular video camera.

Yes to other lens mounts. I like the Voigtlander Nikon adapter. Very solid and fits perfectly. I also have a Metabones "smart" adapter for my Canon lenses to the FS100. It works on the NEX-7 but I've never used it on a shoot.

Metering does work. It's a histogram readout, not a regular light meter.

I use a mic for reference audio. The camera mic's OK but the little camera mounted Rode is better. You can't control audio--it's automatic, but it's pretty good automatic. I shot a couple of emergency interviews with it but I wouldn't make a habit of that.

As far as editing I use Premiere Pro CS6 on a Mac tower and edit the files natively. No need to transcode. If you use FCP then you'd have to transcode.

The reason I bought the NEX-7 over he 5N was because of the built-in EVF and the presence of knobs. The 5N is pretty much all touch screen. You still have manual control but it's a bit more awkward. I'm not sure about the 5R, haven't read up on it much. I really like the camera. It's my snapshotcam, touristcam, and guerrilla video camera for when I don't want to be conspicuous. Keep in mind that, like the 5DII, 7D, etc., it's a still camera first and a video camera second. However, with the built in EVF,you can shoot right out of the box. No need to buy a Zacuto LCD viewer. The 5N has an available EVF that snaps on that is very slick but jacks the price up by $350. You can live without it because of the focus enhancements, in all but direct bright sunlight. Even then, you can tilt the screen up or down and that helps a lot.