Superb Example of C300 Documentary Filming

[Mark Dobson]

Came across this James Longley clip on the Cinema EOS site the other day and whilst many of you will have seen this already it is a superb example of the benefits of using a C300 for documentary filming.

Really beautiful footage.

Canon Cinema EOS | Media Gallery

[Simon Denny]

Looking forward to watching. looks great

[Andy Wilkinson]

It really is superb work....

Cinema EOS: Afghanistan Documentary, James Longley on Vimeo

[Paul Cronin]

Thanks Guys for posting.

I really have to agree with James Longley comments, the camera has worked out very well for me. Latitude is fantastic. I shoot in some heavy contrast situations and it amazes me every time the detail. I use the same lens 17-55 95% of the time so far and it is all hand held. And some of the tight spaces I have been with the small setup is great.

Clients love it and so do I. But I do have a much bigger setup and to be stable when I shoot hand held most of the time.

Now we need a firmware upgrade to fix a bunch of bugs.

[Bob Willis]

I'm curious what bugs that you are referring to Paul?

[Paul Cronin]

A bad use of words on my part, I need to not post on 2 hrs sleep. Let me correct my statement. Canon needs to correct some problems and lack of features with the camera. These would make shooting easier and they are standard on lower priced cameras.

1. dust on the sensor
2. Zebras are not accurate +- 5% is huge
3. No duration number during shooting
4. ND filters get stuck
5. Finer iris adjustments
6. 24bit audio

Don't get me wrong I like my C300 and it is making money, but Canon could make it better.

[Larry Secrest]

Yes, it's beautiful, but while he's shown with the C300 what is filming him?
Even though I don't doubt that the C 300 will produce very decent images don't you think the gentleman in that piece was actually paid by Canon? In other words, don't you think you're actually watching a commercial?
Again, while he's being shown using the C300 what piece of equipment is used to film him? Another c300? or something that cost 4 times the price? Again, I don't doubt the C300 produces better image than my old XH-A1, but that kind of commercial is not what I expect to judge the cam. I want neutral users, maybe from this forum to post their footage. Not somebody who is probably paid by Canon.

[Brett Sherman]

I'd imagine they shot with another C300. The other possibility would be C500. But they show plenty of shots from the documentary that look identical in quality. So I think it's a moot point.

He summarizes my feelings about the C300, and he's a real filmmaker not a paid actor. I'm not sure there is a better documentary camera out there.

[Jim Martin]

Originally Posted by Larry Secrest

Yes, it's beautiful, but while he's shown with the C300 what is filming him?
Even though I don't doubt that the C 300 will produce very decent images don't you think the gentleman in that piece was actually paid by Canon? In other words, don't you think you're actually watching a commercial?
Again, while he's being shown using the C300 what piece of equipment is used to film him? Another c300? or something that cost 4 times the price? Again, I don't doubt the C300 produces better image than my old XH-A1, but that kind of commercial is not what I expect to judge the cam. I want neutral users, maybe from this forum to post their footage. Not somebody who is probably paid by Canon.

No, he's not being paid by Canon....he's also been posting on Cinemaeosuser.net for a while

Jim Martin
Filmtools.com

[Mark Dobson]

Larry if you want to see a variety of totally independent stuff shot with the C300, some good, some excellent, some bad, just go onto Vimeo and do a search for C300. I just looked and there are now over two thousand films in that section.

I'd call the James Longley piece an infomercial! I don't think Canon would have paid him any money and if they had I'm sure it would be in the form of sponsorship or support for his documentary. All the material you see in the Canon Media Gallery is naturally supportive of Canon Products ( they are not stupid ) and whilst it obviously is a form of advertising it is generally only seen by people who already own Canon equipment and are keen to see top end examples of what the equipment can achieve.

As for James Longley.

He is a highly respected and well established documentary maker with his work 'Iraq in fragments' nominated for the Acadamy Award in 2006 as well as being receiving three Jury awards at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. So he is a well respected figure in the industry and also a recipient of the MacArthur Award given to people who "show exceptional merit and promise for continued and enhanced creative work".

So I'm happy to listen and learn to what he has to say about the C300 in the field.

[Larry Secrest]

Ok, my mistake

[Dave Mercer]

Thanks for posting. James' work as a documentary filmmaker is outstanding. And he's shown much willingness to help others with technical questions, etc. I could learn a thing or two (or a thousand) from him!

[Glen Vandermolen]

Cool video. I love how dusty his C300 was. I'd freak if that were my camera.
Let's hope the C100 can come close to the dynamic range of the 300.

[Sean Finnegan]

Originally Posted by Larry Secrest

I want neutral users, maybe from this forum to post their footage. Not somebody who is probably paid by Canon.

I am not paid by Canon, and here's a video I shot on the C300 since you asked so nicely. The C300 is the best tool for the work I do. While it's true that it doesn't quite stack up to other cameras like Epic, Scarlet, or Alexa and it doesn't quite have the dynamic range of other cameras even in its own price range like the F3, it's by far my favorite camera I've ever owned.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTubxCW5zQs

P.S. I've forgotten how to embed videos on this forum since it's been so long since I've posted here. Someone care to remind me?