Anyone using the FZ1000 for weddings?

[Roger Gunkel]

Originally Posted by Chris Harding

Hi Roger

What can I say except "you are right" ..I think we get totally obsessed about having the biggest and the best ..When I mentioned I was changing cameras the first response was "So you will getting Sony FS7's then" I'm a firm believer in spending no more than 10% of my turnover on gear so buying two $9000 cameras simply doesn't fit into my plan at all. I admit it's nice to boast about your awesome cameras that cost more than your mortgage payment for 3 months but if you find something that will do the same job for a fraction of the price ..why not use it? If people laugh at you because you are using an SJ4000 .. I just ignore them and as you say brides don't care!! Shamefully I have to admit that in a few instances my little $100 SJ4000 actually had way better footage of the ceremony than the $4000 Sony!! I have an 8 week gap now on weddings so it's the best time for me to buy and sell and change!!

Chris

Chris, I read through these forums and see all the discussions about Primes and shallow DOF, close up and telephoto lenses, focussing problems, plus all the discussion of highly priced cameras, difficulty shifting all the gear and I sometimes think 'Am I doing it all wrong?' Then reality kicks in and I remember that I have been doing this successfully for 32 years, working fast and light and with never any doubt from clients. I deliver usually on DVD and often get comments on the quality and clarity of the picture. I also get asked who the other camera person was to get the different angles, even though I invariably work solo.

What I am now wondering is whether others here are also looking at how I and a few others work and what you are proposing, and are also quietly asking themselves 'Am I doing it all wrong?'. A lot of the discussion on this forum is about higher and higher quality and striving to match cinematic style and impact using ever increasing amounts of equipment. We have companies using 5 cameras, several operators,, multiple sound recorders on everything to capture cinema quality sound and techniques learned from film school and blockbuster movies.

Weddings are not film sets with actors, they are constantly ebbing and flowing events, sometimes unpredictable and sometimes requiring quick reactions, and lateral thinking. They are days full of real emotion and an unfolding story, that is exciting to capture and a real challenge to reflect the atmosphere and emotion. In my opinion you cannot do justice to a wedding if you are constantly worrying about whether you have the right lens on or how you are going to set up the equipment in time, or get it moved to the next location. What about the guests being in the way or the photographer in the shot; forget about it it is all part of the day. By all means film the way that you are comfortable with but don't expect to use a wedding as a substitute for ambitions as a blockbuster movie maker.

Chris I am really looking forward to following your progress and thoughts on downsizing and how you get on with new gear :-)

Roger

[Chris Harding]

Thanks Roger

I will order my first FZ on Monday regardless of whether the Sony's have a buyer at that stage as I want a decent amount of my Winter break time to investigate all the functions anyway.

I'll also be looking forward to your comments when yours arrives next week. Just for interest the 1000 goes for just under $1000 here and the 200 is just under $500 .... Hopefully the flagship model should be worth the extra cost

Chris

[Peter Rush]

Originally Posted by Roger Gunkel

Chris I am really looking forward to following your progress and thoughts on downsizing and how you get on with new gear :-)

Roger

Same here - for next season I need to be able to carry all my gear to and from my car in one trip - If I loose my EA50 and start using the A7s as my main camera (once I decide on the 'right' lens) I might just be able to do it with no hit on the quality of my production :)

[Chris Harding]

My local dealer here has a nice Beachtek audio unit that slides on the hotshoe of the camera and gives me two XLR controllable inputs for my audio. The one thing I did discover is once you set the FX1000 audio level and start recording you cannot change it but if you go thru a Beachtek unit it has it's own gain controls so you can raise signal levels ... that would also work well if you need to change a shotgun mic level ... they also make a neat little unit (also hotshoe mount ) that allows you to plug in two audio devices and it splits them via gain controls into the camera 3.5mm input ... the unit also has a couple of cold shoe mounts on it so you don't lose a mic mounting point either!!

[Roger Gunkel]

An input volume control would be very useful, although I can live without the XLR connectors. I'll do a bit of research.

Roger

[Chris Harding]

Hi Roger

Beachtek MCC-2 2-Channel Audio Adapter and Bracket MCC-2 B&H

This mounts on your hot shoe and provides 2 channels with gain controls and also gives a few shoe mounts on top. It's great if you want to feed two inputs into the camera as it creates two channels ..one goes to the cameras left input and the other to the right input so when you edit you have the choice of using either channel, whichever sounds best.

Chris

[Roger Gunkel]

That looks kike a useful device Chris that might be worth getting. I'll have a quick search as well for similar devices.

Had a bit of bad news today, my FZ1000 supplier has been over run with orders for the camera and has had to order a new batch which won't be arriving for another 3 weeks, so I cancelled the order and found another company who have it in stock and can supply for £50 cheaper in 4-7 working days. I'll just have to be patient a bit longer.

Roger

[Chris Harding]

Hi Roger

No local dealers in your area ? I have my local guy here who is prepared to match any price within Australia for me (he was the one that had the Beachtek units too) I can get one for $909.00 which at the moment equates to 445.00 Stirling ... I guess you guys have to pay VAT too on cameras.

I can get a FZ200 here for $449 so that's 220.00 Stirling so the FZ1000 is double the price here but hopefully worth the extra money??

Chris

[Steve Burkett]

Originally Posted by Roger Gunkel

What I am now wondering is whether others here are also looking at how I and a few others work and what you are proposing, and are also quietly asking themselves 'Am I doing it all wrong?'.

As a 5 camera guy, with 7 Primes, a Jib, Slider and pretensions of capturing stylish looking shots :), am I asking if 'I'm doing it wrong'. Nah, not for a second. Todays Wedding, I'm filming a Marryoke and the Wedding. I shall be using probably all my primes at one point, also my jib, slider and plenty of shallow depth of field :) - wide shots too as I love variety. 5 camera set up for the church, 4 for the Speeches and 3 for the 1st Dance. A lot of gear I admit, but only 2 bags, one on my shoulder, 1 on a trolley. I love the look of Primes and wouldn't shoot a Wedding without them. Downsize ain't for me.

Mind you I'm gonna swing the other way and add more. I plan to get the RX10 Mark II as I lack a good run n gun camera for certain parts of the day like Brides arrival and the couples exit. I would never ever get any fixed lens camera or lens with a variable aperture. Both my zooms have a constant 2.8 and for Speeches the 35-100 is my best choice, but I'll use a Prime for some venues as 2.8 doesn't crack it.

Maybe some of you have been luckier than me, but I've filmed Speeches where even my f1.2-f1.7 prime lens has still pushed the ISO to 1600 or more. The last Ceremony I filmed, the lights were so low, the Photographer was pushing ISO even with flash, the Registrars complained they couldn't see to write the register and my 42.5mm 1.2 Prime lens saved that Ceremony from looking a noisy mess. Yes I have Neat Video, but the results can be varied and time consuming to render.

I'm sure the FZ1000 is a fine camera and with the right approach can get great footage, but I wouldn't even consider it for a B Camera as f4 at the telephoto means I'd never use it for anything other than wide shots, which makes the zoom lens somewhat redundant.

[Chris Harding]

Hi Steve

If you are happy with your current gear and are getting good results, I cannot see why you would even ask the question ' Am I doing it all wrong' ... Sheesh some of us drive compacts, some drive 4X4's ..it's our choice. If you are driving a huge 4x4 and are struggling to park it and are tired of it guzzling fuel THEN you can think about getting a smaller car ..the reverse is also true of course ...you might want a bigger car.

You are happy with what you have and it works well so why even think about re-evaluating what gear you have ??

Chris

[Roger Gunkel]

Steve you already have a thriving business and enjoy the way you work and the gear that you use. My comment was more geared at those who feel it necessary to match your level of equipment to get into the wedding market, or those who feel overburdened with the amount of gear they carry around.

When you read here about the levels of equipment that some people use, I think that in some instances there is a feeling that you have to match that to have any sort of chance. There is also perhaps a reluctance by some to talk about the fact that they use much more cut down equipment to achieve highly successful results. I think an opportunity to enlarge on that side of the business helps to encourage others into seeing that there are other ways to build a successful business.

Everyone can build their business and equipment to the level that they enjoy and are comfortable with, but to use Chris's car analogy you don't have to have a 4x4 to drive to the shops, but if it suits your needs then great :-)

Roger

[Paul Mailath]

I can only use the Fz1000 in the early part of the reception - they do NOT cope with low light. I've got two of them now and I'd be delirious is they were better in low light but they aint.

that's my real experience in real receptions - nevertheless one is hanging off my hip all day and I'm happy to use is as a primary camera during bride & groom prep. I use them for pickups during the ceremony and primary camera up till the speeches start, then just for pickups.

[Chris Harding]

Thanks Paul

I cannot use my Sony's without lighting during speeches either so I'm used to that .. I have a CFL stand with an umbrella blasting the lectern with light for the A-Cam and then an LED light on the B-Cam for guests in the dark during cutaways ..I keep the light on the B-Cam for cake and first dance then I'm outa there. The venue usually has enough ambient light for bridal entry and guest tables but if not I use a light as a fill dimmed right down. I guess the GH4 with a super fast lens can do everything without extra light??

My Sony A-Cam only has a F2.8 lens on it hence the lighting requirement but it works pretty well.

I'm grabbing an FZ1000 next week anyway ..just for me!! If it doesn't work at receptions I'll just use it on the stedicam! My Sonys are a tad too heavy for the rig as the springs in the arm are a max limit so I need a cam for that anyway ..anything else is a bonus plus it's a spare stills camera!!

Chris

[Roger Gunkel]

Originally Posted by Chris Harding

Hi Roger

No local dealers in your area ? I have my local guy here who is prepared to match any price within Australia for me (he was the one that had the Beachtek units too) I can get one for $909.00 which at the moment equates to 445.00 Stirling ... I guess you guys have to pay VAT too on cameras.

I can get a FZ200 here for $449 so that's 220.00 Stirling so the FZ1000 is double the price here but hopefully worth the extra money??

Chris

Hi Chris

Just noticed I missed this post. The nearest dealer to me is 90 minutes drive and their price has been reduced to £609, a couple of big department stores the same distance away are showing £649 and £629 and there is no guarantee they are in stock. The Dutch company were supplying me at £528 and now that they have a hold up I have cancelled and ordered from a Hong Kong based company with a UK warehouse for £478 . I did a lot of research on them first especially because of the big price difference and I have spoken to the UK customer support so am as confident as you can ever be online. I have had order and delivery information confirmed from the company and from PayPal.

Now keeping my fingers crossed and awaiting delivery possibly by the end of next week.

Roger

[Chris Harding]

Hey Roger

Keeping my fingers crossed for you. I have a dealer I'm going right past in the morning so I'll pop in and see if they have stock ... I also found this audio adapter on ebay which is even neater than the Beachtek as it has AGC disable and has an internal headphone amp so that would solve any disputes about the FZ1000 not having a headphone output ..at least with this you can monitor incoming audio and also control the level on each channel during recording.

Brand NEW Mymyk Smartlynk Portable ON Camera TWO Channel Mixer | eBay

Chris