Fs100 + nex-5n

[Jamie Roberts]

I've had a FS100 for a few months and have been fairly happy with it although I still like I havent got the best out of it with PP setting combined with best exposure etc. I need more guru's creating PP recipes!

I just got a NEX-5N as a 'C' camera (i also have a EX1) after reading about and seeing some fairly impressive video with it.

I shot some video today with the 5N and was absolutely blown away by how good the video that comes out of it is. I think I was more impressed with the 5N (blown up on a big screen via hdmi) than I was with the FS100! Is it unbelievable that such a tiny camera for $600 could produce such high quality video.

Tomorrow I am going to get the FS100 and the 5N out side by side. Considering the price difference the FS100 footage better be superior! ;-)

As a full time video producer, I know that if I turned up for a professional shoot with 5N in hand I would acquire some fairly serious credibility issues (and of course it doesnt do external audio). But I can tell you where I can, I will be using it on a slider and lightweight tripod as its just so easy to cart around!

Anyone else got these two cameras?

Jamie

[Chris Joy]

I have them both, the 5n is truly remarkable and makes a great B camera. Its a no-brainer for the money and the ability to swap lenses with the FS. Others also use the same combo. I use mine for cutaways, mounted on cars and motorcycles and on a modded Steadicam Smoothie for stabilized shots - much easier than putting the FS on a stabilizer.

[Thomas Wong]

i also have these two camera and i have one question

How can the 5N shoot in full manual? I switch to M, and press the record button, everything goes auto except iso.

[Chris Joy]

Its been awhile since I did the setup on mine, but when its set to M and I hit the record button I can adjust the aperture and shutter speed while shooting with a down press on the control dial - the south position on the compass - and it cycles between aperture and shutter speed. Then I just spin the wheel to make changes. On mine what's being adjusted turns orange. I have ISO set to a right press on the control dial and I can change all of them on the fly.

[Timo Lawrence]

what keeps me away from the 5n is overheating issues and artifacts caused by sensor line skipping. I shoot almost exclusively long events so I need something that can record for +1 hour non stop.

[Bill Bruner]

Camcorders and Panasonic DSLMs are your only options for unlimited recording time. I don't know why Sony and Canon (and Nikon) continue to cripple their cameras in this way. With Sony and Canon, it might make sense, if explained as an effort to protect their camcorder businesses - but what they're really doing is pushing people towards Panasonic.

What I really can't figure out is Nikon's 20 to 30 minute recording time limit (depending on the model). They don't have a camcorder line to protect, so why not expend the effort to steal this market segment from Sony and Canon? Why leave all of the event shooters to Panasonic? They're leaving money on the table, in my view.

Bill

[Timo Lawrence]

yeah, the lumix gh2 and gh3 are looking pretty good to me for secondary cams for this very reason, not to mention their ability to record 1:1 pixels from the sensor, sure this has a telecine effect and you need to use wider lenses to compensate, but that gets rid of a lot of artifacts that come from line skipping that's used on other DSLRs.

I heard that initially Nikon had the limitation to avoid a price markup due to certain countries in europe having a higher tax on importing video cameras, and they defined a video camera as something that could record video past a certain amount of time.

I find this to be a weak reason though, a big part of it is that in such a compact body with a big sensor, processing a heavy amount of data creates heat, and the heat causes these cameras to overheat, they are photo cameras first.

The reason the Panasonic Lumix cameras don't have as much of a problem is because they have a much smaller sensor, also allowing them to shoot 60p

I'm really thinking about getting a gh2/gh3 to compliment my FS100

Some of the biggest reasons I got an FS100 other than the amazing S35mm sensor and lowlight, were the main faults of DSLRs in general, short record times, and aliasing and artifacts from line skipping on the sensor.

the panasonic cameras take care of both of those problems.

[Thomas Wong]

I'd rather get a A99 with CZ24-70 for main camera and FS100 as the second camera

A99 seems to have a pretty good focus system

[Chris Joy]

Originally Posted by Bill Bruner

What I really can't figure out is Nikon's 20 to 30 minute recording time limit (depending on the model). They don't have a camcorder line to protect, so why not expend the effort to steal this market segment from Sony and Canon? Why leave all of the event shooters to Panasonic? They're leaving money on the table, in my view.

Bill

The reason often cited is the fact that in Europe cameras with a record time over 30 minutes are taxed at a higher rate as video cameras. I'm sure protecting video camera lines is an underlying motivation, but there must be some teeth to that since Nikon does the same thing.

[Chris Joy]

Originally Posted by Timo Lawrence

yeah, the lumix gh2 and gh3 are looking pretty good to me for secondary cams for this very reason, not to mention their ability to record 1:1 pixels from the sensor, sure this has a telecine effect and you need to use wider lenses to compensate, but that gets rid of a lot of artifacts that come from line skipping that's used on other DSLRs.

Slightly OT, but looking at the test videos of the GH3, its looking like a line skipping camera. I had a GH2 for a short time before going Nex. Despite the high bitrate that gives you nice detail with the GH2, it can't do anything for the poor DR. The banding in the shadows and skies was unacceptable for me. The Nex is much better IMHO as a B cam to the FS - footage has the Sony look and you have full lens compatibility.