Birds & Wildlife of Central Florida - 4K

[Doug Jensen]

This is a compilation of 4K stock footage I've shot during my time in Florida this winter. Mostly from November and December and a few shots from last weekend. Not as much free time to go out shooting as I'd like! I'm donating the video to a local nature center in the area and some of the ID labels are incorrect right now. I'll replace this version with a final version once that is done. Anyway, it was fun to shoot and that's what it is all about.

The Birds and Wildlife of Central Florida in 4K - Winter 2018 on Vimeo

Camera: Sony PMW-F55 w/R7 RAW recorder
Lens: Canon 200-400 f/4 w/1.4 extender
Codec: Sony XOCN-ST
Tripod: OConnor 1030D/35L
Graded with DaVinci Resolve 12.5 Studio on a MacBook Pro
Edited in Adobe Premiere CC

[Bob Safay]

Doug, welcome home. Glad you survived the Korean cold. Fabulous footage. You really do produce some great shots of wildlife. They are so incredible smooth. Hope to hook up with you again at Merritt Island this winter. Oh, I bought the Sachler Flowtech 75 tripod (I read your comment on it) with the Sachler FSB 6 head. So far it is by far the best tripod I have ever owned. Take care and safe travels. Bob

[Roger Van Duyn]

Great looking footage Doug!

[Bryce Comer]

Yes absolutely stunning footage Doug. Thanks for sharing.

[Doug Jensen]

Thank you everyone for the very nice comments. Very much appreciated.

@ Bob, I'm glad you are liking the FSB-6/Flowtech combo. I didn't use it for any of the footage above because it can't handle the weight of the F55, but I've been using my FSB-6/Flowtech with my Z90 a lot in recent weeks and I'm constantly impressed by how smooth and easy to use it is. I'm glad you agree.

[Bob Safay]

Doug, I remember that huge tripod you had a Merritt Island. I was referring to a comment you made on one of the forums. Anyway I took it into the field the other day and although it is heavier than expected I must say it is rock solid. I actually like it better without the mid-level spreaders. Safe travels, Bob

[Doug Jensen]

I'm still using the spreader on my Flowtech but i'm thinking that will change the next time I go out shooting wildlife. Compared to my other tripods the Flowtech is just too noisy. Too many moving parts flopping around when the spreader is being used -- and that makes it harder to move quietly with the tripod on my shoulder and deploying it quickly without making some noise. I was about a mile into some wetlands on Sunday with my Z90 and my sloppiness scared a couple of gators away that would have been very nice shots. Those really big gators are skittish enough without me compounding the problem by making noise. I slapped myself for being so sloppy with my technique.

[Dan Gunn]

Doug, the combination of your video and the music gives me goosebumps! Beautiful.

[Doug Jensen]

Thank you very much, that is cool to hear it gave you that kind of reaction. Nice.

[Bob Safay]

Doug, I found that the locking system on the legs is so good that I really don't need the spreaders. The tripod actually works faster and quieter without them. Bob

[Doug Jensen]

Yeah, I don't disagree but what I like about the spreader is that its just easier to make sure all the legs are equally angled out. Does it matter? Probably not. But it bugs me if they are not. I admit that it is a mental problem. :-)

[Steve Siegel]

Doug,

I really enjoyed this. You have certainly mastered bird flight. Your approach to the peregrine is especially satisfying. How heavy is that rig of yours, anyway?

[Doug Jensen]

Thank you, Steve. I'd say the camera and lens is about 28 lbs. plus the tripod and head. Maybe 35-40 lbs. total. I do intend to weigh it one of these days just to satisfy my own curiosity.

[Ronald Jackson]

"35-40 lbs" Far too much for this old man these days Doug! I'm into Lumix MFT which 4K results not too bad.

What happens to your 4K footage? Only 4K stuff on TV in UK seems to be sport. BBC filmed "Life On Earth II" in 4K, broadcast in HD albeit they have released the series on 4K BDs, which I've seen a bit of via a 4K projector and v good it was too.

You must be looking forward, like many, to "affordable" 4K BD burners.


Ron

[Doug Jensen]

Hi Ronald, my nature 4K footage gets sold as stock. It is waste of time for me to shoot any stock that is not 4K. But I also shoot 4K for all my corporate, non-broadcast work as well because there's no reason not to, and 4K provides many advantages in post when editing on an HD timeline. I barely shoot anything in HD these days, but with that said, I have no plans to edit/deliver 4K on a regular basis yet. I don't even watch or edit my footage on a 4K monitor. As I talk about in my training videos, we need to be able to separate the needs of 4K shooting . . . from 4K editing . . . and from 4K delivery.