Black Magic Pocket Cinema 4K
Small camera but a BIG punch! Black Magic's offering provided exactly what I needed to get great quality on the go.
Amazing is about all I can say about this camera. Great color, amazing quality, and a package that allows me to "run and gun" which is usually the work I do. To be honest, I don't do much filming, but when I do I love it, think I get pretty good stuff, and also have been acquiring stock over the years. Although I started and focused on post, I did a lot of videography work over the years for a variety of clients. This camera slots in perfectly. A micro four thirds format for a huge range of lenses while staying small and mobile. It shoots in a variety of formats perfect for editing including Black Magic Raw. It also allows for not only internally recording but also externally via USB-C for longer interview and events.
The ability to use this camera in a
variety of settings is a huge plus, but requires some thought on setup. This means going into a job with a clear approach and using the camera and accessories in a way that compliments the needs, vision, terrain...and getting the shot! Since when I'm filming it's usually for events that require a huge amount of coverage and movement (often via foot, bike, and even moto!) I have been scaling back over the years from larger EF lenses and adapters to now
native MFT lenses. This seems to be the "sweet" spot for me at least as I can rig it out an adapt for close to full-frame field of view and lenses or run with my native, incredible quality Panasonic 12-35 and 35-100 (giving me roughly 24-200mm range) and I'm good to go! I can focus more on
composition and rolling rather than trying to setup, mount accessories, and be stressed as events unfold. In general, this allows me to focus on the project, framing, and keeping it moving and not getting too deep in an overkill setup for the work I do.
NOT ALWAYS THE CAMERA...IT'S THE RIGHT CAMERA FOR THE JOB
Incredible interview Opportunities
I loved using this setup on the Breck Epic working with the team at dragonfruitvideo. That race requires us to get around the daily course quickly and efficiently. We are often tasked with gathering soundbites at the end of the event from many of the racers and even leaders. After covering sections of the course, I can book it back to the finish, get the setup rigged a bit more and ready for primary and secondary audio, dual recording as needed via an external recorder and move around to get more of the participants talking about their experience. For easy and ease of editing we recorded in ProRes 4K to deliver in HD allowing for some re-framing and also stabilization as needed in post. The image had great color and depth with nice internal audio.
Perfect for Sliders and Gimbals
Maybe one of the biggest selling points for my type of work was the ability to get creative with gear to acquire specific kinds of shots. I love slider shots. Simple but effective in the right situation. This setup really makes it so easy to use one of my sliders (manual, motorized) to get creative with subtle movement and perspective really handy in post. It's compact size, even it's large LCD can allow me to move to a slider or my gimbal quickly to follow action or think about moving in different ways while things are developing at the event or even on set. Love this aspect and it's been incredibly useful at the events I've shot with this camera so far.
CHALLENGES AND THE SOLUTIONS...AREN'T THERE ALWAYS?
Breck Epic pack ready to go!
There are some challenges with this camera, but there's solutions. Power consumption is huge! Easily remedied with a A LOT of third party Canon batteries. Or, often using my V-Mount battery adapter, and a single v-mount batter I can run all day! The screen is also not articulating which can be an issue at times. A simple shoe mount with my Atomos Ninja remedies that and is super bright. I also have a magnetic viewfinder that aids in really bright conditions for focus and composition. I feel like I've only scratched the surface of this setup. It's tough with all the post work, deadlines, and focusing on that part of my work, but I love getting out and seeing what I can get.
I'm looking forward to doing more and hopefully focusing over the next year on some stock acquisition I'm working on selling with BlackBox which includes a large inventory of older HD shot stuff on a variety of cameras and some purposeful footage with this new little guy. Of course, there's always new technology. Z-CAMs E2 is becoming very interesting for a similar setup and even using existing components like the CFast card, USB-C external drive, v-mount and even MFT lenses with the Z-CAM E2 removable lens mount system. That's the lure of this business as it's so much about the gear. Always something new and better possibly simplifying your job, getting better results...and hey, like being a kid with a toy (hopefully more professional...not always) but many have and will always say it's about the story, composition, and technique so I'll keep focusing on that. It's incredible how much is developing right now and how accessible it's all becoming. Isn't this biz freakin' awesome!
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