Tag Archives: lenses

Panasonic Lumix GH6 does 300fps in Full HD!

We have been expecting Panasonic to deliver a GH5 and or GH5s replacement camera for over a year now. The pandemic and component shortages pushed back the release of almost all high tech imaging equipment. The Lumix GH6 is now announced and it does everything right for Micro 4/3 and then some but will that be enough to make the format survive in a world of ever-decreasing Full Frame camera prices getting cheaper?  

The GH6 has a new sensor, new Venus processing engine, new IBIS with up to 7.5 stops which is bordering on ridiculous, and a body that has active cooling. For HSC however, only one set of specs matters and that is frame rates for video. The camera is now on top of the Lumix and almost all of their pro division cameras by shooting up to 300fps 10 bit Full HDish, 240fps Full HD 10bit, and 120fps at 4k 10 bit.  For slow motion enthusiasts, it looks to be a great camera on paper and at just under $2,200 USD it is not going to break the bank.  But after all of this, should you invest in the GH6 as a slow motion tool or save more for an affordable dedicated high speed camera? → Continue Reading Full Post ←

DJI Ronin 4D Delivers Cinematic Stabilized Slow Motion!

In what could be called a new paradigm or class of camera, DJI the drone maker has launched a couple of cinema full-frame cameras geared to professional productions that merge their Ronin gimbal products with their Drone pro Zenmuse cameras to create a massively appealing system for pros and enthusiasts that want no compromise stabilization with enough image quality to be able to use them in professional productions for TV and film.  The pricing at just over 11.5k for the 8k version and 7.2k for the 6k version is small potatoes for movie and TV studios but might put off some buyers. 

It is of note that a fully working system bundle is assembled at that price which is much better than other options. It includes the Gimbal, camera and body, 1TB SSD M.2 card, battery, touch screen and cabling. In cinema systems like RED and ARRI this is just the brain or camera body with everything else being added on top as ancillary costs. The frame rates on these cameras are limited to 120fps as the highest at 4k and 75fps at 8k.  They might not be huge but the quality and stabilization should make them quite useful.  → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Canon EOS R5 Makes it Expensive to record 120fps 4k Video!

Canon EOS R5

Canon has now released the final specs and estimated release dates for the EOS R5 and R6 cameras. There is a lot of good advancement in features especially in video mode as what many believe is an afront to Sony and Panasonic who dominate video recording on ILCs.  The R5 can record 24fps and 30fps 8k video or 8192 x 4320 pixels in RAW quality which is a staggering 1TB of storage or 2600 Mbits/s for only 51 minutes of recording time. That means that every hour you will eat up through a full TB of your RAID backup storage. We see this mode being transcoded to an intermediate format like Blackmagic RAW or BRAW or Apple ProRes as soon as possible.

There is more bad news, on the 120fps 4k front there is no other option of recording but All-I which saves every frame independently in 10-bit 4:2:2 which is good for excellent quality but at the cost of 1,880 Mbits/s  which is 224MB/sec or 13,447MB / minute of recording time. Better get a ton of memory cards and hard drives ready!

EOS R5 Video Specs:

Video Rec Modes Raw 12-Bit
DCI 8K (8192 x 4320) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p [2600 Mb/s]
H.265 4:2:2 10-Bit
DCI 8K (8192 x 4320) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p [680 to 1300 Mb/s]
UHD 8K (7680 x 4320) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p [680 to 1300 Mb/s]
DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p/59.94p/100p/119.88p [170 to 1880 Mb/s]
UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p [170 to 1880 Mb/s]
Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [28 to 230 Mb/s]
H.264 4:2:0 8-Bit
DCI 8K (8192 x 4320) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p [470 to 1300 Mb/s]
UHD 8K (7680 x 4320) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p [470 to 1300 Mb/s]
DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p [120 to 1880 Mb/s]
UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p [120 to 1880 Mb/s]
Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [12 to 180 Mb/s]

You read that right 120fps 4k video on the EOS R5 is only possible at the 1,880Mbits/sec data rate even in H.264 mode. Also interesting to know is the lack of 120fps Full HD 1080p or higher fps modes which are common on cameras from Panasonic or Sony.

 

Overheating what?

Yes, the R5 gets overheated after recording video on the following modes and times:

  • 8k RAW 30p/24p – 20 Minutes rec time
  • 8k NON-RAW 30p/24p – 20 Minutes rec time
  • 4k 120fps – 15 Minutes rec time
  • 4k 60p – 35Min Rec Time No Crop
  • 4k 60p – Crop Mode 5.1k Oversampling – 25 Min Rec Time
  • 4k High-Quality 30p- 8.2k Oversampling- 30 Min Rec Time
  • 4k 30p – No Overheating Limit

We do not find any of these limits to be unbearable if you shoot clips of a few minutes but for event shooters, this is not the camera for you for many reasons, chief among the rec time limit, and secondly, the massive recording space needed.  For slow motion, the limit of 4k 120fps at 15 minutes is probably more than you will ever need so that is not a problem. See the video below:

Canon EOS R5 the TRUTH about OVERHEATING!: Armando Ferreira

It costs what :-0?

Yes, the EOS R5 costs a staggering $3,899.00 US Body only and expected to ship at the end of July on the 31st.   The camera it stems from the venerable 5D Mark IV DSLR went on sale in September 2016 with a retail price of $3,499 (Now about $2,000USD), so the new R5 is now $400 USD more expensive at launch plus the new lenses are really expensive plus also needed to get the most out of this camera’s 45MP sensor and be able to get the 8 stop Sensor IBIS Stabilization with lens+body.  A good R5 kit will probably cost you around $10k for a three-lens setup with body and memory cards.  Having the latest and greatest from Canon or any other big brand will cost you, and this is a prime example of it.

4k 120fps Mode samples?

Gladly we were able to find 4k 120fps video samples from the R5 and they look very good along with full AF which is an excellent feature to have in slow motion recording see below:

Canon EOS R5 Field Test – with 4k 120fps samples:  Jarrad Seng → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Canon EOS R5 gets serious about high frame rates!

Canon EOS R5 Slow Motion

We were very skeptical earlier in the year when the R5 specs were just a rumor. Canon has not really been delivering powerful video features out of their Cinema line and we expected this new camera to be a crippled continuation of the trend.  We were not only wrong but now know that Canon is banking the future of the EOS line on cameras like the R5 with features that really put it in a class all by itself.

The original video darling was the EOS 5D Mark II which made it possible to use the EOS line of lenses with a video mode that delivered good enough quality for the web and some careful productions.  The camera had issues like severe rolling shutter and a tendency to moire and alias so bad that many shots were really ruined.  However, the excellent Canon color quality and lens choices made it so popular that it really forced companies to change the video options forever.  Now Canon intends to do as big a splash with the introduction of 8k video internally on the new camera.

Canon EOS R5 Released Specs:

  • 8K RAW internal video recording up to 29.97 fps
  • 8K internal video recording up to 29.97 fps in 4:2:2 10-bit Canon Log (H.265)/4:2:2 10-bit HDR PQ (H.265).
  • 4K internal video recording up to 119.88 fps in 4:2:2 10-bit Canon Log (H.265)/4:2:2 10-bit HDR PQ (H.265). 4K external recording is also available up to 59.94 fps.
  • No crop 8K and 4K video capture using the full-width of the sensor.*
  • Dual Pixel CMOS AF available in all 8K and 4K recording modes.
  • Canon Log available in 8K and 4K internal recording modes.
  • A Canon first, the EOS R5 will feature 5-axis In-Body Image Stabilization, which works in conjunction with Optical IS equipped with many of the RF and EF lenses.
  • Dual-card slots: 1x CFexpress and 1x SD UHS-II.

Yes, Canon grows up the video mode…

You read that right we have 8k 30p and 24p using the full-frame sensor width with no big crop “excellent for punch-in interviews” and also up to 120fps at 4k 10 bit 4:2:2 color which beats Panasonic’s 60fps limit on that mode. The R5 is a beast of a camera that is set to deliver on every front.

We love that it has the dual pixel AF on all modes with the latest intelligent AF modes including eye AF for people and animals. This is probably the most advanced and useful video AF that produces excellent results without much stutter.  The nightmare of focus pullers as their job just got harder.

What about 1080p HD frame rates?

Sadly Canon has not released any information regarding the HD modes on the camera but we have an idea of what that may be.  Since 4k will have 120fps in NTSC and 100fps in PAL, we expect at least to have 240fps in Full HD 1080p with probably no 720p modes due to redundancy.

We may see a sensor crop on full HD to allow such frame rates at 120fps and 240fps but we do not expect a crop on 24p, 25p, 30p and 50/60p which should be full frame.  Crops on higher frame rates are common as many sensors cannot scan that fast for the entire sensor area. We may even see some crop at 4k 120p which is not specified in the released information.   It will be interesting what Canon shows when the full specs are out including the price which we may see reach a range of $3,299 to $3,999 USD as an educated guess.

Interesting Developments:

We cannot be left unimpressed by the EOS R5, Canon has finally awakened from their video slumber in the midrange lines and is delivering a hard punch to the competition.

Sony and Panasonic will not stay put and allow Canon to take the praise without some hard releases.  We expect Panasonic to have a new S1 camera that may shoot 8k as a GH camera in a GH6 or similar that should be able to shoot 8k also. As for frame rates in HD resolution, we may start to see higher than 240fps on competitor cameras. Panasonic, after all, has had 240p on the GH5s and 180p on the S1 series with good results.

Sony may also release a new sensor with a higher memory buffer allowing super slow motion like their RX line of cameras.  Could we see the first Alpha camera with 480p or 1000p in reduced time recording modes? That will be a nice sight to see.

We commend Canon for pushing the industry forward with a Camera that may be just as important as the 5D Mark II was over 10 years ago, now as an 8k capable powerhouse with incredible quality and features like sensor/Lens Hybrid Full-frame IBIS stabilization and full-time Dual Pixel AF with machine learning.

We just need to get that Virus beat so we can go out and test these awesome cameras. More information on the R5 as it becomes available -HSC

amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0";
amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true";
amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "hispeedcams-20";
amzn_assoc_ad_mode = "manual";
amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart";
amzn_assoc_marketplace = "amazon";
amzn_assoc_region = "US";
amzn_assoc_title = "EOS Cameras At Amazon";
amzn_assoc_linkid = "736cd5d58ac3c9bb24beabc7eaf65dfd";
amzn_assoc_asins = "B01KURGS9E,B07H484HLT,B07NNS2YVV,B07J1Y3HQV";

CES 2020 New 120fps Cameras from Nikon, Canon and Panasonic!

CES 2020 New 120fps Cameras from Nikon, Canon and Panasonic

CES brought a lot of weird tech like smarter toilets, personal companion robots and the occasional wearable smart tech that you really can’t wash in your home.  As it is always the case at HSC we were looking for slow motion capable cameras and sadly we saw very little at the show. We are now showcasing three manufacturers who had 120fps Full HD cameras announced at the show and no frame rates above that.

These are primarily 4k 30 and 60p cameras that have a 1080p 120fps mode as a feature that no new camera can really ship without. Sony has already standardized this format in the last few years on most Alpha cameras and Panasonic has even gone above at 180fps and 240fps in some cases like the GH5 and S series.  The cameras presented here are mainly either stills full-frame beasts or more standard video camera like.  By 2020 we would have hoped to see better than 120fps 1080p on cameras of this caliber but it seems we will have to keep waiting…

New cameras with impressive features and subdued frame rates for video:

Here we are in 2020 at 120fps, seemingly stuck in the past as far as frame rates go. We would have expected 4k 120fps and 1080p at least at 240fps by this time frame on many cameras but it looks to be a mirage that simply did not materialize.

Canon 1Dx Mark III Video Features:

Video Recording Raw12-Bit
5.5K (5472 x 2886) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [1800 to 2600 Mb/s]
MP4/H.265 4:2:2 10-Bit
DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [170 to 1000 Mb/s]
UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [170 to 1000 Mb/s]
Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p [18 to 470 Mb/s]
MP4/H.264 4:2:0 8-Bit
DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [120 to 940 Mb/s]
UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [120 to 940 Mb/s]
Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p [12 to 360 Mb/s]
External Recording Modes 4:2:2 10-Bit
DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) up to 59.94p
Recording Limit Up to 29 Minutes, 59 Seconds
Video Encoding NTSC/PAL
Audio Recording Built-In Microphone (Stereo)
External Microphone Input (Stereo)
Audio File Format AAC, Linear PCM (Stereo)

Canon 1DX Mark II – 120FPS Slow Motion – Paige Lorentzen by samfregonese:

Hey wait that video above is from the Mark II version of the camera and that is right. There is no available footage from 120fps mode on the Mark III that is available outside of Canon testing.  So we included the same 1DX Mark II spec of 120fps 1080p so you can get an idea of how it will perform on the Mark III. Anecdotal comments from testers say that video quality is improved across all modes which means the 120fps quality should also be better along with even tighter Auto Focus.

For $6,499.00 Body only with a  February 13th Ship-Date, the 1Ds Mark III is not a camera to buy for 120fps Full HD shooting, it is a tool for professional sports photographers to go and kill at the Olympics and World Cup at 20fps 21MP stills.   Good to have 4k 60p also which will probably be used more by shooters but don’t expect either mode to be class-leading. This is a beast of a stills camera, probably the best out there for the price and video while very good, is relevant for lower frame rates at higher resolutions.

Nikon D780 Video Features:

Video Mode:

Recording Modes MOV/H.264
UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p
Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.976p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p
External Recording Modes 10-Bit
UHD 4K (3840 x 2160)
Full HD (1920 x 1080)
Recording Limit Up to 29 Minutes, 59 Seconds
Video Encoding NTSC/PAL
Audio Recording Built-In Microphone (Stereo)
External Microphone Input (Stereo)
Audio File Format AAC, Linear PCM (Stereo)

Video Sample below 120fps Full HD at Time: 5:40

Nikon D780 – Hands-On Review & Comparisons to D750 by digiDirect: → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Panasonic Lumix S1 180fps Slow Motion Is Pretty Good!

Panasonic Lumix S1 180fps Slow Motion

As it was initially unveiled at Photokina last year, the Panasonic Lumix S1 and S1R cameras are their answer to the domination of larger sensors in stills and video mirrorless cameras. Is there any reason now to buy a Full Frame DSLR when mirrorless is so advanced? The only thing we can think of is to have marginally longer battery life. The mirror is on its last legs and fans better start offloading their lenses if they don’t want to mess with adapters. In the case of Panasonic however, it is not possible to use Lumix  Micro 4/3 lenses on the Leica/Sigma/Panasonic Full Frame L-Mount.

The S1 and S1R will both shoot up to 180fps 1080p video with a crop that may or may not be impactful. Seems the S1R has less crop on 1080p than the video geared S1 which is an odd spec. We will have to wait for more samples and info on the HFR mode to see which of these cameras offers the best slow motion performance. From the limited samples, we can say that the quality looks very good and at least on par with the Lumix GH5 at 120fps.

Panasonic Lumix S1 Main Specs:
  • 24.2MP Full-Frame MOS Sensor
  • Venus Engine Image Processor
  • 5.76m-Dot 0.78x-Magnification OLED LVF
  • 3.2″ 2.1m-Dot Triaxial Tilt Touchscreen
  • UHD 4K60 Video; HDR and 10-Bit Recording
  • 1080p Slow Motion 180fps HFR
  • ISO 100-51200, Up to 9 fps Shooting
  • Contrast-Detect 225-Area DFD AF System
  • Sensor-Shift Image Stabilization – 6 Stops Dual IS
  • Weather-Sealed Construction
  • 96MP High-Res Mode, Dual XQD/SD Slots

The video below by HDblog Italy shows at the 2:04 Time a small sample of 180fps slow motion video.

Panasonic LUMIX S1 e S1R in TEST video: le FULL FRAME da battery by : HDblog it

There is no question that Panasonic is a leader in video quality in mirrorless cameras ever since they shipped the initial GH1 camera. Today the Lumix GH5 and GH5s are some of the most revered video-centric cameras for professionals that opt-in a mirrorless system instead of traditional ENG/EFP style video cameras.

The samples are few because the cameras are still pre-production but it will be a short wait until the beginning of April when these cameras ship to see how they perform.

Panasonic Lumix S1 S1R review hands-on impressions by Gordon Laing: → Continue Reading Full Post ←