Tag Archives: a7s

Sony a7s III Slow Motion is Hiding a Secret!

Sony a7s III Slow Motion

It’s here, yes it is finally here you are not seeing things. In what may be the most anticipated camera release in years, Sony has finally unveiled the a7s III video-centric mirrorless camera.  It has all the new performance benefits of processing and AF seen on other Sony bodies but now applied to a 12 Megapixel back-illuminated full-frame sensor geared to shoot pristine 4k and be able to shoot stills as a secondary function.  The original 5D from Canon shot 12.8 MP in 2005 when it was introduced and it is still being used out there by many professionals as it was and still is a wedding workhorse. However 15 years later which in the camera world seems like a century, we get a brand new Sony camera with 12MP and that is actually a great thing!

The slow motion on this camera has a lot of good but also some hidden secrets that you should know about before plunking your hard-earned cash. We get what may be the best 120fps 4k footage we have seen in any camera under 10k USD at full 4:2:2 10 bit quality which after looking at the samples left us with nothing but praise to see such a well-executed mode with the added benefit of being able to shoot nearly 1hr worth of it before the camera temperature spoils the party. Excellent performance! → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Panasonic GH5s Slow Motion Samples 240fps!

Panasonic GH5s Slow Motion Samples

There is an aura over the Panasonic GH5s that has not been seen in a m43 camera possibly ever.  It is mainly due to the outstanding low light quality in 4k 24, 30p and 60p that beats full frame cameras like the Canon 5D Mark IV and competes head to head until ISO 25,600 with the king of low light the Sony a7s Mark II.    But as always, our focus is on the high frame rates which the camera also does quite good on.

The 4k 60fps quality is very close to the 30p quality which means excellent and you can shoot at 60p at night without worrying about noise.  The 240fps mode which is a first for a Lumix camera in full HD means that the camera aims to compete with Sony RX series cameras that have stacked sensors. We believe the quality to be acceptable but not good enough to be broadcast quality as stair stepping jaggies are all over the frame with the occasional moire pattern on fine detail that can break a shot. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Fake Slow Motion Is It Worth It?

Fake Slow Motion

There has been a lot of work put it developing software that can interpolate frames for video editing and compositing applications. Twixtor in the late 90’s was perhaps the first time the technology could make something worthwhile and really produce acceptable results in a computationally acceptable timeframe.

Today the most used algorithm is Adobe’s Optical Flow in Premiere or Time Warp in After Effects which use vector directional plus acceleration of pixel values to derive in between frame data to generate new frame information from the preceding frame as point A and the next frame as point B.  The results can do some wonders to really slow down things above the frame rate ceiling of the camera. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Canon ME20F-SH Sample Footage Released!

Canon_me20fsh_Sample

Canon Japan has released a sample video showing the Canon ME20F-SH Super High ISO full frame multipurpose camera in action.  It is impressive to see ISOs as high as  on a camera that is as portable as this. Even with a high price of $30k US it is something news gathering and documentary outfits like Nat Geo and Discovery will gravitate to in order to extract new levels of color and light information from extremely challenging low illumination environments.

Filmmakers will also find it useful for shooting in extreme low light for a specific take, but we feel that scientists and biologists in particular will benefit most from these advancements.  Underwater videography is probably the most peculiar use to study bio luminescent organisms in complete darkness like never before. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Canon ME20F-SH Records 4,000,000 ISO!

Canon_me20fsh_3qlens

The newly announced Canon ME20F-SH Camera besides it’s overly unpronounceable name and a price tag of $30,000 USD has what could be a record for any sensor to date. The ISO 4 million mark on this camera/sensor is able to record footage in full color at night. It over exposes footage only lit by a full moon.  The Sony A7s last year was a revelation of where sensor technology is going with it’s close to 1/2 million ISO at 409,600 . It could shoot in near complete darkness and could do a good job at it.  What Canon has done with the ME20F-SH is build their peak sensor technology into a 35mm Full Frame Sensor but with only 1080p Full HD resolution. The Sony A7s can shoot 4k footage with the HDMI output on an external recorder. This makes the pixel size on the Sony more constrained even with a Full Frame Sensor.

The pixel pitch size on the Sony A7s  (12MP on a full frame CMOS Sensor) is around 8.4 µm; in contrast the new Canon ME20F-SH has a  19 µm pixel size in a Full Frame Sensor.  This is an amazing performer in low light and probably the most sensitive sensor ever made for commercial purposes. At 2.26 Megapixels this is the state of the art for large pixels with impressive dynamic range and low light. It is unclear how the low resolution in such a large sensor will behave when it comes to moire and aliasing artifacts. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

fps1000 Platinum upgrade options unveiled!

fps1000b

Warning: The parent company of FPS cameras “The Slow Motion Camera Company Ltd.” went out of business and entered liquidation proceedings. No further development of cameras is expected. More information here on Google Search

The fps1000 Kickstarter camera is ramping up ever closer to final production and shipment and Graham Rowan the creator and genius mind behind these slow motion cameras has released the upgrade option path for Platinum Kickstarter backers.  Pre Order Cameras are also elegible for the upgrade pricing discussed below.  Retail cameras in the future will command a higher price. → Continue Reading Full Post ←