Tag Archives: New Release

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. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Sony a6400 Brings 120fps AF tracking to the Masses!

Sony a6400 slow motion

The newly announced Sony a6400 is what the a6300 should have been almost two years ago. It is still missing a key feature that was introduced with the a6500 that of IBIS or Sensor Stabilization which works with any lens added to the system. However, if you remove the IBIS fail from the equation this is a killer camera for just $900 which in this day and age of $1000+ cellphones, it is quite a bargain for the body only.

We were amazed by the 120fps full HD quality of other sony alpha cameras like the a9 and the a7 III which fully track subjects while recording in super slow motion which really makes the feature stand out compared to other cameras which force you to go manual while on that mode.  The codec quality has also been bumped in this camera for 120p to 100Mbps from 60Mbps on earlier cameras like the a6300 which should preserve more detail while sacrificing little in image crispness. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Sony IMX183 ExmorR Could Be In New RX Series!

Sony IMX183 ExmorR

Sony Semiconductor division has announced the new  IMX183CLK-J “Mono” &  IMX183CQJ-J “Color” Sensors in 1″ size. The sensor seems to be a step up compared to the ones used in the last RX100 and RX10 camera series.  While there is no mention in the press release of a stacked combo; the sensor itself should be able to be built on a high speed stacked memory package which should allow extreme frame rates at HD resolutions.

The sensor used in the RX100 V, for example, is a 1″ Exmor RS which allows for HDR capture in both photo and video modes. The new sensors announced are of the R variety “No video HDR” which could mean another variation of the sensor will debut with the RX100 VI.   Considering the cameras are due for a refresh this year we expect Sony to up the ante when it comes to read-out data speeds and use their stacking technology. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Jvc LS300 Firmware 4.0 Outputs 4k 60p!

Jvc LS300 Firmware 4.0

The JVC GY-LS300 camera had a firmware update last year that permitted the camera to shoot at 120fps full HD. Now the company is releasing a new update that adds the capability of recording of 4:2:2 (8-bit) 4K @ 24/25/30p video to internal storage. The camera previously only recorded at 4:2:0 color space.  Not only that, the camera now can output to the Ninja Inferno external recorder a 4k UHD stream at 50p or 60p for 4k slow motion goodness.

The Version 4.0 firmware upgrade is free of charge for all current GY-LS300 owners and will be available in late May.  This camera seems to continue to be supported by JVC due to its popularity and seems, for now, to be their best bet to offer a camera that competes with the Sony FS5 or Panasonic DVX 200 for example with a low price of around $2600 USD. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Blackmagic Design Teases New Camera!

Blackmagic Design has teased the camera enthusiast world with an announcement due in just 21 hrs. Some expectations call for an updated pocket cinema camera while others talk about a new modular design that could be portable or studio like depending on configuration. We will have to wait and see. The live press conference video  tomorrow 12.00pm PST is going to end the speculation, see below:

Canon Releases New EOS & M Cameras!

Yesterday Canon unveiled the Canon EOS 77D, EOS T7i & the M6 Mirrorless.  Al three are geared to photo enthusiasts and contain a video component that in some ways resembles the releases of other companies from 2014.  The real improvement with these cameras comes in the way of dual pixel AF sensors that are able to track in video mode with precision.

The pricing on these cameras is very aggressive with the 77D @ $899.99 body only,  T7i for $749.00 body only and  M6 with 15-45mm lens for $899.  You get a lot of still camera for your money and a somewhat competitive 1080p video camera with up to 60fps in that mode. → Continue Reading Full Post ←