Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips
A new Panasonic Micro Four Thirds lens spilled out onto the interweb this week ahead of its official unveiling. The Panasonic Lumix G Vario 45-150mm f/4-5.6 HD OIS lens should be along soon – with the HD emblem suggesting that this lens will be optimized for silent video operation like the classic HD 14-140mm f/4-5.8 lens.
Perhaps this is a replacement for the current 45-200mm f/4-5.6 OIS non-HD lens, or just a video-optimized version to complement the line-up?
[via Photo Rumors]
FilmImpact.Net just released its new Transition Pack 1 for Premiere Pro. The new transition pack contains 10 transitions for CS5.5 and CS6. Transition Pack 1 is available for $19.99. The transitions include the following: [Read more…]
Here’s a nice timelapse short that further demonstrates that the 5D Mark II (even after it’s recent price drop) has still got it. It’s worth hitting the full screen in HD for the 4 short minutes it takes.
This video is a collaboration between Sheldon Neill and Colin Delehanty. All timelapses were shot on the Canon 5D Mark II with a variety of Canon L and Zeiss CP.2 Lenses.
[via Planet5D]
The Apertus Axiom Camera is an open source project that looks to produce a 4K camera with a Super 35 sensor, Cinema DNG files, 150fps at 4K, a global shutter and 15 stops of dynamic range.
The plan is to launch a Kickstarter campaign in the fall to crowdfund the project at a target price “well below $10,000.”
If this camera actually comes to market with those features and price range, it stands to further disrupt the pro video market. Sony’s FS700 really stirred the pot when it was introduced as an $8,000 camera that will (at some undetermined point in the future) shoot 4K footage and capture high frame rate footage (something it will actually do now) in full 1080p HD.
Of course, performance, reliability and support are key components that the Axiom will need in order to become a real player in the market.
Head over to No Film School for a more detailed analysis of what this camera could mean.
The above video comes from a recent webinar that Tiffen put on with Richard Harrington to show off Tiffen Dfx 3. In the video, Harrington covers some color grading techniques in several different editors that use the Dfx 3 plugin and really shows off the capabilities of this solid plugin.
The more I use this plugin, the more I like it. It’s so very comprehensive and powerful for video, and quick for getting stylized looks from Lightroom on the photo side as well.
SMAPP put together the above video that highlights 5 Canon lenses that are great for shooting video on Canon HDSLRs. While I haven’t used all of these, I found their insight to be particularly compelling for uses of the 14mm and 135mm. And, while I use the 24-105mm regularly, I hadn’t considered the 135mm + 1.4x extender as an alternative to the 70-200mm f/2.8 lens in my kit.
The full list of “killer” lenses is as follows.
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM
[via FStoppers]
HDSLR and cinema accessory provider Switronix sent out a little tease in its newsletter today about the Blackmagic Cinema Camera that’s shipping later this month.
Are you guys as excited as we are about this beautiful, little guy?
Check in this month to see the cool accessories we have developed for the Black Magic Camera. -Switronix Newsletter
Switronix has been known for its HDSLR power accessories that so effectively pair cameras like the 5D Mark II with external battery packs, as well as on-camera lighting gear. Given the uncertainty thus far about the Blackmagic Cinema Camera’s internal battery and lack of external power options, I’d say that an external power solution from Switronix is a good bet.
Stay tuned for the official announcement of whatever is coming from Switronix…
The Trapezist Portable Mini Jibis a new, lightweight and budget-friendly jib from Light Craft Workshop.
The telescoping jib arm allows the package to collapse down to roughly two feet and pack away in an included bag. It looks to set up quickly without tools and offers over a 4-foot reach in addition to the tripod height.
The jib has four 1/4″ screw threads and a magic arm that allows user to attach different kind of accessories for access on the user end, such as an external monitor, USB follow focus, audio recorder and other accessories.
The jib retails at $339; however, there is a special launch price $299. More details on Light Craft Workshop’s website.
Check out the quick overview video below. [Read more…]
This video from Imaging Resource shows off some of the new features on the Rebel T4i. The smooth video autofocus you see at the end of the video comes courtesy of the new STM lenses. Right now, there are only 2 STM lenses available – the EF 40mm f/2.8 STM and the EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, both of which were announced alongside the T4i.
The Canon 7D will be getting a new firmware upgrade soon according to news posted on the CPN website and nabbed by Canon Rumors before it was removed.
There are lots of improvements on the still image capture side, including bumping the max RAW burst to 26 images (up from 15 consecutive images). That’s a pretty big bump in write speed, so I’m curious to know what Canon’s doing with the 7D since it received an upgrade for UDMA Mode 7 CF card support last year.
One biggie for all the HDSLR shooters out there is the addition of manual audio level controls. It seems a little late in the 7D’s game to add this and all the other goodies to the camera, given that it is almost 3 years old (it was announced on September 1, 2009). So maybe Canon is pushing for a final surge in 7D sales before the camera is replaced, or maybe Canon is looking to extend the life of the camera well beyond the typical 3-year mark for pro-level cameras?
Other additions include: [Read more…]