16Jan DSLR resolution rant
More then once i’ve been asked how I feel about the 1080p resolution of the Canon 5d mark III. This is often followed up with complaints from the questioner about DSLR video not being as crisp as “X brand” of camera and usually devolves into rambling about using DSLR cameras for video in general.
While I agree that there are downfalls to using DSLR’s for video, image resolution is usually pretty low on my list of complaints. Thinking back to how many people over the past 4 or so years have gushed about how great the footage from a 5d mark II looked, it’s ironic that these same people now complain about the 5d mark III’s better resolution and more flexible codec. The Canon 5d mark III and the rest of the DSLR lineup for that mater, all provide excellent video quality for the price and as long as you pay attention to the draw backs, you’ll end up with great results.
If you’ve been shooting for awhile, think back to the not to distant past (2007) when the Canon HV20 was released, people raved about how great the 1440×1080 footage was from its 1/2.7-inch CMOS sensor. The camera by itself was almost $1200, then you’d spend another $400 or more on a DOF adapter so you could attach old Nikon glass. After that you had to buy a special mount that allowed you to film with the camera upside down so that you didn’t have to flip all of your footage in post. If that wasn’t enough, you still had to pay a small fortune for mini DV tapes and the lenses themselves. By the time you were done with just video equipment you were looking at around $2500 minimum and because of the DOF adapter you also had to make significant invest in lighting.
Today, for as little as $400 you can buy a Canon t2i body, add magic lantern, toss in a few lenses, and you get 10 times better footage for under $1000. You’ll have better low light performance, more lenses to choose from, and better resolution then you could have ever hoped for out of the HV20. Then take a look at something like the Zacuto Camera shoot out from 2010 that compares the Canon 7d and 5d mark II to popular film stock. It’s easy to see that even the 7d, which shares the same sensor as the t2i, provides comparable performance at a fraction of the cost of developing just the film stock.
Are there good reasons to choose something besides a DSLR for your shooting needs? Sure, but a lot of them require more money as well as a larger investments in ancillary equipment, the Red one mx and Black Magic camera
come to mind. If you are getting paid for your work and need to deliver in a 2k or 4k format it might be well worth the investment. On the other hand, if you’re on a tight budget, a DSLR will give you perfectly good footage for the internet, television (depending on the delivery standard), and even the big screen if things go well.
If you have a large budget, rent the best gear and enjoy the benefits of a full crew. If you are working with a limited budget and using your own equipment, a DSLR does a great job, provides plenty of resolution, and leaves you with some cash left over to focus on audio equipment and lighting.
January 16th, 2013 at 11:01 pm
Complaining about resolution on dSLRs is kinda weird… as they are mostly very sharp. On high end dSLRs you have sharper images, more focus control and a good dynamic range to play with.
I think reasonable complaints will be about moiré and rolling shutter, but those are minor (and getting even less noticeable) as tech improves.
All in all, dSLRs are very versatille, specially for those who like to do both photos and videos.
The one thing that might be problematic, comparing pro camcorders with dSLRs, is stabilization.
dSLRs have this very scary huge ammount of professional, amateur and DIY sorts of stabilization systems that makes lots of people discard dSLRs as a practical option for video.
Getting a shoulder mounted pro camcorder can be more expensive, but it’s a far easier choice than choosing dSLR model, plus lenses, plus a stabilization system that works for most cases.
The ones that are mostly guaranteed are too expensive… Zacuto, Merlin, Kessler Crane, Steadycam etc. And then, the alternative is a wide range of options that are hard to evaluate.
This is why micro four thirds got my attention in the first place.
The only reason why Olympus OM-D E-M5 got my attention is that 6 axis stabilization thing.
It’s weird that some reviews only makes a small mention about it, but it’s one of those things I think camera manufacturers should invest heavily on.
January 17th, 2013 at 1:39 am
nailed it!
January 17th, 2013 at 5:11 am
Right on DJ! It is a hilarious world we live in. Wilfred is shot mainly on the 7D and some 5d2… not good enough for the Black Magic gang? Sometimes I think they forget that 28 Days Later was shot on a XL1 the Camera really doesn’t matter all that much if there is any talent involved!
January 17th, 2013 at 8:02 am
There will always be haters and pixel peeper types in every genre. I worked for 18 years in the A/V retail world, and no matter how expensive of a product you talk about, some DB would come along and talk about something better ( aka more $).
Who cares about what those guys say? I am sure some idiots somewhere are bashing dog whistle “A” because it isn’t as awesome as dog whistle “X”. SnapOn vs Craftsman. Chevy vs Ford. We have all dealt with stupid closed-minded fanatics who can’t see past their own noses. Forget em. Just keep making good content, and love what you do. Until paying clients refuse to use your services because you aren’t using something better, it just doesn’t matter.
Scott
January 17th, 2013 at 8:24 am
On one level I agree, on another I’m not with you.
I started out the DOF adapter route and then progressed to a T2i (550D), 60D, and at the moment a GH2 (hacked up super high bit rate etc.)
I’ve shot plenty on the Canons as well as others and liked the footage I got (and people seemed to enjoy what I shot – lookwise).
But Moving onto a camera with a greater ability to resolve fine detail with massive reduction in moire/aliasing has very much dissuaded me from using my current Canons for video unless absolutely needed. I still love them for stills and timelapse but really the world has moved on. Now they are still ok but you can do better, and for the same price!
A GH2 can be had for under £500 new, the BMCC if/when it ships in bulk doesn’t need that much investment in kit assuming most people are coming from a DSLR shooting background…
I could still do everything I do with the other cameras with a Canon, and the newer crop have made improvements but I wouldn’t put money in them for filming now as there are lots of alternatives and no doubt many more will be announced soon.
Canon has wilfully dragged its heels and crippled cameras to protect their high end cinema range, this whilst other companies are embracing and building on the work firmware hackers have done…. IMHO
January 17th, 2013 at 3:36 pm
I actually started out back in the XL1 and GL2 days when 3ccd cameras were all the rage, then made the move to DOF adapters before moving on to the 5dmkII and 7d. The point I was getting at is that a great tool doesn’t suddenly become a bad one simply because a better model is released. It only fails when it can’t accomplish the needs of a project or a client. At which point you can rent gear for the clients that need it or upgrade depending on the frequency of use.
As for the cost of the BMCC, when you add batteries ($300+ a peace), the price of SSD’s (about 30 minutes of 24p on a 256 GB SSD), and the massive amounts of storage space in post, the camera suddenly jumps up to $4000 or more. Then there is the painful raw DNG work flow, at least on a red project you have R3d files and a red rocket to take care of transcoding. I like what the BMCC is trying to do, but it wouldn’t be my first, second, or third choice as an owner operator.
Last, i’m in no way trying to defend Canon. I completely agree that they have purposely crippled their cameras and removed features in an effort to raise prices on their video lineup. The 1dX v.s. 1dC is a great example of Canon charging an extra $5k for 4k firmware and $16000 for the c300 is ridiculous when you have something the Sony FS100 for $4500. Add the new Metabones speed booster to the FS100 and even I’m a little tempted on that one.
January 17th, 2013 at 4:27 pm
I suppose I came to terms with storage and workflow when i started doing all my timelapse work raw ; ) it can get out of hand… but there is always the prores 422HQ option.
I would say that the BMCC has the most flexible powering setup I’ve seen in a camera being able to take anything from 12v-30v I can pickup a 7ah 12v battery for about £25 and that would power it for ages. Or get a big after market sony NPF and an ikan plate for about £40.
There are also a lot of 12v lithium ion batteries coming into the market to replace lead acid in race bikes or even drill batteries.
When BM ship a MFT version I figure I’ll have to spend about £500 to get a couple of ssd drives & maybe a battery. Also worth considering that if I went to a RED scarlet I would need to upgrade my JIB, slider, tripods etc. to take the weight. Certainly stays in the DSLR realm of kit.
I will be keeping my Canons, and I may even pickup a 6D or 5DmkIII but primarily for timelapse (gotta love that low light!).
January 17th, 2013 at 6:48 pm
I think the two 5d mark III I shoot on will meet 90% of my needs over the next 2 to 3 years. By that time I think 4k cameras will be in the $2000 price range and by then we’ll have 6tb drives (knock on wood). At that point, I’ll hopefully be able to keep all of my glass and move on to a new camera body. Until then, I can rent a red kit with canon adapter for about $1000 a week on the client when they want a 4k delivery format or have someone who wants “shot on red” attached to their project. Most seem to be very happy with the footage from the 5d mark III so far.
January 18th, 2013 at 3:28 am
True, mostly the new kit is for my own eyes/amusement ; )
January 18th, 2013 at 8:34 am
I agree…..the footage out the 5DMKIII holds its own especially with a little post sharpening added…..I can’t wait to hear the haters when Canon releases the Clean HDMI out firmware upgraded in April…..
January 18th, 2013 at 12:49 pm
Well, I feel DSLRs get an exception. It IS important to note that these are not video cameras, they are stills with video capabilities. The 1DX vs 1DC thing is akin to Adobe. There is elements, and the real thing. Are there better programs than Adobe? Sure, but plenty people still use them because they are comfortable with it. But I feel some people critisize something because it doesn’t look good on paper. People complain there is “only” 98% viewfinder accuracy. I do complain because I wear glasses, so it’s harder to see, but people that don’t I feel are criticizing just to criticize.
But if you are paying a lot of money for something, I do agree, it should have enough features to warrant the price. I rented a 5D MK III Tuesday, and I feel it’s defiantly better than a T2i (can’t say anything bout the MK II, never used it).
January 18th, 2013 at 1:30 pm
I think some of the issues with most dslrs that still seem relevant are the lack of dynamic range, ease of use in less than ideal shooting situations like events and the 4:2:0 color space. Also, a smaller sensor does come in handy sometimes when you want more depth of field without having to stop down so much and hike up ISO. Of course, I’ve never worked with the 5D MKIII which is supposed to have improved DR and the high ISO performance makes that less of an issue. I was thinking of picking up an XF100 to fill in those little run and gun spaces. Seems like a lot of people cut XF100 and dslr footage together pretty well.
January 20th, 2013 at 7:39 pm
The XA-10 and XF-100 both cut very well with DSLR footage. Both do pretty good all the way up to iso 1600, just remember that they both use CMOS sensors you’ll still have jello cam to deal with in fast motion areas.
January 21st, 2013 at 12:20 pm
Thank you for posting this, I’ve really wanted to rant too and this really seems to be more an annoyance lately. Suddenly everyone knows about DSLRs and suddenly they aren’t good enough. Yeah we all know the drawback, and we also know how to deal with them. I really find it funny when people that loved the 5D2 bash the 6D for not being good enough, they don’t realize the 6D is the same as the 5D2 with major video improvements.
Now I’m not one to frequently upgrade my gear (I was still rolling with XL1s and 20Ds until I dropped them for a 5D2 and 7D) but I do believe there is a bare minimum you “should” be using and I think DSLRs are just beginning to hit it; decent codecs, acceptable noise patterns, minor ‘artifact’ issues, 13 stop dynamic range and near 1000 line pairs for 1080p.
I am a big fan of rentals and been renting a 5D3 but it looks like Nikon may be doing a better job than Canon in my “bare minimum list” (that was hard for me to say, being a Canon fanboy for 10 years lol) so I’m thinking of dropping my 5D2 and 7D for a D600! (Wilfred did it…) Unless Canon does something awesome like that rumored $3000 7Dc with the C100 sensor or a $2000 Full Frame with APS-C crop mode 😀
January 21st, 2013 at 1:42 pm
I’ve played around with the D800 a little bit. From what i’ve seen the 5d mark III wins, but not sure how it would stack up against a D600 (never used one), i would guess that the 5d mark III wins yet again. A 7dc with c100 sensor would be a very tempting option.
January 22nd, 2013 at 8:51 pm
Yeah I agree, the D600 looks great on paper but until I actually have to depend on it for a job, I won’t know for sure either.
It NEEDS a manual aperture lens but it offers Full Frame and APS-C 1080p, Low Noise similar to the 6D, AF and Bursts similar to the t4i, resolution similar to the 5D3, Uncompressed HDMI out at 95% 1080p, low aliasing and 14 stops of dynamic range. I want to like it but it also has many drawbacks, such as Nikon F mount isn’t very adaptable, Nikkor G lenses are harder to use with it (for video), 24Mbps internal Codec, no “Hacks” for it, low 3rd party accessory support and Nikon’s funky button layout.
But there are some minor improvements over past Nikons; such as HDMI out with an SD card and 2 custom user settings on the mode dial (love those!) But I think my bottom line is that for about $3000 I could get a D600 with a Rokinon 24/1.5 and 85/1.5 which would also give me a 35/2.4ish and 135/2.4ish in APS-C mode. Not to mention the low light of the 6D, decent AF and Burst for sports, high resolution, high DR and a ProRes422 codec option. I honestly don’t think I need anymore then that but we’ll see…
I have to do a little more research too but I assume the sensor still line skips (I’m also still not sure if the 5D3 helps aliasing by; a. not like skipping, or b. just a stronger anti-alias filter or c. 22Mp downscales to 1080p better) so I don’t know how well the footage will hold up to sharpening but I hear it’s aliasing is lower than the D800.
March 12th, 2013 at 10:53 am
I also complain about the resolution – DSLR video footage is too sharp to my taste most of the time 😉
March 12th, 2013 at 10:57 am
I know people who exclusively use diffusion filters because they dislike the sharpness in closeups. Some faces look much better slightly soft as apposed to crisp and tack sharp.
April 17th, 2013 at 4:00 pm
Thanks for the Rant. I am a little tired of people in the biz bad mouthing DSLR’s. I shot 3 features in 2010 with Canon 5D Mark II’s.
All had limited theatrical release and are out on Netfix and Redbox. I say this because you have to take these cameras seriously in this context. No one sitting next to me in the local Showcase Cinema was thinking about what the movie were shot on…that’s just the point. If shooting on DSLR’s doesn’t get in the way of telling your story on a 62′ screen then when is it! Next month we will start shooting our next 3 features with Canon Mark III’s. Yes they can be a handful to shoot with if your comfort zone is standard cine setup. The analogy I have come to use is that it is like driving a formula 1 Race car, you really have to be on your game to use these cameras for shooting movies. But they make absolutely gorgeous images when done right. Now there is a world of equipment,and information to support these cameras that I would never have imagined only a few years ago.
So I will happily let those who look down their noses at my DSLR spend 5 or 10 times as much to work in 4K 4:4:4 heaven…I’ll be Kikkin it ..Shootin on the edge and makin moviesssss.