4K: the next big thing

These weeks, while in the post-production process, was thinking again what has been in my mind for some time now: buying another higher-end camera.

As people can see, I used the amazing Panasonic HVX-200 together with the superb Letus Extreme to give it the best 35mm depth-of-field on the market. I bought them both back in 2008. I take great pride in having made the best selections when researching for a good film/video camera. Back in the late 90's it was the awesome Canon XL-1 and its subsequent revisions. I saw potential in a camera that had interchangeable lens capability and it opened a whole new door to me production and visual wise. It was still SD but, hey...it was the 90's. Early 2000s and I remember HD started to show its head. It was something we all filmmakers pointed at for superior quality. I don't remember what HD camera came out first, just that it was around 2002 that I read in an article. It used one CCD or something as it stated. I think it was JVC or Sharp and used the newly developed HDV compression format for use with DV tapes already used massively by all of us back then. In my case, I eye-balled it extensively but wasn't liking much the compression ratio HDV used. We all who did a lot of post and know how much a pain in the butt it was with the DV codec (difficult chroma-keying, blocky edges, moire patterns and pixelated squares when doing extreme color-correction), having further compression than DV and reading about the lack of intraframe qualities.....it was simply a huge thing to avoid for me. Thank God I never jumped the HDV wagon and the many disappointed users was my best proof. I simply waited for the best camera and compression scheme yet to come. Enter the HVX-200.

It came out in 2005 and bought it in 2008 when the A upgrade was released. Its ability to shoot many frame rates as a film camera and the DVCPROHD codec at 100 Mbps (4 times the DV data rate) simply was a no-brainer for me. I was bought. In addition, it used intra-frame compression so no artifacts in fast motion and beautiful chroma-key was finally possible, a big thing for me because of its 4:2:2 chroma sampling. More information to work in post without worries.

Now, after 6 years of filming videoclips, a commercial, TV pilots, some short films and the feature Gloria del Pacifico, pushing the camera to the limit with all its battle scenes and extreme weather conditions, I'm finally ready to move on to the next level and what is now a necessity to be up to today's standards: 4K cinematography.

Been checking around the new options lately and a few months back I was about to go for the HD capable DSLR camera, the Canon 5Dm-III because of its unbelievable low-light sensitivity, a necessity I do have when shooting outdoors in the desert at night or in a dark 19th century town street. Wasn't too crazy about its small size (although, the HVX200 together with the Letus Extreme and all accessories makes all weigh around 25 lbs.) and the DSLR would be lighter. But still, not much sound control, etc. Then, I learned about the BlackMagic 4K Prodcution Camera. Was checking it out a couple months ago and compared to other stuff around, was beggining to like it because of the brand (BlackMagic DOES make awesome equipment, with super quality at unbeatable prices. Being the camera at nearly 3 grand, it was a sure contender. The specs were amazing. Only drawback was the reviews about it's lack of low-light sensitivity (a true sad thing for me) and that it was an energy hog....lasting only a few hours and having an internal battery. Id have to stop filming I guess, and charge it in order to be able to keep shooting. I just couldn't picture myself in the middle of the desert, filming, running out of time as the sun slowly disappeared in the horizon and me.....still charging the darn thing. No. Simply no.

Now, at this years NAB, the new BlackMagic 4K URSA is unleashed. I see that it not only has ALL the specs of a true film/video camera like XLR connectors, but also a huge 10-inch monitor and 2 other side screens also (handy for camera assistants and crew members) and a true feel of a big pro camera. Battery has more life and also can use Anton Bauer ones. Many models were released and the one with the EF mount at $5,995 is simply awesome and available by July this year. The Ursa records in 12-bit lossless compressed Cinema DNG raw and ProRes formats, and dual CFast 2.0 card recorders are built in. Having also a global shutter image sensor is such a plus (no more skew or jello-effect) and a true winner fact: it can be upgraded by the user if a new and improved sensor design becomes available in the future and that it would be a breeze to change it yourself. I guess I read somewhere that you would only need an Allen wrench.

I wonder if the sensor is the same as the prior 4K Production Camera. It would be a sad thing to be so....the low-light sensitivity is truly a downside for me as renting lights or even powering them up in the middle of the desert for the next film's battle scenes would be such an expensive task.

Let's see what the future holds. This camera seems to be the winner for me so far. I'm really not excited about the RED (too expensive, too many accessories that skyrocket the price tag well above 30K) so let's see what are the reviews for it when its finally released.

4K...... 4K....

Blackmagic Design launched two new camera lines at NAB this week—the Blackmagic Studio Camera with an MFT lens mount and a 10-inch viewfinder on the back, facing the operator, which is available in HD ($1,995) and 4K ($2,995) versions, and the 4K Blackmagic Ursa, which features a similarly distinctive 10-inch fold-out monitor as well as a second, five-inch screen for scopes, settings, and status views. The Ursa is slated to ship in EF- ($5,995) and PL-mount ($6,495) versions in June or July, and in a B4 (price TBD) lens-mount version later this year.
Blackmagic CEO Grant Petty said the design of the Ursa was inspired by seeing the way many owners tricked out their Blackmagic Cinema Cameras with rails and accesories that gave it a larger form factor that made more sense for production crews. "This camera is the center of a multi-person workflow," he said, with different "zones" for the DP, for the assistant, and for audio. The new design also allows efficient cooling to enable higher frame rates (up to 60p in HD and Ultra HD).

The Ursa records in 12-bit lossless compressed Cinema DNG raw and ProRes formats, and dual CFast 2.0 card recorders are built in. It also has a global shutter image sensor that can be upgraded by the user if a new and improved sensor design becomes available. We were told by Blackmagic's Bob Caniglia that all that is required is an Allen wrench.

Blackmagic is so confident this design is a winner that the Ursa will be available in a unique "HDMI" configuration ($4,495) with no sensor at all. The lens mount is replaced by a cheese plate and a HDMI input, allowing another camera (a DSLR, for example) to be wired into the URSA and take advantage of the body design.
- See more at: http://www.studiodaily.com/2014/04/blackmagic-announces-new-4k-ursa-studio-cameras/#sthash.Gt1XenyK.dpuf

Blackmagic Design launched two new camera lines at NAB this week—the Blackmagic Studio Camera with an MFT lens mount and a 10-inch viewfinder on the back, facing the operator, which is available in HD ($1,995) and 4K ($2,995) versions, and the 4K Blackmagic Ursa, which features a similarly distinctive 10-inch fold-out monitor as well as a second, five-inch screen for scopes, settings, and status views. The Ursa is slated to ship in EF- ($5,995) and PL-mount ($6,495) versions in June or July, and in a B4 (price TBD) lens-mount version later this year.
Blackmagic CEO Grant Petty said the design of the Ursa was inspired by seeing the way many owners tricked out their Blackmagic Cinema Cameras with rails and accesories that gave it a larger form factor that made more sense for production crews. "This camera is the center of a multi-person workflow," he said, with different "zones" for the DP, for the assistant, and for audio. The new design also allows efficient cooling to enable higher frame rates (up to 60p in HD and Ultra HD).

The Ursa records in 12-bit lossless compressed Cinema DNG raw and ProRes formats, and dual CFast 2.0 card recorders are built in. It also has a global shutter image sensor that can be upgraded by the user if a new and improved sensor design becomes available. We were told by Blackmagic's Bob Caniglia that all that is required is an Allen wrench.

Blackmagic is so confident this design is a winner that the Ursa will be available in a unique "HDMI" configuration ($4,495) with no sensor at all. The lens mount is replaced by a cheese plate and a HDMI input, allowing another camera (a DSLR, for example) to be wired into the URSA and take advantage of the body design.

The Studio Camera is built in a magnesium alloy body with a four-hour battery, mic connections with phantom power, and bidirectional optical fiber and SDI connections for connecting to a live production switcher. The HD version is shipping now and the 4K version is scheduled for June delivery.

- See more at: http://www.studiodaily.com/2014/04/blackmagic-announces-new-4k-ursa-studio-cameras/#sthash.Gt1XenyK.dpuf

Blackmagic Design launched two new camera lines at NAB this week—the Blackmagic Studio Camera with an MFT lens mount and a 10-inch viewfinder on the back, facing the operator, which is available in HD ($1,995) and 4K ($2,995) versions, and the 4K Blackmagic Ursa, which features a similarly distinctive 10-inch fold-out monitor as well as a second, five-inch screen for scopes, settings, and status views. The Ursa is slated to ship in EF- ($5,995) and PL-mount ($6,495) versions in June or July, and in a B4 (price TBD) lens-mount version later this year.
Blackmagic CEO Grant Petty said the design of the Ursa was inspired by seeing the way many owners tricked out their Blackmagic Cinema Cameras with rails and accesories that gave it a larger form factor that made more sense for production crews. "This camera is the center of a multi-person workflow," he said, with different "zones" for the DP, for the assistant, and for audio. The new design also allows efficient cooling to enable higher frame rates (up to 60p in HD and Ultra HD).

The Ursa records in 12-bit lossless compressed Cinema DNG raw and ProRes formats, and dual CFast 2.0 card recorders are built in. It also has a global shutter image sensor that can be upgraded by the user if a new and improved sensor design becomes available. We were told by Blackmagic's Bob Caniglia that all that is required is an Allen wrench.

Blackmagic is so confident this design is a winner that the Ursa will be available in a unique "HDMI" configuration ($4,495) with no sensor at all. The lens mount is replaced by a cheese plate and a HDMI input, allowing another camera (a DSLR, for example) to be wired into the URSA and take advantage of the body design.

The Studio Camera is built in a magnesium alloy body with a four-hour battery, mic connections with phantom power, and bidirectional optical fiber and SDI connections for connecting to a live production switcher. The HD version is shipping now and the 4K version is scheduled for June delivery.

- See more at: http://www.studiodaily.com/2014/04/blackmagic-announces-new-4k-ursa-studio-cameras/#sthash.Gt1XenyK.dpuf

Streets of Omaha

This was done basically as a spoof ala The Sopranos series intro with additional footage for "seasoning".

My friend, actor Jerry Murray, drove with me around some of the streets of downtown Omaha that resemble in a bit that New Jersey look, so to speak. Shot some city landmarks along the way.

Done in HD 720p at 24fps using the HVX200 with the Letus Extreme and Canon / Nikon 35mm f/2.8 zoom lenses and primes.
Timed in After Effects and film-looked with our Proceso Cinematico Digital-PCD.

Utopía - finished and ready

At last...finally the new video complete.
Just done editing and it's up and ready to show!

Filming the Alter Ego video

So finally....the Utopía videoclip was shot on monday.
The day was packed with details that made it a frenzy one in production anecdotes.

Lighting took quite a while as the place was big and the main power box was a bit far from the shooting sets. We had a late start and had to push my singing shots to the end of the day and overrun our schedule ending time by three and a half hours. We wrapped for the day early morning the next day. Besides of that, it was good to see all the band together after years of being apart.

Establishing shots were done in 720p at 24fps using a Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM, medium and tight tele shots were done with the Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di LD and Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8D ED AF zoom lenses all using the Letus Extreme.

The HVX200 delivered beautiful colors and details but had to lower the V-detail a bit to get rid of the "video" sharpness and get closer to film edge-quality.

Tried far to hue the colors in-camera as not to overload post-production and rendering times. So far, on today's tests, it's giving me five hours per minute of video.
The Jib-arm bringed those floating shots I so love and raising up to 12 feet, it sure brought production value to the shots.
As always, my good old friend Aguinaga was with me on the lights and it was a good thing to work once again together after so many years and like on every job, he is quite ready for light directions I might have. Most of my latter work was done with him under and I must say he is not only a great professional but a great friend.

Here are some pics of the shooting.
The second day of shooting will be on the weekend.

Here below is a first color grading test of random clips from the video.

Letus Extreme 35mm adapter

So now, this thing is quite heavy!

Weighing like a medium size rock, Hyen from Letus sure made this thing quite solid and professional: Sharp look, black matte finish, battery compartment inside with a magnet door (very clever), vibrating Ground Glass, rotating interchangeable lens mount (for Canon, Nikon, Minolta, Olympus and even Zeiss PL mounts for 35mm lens), allen screws for tightening parts and included is an achromat for your specific camera, so I ordered the HVX200 Optimization Kit.

The HVX200 is known for sometimes not having a truly dead-center CCD chip so in some units, the ground glass screen will not be totally centered when attached to the camera. Mine has that small issue as I noticed, so I called Hyen at Letus Corp. He was very helpful in telling me the options (which included sending the camera back to Panasonic for fixing that which of course I declined....to much time), so I came back with my own solution: rotating the adapter 180* so it would be on the upper side (the Letus has this L-shaped kinda form) and then....the focusing screen was sharp center and framed! But that also arouse other problems: the adapter was now a bit high for the bracket support that holds the Letus in place with the rods, so I had to make my own in a metal workshop. Aluminum of course not to put more weigh on the already heavy kit. I had it the next day and problem solved!

Now, once the adapter was attached to the camera, the next step is to achieve sharp focus on the ground glass inside the Letus. This is achieved by zooming out all the way to the "wide" position (Z00 in the HVX200). What we get to see is the focusing screen way far inside a "dark room" and to the sides we can notice the prism system mirrors. Then zoom in more until we fill up all the viewfinder screen (and a little bit more to avoid vignetting depending on the lens used). We point at something bright and we focus until we get to see the grain in the ground glass. When that is achieved it's a good idea to write down the focus number and never touch the focusing ring again. Mine is at focus 0.95 and the screen is filled up by Z22.7 but it could differ a bit on some other camera units. You can see that sharp focus is achieved when you get to see the grain in the ground glass. In the picture to the left you can see the grain in the ground glass. The overexposed white spot top right is a bright lamp that I turned down with the dimmer after the pic. The Letus needs to be off by the way. Only turn it on when fully focused to make the grain go away but leave it off for now. Now attach the lens. For this test I used a two lenses: the Canon AF 22-55 f/4.0 and the Canon EF 35mm f/2.0 Prime lens. I chose those two different lens because of the difference in speed and see how the Letus handled range of apertures. Now, the focus chart helps to detect unevenness in sharpness or any fall-off on the sides. So far, so good. I don't see any side blurriness too much and it seems fine .

IndiSystem and cam rails

I had the good fortune of using a couple of rail and follow focus systems around and most of them have been on the pro range as the Chrosziel and others for cinema and big Zeiss lenses. When shooting Super 16mm my sweet film cam of choice was the silent Arri 16 BL. I used it with two videos I did with some clients years ago and also with my band when shooting the "Sirenia" and "What's the Fire" videos. You can click here
to watch the behind the scenes.

Usually, in situation that required more control, a follow focus came in handy but the need for a separate focus assistant was necessary, specially for hand-held camera moves. But to do be doing that around is quite a hassle itself so not only the follow focus needs to be good or decent but also the shoulder support for it to be comfortable.

Like I said, there are many rails and FF around but for the rest of us, a good and not-so-expensive one is for the call. I researched a bit and stumbled on the Indisystem company. Not only was I pleased with the price which compared to many around is a bit less but also the tech support si quite friendly. Tim Ovel runs the show there and he is a person you can call a nice "human being" or a friend. He is a very welcoming easy going guy who always goes out of his way to help customers and offer a helping hand. Not to complain about other companies but I had my share of odd moments with tech support, specially with big software companies who decided since some time ago to hire (or maybe outsource) it's client-dealing department with Hindu's. India has not only populated the motel or hotel business in the US but also many companies consider a cheaper option to use Indian people for those affairs. Me, your regular average-english-speaking-or-understanding person has sometimes a bit of trouble understanding some fast words of any american joe around, so, if you add an Indian person talking english with a heavy "bollywood" accent then....Houston, we have a problem! I have nothing against other nationalities (I'm not an american myself), but there's something going on there that needs some attention I think...but thats another topic that doesn't belong here.

Back to Tim Ovel. His IndiRail system is quite appealing and serves a lot of indie filmmakers with a budget and what made me happy with the purchase was not only the options of bettering the configurations but his helpfulness...things you really don't get around here lately. Whats the use of purchasing an expensive piece of equipment that when you find is not getting along with your camera accessories nobody is REALLY there to assist you?

Once it was all set and coupled with the Letus, the IndiMatte and the HVX200 this was the result: now this thing is all dressed up like the big boys and ready to dance.

The waiting is over....the HVX200 is here.

The new HVX200 has now arrived. After doing research thoroughly for months which HD cam to purchase, the Panasonic one won by far my votes.

The JVC ProHD was a close contender together with the Canon XL-H1 (despite its steep price). In fact this last one was a strong choice for me in the beggining as I have not only owned but worked for the past eight years with the XL-1 and it's following models. The interchangeable lenses is definetly a plus for film work.

The JVC GY-HD110E has that same feature, but both latter models are just HDV which to my taste (and many) has proven not quite good to handle in post (the long GOP makes it diffuclt to edit)....so that left me with HV200.

But the HVX200 didnt just win because of price. It makes a filmmaker reluctant to choose a camera with no interchangeable lens but its has other premium features that is the non-plus-ultra of any person coming from a film background: more than a dozen frame rates, four video formats (SD and HD), 24p, 30p, 1080i/p, the pristine DVCPRO-HD codec (not the faulty HDV one) solid-state P2 memory card recording option and of course... being the big brother of the popular DVX100 it comes loaded with those beautiful gamma curves that simulates film latitude very well as it's big brother: the VARICAM.

It will be a true complement to our Cinematic Digital Process, saving us one step in post of simulating 24fps.

I was happy to notice that in the box came the excellent HVX BOOK written by the well-known Barry Green. We happened to email back and forth about some workflow topics with this cam and also ordered his popular HVX Bootcamp DVD which explains in detail what the book shows also.

Im happy with this investment.

After buying the XL-1 years back I felt the same and was happy to see that that cam was so good, all manufacturers began making accesories for it....now, the same is happening with this little-big cam.

The HVX200 is here to make history.