Equipment Reviews

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fuji-3d-w3-digital-camera

Talking about new stuff and pre-orders, looks like Fuji is not giving up on their Real 3D line of digital cameras. The (soon to be available) new W3 will be offering 720HD video shot with nicely spaced dual lenses for that Sterescopic setup. Looks like a fun camera, and would be quite interesting to see the 3D effect when playing back on a big screen.

youtube-3d-support

YouTube does support 3D playback in a variety of different ways including the cross-eyed method if you don't have a pair of Blue and Red Captain EO glasses. This new HD video model has been redesigned and still photos will also have an option for fancy 3D Prints. I'm on the look out for any videos that will be posted onto YouTube or Vimeo and i'm curious to see if we'll be able to enjoy it on the Internet with those funky glasses.

If you're wondering if this is already possible with DSLR's, I posted an article a while back about some different 3D options for DSLR's found here.

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craigslist-boot-camp

An image of a Z96 LED light on a Glidecam HD4000 + Steadicam Vest + Rode VideoMic + Canon 5D Mark II + Battery Grip + Zoom H4n shows up in the wild. Well it wasn't really that wild. Somehow an image of just a small part of my rig showed up on the BayCitizen.org website, as I was part of the video team covering the Craigslist Foundation Boot Camp event over at UC Berkely. I was the only one roaming with any type of Steadicam, let alone a Steadicam Vest and sure did get lots of attention and questions about the rig. It's smooth to fly, gets good audio from the Rode VideoMic shotgun + Zoom h4n (on the lower sled - not seen), and when cruising indoors I have the ability to switch on some extra LED lighting. It's a versatile setup that works for me, and I use this same setup consistently for many types of event coverage. It's change a little bit, but you can see more of the Steadicam + Glidecam rig I've assembled in this article.

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lens-comparisons-canon-sigma-tamron

About 2 months ago JJ @ OrangeWeddingFilms.com posted a video stating he was going to put together a test between the Canon 24-70mm F/2.8, Sigma 24-70mm F/2.8, and the Tamron 28-75mm F/2.8 in Video use. Looks like he's posted a few first samples just yesterday and in some cases you do see difference in Contrast, color, and sharpness. I personally like the Canon 24-70mm F/2.8, but if you're happy with the results, you can save a bit of money on the other non Canon brands. Here's the break down on lenses, prices, and what you're comparing.

First up Canon 24-70mm F/2.8 Wide Telephoto priced at approx $1349.00
canon-24-70mm
click image to find at bhphotovideo.com

Second Lens is the Sigma 24-70mm F/2.8 Macro priced at approx $569.00
sigma-24-70mm
click image to find at bhphotovideo.com

Third Lens in the test is the Tamron Zoom Wide Angle-Telephoto AF 28-75mm f/2.8 priced at $499.00
tamron-28-75mm
click image to find at bhphotovideo.com

To follow up on his first review against these lenses, i've owned them all at one point. I still have the Canon 24-70mm F/2.8. Sigma makes some really great lenses, I still rock my Sigma 20mm all the time. I started with the Sigma 24-70mm F/2.8 before my Canon L, using it for photography. Compared to the Canon it was slower on auto focus, more noise when focusing, and problems with communication when using Infrared metering from my Speedlite. This is when I upgraded to the Canon 24-70mm F/2.8 L. The Sigma 24-70mm F/2.8 of course is half the price of the Canon 24-70mm, so if you're looking for a strictly Video lens with this range, all these quirks might not be a problem for you. If you're a hybrid shooter of both Photo and Video, you'll get better performance and image quality from the Canon.

I'm not going to get deep into the Tamron lens, I love Tamron lenses like my 18-270mm as my travel lens choice, but if you're going to be dealing with the weather, this is where the Canon 24-70mm L lens proves it's worth. Many of the cheaper lenses provide decent image quality at an affordable price, but lack the weather sealing, quiet motor, and fast autofocus. I had problems with an earlier lens (I won't mention any brands) shooting in light fog which crept into my lens and pretty much ruined it with moisture from the inside. Again, if you're just doing strictly video and not worried about auto focus noise & weather, you'll find great deals in the Sigma and Tamron brands, and also Tokina which isn't part of this test because they don't have a lens available in this range.

Update: Just confirmed with JJ that his test was using the older Sigma 24-70mm F/2.8. There is another more silent and higher end 24-70mm F/2.8 HSM priced at about $899.00 from Sigma that has not been tested. This is said to be a close rival to the Canon 24-70mm F/2.8.
sigma-24-70-hsm
click image to find at bhphotovideo.com

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igus-carrier-diy-slider
Now available at Amazon.com - click image

Igus is the manufacturer of the popular Drylin W Linear Guide rail. Linear guide rails are seen in robotics and manufacturing type machines and associated with lube and grease, not good for cameras. This design uses 'Dry Bearings' so it was natural that this rail exploded onto the DSLR Video scene as one of the most widely used rails for DIY camera sliders AND by actual retailers of Camera sliders. From what many are saying, the early adopters for this rail call this the 'ZaZa Slider' and you'll find a group on Vimeo from people making it from Igus rails.

You can see this same basic rail design in Glidetrack, Kessler, and others. When I first created my DIY Camera slider, I had to call IGUS in Ireland, figure out the exact parts I needed, and have it shipped from overseas. Looks like so many camera manufacturers have been using their rail, Igus is now hip to DSLR video, and they are now posting an item at Amazon.com specifically as a 'Camera slider'. The nice thing in this image is the new side clamp on the carrier designed to lock the carrier in place. I was using old hand clamps to keep mine from shifting as I was transporting.

You can check out my DIY Slider in this video to see what this whole thing looks like put together. There was a bit of drilling needed to get the rail onto the tripod, and a bit of drilling to get the Fluid head onto the Igus Carrier, but very easy material to work with. Take my advice and don't get 4 feet of rail. It's nice and fun, but soooo long it's akward to carry it around. You'll be better off with 2 feet, 3 feet MAX. Well thanks to Igus, it looks like they are making things a bit more streamlined for us DIY'ers interested in building our own camera slider with a straight purchase to the complete set. Below is a link to the most popular one they are saying, but here's a link to More Igus Camera Slider Rails.

Product Description
Modular DryLin® W linear guides ensure a smooth, lubrication-free gliding motion for camera slider systems. Used by manufacturers of high-quality, complete systems, as well as individual DIY video enthusiasts seeking individual components for camera dollies and camera slider assemblies.

Our most popular camera slider size. Includes 1,000mm-long guide rail (39.4") with 9 holes evenly spaced and a 100mm-long carriage plate. Carriage plate features 4 low-friction plastic bearings for smooth and quiet operation, as well as extra bolts to prevent misalignment.

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photo 1photo 2
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Oh yeah, i'm a Canon guy through and through, but I got a thing for toys. Just received the Nikon Telephoto Zoom Lens 24-70mm Stainless Steel mug and my friends are already drooling over it. It's quite nice, and gives me an idea for what some of these less fortunate Nikon shooting friends of mine would receive for Christmas or Birthdays. As far as shipping goes for this product, HOLY COW that was fast. I'm normally waiting weeks and weeks to get stuff like this in, but this one came in very quickly. Big ups to this Seller of Souvenir Canon and Nikon mugs, definitely a store to order from. I'll get home and take some nice up close macro product shots to share tonight.

nikon-coffee-mug-telephoto
lens-mug-carrying-bag
click image

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canon-nikon-sony-eyecup-upgrades
click image

Opening up a new article here, hopefully we'll get some comments in that will provide for anyone seeking information on upgrading to these DSLR Eyecups. This blog has really expanded to include a 'Woot' & 'Yahoo Answers' type model, so i'm trying to include different posts and keep things interesting. I'm seeing more Photographers upgrading their standard Eyecups to these DSLR Eyecup Upgrades. It does look very comfortable for landscape shots, I personally don't use these and wonder how comfortable they would be flipping into Portrait mode. There's also magnified versions available that supposedly give you a better view through the glass viewfinder. Starting at only $2.99 + Free shipping, I guess I can always order and see for myself.

Has anyone been using these items?
How comfortable are they?
Which version of this do you have?

There's also some information circling about these Magnified DSLR Eyepiece / Eyecups that take a note from LCD Viewfinders and magnify the image to give you a better field of view and possibly sharper focus. The most popular brand name coming around is Tenpa.

tenpa-eyecup
tenpa-eyecup-eyepiece
click image

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double-strap-q-strap
rapid-double-strap
handstrap-double-camera-strap

After this weekend, i'm thinking of adding a few items to speed up my dynamic workflow. I go from handheld, to monopod, to tripod, to Steadicam, to slider, to dolly, etc. Things have to be fast and things have to work together. I need a strap to carry two cameras, I need this to disconnect if I move to handheld, and I need this to adapt to the different rigs very quickly. Here's some accessories of what i'm dreaming up now that might work best for my type of shooting.

Similar form to the Black Rapid Double Camera strap, but with alot more function, here's the Q-Strap several people have been telling me about after I posted about a BlackRapid clone. Looks like those BlackRapid clones have dissappeared, but this Q-Strap (not R-Strap) is readily avaiable and seems to have improved on the mounting design. Although i'm a big fan of the solid mounting clip of the BlackRapids, one of the shortcomings is that you can't quickly get your camera back to Tripod, or if you want to dismount and go handheld there's no option for that Camera Hand Strap. Here's where the Q-strap is forward thinking. Using a different mounting plate, it has an attachment area to keep a Camera Hand Strap on at all times. Secondly, it still maintains a standard Tripod mount thread, would be perfect for a Manfrotto 394 Quick Release Plate to stay on for some fast Tripod Mount options. So i'm thinking about going this route and dumping off my OG BlackRapid strap with this new Q-Strap configuration.

First the Q-Strap:
double-strap-q-strap

Second the Camera Hand Strap:
camera-hand-strap

Third the Manfrotto 394 Quick Release Plate:
manfrotto-394-quick-release

In my head this combination is all working out great, giving me great flexibility with my gear moving from harness strap, to handheld strap, to tripod mount, steadicam mount very very quickly without having to screw/unscrew anything - just clip clip clip. As suggested by one of the readers, by using the Manfrotto 394 quick release plate on top of my 717AH should also make things quick for me while saving big bucks on a decent fluid head.

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transcend-iphone-mount (4)transcend-iphone-mount (3)

Referencing my post here: http://cheesycam.com/transcend-32gb-400x-compact-flash-cards-on-order/

Well these cards are in, and i'll be working them this weekend. Hopefully everything goes off without a hitch, but thanks to all the comments i'm pretty confident it will work out for me. I'm hoping they definitely are as fast as they say they are, because it's such a great price I just had to give it a try and grabbed 4 pieces + next day shipping for this busy weekend. One thing a friend mentioned was that he noticed the video starts much faster with these cards once the button is pressed, over the slower cards which sometimes takes a quick second before the Red Light starts going. Not sure, but i'll find out and will probably post up more information on these 400x bad boys after the weekend on my results.

transcend-32GB-400x
find-price-button Transcend 400x 32GB Compact Flash Media

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transcend-iphone-mount (2)

This just came in today from https://iphone-tripodholder.com.

iphone-tripod-holder

Yes, you might think this is silly (unless you're Zacuto), but I have some small (just for fun) projects that will be shot on the iPhone and needed a very lightweight, fast, slim mount to get the iPhone onto a Tripod - Not to mention cheap too. Now before you start commenting on those DIY mods using car mount with flexible necks or cell phone holders, keep in mind you'd still have to modify a 1/4 x 20 threaded insert and you won't get quite the slim profile as this item. I've also been poking around eBay and those car mounts really aren't that cheap. I'm rocking the iPhone 3Gs, but this little mount also works on the new iPhone 4 (for you lucky devils). There's a slot for the camera lens if you decide to use it in reverse for some reason. (Images Below)

Slides in, and slides out, holds very well via rubber inserts in the channel. The provided threaded insert will work nicely with Barska Grip + Mini Giottos Ball head for some landscape action. I'm also planning on making a Gimbal type steadicam for iPhone and this mount will be a big help. I'll be toying with this over the weekend, see what I come up with. The iPhone-Tripod Holder can be found here at https://iphone-tripodholder.com

iPhone-Tripod Holder Shown with iPhone 4
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