My first time out throwing the Sony A7s into Picture Profile 7 (PP7) SLOG which shoots crazy flat and has a minimum ISO of 3200. Keep in mind most people hesitate to use ISO 1600 on the Panasonic GH4 and here on the A7s SLOG your minimum ISO is 3200.
Outdoors with bright light pretty much everything will be washed out unless you can add an ND filter (I did not bring one), stop down the aperture, or increase your shutter speed. Indoors under very dim lighting it's pretty amazing. The tricky part though will be your post workflow which I think I failed pretty miserably at.
In the video above i'm just using what FCPX offers, but coloring the SLOG footage is not as straightforward as I thought. I'll have to find some better tools, and I hear many rely on plugins like FilmConvert. I'll have to keep experimenting and practicing.
As far as the Metbones Canon EF Mark IV adapter that I used to pair my Sigma 18-35mm (in crop mode) I had all types of issues. Maybe I need a firmware upgrade on the Metabones but the entire day was pretty frustrating. The recordings would stop every few seconds especially once focus peaking or zebras would kick in. Without being able to use Zebras or Focus Peaking (because of the adapter) I think I failed at getting decent focus on many of my shots. Until this adapter is a little more stable, i'm hesitant to use it on a project. I think I may just have to stick to Sony Lenses.
Metabones Canon EF Lens to Sony NEX Camera Lens Mount Adapter Mark IV
I can tell battery life is going to be an issue so i'll have to look into external power. The only reason I was able to get through the day is because the Metabones adapter kept failing and I had to continuously shut down the camera. So far the images from the camera seem great if I can just figure out a better workflow or tool for grading. I can't wait to try the 4K via HDMI out with an Atomos Shogun recorder, but the next time out i'll have to bring an ND filter and perhaps only use Sony Lenses.
Sony A7s Mirrorless Digital Camera
Lainol
Happy new year!!
Just a couple of pics of my new rig. I'm very exicted with the jump to a Sony A7s from a Canon 600D
https://cl.ly/image/2l1w2p3s070t
https://cl.ly/image/0e1v0x0K3Z0O
I'm waiting disponibility of the 28-135 f4, meanwhile I have the viltrox EF/EFs to NEX II adapter, it supports AF, IS and iris control. AF is slow, but for video doesn't matter, and it's only $100
Steve
Emm,
I returned my Metabones IV for a used Metabones III which I picked up for $200.... Autofocus is painfully slow on both and the III let's me change aperture, maintains IS, and autofocus (albeit slowly, but not much slower than the IV). When I initially bought the IV they told me it was "much faster." While I haven't done any scientific testing on the matter, I've found that it focuses maybe "a little faster" if at all....
I've not tried it with the 18-35mm although I have one so I guess I might as well. I have used it quite a bit on my Sigma 70-200mm f2.8. Works flawlessly each time. I'll try my 18-35mm out next week and let you know if I get any weird issues.
krys
thanks for your post! more a7s tests/tricks/info please!
Bob
Something that many people are missing about the A7S is that PP 7 uses S-Gamut.
It is literally impossible to convert S-Gamut to REC 709 using the usual color grading tools. You MUST us a LUT (such as in the FCPX log processing).
Lee Herbet
I'd love to see the process you used in FCPX.
I've been shooting in S-Log2 for a while and found it easier to just use the built in tools instead of using the LUT in FCPX.
I made a short tutorial about how I do it. Hope someone finds it helpful 🙂
https://www.capturingpassion.com/trial-error-1/2014/11/13/mikey-jaffa
Emm
Post author@manfesto - I was just going straight to the color board. I'll go back to the footage and try the built-in, thanks!
manfesto
Hi!
Were you using FCPX's built-in LOG processing for S-Log, or just going straight to the color board?
https://support.apple.com/kb/PH12685
filmer
Lol! you definitely did not fail miserably! very nice s-log test, truly wish they would make the 18-35 in native e mount 🙁 . I still feel S-log is just nonpractical when it comes to many shooting situations
Emm
Post author@dv_ant - Yeah hard to explain how dark it really was in there. I was only at ISO 3200. The Sony A7s could easily push ISO 6400+ and still be completely usable footage (though I have to figure out how to color it). The camera is really great for anyone that needs to shoot under low lighting conditions.
dv_ant
Great video. I used to be the senior editor there and it made me so want to go back and visit the Academy! I remember how hard it used to be to shoot in the low light of the Steinhart Aquarium underground over there. Looks like the A7s handled it with no problem!