Mailbox: Manfrotto hybrid mono/tripod BHDV-1

Manfrotto BHDV-1 and 550D/T2i

I finally received my Manfrotto BHDV-1 today, a good 2 months after I ordered it. I guess these things have become sort of a collector's item, considering their short-supply and the fact that Calumet now charges €135,- more than the €250,- two months ago?! (a typo?)
Just unboxing this monopod was a delight because I immediately felt how light it was: this is really THE camera-support system if you want to move quick but can't -or don't to want to- work with a shouldersupport device.
I took it out to the park today with my Canon 550D/T2i with the Tamron 17-50 zoom lens and it works like a charm. Apart from obvious advantages like mobility and light weight, it is also more practical in setting up your system in tight places. I set up behind a tree or in the shrubs where I would not have been able to set up my tripod. I could do pans, tilts and follow focus very smoothly, even zoomed in. The ballhead at the base allows for pans and slight tilts while the small fluid head on top enables 'true' tilt action.

ballhead for smooth panning- and slight tilting

561 BHDV fluid head: simple and effective

I doubt I'll be using this tripod for camera's other than DSLR's and the fluid head performs as desired. Simple and effective with fixed drag. The 561BHDV head has a maximum load capacity of 4 kg so I could easily mount my Sony EX1-R videocamera onto it.
This monopod goes up to 200 centimeter and down to 76 cm so you can get all the height you want. Because it's so light, it's so much easier to get unusual angles like high shots above the crowd or extreme low (walking) shots by holding the monopod upside down, for instance.
The Manfrotto BHDV-1 is a true hybrid between a monopod and a tripod: I wish I had discovered this little gem earlier. You can buy the monopod without the fluidhead at €147,- and then mount a small, cheap head like the Fancier 717 (aka Weifeng), for instance. Considering that this option at Calumet Holland is €240 (!) cheaper than the BHDV-1, you should be able to buy a nice Chinese fluid head and have a similar setup at less than half the price of the Manfrotto BHDV-1. (If you want nothing but the BHDV-1, it's worth shopping around for this system. This store sells it for €100,- cheaper than Calumet)

NOT A GOOD IDEA!

WAITING FOR DISASTER...

Turn 2D into 3D

This is some amazing effect and it can really draw you into the story- literally. (Incidentally: I read a piece yesterday which claimed that it was scientifically proven that 3D sells- literally. 3D commercials apparently result in selling something like 40-60% more than 2D. As long as you don't have to wear the stupid goggles, which really turns me -and a lot of other people- off of 3D...)
Anyway, if you can't afford to shoot 3D or don't want to shoot 3D, you can always see if you can manipulate 2D images to look like 3D. Pretty cool.

FREE Magic Bullet presets pack

A lot of tails start wagging when the word 'free' enters the equation. In this case that's entirely justified because Brent Pierce has done a very nice job of creating a collection of Magic Bullet 'Awesome Looks'. The only thing that's expected of you is retweet the word, have a copy of Magic Bullet Looks and act like a dog who's just gotten a nice, juicy bone...

25P for the Panasonic GH2!

 

The firmware upgrade is here! 25P at 24Mbps. Now I can shoot broadcast material with my little GH2, cut it with other 25P material. Higher standard bitrate, too! And a bunch of other improvements:

1. Added a video mode [HIGH BIT RATE] which is suitable for editing video recorded at high bit rate(24Mbps).
2. Added a function [POWER ZOOM LENS] when using power zoom lens.
   ([DISP FOCAL LENGTH], [STEP ZOOM], [ZOOM RESUME], [ZOOM SPEED], [ZOOM RING]*)
3. Full area enlargement of AF area setting.
4. Improved in the speed of consecutive shooting when shot with auto bracket.
5. Increased number of recordable images in consecutive shooting.
6. [EX.TELE CONV. (Extra Tele Conversion)] can be set ON/OFF separately in photo or video recording.
7. More accurate light adjustment of built-in flash.
8. Improved in the AF performance in video recording.
9. Synchronization of alarm volume for low battery with [BEEP VOLUME].
10. Added a function [HALF PRESS RELEASE].
11. Improved NR (Noise Reduction) in high sensitivity shooting.
12. Added a function [TOUCH SCREEN] which is ON/OFF control of touch-screen.

* Available with LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm / F4.0-5.6 ASPH. / POWER O.I.S. only.

Click here to notice page about firmware update.

The end of the DSLR era..?

This sign scores high on the Monty Python-index. Interesting... technically I could bring my Sony EX1R, a really lo-res piece of junk compared to these hi-res DSLR's, and be left alone! But what is the reasoning behind this? Copyright? Safety? Fear of high-quality camera's? There is no reason because there is no idea behind this! It's infinitely silly!! Let's swarm the London tube with lo-res camera's! Or, let's get really naughty and organize a DSLR meetup with Philip Bloom, take the subway and get us all arrested!

Warm and funny

Love just about everything about this video: it's British, humorous, great timing, well written, looks spiffy and... it's short.

Explosive material

After seeing this extreme slomo footage of things blowing to pieces, my kids told me I should go out and buy one of these camera's. Anyone know of a used Phantom lying around that I can snatch up for a few bucks..?

Mailbox: Neat Video

There are still some things that are magic. They make you look at technology in awe. I had heard people raving about a Final Cut Pro plugin that removes unwanted noise called Neat Video. I never really needed it but now somehow some unwanted grain/noise was introduced to footage I shot recently. I have no idea how or why it showed up but it needed to go... Neat Video took care of business. It is simply magic. And it does it without degrading the image in any way- as if you were shooting RAW. Or, as if you shot it that way in the first place. It's not a cheap plugin but the same goes for your reputation... ;-)
I bought a license for FCP 7 but that works in Motion 5 as well, I have been told. Take a look at this demonstration shot at 10.000 ISO(!) on a hacked Panasonic GH2.

BUDGET DSLR CAGE?

I've always had a soft spot for the Cam Caddie. It's small, cheap (only $40,-), multi-functional and it looks like some kind of bug. It's just that I've had too many other stabilizers and rigs to ever go out and buy one, but this little bugger could prove a very worthwhile little 'cage'.
You can mount just about anything onto it: lights, mics, monitors, handles. It serves like a stabilizer and will get you smooth, low-angle shots. And last but not least: it protects your camera, sort of... You can also secure the camera between the platform and the handle with these special lockout kits (ridiculously expensive- this screams for DIY!) to get a nice, stiff rig when working with heavier camera's and/or gear. If you don't have a cage, rig or money, give this a shot. As I said, they're $40 new but you can often find them used on eBay for half!

Here's an old-school promo video on the Cam Caddie (cheap and effective, just like the cam caddie!)

What do RED M-X, Phantom, GH2, 5D, and HVX-200 have in common?

... a man called Shian Storm, who put together a demo-reel with footage from all these camera's. Guess what... most of it is shot on a GH2!

Panasonic GH2 hack showreel

Here's a 'showreel' of GH2 hack patches: footage that was shot with all sorts of different experimental hack settings by Nick Driftwood. It will tell you nothing unless you download the original file and compare that to your own, stock GH2 footage. But Driftwood posted a download link on Vimeo to the original, uncompressed footage for us to scrutinize.

These are considered experimental patches and I would not suggest using these on a paid job. You need extremely fast SD cards and they fill up in no time.

Sell all your gear and buy an iPhone 4S...

...and buy this shooter while you're at it. All you really need is a good eye and a recording device. Allright, and someone who knows how to edit. A good soundtrack. A house to edit in. Computers, software... A girlfriend would be nice... Or boyfriend, depending on your sex and taste... A big wad of money is also very helpful... And a purpose.

And then you're all set and you can make a video like this.

Anyway, well done...

Pitfalls of perfection

I did a shoot with a philospher a few months ago and the discussion came upon technical perfection. He mentioned that Americans are often obsessed with technical perfection. He himself was less concerned about technical perfection: getting the message across was more important to him.
His words got me thinking: was I obsessed with technical perfection? Looking at my work, I would not draw that conclusion ;-) I have a lot to learn. I am far from perfect and so is my work. But I do strive for a certain aesthetic ideal. What that is, I cannot define and it is certainly different for every project. But there are certain qualities I like. To name a cliché, I like (as many of us) most of Philip Bloom's aesthetic approach to shooting video. He makes 'everyday things' look extraordinary. His work is visually subtle, warm, never over the top. And most importantly, it is 'real'. In the sense that it is not contrived. It stems from genuine curiosity. But I'm digressing. Good form = content, is perhaps what I'm trying to say.
I saw a film at IDFA (International Documentary Festival Amsterdam) and it won the Public and Special Jury Award. It's called '5 broken camera's'. (great title) and tells the story of a Palestinian filming his life, his family, his village and the suffering they experience. The camera work is not pretty. It is point and shoot footage. But this Palestinian man was not interested in making aesthetically pleasing pictures while filming the bloody history of his village & people.
I was moved to tears by this film.

It is is good to strive for technical perfection. But beware of preoccupation with looks and styles. Pleasing aesthetics can provide a momentary rush but a true story will leave a lasting impression.

Top Docs

LIVE FROM IDFA: 8 HOURS OF NON-STOP MOVIES!

Live from the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam(IDFA): I am spending the entire day in a theatre watching one doc after the other. I've seen 7 documentaries (5 today) during this edition of IDFA and these films cut straight into your soul.
Whenever I see a well made doc, I wonder why anyone would ever go out and make fiction..?! Nothing beats a good doc as far as originality and drama is concerned. Fantasy is never more outrageous, scarier or funnier than reality.

Two of the top docs I recommend:  'To be Heard' by Edwin Martinez and 'Bobby Fischer against the World' by Liz Garbus:

Pocketsize teleprompter

Usually if you're working with a teleprompter(aka 'autocue', a device that that allows you to read text while looking straight into the camera), you're not going anywhere. I worked with one a few months ago and found it completely impractical. These things are so big and heavy that you need super heavy-duty tripods, leveling is a b*tch and you're basically stuck to one location. But now this company came up with the idea to use iPhones and iPads as a basis for teleprompters! This is absolutely brilliant: a portable package for spitting out long slabs of text wherever you want.

Where the hell is my Manfrotto monopod??!!

Manfrotto: where art thou?

Weifeng: the budget alternative

7 weeks ago I ordered and paid for a Manfrotto BHDV-1 (monopod with fluid head) and I'm still shooting handheld... I could really use it for a project I'm working on -a tripod is not an option- and I hold Manfrotto responsible for all the jittery footage I have shot... Manfrotto could have given me some service by sending me the monopod first and the head later, but it's been 8 days since I asked them to do this and I haven't heard anything since.
 I'm looking at alternatives now and I found a Special Deal on Personal View. At $189,- it's a lot cheaper than the Manfrotto model at $300,- Plus it's carbon (and thus lighter) but lacks the three little feet I'm really attracted to. (I have a feet-fetish, a 'feetish' you might say) But I'm not sure how practical the feet really are and how much I would miss if I didn't have them...
An entirely other option is buying a 'bare' carbon monopod and mount my Weifeng 717 fluid head on top... I'll be all set for $130 then...
 I'm going to give Manfrotto a few more days and then cancel my order if they don't come through, somehow...

Eat your heart out, Philip Bloom!

Cameraman/DOP Philip Bloom is arguably one of the best timelapse photographers out there (at least from what I've seen...) but in this case the problem was that he actually wasn't out there... Somebody beat him to this one. This is timelapse photography at a higher level...
I feel humbled in many ways: by the power of these pictures, the fact that I feel like a sub-level atom after viewing this and by the knowledge that I cannot produce anything even close as impressive as this marvelous footage.

Hacking the GH2: a friendly tutorial

For all those who -just like me- have held off hacking their GH2's because you were insecure about it and/or didn't feel like spending days on geek-forums trying to get some straight answers from this enormous pool of information, there is now an EZ guide to hacking your GH2. Well done, Sam Mallery! (and why didn't you do this BEFORE I spent 2 days and nights roaming the forums...;-)

GH2 shoot with compact rig

Compact GH2 rig 'on the job'

Did my first official shoot with my GH2 today and built this compact rig to suit today's needs. Was shooting with kids at a school and running about in the woods so I need something small and light. I took along my Pentax 6mm 1.2, my Panasonic Lumix 20mm 1.7 and my Canon FD 50mm 1.4. I wound up using the Panasonic most of the time because it is wide and will easily tell me at what aperture I'm shooting at. The Canon is too tele for handheld work and the Pentax aperture ring was too hard to see...
Audio was recorded on a Zoom H4n in combo with the Sennheiser G2 wireless series. My partner was doing the audio.
I planned to use my SmallHD DP4 but I was moving so fast I skipped mounting it most of the time. Can't wait to look at the (hacked GH2) footage.

Gettin' Jibby Wit It

I took my 4 foot jib out for a first real spin and it was a blast! As opposed to the steadicam devices I have tried, this will get you smooth, professional looking shots the very first time you use it. This is so much fun to work with and this jib is a real solid product.
The portable side to it is very relative, if you consider the heavy duty tripod and weights you have to bring along... Moving the whole setup is a pain and you ought to take the camera and jib off the tripod before setting up somewhere else, even 100 meters down the road. I picked up the whole thing and walked 50 meters, risking tripping or crashing in the process. I would strongly suggest not doing that...
Leveling is a bitch, too, you need 4 hands and a heavy duty tripod head to hold all that weight. And you need a heavy tripod: my Manfrotto 503 fluidhead performed great.

I had my Sony EX1R still set to DVCAM from a prior shoot and I forgot to set it to HD. That's too bad but the action is just as smooth in SD as in HD :-)