Cinematography : Your opinion of the future. by Craig D Griffiths

as a current owner of c 100 mark I i can say that practical use of that camera , nds , xlrs , great form factor long battery life and good picture quality especially when u use external recorder i think its still rly good choice . i dont think we will see 4k in wide use for at least 2 or 3 years , maybe i am wrong but thats my opinion . If you are working on documentaries , tv , events where you need to work fast and have reliable camera u go for that kind of camera but if you are on some kind of music videos , short movies then maybe some rigged 4k camera would be better option . Tv stations and wide use of 4k wont go that fast IMO . I am satisfied user of c100 and for most of my work i really dont need any kind of 4k picture . Maybe something weird will happen and all of a sudden everyone will have 4k at home but how many people still dont have full hd and its been years since fhd is in the game . We can only guess what will happen but one thing is for sure its all about story and camera is only a tool and good resolution wont save your bad story :) .

Thanks Sandro. There is also the extra power needed in post for 4k. 2-3 years is not a bad return on investment. I have a partnership with my daughter. I write and she is the filmmaker. She currently uses a dslr, I want to update her gear for her. She has no opinion, she doesn't care about gear at all. It is all about shot composition for her. She is getting lovely images from a Canon 600d.

Great advice. I probably don't film enough to justify ownership. My next project will probably have about 20 day shooting. If I can fund it of course..

What camera(s) are you using now?

Currently using DSLR canon 600d. I have two which it handy. Not too bad. Can do 1080, cheap everything and if you play with the settings you can get the most out of its limited dynamic range. Allowing for some fixing in post. But as projects get bigger I want to get tools slightly ahead of my need so I have room to move.

Here's another possibility to consider if your budget is $7K. Get a Panasonic GH4 (internal 4K recording) or better yet, get a Sony A7s and a Shogun 4K recorder. You can get a Canon EF lens adapter from Metabones and continue to use your Canon lenses with either camera. The A7s is an amazing camera. I've been a cinematographer for over 30 years and this is the first DSLR camera that has impressed me image wise. It has great dynamic range and performs extremely well in low light at high ISO's. Unlike the BM or GH4, the A7s has a full size sensor which is more cinematic IMO. I mostly rent cameras for bigger projects. However, the A7s stacks up quite well against much more expensive cameras.

individuals buy cameras for 3 reasons; emotional, speculative and professional. An emotional purchase cannot be reasoned with. A speculative purchase is a gamble ( not an investment ) that the camera will earn it's keep before obsolete by some means- production, rental, etc. Professional purchases have a known use and cost; like a carpenter replacing a saw. So the only one that brings up discussion is speculative, and nobody knows what life any camera will have, ever.... great cameras can be shunned and clunky pigs can be embraced and lauded; there is too much hype in the game today. Buying a proven tool set that allows you to practice your craft and won't hurt you economically if it becomes unpopular should be key criteria. HD will not be obsolete soon but UHD / 4K will be demanded by clients more and more. The type of work you are most likely to do should be criteria as well as money ; production cameras and documentary rigs are not alike at all... especially in prosumer price ranges.

I usually gaff but have messed with both cameras and am on a shoot now that is using both cameras with the same Nikon lens set. It's not even a comparison, despite the BM ability to shoot in 4K the C100s image is much higher quality. It is more expensive obviously, but when combined with a ninja or odyssey raw recorder the c100 is the option I would choose.

What did you end up going with? Technology isn't everything. There is still the factor of motivation to do something with it. And budget.

Another thing to consider is color correction. The Black Magic products shoot a very flat ungraded image which is great if you are looking for the most dynamic rage and flexibility in post but will add a considerable amount of post time in addition to handling the 4K files. A knowledge and understanding of da Vinci resolve and some considerable time tuning looks in post is necessary with those cameras. The Canon line offers a much more pleasing image straight out of the bag.