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My BMCC Experience
Greetings Everyone!
Just got back from a documentary shoot using the BMCC and, though there’s already a lot of reviews out there, I thought I’d share my two-cents worth.
I LOVE THIS CAMERA!
First, let me say I was expecting something around the size of a DSLR and the weight to match. Not the BMCC; this camera is much larger than it looks and seriously solid! I’ve used ARRI 35mm & 16mm cameras so, I’m used to solid, heavy beasts.
We shot 2.5K RAW and as far as we can tell, didn’t have any dropped frames (which I’ve heard can be a problem with the BMCC). We used the Sand Disk 480GB SSD and used the NewerTech Voyager Q Hard Drive Docking Solution to transfer from the SSD to a portable harddrive. All worked flawlessly.
The one problem we had was with the screen: it’s horrible in daylight, and not much better inside; you want to get an external monitor. This may sound obvious but, not having used or seen the camera in person before, the screen looked and sounded like it was all we needed for a basic setup. Wrong! I now can’t stress enough to GET AN EXTERNAL MONITOR.
I know this is a very short review but, please feel free to ask questions; I’d love to talk more about it!
Best,
Dave J
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20 Replies
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The SanDisk is definitely the best out there for the BMCC. All around reliable in my experience. I have three of the 240s myself and honestly couldn’t be happier. The 240s are not on the approved list but I too have had no issues. I opted for the smaller drives to have faster offloads for more cycling of drives. Also using the Voyager Q and no complaints. I’m curious though, what your audio rig? There has been a good deal of discussion here for best audio practices and audio issues. Did you record in camera? If so what was your set up and your experiences?
Definitely agree on the external monitor as well. I’m saving up for one myself and using my HyperDeck shuttle as an SDI/HDMI converter to run my Zacuto EVF.
Blackmagic Cinema Camera, RED Scarlet-X, Panasonic HPX170, Canon 7D
2011 Macbook Pro 17″, 2.3 Ghz Quad Core, 16GB RAM
AJA IoXT
Adobe Production Premium CS6, Avid Symphony 6, Final Cut Pro Studio 3
The College of William and Mary -
Actually, we didn’t do any audio, just b-roll that will have music & narration under it. That said, I’ve always shot film for my projects so, it’s always been “double system” for me. I would most likely continue that practice with the BMCC but, would also be open to some sort of mixer attached underneath. I’m a fan of SoundDevices stuff and I know they have a small mixer they’ve touted for DSLR use but, would love to hear what others are using 😉
Dave J
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[David C Jones] “We shot 2.5K RAW and as far as we can tell, didn’t have any dropped frames (which I’ve heard can be a problem with the BMCC).”
It’s only a problem when using non-approved SSDs. I’ve been shooting with the BMCC for about a year now, and have had the MFT model for some time as well. In all my shooting to date, we’ve never had a single dropped frame in both RAW and ProRes HQ using the SanDisk Extreme 480GB.
[David C Jones] “I’m a fan of SoundDevices stuff and I know they have a small mixer they’ve touted for DSLR use but, would love to hear what others are using”
We’ve been using the Sound Devices MixPre-D with the BMCCs and the unit is totally solid. The creme de la creme! Shown here in my latest rigging configuration:
https://instagram.com/p/YoKMf-pqa7/
We’ve been using the BMCCs in all sorts of shooting genres, including documentary and it has been excellent. It’s like you said, David, if you’ve shot docs with 16mm film cameras, the BMCC shouldn’t be any more difficult. Sure it’s not as easy as an ENG camera, but the images are to die for and worth the extra effort IMO.
Marco Solorio | CreativeCow Host | OneRiver Media | ORM Blog | Facebook | Twitter | BMCC Newsletter
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Love your BMCC setup! How are you mounting the MixPre D? I actually have one and would love to use it in the future. Can you post a pic of it?
Dave J
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Thanks, Dave. I have it mounted to a V-mount plate, which then mounts to the V-mount battery mount (it has a V-mount plate on each side). I’ll try and snap a pic of it closer up when it’s rigged up again and I get a chance. It’s very rare when I don’t use the MixPre-D with the BMCC!
Cheers,
Marco Solorio | CreativeCow Host | OneRiver Media | ORM Blog | Facebook | Twitter | BMCC Newsletter
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I also use the MixPre-D and it is fantastic. I’ve mounted mine to rails but I do like the V-Mount idea as well I had not thought of that.
To mount it on rails I got the Wooden Camera 15mm Lightweight rod clamp;
https://woodencamera.corecommerce.com/Blackmagic/Rail-Components-BMC/Rod-Clamp-15mm-LW.htmlIt’s relatively inexpensive and it works brilliantly. It also makes it instantly compatible with any 15mm LW rail system which is nearly everything these days. I have the Shape support rig as well and I mount it on the top rails of the cage. This puts it slightly higher than my head when on my shoulder so I don’t have XLRs in my neck. The only criticism that I have with it is that the right amount of torque, and it comes loose and spins due to the one 1/4 20. However, this is easily fixable and I have been meaning to do so. All you need to do is go to Home Depot and get a small sheet of rubber and small piece of foam core or even foam insulation (there is window insulation that’s peel and stick that is rubberized and works brilliantly), and then you can cut it to go on in between the MixPre0D and the rail clamp and it will have the grip so it won’t slide around if you accidently torque it.
By the way, I know that sounds complex, but it’s really not. I’ve done before in similar situations and I’ve been to do it to this for quite a while now. I’ll try to do it tonight and snap a few photos of my rig all together.
Co-President at fourB Productions, Inc.
Blackmagic Cinema Camera, RED Scarlet-X, Panasonic HPX170, Canon 7D
2011 Macbook Pro 17″, 2.3 Ghz Quad Core, 16GB RAM
AJA IoXT
Adobe Production Premium CS6, Avid Symphony 6, Final Cut Pro Studio 3
The College of William and Mary -
Yes, I sometimes mount the MixPre-D directly to the rails as well. For that I use a little Jag35 rod clamp. Only $30 and has a built-in thumbscrew to tighten everything together; no tools necessary:
https://jag35.com/railblock.html
For cabling with the MixPre-D I use the Laird BMCC Audio Breakout cable. The two-foot version was a direct request by me to Laird, to which they modified and added to their product lineup. Wish I got a nickel for every one sold!
They’re in the process of building other BMCC cables I’ve recommended to them. Stay tuned.
Marco Solorio | CreativeCow Host | OneRiver Media | ORM Blog | Facebook | Twitter | BMCC Newsletter
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I like that clamp a lot! Kinda wish I had known about it. Not needing the tools is very nice. Though I do like that the Wooden clamp adds a couple small mounting points should I need them. They’re in an awkward place, but you never know.
I had a similar cable made like the Laird BMCC at Professional Sound Services in NYC. I actually tried to get the Laird but B&H couldn’t get it in stock in time. Had it made as a 3′ though which is admittedly long on my rig but I tie it up with a Bongo tie and it’s all good. Had it made also with a headphone return so I can monitor camera audio through the MixPre and bounce back and forth between mixer audio and camera audio to check levels and hear the differences. Had it built with all right angle connections on the camera side. Very happy with it. Mogami cabling and Neutrik connections.
Co-President at fourB Productions, Inc.
Blackmagic Cinema Camera, RED Scarlet-X, Panasonic HPX170, Canon 7D
2011 Macbook Pro 17″, 2.3 Ghz Quad Core, 16GB RAM
AJA IoXT
Adobe Production Premium CS6, Avid Symphony 6, Final Cut Pro Studio 3
The College of William and Mary -
Yup, the three-in-one cable you’re showing is one of the cables I’m having Laird build. Not sure why it’s taking them so long! =) Mogami + Neutrik = win.
Marco Solorio | CreativeCow Host | OneRiver Media | ORM Blog | Facebook | Twitter | BMCC Newsletter
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FYI: I’ve had Remote Audio make me a custom cable in the past. Not inexpensive, but high-quality:
https://www.remoteaudio.com/cables_adapters/custom/Someday, when I grow up, I want to own one of their “high noise” headphones:
https://www.remoteaudio.com/high_noise_headset/🙂
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https://www.peterdv.com
Blog: https://herefortheweather.wordpress.com
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