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Canon 5D Mark III v. Panasonic Ag-AF100
Hi,
I work in a small 3 person media group within a large corporation and we currently shoot many of our corporate videos using the Panasonic HVX-200.
Late in 2010, my supervisor bought 2 DSLRs (a 7D and a 5D) and all the rigging that goes with them to shoot some location video. He really likes the cinematic look of DSLR footage and the fact that we can use photography lenses.
While the footage shot with these cameras and lenses looks great, much of what we normally shoot requires audio. The lack of good audio has become an issue. Last year we shot a scenario video for a training class and had to shoot the audio separately to the Panasonic and sync it up in post. I used Plural Eyes, which did help, but it was still an extra day and a half of post production logging audio clips and syncing.
While this works for larger production houses, with the limited staff we have here, using a body to just record audio isn’t practical, and the extra work in post can be daunting.
My supervisor is now talking about selling the DSLRs and getting a 5D Mark III.
I was looking at the Panasonic Ag-AF100 as an alternative to the DSLR and would like to know if anybody has knowledge of one verses the other that I can take back to the purchasing discussion. Or perhaps a similar camera to the AG-AF100. Out budget is limited.
Any thoughts will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!Laura
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8 Replies
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[Laura Gruszczynski] “He really likes the cinematic look of DSLR footage and the fact that we can use photography lenses.”
You can get all that, plus easy in-camera audio with the AF100. You can get good audio with the DSLRs, but as you know it requires more gear and more time. I don’t think you would ever be sorry about buying an AF100. It’s an easy transition from the HVX200 and you can use a multitude of lenses with it.
Jason Jenkins
Flowmotion Media
Video production… with style!Check out my Mormon.org profile.
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Thank you for your posts.
I have another question.
The 5D and 7D cameras shoot h264 at 4.2.0 and the footage needs to be converted to Apple Pro Res in order for me to edit in FCP7. I do a lot of green screen work and have read that DSLRs are not ideal for that. Is the Mark III any better?
What about the AG_AF100?Laura
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A camera that shoots 4:2:2 color space is ideal for keying. DSLR’s are not the best for this.
I was a fan of the Panasonic AF100 until Sony announced their new camera, due to ship in July, the FS700U. It’s a bit more expensive, but an awesome camera. You can get an adapter and use your current lenses for that DSLR look and feel.
Here’s a link to the camera.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/853273-REG/Sony_NEX_FS700_4K_Ready_High_Speed.htmlWhile the Mark III is a great camera, you’ll still need to record your audio separately. I have a Zoom H4 for sale if you decide you want to stay with the DSLR’s. You do need to record the audio separately if you want quality.
Brent Dunn
Owner / Director / Editor
DunnRight Films
DunnRight Video.com
Video Marketing Toolbox.netSony EX-1,
Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 7D
Mac Pro Tower, Quad Core,
with Final Cut StudioHP i7 Quad laptop
Adobe CS-5 Production Suite -
Hello, I purchased a Canon 5DMark II in 2008 and used it for several years on professional projects as well as using many Panasonic P2 cameras over the past five years and now own an AF100.
These cameras are all different, but have benefits that make them right for any given job. The 5D Mark II is small and portable and really easy to get in tight spaces. The images are really nice and can stand up against cameras that cost much more. Audio is poor so you have to use 2nd unit sound to acquire professional audio. The Panasonic AF100 is also small and light and has the ability to use various lenses that can give you great flexibility as well as professional, cinematic footage. It has built in XLR connectors for professional audio and is more of a traditional video camera. It also has the ability to record in various slow and fast motion from 12 frames to 60 frames. This is a great feature as the motion looks much better than what you get from Final Cut and other editing systems. It doesn’t record audio in these frame rates, but most slow mo and fast motion video is for effect anyway. The big time saver for me is that I don’t have to convert the footage from the AF100 to ProRes to edit it in Final Cut. I open log and transfer and it shows up, drops right in and is ready to go on the timeline. With the Canon 5D, you have to transcode your footage to ProRes before you can really edit as H.264 is not ideal for editing. This can take a very long time depending on the amount of footage you shoot. I like both cameras and feel they can coexist. The Panasonic AF100 is more “video” friendly with it’s professional audio, neutral density filters for shooting outside, extended recording times of up to several hours with proper power and memory card capacity, viewfinder as well as lcd screen and variable frame rates. Your wide angles lenses will not be as wide as they would on the 5D Mark II, but you can still achieve a very professional, cinematic look with proper lighting, camera placement, movement and composition. Good luck. -
Thanks to you all,
Your comments we very helpful.Laura
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Since you work for a corp, this may not mean anything to you, but the Canon will retain huge resale value, and the AF100 will be yesterdays story in just one year. Right now, 4 year old Mark 2’s are selling for 80% of their original price – because there is a huge used still camera market out here. Video cameras typically lose their value very, very quickly.
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I couldn’t agree more with you.
Thomas Alexander | Independent Cinematographer
Soulman Films | Nicosia Cyprus | +357-97697640
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