[Phil Balsdon]

I contacted Atomos direct. They themselves make no claims at all about the Ninja recording from HDSLRs that don’t put out a clean video signal through the HDMI port (their web site clearly states this).

A lot of bloggers have mistakenly assumed it will.

Until the camera manufacturers change this the HDMI in will only be useful on cameras like the Pana AF100, Sony F3 etc. as well as the Panasonic GH-2.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

The only HDSLR camera this will work with is the Panasonic GH2 which is the only HDSLR camera capable of giving a clean video out via its HDMI port.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

And some test footage from the prototype
https://vimeo.com/21461116

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

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[Phil Balsdon]

If you are down to choosing between the Canon 5D and Canon 7D and you primarily want to do video I’d suggest the the 7D. It has far more options in video than the 5D, and it’s sensor is almost the same size as Super 35mm film.

If however you are primarily doing stills consider the 5D, it’s much better as a stills camera than the 7D. The only difference the 5D offers over the 7D in video is lower depth of field (due to the larger frame size of the sensor), quite frankly at it’s extreme it maybe desirable for special situations but generally it’s very difficult to track focus on a slightly moving object.

If you settle on the 7D also consider the 60D which has all the same technical features as the 7D, not quite as robust, but it’s cheaper and has a flip out rotating viewfinder. And it’s cheaper.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Philip Bloom updated his HDSLR comparison this week. All you need to know about the cameras compared here,
https://philipbloom.net/2011/03/17/whichdslr/

Which lens will become a case of which lenses. Choose lenses with a wide and constant aperture. Spending money on high quality lenses is a wise investment they will out live your camera body by many generations.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Lots of ideas here
https://homebuiltstabilizers.com/

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

A friend of mine has a steadicam pilot (this is the best rig for the HDSLRs). I use a Steadicam Flyer.
He found that by making a small simple bracket for the camera he could mount the camera on the arm without the sled, the tension on the Pilot’s arm can be backed off enough to “float” the camera. This fully supported the camera and allowed him to move the camera to various positions, vary the lens height and even do small moves with the arm. The arm and vest for the Pilot is the same as the optional up grade for the Steadicam Merlin.

This wasn’t quite as successful when I tried the same set up on my larger Flyer arm because I couldn’t wind the tension off enough. I could see how well it would work though.

My solution, consider buying the Merlin vest / arm option. Later you can purchase a Steadicam Pilot sled.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Well lets start with you giving some elemental information.

Which version of FCP are you using (Current version is FCP 7 but you might have 6, 5, 4 or earlier)? This will enable us to tell what to convert to for optimal performance / quality etc for editing.

It may even help if you tell us what Mac you using and what OS.

We also need to know what format, frame size and fps the Flip MP4 files are. Open them in Quicktime under “Window” in the menu bar select “Show Movie Properties” this will open a window, tell us what it says next to “Format”.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Shooting a model and handheld I’d consider them in this order;
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

Seeing as it’s handheld you may want to go extreme wide, this lens also gives some dramatic perspective.
Tokina AT-X116PRDXN AT-X PRO DX 11-16mm f/2.8
The Tokina is the fastest f stop zoom in this class but will not fit a larger sensor such as on the 5D.

A full set of Canon lenses would include this lens also;
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II (expensive)

You should also consider a variable ND filter which will allow you to maintain a constant wide aperture setting outdoors. If you choose the 16-35 you’ll need and 82mm fit. Purchase a 77-82mm step up ring so you can fit it to the 24-70 as well.

If you are mainly shooting video you won’t notice much or any apparent resolution difference between genuine Canon lenses and good quality other brands. The cameras sensors do too much line / pixel shedding in video mode to make this a critical factor. If you also do stills though the quality difference will be noticeable.

Buying quality lenses is well worth the money, they will out live your camera body by many generations.

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/

[Phil Balsdon]

Something like this might work, but if the subject is moving around too much it might right some innovative tracking.
https://www.chv-plugins.com/cms/Fx-Script/Repair-collection/Dead-Pixel.php

Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/