GH4 & DSLR Questions

[petro]

I've been filming season edits for about 5 years now as a hobby and recently have gotten tired/frustrated using my gopro 4 black. I've done some research on DLSRs but I have no prior experience using one. After reading reviews and posts in this forum I'm leaning toward a GH4. I'll answer all questions from the WHAT CAMERA thread, hopefully you guys can help me out.

1) What is your budget? How much money can you spend right away, and do you think you can get more money to invest in the future?

- I'd like to keep it under $1500 for the body, then I expect a few hundred more for a lens

2) What experience do you already have with cameras? Have you ever even used one before? Have you helped your friend out with his camera? Have you owned your own?

- Been filming on a GoPro for 5 years and took a photography class back in college. I've taken a few pictures with a friends DSLR but no extensive use or video

3) What gear, if any, do you currently have? (tripod, old camera lenses, mics, etc)

- None

4) What are you planning to shoot and how do you want to use your camera? Are you going to use this with the sole purpose of shooting skiing? or do you think you might try other stuff as well (movies, documentaries, short films, etc)

- I'm hoping for 75% skiing footage. I'd like to try some park follow cams and also some backcountry, possibly with a tripod + lens with decent zoom? Also camping/hiking/exploring.. that type of thing. I don't foresee shooting any interviews/documentary style video.

5) Do you want a camera that you can hand to your friends, that could or could not have film experience, and let them shoot you? or will you be doing all the filming?

- Take turns shooting between myself and a few friends

6) When filming skiing, how do you tend to shoot? (follow cams, leave it on record on a tripod and hike, film from a tripod, etc)

- Usually follow cam

7) What computer do you currently have/use to edit (if not currently editing, what would you most likely use)? If you can provide specifics, such as hard drive space, RAM, processor size, that would be great.

- Win 7, 16MB, i7, GTX 760, 2x 2TB external drives

8) What program do you currently edit on? How familiar are you with it (1- just learning; 10- I can make tutorials and know the keyboard layout)

- Adobe Premiere CC (7 familiarity)

9) Do you think you might consider using a DSLR?

- Yes

10) Do you have any knowledge about the HDSLRS?

- No

11) Do you know the limitations to using HDSLRS?

- No

12) Are you willing to take the time to learn about a DSLR, and how to shoot with manual lenses?

- Yes

13) Again, do you want a camera that you can hand to your friends, that could or could not have film experience, and let them shoot you? or will you be doing all the filming?

- Would prefer to hand off to friends but it doesn't have to be idiot proof

*** Questions of my own

1) Is the GH4 the right camera for me?

2) Will I need anything like a polyurethane cover or protective case for the body if I follow cam?

3) What lens is best to get first? Do you have a favorite GH4 lens you could recommend?

3) I watched some AF comparison videos of a 80D and it got me wondering.. How important is auto-focus? Is it crucial when filming fast motion? Will the GH4 AF be enough for follow cam? or do you continually adjust the focus manually while riding?

4) Will I need a glidecam to get a smooth follow-cam or are those days gone? Are there other/better stabilizers or is that not even needed?

5) Whats your typical day like shooting with a DSLR at your local resort? Do you wear a backpack and put it away every run? Do you film a few laps then bring it back to the car? Do you post up with a tripod/beers/piffs and not move all day?

Thanks fam

 

[eheath]

Honestly you probably don't need a gh4. Right now gh4s are about $1200-1300 for the body brand new, which is a good deal, but you should just get a gh3. I use a gh3 right now and its perfect for everything i need.

gh3 body, $550
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...ap=y&m=Y&c3api=1876,92051677442,&Q=&A=details

Pair that with a couple lenses if your choice, the rokinon 8mm is like $200 great fish, tokina 11-16 or tokina 12-24, another $400 and then maybe the pani 14-42 or another zoom lens for tripod stuff.

That puts you at $1200 so you could buy a cheap cam caddie for like $30 or invest in a glidecam for $200-400 and spend minimum $300 on a tripod. But, a gh3 with some lenses and some sort of stabilization would be a great start for you.

As for your other questions, you dont need a cover, dont worry about covering your camera unless its snowing/raining and just use a plastic bag from the grocery store, works great.

AF is not an issue, when you follow cam with a wide lens at a small aperture (say f11 or f16) and set your focus, it will be very near infinity and everything will be in focus minus 1-2ft in front of you which will be too close for the shot anyways.

Like I said, some sort of cheap handle works but IMO glidecam is the way to go.

As for filming habits, I'd usually drive to the resort and leave everything im not using in the car, but the PC lot is at the base of the park. You could bring your camera bag on hill and leave it just be careful, always leave it somewhere you can check thats in sight where people would be less likely to steal it, near the bottom by the lifties, etc. If you're nice to the lifties they'll usually let you stash your bag closer to the hut, top or bottom, ive done that many times.

Ill usually just cruise with my camera until im over it or leave, usually the latter. Ill bring my bag up if im posting up with a tripod and hang out or cruise runs, depends on what you wanna do really its up to you.

hope that helps, feel free to ask me more questions if you have any

 

[petro]

Ayy I appreciate the reply Heath. That answered a bunch of general DSLR questions I couldn't find an answer for. Everything I've read says the GH3 is a fantastic camera and that the lens is more important than the body (pretty much what I got from your post too). I can't lie though, the 4K options and other upgrades make it very tempting since its within my budget.

- Are all lens interchangeable b/t the 3 and 4?

- With your favorite/standard lens for resort shooting, whats the total weight? Which glidecam series do you find works best for you?

- Do you only film 1080 or do you have a different camera you use for 4K? I've researched a bit about 4k downsampling to 1080p, whats your thoughts on that? Any noticeable difference?

 

[nutz.]

Ayy I appreciate the reply Heath. That answered a bunch of general DSLR questions I couldn't find an answer for. Everything I've read says the GH3 is a fantastic camera and that the lens is more important than the body (pretty much what I got from your post too). I can't lie though, the 4K options and other upgrades make it very tempting since its within my budget.

- Are all lens interchangeable b/t the 3 and 4?

- With your favorite/standard lens for resort shooting, whats the total weight? Which glidecam series do you find works best for you?

- Do you only film 1080 or do you have a different camera you use for 4K? I've researched a bit about 4k downsampling to 1080p, whats your thoughts on that? Any noticeable difference?

those 5 questions you asked at the end of your post make me believe you don't need 4k... better for you to buy a GH3 and put the extra grand into another lens or two. It's one thing to want something just for the sake of having it but if you're filming skiing you won't really be filming 24p/30p for the most part anyways.

And I've literally never used AF for filming followcams on my GH4 or any camera really, just set the focus at infiinity with a decent f stop (5.6-8 or whatever the sweet spot on your lens is is good) and let er rip....

Also I have a GH4 and 90% of the time I shoot in 1080p. The only benefit I find it has over the GH3 is the focus peaking and vlog is pretty neat too but I don't think you're going to be using that so you'll be straight.

 

[eheath]

Ayy I appreciate the reply Heath. That answered a bunch of general DSLR questions I couldn't find an answer for. Everything I've read says the GH3 is a fantastic camera and that the lens is more important than the body (pretty much what I got from your post too). I can't lie though, the 4K options and other upgrades make it very tempting since its within my budget.

- Are all lens interchangeable b/t the 3 and 4?

- With your favorite/standard lens for resort shooting, whats the total weight? Which glidecam series do you find works best for you?

- Do you only film 1080 or do you have a different camera you use for 4K? I've researched a bit about 4k downsampling to 1080p, whats your thoughts on that? Any noticeable difference?

Yeah if you got a gh3, you could use your lenses on your gh4 or gh5 in the future.

I'm usually using my gh3 with my rokinon 8mm, tokina 11-16 or tamron 17-50 and i use a glidecam 2000 pro (similar to xr series) and ill use a nikon 70-210 on my tripod.

I only film 1080p60, i dont even worry about 4k, at all. I'll worry about 4k when a 4k monitor that is 40" costs $300. 99% of people wont have the monitor to actually tell the difference between 4k and 1080p.

 

[petro]

Good points.. I'll be picking up a GH3 with a couple lens and a glide. Sounds pretty easy to upgrade in the future. Stoked to start learning how to use a DSLR to film. Thanks guys