CamDen

2012-01-26T23:31:00.000-08:00

2012-01-17T16:09:00.000-08:00

2011-11-11T09:58:00.000-08:00

Free Redcine X Pro Tutorial that I put together for those just starting out:

Red Scarlet X with the Uppercut

2011-11-06T15:24:00.000-08:00

I initially started this blog a few years ago because it was an unforseen time for someone just getting their legs as a cinematographer. Video capture on DSLR cameras was fresh and exciting, and I managed to shoot two of the world's first feature films to be shot entirely with HD video on DSLR cameras:

The Lower Angels (formerly The Louisiana Conversation)

and

Winter Nights - Ari Dassa's ensemble film about what it means to be lonely in Los Angeles

Neither of these two films could have been done with any other camera system at the time and had the visual impact they did for the budget they had allotted.

Flash forward two years - I'm no longer advocating the use of HDSLR cameras for low budget films - certainly they have their place, but there are very affordable tools that do a great job for low budget films, and for something with a little bigger budget that needs real visual panache nothing beats the Digital Negative style capture of Redcode Raw.

That's right - I'm a Red Convert.

A couple nights ago Red really delivered a TKO blow in the first round of Digital Cinematography's 3rd wave.

Raw Onboard capture in a camera system with a body under $10,000.

Wow. Really just stunning.

Stay tuned for more information - and in the meantime - check out this little piece that Eric Ulbrich and myself put together with Matt Encina:

http://vimeo.com/26310928

2011-11-05T20:41:00.001-07:00

2011-08-19T10:13:00.000-07:00

2011-07-19T17:12:00.000-07:00

2011-03-28T15:08:00.000-07:00

sachtler head for sale. Panorama

2011-03-21T13:15:00.000-07:00

here are some pics...

Fuck You Scott Walker. Just Say No to Tea bags

2011-02-21T10:39:00.000-08:00

We need to prevent these creeps from overturning our collective bargaining Agreements.

Tea Party Vampires Beware!!!

Wireless HD AirsyncHD Power Supply Wireless HD monitoring Kit

2011-02-09T17:59:00.001-08:00

I'm offering wireless HD power supply kits for use with the Brite-View AirsyncHD wireless HD latency free camera transmitter!

Please email me for pricing and let me know what you would like to use to power it!

info at dankanes dot com

Short Reel

2011-02-04T10:24:00.000-08:00

spare from Dan Kanes on Vimeo.

2010 The Lance Cali Classic Scooter Commercial from Production Mind on Vimeo.

Vera meat from Production Mind on Vimeo.

Get your good on featuring Miley Cyrus from Production Mind on Vimeo.

Introduction to KIN from Production Mind on Vimeo.

Parade of Kin from Production Mind on Vimeo.

KIN Comercial 1 from Production Mind on Vimeo.

Scooter Commercial 2 from Production Mind on Vimeo.

DB Buxton Busking in Vancouver, British Columbia from Dan Kanes on Vimeo.

YardSale from Dan Kanes on Vimeo.

FingerTips from Dan Kanes on Vimeo.

Career Builder.com Web Ad from Dan Kanes on Vimeo.

wireless hd camera transmitter

2011-02-03T19:10:00.001-08:00

So - I'm building custom power supply systems and mounting brackets that let you use the Brite-View AirsyncHD Wireless HD transmitter system with cameras. Cool stuff no?

check it out here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1gtO5SA97Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFUlVjB0Qwo

Sankor Cinemascope

2011-01-23T19:03:00.000-08:00

100mm baltar

2011-01-23T18:57:00.001-08:00

Beware...

2011-01-12T09:14:00.000-08:00

They are out there.

AirsyncHD sitting on the back of a rig...

2011-01-10T15:38:00.000-08:00

Here is a little demonstration of Velcroing an AirsyncHD to the back of a rig. It't not gonna come off on its own...

GH2. The Best Camera Panasonic USA Can't Sell you

2010-12-21T15:06:00.000-08:00

Got this sweet little cam for my wife.

2010-12-11T12:27:00.000-08:00

Birns and Sawyer... A Bunch of bullshit

2010-12-02T18:16:00.001-08:00

Birns and Sawyer Owes me over $4000 in loss of income.

One of my cameras was STOLEN while under their care as a subrented Item from Sim Video in Hollywood.

I have received financial compensation for the loss of my camera - however I have not received compensation for the over 8 weeks of lost rental that I missed since the camera was stolen and not replaced.

This is an injustice - especially since I worked on several jobs where Birns and Sawyers' Own cameras were rented on said jobs.

Uncompressed Wireless HD transmission for camera: Brite-View AirsyncHD test with Red

2010-11-11T14:58:00.000-08:00

Brite-View are working on a camera solution for uncompressed wireless HD!!! WHOA!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1gtO5SA97Q

http://www.brite-view.com/air_synchd.php

British Accents Enhance Legitimacy

2010-10-11T11:58:00.000-07:00

Or So I've been told.

Zeiss Test on the Red at 4.5k from Jim Cummings on Vimeo.

HDSLR's and the State of the Industry

2010-09-09T19:35:00.000-07:00

If there is anyone out there who still reads this - you may be wondering why there has been nothing really new posted here in a LONG LONG time.

Well - in short that's because almost nothing new has happened in the state of Ultra Low Budget Digital Cinema.

WAIT WAIT WAIT you say - "Well they shot an episode of House on the 5D!" and "Shane Hurlbut gave a presentation!" and The GH-1 Firmware hack came out.

You may be right - all these things did happen. But Guess what? None of that is really news. It's what I call Hype. A Big FAT PHONY.

Here's the things I care about when it comes to making working with cameras:

1. Image Quality (the ability to tell story through images that speak of my mind and to my mind/eye)
2. Functionality - ease of operating conditions.
3. Ability to make a living shooting commercials and films.

Canon hasn't done a SINGLE thing to address number 1.
They decided it was okay to address number two with a firmware update for their flagship selling HDSLR camera the 5D2, but ignored the 7D despite the FACT that there is no technical obstruction to improving operability (i'm talking manual audio)
They've completely disrespected number 3 by releasing camera after camera that offer INCREMENTAL updates to parts one and two. This is why at this stage in the game:

I'VE COMPLETELY GIVEN UP SHOOTING ON CANON HDSLR'S UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.

That's right. I've gone ROGUE...I mean ROUGE...I mean RED.

You heard me. I'm a Red FanBoy now. Because, despite all of the Smoke, mirrors, "delays", what have you - Red actually makes a camera that does everything I need NOW, and it does it SPECTACULARLY.

The only people who are worried about Scarlet are people who can't afford a Red One MX. And I've learned that if you can't afford the right tools, then you Rent them when you can make a profit with them.

Don't get me wrong -you can make some pretty pictures with an HDSLR, you can teach yourself cinematography, and you can even get paid if you're smart. BUT - I'm not willing to give everyone under the sun my Canon Camera for Free - because chances are if they aren't going to pay for a camera rental - they sure don't want to pay for my skills. Look at Craigslist - even the quality of Craigslist Jobs has gone down the toilet.

So - what does the future hold for me?

1. Shooting more with my Red MX.
2. Developing a low cost HD wireless transmitter system.
3. Testing a wide variety of lenses, and other accessories
4. Hopefully shooting with prototype GH-2, and AF-100 cameras.
5. Shooting with Epic

I can't hope to change Canon's mind about anything. They are so full of themselves that they put on a show in New York to try and illustrate that there is no Contender to their imaging equipment sales thrown. While they may have sold more units their products, and service, as well as attitude have UTTERLY failed to meet my criteria for a company that I knowingly and willingly support.

And - if you thought Canon was bad - look at Sony.

They are so witty they actually called their new HDSLR the A55 (Looks like ASS!!!) appropriate naming convention considering they made the same GIGANTIC BLUNDER that Canon made TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO WHEN THEY RELEASED THE 5DII. Great work guys - no one needs manual controls to achieve creativity. Just give me a lobotomy while you're at it.

even mo

2010-09-09T17:45:00.001-07:00

poop

Lomo 35 and 80

2010-09-09T17:37:00.001-07:00

day for night

2010-08-17T13:12:00.001-07:00

Lomo Lenses for Sale

2010-08-13T10:29:00.000-07:00

Set of 4 for $2500 + shipping. PL mounted Lomo Lenses

22mm T2.5
28mm T2.3
50mm T2.4
75mm T3

Don't buy a Canon Camera this Week.

2010-08-13T10:25:00.001-07:00

If you're thinking of buying a camera this week or next week...

DON'T DO IT.

You'll thank me later.

Exciting Things Are Coming...

2010-08-13T10:25:00.000-07:00

Really awesome new stuff coming...

Right around the corner.

7DPL AT Sim Video Hot Rod Cameras PL7D

2010-07-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

My HotRod Cameras PL7D is now available for rent through Sim Video in Hollywood, CA and also WORLDWIDE!

SIM VIDEO

HotRod Cameras 7DPL - Renting now. For Rent. Consigned at DFS

2010-04-29T17:33:00.000-07:00

So, you want to RENT a HotRod Cameras 7DPL or PL7D? (same thing people call it differently)

Well, you are looking at the right blog.

Get in touch with Digital Film Studios Los Angeles

PL7D body
2 batteries
Charger
Case.
Baseplate (15mm LWS Offset)
2x12" 15mm Rods

DFS also offers a full compliment of PL mounted Lenses,accessories, and other Camera Systems like Red or 5DII to make your shoot run smoothe like butter down an australian toaster biscuit.

DIGITAL FILM STUDIOS LA

My website:

www.DanKanes.com

Teddy Boy Web Commercial

2010-02-24T12:08:00.000-08:00

Teddy Boy Web Commercial I shot a few weeks ago just posted up. Fun stuff. Shot with Contax Zeiss 35mm f1.4 on a 7D.

Enjoyee

http://www.vimeo.com/9693178

Indie Slate Magazine and The World's First DSLR Feature

2010-02-14T09:21:00.001-08:00

A year after the wrap of principle photography on "The Louisiana Conversation," the world's first feature length film shot entirely with an HD DSLR camera, Robert Render Harrison of Indie Slate Magazine ran an article on whether DSLR's are usable in production or just a Fad. I think he answered the question with a Resounding yes, and we can see that these tools of our trade are getting better with every iteration.

Ultimately this is a demonstration of principle. It's not about the latest cool gizmo, or using the most or least expensive tool for the job - it's about recognizing and adapting the strengths of one technology and using them for a different application.

So, what's different at the beginning of 2010 than at the end of 2008? In the U.S. there seems to be a MILD economic recovery but so many of us (young professionals) are still struggling just to get our bills paid and keep food on our plates. My response to this is, do something for yourself. Take some time each week to focus on doing what it is that you ASPIRE to achieve or actually WANT to do - there are plenty of people who will want you to stay in your position as an underling , and when they find out you are actually doing something progressive they might not even call on you for positions you once filled.

Forget about these people.

They are ballast. They want you to keep doing things their way, and won't want you to be happy because they aren't happy.

This isn't to say leave responsibility for your dreams - it's just too easy to get caught up in the grind of a 5 day, 60-80 hour work schedule in our industry and forget to aspire.

With that in mind, have a look at this article. And mad props to my boys Adam Duffy and Beau Lambert who helped make the Louisiana Conversation shoot not only possible, but pleasurable.

The Use of Cinema Lenses on 7D

2010-02-11T18:43:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to showcase some excellent work done by a fellow cinematographer using proper Cinema Prime Lenses on a 7D body...

Congratulations Adam Habib on "The Cost"

Adam Habib Cinematographer "The Cost"

we should be seeing a lot more work done with Cinema Lenses on the 7D and other canon HDSLRs in the coming months thanks to Hotrod Cameras

Big Podcast on Things I didn't Learn in Film School!

2010-02-10T19:58:00.000-08:00

I was interviewed for a podcast on making films with DSLR cameras. Have a listen here.

I call Out SmallHD, Tim Smith from Canon, Ilya Friedman and Hotrod Cameras and more.

Hats off!

http://filmsnobbery.com/2010/01/31/things-i-didnt-learn-in-film-school-episode-9/

New Camera Shoulder Mounts

2009-12-12T11:46:00.001-08:00

The movie I'm shooting right now is a comedy mockumentary.

Much of the film is handheld, and I've decided to use the Tamron 17-50 f2.8 VC for most of the movie.
I'm also using a certain grade of LowCon filter. I've been using my Old ass Birns and Sawyer DV2000 shoulder mount like this:

http://www.birnsandsawyer.com/_Sales/Camera-Accessories/Single-Handle-Shoulder-Support-(Long).aspx

I've been having a LOT of back pain
and I think I want to switch out to one of these:

http://shop.ebay.com/gini.1980/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p3686

They have a similar appearance to the Zacuto rigs, but seem a lot cooler because they are made by a dude in Korea and are more affordable.

I definitely want to ditch my redrock setup if anyone is interested, otherwise it should be on ebay by the holidays.

New Film, New Festival

2009-12-08T09:03:00.000-08:00

Just started shooting another feature on the 7D.

It's a comedy, it's going to be funny. I'm using a bit different lensing on this one, and different filtration.

New Canon Film Festival.

http://www.can-dofilmfest.com

This sounds cool because the prizes are cool.

This sounds extremely CRAP because:
1. You have to pay $40 to enter. Why the Fuck should I pay $40 to enter a film festival when I already blew my wad buying three Canon 7Ds and batteries. Probably never buying a canon Lens. Never say never though.

2. They mention that you have to shoot with a canon HD DSLR including the 7D, the 5DII, or the 1DMKIV - what about the rebel T1i?

Winter Nights. The first 7D Feature Trailer

2009-11-16T10:25:00.000-08:00

Enjoyeee!

http://www.theaspectratio.net/WinterNightsLog8.htm

Mad Props to Ari Dassa (director) and Yuki Aizawa (editor) as well as the incredible talent Ari chose to put in front of the lens.

Panavision

2009-11-06T22:28:00.001-08:00

Feature Wrapped!

2009-10-16T01:44:00.000-07:00

First Feature Film shot entirely with the Canon 7D (2 of them) has wrapped production.

Now for some sleep.

Pascal wanted to know what picture profile settings we've been using.

I have the cams set to neutral picture style, contrast all the way down, sharpness all the way down. Saturation down between -2 and -3 points depending on the scene, and no adjustment to color tone.

Highlight tone priority was used in one scene only.

No Auto Lighting Optimizer was used.

white balance was almost all Tungsten balance, as that was how we lit. The few things we shot during daylight hours were balanced for daylight.

Zeiss primes rock.

I want to revisit a really basic set of well oiled Nikon AiS superspeed primes though for my second cam as a rental option for other people.

Let's see what other kinds of fun I can have shooting with this camera in the coming weeks.

First Feature Shot Entirely on the Canon 7D

2009-10-15T10:05:00.001-07:00

I just want to declare that by tonight I will have completed principal photography on the first feature film shot entirely with the canon 7D.

Entirely with the 7D.

Complete.

The Searching for Sonny guys claim to have the first feature shot on a DSLR - not so. I completed shooting on "The Louisiana Conversation" in February 2009. As far as I can tell they haven't finished principal photography. Maybe they have. I guess it just irked me that they took the credit, and while their film does look good - I was first. Of course the production team still doesn't have distribution on The Louisiana Conversation (or maybe they do) I don't know -I'm just a hired gun...

Anyway, that's part of the reason I started a Blog in the first place - to document what's going on. Now that we're almost done with Winter Nights, I can start to share technical details and stories from the production. Cool!

Winter Nights...

2009-10-14T19:36:00.000-07:00

Usually I keep my mouth shut about the particulars of the production I'm working on, but since Ari Dassa, the talented director of the film has been publishing his own log of the film, I've decided to link to it here:

http://www.theaspectratio.net/WinterNightsLog6.htm

He's rad. Film's almost done Shooting!

Cambo Video?

2009-10-14T00:07:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, just wrapping up here on the set of the feature today.

I have to say, this is probably one of my favorite indie movies I've worked on so far.

Why?

We have only gone over 10 hours once. I love reasonable schedules.

Also, I have to say - one thing the 7D excels it is 2 camera shooting. Because the size of the body and support system is so reasonable it's easy to get two sizes with enough of an axis difference to allow for nice cross-cutting, without effing up my lighting setups.

It's how 2 camera shows are supposed to be!

I'm thinking of selling my SmallHD DP-1 after this show to try a different monitor. Feel free to email if you are interested in buying it!

Let's see what else...

I had some ideas for a series of stills to shoot after we finish up with the movie. Probably going to shoot some 4x5 fujifilm...

which got me thinking about this thing:

http://www.calumetphoto.com/item/CB4600K11/

Anyone have one I can borrow to hook up to the 7D and shoot video with? Talk about swing shift!

FireWire 800 Card Reader

2009-10-13T10:57:00.001-07:00

Just wanted to mention how happy I am with the Calumet Firewire 800 card reader I purchased from Calumet with my first two 7D's.

The thing is blazingly fast and makes our onset workflow more of a pleasure than a chore.

It's also the cheapest one I've found for sale in the US...I'm a notorious cheapskate, so please enjoy the savings with me:

http://www.calumetphoto.com/item/CM6030/

Vincent LaForet

2009-10-10T00:16:00.000-07:00

Met Vincent LaForet of Reverie (5D2) Fame at WurstKuche in Downtown LA tonight. Very nice guy, it's funny - i recognized him from his website, but also his panel when speaking at Birns and Sawyer a couple months ago.

He said, and I quote "Be excited - there are some very cool things coming."

I might get to work with him soon - that could be really cool.

Metering Timer in Video and Dropped Frames

2009-10-09T13:51:00.000-07:00

Recently Martin Beek and Morgan Moore from Cinema5D have been discussing dropped frames while using the 7D.

I'd like to toss my hat into the ring with a setting that I think might prevent some dropped frames for a few people. I turned this setting of back in the 5D2 before manual controls days, and I did the same with my 7Ds because I thought they might be affected by it somehow.

I turn Metering Timer in the 4th red menu (video rec settings) to 30 minutes.

My belief is that this prevents unecessary communication between lens (or chipped adapter in my case) which is known to sometimes cause dropped frames for people.

I hope that helps!

Thanks to M. Beek and M. Moore for bringing up this discussion.

See you next time with more tales from my feature shoot, and my thoughts on the upcoming PL mounts for 7D. Oh - and one more thing...anyone have a good machinist to suggest? I'd love to have an Eos to Russian OCT-19 lens adapter. The OCT-19 lenses have these gorgeous rounded aperture blades and can be had affordably.

2009-10-08T19:41:00.000-07:00

Prepping for the shoot tonight right now...had a few extra minutes and I checked one of my favorite forums:

www.cinema5d.com

so cool.

I saw this post by HollywoodTattooPhoto:

http://www.cinema5d.com/viewtopic.php?f=65&t=6039

first usable PL mount on the 7D that I've heard of.

Awesome!

Can't wait to try it out.

Did a department store commercial this morning using my 7D as "Glam Cam" or C-Cam to 2x Sony EX-1s. That means that I got to shoot all the fun beauty stuff. Wheeeeee!

Auto Lighting Optimizer and Highlight Tone Priority

2009-10-04T20:09:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note/observation as many others have made:

Auto Lighting Optimizer seems to apply a kind of knee function to the tonal curve of your shots in the same way that Highlight tone priority acts to bring down the shoulder...this could be a good thing or a bad thing...only you will know for sure.

In other news...Anyone try one of these to shoot video yet?

http://www.loreo.com/pages/products/loreo_3dcap.html

5D2 Versus 7D and Sensor Science

2009-10-02T13:18:00.000-07:00

I've been seeing a lot of conjecture lately about 5D2 Versus 7D, especially in regards to noise and image quality.

Here's my opinion on what's going on:

People think the 5D2 has less noise - I think the signal to noise ratio of the sensors is probably about the same, maybe the 7D has a small lead because it's a next generation sensor with more readouts and "Gapless MicroLenses." I think the 5D2 has less PERCEIVED noise in the video because the debayering algorithm, combined with Canon's Noise Reduction, combined with H.264 encoding obliterates detail.

Sorry to break it to you folks thinking the 5D2 has any sort of lead (besides sensor size) just to give you an idea, use the focus assist on a 5D2 and a 7D side by side - you will immediately notice more "noise" or buzz in the magnified image. Not only is this an enlarged portion of the sensor readout - it also doesn't appear to be going through the noise reduction algorithm. This is what the sensor is actually seeing (sort of).

The 7D is using a different algorithm, and because it is actually resolving more detail it is also resolving more perceived noise. By resolving, I mean what the backend recording part of the camera is receiving from the sensor. Personally I think this is a good thing. Just compare any large smoothe surface in a 5D2 video next to a 7D video and you should be able to see what I mean about the way detail is handled. On the 5D2 many things with detail (including human skin tones) are sometimes reduced to a watercoloury gourade style shading. The 7D smoothes less at a pixel level, which shows more perceived noise/detail. If I have time I will do a comparison, but for now I just wanted to get this out.

Now, I'm not knocking either camera here - just making an observation. As a realist I perceive all new cameras as essentially new film stocks.They all react differently to different exposure, and they all have intricate qualities of their own. Like film stocks, they have strengths and weaknesses. We as camera people just have to find the strengths, and work around the weaknesses to get the best results for whatever we shoot.

Uh...Anyone see that one screw?

2009-10-01T15:47:00.000-07:00

Taken from www.photofans.cn

After the First Night...I'm Hooked

2009-10-01T11:07:00.001-07:00

Well...

After the first night of shooting with my two 7D's I have to say I'm completely addicted to the images I can create with this wonderful camera.

This is Going to be THE ultra low budget Indie Cinema camera for at LEAST the next 3 months.

hahaha.

Seriously though, What an outstanding image. Just to give the people out there an idea of the kit I'm running with on this show here's a breakdown:

2x Canon 7D Bodies

6x Canon LP-E6 Batteries (the real ones)

2x Canon Charger

1x SmallHD DP-1 Monitor

2x SmallHD DP-1 Battery

Director's Monitor: Samsung 17inch 4:3 (this needs to change- was a holdover from the 4:3 signal sent by the 5D2 while recording - I figured this out last night on set, and luckily the DP-1 does 4:3 scaling...so my monitoring through a custom splitter loom looked decidedly standard Def...I was comfortable with this for the timebeing because of the time I've done with my 5D2 - it's for sale by the way if anyone is interested)

Beachtek DXA-5D audio preamp ( I let the sound mixer worry about this, he just feeds it to me)

Cartoni Fluid head on a set of OLD SCHOOL Miller sticks...this is a totally killer setup.

Redrock DSLR setup with mattebox, rails, follow focus.

Custom Made Israeli Arm (the cheap kind)

Custom Made HDMI/DVI Splitter Wiring Harness

Various Filters (Circ Polas,NDs, ND Grads, Pro-Mists)

Lenses:

Zeiss 35 mm f1.4

Zeiss 50mm f1.4

Zeiss 85mm f1.4

Nikkor 180mm f2.8

Nikkor Zoom 35-70mm f3.3-4.5

All the lenses are using Pixco AF-Confirm adapters from Hong-Kong. These are the best I'ved used. They hold the lenses solidy and the af-confirm and exposure info they garner can be useful. I have some dumb mount extension rings too...probably time to look into some smart ones as they are I'm sure machined better.

One interesting tidbit: when you're in video mode on the 7D the mirror is automatically locked up...I'm used to being able to use the liveview button on my 5d2 to flip the mirror up and down at will, and thus save power. Maybe there's a custom function for a MLU/Liveview button that's programmable...haven't dug into the menus too much yet.

We only had one minor 'scare' last night: my B-Camera operator Matt noticed the temperature indicator pop up on his 7D during a rehearsal. This is something I'd witnessed on the 5DII before, but only shooting Day exterior when the grips forgot to put a courtesy over me and the camera. Electronics don't like direct sunlight in California Summer. Last night we were shooting inside a cafe though - so I was a little worried. I chalked it up to the fact that maybe Matt wasn't being as conservative as I was with my battery and saving camera power between setups. I calmly had Matt turn his camera off for only two minutes, power back on and we never saw the thermometer indicator again.

I can say with confidence that I trust the 7D for real production work as much as a Red One (although according to some people they crash a lot - never had one crash on me, but I saw someone stuck in a random reboot loop once)...which brings me to another observation: Cameras these days aren't like cameras. They're more like computers: they can crash, They're getting cheaper and cheaper, the features are getting more and more awesome, but the real kicker is I want to upgrade every 3 to 6 months now.

Everyone on set was thrilled with the images we were getting last night, and pretty much everyone was shocked we were shooting a feature film on two DSLR cameras. The actors had heard about Nikon's DSLR video function, and I assured them that while cool, and a cute toy the D90 (and successors with video) were just that - a toy. After a LOT of wrangling and hand wringing Canon made the 7D decidedly the best video camera you can purchase at this time for under $17,500. I'm sure some sony people will want to weigh in with their love of the EX-1 and Ex-3, but you can do a lot more on a 7D for a lot less - and the end of the day it's about how pretty of a picture you can make, how fast and how cheap.

I'm looking forward to shooting some 60P and 50P stuff for slow motion. What's that you ask? 50P in the us? Why? Well 50P is closer to 48 frames than 60, so for good half speed stuff 50P makes sense - apparently you have to switch to PAL mode in the menus to enable this, but High Speed is one of those things I don't use everyday any way it's just great to have as an option.

Welcome to My New Undertaking

2009-09-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,

My Name is Dan. I'm a cinematographer. I've decided to start catalogging my Experience using my new Canon 7D cameras (2 of them) to shoot an independent feature film.

I was (as far as I know) the first person to complete principal photography of a feature length narrative film using the Canon 5D Mark II back in February 2009. The film is called "The Louisiana Conversation." It should be seeing the light of day (or the dark of night) soon.

My primary reason for writing about my experience with the 7Ds is that Canon has paid Virtually no attention to me whatsoever at this time.

One might think that someone pioneering the use of a camera meant primarily for stills as a motion picture camera might hold some status with Canon. Apparently only if you have a blog or are already an award winning AP photographer (no diss).

Anyway - just to give you an idea of how much Canon is living in the dark ages...it took them over 8 months to release a firmware allowing direct manual control over video functions on the 5DII. I got around this by using the superior Zeiss Contax series of lenses with EOS adapter rings on them. They have a manual aperture ring (Like any red Blooded cameraperson's lens should have) unlike the lame electronic aperture control of Canon's Eos glass. Thankfully you could lock the shutter speed, and then use exposure compensation to dial your ISO into place.

Still, the charm of the 5D Mark II far outweighed any hassles I had to go through to make it do what I wanted. In June Canon finally relented and rolled out the manual control firmware.

So here it is almost a year later, and I managed to score Two Canon 7D's on their first day of US sale at Calumet Photographic in Hollywood. Big Props to Jeff and all the other people at Calumet who helped me get my hands on the camera as soon as possible.

I'm just getting ready to shoot my first night on this feature, so I have to run for now...but first impressions and some samples coming soon!