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Redrock Micro Running Man HDSLR rig review

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The ergonomic difficulties associated with HDSLR movie making is something we take as a given. We accept it without much complaint because the end results can be well worth the trouble it takes to put together an HDSLR rig that suits your needs. Cameras like the Canon 5dMKII and 7d were not intended to be used for pure video production purposes so there are a number of problems that need to be tackled if you are going to produce quality work with them. The first such problem is a way to view the screen, which I have already touched on …

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5dMKII bit rate hack! Magic lantern firmware update.

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Fans and users of the Canon 5dMKII will probably remember Tramm Hudson’s incredible firmware update that he created LONG before Canon did to allow for various additional features like audio meters, zebra stripes and a feature to disable the auto audio gain. Well ever since Canon’s own 24p firmware update that also included manual audio control, all has been quiet from Tramm and his Magic Lantern firmware. Until today! Tramm has just released a new version of his firmware and this time it follows in a similar direction to the popular Panasonic GH1 bit rate hack. Essentially it allows you …

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Canon 5d MKIII speculation

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Ok lets have some fun this week! What would you like to see from Canon in the 5d MKIII ? I asked myself this question and this is what I came up with. There’s no doubt that the 5D MKII was a revolutionary camera both in terms of it’s video capabilities and also it’s full frame still image quality at a much more affordable price than then 1DS MKIII. I have no official information on 1DS sales figures but it’s pretty safe to assume they took a huge hit with the 5D MKII’s introduction, to the point where the ever …

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Canon 70-300 f4-5.6 L IS Review (Vs. 70-200 f4 L IS)

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The Canon 70-300 f4-5.6 L IS was announced in September 2010 and made it to stores at the beginning of November. There already exists two 70-300s in the Canon lineup but neither of them have ever been showered with praise. The previous 70-300 f4.5-5.6 DO IS lens was incredibly small due to its difractive optics design, but image quality suffered and it never sold in large numbers. The 70-300 f4-5.6 IS (non-L) is a more budget oriented lens (approx. $550) and again never really turned any heads. I heard a lot of people cry “Oh my god a variable aperture …

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A date with the Leica M9

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Last week I wrote about my experiences with the Leica X1. While I was down in Vancouver I also had the opportunity to have a more extended test period with the Leica M9. 50mm Summicron on the left with a 35mm Summilux on the M9 First a bit of a history lesson. The M7 and MP were the last of the film rangefinders and the first digital Leica , the M8, was introduced in 2006 with a 10.3MP 1.3 crop sensor. An incremental improvement was made in 2008 with the M8.2 which still employed the same 10MP sensor but with …

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Impressions of the Leica X1

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The X1 was launched by Leica alongside the M9 back in September 2009 and a new all black version was displayed at Photokina this year, set to ship within the next month. For those unfamiliar with this camera there are a few stand out features that immediately set this camera apart from other compacts. Firstly Leica have managed to squeeze a 12MP APS-C sized sensor into the diminutive X1 body which is an impressive achievement and immediately gives it an advantage over most other compact cameras. Secondly the X1 features a fixed 24mm Leica Elmarit lens. Elmarit in Leica land …

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CalDigit AV Drive review. USB 3.0 comes to the Mac!

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Let’s face it, we all spend more time at our computers than we want to these days. With digital camera manufacturers pushing megapixel and file sizes higher and higher, and HD video becoming the norm, we are constantly in need of more hard drives. On top of a need for reliable storage space I’m always looking for a way to speed up my workflow and hence spend less time in front of the monitor. A couple of months ago storage solution specialists CalDigit announced a new addition to their external drive lineup, the USB 3.0 packing AV Drive. On top …

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Pushing flash X-sync to the limit

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For people that shoot fast moving action with strobes like myself, we are always worrying about sync speeds and flash durations. Today I’m going to talk a little bit about flash sync and give a quick example of how you can push the boundaries of what can often seem like a very limiting factor with DSLRs. One of the first questions people ask when they start experimenting with flash is “why does my camera not allow me to use a shutter speed higher than 1/xxx second?” If you scan through the specifications of a camera you will see one called …

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Aluminum Letus Hawk review with Quick Release system

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For serious video shooting with a DSLR you need to have a separate viewfinder that magnifies the image on your LCD. Not only do they keep the sun from your screen to aid your framing and composition but they also allow you to accurately focus with the very narrow DOF that comes from shooting with these types of cameras. There are already many viewfinders out there but the Hawk VF from Letus is one of the newer ones. Let’s take a look at the new aluminum version and also reveal their brand new quick release system! Letus launched the Hawk …

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Nikon D7000 Vs.Canon 60D Vs. Canon 7D

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Hot on the heels of Canon’s 60D announcement, Nikon has today revealed the successor to the popular D90 consumer DSLR, the D7000. Both of these cameras have made some considerable improvements on their predecessors and consumers these days are really starting to see higher end features trickle down into the lower end bodies. Last week I wrote an article comparing the Canon 7d with the 60D which was very popular and designed to give the Canon shooters a few pointers as to which might be the best camera for them. This week it’s going to be a Nikon Vs. Canon …

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Elinchrom Quadra review and comparison to Ranger RX

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For the last three years I have been using the Elinchrom Ranger RX for the majority of my strobed work. Sometimes I use some Nikon speedlights for fill, but the Ranger is my key light. I have used it in the rain, in blizzards, in -32 degrees Celsius and it has traveled around the world to Alaska, Japan, New Zealand twice and everywhere in between. I can depend on this strobe, and it has never let me down. I have the RX version which is slightly lighter weight than the RX Speed. For me, recycling time is not such a …

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Canon 70-200 f2.8 L IS II review & comparison to 70-200 f4 L IS

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The 70-200 lens is a staple in most pro photographer’s diet. The photographic possibilities with that focal are wide ranging and Canon has a 70-200 to suit almost everyone’s needs, 4 different versions in fact. The previous image stabilized version was brought out in 2001 and quickly became the new standard for such lenses. In 2010 Canon introduced the new MKII version of the lens featuring an improved 4-stop image stabilization and theoretically improved image quality. How does it stack up to the previous version and how does it compare to the 70-200 f4 L IS ? Read on to …

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