Parts 1 and 2 now live!!! The evolving Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera Review!

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EDIT: Part 1 and 2 of the review are now finished. They are at the bottom of the page along with two short pieces shot on the pocket camera. Don’t forget to check out James Miller’s grading tutorial based around footage shot for this review.  You can download native footage there. Part 3 is more of a long term test so it won’t be out for a while…perhaps 6 weeks after the first one.

Stay tuned to this page for the next week or so as I bring out my in-depth analysis of this unique camera on the market. All the pros and cons, as I am sure you are used to by now! Bookmark it and come back daily (ish) as the pages will constantly be updated with new pics, info and video snippets. In the meantime, do check out my fiction short film “La Tamise” at the bottom of this page, shot on a camera at the other end of the spectrum! I hope to have a review of that camera at some point….a different tool of course! 🙂

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By the end of this, I will have a proper full-on video review of the camera, but I will most likely break it up into two or three digestible chunks rather than the 45 minutes epic of the Blackmagic EF cinema cameras. It will also mean I will be able to get it out quicker, well at least part 1!

I have also decided to share my triumphs and pains here in written form as I progress.

The unboxing pics are below, and also today’s timeline is detailed below that! Read and enjoy! 🙂

Also be sure to follow twitter for my constant updates…my twitter feed is at the bottom of the page and of course you can also follow me here @philipbloom

I will shortly be trying out various different kinds of glass with the camera and hopefully shoot some tests with and without the speedbooster, plus comparing frame sizes.

Amongst the things I will be looking at:

Image quality

Low light performance

Rolling shutter and moire issues

Battery life

Sensor size compared to BMCC

Speedbooster integration

Ease of use

Audio performance 

What it’s like to shoot with

How much gear you need to really make it work

Where it can fit into your camera arsenal

Can it work as your only camera?

and anything I can think of! 

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MONDAY AUGUST 17th 2013 BLACKMAGIC POCKET CAMERA DAY TIMELINE. DAY ONE

1300: Picked up the CVP Pocket Camera that they just had in, took some photos of the unboxing for them, and then took it home. CVP are now sponsoring my review, so THANK YOU! I was not getting anywhere in obtaining a camera for review from Blackmagic, but thankfully CVP had theirs in and gave it to me straightaway. Cheers guys!

1345: Realised I would need more batteries for it, so I went on Amazon.co.uk and tried to find some Nikon 1 series batteries available for next day delivery. ZIP. NOTHING!  I found some which say “1-2 days.” Best I could do. Ordered 4 plus a charger as the Pocket Camera doesn’t come with one. Just a wall AC power charger thingy.

1400: Really like the look and feel of it. It’s cute! Funny to see the Cinema Camera menus all shrunk on the little back screen. It’s nice quality too, that screen, but I’ve not seen it outside. It’s not touchscreen so could be better than its bigger brother. Shame no raw yet to try out…not that I can see raw being an essential tool for a camera of this size but the ProRes HQ is there…just the ProResHQ nothing else. Shame no lighter flavour of it, even 422 or LT.

1430: Going through my lenses to see what micro four thirds ones I have left (It’s an active MFT mount unlike its bigger brother!). Annoyingly, I did sell the only nice OIS prime lens a couple of months back, so the only stabilized lens I have is the large and slow Lumix 17-140mm…but I do have lots of glass still. Two Voigtlanderrs, Lumix 7-14mm F4, 20mm Pancake, Loads of SLR magic glass and adaptors for Leica M and of course the Speedboster for Nikon, Leica R and Contax C/Y. So not a problem there!

1500: Had a kip.

1530: Woke up and had another kip.

1630: Spent ages trying to get the 4K version of my new short film “la tamise” done for Sony who want to show it at IBC in the 4K theatre. Many of my plugins for Premiere no likey 4K! Painful.

1730: The 4k Pain goes on until….

1900: Grabbed the pocket camera from the charger. Minor gripe: no charging light on camera or wall socket. Only way you know it’s charging is to turn it on and see the little charging symbol on the screen. Same as the bigger camera. Little niggles that should have been addressed.

1930: Battery goes down fast..not even shot a frame and it’s below 50%! Damn I will need those batteries!

1931: Put my Angenieux 17.5 to 70mm F2.2 Super 16mm PL zoom lens with MFT PL adaptor onto the MFT mount. PHEW! Nice vintage lens looks silly on the camera though…mind you, most lenses do, apart from pancakes!!

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1935: Better try recording something. I put in a fast SD Card. No format in the menu. Still. Really? Come on! That is still the case with the Cinema Camera, and I find that amazing. All cameras SHOULD be able to format a card in-camera! It also still cannot delete clips. That has made me a bit grumpy.

1940: Formatted card in Mac as ExFat. Nothing.

1943:Try HFS+. Nothing.

1945: Try Fat32 just for laughs.

1946: No laughs.

1948 Try another card and go through the same thing. I try this with so many “fast” SD cards. Sometimes I can get the camera to see the card, but it won’t record, just turns red for record for a split second then stops. All other cards get a “no sd” display. I do this until…

2030 I GIVE UP! I want to put my feet up. So I go to put my feet up and just for a laugh put the pocket camera on my big old Shape rig. It looks silly! 🙂

2035: Order cards on Amazon. They won’t arrive until Wednesday AM. NOOOOO! This review is now also getting more expensive for me. I don’t want to buy any more SD cards!!

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2100: Whilst relaxing I have a thought…Maybe I have one of the Sandisk Xtreme Pro 95mb/s cards in my Leica bag. I remember seeing it there…and lo and behold it is there! So I format the card as ExFat and BANG it works (there was no bang noise!)

2110: I am tired. I slept 3 hours last night, the 4K conversion of “la tamise” and other things occupied me and my mind. I want to flop on sofa now BUT I must shoot a little something. I know!! The cats!

2115: Noodle won’t let me. She has been very sick so I understand. She’s so pretty so it’s a shame.

2120: Percy is a cat camera slut and is well up for being filmed. So with my lovely SLR Magic 16mm Cine Prime I film him in shockingly bad light wide open in ProRes (it’s only ProRes HQ for now, no raw, no Avid DNxHD) at 1600 ISO in the film setting. Pulling focus is fun this wide open!

2130: I upload a file for you here! It’s the native untouched file, so enjoy!

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2200: My 4K F55 edit has finally exported and the Blackmagic file has uploaded. DONE. Way later than I had hoped, but I wanted to have some success as I was quite annoyed with how it went. Tomorrow will be better. I know it! 🙂 I have just one 32GB Sandisk Card to work with, but I do have my trusty NEXTO DI AIR with 500gb SSD in it, so I will be fine. It rips the file off super quick…anyway, tomorrow I will just test. I need to be home to keep an eye on Noodle and make sure she is fine. Fingers crossed she is and Wednesday I go nip out and do some filming outside!

The cats are amazed I found a card that worked and wonder what that Nexto thing is!
The cats are amazed I found a card that worked and wonder what that Nexto thing is!

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DAY 2

I didn’t get anywhere near as much done as I had hoped. My cat Noodle has not been well so she was my priority. I did get some spare batteries brought round to me by the lovely people at 3D Broadcast. Massive thanks to them, as they got me out of a one-battery jam!

Thankfully Noodle perked up and is home and doing OK. So late last night I filmed the links and some b-roll to the 1st part of the camera review. I have cut a 5 minute taster which you can watch below!

This is NOT the review, just snippets of it so please don’t jump to any conclusions from this PLEASE. Whether positive or negative. In fact you should wait until all three parts are up, only then will you have all my info!

Make sure you follow my evolving camera review on my blog here… It is continually being updated, it also includes my twitter feed which is where I share my happiness and frustrations.

It’s Wednesday 1pm and I am off now to film in London. Let’s see how she performs as that’s what is important. How it is to shoot with, what’s the image like and how is it in post. I have some cool plans. I hope they work!!

I shot the review on the C100 and lit it with the lovely Gekko Lights which you can see here:

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DAY 3

The filming of part 2, shooting with the camera went well. Also the footage I shot came out well. I learnt a lot about what glass works the best with it and how I could shoot with minimal gear. I also learned to turn off the camera when not rolling as I only recorded 50 minutes of footage and used 5 batteries. Mostly because I keep forgetting the camera needed to be turned off between shots. Something I am not used to! Other issues became apparent but for the most part I really enjoyed shooting with it!

Today I am going to try and finish editing Part 1 and also do some filming for Part 3. So much to do and I don’t actually have that much time to do it as I am off to a job tomorrow – that means two days gone and next week is very busy. I need a clone!! 🙂

Below are some graded frames from yesterday, most of them with actress Kate Lousteau whom I asked a favour of to be my subject for my shooting! All the stuff in the London Eye was with the SLR Magic 12mm F1.6 Cine version and most of the stuff on the bridge is the Samyang/ Rokinon 35mm F1.4 Nikon Mount with the Speedbooster and held steady with the Zacuto Marauder rig. On the eye I had no rig at all! Totally minimal!!

I backup all the footage I shot onto my Nexto DI air. I used Sandisk Xtreme Pro cards and one of the new Sony ones I was recommended. I actually experienced dropped frames on the one Sony card I used. I bought 4 so I hope that it was a one off problem!

Once I get all three parts up I will make available some of the footage from yesterday to download.

Anyway…gotta go…lots to do today!! 🙂

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With the SLR Magic 16mm F1.6 and Scheider Optics 77mm Variable ND. I shot most of the stuff yesterday with this
With the SLR Magic 12mm F1.6 and Scheider Optics 77mm Variable ND. I shot most of the stuff yesterday with this

 

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Yannick Hausler who shot yesterdays Part 2 for me.

 

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Filming on the eye minimally! One lens, no rig, no permission

 

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Lots of stuff I wanted to go through in Part 2!

 

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One of these Nexto DI backup devices is essential if you cannot stretch to all the media you need, even if you can it’s a nice safety thing too.

 

With the SLR Magic 16mm F1.6 and Scheider Optics 77mm Variable ND. I shot most of the stuff yesterday with this
These are the batteries I used up yesterday for my 50 minutes of filming. Too many times I left the camera on standby

EDIT: New firmware has given the camera better SD card compatibity and also now works with ny Lumix Pancake 14-42 zoom which it didn’d do before. 

Blackmagic Pocket Camera Review Part 1 from Philip Bloom Reviews & Tutorials on Vimeo.

Hiding Place from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.

a pocket home video from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.

“A pocket home video” was shot using my old bolex 8mm wooden rig. Pretty good for handheld, no good for when you build it up, but for not looking professional but getting professional results? Great! People don’t think you are a pro when using this. They think you are eccentric!! If you need something more robust and capable, and it not only works with a fully bulked up pocket camera but will work with cameras all the way up to the C100 in size. It’s the rig I use in part two of the review. The Zacuto Marauder. Check it out via the banner below.

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Blackmagic Pocket Camera Review Part 2: The real world from Philip Bloom Reviews & Tutorials on Vimeo.

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James Miller has done an excellent post on grading with the Premiere CC LUTS here and within that post is a link to the above edit in ProRes HQ grade free! 🙂

 

la tamise Shot on the Sony F55 from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.

 

 

 

114 comments

  1. One more thing – I can’t WAIT to see what that Angenieux footage looks like.
    Putting S16 lenses on it is the prime reason I’m interested.

    *happy to look silly if the pics look good.

  2. I’m liking this new way of reviewing. You had me chuckling a few times. And I even learned something new by looking up the word Kip. (American here). Also thanks for all your support today with the short. You got it rolling man 🙂
    La Tamise is absolutely beautiful by the way. The lighting, the shots… killer. I desperately want to try the f55 now.

    Raphael

  3. Philip

    Is it just my untrained eye or does this footage look pretty damn decent straight out of the box?

    Thank you so much for doing this review. Pre-ordered mine, still waiting for the actual product. But now at least I know the thing exists 😉

    Kind regards
    Daniel

  4. Really looking forward to the rest of your BMPCC review – I ordered as soon as B&H. had this up for sale.. not a peep yet. I have some nice Panny-Leica M43 lenses – the 12-35mm and 2 Lumix fast primes which I hope work.

    Your situation with 4k above, further convinces me to not bother with the BMCC 4k just yet – I also order on 8th April but cancelled a week ago. I have the BMCC EF version at the new cheapo price!

    The strange quirks that BMCC let happen – like no in-camera formatting do seem odd. I am sure you will turn up a few more as the review progresses.

    Great work as usual….

  5. I am very interested in this camera, but i have a few questions that i can’t seem to find the answeres to: can you see the fstop on the display? and can you set the aperture on a specific number?

    Thank you in advance.

  6. Phillip, I noticed a high frequency audio noise in your download sample. Is this just the pocket cam preamp or was there something in the room that was causing this noise?

    1. The audio recorded onboard the camera seems totally unusable as a guidetrack for dual system audio sync with Pluraleyes? It is so weak… If your subject is 6-8 feet away, you would hear nothing! Maybe it needs a different kin d of mic plugged into it for a guidetrack?

      THX for the all the effort going into these reviews! The footage at the start of Part 2 is VERY nice.

  7. Can I have it as my only camera? Cos I shoot mostly music videos and shorts! As side from renting other big sensor cameras when a client ask for!!!!!!!

  8. Hi Philip,

    Looking forward to full review! Quick question slightly off topic (but you did mention them).

    How you finding that Gekko 3 head location LED kit? I’m currently looking at getting some starter lights and was going to go with what I know – good old dedo’s – but this kit has really caught my eye. I’ve never been a huge fan of the light LED’s give off but these just look so compact and usable!

    Not asking if they’re better than dedo’s – just if you rate them 🙂

    Cheers!

  9. Wow this is addictive viewing/reading. I really like the drip feeding of info to the salivating horde! Could this be the only Pocket Camera in the UK or even Europe? Like many I have mine on pre-order with no expectation of receiving it anytime soon, so in the meantime this is by far the best thing to do on your tea break!

  10. Hi Philip, I’m really curious about the audio as you said not having audio monitoring is an issue. Will you be able to test audio with a radio mic to see how that works please. Really appreciated it. Many thanks.

  11. Thanks so much for your reviews as always Philip!! Looking forward to part 1!!

    If you have some time, would you mind reviewing the Gekko Lights as well? They seem quite interesting..

  12. Any word on availability? At cvp.com, only pre-orders are listed. Is your review camera the finished product, Philip? Just wondering… how many years we’ll have to wait this time for the final product to be released. Sorry if I sound negative, but in my opinion, reviewers should be much more critical towards Black Magic and their ‘marketing model’. You call it the a “unique camera on the market”, but as far as I can tell, it is still not on the market, and may well not be here for the next year or so…

    1. Have you read my previous Blackmagic review posts or seen videos? If not please do then get back to me

      This is finished camera and they have shipped hardly any. Yes. It’s a joke saying they are shipping.

      P

      1. Thanks for making that clear.
        Philip, I have watched your related reviews multiple times, and also those of the cameras that can be compared with the Black Magic ones because they are in the same price bracket. I know that you have been very critical about BMC, weighing the pros and cons and stating that these cameras definitely are NOT consumer cameras.
        I think my question is a very relevant one in this day and age, where in a year’s time, a lot can happen with the technology.

  13. Thank you so much for all your reviews! Really liking them:). And I like this new style;).
    I’ve a question (no idea if your allready testing this or anything, it’s just very important for me).

    I like to know if it’s possible with this cropfactor to make wide-angle shots. Are you able to make some shots with an 7mm lens?

    Thanks anyway!!

    Joas

  14. Just downloaded the jpegs and messed around with them in Photoshop and Resolve Lite…. I really like the noise….. can’t wait to see it in motion!

  15. Philip,
    First of all thank you for the free information you provide us. It’s pretty awesome you give up your time to do these reviews and they are immensely valuable.

    I noticed something squirrelly going on in some of the frame grabs that maybe you could clarify.

    On certain images I noticed white circles popping up. For example, on the frame grab where the actress is walking down the street you can see the left headlight is way bigger than the right on one of the cars heading in the opposite direction. Also on the last image you posted some of the small intensity lights looks like they came out as perfect white orbs. It seems to only happen in the high intensity highlights on the frames with a deep depth of field. Is this something analogous to the black circle you posted earlier or are my eyes playing tricks on me?

    -Justin

    1. I’ve noticed the same thing, it is called “blooming sensor” and it’s a real problem. You can see it on every footage made by the BMPCC besides the clips made by John Brawley.
      Probably he had pre-production sensor for testing and it was all right, but in the cameras that are now being produced there is another one… Sad :/
      Fuji had this problem with the X10 and they needed to modify the sensor, so there were two models of the camera in the market with orbs and without it. I think you can still buy the one with the bad sensor. Here is the link where you can see the difference between those two:
      http://www.dpreview.com/news/2012/04/26/Fujifilm-X10-white-orb-update
      I hope that blackmagic saw the orbs and the will modify the sensor asap before more crippled cameras appears on the market…

  16. Aside from Percy being such a good looking cat, and a camera slut, I must say Mr Bloom, I downloaded the clip from wetransfer, and i MUST SAY: Jaw dropped…

    Firstly for it to be a 999$ toy, that looks like any other point and shoot camera on the 200$ range… but even it being a stripped naked version of the gen 1 BMC, its fascinating to see it produce an image even our beloved Canon Mark II cant and will never get, well thats too much praise, but still I see a ton of detail, beautiful color posibilities, for grading afterwards, and just WOW…

    Still Its going to be a game changer for many, and im sure we will see lots of riged up and fancied cameras like the one on your Shape rig, Mattebox and everything included!

    As amazing as the image looks, the most Important things to note, also keeping in mind that the right tool for the right job premise:

    Cons at first view:

    – lacking form factor (too small even for a “pocket cinema camera” wich is not a downside for traveling filmmakers in need for B-Roll.)
    -No ND (its funny how it looks with that huge 77 ND! and well the BMC´s don’t have it either but the picture of it looks odd and well not ergonomic? looks like your hand is holding a big lens like thing heavy on the front with an iphone attached to it)
    -Tiny audio input…
    -bad battery life, (again can buy them by the doz)
    -Global Shutter????? variable angle???
    -NO APPLE PRO RES 422! that is really sad, because its made with the possibility to grade due to its fantastic color depth, and we don’t know how good the codec is for it to be graded, and how much it can take
    -Yes i see some lacking of Dynamic Range on the sky photos, well too much to ask for a codec like that and such a cheap camera, if needed to make a sequential shot, someone can buy them by the dozen and have these instead of gopros!

    Pros
    IT IS DIRT CHEAP!!! i can see them flying off shelves like Doritos…
    Does more than any camera on the $4,000-$5,000 camera pricetag can do (image wise)(lots of quirks to work around but once a fine piece of glass and the right hands and knowledge in use, it can excel)
    AMAZING quality image bang for the buck!

    I will patiently wait for a BMC 4K, and get a BMC 2.5K as a B cam…
    But really thank you for your time to give us the first fantastic impression on the footage as is!

    PS: Hope Noodle is doing much better.

  17. I must say that I am liking the grading on the eye. I already changed my order from the pocket to the bmcc mft, which will come next week, but this has convinced me to get the slr magic 12mm.

    Also I have recently caught up on some of your other videos and would like to say how much I enjoyed them, Especially the star wars and photo booth ones.

    Thanks

    Richard

  18. Philip – thank you thank you!

    Just looked back in and caught the footage- pretty sweet for such a light little tool-

    Pre ordered and cant wait to get one to fly on a quad copter- sounds like the battery lives will be about the same.

    But thanks to you i will have a full set of batteries…. Plenty of 95 extremes…and glass ready by the time it arrives-

    Look forward to the rest of the write up –

    Best
    P

  19. Great teaser, anxiously awaiting the rest… A quick question- Can anyone tell me what is the zipgear on the C100 lens shown in the picture? Couldn’t figure it out myself. Anyone?

  20. Philip,
    You may know by now that I’m very critical of Black Magic’s failure to produce enough of their cameras, but I must admit that the image quality of this BMPC is simply mindblowing: I love the dynamic range and the sharpness! One other thing: you mention that this pro-res file is a pro format that needs sufficient editing power… Well, I downloaded your Percy-clip and used it on a 5 year old Windows 8 system (with 3GB ram) and edited it using Sony Vegas Studio 12, which is a consumer product, and all was fine (in fact, Vegas works better with this than with Nikon 1 mov files). So I guess you must be refering to storage and file sizes rather than computing power. Anyhow, thanks for this part of the review!

  21. Is that Philip Bloom or the newest member of the latest boy band? You are looking good Mr. Bloom.

    Thank for the review. Great stuff.

    I was thinking of this camera as a great B cam to the 5D Mark III. I wonder how well they would match, especially when they get the RAW in it and compare to ML RAW on 5D?

      1. This is the rig I’m going with too – 5D3 RAW + BMDPC cam.
        Based on the grading tests I’ve done so far, its certainly possible, just matching the sharpness is more of an issue than colour.

  22. Hello Philip

    I was wondering if you can set the White Balance to auto? I know Pro’s don’t use auto white balance but for run n gun shooting it comes very handy.

    Thanks!

  23. Quick question, is it able to autofocus constantly (like the gh3) without having to press the focus button?
    Also, how would you rate the autofocus speed when presing the focus buton vs the GH3 speed?

    Thanks for your time!

  24. Hey Phil,

    Loving the results from this pocket camera. . I was wondering what kind of color grading did you use for your recent post “A pocket home video” I have been trying to get that kind of wash for a while now. Any tips or suggestions would be amazing!

  25. Hey Philip, how did you get around the vignetting with the angenieux s16 17.5-70mm f2.2 zoom lens? Is it because you cropped your videos to be 2.40:1 (at least that’s what that aspect ratio looks like to me…could be wrong).

    Super thankful for your blog and all of your posts.

    Me personally, I highly don’t think I’ll be getting the pocket cam. It would be fun to have, but totally overkill on what I would use it for. Would love to have it, but nope!

  26. Wow! Great review! Thank you Mr. Bloom for giving us the so good reviews. Not too serious, just the good amount of humor. I’m new on this blog and will definetely put it in my Internet Explorer’s favorites.

    Keep up your excellent work!

    From a french Canadian.
    Duane

  27. Hi Philip,
    Thanks for your review.

    Do you aware of the “blooming effect” of the sensor (seen at 2’00 in your video for example) and mentionned here : forum.blackmagicdesign.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=11700 ?

    Is it so bad ? 🙁

  28. I actually really like that shoulder stock. It seems like it would be great to take on vacation! I searched a bit on ebay, but didn’t see anything like it. Any idea if they’re still sold anywhere, and what exactly it was called? “8m Bolex shoulder stock” didn’t turn anything similar. There are some black plastic rifle stock looking things on ebay, but I wouldn’t want to walk into a crowd with one of those and have people freak out.
    -Tristan

  29. Hi Philip, how about the Olympus 15mm f/8.0 Body Cap Lens? Sure is not the high quality glass you were using in your review, has fixed focus, etc, but I will love to see how this “cap” works to make the pocket cinema camera stand to her name!

    Cheers, Tom

  30. Thank you for a very interesting review so far Philip, love the trickle trickle.

    I have not tried this camera yet, but I have three lenses that I would love to try on it.
    They are:

    The Kioptik Tegea 5,7mm 1,8
    The Fujinon 25mm 0,85
    And the TV Kowa 37.5mm 1,1

    I the Kioptik is a clumsy lens on any camera (need shims for focusing), but I think could make for a nice wideangle on the PCC .
    The Fujinon can only be mounted to a shutterless s16mm camera, but I hope it could make for a nice wide portrait lens.
    They Kowa I have used extensively with m4/3, it covers the whole sensor no problem, so this is the lens that will give the least troubles.

    Does anyone have any experience or thought on these lenses with the PCC?

  31. I did notice a peculiarity in the footage on Hiding Place at about 00:45 sec. An over-exposed building in the background seems to ‘white orb’ and interfere with subject in foreground. Is this an issue similar to the black spot? It would be good hear your opinion on it Philip.

    Thanks for the review and look forward to Part 3.

  32. Hi Phillip,

    Just watched your first video about the BMPCC on YouTube.
    Great stuff!

    Anyway, I’m new to film – I’m primarily a 2D/3D animator and have been looking into matchmoving/compositing for film.
    A few of my more filmy friends recommended the BMPCC where friends and family chipped in to get it for my birthday.
    Which is awesome of them! So hopefully we’ll all start pushing through a few short films soon.

    Anyway, I’m somewhat new to film and am learning what I can from friends.
    I’ve had a Canon EF 24-105mm F4 L lens recommended to me as an all-rounder starter lens, all good and well but I’m going to need an adaptor.
    In your video you mentioned that MTFservices produce suitable adaptors.

    Could you please link me to or provide a name to a suitable adaptor for this lens or even a decent Micro Four Thirds all-rounder lens instead?

    Much appreciated, and thank-you for these videos.

    Regards,
    Travis.

    1. hi travis

      that lens is absolutely NO WAY the right lens for that camera, just ignoring the lack of decent adaptors out there (redrock one is poor build quality) just multiple that focal length by 3 to see what you will get…LONG LENS!!!

      Unfortunately like all these cameras…there is no one lens unfortunately.

  33. Hello Philip,
    After seeing your film “Hiding Place” it inspired me to go and make this:
    http://vimeo.com/73607899
    It was filmed in one evening and the storyboard / shots made up as I went along. I had a basic idea in my head and I’ve always been inspired by how you make something with the tools you have, so I had a go!
    The tools in my case was a friend called TJ, a GH3 camera, couple of SLR Magic lenses, and my arms 🙂
    I also used a slider for two shots, but wasn’t practical to lug that about London with my arms falling off.
    Hope you enjoy it.
    Thanks,
    James

      1. Hi Philip,

        I have enjoyed several of your reviews on gear (usually use you as a reference when
        I go looking for gear) Now, here is my dilemma, and maybe you can help me sort it out.

        I got some interesting lenses (old C Mount glass from the 70’s, a Canon – V6X16 16-100mm f1.9
        and a Canon V6X18 18-108 f1.6) Both of these lenses cover the BMPC sensor without any problems
        (in theory, as I have not tested them DIRECTLY on one)

        I tried them out on the Panasonic GH3 on ETC mode (and a vintage 2x extender on regular mode)
        and it covers the MFT sensor on it without issues.

        Now, If I already have a Panasonic GH3, would I be doing myself a real benefit getting the BMPC?
        Or should I hold off and go for the BMCC MFT version? which leads to question #2…

        Would those lenses that are designed to cover a 1″ sensor work on the BMCC MFT? or would I end up
        with some vignetting? I would really appreciate your input, as I would like some feedback from someone who has experimented with all 3 before making a final call.

        Thanks in advance,
        Franko

          1. Thanks for your response!

            Ok, and how about question #1?
            If I already have a Panasonic GH3, would I be doing myself a real benefit getting the BMPC?
            Or should I hold off and go for the BMCC MFT version?

              1. Ok good news and bad news….

                My needs are to have a camera that grades well and can shoot at a nice ISO in not so ideal conditions.
                I’m more in the broadcast / TV side of things, tv commercials, e-product videos nothing mayor in film or large scale documentaries. the BMPC from everything I’ve seen seems to hold up better on video in not so “ideal conditions”, but it can create a footage that can be comined very easily with the GH, so they compliment each other and use the same lenses (for the most part)

                Good news is that the lenses I had WORK with the BMPC. I had 2 lenses that cover no9rmally a 1 inch sensor. glad to report they work without a glitch. Old canon TV glass is heavy, but it makes the camera look like a little monster, and in a field where people look at you and say “oh my, thats a tiny camera, you can do anything pro with that” mentality, I just say “ever seen men in black? where they bring out the “noisy cricket”? well, this is my version LOL.

                anyways, the bad news….
                The new batch of BMPC cameras have no “black hole sun” or “orbs” issues BUT…
                Some have a problem with MFT Panasonic lenses!

                It will not autofocus, on some or adjust aperture, and in others it won’t autofocus, allow for change in exposure or even let you bring up the focus peaking feature.

                On manual lenses that is not a problem, as it lets you focus peak manual glass, but with powered MFTs? that is a pain because you can’t focus manually the lens at all.
                Needless to say I sent mine back, and should be replaced by next week.

                Thanks for your input. looking forward to see part 3.

            1. If you have invested in glass for your GH3 – chances are the lenses are gelded and require power for iris control (unless they are Voigtlander or SLR Magic etc.).

              If that’s the case, then your existing lenses won’t work with the BMCC MFT and its passive mount – but they’ll work nicely with the BMPC, which has an active MFT mount.

      2. Love the shot at 1:15 in Hiding Place – something very surreal about it – beautiful shot.
        Can you give some insight into the different sharpness of the buildings across the background
        in the bottom right?
        Buildings are less sharp on either side – I pondered that it maybe the perspex bubble windows
        but reckon you are bang central so maybe not.
        Also seeing it a 0:51 on the suspension bridge cables bottom right again – this is more likely the
        perspex … I hope. Really looking to get one of these slr magic lenses so barracking that it is the
        perspex – thanks for this service to us all Philip. Very cool.

  34. Hi Mr. Bloom,

    i’m really worried about the battery of this pocket camera after i read your review.
    Pardon me, but I didn’t get the battery you bought as an alternative for pocket camera.

    May I know what did you use in your shoot?
    What are the other ways or other alternative battery for pocket camera?

    thanks, 🙂

    James, from Philippines.

  35. I was watching “Hiding Places” when suddenly I thought, “that woman looks really familiar!” Checked the name and the memory banks and realized Kate and I were in a week long masterclass together a few years ago. Fun to see her pop up here. I remember her being quiet talented. You hang out with good people Philip!

  36. Thanks for the review. Very helpfull!

    Did not find anything on a sensor size comparison with the cinema camera nor on the speedbooster am I right?

    Could you elaborate some more on that?

    Thanks,

    Manuel

      1. I noticed that you have a picture up there of the Pocket cinema camera with what looks like the Lumix
        G X Vario PZ 14-42mm mounted on it. Are you able to use the powered zoom with that lens on the
        BMPCC? I can’t get mine to work. Any tips?

        Thanks

  37. Hi Philip – excellent stuff (as usual) and always done with great humour.

    My thoughts are the images grade up really well and you’ve probably nailed it best use as an excellent B cam and a good stealth shooter.

    Deep depth of field might be handy for wide live events as well, but I’m guessing it won’t be a stellar performer in low light?

  38. I’m sorry Philip, but I’m going to disagree with a statement in your video: You say “There is only one true pocket camera, and that’s your smartphone”.

    The TRUE pocket cinema camera is the Sony DSC-RX100M2. It features:

    – Native 1080/24p/25p/30p and 1080/50p/60p video (for full HD res slow motion)
    – Decently-large-sized 1″ sensor (esp. given its size) that gives decent shallow DoF when combined with its fast lens
    – Backlit CMOS sensor for tremendous low-light and low-noise performance
    – Fast f:1.8 Zeiss lens – 28-100mm equivalent
    – Manual EVERYTHING: Manual focus (with focus ring), manual exposure, manual ISO, manual shutter, manual WB
    – Histogram, peaking, zoom focus assist, exposure lock, focus lock
    – Great image stabilization, focus tracking (if you need it)
    – Articulated/tilting screen, smart hot shoe with available OLED EVF and external mic, etc.
    – WiFi connectivity (incl. smartphone remote view/control), NFC
    – INCREDIBLE stills camera too; DSLR quality in the pocket (incl. RAW)
    – Best Form Factor : Overall Performance ratio of anything out there

    Sure, it’s not a pro camera (uses AVCHD) and there are a few niggles to get used to – but it produces absolutely WONDERFUL DSLR-quality video – and for true pocketability (WITH lens) as a “carry-always” it can’t be beat.

    1. oh come on now Steve. You get my point. I have this camera. It’s great but it’s still not easy in the pocket. It’s a silly line i made in reference to the name. If you want to pick holes then start with my Kessler Crane “Pocket” Dolly!! 🙂

      1. Wasn’t picking holes in your comment so much as flagging a really sweet camera, with great image quality and manual control of everything that actually fits in one’s pocket (WITH lens). An actual category-buster (a point-and-shoot that does great video with manual control, and DSLR-quality stills). I’m talking about the Mark 2 version of the RX100 that was just released (DSC-RX100M2).

        1. If you want a real “pocket camera” wait for the GOPRO Hero 3+ Black Edition (silver edition is pretty nice too). it shoots in just about any configuration you can think of (including 4K 15 fps) it’s actually smaller, faster, sharper and, well, better than the Hero 3, and it costs half of the Sony DSC-RX100M2, not to mention that without the protective shell is tiny! and it comes with a remote to activate it as well. True, it wouldn’t be my ONLY camera, but the comment does refer to a pocket camera and, well? this is definitely in that range.

          Oh and Philip? don’t wear skin tight jeans, they are bad for your circulation and in some cases they can choke your man bag in a not so comfortable/painful way if you know what I mean hahaha.

  39. Hi Philip!
    First shooting with my new Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera turned out to show a terrible MOIRE’ EFFECT…. AAAHHHRRRGGG!!

    I was wondering if you have experienced something like that and if you have some advice to avoid it (beside returning the camera to the seller…).

    Thank you for your help and for your great blog

    Paolo

    Ps: the footage was shot with in “Video” mode with a Panasonic Lumix 25mm

      1. Hi Philip, first of all thank you for your help and reply!

        Then a new question…
        Today the rec light of my BMPC started blinking during shooting, it’s the second time that happens.
        I’ve checked the file and everything seems ok.
        Do you know if the blinking means something or if is just a bug…?

        ciao e grazie

        Paolo

  40. Question – Am I correct to assume the shutter speed of the Pocket is set at either 1/48 or 1/50 depending on what frame rate you choose? I just got mine and so begin to play.

    Regarding audio, I did several tests:

    First test – I used my Rode Stereo Video Mic Pro set at +20dB with the Pocket’s mic inputs set to 100%. This actually sounded fairly decent – warm and full but still will need volume boosting in post. I worried about the preamp on the Pocket being cranked all the way up but playing it back on the computer sounded fine.

    Second test – used Zoom H4n recorder and on board mics – output of Zoom 70, mic inputs of Zoom is 70, inputs of BlackMagic is 70. Plenty of level here but Zoom mics sound a bit hissy and I would probably cut the input levels of the BlackMagic depending on the sound being recorded.

    Third test – Used Rode Mic + 20 dB into Zoom, input of Zoom 35, output of Zoom 75, inputs of BlackMagic at 25. There is no hiss here using the Rode mic. Plenty of level to play with here so be careful This was the best sound and of course you could capture the audio into the Zoom as well as the camera then sync in post.

    Sure this is all extra equipment but I already own it and all 3 tests were vastly superior to the onboard audio/mic of the Pocket! I would say also that using the +20 dB setting of the Rode straight into the Pocket will give you useable audio to sync with if your sound source is loud enough and depending on the project, might be acceptable with some post enhancement, level boost etc. Basically the +20 dB setting of the Rode mic saves the day. I’m thinking that wireless mics would also be a work around to pump more level into the Pocket…

    With the C log like film setting of this camera, even with the display set on video, without an exterior monitor etc. is difficult for me to be confident in my exposure. I am thinking I should turn the Zebra on and expose for highlights . Any comments would be helpful. The Zebra can be set at various %, I have it at 75% now. I thought also of using my iPhone’s exposure meter but then I have an ND filter without hard stops and so that would make it difficult. Well I guess I am spoiled with having such massive inf. reading out on my GH3 that I feel like I am flying blind with the Pocket!

    1. Same here. I have the GH3 and I would say that for “run and gun” type stuff it lets you setup alot quicker. I’m pretty sure once RAW starts coming out on the BMPC it will be alot easier to just go out and shoot with it (and feel more confident with the results) because you can later correct in post better, but still, I hate having that queezy feeling of “oh, what if I am shooting this in the wrong setting and it looks like complete s#$%t?”. I started looking for color temp meters, but they are EXPENSIVE, even the old ones can go for $300+.

      Now, for iris, if you have Lumix lenses, if you hit the iris button once, it automatically exposes.sometimes, its on point, other times it misses the mark first try. I have not tried doing the “one button iris” with a variable ND filter yet (waiting for some to get here). Same thing with focus, which seems to work better now after sending mine back for issues with it. YOU will have better results focusing with prime lenses (I have the 14mm f2.5 and a 20mm f1.7) but the longer lenses (45-200 f4) will sometimes get quirky.

      Now, I can say that Davinci Resolve 10 (beta) is a “must have” with this camera. I find it so much nicer to color correct with it compared with premiere (but I am new to the color correction thing so I guess its just a matter of taste). for broadcast commercials you really don’t fidget too much from the on camera profile or colors as long as everything is white balanced and sharp, but with the BMPC? you better be ready to learn some color correction and processing to make it shine, otherwise you will get frustrated with what comes out of the camera as is (flat as hell, which now i know is a good thing but its an extra step I wasn’t going through before so it takes some getting used to). Broadcast and film are 2 different realms, so expanding your horizons only makes you better.

      Battery wise? this thing is a cookie monster, it eats them up FAST. I solved that problem by making my own batteries (2, probably order 2 more because they do the job quite well) from parts I found on EBAY and now I can say that I get 4-5 hours out of 1 battery. someone posted a “do it yourself” battery that works (which is the reference I used) with the BMCC, GH3 and BMPC (BMCC and BMPC both use 12 volts, GH3 uses 8.8 volts, but this battery has a 9V, a 12V and a 5V USB plug so you can run just about anything. ) here is the link: http://youtu.be/9Tz0EfoxfA8

      Switronix sells an adapter to the BMPC from the BMCC cable, so if you already have a Switronix system for a BMCC you can just add that adapter and you’re done. ($20 last time I checked-and out of stock… wonder why??)

      If you have a GH3 as well? this battery will run the GH3 from the 9V plug with a modded cable and the battery adapter, AND a 7 inch monitor out the 12V at the SAME TIME! (love it…) the H4n also has a 12V plug to it, but in my case, it did not work with the battery, but since it runs on 2 “AA”s im not too worried about it)

      Hope this info helps anyone else!

  41. Philip – Have you had any issues with hot pixels on your camera? I just received mine yesterday and in lowlight situations, even at ISO 800, I’m getting a few hot pixels in the darker portions of the frame. When I put the lens cap on, many are visible across the frame. Is this normal? Slight grading and/or sharpening only makes matters worse…

    Thanks so much.

    Roddy

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