Note: this article is a translation from French of the excellent article written by Stéphane on his Folo blog. There are already a few articles on this topic on the net but Stéphane post is well illustrated and simple.
Of course, cleaning your camera sensor can be a dangerous operation and I cant be responsible of the result. Do it at your own risk.
Start of article
This tutorial will show you a simple, safe and cheap way to clean your DSLR sensor. The technique shown here is much safer than some others, reliable and used by the author plus many other pro photographers. Of course, there are no warranty of success since a bad execution of the procedure could result in damage to the camera.
If you take your time and do it in a relaxed mindset, you should be fine. You can also ask a professional to do it in case you are scared. The advantage of doing it yourself is that you can clean your sensor outside of normal business hours, just before an important shoot.
Before starting with the procedure, lets make something clear: we are using the term ’sensor cleaning’ but in fact we are not cleaning the sensor it self, we are cleaning the protective filter which is on top of the sensor.
Note from Alain: If you ever happen to damage the filter, it cost about 400$ to replace according to the repair center I have contacted.
What you will need:
Unless you are very lucky, you have probably noticed that not all your lenses focus perfectly every time. Some might focus a little bit in front of the subject, others a bit behind it. These issues appear mostly when using a long and wide aperture lens such as the 50mm 1.8 (or 1.4) where the depth of field is less than 1cm.
While there might be a few possible cause for this issue (ex: faulty AF on the lens, problem with the body, etc) the most common is a small discrepancy between the lens and its ‘perfect’ version that was supposed to come out of the factory. There is no need to return the lens, it is almost normal for lenses to be a little bit different from each others. This difference make them focus a bit differently while the body is set to work with the ’standard and perfect’ version of the lens. This is why two copies of the same lens might focus differently from each others on the same body, and even differently from one body to the next.
Fortunately for us, manufacturers are aware of this and have taken care of the issue in their pro and semi-pro bodies. This is where the custom function AF Micro adjustment comes into play. This function allows you to correct slight front or back focussing issues for each of your lenses. People generally refer to this operation as ‘lens calibration’. It used to be quite a chore because of the lack of tools to support the process but now it can be done in less than 2-3 minutes per lenses.
I don’t know how things are going for you guys but I have been hunting for 5D Mark II batteries for a while. A little bit frustrated, I went to one of the big camera store in Montreal and decided to have a talk with one of the rep to understand what was going on.
After the initial “Canon cant ship them fast enough” predictable explanation, we diverged subject and we talked about the Canon 5D Mark II and its impact on the photographer/videographer market. According to the guy, the bodies are out of stock not as much because a lot of people are ordering them but because people who do order them order a lot of them! He talked about a producer who got 10 bodies to shoot a tv show and it seems like many others are buying them in batch of 2-3.
And guess what? These guys are getting batteries too! For each camera they buy, they get between 4 and 10 batteries! With numbers like these, it is no wonders that we have not been able to grab these batteries. If you are working mostly inside, a better alternative to managing countless batteries is to get the Canon ACK-E6AC
Sorry for this NSFW (Not Safe For Work) post, but I think it is worth it!
Last night, I was at the final event of the Montreal Design and Fashion week in Montreal. Of course, I totally forgot about the event until it was too late to secure a press pass so I had to shoot from the crowd. It would not have been that bad if it was not of all the idiots people trying to take pictures with their cellular phones. Because of these, and an asian with a super saiyan hair cut right in front of me, I had to reject about 25% of my shots. Still, I got enough shots to create a small clip for all my friends who could not make it with me that nigh (you know who you are!). Download the original file from Vimeo, the pictures are much sharper.
From a technical point of view: these shots were taken with my 70-200f4IS in AV mode set to 200mm, F4 and ISO 800. In retrospect, I should have shot at 1200-1600 to freeze more action. These girls were fast! If I had to redo this, I would use a 135L2 and do some cropping in post production. The 200mm was a bit too long and I had to cut too many pretty elbows.
Note: the half naked guy singing is Plastik Patrik. Quite a character with awesome stage presence!
Before the release of the firmware update, I wrote an article about why controlling the shutter speed would be as important for us, cinephotographers, as controlling the aperture. I promised to show an example video at the time. Well, it took some time but I finally managed to get the required clips! The best subject for such an example would have been to shoot an helicopter but since I could not find one, I picked the next best thing: a waterfall.
Notice, in the clip bellow, how the water looks different according to the shutter speed. While on the left it looks like ‘normal’ water, on the right it looks like something else. It is because each frame in the sequence on the left has some blur while those on the right are super sharp. While the blurry frames are blending nicely with each others at 30fps, the ones without blurs looks very harsh.
As you can see, the difference in the shutter speed is only noticeable when comparing the extremes, so as long as you keep the shutter under 1/250, anything moving slower than the water in this clip should look natural.
Note: The constant exposure was created by increasing the ISO. Notice how, even at high ISO, the image quality is very usable. The rightmost section was shot at ISO 6400.
Here it is guys, my review of the Zacuto Rapid Fire! I still have not used with it enough to feel like I have toped out but I have played enough to give it a fair critic. An updated version will come out once I get my Zfinder.
Usability
I had a hard time to make up my mind between the Rapid Fire and the Quick Draw. The Rapid Fire won because it allows its user to keep both hands on the camera. This is the main advantage of the rig compared to the others: you don’t have to change the way you work with the camera. Both hands stay in their natural shooting position. You don’t have to learn anything new: you know how to shoot = you know how to film.
Adjustability
The Rapid Fire is a simple design but it does offer enough flexibility to be adjusted for most shooters. It has adjustment/squeeze knobs everywhere so you can get the ‘perfect fit’. The only part you can’t adjust is the angle between the two rods. This should not be an issue for 99% of the population, but it is good to know in case you have some weird shoulder/neck length ratio.
Build quality
While I went for cheap with my previous rig, this time I went for one of the most expensive solution: Zacuto. The difference is obvious. Everything is solid and holds well in place. I shook the rig (with the 5DMarkII on it) has hard as I could and nothing moved. While I take ridiculous care of my lenses, it is a totally different story for my camera support gear. They are supposed to be near indestructible and I treat them as such. I am glad to say that my Rapid Fire fits the bill and if I ever damage it, Zacuto life time warranty will replace it.
Stability
First, it is important to note that I have not received my Z-Finder yet, so I only have 3 points of contact with the camera instead of 4. I have tested the rig with various lenses, from my 50f1.4 to the heavy 24-70L2.8. The level of stability I achieved depended on three factors:
- Weight of the lens
- Focus ring action
- My movement (not camera movement)
Weight of the lens
Since the Rapid fire does not have any counter weights, the arms have to support the whole weight of the rig, pushing some of it toward the chest/shoulder to add stability. While this is not so hard to do with a light lens (like the 50mm), in the case of the 24-70L2.8 I got tired after a few minutes and things got a bit shaky.
It is like holding your camera with the LCD at eye level for a few minutes. While the gunstock removes a lot of the shake, you still have to spend some energy to hold it in position. I expect this to improve when I get the zFinder. This is where the two other Gorilla rigs might be better: with the right arm at a 90 degree angle with the rest of the body, you have more strength and endurance at your disposal.
Focus ring action
While focus adjustment are very easy to do and are mostly unnoticeable in the video, I never managed to walk the focus over a long distance without introducing some camera shake. It is sad, but to be expected: this is why Follow Focus systems were created!
Movement
Having all of its weight i front and away from the user, it was obvious from the start that walking with this rig would be a challenge. While lateral displacements are easy to do, you have to be very careful (and slow) if you want to walk with your subject.
Transport
This is where the Rapid Fire shines for me. By itself, the unit is already very small and portable, but if you need it to be even smaller, you can split the rig in two smaller parts by sliding one of the rod off. It takes less than 10 seconds and makes the whole thing fit in my smallest camera bag
This level of portability is incredible. This is how I ended up adding my Rapid Fire to my list of things to always have with me and my camera bag gained an extra 1.6 pounds.
Final verdict
I am very happy with my purchase because it fits my needs for a portable stabilization solution. I would not use it to shoot a movie (I would prefer the bigger gunstock kits) but for the type of work I am looking for, it does the job very well.
What is next?
So where should I go from here? Should I order the missing parts to get the right hand grip? Should I get longer rods and add a shoulder pad & counter weights? I don’t know yet, I am waiting to receive the zFinder to have a better idea of what would help the best. That is the beauty of these kits: you can start small and build up as you need (and can afford!).
To save you some time, I compiled a list of all the Vimeo groups related to the 5D Mark II that I could find.
As much as I like Vimeo, I wish it was impossible to post videos to more than one group. I understand the reasons why it would not be practical but at the same time, it is a bit annoying to subscribe to 10 groups and see the same newest video each time I log in… And trying to follow comments from one group to the next is no fun either. I am not here to rant about Vimeo so lets look at this list.
I just listed groups with significant user base and recent updates.
If you know any groups or channels that you be added to this list, please leave a comment.
Some people have been asking me about my Rapid Fire Zacuto rig review. I have not had the time to shoot enough with yet (only shot a total of 10 minutes) to make my mind about it. The only thing I can say so far is that it is not as stable as the heavier rigs (like the gunstocks) but at the same time it is so portable that I dont see any reasons why not to carry it around with me everywhere I go now! More on this soon.
I am going to update WordPress to 2.8 in a few moment. So if the site behave strangely, please drop me a line. Technically everything should go smooth but you never know.
True to my word, I ordered a Zacuto Rapid fire a few days ago and received it moments ago. I have not had time to play with it yet but a full review will come in a few days. I would love to shoot the review in HD with a 5D but I have only one. So if you are in the Montreal area and want to play with a nice toy, contact me!
Finally, I am working on a new site to be released soon. Stay tuned!
In case you were thinking about buying a DFocus follow focus for your 5DMrkII, you might want to wait a few more days. I am not saying this because of any quality issue with the product (you all know that I love it) but because of a teaser picture Dave posted on Twitter.
This new product is called the DFocus Pro. It will include a better gears system and be upgradable from the current version. An official announcement should be made in a few days.
By the way, if you are interested in any of Dave products, you should follow him on twitter. He always tweet about incoming products and stock levels.
Zacuto announced a very minimal rig system today: the DSLR Gorilla kits. The idea is simple: staying as light and compact as possible. This is, of course, in direct reaction to the line of light weight rig from Red Rock Micro. Who said that competition is not good?
Personally, I think removing the follow focus is a good idea. I never figured out why Red Rock put one on such a small rig.
Enough reading, lets take a look at the promo clip.
I have to admit, they managed to convinced me! I have been carrying my full cine rig in the woods for a few weekends to shoot my friends doing bouldering and it was no fun. By the time we found a boulder and I finished setting up the camera on the tripod, my friend were already climbing and I missed the start of the problem (and sometimes the whole sequence). And do not get me started on the logistics of carrying tripod + head + rails + follow focus + camera in the woods! A rig like this would be super easy to carry around and I would be ready to shoot before they even put their shoes on.
Of course this is one expensive gorilla! After all, we are talking about Zacuto stuff here and you will have to pull at least 550$ off your wallet to get the bare minimum. Add to this another 400$ for the Z-finder and you might have to have a conversation with the wife.
By the way, the Z-finder is NOT included in the packages contrary to what the pictures show. Some people are going to have a nasty surprise.
Now the question: which one should I pick?
