The Canon EOS 5d Mark II DSLR
Written by: Frank Knipschild | December 10, 2009
It is probably the most talked about camera in my direct surroundings so why not join the conversation and tell you something more about it. The Canon 5d Mark II is an excellent photo camera but more important of course for us is that it shoots some awesome quality video in full HD (1080p). This camera has the audio visual sector rumbling on its foundations so we finally decided to buy one ourselves. Yes sir! Some things you just need to have, …. you know the feeling ?
We normally shoot with our Sony EX1 and, as mentioned in my previous posts, we bought a letus 35-mm adapter (links) to create more depth of field in our images. It’s the film look we’re after and this is also exactly what the new Canon 5d achieves. Mind you that it shoots a great quality video but as sole video camera it has of course it’s limitations. A camera like this doesn’t serve all purposes like our Sony EX1 but having it aside is simply perfect. As well does it provide you the ability to shoot stills and video without changing cameras and this opens up new creative boundaries.
Mobility and Anonymity
New creative boundaries are always nice of course as creativity is our business but what really made us decide to do the purchase are the words “mobility” and “anonymity”.
Just imagine yourself going to Barcelona and wanting to abuse the occasion to shoot some nice city images. I can tell you that walking around our EX1 with the Letus mounted and a needed, serious tripod means weight. Even if your name is “Rambo” you would already scream for help if you see a nice shot on the other side of the street and need to cross it. You speak altogether about a rough 20 kilos on your big shoulders and with considerable volume which makes simply going around by Metro not so simple. The Canon 5d with a good set of lenses and monopod fits a small shoulder bag and does it for a rough 10 kilos. Ok true, … It will take you some more time to set up your shots but thats actually the fun part….
Another things is that you draw some attention with an EX1 and mentioned equipment. It looks professional so people start asking which TV channel you are filming for, security guards love asking permits and if you come anywhere near their responsible territory they’ll hunt you eagerly to ask for one and others simply enjoy waving into your camera. The Canon 5d seems to appear less impressive at first sight. Suddenly you are no longer a professional and you are left alone …. thank you so much Canon !!
Shooting with the Canon 5d in comparison with a “normal” professional video camera is a relief in specific occasions while in others it can be a pain so make sure to make the right choice for the right job.
Here some of its key features;
* 21.1 Megapixel full-frame CMOS sensor
* 1920×1080 Full HD Movie Capture
* ISO range from 50-25,600 with expansion
* DIGIC 4 processor
The full-frame sensor provides a field of view the same as film. Depth-of-field is the same as well, allowing for finer control over what is in and out of focus. The larger sensor also means larger pixels, with inherently lower noise levels.
The advantage of the full-frame CMOS sensor is immediately clear – low light performance is excellent and the depth-of-field in videos can be tightly controlled in a way that video cameras with smaller sensors cannot achieve. You can even shoot stills while shooting video. It also allows the use of all the EF lenses from the Canon lens range, so would-be film-makers like myself have no shortage of options when it comes to choosing the look and feel of their productions.
Have a look at a commercial a highly respected colleague of mine shot with the 5d for Greenpeace. Brilliant stuff !
Greenpeace: Voices of change. Shot on Canon 5dmkII from Philip Bloom on Vimeo.
Topics: Audio Visual Communication | View Comments
Posted on 10 December 2009 by Frank Knipschild
Frank is an all-rounder in the field of audio visual production. Not claiming to have all the required specialities but he surely recognizes them, knows where to find them and knows how to fit them in.
Current projects: getting into social media and the production of the web/tv series “American Iron meets Driver”.
You can connect with Frank on twitter at @frankknipschild or on Linkedin or of course on FaceBook.
Frank Knipschild has written 8 articles for Cloud Mixer
December 11th, 2009 at 20:06
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Terry Van Horne, Frank Knipschild. Frank Knipschild said: RT @cloudmixer The Canon EOS 5d Mark II DSLR http://bit.ly/6K3kNU [...]
December 26th, 2009 at 00:54
I think I want one of these for my Christmas present (which I have not got yet…)