By technical editor Matt Allard:

The Sony F55 shoulder mounted with a Movcam rig

Today in Tokyo I was lucky enough to get some hands-on time with the new Sony F55 as well as all the latest accessories, including the new Sony PL lenses.

I own both a PMW-F3 and a FS700, so I was very keen to see how far Sony has progressed with the F range.   The first thing that strikes you is how small the F55 camera body is.   It is extremely modular and easy to transport; you could easily fit the camera into a backpack.  They showed a photo of a guy carrying three F55 bodies in a carry-on bag! It looks very light but in reality it isn’t; I would say it weighs about the same as a F3 body.  The build quality is fairly good.  

I found the camera design to be very good. Everything was easy to find and the key camera functions are accessible without having to go into deep menus. Even as a first time user of the camera, it is very easy to get it turned on and shoot quickly. There is one major design flaw: the connection cable for the new Sony OLED or LED viewfinder sticks straight out the side of the camera.  While it is reasonably secure, it would be easier to knock and broken given this placement.  Making the connector a right-angled one would have helped.  Even Takashi Irikura (Senior Marketing Manager) for Sony appeared to agree that it wasn’t a good design.

I was able to hook the camera up to the Sony PVM-X300 4K display and look very closely at things such as the global shutter, noise and dynamic range.

The F55′s global shutter really is brilliant and revolutionary in a camera at this price – gone are the jello-like images of a conventional CMOS sensor. The dynamic range was also superb – according to Sony it is 14 stops. One thing that blew me away was the noise – or lack of it. The F55 is rated at 1250 ISO (in S-Log 2) and can be pushed to 10,000 ISO. I didn’t go deeper into the menus to see if it can go beyond 10,000 ISO – that is something I still need to check. I was allowed to record some F55 vision but unfortunately I’m not allowed to post it. I did quite a few tests in low light conditions at 10,000 ISO and was amazed at how clean it was. Pixel peeping on a 4K display I struggled to see any noise. I would have expected to see a lot more noise than I did.

On a 4K display, the images were extremely detailed and sharp and had beautiful colour rendition.  One of the great things about the F55 is the ability to view 4K straight out of the camera via the 4 HD-SDI outputs on the side of the camera.  This is great if you can afford the $20,000+ 4K monitor!

Perhaps most interesting was the behind-the-scenes footage of a music video that was shot here in Japan on the F55.  It was shot in camera at 4K but for HD distribution.  Because 4K is basically four times the resolution of HD, the director and DP could film a lot of the shots wide and perform all the zooms and camera movements in post. This method saves time on location and gives the production a lot more flexibility.  One static shot can become a wide, a mid and a tight – or a pan or tilt or zoom – all from the one shot.  I see this becoming very popular with people shooting music videos and documentaries, turning one shot into many. 

Taking a look through the viewfinder

There are two viewfinder options, the OLED version and the LCD version which can also be used as a small monitor. Being used to third party EVFs I was shocked at just how good the OLED viewfinder was. I have used a variety of professional viewfinders over the last 20+ years and this was by far the best one I have ever seen. It shows gorgeous colour rendition, is tack sharp and has deep blacks.   I didn’t feel I was ever left in any doubt whether the image was in focus or not.  It also features a 2x magnification button – although I couldn’t find a way to move the magnified point as you can on other cameras. You can choose in the menu to have peaking on or off,  tweak the amount and colour of the peaking and set your zebras to any level you like.   One glaring omission: there is no histogram – totally bizarre given how important it is when trying to judge whether your highlights are blown out.  Sony is considering adding a histogram in the next firmware release.  I also suggested they should include false colour.

Unfortunately I think Sony have shot themselves in the foot again when it comes to firmware. No, you’re not going to have to pay for it (lesson learnt there from the F3 S-Log debacle) but this time the issue is when it will be released and what it will include. My initial thought when I heard the news was “What the ?????”  No wonder none of this information I’m about to tell you is readily known. If it was, I think people would be very angry.

So here we go.  If you are planning on buying a F55 or F5 here is some very important information that you need to know. None of the high frame rates above 60p in HD XAVC will be available until the release of the first firmware update – currently scheduled for the end of September 2013. So the 120, 180 and 240fps that were so highly touted as features when the camera was announced won’t be available till the end of September. Huh??? If I buy the F55 I won’t have access to high frame rates for another 8 months!  What on earth are Sony thinking?  I cannot get my head around this at all. Other features you need to wait for until the end of September are the ability to record the SR Codec internally as well as WiFi  control of the camera from a iPad or iPhone.

A slide in Japanese from the Sony presentation showing firmware release dates

I believe there will be a second firmware update planned for December that will include mostly under- and over-crank (S&Q) abilities.  1-60fps in 4K RAW,   1-240fps in 2K RAW ,  1-60fps in 4K/QFHD (the internally recorded 4K option),  1-180fps in 2K and HD XAVC. It will also enable EI S-Log, monitor LUTs and user matrix settings.

I could understand these firmware releases if they were due out maybe a month after release – but keeping them till September and December is pure madness. Hopefully if enough people complain this can be changed.

On a more positive note I discovered that the new Ovaline batteries last about 1.5x longer than regular V-lock batteries and will also charge in half the time – if you purchase the new Sony dual charger. This charger only does one battery at a time and is the size of a 15″ laptop! Why it has to be so big and why it only charges one battery at a time is beyond me. You can of course use your existing V-lock batteries and chargers if you like. The new batteries will apparently charge on old chargers, but you won’t get the benefit of quicker charge times.

Sony’s new dual battery charger

Speaking of power, the additional AXS-R5 RAW recorder module draws as much power as the camera itself. So, when using the RAW recorder, just keep in mind that the battery life will be halved. The AXS-R5 is however extremely light and very compact.

The FS700 adaptor for the AXS-R5 recorder will be released in June. This will enable a 4K RAW output to be recorded from the FS700. Price is yet to be announced.

As far as media goes, a lot of people have been wondering what the price of the new SxS Pro+ cards will be. The Japanese prices are as follows: The 128GB cards are around $1300 US, the 64GB card around $870 US.

The new Sony cinema lenses

I also managed to try out the new Sony PL mount cine lenses. They are a lot bigger and heavier than the previous ones that were originally available for purchase with the F3 and are now made out of metal instead of hard plastic, but retain the same T2 speed.  Optically, I was not able to compare whether they were any better than the original Sony PL lenses. They did seem to be very sharp from the time I spent using them. They will be available as either a set of six (20, 25, 35, 50, 85 and 135mm) or as a set of three (20, 25 and 135mm). This last option is for people who have already originally purchased the PL lens set with the F3. I was not able to get any clarification on whether they will be available to purchase separately. The six lens set will retail for around $25,000US  and the three lens set around $14,000 US.

On the subject of lenses: if you plan on using the Sony 18-252mm servo zoom lens on the F55/5 you will be able to buy a CBK-DCB01 demand converter box that will be able to go between the remote port on the camera and a zoom controller such as those made by Canon for broadcast cameras. This will also be available in June and will enable you to use servo zoom operation.  Price will be around $1300US.

I also managed to try out the new F55 rig from Movcam.  I am a big fan of the current Movcam product range – I use their rigs daily on my F3 and FS700. Even Sony’s Takashi Irikura was very impressed with the balance and build quality. I had the F55 on my shoulder and found it very easy to use hand-held. Having that proper viewfinder too, makes a huge difference.

The F55 and Movcam rig

My overall impressions of this camera are mostly positive. A fantastic image, versatility in recording formats, great view finders, compact size – and it’s absolutely superb in low light. The global shutter and colour gamut of the F55 really make this camera a very enticing proposition. The downsides are the ridiculous waiting times for firmware updates and the glaring omission of key features at release.

Sony have ultimately made an outstanding camera that packs a punch, but will leave a sour taste in the mouths of owners who will have to wait almost eight months to savour features that should be included at launch.

About Matthew Allard, Aljazeera Team Leader Cameras, Kuala Lumpur:
Matt has been a Camera/Editor in TV news for more 22 years, previously working for both Channel 9 and Channel 10 in Australia. Twice Network Ten Australia’s cameraman of the year as well as being a Walkley Finalist for outstanding camerawork in 2006 (for coverage of the Cronulla Race Riots) and a Logie Finalist for outstanding news coverage 2006 (Bali 9). He has won 14 ACS (Australian Cinematographers Society) awards. His Sword Maker story that was shot on a 7D won the prestigious Neil Davis International News Golden Tripod at the 2011 ACS Awards. He has covered news events in more than 35 countries, from major sporting events to terrorist bombings. Based out of the Kuala Lumpur broadcast centre in Malaysia he is an avid user and follower of new technology, shooting stories on HD broadcast cameras, the Sony FS700 and F3 as well as Canon DSLRs.

Reported by Mat Gallagher:

The Metabones Speed Booster Adapter (L) next to a regular Metabones EF to NEX adapter

Even as a self-confessed camera geek it is usually difficult for me to get too excited about lens adapters. Yes there are adapters from Novaflex, Kipon and MTF Services that allow you to use old Leica lenses on Sony NEX mount or old OM lenses on Micro Four Thirds. These increase the appeal of the smaller sensor cameras but these are just metal brackets with enough space to correct for the varying flange depths. The new Speed Booster adapter from Metabones, however, offers something unique and exciting. The Speed Booster is essentially an inverse teleconverter (technically a Barlow lens arrangement) to a factor of 0.71x. This means that the image size is reduced by 0.71x, allowing more of it to fit on the smaller sensor, reducing the crop factor and providing more light on the sensor area.

A diagram showing how the Speed Booster optics work

This focal reduction process was not possible with APS-C DSLR’s like the Canon 7D, due to the mirror system. However, interchangeable mirrorless cameras and large sensor video cameras like the NEX FS100, FS700 or VG20 allow an uninterrupted path to the sensor and therefore allow the addional optics to be fitted successfully (Sadly it doesn’t look like this adapter will work on Cinema EOS C100, C300 and C500 cameras because even though there is no mirror the gap between lens mount and sensor still exists).

Focal Length
A standard 50mm lens via a regular adapter gives an equivalent focal length of approximately 75mm (full-frame equivalent) on an APS-C sensor body or 100mm (full-frame equivalent) on a MicroFourThirds body; using the Speed Booster adapter, Metabones claim, the lens gives a 53.25mm full-frame focal length equivalent on the same APS-C sensor, or 71mm on MicroFourThirds. Simply put – you should get a very similar look and magnification out of your full frame lenses used on a Micro 4/3 or NEX camera as you would with the same lenses on a full-frame camera.

A diagram from Metabones illustrating the change in coverage when using the adapter

Where this is really likely to come in useful is for wider focal lengths. Achieving anything truly wide with smaller sensors previously meant buying lenses specially designed for the APS-C or Super35mm sensor size. Now those full-frame 16-35‘s, 17-40‘s and 14-24’s which many shooters have in their bags can be used as true ultra-wide lenses again. It is perhaps a slight disappointment that the adapter doesn’t bring the lenses back to exact 35mm focal lengths – but this is certainly very usable none the less.

On both APS-C and Micro Four Thirds versions, the amount of light falling on the sensor increases by around a stop – hence the name Speed Booster – this is due to the light that would normally miss the sensor being redirected by the optics. So an f/1.2 becomes f/0.9, an f/1.8 becomes f/1.2 and an f/4 lens becomes an f/2.8.

As with a teleconverter this change in the amount of light hitting the sensor does not equal a change in the actual depth of field. So a 24-105mm f4L lens fitted to a Sony FS700 or other NEX camera and set at f2.8 on the camera (the adapter automatically adjusts the displayed aperture with most EF lenses) would have the same amount of depth of field as a 24-105mm set at f4 on a Canon full frame camera like the 5DmkII. You would not get the equivalent look of a f2.8 lens on a full-frame body.

Lens mounts
The adapter will be available initially in Canon EF to Sony NEX mount. A dummy Canon EF to Micro4/3 will follow shortly after along with Nikon to NEX and M4/3. Plans for Leica R, Contax C/Y, Contrex and Alpha lens adapters are underway.
Due to the reduction of the image size using the adapter, a full frame lens is required to fully cover an APS-C sensor. However, for Micro Four Thirds sensors, a digital only (EF-S or DX) lens can be used. So when the Micro 4/3 version becomes available popular zooms like the Tokina 11-16mm, Canon 17-55mm f2.8 (Metabones have informed us that Canon EF-S lenses won’t physically fit on the adapter, Nikon and Tokina lenses should work) and Nikon 17-55mm f2.8 will regain their wide-angle look.

Image Quality
Metabones also makes some bold claims about the Speed Booster’s image quality. The adapter has been corrected for field curvature, coma, astigmatism, distortion, and chromatic aberration, leaving a small amount of spherical aberration, it says, to improve Bokeh at its maximum aperture. Interestingly the addition of the adapter is believed to improve MTF figures (a claim that is hotly contested). Metabones states in its white paper on the adapter that the concentration rather than magnification of the image results in lesser aberrations and increased contrast.

The adapter features a removable tripod mount and in the Canon EF version, allows electronic iris control, AF and Image stabilizer functionality. The unit price and availability are still to be confirmed but we already have our hands on a preproduction sample, so expect to hear more on the Speed Booster soon. Initial tests have proved positive but please wait until we have had a chance to evaluate it further.

The Speed Booster is not to be confused with the existing Metabones EF to NEX Smart adapter which while looking similar does not have the correcting optics.

Specification:
Magnification: 0.71x
Maximum input aperture: f/1.26
Maximum output aperture: f/0.90
Lens elements/groups: 4/4
Objective lens mounts: Canon-EF, Nikon-F (Leica-R, Contax C/Y, Contarex and Alpa planned)
Capabilities, Canon-EF version: Electronic iris control, AF and VR
Capabilities, Nikon-F version: Manual iris control of G type lenses
Camera mounts: Sony NEX, Micro Four Thirds, (Fuifilm X planned)
Length reduction (Sony NEX, version): 4.16mm
Length reduction (Micro Four Thirds version): 6.17mm
Dimensions Sony NEX version (diameter x length): 69mm x 27mm (with tripod mount removed)
Weight Sony NEX version: 194 grams
Tripod mount: Removable type with Arca Swiss compatibility (fits popular photographic quick releases)

A full white paper about the adapter is available for download from Metabones here.

Below are some sample still images shot by site editor Dan Chung using a prototype Metabones Speedbooster in a non scientific test (Click to zoom):

Sony NEX7, Canon 50mm f1.2L, 1/50th at f1.0 using with Speed Booster , 100ISO (16×9 mode)

Sony Nex 7, Canon 8-15mm at long end, 1/50th f2.8 using Speed Booster , 400 ISO (16×9 mode)

Sony NEX7, Canon 70-200mm f2.8L II, 176mm setting, 1/125th, f2.0 wide open using Speed Booster, ISO 400 (16×9 mode)

Sony Nex7, Canon 70-200mm f2.8L II, 70mm setting, 1/200th, f2.0 wide open using Speed Booster, ISO 400 (16×9 mode)

Sony Nex7, Contax/Zeiss 50mm f1.4, 1/125th, stopped down to f2 on the lens, using Speed Booster, ISO 800 (16×9 mode)

Sony Nex7, Canon 300mm f4L IS, 1/250th, wide open using Speed Booster, ISO 1600 (16×9 mode)

By technical editor Matt Allard:

Movcam FS700 Rig Review from Matthew Allard on Vimeo.

Movcam is a Chinese company that is producing some impressive rigs for cameras such as the Sony FS700/100, F3 and Canon C300.  The quality of the design and construction seems to be as good if not better than anything else I have seen. 

Their rigs are compact and a lot of thought has gone into the design and functionality. The other thing they have got going for them is price.  With a weakened US dollar and cheaper Chinese manufacturing Movcam are able to keep their costs down while still maintaining high quality.

The FS700 rig consists of three parts.  The bottom plate which features an integrated shoulder pad, Arri style rosette connectors and holes for 15mm rods front and back.  A bridging piece that connects the bottom plate to the top handle to keep everything nice and solid.  Then the final piece is the top handle that securely fastens in four spots to provide you with a solid connection to the camera.  There are plenty of 1/4 20 and other mounting holes all over the rig which offer added flexibility with third party accessories. Movcam also offer a range of other accessories such as a cold shoe to 15mm rod hole and a 15mm to 15mm right angle adaptor for mounting items such as an external EVF or monitor. The cage comes in a choice of silver or black colours.

The Movcam Blackmagic Cinema Camera cage

Also available soon is their Black Magic Cinema Camera rig which has looks very well thought out. It features a cage that bolts onto other parts of the Movcam rig range.  It also has nice detachable carved wooden handgrips on each side with a record button that uses an integrated LANC cable so you should be able to stop start the recording on the BMCC. UK dealer CVP has already listed the cage at a price of £695 Sterling plus tax.

For more information check out their range of rigs at the Movcam website.

Many thanks to Scott Hui for shooting this video.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed are those of my own and not of any company or organisation.  I do not have a commercial agreement with Movcam of any sort. Movcam provided some of the smaller items in this review for evaluation.

About Matthew Allard, Aljazeera Senior Field Cameraman, Kuala Lumpur:
Matt has been a Camera/Editor in TV news for more 20 years, previously working for both Channel 9 and Channel 10 in Australia. Twice Network Ten Australia’s cameraman of the year as well as being a Walkley Finalist for outstanding camerawork in 2006 (for coverage of the Cronulla Race Riots) and a Logie Finalist for outstanding news coverage 2006 (Bali 9). He is a multiple ACS (Australian Cinematographers Society) award winner. His Sword Maker story that was shot on a 7D won the prestigious Neil Davis International News Golden Tripod at the 2011 ACS Awards. He has covered news events in more than 35 countries, from major sporting events to terrorist bombings. Based out of the Kuala Lumpur broadcast centre in Malaysia he is an avid user and follower of new technology, shooting stories on HD broadcast cameras, the Sony F3 as well as new Canon DSLRs.

Guest post by David Fazekas:

I recently purchased a Sony NEX-FS700 and have been finding any excuse to use it. I even use it around the house to record the most mundane things, which of course look AWESOME at 240fps – pouring hot water in a tea cup, lighting a match, my wife giving our baby a kiss. So when my senior producer, Jonathan O’Beirne, here at Reuters TV came to me with the idea of doing a Tech Tonic on The Impossible Project and its new Instant Lab project, my first thought was – great idea! Second thought, perfect video to use the FS700.

Canon was also kind enough to lend us a Canon C300 for a couple of weeks, which I thought would make matching the FS700 in post much easier than if we used a Canon 5D mkII or 60D. Using these two Super 35mm sensor cameras was a huge departure from the Panasonic HPX250 ENG camera we usually use. I love the Pannys – the image that comes out of them surprises me every time. But they are definitely no match in image quality for the FS700 or C300. I was also very interested to compare the FS700 and C300 in post.

Shooting with the Sony FS700

Here at Reuters TV we like to go handheld on our shoots, which I would never do with a DSLR. So for this shoot I thought I’d go hand held with the FS700, since it was easy to hold and I would be able to use my chest as a support for it like I do with the Panasonics. Big mistake. I’ll explain why later, but you can probably guess. I did bring a tripod, but planned to only use it for b-roll. My colleague, Connor Boals manned the C300 and used a monopod – much smarter.

Connor Boals with the Canon C300

We each used Canon EF 50mm f1.2L lenses for the shoot. This would be the first time I used Canon glass on my FS700, since I had just received my Metabones EOS to NEX adapter the week before. The adapter worked great. I actually preferred controlling the iris using the wheel on the side of the camera instead of on the lens itself like I do on my de-clicked Zeiss ZF lenses. For a picture profile on the FS700 I used Sony’s preset picture profile 4. Having only owned the FS700 for a few weeks I had not had time to fiddle around with them. Out of all the preset picture profile options I felt 4 gave me the flattest image to grade later on. On the C300 we used a picture profile customized by our engineering manager, Phil Jache. I unfortunately don’t know the specifics of what he changed.

After the shoot, we returned back to the office and I was eager to check out the footage. The thing that hit me immediately was how much better the FS700 was in low-light than the C300. The other thing that hit me was how shaky the FS700 looked and I like to believe that I have a pretty steady hand. It looked like it was being operated by a drunk. Connor’s C300 shots were much steadier and useable on the monopod. This definitely had me panicking a bit – the FS700 footage was unusable as is and the footage was of the guest, Dave Bias. If it had been of the host, Anthony De Rosa, I could work around that. So this would be the first time I used the smooth camera filter in Final Cut Pro 7, another big mistake (I will explain why later). The smooth camera filter takes a lot of time to work, so I let it go overnight. The next morning I watched the footage and I was delighted to see that it looked like it had worked. The footage looked like it was being used by a sober hand.

Presenter Anthony De Rosa in the photo booth at The Impossible Project during the shoot

Once I had finished my edit, it was time to do some color correcting and try to match the two cameras. As you can guess the footage from the two cameras DID look different. The C300 had a more video/glossy look to it than the FS700. I wasn’t going to be able to match the two cameras perfectly, especially with the time I had, so I got them as close as I could. After color correcting, it was time to do some coloring.

I used Magic Bullet’s Looks, Colorista II and Mojo to grade. You usually have to be careful with using the default settings on Magic Bullet, especially Looks. They can take any realism out of the look. This was something I didn’t have to worry about on this video. This was a piece about Polaroids and its look, so I planned to make the video look like one big Polaroid. I found grading the FS700 footage much easier than the C300′s, but that might be because the C300 footage was a bit underexposed. In the end though, I was very happy with how both cameras came out.

After a day and a half of editing and grading, it was time to export. When I looked at the exported Quicktime movie file, I was terrified to see that all the FS700 shots I used smooth cam on were shakier than before I used the filter. I called over our editor extraordinaire Jonathan O’Beirne and he was as mystified as me. After doing a Google search, it appeared we weren’t the only ones facing this problem. Apparently it’s a major bug in FCP 7. Don’t look forward to Apple fixing that one anytime soon. I don’t know if it has been fixed in FCP X. The solution was to bring the footage into Motion and use the stabilizer filter. This actually worked better than the FCP7 smooth cam filter.

In the end, I was very impressed with both cameras. I just love the ergonomics of the C300. Its a great camera to use handheld, unlike the FS700 – which I learned the had way. I also love how the C300′s LCD is set-up, as a detachable option that can swivel any number of ways. The FS700′s LCD has less options – it really only has one move, turning 180 degrees. And forget about using the optional eyepiece to help stabilize the camera using it as a handheld – the viewfinder doesn’t lock hard enough to use it like that. Now, I’m not trying to make the FS700 seem like a terribly built camera because it isn’t. But compared to the C300, the FS700 is lacking in the comfort of the palm department.

How about the images from each camera? I mean, that is what we really care about right? I have to admit I like the picture out of the FS700 more. Skin tones looked a whole of a lot better out of the FS700 than the C300 in my opinion. I have never really been a fan of skin tones out of Canon’s DSLRs and they look the same to me out of the C300 – somewhat unnatural. Also, the FS700′s low-light performance worked much better than the C300′s. I’m somewhat nitpicking though as each camera is a fantastic camera to use and own, if you can afford them.

The FS700 is of course almost twice as less as the C300 and it has that going for it. Though if the price of the two cameras were the same I still think I would go with the FS700. The high frame rate is great and the ability to someday be able to upgrade to shoot at 4K are huge bonuses. I will definitely not go pure hand-held with the FS700 anytime soon again – just tripods and shoulder rigs from now on.

David Fazekas is a journalist, documentarian, father and a very sad Jets and Mets fan.
You can follow him on Twitter @nozekas
You also see more of his work on Vimeo.