My first camera (early 2000’s) was a 3ccd Sony TRV900 which was a great miniDV camera at the time. But somehow it became the first and last Sony camera I owned, as I ended up in Panasonic’s lineup and later started owning cameras from almost every other major brand. While Sony has been making great cameras over the years, what they really excel at has never really met my needs as a filmmaker.
Original Sony TRV900
The Sony FS700 is a great example of a Sony camera that in theory is the perfect camera for a filmmaker like me, but still doesn’t quite fit the bill. On paper, this camera looks pretty incredible – especially considering the price point. It has all the pro-grade features you want (including extremely high frame rates) and is extremely reliable. That being said, for whatever reason, the camera has always felt a little too “videoy” to me, for lack of a better word. That’s not to say it doesn’t have excellent image quality, resolution and low-light capabilities… But somehow the final image never really has that intangible cinematic pop that a movie camera can provide, which is why (at least in my opinion) it’s more suited to documentary style/event production.
So the FS700 and FS100 never fully met my needs as a narrative filmmaker, but what about their theatrical lineup? Especially F3/F5/F55…
For me, the issue with cinema cameras in the past has always been the price point. The F-Series line offers some truly excellent options that rival some of the best cinema cameras out there, but its relatively high price keeps filmmakers like me from investing. Until the last few years, I didn’t shoot with high-end cinema cameras on a regular basis, and my work usually didn’t have the budget to justify renting them, So while Sony has been offering some capable cinema-style cameras for some time, they’ve been somewhat reserved for larger-scale productions. Sony has always been a major player in this game (especially in the documentary/high-end film space), but many filmmakers looking for affordable cinema cameras have had to turn to Panasonic/Canon/Blackmagic and other brands to meet their needs, Because Sony hasn’t covered this area well in a long time. That’s clearly changing as we speak, though, and I personally think it’s a great move on Sony’s part considering how many shooters in the affordable cinema camera space end up switching to higher-end cinema cameras .
Why should Sony take over?
Since releasing the original 5D MK II and continuing until a few years ago, Canon has had its strongest foothold in the low-budget market. In 2011/2012, almost everyone I knew owned a 5D, and many of those shooters ended up switching to Canon’s Cinema series (i.e. the C100 and C300). However, once Canon’s development and innovation began to plateau, many shooters began looking for other solutions. Many went to smaller companies like Blackmagic/RED, others switched to Panasonic (particularly the GH4), and still others just stuck with Canon gear, waiting for something else to come along. For those in the latter category, Sony appears to be delivering the tool they’ve been waiting for.
My reasoning is simple – Sony is covering every corner of the camera market and doing a great job at it. They now have one of the best DSLRs (or DSLMs) around – the A7, the powerful and affordable FS7, a wide range of broadcast cameras, and a cinema lineup (F5/F55), to name just a few of the major highlights. The fact that they not only meet the needs of such a wide range of filmmakers, but also push the envelope of technology (by delivering unparalleled low-light performance, high frame rates, and more) is simply astounding.
Conversely, companies like Blackmagic and RED also make amazing cameras, but they’re aimed at a smaller, more specific type of user and may never reach the masses the way Sony does – at least in the near future. Then there’s Panasonic, currently lacking in the sub-$10k cinema camera market… yes, the GH4 is great, but they really don’t have a strong C100/FS7 competitor and desperately need to fill that gap. So once again, we’re left with Sony, which seems to be trying to cover all areas by offering a range of cameras to suit the needs of any type of production.
Sony also seems to have a better approach to product development and innovation at the moment than other companies (i.e. Canon). They are pushing high-end features like 4K, high ISO, smaller bodies, better color science, even on their lower-cost products. Unlike Canon, they don’t seem to be afraid of cannibalizing their high-end lineup by releasing powerful yet affordable cameras… This pays huge dividends for them.
The Lumix GH4 seems to take more of Canon’s business than the A7S (at least from my highly subjective experience), but the A7S is still very strong and arguably the best full-frame video SLR around. Many previous 5D owners have moved on to the A7S, just as many current C100 owners I know are considering the FS7, which is a clear indication of a movement happening in the industry today. Then came the F5/F55, which quickly became one of the most popular cinema cameras and was chosen over RED on many high-end productions. RED cameras are great (don’t get me wrong!) and I use them all the time…but the needs of the industry are changing and cameras like the Alexa (the gold standard) are too expensive for many productions and owners/ Carrier, the F55 offers a very good and cheaper alternative to Alexa. In my opinion, it’s somewhere between the RED and the Alexa in terms of overall image quality, and its ergonomics are closer to the Alexa.
All of this is a clear indication of Sony’s dedication to its products and customers. But if that wasn’t enough, yesterday’s news was leaked –
Sony 6K 240fps sensor
For those who haven’t heard about this, in a nutshell, some specs have been leaked detailing Sony’s new 6K sensor, capable of 6K frame rates up to 240 fps and 2K frames up to 16,000 fps The rate for shooting – it’s absolutely incredible. It’s worth pointing out that this is a 1.5-inch sensor (closer in size to a Micro Four Thirds), and there’s no telling what this sensor will be used for, but one thing is for sure: Sony is innovating like crazy right now. Not only are the sensor’s specs ridiculous, but in many ways it represents an entirely new type of sensor technology.
this is an exception nofilmschool.com:
Rather than using the traditional Bayer color interpolation method (with separate pixels for the red, green, and blue channels), the new sensor uses a technology called “active pixel color sampling” that can sample each of the three colors. Each color is sampled. Essentially, this means that the new sensor only needs 1/3 of the pixels to output the same resolution. The new sensor has 4.85 megapixels, which is tiny compared to many modern cameras, but it can output data roughly equivalent to a 15-megapixel sensor.
Another implication of active pixel color sampling technology is that these sensors can have much larger pixels than traditional sensors, which theoretically means that in the future we may see even larger pixels than the venerable Sony A7 Low light performance.
This new sensor combined with Sony’s already extensive video product lineup truly makes them the most relevant camera manufacturer in the entire field. Only time will tell, and who knows what the secrets of Panasonic, Canon, and the other big players are, but if nothing else, it’s safe to say that Sony is leading the way at the moment. While I currently don’t own any Sony cameras, my next camera purchase will most likely just be a Sony camera.
