VIDEO VOODOO This clever Panasonic PTZ camera uses Sennheiser mics to single out the speaker, automatically focusing on them
The ultimate magazine for next generation filmmakers
Editor in chief Adam Duckworth Chief sub editor Alex Bell Sub editor Elisha Young Junior sub editor Jack Nason EDITORIAL ADVERTISING Group ad manager Sam Scott-Smith 01223 499457 samscott-smith@bright-publishing.com Senior sales executive Jemma Farrell-Shaw jemmafarrell-shaw@bright-publishing.com DESIGN Design director Andy Jennings Design manager Alan Gray Senior designer Lucy Woolcomb Designer and ad production Man-Wai Wong PUBLISHING Managing directors Andy Brogden & Matt Pluck MEDIA SUPPORTERS AND PARTNERS OF:
Some filmmakers painstakingly select cameras and lenses for each individual job, not only considering the size, but the organic look and feel of the sensor, as well as how it might grade. Along with the contrast, bokeh and highlight fall-off of the chosen lenses, this all complements the visual landscape and feeling the director is trying to get across to the audience. And then, there’s the rest of us. Most independent filmmakers choose cameras that work for lots of different projects, and suitable lenses that fall into budget – not everyone is a Hollywood DOP. Yet we still have a great affinity to our kit. We carefully choose it for our needs and budget, as well as its suitability for the lenses we own or might buy. We develop a real relationship with it. I’ll be the first to admit that I’d love a Red with a set of Zeiss primes, even though it’s not the best tool for the work I do. I just want one. That leads me on to some of the cameras in this issue. Many of them are very different to the traditional and desirable modular cinema camera, such as Red, Arri, Sony or what have you. Blackmagic’s blatantly unpocketable Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro is a very large and odd-looking beast, especially if you bolt on the accessory battery grip and optional EVF. Yet it does a very fine job for some users. At the other end of the size scale, the tiny Sigma fp L has a full-frame 61-megapixel sensor. Tomake it more usable, there’s an EVF that bolts on to the side. While it’s packed with spec, it’s not a form factor that most filmmakers would probably dreamof owning or using – but it might be right for you. Strangest of all are the new breed of PTZ remote cameras, consistently the highest-selling cameras in recent years. New to this boomingmarket is Canon – its CR-X500 looks like a security camera, but costs £23,750/$22,000. And some of Panasonic’s PTZ range can now employ a system that uses Sennheiser mics to identify who is speaking, automatically focusing on, and tracking them, using face detection. All this is about as far away from choosing vintage-look lenses for their flare characteristics, of course. But the Covid-hit world is changing, and filmmakers who can offer top-quality remote solutions and streaming options are in a very good place. Youmight not use a PTZ camera to film your first feature-length blockbuster, but it could open up a new, potentially lucrative world of opportunities for filmmakers who think outside the box. The world will never return to pre-Covid normality, and those that can adapt will survive and thrive.
Bright Publishing Ltd, Bright House, 82 High Street, Sawston, Cambridgeshire CB22 3HJ
Pro Moviemaker is published bimonthly by Bright Publishing Ltd, Bright House, 82 High Street, Sawston, Cambridge CB22 3HJ. No part of this magazine can be used without prior written permission of Bright Publishing Ltd. ISSN number: 2045-3892. Pro Moviemaker is a registered trademark of Bright Publishing Ltd. The advertisements published in Pro Moviemaker that have been written, designed or produced by employees of Bright Publishing Ltd remain the copyright of Bright Publishing Ltd and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. The content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. Prices quoted are street prices. In sterling they include VAT but US dollar prices are without local sales taxes. Prices are where available or converted using the exchange rate on the day the magazine went to press.
ADAM DUCKWORTH, EDITOR IN CHIEF
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