Thanks for the fantastic response
I just wanted to put up a quick public thank you to everyone for visiting – and for all of the comments.
539,380 have visited this blog since Saturday and 211,935 today alone – and that’s nuts. The most amazing thing: my server (Rob Haggart’s to be exact) is still up – as are both the Canon and SmugMug servers that are serving up the massive amounts of data…
Just to put things in perspective… (While I can’t really assume that everyone visiting this site has been here to see the video and downloaded it – but the numbers are showing that 98% or so or the visits are to both of those videos) I think it’s safe to assume that between that (and the fact that people are visiting the Canon web site directly from other articles/blogs etc from around the world) let’s assume for a minute that the 89.4 MB has been seen “only” 211,935 times (and that does not include all of the other sites linking to the video directly… sites that undoubtedly send much greater traffic to them than this little blog does…) To put it in perspective – today alone: a minimum of 18,946,989 Megabytes …. almost 19 TB alone have been transmitted – I know Smug Mug is up to 3.8 TB of bandwidth for the behind the scenes video – today alone… these numbers are nuts to me.
Anyway – thanks for all of the kind words. My apologies for not getting back to the comments today – I will do so tomorrow. It’s 10 p.m. and I’m going to catch up on rest – so that I can be at maybe 90% tomorrow – it’s been a very long – but invigorating – ten days! And this looks to be just the beginning…
The film was fantastic, I just showed it to my brother, who’s also a photographer, and he was absolutely blown away. I’m excited to get my hands on one and use it while out on assignment. No more carrying both. Just one. This truly has changed everything. Thanks for sharing this with us.
And by both, I meant a cruddy, paper-issued HDV cam and the cruddy, paper issued Nikons.
hehe, you are now very hot.
The videos are amazing ! Difficult to think what the future and the technology can bring to us.
Thank you very much for sharing this and your knowledge. Keep the good work and greetings from Guatemala !
videos are very very good, but far away from “available light” only – there has been some serious lightning in place.
fantastic film! and truly, the difference between the still and the video camera is awesome… I think my next camera will be a 5D mark II 🙂
Sadly, my XTi can’t shoot “video” like that…. but who cares.
Absolutely amazing project. Great exposure for both yourself and Canon’s release of the Mark II. I can’t wait to get my hands on one of these. But again, really great job, I’ve watched it a few times today 😉
Vincent – thank you for opening our eyes to the possibilities. I’m going to show your videos to some of the folks at the company I work for, so they’ll see that the new media landscape is changing so rapidly that we either hop on the cluetrain or fold our tent and go home. The future beckons: http://www.mediastorm.org
You are truly amazing. When is your next film being shot?
Lubomir – what do you mean by serious lighting? Did you see the behind the scenes video… one pro 7b head… two lights… most of the time only one… that’s it… understand your skepticism as this camera’s low light sensitivity is groundbreaking – “but thems are the facts…”
I want a sequel! 🙂
Vincent
I am an aspiring young guy that is looking for some guidance. I love to take photos and video. Now that I have been out of high school for a few years I have worked hard to afford my cameras and have been slowly teaching myself. With some luck and a lot of studying others work online I am learning as best as I can. Every chance I get to shoot anything I take it. I try to learn from my mistakes but over time they seem to put a hold on my creative side!
What kind of guidance can you offer a guy in my position. I truly believe photography/videography is my true passion in life.
Thanks,
Steven Campbell
Stunning photography! Equally stunning commitment to the project. Decisive follow-through with time and treasure. Recognition of an opportunity and pulling the trigger on a few minutes notice. An eye for the details and the art.
I’m impressed. (Can you tell?)
Just one cinematic observation … early in the piece the guy (Jimmy Reed?) is framed on the far left with a light on the right. Jimmy is looking to the left of the camera. In the next shot, as you tilt up, we see the woman (Alix Rush?) is also looking to the left side of the camera. The result is that the don’t exactly look like they are looking at each other.
It’s a minor quibble (the only flaw I saw) and with the short pre-production period, like near zero, you likely didn’t plot plan ever shot to check eye-lines and all that.
I only point it out because … well, I’m kind of a perfectionist and this is one way it can be constructive, assuming you hadn’t notice that yourself already.
I’m looking forward to your next one.
Peace, love, laughter,
Rob:-]
hi vincent
great work – thanks for this
noted in your list of lenses one says
FD 7.5mm f/5.6 (converted to EF mount)
i am up to my neck in FD lenses – didn’t realize they could be converted to EOS mounts?
where can one get this done?
you give me hope – I haven’t gone digital yet – still shooting film with the older Canons
any and all comments/advice welcomed
thanks again
Give a man a rock and he makes an axe.
Give Vincent a digital still camera and he makes a
movie. The Canon 5D Mark II will take photojournalism to the next level.
Not many initial efforts with new equipment leave me breathless. Your control of the technology is certainly outstanding. Do you want to inform Canon, or should I, that they owe you a major percentage of 5D-II sales? Thanks for sharing your talents.
Thank you for sharing good and useful information to all of us!
Keep writing!
It is all great, but really love the helicopter sequence! Thanks!
Personally, the car scenes are by far my favorite. I really like the ultra-wide (fisheye? maybe not quite – I can see distortion in the building profiles) lens usage from the hood of the car. Nice NY street footage! Looks like you had lots of fun being creative about your light sources – like the (presumably laptop driven) HDTV light source you used while the actor was asleep on the couch.
Thanks for sharing.
Vincent — when Lubomir talked about “serious lighting”, I think he meant that it was very obvious when the light was turned on. This is more a statement of just exactly how sensitive the camera is to virtually any light at all, and is not a reflection of how much light you used compared to how much lighting is normally used on shoots like this.
@Lubomir — normally, shoots like this will have enough half a dozen or a dozen major lights or more, and they may need to have a trailer-size generator that they take with them everywhere just to power the lighting. Now, compare that to using what (by these standards) amounts to a fancy flashlight as your only additional lighting source.
Unbelievable. I’d really love to see the original 1080P video.
Unfortunately, Canon doesn’t seem to get the fact that anything that can be streamed can be captured and downloaded, something that QuickTime MOV format makes easier than most others, although even Flash video can be downloaded no matter how hard companies like YouTube try to prevent it. Of course, at those file sizes, few people outside of Korea or Japan are going to have the kind of bandwidth required to stream that live, so a download really would be the only effective way to deliver that content. Which means we only get quarter size content, because Canon insists on streaming-only. Sigh….
Truly amazing video. What you did with what you had was unreal. Keep up the amazing work.
We have to say thanks for your amazing work! 🙂
Vincent
Many thanks. Outstanding – the video, the work at getting it out and the camera itself. My order is in and deposit down(even though the price hasn’t been anounced here yet). Now I just have to decide whether to go for the kit or rely on the IS of my 28-135 for video and use my 24-70 for still.
I dont normally comment on these sort of things but like everyone else has said I watched the vid over and over again then phoned all my mates to tell them to look at it ! The camera is unbelievable but its only as good as the the person behind it and most of us (probably all of us) could never come up with what you have shot !Im just trying to think how the vid facility is going to be useful in social events – the reality is the client will now want a wedding album, all the images, an album AND a video for the same price !!!Im hopefully getting my hands on one of these this week to look at, but somehow I dont think the rainy streets of manchester will look quite the same as New York !! I shall however keep looking at your work for inspiration ! Get over here and do a talk !!
Vincent, I’m a desktop applications program and I must say, the video you made is absolutely brilliant, and you did it with a still camera!
it’s my pleasure namesake 😉
Truly fantastic !! I cannot imagine a better promotion for the 5D mark II ..
vincent , there is a lot of people around here who would love to be abble to download the 1080p footage or a part of it…
why not puting it on bittorent …. it will scale perfectly.
I forgive you for not getting back to me 😀
Keep it up!!!
Chris
19TB???? Arggg, sooo much!!!it’s incredible!
Fantastic film, I didn’t want to buy the new 5D II but now !!!!! I’ve a lots of perspective…… 🙂
Thank you Vincent to open my eyes 🙂
David
I’ve been following this topic closely since you started blogging about it, on your blog as well as else where and I must say it’s discouraging to see so many people criticizing what you’ve done.
I’ve seen people complaining about how you’re just a big marketing gimmick to how poor your directing abilities are to how you should stick to photography. I really wish they could just step back and see the bigger picture and not be so close-minded/fan-boyish.
I know there are a lot of people out there who feel threatened by this camera because it might bring negative remarks towards their products but really they should just look at it as another way of stimulating the market. This is one pebble in the great big pond, the ripples are felt, but there will be bigger splashes to come and not solely from Canon. This is good for everyone.
You were granted two days to test out a pre-production camera. You could have done as everyone else and taken some sample pictures, shot some sample video, blah blah blah–but you didn’t. You decided to really put some effort into this and piece together something quite extraordinary with what little time and resources you had. I can’t possibly see how anyone can knit pick you on this.
Yet they do… they say you’re being deceptive about you lighting, that you’re using an “expensive video tripod” so you’re not accurately representing the camera as a “normal” user might use it etc… I’m not sure what they expect? You have limited experience with video production (as you’ve clearly stated) and you jumped in and did your best and they seem to be criticizing you for that. They seem to think that this is just a media hyping scheme put together by Canon to shoot down the D90 yadda yadda yadda…
I personally believe what you’ve written and have witnessed the hurdles you’ve had to jump through to get Canon to not only give you the camera but to get your footage approved and hosted for the world to see.
What these people need to understand is that this is not a ‘test’ video to show the world how much (or how little) wobble/skew/jello the rolling shutter produces. But rather that this is a creative and artistic production you enthusiastically put together (at your own expense) to show what can be expected from this camera.
It’s not a production model, who knows how the specs will be changing (30p, 24p, 25p?). I guarantee once this camera makes it to production and into the hands of consumers it will be wibbled and wobbled every which way exhaustively and exactingly.
But for now, what you’ve done is something different. I doubt you ever intended it to be a technical analysis of the camera. You took an artistic license and did something creative and fun and the incredible response you’ve seen from it proves just how successful your endeavors have become.
Fantastic job Vincent, I look forward to your future productions.
No problem, you instantly convinced us switching from the 5D to the 5DMkII. Two ordered, right now… Man, what a camera!
Fantastic video. Would love to see even a short clip ( 30secs-60secs) in full resolution posted. BTW whats the model’s name?
Hi Vincent
Thanks for making the footage available one question Why was the Hi Def pulled from Smugmug was it TOO GOOD!
regards
Jon
simply amazing!. thanks
@ Inga – you can get adapters, do a google search, there are many good, options 🙂
Do you have a record of what shutter speed you shot most of this at Vincent? As Stu Maschwitz commented before, it looks great but it does still look like ‘video’, guessing that a lot of it had been shot at 1/30 rather than 1/60 or above that might have helped with the video feel. I made a conversion of your file in After Effects to 24P and it does look better, but still a little too video. Excited to see more though.
@Jim – It is not shot using “shutter speed”, it is a real video, out from the beast. The mirror is flip permanently and the video is straight out of the sensor.
@MGR I understand the video is not controlled by the physical shutter, but would expect some level of shutter speed control in the same way that you can on most camcorders. Electronically altering the speed at which the sensor detects the image. So I’m to gather that this is just working in some kind of Auto mode, like cheaper camcorders.
@Jim – Ahhhh, I understand what you mean. You are right. It’s probably limited by the single DiGiC IV processor. In any case, I’m also excited to see where it’s going to “go”. It’s the first time we see this possibility with a DSLR.
Vincent
I have a question. How come if you are so good and Canon does know you are that good they did not assigned one of this beta cameras to you for testing?
Could this just be a PR ploy by Canon?
Still the camera does merit some attention since it appears that Canon have done the right move on mixing photos and videos this is probably the future here. Hopefully they are listening to people here. Asking for 24fps and other request.
Hi Vincent,
Wondering if this would allow one to shoot and save directly to an external hard drive, I guess, much like shooting tethered.
In essence, one could, maybe, preview shots on Final Cut Pro live while saving clips in bins directly?
What a pleasure — any skepticism I might have had about the technology is completely resolved. The nighttime shots of the Manhattan skyline from the helicopter were particularly striking. I love this city.
Vincent,
Followed you on SportShooter, you rock. Video is great. My wife loves the little boy in the making video, he rocks too!
Howard
No need to repeat the praiss and respect from others so I just want to repeat the question a couple of folks have already asked – what about audio/using the external mic? The video function will be useless to photojournalists if the sound quality isn’t as good as what you would get with an HDV or HDD camcorder. Did you get a chance to test this during your short weekend with the camera? Did you have the stereo mic accessory? Until we know the sound quality there is no way any news or journalistic organization can commit to the 5D MkII as a serious video camera.
Nice work though.
Richard, London, UK.
Hi Vince,
The video and what the 5D mkII are capable of have blown me away, much like many of the others who have commented! What a fantastic display of talent and technical expertise!!! And for this to be your first attempt at a short film makes it even more impressive.
Now for the real important question…
What Moby track was used in the behind the scenes video? I really want to get my hands on that track!
Thanks in advance & take care,
JT
@ JT – the Moby song is “Extreme Ways” – was also featured in the movie “The Bourne Ultimatum” in case it sounds familiar.
Here’s a link to the Last.FM preview: http://www.last.fm/music/Moby/_/Extreme+Ways
Regards,
Brandon
hi all
been reading all the interesting posts. seems like some nikon D90 users are taking pot shots at canon now. much like PC users tend to put down Apples Macs – its a sign of insecurity or perhaps jealousy – one normally takes potshots at someone or something that is popular or on top of their field – c’mon guys
WE SHOULD JUST BE GLAD THAT TECHNOLOGY AND THE LIKES OF VINCENT ARE GIVING US MORE USEFUL INSIGHT INTO THINGS TO COME – NO MATTER WHO MAKES THE PRODUCT!
thanks again
@JT, like javajive stated the song in the Reverie short film is “Extreme Ways”.
The song used in the Behind the Scenes clip is “Horse & Carrot”.
Both songs are by Moby on the album: 18.
You’ve got me shopping around for an affordable steady-cam rig… this is going to change the way I work bigtime.
Vincent – thank you for opening our eyes to the possibilities. I’m going to show your videos to some of the folks at the company I work for, so they’ll see that the new media landscape is changing so rapidly that we either hop on the cluetrain or fold our tent and go home. The future beckons: http://www.mediastorm.org
What you have done is what all amateurs and beginners want to do with the new D5 II. It’s so easy, yet the quality is amazing. I’m going to spread this video/project so people like me get inspired here in Dubai. Thank You. http://www.shufflegazine.com
Thanks Vincent, really inspiring stuff both from the perspective of the new 5D MK II but also what it opens up for us still photographers who need to move into video.
1 word: “INSPIRATION”
Thats what you get when you see something AWESOME, and you wish you had done it first.
I’m an Art Director from Brazil, Sao Paulo, who lived 4 years in NYC. Your film just brought me back the exact sensation of exploring NY streets.
Thanks.
PS: Just for the record. I visited your blog 3 times since yesterday. Showed it to my workmates, and downloaded it twice, home and office. I’ll post a link in my BLOG. (www.thatsprettycool.blogspot.com)
Vincent,
Beautiful job on the video. It’s amazing to see the great quality of the new Canon 5D MarkII.
Keep up the great work,
Robert
http://www.photographyandthemac.com
Hi Vincent!
Thanks for putting tis video online. Have allready pre.ordered the Mk II. You have done a great job promoting the camera for Canon. =)
Hey, Vince just awesome, your test was key, Canon saved the butt of lots of our media peers, including me, not any more a video camera in one hand and a still camera in the other covering an event. 5D Mark II seems a great tool for new-photojournalism. Of course, as I say: “it’s not just a matter of the arrows, has more to do with the indian”… but in this case 5D Mark II it’s a great new brush for our creative-informative collection of instruments.
(The writer first language is Spanish)
Take care buddy, hope to see you at the Javist in next moth.
Pepe
The Lighting and images were breathtaking!I had to share it with everyone i know!
ยังตราตรึงใจ นะ วินเซนต์
Vince,
Also interested to know how you were able to secure permission to use the music so quickly. A lot of us probably wouldn’t know where to begin to do this.
Strangely enough, the first time I watched the video my computer sound was on mute; I didn’t know this and thought there wasn’t any sound. I was impressed enough in the silent mode to go “wow.”
When I realized my computer sound was on mute, I replayed the video with the sound… it took on another dimension with the music.
Amazing Job! and what a web response. I have brought 3 of my cohorts over just to watch it on the 30″… Thanks to you for the effort.
I have a few quicky questions if you have a minute…
How touchy is the MP4 Footage to color correction.. With HDV
and some MP4 I see macro blocking right away. Hoping The 5DMkII is more robust.
Did autofocus work live while shooting?
The HDMI Port output does it work while recording or only for playback?
From the looks of the software do you think it is probable that Canon will update the firmware to support 24p and maybe someday… Over and under cranking?
Thanks again
Amazing job for a weekend with a new camera.
Michael
Vincent, thanks you for share all this.
Great product.
Superb
Thanks
If you think you can, you probably will
If you think you can’t, you probably won’t
I´ll keep on using good old film…
Mr Laforet check out my PHOTO_VIDEO_BLOG
http://WWW.FRAMEDBLOG.COM
There is some interesting stuff.!!!!!!
Holy macaroni that’s impressive…all the best Vincent!
so cool short film
If u r free
can u send me some photos about this film~
First of all, must concur with so many that have been excited impressed and thankful to have seen this video.
It would be easy to get bogged down in all the technical ramifications of this convergence; it’s been coming for a while now and it looks as if Canon has stepped up the game a little. I am sure the competition won’t be far behind.
The most significant thing is the kinds of doors this opens up for a lot of people to use in new creative ways to tell their stories. To me that’s the big deal. Can’t wait to see what the future holds.
As for the number of people who’ve viewed this mind-blowing video, add the 258 students in my classes. Simply amazing. http://maclab.guhsd.net/
https://blog.vincentlaforet.com is the 21.714th internet site in the world as yesterday
you see it on
http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details/blog.vincentlaforet.com
congratulations
marcelo
thanks andy
I remember this!!!
Amazing movie.
I insipred by you many yerars ago.
Lot of thanks.
Beautiful !