The Canon 5dmkii for video?

[Oceanshutter]

If you have specific questions about filming with the 5d Mark II, feel free to ask me. I shoot with it. I personally think it is an awesome camera to shoot video with. there are drawbacks, but image quality can only be beat by the RED.
You can see what I have shot. https://vimeo.com/dustinadamson All of the videos on there are done with the 5dII.

Dustin

 

[kkfok]

I am thinking about getting a 5d Mark 3 for video, love the color of Canon underwater and the potential to use raw for video. Can I have the advise on lens?
I saw some really good videos with 16-35 II but I worry about focusing and the need to use a big dome port. Are Tokina 10-17 NH or EF 8-15 better choices? I am not really a fan of FE effect especially when you pan the camera sideway.

 

[ScubaInChicago]

Thank you for breathing new life into a three and a half year old thread, at least the camera is not horribly outdated at this point.

I made some underwater and non underwater videos with this Canon 5D Mark II, Canon 7D, Sony Alpha 55, and Sony PMW EX3. Please take a look some of them

Underwater music video using Sony PMW EX3:
[video=vimeo;19225107]http://vimeo.com/19225107[/video]

Underwater video using Canon 5D Mark II in Donggala, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia:
[video=vimeo;56891602]http://vimeo.com/56891602[/video]

Compilation of underwater videos in Indonesia (Whale shark footages taken using Sony Alpha 55):
[video=vimeo;56894115]http://vimeo.com/56894115[/video]

Another compilation of Indonesia's underwater heaven for the ministry of tourism and creative economy of Indonesia (Whale shark footages taken using Sony Alpha 55):
[video=vimeo;67820043]http://vimeo.com/67820043[/video]

My last underwater video project with one of Indonesia's environmental NGO, Diver's Guide on Underwater Clean Up using Canon 7D, land videos using Canon 5D Mark II:
[video=youtube;6fnkUQPjvi0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fnkUQPjvi0[/video]

See more videos and photos on my website ottoferdinand.com or studiofotto.net
Cheers!

​

 

[Oceanshutter]

I am thinking about getting a 5d Mark 3 for video, love the color of Canon underwater and the potential to use raw for video. Can I have the advise on lens?
I saw some really good videos with 16-35 II but I worry about focusing and the need to use a big dome port. Are Tokina 10-17 NH or EF 8-15 better choices? I am not really a fan of FE effect especially when you pan the camera sideway.

I am personally not opposed to the fisheye effect. I sometime shoot with the 17-40mm and the picture, imo, is just terrible. Not sharp at all. Plus when you zoom in, it seems that much worse. This of course is just a matter of opinion.
I don't have experience with the 10-17....I thought that was just for cropped sensors. But I have and shoot with the 8-15mm which is a very nice lens. I tend not to do a lot of panning....at least when i do the final edit I don't...

Dusitn

 

[kkfok]

I am personally not opposed to the fisheye effect. I sometime shoot with the 17-40mm and the picture, imo, is just terrible. Not sharp at all. Plus when you zoom in, it seems that much worse. This of course is just a matter of opinion.
I don't have experience with the 10-17....I thought that was just for cropped sensors. But I have and shoot with the 8-15mm which is a very nice lens. I tend not to do a lot of panning....at least when i do the final edit I don't...

Dusitn

Dusitn, thanks a lot for your advise. I think I will consider to get a 8-15FE or a 15mm FE, but this new setup will first be used in Cocos Island, do you think they are too wide for this trip?

 

[Oceanshutter]

I haven't been to cocos. But I have talked to a lot of people that have. and have pretty good idea of how it will be. Are you diving a rebreather? I've heard that is really the only way to get close to the hammerheads. That's why i haven't gone yet...waiting to learn rebreather. I recently got back from Galapagos, and was very frustrated with lens choice. The 17-40 looked like crap....and the fisheye, I couldn't get close enough. I opted for quality eventually with the fisheye. Again this is personal preference. I went to the Galapagos knowing that it would be a tough location to shoot, and I wasn't expecting to get great shots to be honest. And I wasn't wrong. It was hard to get the sharks especially...very skittish. I would imagine cocos will be similar.

Keep in mind, with the fisheye, if you shoot with lights it can be hard to get coverage...and keep the lights out of the shot. Something to think about when doing the cocos night dive with white tips.

i have both the 8-15 and the 15mm canon...I normally shoot with the 15mm. My wife shoot photos so she she uses the 8-15 which makes more sense for her to use. Although the 8mm end. Can be a little fun sometimes even though it doesn't give the full circle in video. If you plan on doing photos go with the 8-15mm. If not do the 15mm sigma.

Hope that helps
dustin

 

[kkfok]

I haven't been to cocos. But I have talked to a lot of people that have. and have pretty good idea of how it will be. Are you diving a rebreather? I've heard that is really the only way to get close to the hammerheads. That's why i haven't gone yet...waiting to learn rebreather. I recently got back from Galapagos, and was very frustrated with lens choice. The 17-40 looked like crap....and the fisheye, I couldn't get close enough. I opted for quality eventually with the fisheye. Again this is personal preference. I went to the Galapagos knowing that it would be a tough location to shoot, and I wasn't expecting to get great shots to be honest. And I wasn't wrong. It was hard to get the sharks especially...very skittish. I would imagine cocos will be similar.

Keep in mind, with the fisheye, if you shoot with lights it can be hard to get coverage...and keep the lights out of the shot. Something to think about when doing the cocos night dive with white tips.

i have both the 8-15 and the 15mm canon...I normally shoot with the 15mm. My wife shoot photos so she she uses the 8-15 which makes more sense for her to use. Although the 8mm end. Can be a little fun sometimes even though it doesn't give the full circle in video. If you plan on doing photos go with the 8-15mm. If not do the 15mm sigma.

Hope that helps
dustin

Thanks very much for your advise. I will go ahead to buy both a 17-40 and a sigma 15mm. I just realized that sigma 15mm has a coverage of 180 degree which seems way too wide for portrait of sharks, so I am getting a 17-40 as well as a backup, hope that custom dome port of Nexus is not too bad for corner sharpness.

I went to Galapagos 2 years ago, hammerheads are really skittish. But I was able to get a few very close shots of them by holding my breath...yes, that is not a good practice for scuba diving. Cheers.