At the Bench: Introduction to the Sony PMW-F55 - Part 1

Sony has just started shipping their new F5 and F55 cameras, so I thought the timing was perfect for an At the Bench video. The cameras are so packed full of features that I opted for two 15-minute videos to cover the camera system. The first video goes over the F55′s form, function and IO capabilities, while the second covers its menu system, various recording modes and output options.
See the full blog post here:
blog.abelcine.c...

[@combatroo990]

I’m going to be cam assisting tommorow and I have never done it before. Using the F5. This video is a life saver

[@vittoriobiscaro1245]

same for me tomorrow with this F55
I hope your job went just as fine

[@ulfmurdo]

Thanks _ that was a brilliant talk through!

[@DannyWangoqll]

good review! crystal clear

[@minarimon3106]

What about it’s performance in extremely low light situations??

[@alexairth]

May be worth a rental but very expensive?

[@thomaskohut3133]

Great Video! I am shooting a party/club scene with the F5 soon. The room will be partially lit as we will be doing walking interviews. as for slog or HG what do you suggest I use for a lower light situation like a partially lit bar or club.

[@AbelCine_official]

Sorry for the late reply. Here is a response from Corey, one of our tech specialists:
Log is typically not the best option for low light scenarios, but with a situation like this where you have both staged/lit areas as well as the ambient light from the club, you may need the increased dynamic range offered by log in order to hold highlight detail, without crushing too much of the shadow information. You'll definitely want to run some tests in the location if possible in order to see what works best however. If the scene warrants a 14-stop range, by all means go with log, but if you're looking at around 10 then look into hypergamma options and if your scene has 7 or fewer stops go with Rec. 709.
Our friend Alister Chapman has some great insight into this:
"My rule of thumb is quite simple. If I can’t fully expose log at the base sensitivity I don’t use it. I will drop down to a cinegamma or hypergamma. If I can’t correctly expose the hypergamma or cinegamma then I drop down to standard gamma, rec-709." www.xdcam-user.com/2016/01/log-is-a-poor-choice-for-low-light/

[@RhysClark97]

Hey, so I am not sure if this comes accross as shitty but my university is too low budget to ever get any production grade cameras, the best thing they have is some black magics, but everytime i even see anything more expensive the interface seems so impossible to use with functions i dont understand, is there a video out there that breaks this down a little better because every job offer i see its with production level cameras i have never used before and no ability to use said camera a week in advanced to get used to it.

[@RhysClark97]

Its freaking me out because I get told 'oh can you take this job, i need 4 camera-men who can use a sony f55 and im sat here going 'well if i use it and im shit i am never getting a job again'

[@AbelCine_official]

​@@RhysClark97 Hi Rhys, thanks for your comment. We've found that many rental houses (certainly any of our AbelCine locations) will let you come in and and try out cameras in person for free. Not sure where you're located but might be worth reaching out and asking!

[@Danetoish]

good

[@Ben1238]

Kind of looks like the ARRI Alexia body.

[@1BigBucks1]

Andy, get ready to destroy that camera if RED wins the lawsuit. ;-)

[@raredreamfootage]

mmmm "Future Upgrade", how long is "future"? A year? two years? lol

[@VictoriaFilmsgroup]

shit this thing cant cost 30K$$$ , this is not even a quarter of an old car, maybe worth 2K

[@87solarsky]

NOT