Living Magazine Cover and Spread – Outside Magazine
From the site:
Photographer Alexx Henry and his team show you how a magazine might look in the not-so-distant future with the October cover and spread for Outside Magazine. In this video, Alexx Henry takes you through the creation of the Living portrait of the triathlete Chris Lieto photographed using the revolutionary Red One cinema camera and the 5d Mark II.
Coming to a 5d Mark II near you – Full manual control
Canon will be releasing a free firmware download in June allowing full manual control of the video functions on the 5d Mark II including shutter speeds, aperture, and iso.
Read about it HERE
First Peak – BeachTek DXA-5D XLR Adapter
Headphone monitoring! Built in levels! XLR! Auto Gain Control Disable!
Consider me excited. After spending a good portion of the past 48 hours trying to synch audio with an external recorder, I am more than looking forward to adding this to my kit.
Only 42 more sleeps!
From their Press release:
“BeachTek is happy to announce their new DXA-5D XLR adapter that has been highly anticipated for the Canon 5D Mark II camera. The DXA-5D provides an easy way to connect professional microphones and other audio gear to this popular camera. This adapter brings a whole new functionality to the Canon 5D Mark II that was previously unavailable. It is now possible to capture professional sound with control and monitoring ability. The suggested list price of the DXA-5D is $379.00 in the United States. Expected shipping date is May 26th, 2009
The DXA-5D features dual transformer-balanced XLR inputs with phantom power and built-in level meters. In addition, the built-in headphone jack allows the user to monitor the audio – a feature missing on this camera. The trim controls allow the user to dial in the proper signal levels for optimum recording quality.
Most importantly, is the unique AGC Disable function which was the most sought after feature by users of this camera. The AGC Disable circuit is activated by a switch which controls the wild swings of the Auto Gain Control in the camera to reduce the hiss generated by the preamplifiers during quiet moments of recording. It works by sending a high frequency inaudible tone to the left channel of the camera. This feature greatly decreases the camera noise which has always been a problem in the past.
The DXA-5D also provides an unbalanced mini-jack input for many wireless receivers that use mini-plug connectors. There is an additional mic level output jack for connecting the adapter to external audio recorders such as the popular Sony PCM-D50 when very high quality recording is required. The LCD display shows the state of the various switches and battery life, as well as a vu meter that shows the audio levels from – 54dBu to -33dBu. This allows the user to verify the proper recording levels and eliminates any guesswork.”
Good news for 5d mark II users
As you may have guessed by now, I’m a pretty big fan of the 5d Mark II. Here is an excerpt from a recent email regarding BeachTek’s plans for a microphone, as well as the DXA-5D XLR Adapter that I previously posted:
“In addition to the DXA-5D XLR Adapter that we are developing for this camera, we are also working on a very high quality custom microphone for this setup as well. We are working with a very well respected US manufacturer in the audio field to design a small camera mounted shotgun mic for the 5D.
It will have a wide, flat frequency response for a smooth response, high sensitivity for a strong output level and excellent reach, balanced XLR output for noise free operation, and be phantom powered for superior performance. The mic can either be held in a custom shock mount (that will be included) to attach to the camera shoe, or mounted on a boom pole. It will be smaller than the popular Rode VideoMic but a bit larger then the Sennheiser MKE400.”
Who can crack the Mark II code?
Canonhack is a blog recently started in hopes of someone cracking the 5d Mark II’s firmware. $1965 dollars and rising…
From the site:
“Lets hack that 5D II
Like so many others we are standing in line waiting to buy a Canon 5D mark II.
Also like a lot of people we have noticed some flaws with the camera.
There is little to none manual control in movie mode.
In video mode the camera will decide everything for you. This rhymes pretty ill with a camera aimed at professionals or advanced amateurs.
This is why we devised a scheme to show canon what we consumers really want.
This page’s sole purpose is to encourage a firmware hack of the 5D II.
To encourage the hack yourselves there is two ways:
Create the hack!
Donate on this page, it’s for the cause. A buck or two might go a long way
The first person to submit a hack of the firmware and add the coveted features will immediately get all the money gathered.
You can always see the current balance at the top of this page. And you will find donate buttons all over (using pay pal).”
Audio comparisons, and coming soon on the 5d Mark II
An audio comparison using the 5d mark II’s internal audio, a Sennheiser MKE-400, and a Rode NTG-2 Shotgun via “exposed light” on Vimeo.
Also, the Rode Video mic, which I am currently using, and fairly satisfied with for the time being.
That being said, Beachtek has a preview on their website of a new adapter with 2 xlr imports that attach to the bottom right side of the camera that looks to be about the size of a small battery pack. Word on the street(or forums) say that it will have a 48v phantom, and allow headphone monitoring. The unit is scheduled to be released first quarter 2009, and may be the answer we’re all looking for.
5d Mark II video mode tutorial
5d Mark II
This tutorial isn’t perfect, but more of an ongoing bible for the 5d Mark II.
Pay close attention to the comments and updates at the bottom as they are
subject to change.
