Those part of Magic Lantern are always hard at work tinkering away to give us mere mortals better cameras at zero cost. They were able to pull a rabbit out of a hat and give us RAW video on Canon DSLRs, which is a huge step up on video quality from the standard H.264 files the cameras normally record to. Now they’ve got another trick up their sleeve that can actually improve dynamic range about half a stop — but there are some caveats at this early stage.
I had been following this story for a little while since Magic Lantern originally tweeted that a “sensor upgrade” was coming, and even though I was reading the exact thread related to the “sensor upgrade,” the situation still wasn’t all that clear, especially since the tech talk is pretty dense (not unlike how some NFS posts must feel to people just starting out — including this one). This new hack has been tested the most on the Canon 5D Mark III and has a greater effect on RAW photos than RAW video, but a1ex has posted a detailed Q&A explaining exactly what’s going on:
So, what’s all this stuff about “sensor update”?
Just a small improvement in dynamic range in photo mode (around 0.35-0.5 stops). We were able to fine-tune the amplifier gains in order to squeeze a little more highlight detail.
Wait a minute, that means less noise, right?
Well, it means you get a little more detail in highlights. This doesn’t mean less noise per se (the new ISOs will be just as noisy in shadows as the old ones), but it will let you shift the exposure to the right by 1/3 or 1/2 EV and collect more photons. This will result in lower noise.
For example, on 5D Mark III I could lower the ISO by 0.37 stops from 100, resulting a new ISO 77.
And how the magic is actually happening:
How exactly are you getting more highlight detail compared to Canon firmware?
The signal from the sensor seems to be amplified in 2 stages: a CMOS amplifier (which operates in full stops – powers of 2 – and we have tweaked it when implementing Dual ISO) and an ADTG amplifier which can be configured in finer increments. After these two stages, the signal is digitized (with an ADC), probably tweaked digitally, and saved to CR2. We have noticed the ADTG amplifier tends to run a little “hot” (that means, it gets saturated a little too early – nothing to do with temperature).
To get the extra highlight detail, one has to reduce the gain for the ADTG amplifier until the ADC will no longer be saturated. At this point, the white level (maximum recorded level in the raw file) will begin to decrease and no more detail will be recovered (since now the CMOS itself or the CMOS amplifiers will get saturated instead).
Does this mean Canon did not fully optimize their sensor for low noise?
I’d say they simply left a safety margin in their code to make sure the ADC is always saturated (that is, to make sure white is always recorded as white).
The big gains are currently happening with the 5D Mark III, but it may also work with some other cameras:
- If you have a 550D or newer camera, it will most likely work.
- If you have a 7D, no idea yet.
- If you have a 5D Mark II, 50D or 500D, don’t get too excited. I’ve barely got 0.15 stops of improvement on 5D2.
Essentially what’s going on is that Canon left themselves some headroom to make sure that the absolute white point is correctly recorded, so Magic Lantern has dug in and changed these registers to allow the user to shoot into that headroom.
It should be noted that this has nothing to do with the Dual ISO that we talked about last year. That is a different process entirely, but Dual ISO will work with this new dynamic range tweak,giving you well over 14 stops of total dynamic range. Dual ISO, as it turns out, is a bit easier to control in Photo mode, but it has quite a bit of aliasing in Video mode, which makes it less useful for those shooting video. This dynamic range tweak, on the other hand, shouldn’t affect your shooting in any way except to give you more latitude to expose with.
So this is great news, but right now it’s really only effective in photo mode — in video mode it’s not doing much of anything (0.1 stops according to a1ex). For a free dynamic range improvement, it’s hard to complain, even if it’s only 1/3 to 1/2 a stop improvement. Development is very early on this, so it’s possible that RAW video might benefit more at some point in the future, but for now there is a definite improvement on the photo side. I’m always optimistic about what might be capable out of these cameras, so I wouldn’t rule anything out yet for any of the Canon DSLRs.
If you want to experiment with this, the post over on the Magic Lantern forum has some links to the research tools. This means that these modules are experimental and really more for people who understand how to code and what they’re looking for (but the links are there regardless). For more information, check out that thread.
Link: CMOS/ADTG/Digic register investigation on ISO — Magic Lantern Forum
La vague des DSLR qui font de la vidéo a commencé avec la Canon 5D mkII, une caméra “Full Frame”. Depuis, peu de fabricants ont offert d’appareil “Full Frame” préférant les APS (35mm) et micro 4/3. Cependant, le vent semble tourner. En quelques semaines les manufacturiers ont annoncé quatre nouveaux modèles de caméra qui utilisent ces grand capteurs. D’abord, Sony avait une nouvelle caméra à l’IBC.
La NEX-VG900, membre de la la famille NEX des caméras AVCHD, est la première à utiliser le capteur “Full Frame” CMOS EXMOR de 24 megapixels de Sony. Elle supporte un nombre incroyable de lentilles. D’abord, elle vient avec un E-mount et un adaptateur LA-EA3 pour lentilles A couvrant de plus grand capteurs. Elle a aussi la capacité unique de s’ajuster à la couverture de la lentille qui y est attachée. Si la lentille est reconnue pour ne couvrir que la surface d’un APS-C, la caméra n’utilisera que cette surface pour la capture d’images HD.
Comme il est plus difficile faire le foyer sur ce genre de capteur qui a une très petite profondeur de champs, la caméra a une fonction d’assistance de mise au point directement accessible sur l’écran OLED touchscreen. Une fonction peaking est aussi disponible. Pour l’audio, si vous ne voulez pas vous servir des micros surround intégrés, vous pouvez vous procurer le XLR-K1M qui vous permet de brancher deux micros en XLR. Il vient aussi avec un shotgun.
La NEX-VG900 peut enregistrer des images de 24 à 60p sur MemoryStick ou carte SD de Sony. Elle se détaillera 3300$ à sa sortie en novembre.
C’est une semaine plus tard au Photokina que Sony confirme l’arrivée sur le marché de deux caméras photos “Full Frame” pouvant faire de superbes images HD: le Alpha A99 et le compact RX1.
La famille des appareils DSLR Alpha n’a jamais été très populaire chez les vidéastes mais ça pourrait changer. Les SLT-A99 vient directement rivaliser avec les meilleurs appareils de Canon et Nikon. Son capteur de 24 Megapixels a une sensibilité de 25600 ISO. Son écran rotatif et mobile est un plus pour les tournage en plongée ou contre-plongée. Elle permettra aussi de brancher des micros et des écouteurs. Son capteur est aussi muni d’un système d’autofocus qui fonctionne même en mode vidéo. Elle peut prendre des lentilles Sony Alpha mais plusiers adaptateurs existent déjà pour les lentilles Canon ou même PL.
Cette caméra pourra enregistrer en HD jusqu’à 60 images par seconde sur carte SD ou MemoryStick. Elle sera disponible début novembre pour 4100$.
Pour ceux qui voudrais investir un peu moins ou qui aurait besoin d’un appareil plus compact, Sony a aussi lancé la RX1 qui est essentiellement un A99 dans un boitier de 13 mm d’épaisseur et tient facilement dans une poche. Elle sera à vous pour aussi peut que 2800$. Pas mal pour le premier appareil point and shoot “Full Frame”.
Un autre joueur tente de garder sa place sur le podium des “Full Frame”. Nikon annonce la D600 au Photokina. Avec son capteur de 24 Megapixels (10.5 en mode APS) elle devient une alternative intéressante à la D800. Elle a plusieurs caractéristiques unique: deux fentes SD et une sortie HDMI non compressé qu’on peut utiliser pour enregistrer sur un appareil externe comme un KiPro mini. Nikon semble enfin avoir abandonné le m-jpeg pour le H.264. Elle sera vendu environ 2100$
Canon ne pouvait se laisser grignoter des parts de marcher et lance donc la EOS 6D. Le “Full Frame” le plus petit de Canon. Bien qu’il semble que Canon ait volontairement retenu les ambitions de ses ingénieurs pour protéger les ventes de la 5D mkIII et de la 1D, la 6D tire tout de même son épingle du jeux. D’abord son prix de 2100$ est un argument de poid. C’est aussi la première Canon à intégrer un module GPS et Wifi. Est-ce qu’on verra une application iPad pour faire le monitoring des images par réseau? On aurait aimé un écran pivotant et une prise d’écouteurs mais ils vont surement garder des options pour les EOS-C.
Alors, est-ce qu’on verra un retour des courts qui abusent de la profondeur de champs?
New gyro stabilized camera gimbals are redefining the possibilities for camera movement
Two new gyro stabilized camera gimbals redefining the possibilities for camera movement in cinema – the FreeFly MōVI M10 and Novo Stabilized . Both handheld devices incorporate breakthrough camera stabilization technology to easily and quickly solve one of the biggest challenges faced by filmmakers – moving a camera in a steady path.
Radiant Images, an LA-based rental house and digital cinema innovator, is one of the few to have the MōVI M10 available for clients and is the lone rental house in the U.S. renting both advanced gimbals.“The MōVI and the Novo Stabilized represent the future of digital cinema,” said Michael Mansouri, VP at Radiant Images. “Cinematographers now have the freedom to almost effortlessly create camera moves and execute shots that in the past would have been either impossible to obtain or too time consuming. It truly is a new frontier.”
MōVI M10
Freefly Systems introduced the gyro-stabilized MōVI M10 camera rig earlier this year at NAB, where it received an award for outstanding achievement. Production has not been able to keep up with demand, resulting in months of waiting for delivery on purchases, according to Freefly.
The MōVI has been used in more than a dozen film, television and commercial productions, receiving glowing praise from high-end filmmakers such as JJ Abrams, Alfonso Cuaron and any number of ASC cinematographers.
Cinematographer Alex Buono, known for his Film Unit work for Saturday Night Live (SNL), told Freefly, “I’m completely sold on the MōVI…It’s ability to smoothly pan, tilt or roll remotely while it’s being operated allows me the ability to create camera moves that are unlike anything I’ve ever seen and yet are incredibly easy to execute.” Watch the MōVI in action in this demo reel -https://vimeo.com/79506918 - from Brain Farm, a Wyoming-based production house specializing in action sports cinematography. Filmmaker Ty Evans, an award-winning skateboard film veteran, used Radiant’s MōVI M10 and RED Epic to shoot a group of skateboarders in Los Angeles. An ARRI/Zeiss Ultra Prime 8R lens was used to capture the action.The heart of the handheld 3-axis digital stabilized camera gimbal is Freefly’s proprietary high performance IMU and brushless direct drive system, designed in-house by its engineering team.The MōVI M10 weighs less than 3.5 pounds bare and supports cameras setups of up to 12 pounds, making it ideal for the Canon C300 and C500, RED Epic, Canon EOS 1DC, Blackmagic Cinema Camera and others. Read about other key features of the MōVI M10.Full tutorials are available in the MōVI product section on the Radiant Images website
The MōVI has been used in more than a dozen film, television and commercial productions, receiving glowing praise from high-end filmmakers such as JJ Abrams, Alfonso Cuaron and any number of ASC cinematographers.
Cinematographer Alex Buono, known for his Film Unit work for Saturday Night Live (SNL), told Freefly, “I’m completely sold on the MōVI…It’s ability to smoothly pan, tilt or roll remotely while it’s being operated allows me the ability to create camera moves that are unlike anything I’ve ever seen and yet are incredibly easy to execute.” Watch the MōVI in action in this demo reel -https://vimeo.com/79506918 - from Brain Farm, a Wyoming-based production house specializing in action sports cinematography. Filmmaker Ty Evans, an award-winning skateboard film veteran, used Radiant’s MōVI M10 and RED Epic to shoot a group of skateboarders in Los Angeles. An ARRI/Zeiss Ultra Prime 8R lens was used to capture the action.The heart of the handheld 3-axis digital stabilized camera gimbal is Freefly’s proprietary high performance IMU and brushless direct drive system, designed in-house by its engineering team.The MōVI M10 weighs less than 3.5 pounds bare and supports cameras setups of up to 12 pounds, making it ideal for the Canon C300 and C500, RED Epic, Canon EOS 1DC, Blackmagic Cinema Camera and others. Read about other key features of the MōVI M10.Full tutorials are available in the MōVI product section on the Radiant Images website
Novo Stabilized
The design team at Radiant Images has created an easy-to-use lightweight stabilized handheld specifically for its 3.2-ounce Novo digital cinema camera, giving professional filmmakers a powerful and easy-to-use new tool with the tiny action camera.The high-performance, 3 axis stabilizer offers 360 degrees of continuous rotation using magnetic fields and no mechanical parts. The high-torque servo drive, designed with reduction of vibration in mind, is capable of the highest precision possible.Radiant’s design team, led by on-site engineer Sinclair Fleming, created the Novo Stabilized to help filmmakers more fully utilized the versatile action camera. (Fleming and his team will soon release a handheld stabilizer for larger production cameras, specifically the ARRI Alexa and RED Epic.)“Our Novo Stabilized is revolutionary because it’s so small and so precise and made specifically for the camera,” Mansouri said. A fully-outfitted Novo gimbal weighs in at a mere four pounds, complete with the camera, lens, wireless video and batteries.The Novo Stabilized is available for rental ($995 daily, $2,985 weekly) only at Radiant Images in the U.S. and European rental partners P+S Technik, Ovide, Sparks and Movietech. Watch the Novo Stabilized in action at http://vimeo.com/78843061.
In addition, Cinematographer Matthew Libatique, ASC (Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan, Iron Man) worked with Radiant to shoot action footage at a soccer practice using the Novo Stabilized. His footage is included in a Novo gimbaldemonstration reel, which also includes aerial shots that follow a motorcycle rider, at http://vimeo.com/72911516.Demo Novo camera + gimbal from Radiant Images on Vimeo.The groundbreaking Novo (www.novocamera.com) camera, developed by Radiant Images and View Factor Studios, offers key cinematic features missing from other action cameras in its class, including interchangeable lens, back focus adjustment and exposure control capabilities. The camera won a MARIO Award for innovation at NAB 2013.The Novo has been well received in the film industry since its February release, used in such upcoming feature films asTransformers 4, Ten, Fast & Furious 7 and In the Heart of the Sea as well as NBC’s Revolution, and is on the sets of multiple other features, TV programs and commercials.