7D Video: My Experience

Recently, with support from Backscatter, I took the leap into the video SLR world. I made the jump because of several videos produced by Berkley White and Rusty Sanioan that, although they were wide angle and I am a macro shooter, just blew me away! My hope was to get similar results in the macro world.

First I must say a word about my FX1 - it does pretty good work. However, the colors were never what I would call vibrant, blacks were a little washed out, and the resolution just could not stand up to big screens. I always wished for better video. My wife and I are starting to produce multimedia and dropping her pictures on a timeline with my video made it look anemic. Something had to be done, I had to try!

This is an accounting of my experience trying to realize that dream on a 5-week trip to the Philippines.

My first stop on this adventure was with Rusty at Backscatter who helped me thru all the choices and, based on his recommendations, I ended up with what I believe is a premier SLR video rig for shooting macro. He warned me the learning curve was steep, but I hoped by the time my 5-week trip was over I could get the shots.

Both Rusty and Berkley recommended a Canon 7D for macro. We discussed the 5D but they felt it was not best. Nikon was not out yet. They paired this with an assortment of lenses that included a 100mm, 60mm, Tokina 10-17mm, an odd one called an insect eye by Inon, plus 1.4X and 2X teleconverters. All this was put inside a Subal underwater housing along with the requisite ports and extension rings. Lighting was provided by a pair of Light & Motion Sola 1200 video lights. A host of after market devices by Xit 404, a MacroMate wet diopter by Backscatter, floats by Styx for buoyancy, plus a gaggle of ULCS arms and clamps to connect it all together rounded out the list.

The after market devices by Xit 404 included a Tripod, Pentamirror, Quad Ball Adaptor, Adjustable Handle/Lanyard, and Focus Gears for each lens.

The Tripod made deploying a stable shooting platform a snap. A quick twist and I could set the legs where I wanted them and they extended up to 18". When I was done the legs folded up out of the way. The Pentamirror popped onto a plug that replaced the eyepiece allowing me to see the cameras live view screen by looking down from above the rig. The Quad Ball Adaptors provided plenty of mounts for lights, a float bar, and attachments for a carry handle.

The rig in the water came to 2.5 pounds thanks to the floats, out of the water it weighed 22 pounds. I was able to pack all this into a single LoPro Roller 3 bag.

As they say "the proof is in the pudding". When everything works the results are stunning. The colors are saturated, contrast is sharp, and resolution is off the charts. I am able to easily zoom over 200% without loss of clarity in post for big screens. I can crop now without worrying about the images falling apart. With my FX1 the best I could ever do was 125%. And for you editors out there very little post if any at all is required.

So this is what I learned after five weeks diving the new SLR rig.

1. Autofocus is unreliable doing macro. Guaranteed it will focus on the wrong point. It does afford a quick way to get in the ball park.

2. Expanded live view is invaluable tool to get critical focus.

8. 60 and 100 are about the same just less water. 60 does mean closer but the critters don't really like this.

9. 16GB is plenty for three dives

10. One battery one dive.

11. Turn off live view between shoots to avoid overheating, also saves battery. However have not noticed any issues with video when temp warning is on.

12. Follow focus takes skill and a keen eye to movement. To make this work need expanded view but not available while shooting. Maybe Canon will add this?

13. Macro white balance not critical. Shoot slate with correct ISO/Aperture using lights. Setting temp in camera works too or AWB.

14. Sola 1200 video lights last two dives if turned off between shots. Maybe three just not willing to test this out. Give 1.5 to 2 hours to recharge.

14. Video lights need remote control! Difficult to turn on/off or adjust level without disturbing the shot.

14. F-stop about 14-22 with both lights set to tight beam and highest power but usually affected critter behavior. I preferred diffuse beams but even at highest level best I could get was 11

15. Pentamirror is a must have for shooting with live view! Option is a remote monitor but represents higher cost, more maintenance, more bulk and weight.

16. Don't try shooting macro without a tripod it's impossible to hold still. I found this true with my FX1 on really tight shots but an SLR needs a tripod for all macro shots.

17. Unless you are good with RAW files set camera to provide JPEG as well as RAW. These import into FCP. Another option is to learn photo tools like Lightroom to import RAW and export JPEG.

18. I could shoot ISO from 160 to 640 but mostly set at either 320 or if darker 640. I have not previewed on a large screen but so far there does not seem to be visible noise.

19. I need a zoom lens. Too many times I found myself wishing I could frame my shot better. Many times I just could not get close enough without affecting behavior. The 60 and lights scared the critters, the 100 was better but still limited me. There just are setups one cannot do with a prime lens. Russ says a zoom lens will produce inferior results, but the deficit may not be that bad in video. Worth a test run.

I wrote up an article with tips and techniques used to get macro video. It has more information plus some side-by-side comparison video between the 7D and FX1, very enlightening. I also made a list of what I thought was bad and good about the SLR rig not included here to keep this article shorter.

My DOH! moment came after shooting for five weeks. I realized why I shot video in the first place. It's to capture behavior! Guess what? Behavior and movement are nearly synonymous. This translates into any behavior shot needs to be done using follow focus. I was bummed, it seemed like the stunning colors, contrast, and resolution in the wide angle video that inspired me to make the jump just eluded me. Or so I believe anyway.

I am going to take the rig on one more trip and try again. Practice might bring me the results hoped for. It's hard to give up!