The Dark Side of the Earth: March 16th, 2011

Technology. On and on it advances. It can’t be bargained with. It can’t be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity or remorse or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until… well, you get the idea with that.
In the earliest years of my filmmaking career, you could safely say I was filled with fear, but after a while I could film anything you please – some shirts, some trousers and a few LPs. (Arrrggh! Stop quoting things and get to the point.)
In the earliest years of my filmmaking career, I kept up-to-date with all the latest techie developments. Ironically, from today’s viewpoint, there was barely anything to keep up-to-date with. Mini-DV and Final Cut Pro hit in 1999, the year I got into the industry, and for about a decade the low-end video world stayed the same. You shot on Mini-DV; you edited in FCP. The only real development in that time was the shift from VHS to DVD as the final delivery medium.
But lately things have gone nuts. HD arrived in all its various flavours. For a while it seemed like things would continue much as before, with HDV replacing Mini-DV in a fairly seemless manner, but no. The unstoppable T-800 of technology marched on.
Web-based video was becoming more and more prevalent, holding off the desire for HD in many corporate jobs, but bringing various format compatibility issues until Flash won out. At the same time, tapeless shooting was becoming a reality, again with a confusing array of formats and settings. Tapeless still scares the hell out of me whenever I have to delete my rushes during the shoot, an action which every nerve in my body screams against. And then there was the DSLR hybrid revolution, and now 3D is becoming affordable (though, I suspect, extremely poor-quality 3D).
This whole subject has been occupying my thoughts a lot lately, as my current camera is nearing the end of its natural life and I’ll soon have to invest in a new one. The first two cameras I owned for professional use, a Canon XM1 and XL1-S respectively, both seemed like the perfect cameras for me at the times that I bought them. I can’t say I’ve been as happy with the next camera I bought, a Sony A1, but I chose it mostly because it seemed like clients would all be asking for HDV very soon, but six years later this still isn’t the case. At least it was a fairly straightforward decision; back then the only options in my price bracket were Mini-DV and HDV. Now the choice is bewildering.
My ideal camera has recently been released – the Panasonic AF1 – but unless there’s a major change in my finances, I won’t be able to afford it. A number of the DSLRs appeal, but there are issues: the rolling shutter effect, the audio complications, the need for accessories like viewfinders and shoulder braces to make it practical to shoot moving images with.
Last weekend I DOPed a short film using a Panasonic DVX110 and a Red Rock adaptor which allowed me to use Nikkon 35mm lenses. The results were beautiful, my sole regret being that the chip at the back end of the rig was only standard definition. The experience made me keen to ensure my next camera is capable of using 35mm lenses. After all, with the DSLR explosion currently going on, footage shot on tiny chips with a huge depth of field is soon going to look as cheap and old-fashioned as analogue video.
I’ll keep you posted on how my camera choosing develops.

The Dark Side of the Earth: March 16th, 2011