Today I went out with both the GH5M2 and GH6 to shoot some roll for my new project.
I have tested the GH6 in my light box and surprisingly CineD2 has changed it is now correct but also more saturated. So to avoid issues I shot both cameras in V-Log. Most readers know I am not a fan of log footage however today they conditions were pretty decent so I was at base ISO and I did not mind closing the aperture as I was shooting birds and landscape.
Lumix GH5M2 set up
I shot the GH5M2 in default settings in VLOG without manipulating exposure. The camera has a tendency to overexpose and I let it do it.
I set up color temperature to daylight to avoid differences and shot All Intra 30fps at 400mbps on a tripod. It was windy at times.
Shot sunrise then the pond that is the target for my long lens work.
Lumix GH6 set up
I used the same settings of the GH5M2 but shot at 60 and 120 fps using the new codecs of the GH6. I did not use dynamic range boost.
As I used a very long lens I had set up a plate for the tripod but I still got occasional shake as I was fidgeting the remote shutter.
As the camera has a lag to start recording I ended up shooting many blanks. I realised the lens is far too long for birds in flight but good for detail shots.
Putting it together
I combined footage in Final Cut Pro and used the standard VLOG to V709 LUT. I then added vibrancy and sharpness.
Each scene was corrected for exposure individually not pre-cooked LUTs were used.
This is the resulting video
I used slow motion from the GH6 at 50% and 25% speed this is really a great feature for wildlife. The only thing missing is a pre-roll
All in call the cameras when the GH6 has dynamic range boost off look very similar and this is because GH6 levels are clipped.
It is now almost one year since Covid-19 lockdown in UK and a bit more since my business travel has stopped. Next week I will getting my Covid-19 first vaccine jab but we do not yet have full clarity about the implications on leisure and business travel. The various countries are dealing with the pandemic with different degrees of speed and effectiveness and it is possible that some of the most exotic diving destinations will be on the allowed travel list later than western countries.
Many people have discovered local diving out of necessity and some have also done underwater photography in their bath, however for me this was not sufficient.
Since last year I formally joined a photography club and looked at expanding my interests. In 2020 as I have been staying at home I have taken the highest number of photos to date.
At beginning I thought: how can I reuse some of my camera lenses I use underwater on land? Mostly this was about macro in the garden. Slugs, bees and flowers were part of the first part of the journey.
the eye
B-flight mode
I soon realised the skillset was similar but not identical and there were specific requirements to be fulfilled.
I then moved into abstract tried some portraits and more night photography. I needed to start investing in more lenses as I was getting more specialised and improving in the task.
V for…
Furcarnation
Backlit
Oil & water
Home Sweet home
San Francesco
Looking forward
I also started some bird photography in the garden using feeders to entice little birds. This proved challenging but I discovered I much more preferred predators and larger birds so I started going on walks locally to photography red kites. I already had a long lens so with a teleconverter started getting better at photographing birds in flight.
Red Kite
Disrespectful teen
All of this has been done locally without the need to travel.
After a short summer break, where I got to do some diving re-discovering the beauty of Sorrento peninsula and the amazing diving on the coast, it was time to get back to England with the somewhat grim prospect of a very dire winter in full lockdown.
And then something happened thanks to the friends of the New City Photographic society I discovered an amazing location on my door step.
Woburn Abbey and deer park owned by the Duke of Bedford and spanning across the towns of Woburn and Ridgmont.
Woburn Abbey on a cloudy day
I went there the first time in November and literally fell in love with the location. After many early morning rise and many pictures taken I decided it was time for a video project.
Sika Stag Beauty
Deer are sufficiently large that are not too difficult to film compared to birds and are extremely rewarding as they tend to stare at you.
The winter season has been an opportunity also for late sunrise which meant not so early wake up calls to get there for the golden hour.
Sunrise ruts
Now that we are coming to the end of the full lockdown scheduled for March 29th I have decided to release a short film to remember what it was during this period and the magic moments I had the privilege to experience mostly on my own in the Woburn Deer Park.
The film will be released on my YouTube channel on Friday 26th of March at 8PM GMT. To make it easier to digest I will upload it in separate parts and if possible as a whole. YouTube is being very slow to process footage in the last months so I hope it will be all up next week.
I hope you will enjoy it. It is a total of 26 minutes of duration out of around 2 TB of video material collected in the months of January, February and March 2021. I will be putting posts on how it was shot in case you also want to expand your horizons…
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