The Ninja and the AF100

I went to Video Resources last week to check out their Panasonic AF100's and see what they are using for lenses.  Brad Hagen was an early RED adopter (he bought RED cameras #15 and #16) and got his two AF100's back in December.

BTW, last year Brad upgraded his two RED's to MX cameras and wouldn't go back.  You can check out tests between the old chip and the X on his website ShootWithRed.  Brad says he shoots anything with audio with the RED and carries his 5D for b-roll.  Now he's starting using the AF100 in the same role as the RED because the AF100 has XLR inputs, level control, proper monitoring, etc.

While the AF100 has the large sensor shallower depth of field of the RED there is a huge difference in data rate.  That 25mgps Panasonic codec can't compete with R3D.  But Brad is looking to close the gap with the help of a Ninja.

No, not some guy in black pajamas but the Atomos Ninja, a new box that accepts HDMI in and uses swappable hard drives so you can archive using cheap hd's.  Plus, it's only $1000.

And what about my original interest, what is he using for lenses?  Mostly his RED zooms.  I've heard more than one person complain about the RED zoom but they looked pretty sharp to me, especially for the price.  I wasn't looking at a chart (but then again, I don't shoot charts) but it looked about as sharp as the prime we also tried (Brad has a full set of RED Pro Primes).

And he had a little Panasonic G 20mm f1.7 pancake lens that looked pretty good... especially for $350 bucks!  What was really surprising was the weight:  The AF100 weighs less than three pounds.  Add the pancake lens and a battery and the total rig couldn't weigh four pounds.  Now there's a camera even I wouldn't mind using on a Steadi-cam.

http://www.atomos.com/
http://www.videoresources.com/
http://shootwithred.com/
http://www.red.com/store/lenses/product/red-zoom-18-50mm-t3-i