Good Day Folks,

I am currently using the Canon 70D, with various EF-S Lens brought forward from the very previous Canon 600D.

Recently I started with filming short videos and I have found my very new passion for videography.

However based on the current Canon 70D I am having, i noticed a very extremely wide difference in the video output as compared to the full frame old Canon 5D Mark 3.

Not to mention that the 5DM3 has a much brighter image/video and less noise in terms of ISO's.

Being a hobbyist photographer and a amateur videographer,

The used 5DM3 and New Sony a6500 are approximately the same price.

I am in a dilemma whether should I upgrade my camera to the Canon 5DM3 or the Sony a6500.

Full frame Canon, or a 4k Sony?


Welcome all thoughts and suggestions, and thank you in advance!

Video spec, the Sony blows the Canon out of the water, even the newer Canons no match. If you're fine with adapters for your lens use, then the Sony would be the better choice.

If you don't need 4k, Canon 80D would be a much better choice for video.

This post has been edited by DaddyO: Apr 22 2017, 10:45 AM

What if I am using it for photos as well, does it perform better than the 5dm3 as well?

How about the low light situations? Are the sony capable enough to compete with the 5dm3?

May I know does the adapters slows down the focusing part or any other features of the sony? If yes, how much does it affect?

Thanks!

Hmm, but isn't the canon 80d and 70d belongs to the same range of camera?

Canon 5d mk3 does not have a brighter image - That's probably caused by settings. Less noise yes because of better ISO performance. If you love shooting dark places just go full frame and the king of low light camera is the Sony A7S. Another option is to buy a good bright lens for your 70D like the Sigma 18-35mm F1.8.

When I read videographers' vlogs a lot of them don't have just one camera. They have few different cameras to suit different situations. There's no jack of all trades video camera yet.

It really depends on what you want to do with the video. You want to vlog or shoot a video with dialogue you need to invest in audio gear. You want smooth walking movement you need a gimbal like Zhiyun Crane or DJI Osmo. You want to make serious shot films you need to invest in so many other things other than just the camera itself.

But I think because you're new just stick with the 70D and learn what you can and can't do with that camera. Like for example, Canon DSLRs are not great for slow motion. And if you love to do a lot of slow motion videos then it is time to jump away from Canon. Honestly, 70D is a good video camera already.

But just FYI Panasonic GH series and Sony A7S series are still the mainly talked about gear of the DSLR/mirrorless video.

What are your current EF-S lenses?

I am currently having these only :
1. Canon 50mm f1.8
2. Canon 24mm f2.8 STM
3. Canon 10-20mm f3.5-5.6
4. Sigma 18-50mm f2.8

OK then your gear is pretty good already,

I also use EOS 60D for video works for some time, what you should consider more is the choice of lens.

I don't see how 5D3 video can be brighter when it's metered the same way. In the end it boils down to the profile you use during video and the post processing.

Sorry I am not very good with these. And yeah, I was referring to the ISO performance on the 5Dm3. My budget is only right around 6k at most.

One of the reason I was looking at the sony a6500 is because of the autofocus points, IBIS system, 4k and so on. I am trying shoot short videos for starters then slowly move in to other things. A7s is relatively expensive tight and it's full frame, if that's the case my existing lens are not compatible with it right?

Thank you so much tho for all these valuable infos.

80D has dual pixel autofocus which is actually better than a6500.

Ohh! The dual autofocus is much better than a6500? I was quite impress with the a6500 cuz of the IBIS and large amount of autofocus points. However do correct me if I am wrong about any of the info. Is it a really big jump or a little from the previous 70d, comparing to the 80d.

That I dont know. You have to do further study. I only read about it and that most video guys prefer 80d over a6500 cause it has more usable features for them than a6500. Vari-angle screen, touchscreen, dual pixel af with almost no focus hunting, plus it has headphone jack that a6500 doesnt. Canon 80D to me seems like a all purpose good video cam for vlogging and general video making.

a6500 is no slouch either but heard some issue like screen dimming when recording 4k, no headphone jack and such. The touchscreen also less responsive than 80D. Also, unless you have capable computer, handling 4k video and its storage can be a chore.

Either way, there's no mistake in choosing either. Except since you mention you already have canon lenses, 80D is probably preferable. There are adapters to adapt canon lens on a6500 but it is either expensive or the af is too reliable unless you dont mind manual focus.

On 5dmkiii, it's actually also good except lacking touchscreen and vari angle screen means little bit more work to do video.

This post has been edited by DaddyO: Apr 22 2017, 06:17 PM

Just stick with ur 70D. pretty good for video as i have used the camera before.
However when ur become more 'advance' as videographer, u would probably find manual focus is the way to go. Autofocus would be no more relevant.... just my 2 sen.

EOS 70D / 80D flash with Magic Lantern firmware.

But seriously man, you're just starting out then 70D / 80D also can no problem.

Even sites like Rocketjump uses 60D, the video below was taken with EOS 60D.



Many times people find their video lacking (same goes to photo) and straight think it's hardware matter when most time it's human / software matter.

How about getting some gimbal/stabilizer, another side arm(smaller camera), or maybe lights?

Thats a misconception. For switching focus between foreground and background, 'advanced' will most likely use manual (but really depends on your problem with af system). But for tracking moving subject in frame, reliable autofocus is important. Its also applicable when you doing travel video when you may not want to fiddle with manual lens much.

Take GH5 for example. You can still hear a lot of complaint from video shooters that its af system sucks bad even from pros especially the af tracking meaning even advanced also relies of af capability.

That's the same thing when people say that as photographers go pro they'll go with manual mode and manual focusing.

Haha.. that's not about concept or theory whatnot.
well , personal preference i guest!!!
At least I was telling about my own experience . Been doing/learning video now for the past few months with my A7s/A7rii (noob). Now starting to like manual focusing for most parts. Loxia . wish could get that 21mm loxia

Really? Who said that ?

Got la, all over the place. I also can't quote you any one now, it's a misconception.

That has nothing to do with concept or misconception..
Merely preference. Those people are old fashioned, unable to utilize what digital cameras can offer. That's all !

First of all, what videos are you shooting? are they short films, vlogs, sports etc...

From what I read here, I'd suggest to stick with the 70D. It's already a very capable DSLR for videos. You've already invested in many Canon lenses so jumping to Sony will cost a lot more than just a new camera. Going with adapters is an option but AF won't be as good. But again, importance of AF performance depends on what kind of videos are you making.

Switching from photo to video is a lot more than just the camera. With your budget, consider to invest in these first if you haven't already:
- A good microphone / sound recorder. Most of the time, sound is more important than the video quality. Great sound quality with so-so videos are normally more watchable compared to amazing video quality but terrible sound.
- good headphone / speakers... else how can you know how good your recording is
- extra SD cards, hard drives. even 1080p will eat storage like crazy, 4k apa lagi
- stabilizers / gimbals
- tripod with fluid head, sliders, etc
- bags to carry all those video stuff

also...can consider a drone too... sorry too much poison haha. just that my opinion, these things bring a drastic improvement to videos compared to just a camera upgrade

Also, can get some ideas from this video by Simon Cade: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLXQJtIu2xM

This post has been edited by dvlzplayground: Apr 24 2017, 07:44 PM

Besides stabilizers and gimbals, look at sliders too.

For me, I use sliders more as they're great for B-rolls of objects. Gimbals and stabilizers are great for videos that involve you moving along with moving subjects or moving around an area like say event coverage.