IT’S BEEN AWHILE

Been quite some time since I’ve posted on the blog.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I want to spend most of this year working and not blogging. While I do enjoy writing posts and sharing updates, I think that we’ve become so accustomed to always sharing what we’re up to in this social media age, we often forget not sharing is an option too. Sometimes it’s better to focus on the work, life, or just being in the moment instead of stopping to make sure you have something to show/share with the world. I’m a firm believer in that your growth, the hard work you’re often doing alone in the lab isn’t always for public consumption. It shifts your focus away from growth to external validation from some perceived audience.

So where have I been the past couple of months?

May through June, I was in South Korea and Japan filming for This Is Sera and I recently got back from a trip to Paris and Italy for the most recent filming. I love traveling, but as you can imagine, the past couple of months have been quite rigirous and have required my full attention, hence the lack of blog posts. But what’s more important? Posting on the blog or focusing on the project I’m most passionate about and making sure everything goes well with it?

Obviously the project is most important and that’s where I’ll continue to put my focus for the rest of the year despite the itch to work on other things from time to time. No, this one get’s my full attention.

For now, here are some musings on a variety of topics you may find interesting.

RECENT PHOTOGRAPHS

Model: Ryu Sera @ryuserasera
Studio: L’Atelier & Beyond @latelierandbeyond_studio
Location: Paris, France

ALL IMAGES SHOT ON THE SONY A7RV + SONY FE 24-70 f/2.8 GM II AND SONY FE 85MM F/1.4 GM II

Two recent images of the incomparable Ryu Sera in Paris.

Since filming began on This Is Sera last year, Sera has quickly become my muse. She is easily my favorite person to photograph and film with, full stop. It’s crazy to think I’ve only known her since our first shoot in 2024, but we’ve worked together so much in recent months it feels like we’ve known each other for much longer. She’s quickly adapted to the often odd, spontaneous way I work and I’ve adjusted to how she moves and expresses herself. It’s a fascinating dance when you develop chemistry with someone after working with them for a period of time. There are models I work with that I have this sort of synergy with but not quite at the same level. I think her years of experience being a KPop idol, understanding how production works, and just having great natural instincts help add that extra layer of sophistication to the work we do.

I’d love to work with her on many of my projects well into the future. Like Wes Anderson and Bill Murray, Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio, or Alfred Hitchcock and Grace Kelly, if I have a project I can get her in, I’m going to pitch it to her. That would be so cool to have a career like that. Working with your friends, people you like, etc.

Photographing her for the first time back in 2024 was a surreal experience for me. This time also felt surreal, but for different reasons. Instead of Seoul, we were in Paris, working in my favorite studio, L’Atelier & Beyond. It’s a space I consider my artistic sanctuary. A place I often go when I need a creative boost or need to get out of a funk. It’s the primary studio I work out of in Paris and I credit it with being the origin point of my creative evolution over the past couple of years. It was so cool to have her there and work in such a unique space compared to our previous shoots. I think we outdid our previous work and broke new ground. I have a ton of new images from this set that I can’t wait to share. It’s some of our best work.

GEAR TALK

Sony Announces the FX5. It’s a pass for me.

The Sony FX5. Cool features, but not for me at the moment.

This will be one of the longer gear talks in a minute so bear with me.

As expected, last week Sony announced the FX3’s successor(?), the FX5. And the internet lost it. Though it looks like an FX3, it’s quite a departure from one of the most beloved cameras on the market.

If you thought the photography community was the most rampant, reactionary group amongst creative communities, then you should take a look at the filmmaking, or should I say content creator community. Immediately all the shill-tubers put up their videos praising all the new features and specs of the camera.

From what I could gather from all the videos, a word-by-word description of the Sony FX5 would be as follows:

Beast
Epic
End Game
Peak
Insane
King
Incredible
Pure Cinema
Most Important Cinema Camera Ever

Followed by videos with explanatory titles such as:

Why I’m selling the FX3 to buy the FX5
Why I Pre-Ordered the FX5

The term “slop” has been uttered across the internet at least since 2025 and I have started to have such a disdain for such low-level, click-baitey, shill content. Slop is such an apt word.

These tired disclaimers are usually the mark that you’re about to be sold something:

“Sony sent me the camera, but they don’t get to approve this video before it goes out.”
“I’m using a pre-production version of the firmware, so it may change when it releases.”
“Sony flew us out to <insert fancy country name here> for this review…”

These statements are quickly followed by an utter loss of objectivity and honest reporting on a new item that many will go out and spend their hard earned money on. Every time a new product is announced it’s just a diluge of slop from the usual suspects trying to convince you why you need to buy this new camera. And don’t forget to click the affiliate links.

My Own G.A.S. Experience

G.A.S. = Gear Acquisition Syndrome
A new product comes out and you just feel you have to have it. It’s part fomo, part new shiny object syndrome, and part insecurity.

When Fujifilm released their medium format cameras, I fell into this trap. Coming from years of shooting full-frame, there was always this thought that medium format produced a better, more lifelike image compared to smaller formats. It was the pinnacle of digital photography. Especially in the late 2000’s. The format that showed you were a serious artist. If you shoot medium format, you’ll certainly be working with famous people and shooting ad campaigns!

Fujifilm entering the medium format market in the late 2010’s finally made it approachable for the masses compared to the $15000+ Hasselblads and Phase One digital backs of the past.

GFX 100S with an assortment of big, bulky GF lenses.

In 2021, their most recent option, the GFX 100S, a smaller, more approachable version of their behemoth GFX 100, was calling my name. It was DSLR/Mirrorless size with medium format image quality. Sign me up!

So I sold my Sony A1’s at the time, bought a Fuji GFX 100S and instantly I became Richard Avedon. Yeah, that didn’t happen.

Despite the slight improvement in image quality and noise performance at higher ISO’s, there was no substantial difference to justify the system over what I had been shooting with. But I was already $12,000 invested in the system. I could have made a bunch of sunken cost fallacy excuses to keep it, but instead, I sold it all and switched back to full frame. This time I went with my tried and true Panasonic S1R’s. I loved the image quality and color they offered despite some operational shortcomings. But after shooting with the Sony A1’s(that were brilliant to work with), the S1R’s felt a bit archaic in comparison. Not wanting to switch, I gritted my teeth and stuck with them for a while.

But I still lamented losing medium format for some reason. So when Fuji announced the GFX 100 II in 2023, I sold my Panasonic gear and got one. This one promised a better EVF, phase detect autofocus, and even had impressive video specs. Surely it would be better and make me a better artist? Unfortunately, no.

Fujifilm GFX 100 II. Beautiful camera. Hated using it.
Didn’t make me a better artist.

I don’t know why I was so foolish to think that just by getting this camera, it would catapult my work into the stratosphere. It’s quite silly to think about now. Equipment doesn’t make you a better artist, you still need to practice, educate yourself, learn, try things, and make refinements. You become a better photographer/filmmaker by creating. Not simply because you bought an expensive camera. I guess I had a bit of FOMO and bought into the idea that I needed the latest and greatest to validate myself as an artist. Never again.

Plus, no matter how much I tried, I just never enjoyed shooting with Fuji’s GFX cameras. They were big and slow with an outdated UI and only decent autofocus capabilities compared to other options on the market. And I felt similarly about ALL of Fuji’s other offerings(looking at you Fujifilm X100 VI). Fuji cameras produce a beautiful image, but I hate the process of using them. They just feel clunky to me. I wanted a camera that just got out of the way like my Sony A1’s did which I foolishly sold because I had more money than sense.

And I will openly admit to you, I NEVER took a single image on the GFX cameras that I feel are better than any of the images taken on full-frame. I have so many images captured over the years on full-frame and smaller formats that are career defining or my personal favorites. It never happened on the GFX. I just didn’t click with them.

So I sold the GFX 100S II and made the decision to go crawling back to Sony. I couldn’t afford the A1’s like before so I took a look at the A7R V. And I have to say again and again, it has been photo taking bliss ever since. I love the A7R V. I have had no desire, want, or need to buy another photo camera. It does everything I want, has beautiful image quality that I still marvel at today, focuses fast and accurately, and has paid for itself 10x over in the years I’ve been using it. Its successor, the A7R VI, was announced a few months ago and though it does have some cool new features, it’s not a necessary upgrade for me. It does nothing that my current camera can’t do to create the images I want.

Back to the FX5. It has impressive specs. Internal RAW recording, a detachable EVF, improved autofocus with all the AI stuff, 16-bit color, triple base ISO, and a bigger, multi-axis screen. You’d think based on that alone, I’d be placing a pre-order immediately.

Wrong.

For me, the decision to not purchase the FX5 comes down to a few things, but I’ll start with the major one for me. Ergonomics.

For ergonomics and usability the FX3 > FX5.

All of the shill-tubers and influencers in this space always drone on about specs, but they never spend enough time on usability. And this is generally how I can tell they have no actual experience in the field. Sure you may photograph a model or two, shoot some beautiful footage for your review video, but you’re not producing actual work. At least on a week in, week out basis. No portfolios featuring client work, self-funded, inspired projects, film festival submissions, client lists, etc. They’re mostly reviewers which is fine, but it’s frustrating that they often offer up advice that may not serve their audience or someone interested in making an informed investment into a system. They’re essentially sales people for the camera brands, there to hype up the latest offering.

Their reviews are often extensive reads of the spec sheet coupled with hyperbolic language to make the new thing seem like the most exciting thing ever. I’m sure when they receive the email from the camera brand they’re told to mention certain key features in their “review” like “Triple base ISO!”.

When you work in the field, you’re often working hours, days, even months on a project going from various types of situations. You need gear that is responsive and can keep up with the type of work you do. You also have to meet client expectations which means there’s more stakes involved. You need to be on point and your gear needs to be able to keep up with frequently changing demands.

So sure the camera has great new specs. But what is it like to use for documentary work? Sports? Can I customize it the way I need to? Does it add a cool new feature, but remove a previous one I frequently used? What’s the boot up time? Does it overheat? Lock up? Is the IBIS improved?

Also, for the professional, buying gear is often an investment not a superfluous purchase. Yet, how many videos and posts do we see with people saying, “Why I’m swtiching from <insert brand name here> to <insert other brand name here>”.

For hobbyists with disposable income, you can do whatever you want. It’s not affecting your livelihood to the same degree. But for those trying to run a profitable business, constantly switching systems costs you time and money. It’s generally not worth it unless it’s something groundbreaking or the upgrade has been years in the making like upgrading from an original Panasonic GH5 to the full-frame S1 II for example. Or maybe it’s more utility based like certain features will significantly improve your workflow/efficiency. Otherwise, if the equipment you have is serving you well, you enjoy working with it, clients love the work you do, then you don’t have to switch or upgrade. Don’t fall into the trap.

For years I used DLSR cameras, but when mirrorless matured enough and Eye autofocus got better, I switched and it has definitely made my job easier. Being able to see the exposure and white balance in real time is such an advantage over the EVF-less cameras of the past. That was a worthwhile upgrade for me and easy to justify.

I wasted thousands of dollars and countless hours switching from Panasonic to Sony to Fujifilm back to Panasonic back to Fujifilm then back to Sony. My head is spinning just reading that. Imagine all the returns or having to sell gear and taking a loss on it? It’s wasteful spending and unnecessary to my artistic growth. There was a lesson learned, but it was an expensive one.

Now for ergonomics. I like a lot of the FX5’s new features, but the removal of the rear wheel kills it for me. On the FX3 I have it set to ISO. The documentary I’m filming is often very spontaneous which is perfect for a run-and-gun sort of camera like the FX3. Being able to seamlessly rotate the wheel going from ISO 640 on the low end to 12,800 on the high-end is clutch in many of the situations I find myself in. Going from a dark interior to a midday sunny exterior is done easily by simply rotating the wheel to the ISO I need at the moment. The GFX 100 II and 100S II’s frustrated me with this lack of wheel on the back. It’s such a useful control to have, especially for video. I now require all my cameras to have it.

And mind you, on the FX3(and other Sony cameras) that wheel isn’t just for rotating. It’s also a d-pad.

On each axis of the wheel, you can program up to 4 other buttons giving you even greater control. Removing it has eliminated 4 customizable buttons! I use those buttons to turn on peaking, see my Zebras, and adjust my audio on the fly. I don’t have to dive into a menu to get to the settings. They’re a button press away.

Then since the system has switched from Sony’s colorful Alpha UI to the Cinema UI, you lose the quick function menu which I also use quite regularly to activate/deactivate several features. With the Cinema UI, the FX5 requires more menu diving to get to certain options. So I gain exciting new specs, but at the expense of usability and speed? It’s not a tradeoff I’m willing to make.

And Sony’s cinema camera UI is just bleh to me. The drab gray and yellow palette of the new menu lacks the distinctive color of the Alpha camera UI. That was very helpful in recalling what menu a particular setting is in. It also helps to see your menu when viewing in dark environments.

Other downsides:

Having to buy the new battery. Batteries are expensive and I have plenty of NP-FZ100’s that work with all my Sony cameras. It’s great to have one set of batteries that work for all your devices.
Some features will require you to buy CF Express Type A memory cards which are also very expensive.
Using some features disables other features. Want to shoot in anamorphic? Goodbye autofocus and IBIS!
The bigger screen is nice, until you realize the active area is the same size as the original. Sony just moved the UI elements off to the sides of the screen in the bezel so they’re no longer sitting on top of the image. So it’s sorta bigger but not really. And we lost the wheel because of it.
You can’t use the EVF and audio handle simultaneously. At least natively. Actually I don’t understand why Sony made the EVF detachable in the first place. It should have been integrated like the FX2. Then you could use the audio handle with it and not have to keep up with another modular piece of equipment. I think making the camera body slightly bigger to accommodate this would have been understandable.
They advertise that the FX5 can do 4K 240fps, but that won’t be an actual feature until sometime in 2027. If it isn’t available at launch, don’t talk about it. And what happens when it comes out and there’s some odd compromise associated with it? Like you can only shoot so many seconds before the camera overheats or something. False advertising maybe?
Oh, you also can’t take photos with the camera. Although it’s built like a hybrid camera, it only does video. No photos whatsoever. It would have been nice to use the new 16-megapixel sensor to snap set photos for example. For someone like me that does both photo and video, it’s a hard sale for this sort of camera at $5,000 that only does video. I want more value for my dollar.

To the last point about it not being a hybrid camera that’s another issue. It’s positioned as a camera that should work alongside one of Sony’s premium cinema options like the Burano or Venice. However, it’s designed like a slightly bigger FX3. Why keep the same body style if you’re not going to take full advantage of that form factor? If not hybrid, then why hybrid shaped?! Make it boxed shape or a traditional video camera shape.

Image quality wise, you’re splitting hairs between it and the FX3. The images are very similar with maybe a color edge going to the FX5 due to it’s 16-bit color offering. Maybe some slight sharpness increase due to the 16 megapixel sensor as well.

It’s an impressive camera, but feels more like an incremental update than a great leap forward. I love the FX3 and it has served me well over the years. I love the image, all the customization options, and how versatile it is for a variety of shooting scenarios. If a new model dropped, all I really wanted was the FX3 with the multi-axis screen, then it would be perfect. Maybe the new screen plus 16-bit color. An integrated EVF would be cool too but not a deal breaker. But definitely keep the rear dial, photo modes, etc.

If you’re on the fence wondering if you should sell your car, house, child to buy one, maybe consider what need it fills. And if it fills a need that your current equipment doesn’t. If it fails to make a case for itself, don’t buy it. Or feel pressured to.

I won’t be getting an FX5. With my options open at the moment, I may go in an entirely different direction. Time will tell.

Last thing. No one outside of the photography/filmmaking community cares what you shot the thing on. Unless it’s a client who requires specific deliverables. Outside of that, if it entertains them, you could have shot it on a potato and they’d still love it. But if it’s boring and uninteresting, it doesn’t matter if you shot it on an ARRI Alexa, no one will care and most damaging, no one will want to watch. Think of all the recent Hollywood flops that are shot on top of the line equipment. If it doesn’t connect with an audience, the equipment matters not.

Driving The Point Home

The following three videos encapsulate what I was just saying. It’s good to see people give a more level-headed take on cameras. Specifically, the FX5. Don’t be eager to buy into the hype when new products are announced. They won’t inherently make you a better artist if the art matters to you. Save and use your money wisely.

You’ll notice they made many of the same points I’ve made in this post. The last one by IglooMoth is also interesting because he too, like me, couldn’t get through Danny Gervitz’s FX5 video. I love Danny’s content and have been a fan of his channel since seeing his running video years ago, but his FX5 “review” video was one of the most shill-tastic, sellout for the brand type of videos I have ever seen. I couldn’t get through the first 2 minutes of it. Just slop.

I think the title of IglooMoth’s video is also apt: “The same 10 guys sell us another camera.”

That’s exactly it. It’s always the same usual suspects that have essentially been hired by the camera brand to promote their product. They are rarely critical even when there are obvious issues (the Canon R5 overheating issue comes to mind) and make these recommendations solely to push the product for the camera company. Not even a level headed, “Hey if you love what you’re getting out of the FX3, you may not need to switch to the FX5. There are things that camera does better than this one and vice versa.”

I’m so glad we’re finally getting to a point as a society that influencers aren’t as relevant as they were at their height.

You guys just aren’t trustworthy anymore.

So What Video Camera Would I Buy Now?

As mentioned above, I am consider other camera options at the moment. We resume filming This Is Sera mid-August, so I can either continue working with the FX3, but there are some things I’ve love to improve production wise. I’d love a more detailed image, more natural color, smoother IBIS, and more professional exposure tools on the camera itself. There are times when I can’t use an external monitor, which I love for having false color and waveforms, but without it I’m limited to Zebras and the camera meter as my main exposure tools on the FX3. Those features being native on the FX5 are a welcome addition, but since I’m not getting that one, what other cameras offer it? So I’ve been doing a bit of research and I think I found a camera that will fit my needs a bit better than the FX3. The choice is utility, not because I want the latest gadget. If I make a decision I’ll share my choice, reasoning, and findings here on the blog.

FILMMAKING IS FUN(ER)

What started as me simply dipping my toe into filmmaking has become a bit of an obsession. Don’t get me wrong, I love taking photos, but photography has become so devalued and unappreciated in recent times it has left me feeling a bit dismayed at its long term relevance. That’s a tangent for another post, but I must say filmmaking has been a lot of fun. It’s been feeding my creative soul well over the past months.

For one, it just gives me much greater flexibility as a storyteller where I felt much more limited with photography. Of course, you have to have interesting things/people to film, but when you do, there’s nothing like it. Seeing things unfold in front of the camera in whatever random, unique way is a high that never gets old for me. Of course after long days of filming, carrying gear, moving the camera delicately to avoid camera shake or holding a position so long my arms ache, you feel like it’s the worse thing ever. But when you look at the footage and you nailed it, it’s such a satisfying loop of trial and error. Like playing a Souls-like videogame. When you win, it’s the greatest feeling.

Two, it’s making me think about the image in an entirely different way than photography. The best example I can give is the greater attention I give to focal length and its impact on the image. For filming, I love and prefer the 24mm field of view. But sometimes a different focal length is better for a particular mood or to highlight something of interest. Sometimes wider is more emotional than the closeup and vice versa. I know what the distortion of 24mm looks like 1-2 feet away from the face. I know how 50mm will look for a waist up shot of someone sitting. When Sera and I did the shoot in Paris, I was much more mindful of the focal length I was set to on my 24-70. Before I would just zoom to a width that gave me the composition I wanted. Now it’s more than just composition, it’s also the feeling I want to convey. Choice of focal length matters and filmmaking has given me such a greater appreciation for it.

My enjoyment of filmmaking has caused quite a dilemma though. Sometimes when I’m taking pictures I’m thinking, “Man this would be so cool to film!” And other times when I’m filming, I wish I could stop and capture that moment as a picture. I’m sure this will be a struggle throughout my career. You can’t have it all ya know.

But for now, I’m having a blast learning, growing, and failing.

SONY GETS RID OF PHYSICAL MEDIA

Get Playstation 5. Prepare for next generation of gaming. Has no games.

A bit off topic, but relevant to my disdain of shilling for corporations.

Recently, Sony announced they’ll be eliminating physical media for their Playstation platform going forward. So now all your purchases will be locked to an account in which they can abitrarily remove your game or certain features on a whim if they decided to? This just rubs me the wrong way.

One of the reasons I’m not interested in camera brand partnerships because they expect you to be a team player for the brand. They see it as “you need us” and not the other way around. You can’t call them out for obvious faults or any anti-consumer practices. I love Sony’s camera and gear, they make great stuff, but on the entertainment front, they’ve lost me as a customer.

I’ll never buy another Playstation again after this generation. Steam gang till I die. And the Playstation 5 is wack anyway. It’s been 6 years and the first-party library is pitiful. Easily the worst console generation this.

Steam Machine. I already own the Steam Deck, so it’s either this or building a gaming PC.
Console gaming is on its last legs.

The best way to get corporations to take us seriously as consumers is to not support their decisions and refuse to buy their crappy anti-consumer products/services. When Disney insulted fans of Star Wars for valid criticisms of their awful sequel trilogy, I decided then and there I’ll never support Disney Star Wars ever again. Same for Sony. No physical media, no way to have some sense of ownership of your game media? No buy for me. I hope the masses follow suit.

THE IPHONE AS MY EVERYDAY CAMERA

A bit late to the party, but I have found myself enjoying my iPhone as my everyday camera. Despite my best efforts I’ve yet to find a small camera that’s small enough to get out of the way yet with the performance I expect from a camera. The last camera that filled that void for me was the Lumix GX9. Small, fast, with interchangeable lenses. Was a such a fun little camera to use though with its own limitations. On this most recent trip, I didn’t want to waste money on a specialist camera for traveling and just opted to use my phone whenever I saw something of interest. It was the best choice.

The images are beautiful, it’s quick to edit right on the phone, and it feeds into my love of snapshotting. I don’t always want to find a pristine composition. I just want to grab the camera, snap a few quick pics and be back in the moment. It’s perfect for that. I could go down the iPhone lens rabbit hole and try to get even better quality from the images, but you don’t have to turn everything into a project.

Just enjoy things as they are.

IN CLOSING

I’ll likely be taking another extended absence from the blog. Not due to disinterest, but I have a pretty loaded schedule over the next month. Maybe I’ll do a few short posts if there’s anything that piques’s my interest or I feel is interesting enough to report. Otherwise, I’m keeping with my goal of focusing more on creating work than talking about it. Even talking about the FX5 and gear related stuff had me feeling like I’m going backwards. It feels good when you commit wholeheartedly to a new direction. I’d advise many of my fellow artists and aspiring ones to follow suit. Don’t get bogged down in gear discussions or feeling that the tech itself is the key to make you a better artist. It may just be you need to practice/learn more. Food for thought.

Feel free to follow me on all the socials if you’d like to keep up with what I’m doing! Until next time.

Hope you enjoyed this post! Feel free to leave your thoughts and comments below!

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