Doug Jensen's Guide to the Sony PMW-F55
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4.7 • 6 Ratings
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- $84.99
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- $84.99
Publisher Description
With the release of Sony’s PMW-F55 digital cinema camera, the possibility of recording stunning, cinematic-quality 4K, 2K, and HD images with an affordable camera has become a reality. The PMW-F55 nicely bridges the gap between high-end ENG/EFP camcorders and film-style cinema cameras. If you love the shallow depth-of-field and image control that you can get with 35mm film cameras and SLRs — but want the ergonomics, professional features, lens options, and the reliability of a traditional Sony camcorder, then the F55 was made for you.
However, like any professional camera of this caliber, the F55 is extremely complex and requires leaning a whole new set of tools and complicated workflows. This book has been written to help F55 owner/operators get started off on the right foot and flatten the learning curve as much as possible.
In the no-nonsense style for which Doug Jensen is known, he cuts through the clutter of confusing, misunderstood, and undocumented features. He demystifies the camera and explains each of it’s functions while providing practical, step-by-step instructions for how to use them. His suggestions and advanced techniques will improve the quality of your footage, streamline your workflow, and make you more productive. No matter how well you think you know the PMW-F55, you will learn things in this guide that you didn't know before — plus the book makes a handy reference anytime you need a quick refresher course. With over 300 pages of detailed information, there isn’t a single important subject not included.
Topics include: Getting Started, Creating a User Menu, Recording Formats, the Custom Shooting Mode, Paint Menus, Scene Files, the Cine EI Shooting Mode, LUTs & Look Profiles, Setting Exposure, White Balance, Markers, All Files, Memory Card choices, Video Monitoring, 2K Center Scan, Shooting RAW, S&Q Motion, custom Clip Naming, Assign Buttons, Audio Recording, Timecode & Genlock, Picture Cache, Interval Recording, Wi-Fi Control, System Menus, Playback Operation, Updating Firmware, Ingesting & Archiving, and much more.
Customer Reviews
Host/Producer The Amazing Race - NOW TV
In 2013 I spent 26 days working with Doug as we documented my 3,314 mile bike ride around France. This was the most ambitious cinéma vérité project ever shot with Sony's F55. Having Doug's extensive experience and knowledge in the field gave all of us tremendous peace of mind. His meticulous attention to detail is extraordinary. I can assure you that everything you need to know about the F55 is covered in Doug's latest Guide which utilizes great illustrations and logical step by step instructions to help you master this wonderful camera.
Not Printable nor Downloadable to an iPhone 6+
Doug Jensen’s Guide seems like a valuable book. It’s well written and well documented. However, I do not like being limited to reading it on a computer. iBooks will not allow me to print it out so that I can read a hard copy. Nor will it download to my large (and completely adequate for the purpose) phone. Both of these limitations seem arbitrary and limit the book’s value for me. After paying $85 I expected more flexibility in how I wished to use it. Shame.
Great resource filled with real world experience and advice
Seems like every chapter has an "ah-ha" moment, even for someone who has owned and worked with the camera for over a year. Here's an example of Doug's thinking about how to approach the shooting process with this camera that results in the excellent video examples he provides.
July 7, 2014PAINT MENUS, p. 90
I am a firm believer that it is almost always better to do as much of the heavy lifting as you can in-camera, at the full 16-bit depth, before the video is recorded onto a memory card. In other words, the less I need to manipulate the image in post, the happier I am with the workflow and image quality of the final output. Of course, if I choose to “bake-in” the look at the time of shooting then I might have a much harder time in post if I decide I want a different look - so there is that tradeoff.