Tom Hancox

[hancox92]

FS700

Crazy to think I actually got this camera! I remember saying to my dad “Dad, I really want to take filming seriously but I don’t want to go down the typical route of going to university. I want to do this entirely by myself, and start off as a freelancer.” Obviously it wasn’t as simple as that,more conversations and saving up money took place and time before I finally got my dream camera, the SONY FS700RH. I read so many reviews and articles on this camera before I made my final decision in getting it, because obviously I had other cameras in mind (canon c100, sony fs100, canon mark 3, and so on) which are all exceptionally good cameras in their own right. The one feature that really stood out for me with this particular camera though was, the super slow motion. It’s insane to think that this camera can film up to 1000fps!! That’s 1000 pictures every second essentially. It blew my mind! And to have a feature like this in a camera worth under £10k is just unheard of, especially at the quality it can maintain and deliver. To find a camera which can provide something like this, you’re usually looking at having to pay around £30k or more, so you can see why I was pretty chuffed about that.

Another reason why I thought it was a sensible choice going for the fs700 is because it is future proof. We currently see 1080p as a high quality resolution. But, in a couple of years time most of us will have moved on and be using higher resolutions such as 2k and 4k. The introduction of 2k and 4k has already taken place, and development of technology has already allowed us to go beyond this quality. I’ve already seen cameras capable of 5k and even 8k, which is just stupid right now as there isn't a TV or device that can really support it, being used. Luckily, the sensor of the fs700 is capable of 4k, providing you buy the necessary equipment to go with it (odyssey 7Q), which adds to the cameras shelf life. But, using a camera that can deliver such a resolution like 4k or above wouldn’t suit my workflow, or that of many other videographers’ workflows, right now anyway. This is simply because, the file sizes you receive are just ridiculous, (30 mins shooting time = 130GB!!! of memory space so I believe) where as 1080p, which is what I’m currently shooting at, file sizes are much more manageable (30 mins of shooting time = 20 GB of space). Obviously you will see differences in quality between the resolutions (1080p and 4k), but when there aren't any platforms yet that truly support 4k resolution that difference will be hard to tell right now.

There are so many other reasons as to why I got this camera. A few being:

1. Sony’s picture profiles - Slog2 is without a doubt one of the nicest PP’s I’ve seen once you’ve graded and done the necessary requirement in post to the footage, even though the codec the camera uses does struggles from time to time with it. Originally, I think SLog2 was made for sony’s F55, a much more expensive camera than mine. It was only a couple of months ago sony released this PP or offered an upgrade to existing sony fs700 users which enabled the use of the PP. I’ve found that to get the best image out of Slog2, you need to make sure you’re over exposing the image slightly, especially in dark situations, so that you don’t receive any grain in shots when you look back at them in post.

2. Built in ND filters. One of the most handiest features the camera offers when filming outside. Over exposure is a common fear amongst filmmakers when filming outside but ND filters ensure that you can control that so you won’t be.

3. The battery life. Sony’s lithium batteries are insanely good and last for hours even when constantly filming.

4. Sony’s E mount allows me to switch between any lens I choose providing I have the right adaptor needed for that lens to do so. This means I can use a sony lens, canon lens, Nikon lens, sigma lens, any lens that I wish to choose.

I’m going on a bit now but my point is, this camera has totally been worth the investment!

I’ll be posting some new videos I’ve been working on soon, one being ‘Taking The Underground’ which I’ve worked really hard on and am quite proud of 😁

[hancox92]

Wickerman Festival

[hancox92]

Wickerman Festival with Tom Welsh

I’m gonna do this now while it’s still fresh in my head. Wickerman festival, a little different to what I am use to, but a festival nevertheless! The only festival I’ve ever been to is Leeds fest, where everyone’s drinking far too much, taking drugs and basically just getting fucked up, but managing to have a good time still. Wickerman festival is more of a family festival, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. For instance, an unusual sight to see was the ambulance doing nothin hectic that day, which is always a good sign 👍✌ First off anyway, I just want to say a big thanks to Tom Welsh for giving me the opportunity to do something like this. Not only did I get the chance to work with him but I also got - an all access pass and plenty of food for free, so a big thanks to Tom there. Sooo, where to start with this bad boy? I’ve got so much to say about the day. I think what needs to be said first is meeting Tom Welsh. From reading his blogs on the Internet and looking at the work he’s done, I’ve always found him/ his work to be very interesting. Personally, due to the bands i like, I’d say that he’s quite a big deal because of his work involving artists like you me at six, while she sleeps, architects etc… AND the fact that his brother is Matt Welsh (guitarist from while she sleeps) you can kind of imagine why I’d find him a bit nerve racking to meet at first. I didn’t really know what to expect but to find out that he is such a nice guy was great and made the whole day far better. Thankfully, Tom brought along another companion that would be a reliable source for good footage on the day, because I do kinda suck to an extent when it comes to filming stuff right now… but improvement is inevitable! So, it’s best to leave it to the professionals to get the job done! I don’t think Tom actually considers himself as a professional in this area of work as well, which seems a bit surprising when you look at the level and quality of what he has done. He knows his stuff anyway. For instance, whenever we’d stop off from working, we’d have discussions about gear. But when I say we, I really mean just between Tom and the other cameraman. They knew a ridiculous amount in the subject, which was actually really interesting to listen to and I gained more of an understanding of things here and there from all the tech talk. When the conversation turned to me - I, on the other hand, could literally sum up everything i knew in around 5 minutes, which was pretty shocking and quite embarrassing really if you could listen to what these guys were saying. It was great to see Tom work anyway. Every shot that he’ll use for the final promo is spontaneous and it’s his good eye that gives him the ability to capture such good footage that he’s able to get. His experience obviously helps a lot. During a set, Tom took a great shot filming behind a drummer facing the audience, in slow mo. This wasn’t planned, and it just looked awesome. His work ethic also is admirable (the guy doesn’t stop) seriously, like I don’t know how he does it. I started at 5am Saturday morning and finished/ got home at 6am the next day, Sunday morning. i slept well sunday day, I assure you that, but this seems like toms average lengthy day, because he seemed fine throughout it where as I started to lose interest in it all for sleep. Whilst working with Tom I had to ask a couple of questions about bands and the people that he’s working with. i recently just bought the architects blu ray DVD thats been funded solely by the band’s fans, like me, and I am really anticipating its arrival on my doorstep. So that was my first question, when’s it going to be released? It’s coming out late August - pretty cool that I know the confirmation of that unlike everyone else who are probably still wondering. Tom was saying also that just from the trailer that he created for the film, one hundred days, a lot of interest and work has presented itself to him and he’s now fully booked up until February 2014 because of it! All because of one film trailer that’s around 3 minutes long. How crazy is that? We also got talking about while she sleeps and their current affairs at vans warped tour. It’s cool how he spoke about this because I can imagine that he gets it quite a lot or at least here and there because his brother is in the band and to go over the same subject again and again can be quite annoying, i guess, so I’m grateful that he took the time to talk about it for my sake. There was also talk about you me at six, and Twin Atlantic… All very interesting stuff. Boom! First blog done… Tom welsh is a sick guy and wickerman festival was awesome! Brap, brap, brap!