I guess that most filmmakers will be covered. It is also possible to connect the LH5P to a Tilta Nucleus N/M wireless follow focus to pull focus via the monitor.
In addition, there are multiple exhaust vents all around the monitor, which help with heat dissipation. Talking about heat, I was stunned that the monitor was not warm or hot to the touch even after a couple of hours of being turned on. So that’s a good sign!.
If you have a professional video tripod with a fluid head or light stands, you have another option on both sides of the Flexloader L.
Last but not least, the bag comes with a 5-year warranty. You’ll need to register and activate your warranty on Manfrotto’s website. The company’s customer service is incredible, and you can trust their warranty.
The HDMI cables are pretty thick, and while I prefer slim cables, they are of good quality, especially the full-size to full-size HDMI cable.
In October 2021, Manfrotto introduced a new PRO Light camera bags lineup for photographers and filmmakers. So I was very eager to try the Manfrotto PRO Flexloader L backpack for various reasons. First, it is one of the biggest carry-on camera-specific luggage on the market. Also, it’s Manfrotto’s second generation of PRO Light backpacks. So did the company improve what was already an excellent lineup of products? Let’s find out!.
In short, the PortKeys LH5P has plenty of input/output power ports, which is nice, as some much more expensive options out there don’t offer that much.
At first, I had a weird feeling as in case of assistance or firmware updates, I guess you are left in the dark with no customer service to contact.
As I mentioned, the Portkeys PT5 does not have any physical buttons, and all the navigation is via the touchscreen. I’m glad there are only pages, as it is relatively easy to operate and understand, but there are also some drawbacks like the numerous fingerprints the screen will accumulate.
Inside the main compartment, you’ll find two central dividers that measure the Flexloader L’s interior length. The Flexloader L also comes with eight small dividers.
As you can see, the P6 is fully packed with all the essential tools. The only drawback of PortKeys’ monitors is the user interface, which is not the most intuitive near beautiful out there, but it gets the job done.
Atomos has just announced that the Atomos Ninja V 5″ HDR monitor-recorder will support ProRes RAW recording from the Z CAM E2. The Ninja V will be able to record 12-bit Apple ProRes RAW at up to 4K60p. We caught up with Dan Chung from Atomos to learn more about it.
As Phil Holland wrote, aside from REDCODE RAW files, the camera can also shoot ProRes MOV files for quick turnaround. They are available in HQ and 422 for both 4K and 2K resolutions. According to Phil, the camera can’t record both at the same time.
Panasonic sells the same camera as G85 in the USa and G80 in Europe, so don’t get confused. This set with the LUMIX 12-60mm f/3.5-5.6mm lens offers great value for the price. B&H offers free accessories (spare battery, memory card, and camera bag) with the purchase. CVP offers free LUMIX 25mm f/1.7 lens (!), and free 3-year Panasonic LUMIX warranty.
The PortKeys Bluetooth Module for BM5 monitors retails for $119/99€, and you can pre-order it directly on PortKeys’ website. It should ship from the 30th of November.
Fig. 3: The Portkeys BM5 monitor – bright (2000 NITS) and well built, however the screen is very reflective which can hamper the viewing experience outside.
The fact that the Black Mini is a lightweight on-camera monitor makes it a lovely experience if you’re operating handheld or on a tripod/gimbal. It doesn’t add too much weight nor bulk to your setup, which is nice.
What do you think of the PortKeys BM5? Do you think the camera remote functions are useful? Let us know in the comments down below!.
Codec wise there are H264 and H265 10bit internal recording options to SD cards, but as a big differentiator to other cams in this price bracket, it offers to record ProRes via USB-C to an external SSD drive.
The PortKeys BM5 is daylight-viewable with a maximum brightness of 2000nit – the newest BM5 II monitor is 2200nit – and it is entirely made out of aluminum for a total weight of 350 grams.
you’re still getting based on the reach of your “old” articles if you continue to write regularly for the site, it’s all very transparent – loyalty is welcome and awarded.
Only the large pocket is closed by a zipper. The two small ones feature soft fabric wings to kind of close them, but tiny items could eventually fall out of the pockets as they are not physically closed.
I used the LH5H for three months and a dozen shoots in various shooting conditions before writing this review. I can say that the image coming out of the LH5H and LH5P is excellent for the price, especially in an interior situation.
However, I was a bit worried about a possible short inside my camera bag between the batteries and whatever metal object they could hit. Volta Cinema told me that:.
CVP Buy link: Panasonic LUMIX G9 Camera Body Was: €1,100.86 Now: €941.78 (Savings: €159.09, Free accessories, Free 25mm f/1.7 lens, and Free 3-year warranty).
Manfrotto put some thick and quite long metal pull straps at the end of the main compartment and gimbal zippers, so it’s easy to open/close the most-used bag’s pockets.
This does not allow an analysis via our standard IMATEST routines – because no RMS noise values can be calculated for the lower stops. Therefore we only have the waveform plot of the Xyla 21 stepchart as a reference. From the waveform, about 10 stops of dynamic range can be identified.
Last but not least, there is one user-assignable Function button to turn On/Off your favorite tool quickly; that’s great. But, to activate/deactivate all the other non-assigned built-in tools, you always have to go inside the menu, do your thing, let the menu disappear, and so on. It is a bit of a letdown if you’re often switching between different tools, which is a bit of a disappointment and can slow you down.
The Volta Cinema Top Handle immediately caught my attention when I first saw it. From what I saw, I found this product brilliant, with a simple design and a clear mission: power your camera or accessories via the handle. Other companies have tried this, albeit arguably not as elegantly.
Canon EOS C300 Mark III has also been announced this year. It is a sucessor of one of Canon’s most popular cinema cameras ever – the C300 Mark II. The new generation offers an uncropped 4K120p video on the Super35 sensor as well as modular design, internal ND filters, and Dual-Pixel AF.
I found the Volta Top Handle’s build quality itself to be really decent. All the parts are made out of 7075 aluminum, and it feels solid. The Volta Cinema logo is kind of “engraved” on one side.
The sun hood consists of two parts: a plastic sun hood and a mounting bracket—the bracket clips onto the monitor, and the sun hood attached to it via some velcro.
Some tweaks to the footage are needed to make it look more pleasing – that was not the case with the sister model Z CAM E2 which offers very nice, out of the box colors using the same LUT’s.
It is powered via a single Sony NP-F style battery, and you can use the power output of the BM5 to feed your camera via a dummy battery. Also, you can power it with an external battery by using the Lemo port on the monitor.
Also, it is a WLED display, and the panel itself is 10-bit (8+2 FRC), so not “true” 10-bit, even if very few monitors are real 10-bit.
In terms of weight, the monitor is 250 grams/8.8 oz without batteries. External dimensions are 144 x 114.8 x 28mm/5.5 x 4.3 x 0.7in without battery. Comparing the LH5P to some of its competitors, like the smallHD FOCUS 5, the PortKeys monitor is slightly heavier. However, with dimensions of 133 x 84 x 19mm/5.25 x 3.3 x 0.75in, Focus 5 is overall smaller, but it is 5″ vs. 5.5″.
In this discounted set, along with the camera, you get SanDisk 32GB extreme PRO UHS-II SDHC memory card, Watson 2000mAh battery pack, Watson compact AC/DC charger for NP-FZ100 battery, and Ruggard Journey 24 DSLR shoulder bag.
Pretty much every tool you need is here to judge your image, except Zebras and a Vectorscope, but that’s already decent for an entry-level on-camera monitor.
The PortKeys LH5P retails for $399.00/€449.00, and it is available now. Compared to other options in the market, I’ve been really impressed, and it’s a solid daylight-viewable on-camera monitors for under $400 if you don’t need SDI input/output ports.
PortKeys was kind enough to send us this new LH5P model with very similar features: in short, it is the same display but 0.3″ bigger, it is made out of aluminum instead of plastic, and it has an antenna for wireless control. We updated this review accordingly and took some time to test every feature again. Enjoy!.
There is also a nice Z CAM smartphone app available for IOS (Android still in a beta release), which connects to the camera’s wifi and allows access / display / change all settings as well as providing a full screen image preview with little latency.
We plan to add subsequent control to Sony FS5/FS7, Canon C200/C300 II, RED, and ARRI cameras. We even plan to add the Tilta Nucleus N/M wireless follow focus The user can update the monitor’s firmware via the USB port.
the small front pocket could feature the same metal zippers pull straps as the main compartments ones, so you can close it with the TSA lock.
You got it; both monitors are very similar, so what’s new? One of the biggest caveats of the LH5H is its full-plastic construction. The PortKeys LH5P is built with aluminum alloy, which makes it more resistant to field life. Also, it looks slightly thinner than its predecessor, but the LH5P is heavier at 250g vs. 170g for the LH5H.
According to the company, they had to use “an off the shelf 0.8A x1 or 0.6A x 2 PCB for the charger to sit within the Micro USB specification (2.1A x 5V = ~10W total, minus the loss in efficiency).” This results in long charging times. To fully charge two batteries, it took me close to eight hours.
In a nutshell, the top handle can support most DSLR and mirrorless cameras, as well as cinema cameras, including the BMPCC 4K/6K, the RED KOMODO, and up to an ARRI Alexa Mini, which is impressive. Also, it should support most on-camera monitors and camera accessories, as long as they stay within the 7.2V/5A limit.
The PortKeys LH5H is in-factory calibrated using an X-Rite i1 Display Pro colorimeter. The display should look as good as it can be right out of the box without further adjustments. If you have an i1 Display Pro prob, you can re-calibrate your LH5H yourself later down the road if needed.
The dividers feature Manfrotto’s M-GUARD technology to protect your equipment. M-GUARD dividers are made of high-density EVA foam and are “50% slimmer with 50% greater shock absorption” compared to previous Manfrotto dividers.
I would have preferred longer threadings with a full turn or even a bit more. That way, it would avoid possible loosening problems, even if it didn’t happen to me during the making of this review.
Via LANC: Z CAM E2 F6 and S6, Blackmagic Ursa Mini, Ursa Broadcast, Pocket Cinema Camera 4k/6K, Sony FS5, FS7, FX9, C700 PL, C700 GSPL, C200, C100, C100 MARK 2.
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