K5 Video recording questions

gybp · 11-12-2010, 07:05 AM

hi, im interested in this aspect of the camera, video..

i want to know how does it compares to the 7D/5D/D7000, or how is it doing by itself in:

1) Quality (compression, artifacts etc)
2) Rolling Shutter problem... you know the jello effect.. (samples here)

3) FPS, i know it is limited at 25fps, but i want/need 24/30/60 can this be upgraded via firmware?
4) Full manual controls: Does it have them? i dont care about autofocus at all
5) Audio
6) Dinamic range: is it the same as when shooting pictures?
7) Use for special FX: chroma key, etc

this list can be revisited depending on your comments, and they will affect my decision on buying the camera, thanks!

inferno10 · 11-12-2010, 06:04 PM

Originally posted by gybp

hi, im interested in this aspect of the camera, video..

i want to know how does it compares to the 7D/5D/D7000, or how is it doing by itself in:

1) Quality (compression, artifacts etc)
2) Rolling Shutter problem... you know the jello effect.. (samples here)

It's there, as it is in all DSLRs. It seems to be on par with my T2i.

Quote:

3) FPS, i know it is limited at 25fps, but i want/need 24/30/60 can this be upgraded via firmware?

At 720p, you can do 25/30 fps. At 1080p, you can only do 25 fps. We can always hope for the addition of 24 fps later on, but I highly doubt they'll add 60 fps.

Quote:

4) Full manual controls: Does it have them? i dont care about autofocus at all

No manual control at the moment. It's one of my gripes with video on Pentax DSLRs, and is the reason I have a T2i as well.

Quote:

5) Audio

Audio seems fine to me. The K-5's sample rate is 32kHz in mono, which is lower compared to the 7D, but is 48 kHz when a stereo mic is used (same as 7D). The K-5, like the 7D and 5D, has a stereo input jack. If you're serious about video, you'll use an external mic on any of these bodies.

Quote:

6) Dinamic range: is it the same as when shooting pictures?

I'm no expert at measuring things like this, but I would assume the DR in video is as wide as the JPEG engine allows for. I'll try a test by extracting a frame out of a scene and take a snapshot of the same scene with the camera in JPEG.

Quote:

7) Use for special FX: chroma key, etc

Beyond my experience level again. There was a short film done by a group using a K-7 that did use green screen though, so I wouldn't think that the camera couldn't be used for effects like chroma key.

If you want to get an idea of what can be done by a regular person on a K-7 or T2i, check out the Vimeo link in my signature.

- Jason

RonHendriks1966 · 11-12-2010, 06:15 PM

The shortcut in manual control aperture, iso and shuttertime works in the K-5 the same as in the K-7. Not as handy as in real manual control, but usable. You can find it in the video-section.

I made a short one in a bar, low light, just under an hour after my purchase of the K-5 (brouht battery from my K-7).
[YT]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48YqCBFPvXg[/YT]

Cannikin · 11-12-2010, 06:38 PM

"Jello cam" is a fundamental limitation of CMOS sensors. The sensor scans pixels line by line (rolling shutter), so that there may be a noticable difference between the top and bottom parts of the frame. This is present in (virtually) all CMOS sensor cameras including the K-5; just turn on live view and pan quickly to see the effect. The only way to get rid of this effect entirely is to use a sensor technology with a "global shutter" (all pixels are recorded at the same time), such as CCD.

Though it is definitely noticable, I don't particularly find it that bad, as you have to pan fairly quickly before it starts to get annoying. I don't think it's going to be that much of a problem, unless you're shooting fast moving action, in which case you're definitely not using the right camera. It does get substantially worse, though, with longer lenses (for the same reasons as camera shake at higher focal length), so stick with shorter lenses.

Haven't done much experimenting with video yet, so I can't really speak for the quality. Framerate could conceivably be lowered through firmware, but I'm pretty sure they will never make it faster as that would likely require hardware reworking/recertification.

Last edited by Cannikin; 11-12-2010 at 07:19 PM.

gybp · 11-13-2010, 04:21 AM

Originally posted by RonHendriks1966

The shortcut in manual control aperture, iso and shuttertime works in the K-5 the same as in the K-7. Not as handy as in real manual control, but usable. You can find it in the video-section.

I made a short one in a bar, low light, just under an hour after my purchase of the K-5 (brouht battery from my K-7).
[YT]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48YqCBFPvXg[/YT]

nice!, what lens was that?

11-12-2010, 07:05 AM	#1
gybp Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 165	K5 Video recording questions hi, im interested in this aspect of the camera, video.. i want to know how does it compares to the 7D/5D/D7000, or how is it doing by itself in: 1) Quality (compression, artifacts etc) 2) Rolling Shutter problem... you know the jello effect.. (samples here) Vimeo 3) FPS, i know it is limited at 25fps, but i want/need 24/30/60 can this be upgraded via firmware? 4) Full manual controls: Does it have them? i dont care about autofocus at all 5) Audio 6) Dinamic range: is it the same as when shooting pictures? 7) Use for special FX: chroma key, etc this list can be revisited depending on your comments, and they will affect my decision on buying the camera, thanks!

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11-12-2010, 06:04 PM	#2
inferno10 Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: San Francisco, California Posts: 342	Originally posted by gybp hi, im interested in this aspect of the camera, video.. i want to know how does it compares to the 7D/5D/D7000, or how is it doing by itself in: 1) Quality (compression, artifacts etc) 2) Rolling Shutter problem... you know the jello effect.. (samples here) It's there, as it is in all DSLRs. It seems to be on par with my T2i. Quote: 3) FPS, i know it is limited at 25fps, but i want/need 24/30/60 can this be upgraded via firmware? At 720p, you can do 25/30 fps. At 1080p, you can only do 25 fps. We can always hope for the addition of 24 fps later on, but I highly doubt they'll add 60 fps. Quote: 4) Full manual controls: Does it have them? i dont care about autofocus at all No manual control at the moment. It's one of my gripes with video on Pentax DSLRs, and is the reason I have a T2i as well. Quote: 5) Audio Audio seems fine to me. The K-5's sample rate is 32kHz in mono, which is lower compared to the 7D, but is 48 kHz when a stereo mic is used (same as 7D). The K-5, like the 7D and 5D, has a stereo input jack. If you're serious about video, you'll use an external mic on any of these bodies. Quote: 6) Dinamic range: is it the same as when shooting pictures? I'm no expert at measuring things like this, but I would assume the DR in video is as wide as the JPEG engine allows for. I'll try a test by extracting a frame out of a scene and take a snapshot of the same scene with the camera in JPEG. Quote: 7) Use for special FX: chroma key, etc Beyond my experience level again. There was a short film done by a group using a K-7 that did use green screen though, so I wouldn't think that the camera couldn't be used for effects like chroma key. If you want to get an idea of what can be done by a regular person on a K-7 or T2i, check out the Vimeo link in my signature. - Jason

11-12-2010, 06:15 PM	#3
RonHendriks1966 Banned Join Date: Jan 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 9,675	The shortcut in manual control aperture, iso and shuttertime works in the K-5 the same as in the K-7. Not as handy as in real manual control, but usable. You can find it in the video-section. I made a short one in a bar, low light, just under an hour after my purchase of the K-5 (brouht battery from my K-7). [YT]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48YqCBFPvXg[/YT]

11-12-2010, 06:38 PM	#4
Cannikin Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: SW Washington Posts: 833	"Jello cam" is a fundamental limitation of CMOS sensors. The sensor scans pixels line by line (rolling shutter), so that there may be a noticable difference between the top and bottom parts of the frame. This is present in (virtually) all CMOS sensor cameras including the K-5; just turn on live view and pan quickly to see the effect. The only way to get rid of this effect entirely is to use a sensor technology with a "global shutter" (all pixels are recorded at the same time), such as CCD. Though it is definitely noticable, I don't particularly find it that bad, as you have to pan fairly quickly before it starts to get annoying. I don't think it's going to be that much of a problem, unless you're shooting fast moving action, in which case you're definitely not using the right camera. It does get substantially worse, though, with longer lenses (for the same reasons as camera shake at higher focal length), so stick with shorter lenses. Haven't done much experimenting with video yet, so I can't really speak for the quality. Framerate could conceivably be lowered through firmware, but I'm pretty sure they will never make it faster as that would likely require hardware reworking/recertification. Last edited by Cannikin; 11-12-2010 at 07:19 PM.

11-13-2010, 04:21 AM	#5
gybp Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 165 Original Poster	Originally posted by RonHendriks1966 The shortcut in manual control aperture, iso and shuttertime works in the K-5 the same as in the K-7. Not as handy as in real manual control, but usable. You can find it in the video-section. I made a short one in a bar, low light, just under an hour after my purchase of the K-5 (brouht battery from my K-7). [YT]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48YqCBFPvXg[/YT] nice!, what lens was that?