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Dallas Mavericks confirms that Panasonic Lumix GX-85 is a professional camera

January 31, 2023 by OpenFilmmaker 2 Comments

Luka Doncic shooting a free throw at the Mavs vs. Pistons game 1/30/2023. Taken RAW on a cell phone, OnePlus 10 Pro.

Micro Four-Thirds cameras often get criticism for not being a camera that can deliver like full-frame cameras. Well, the Dallas Mavericks seem to think otherwise!

I went to the Mavs game last night… I had a great time and it was a fun experience. The Mavs ended up winning 111 to 105 with Luka scoring a massive 53 points! Anyway, back to the camera incident.

Lately I’ve been shooting my kids games with the GX85 and Sigma 56mm. I take this combination because it’s small, portable and I don’t want to lug around a big, professional sports camera. So naturally when I found out we’re going to the Mavs game, I wanted to take it and checked the Mavs website. See the screenshot below:

The Mavs camera policy states that cameras are allowed, but not professional cameras.

When we got there, security did not allow the GX-85. I asked why and he said it’s a professional camera because it has an interchangeable lens. I pleaded that I was taking a small camera under 4-inches, including the lens. He was not having it.

I asked to take a photo of their “rules”. Here is states small cameras are allowed, but professional cameras are not.

So this morning I took a pic side-by-side of the camera I was trying to take (on top) and my professional sports camera (on bottom). To be clear, I was trying to take the camera on top to the Mavs game. I didn’t try to take an actual professional camera – I’m showing as an example of what a professional camera looks like.

Small camera (GX-85 with Sigma 56mm) vs. professional camera (5D Mark III with 70-200mm)

So is the GX-85 a professional camera? According to the Mavs – yes, because it has an interchangeable lens. So that’s all that it takes for a camera to be professional – an interchangeable lens? Now, I get all types of great photography with my GX85, but please name me one professional, indoor sports shooter that uses a GX85 with a Sigma 56mm lens to do sports photography? I use it explicitly because I don’t want to do professional sports photography!! There a people out there that just like taking pictures. Not everything needs to be a professional photo.

According to the Mavs, both of these cameras are “professional cameras”.

How to make one prime lens into three lenses on Panasonic Lumix cameras?

January 14, 2023 by OpenFilmmaker Leave a Comment

GX-85 and Sigma 56mm with Ex Teleconverter — GX-85 with Ex Teleconverter

Both kids started basketball today. I took this shot on a Panasonic GX85 and Sigma 56mm f/1.4 using the built-in Ex-Teleconverter feature.

According to the manual: “Extended Tele Conversion enables you to take pictures that are further enlarged without deteriorating the picture quality”. Again, this is built-in camera feature… not a physical teleconverter adapter.

I don’t fully agree that it doesn’t affect picture quality as I feel there’s some degradation. However, this feature can essentially take a prime and give you two additional focal lengths out of it… 1.4x and 2.0x.

So for this 112mm prime lens (35mm-eq), you also get 159mm and 224mm!! Sounds like a pretty good deal to me!

Is it worth buying a camera in 2022?

October 20, 2022 by OpenFilmmaker Leave a Comment

I got into photography in 2018 and I haven’t been able to put down the camera. Photography is one of those hobbies that feels so surreal that gives you the power to convert a memory into a physical photo. I can’t think of a better hobby to recommend to others. Sure there’s many that can pick up a phone and snap a picture and share it on social media… but how can you separate your photo from others? What makes a good photo? There’s so many elements of photography that need to be mastered before you can answer that question.

Learning photography can help you express your stories visually to be best of your ability. One of the main reasons to own a standalone camera is so you can focus on your craft. A smart phone is much more than a camera. A standalone, mirrorless camera is only that. It can’t receive text messages, phone calls or other disturbances while taking a photo.

Photography is a craft and it can be an intensive process. Photographers love this process and don’t mind spending the extra time working on their craft. If that sounds interesting to you – you need to pick up a camera now!

If you are absolutely brand new to photography, I’d highly recommend the Panasonic Lumix GX9 or the Panasonic Lumix GX85.

$75 Manhattan Photography Tour

July 18, 2022 by OpenFilmmaker Leave a Comment

I visited Manhattan in June and decided to tour the city. I had been there a couple times, but never had the opportunity to immerse myself in the city. After speaking to family members about traveling throughout the city, I decided on a bus tour with the company, Top View (by no means is this a sponsor – there’s other companies as well). The Double-Decker bus tour was under $50.

The List

I made a list of places to visit:

Times Square (just because)
Washington Square Park (Dosa Man)
SoHo (just because)
Chinatown (Casey Neistat popularized this in his film class)
Battery Park (Statue of Liberty)
IAC (I heard it was cool)
Hudson Yard (for that interesting-looking structure)

Times Square

I took an Uber from Central Park to Times Square. It was about $15. I visited Times Square before, but never alone with a curious eye. It was very lively with many tourists. There was a TV show being recorded – I didn’t bother with it. I took some photos of the architecture in the area and walked towards Broadway.

I got on the bus in the Theatre District (Broadway). Unfortunately the bus broke down before the first stop and everyone had to exit to wait for the next bus. The clouds cleared and the sun emerged, making it much hotter. I ducked into Macy’s and changed into shorts.

The Dosa Man

I got on the next bus and was looking forward to Washington Square Park – to see the “Dosa Man“. Unfortunately, the bus didn’t stop at Washington Square Park and kept going. I was stuck upstairs in the back of the bus. I took the next stop at SoHo. Determined to eat dosa at the park, I got out Google Maps and mapped a way back to the Dosa Man. It was a 20-minute walk North. Well, I was hoping for an immersive experience and I received exactly that!

It was a pleasant walk to the park, but unfortunately, it turned out that the Dosa Man was not working that day. I spoke to a couple locals to get this information. Apparently the Dosa Man posts his updates on instagram, so definitely check before making a trip out there.

I got back on the bus – I had to walk a few blocks, but the stroll was peaceful. Again, if it’s not clear from my writing, I was excited to be exploring NYC!

**EXITVS AC TA PROBAT** : **THE OUTCOME JUSTIFIES THE DEED**

Chinatown

I stopped in Chinatown to buy a couple hats for the kiddos. I ate at Bodhi, a vegan restaurant. Great reviews, a cute little lunch spot that brings in tons of locals and tourists. I saw the reviews for dumplings but since I was there by myself, I ordered the Vegan Kung Pow. It was delicious with a generous amount of sauce.

It was nearly 2pm when I finished my late lunch. I needed to get back to the family, but alas, I hadn’t seen the Statue of Liberty. As an immigrant to this country, the Statue of Liberty is symbolic to our freedom.

Pro tip: Don’t get off at the stop immediately before “Battery Park”. Battery Park is closer to the Statue and there’re ferries available from the park. I don’t know the price differences.

I took some photos of the statue and sat down to have a chilled beer.

The wind in my hair
My back to the city
The lady by the water
Helicopters and planes in the sky
Boats on the water, ferries too
Trains underground
Double-deckers all around town
My pulse with the city
The torch’s flame
Burning for freedom

On the way back from Battery Park, the stop was crowded with people. A bus arrived and it was already packed, so hardly anyone was able to get on. I realized I was next to the train station, Bowling Green.

I made a quick call to get some 411 about the subway system back to Central Park. It turned out to be a $3 subway ride.

If I could do it again, I’d start with a subway to China Town – visiting it first, then resume the journey onward to Battery Park. You can see my recommended list below. In fact, the next time I return, I think I’ll do this exact tour.

My recommended tour in Manhattan:

Subway ride or Uber (more immersive) to Chinatown
Chinatown (Casey Neistat popularized this in his film class)
Battery Park (Statue of Liberty)
IAC (I heard it was cool)
Hudson Yard (for that interesting-looking structure)
Times Square (just because)
Washington Square Park (Dosa Man)
Subway ride to your final destination

Pro Tips

The best seat on the bus is at the back row of the bus on the top level. Because you at the back of the bus, you get a much longer focal range to choose from. And because you sit on the top level, you can shoot over obstacles such as vehicles on the street. The elevation helps you take better photos.
Bodhi vegetarian restaurant is known for their dumplings.
Check Dosa Man’s insta before heading there.
Chinatown is fun if you like to haggle for good deals
Camera setup: I recommend two bodies with a 24-105mm and the other with a 70-200mm lens. For one body, I’d recommend a 28 to 280mm focal range.
I used a Panasonic Lumix GX85 with Leica 12-60mm and Leica 100-400mm.

Canon M50 producing black bars with Clean HDMI out

June 27, 2022 by OpenFilmmaker 2 Comments

I had an issue with Canon M50 Mark II showing black bars on the top and bottom of the image when using HDMI out. I struggled with this for about an hour, Googling, going through Canon Community forms and Reddit… however, nothing helped. One post mentioned something about checking the HDMI cable, and sure enough… I replaced my Micro-HDMI to HDMI cable with this one and it worked!

If this helped you, please drop me a comment letting me know!

Thanks!

-OpenFilmmaker