Is the F55 still worth it in 2024?

[Giray Izcan]

You won't regret the 16bit colors you get from f55 raw workflow. You did good.

[Samuel Berger]

On 9/22/2024 at 10:18 PM, Giray Izcan said:

You won't regret the 16bit colors you get from f55 raw workflow. You did good.

The Blacklist was shot on F55s. They shot 4K RAW to the AXS-R5 for HD delivery. They probably had a ton of AXSM cards.

[Giray Izcan]

It's not that bad honestly- especially considering you used to talk about shooting on film. If memory serves me correctly, 512gb card gets you around 42mins or so shooting raw. 

Edited September 26, 2024 by Giray Izcan

[Giray Izcan]

I just looked up and it says an hour and 6 minutes shooting at 25fps.. 24 would be around there, just a bit longer.

[Samuel Berger]

7 minutes ago, Giray Izcan said:

It's not that bad honestly- especially considering you used to talk about shooting on film. If memory serves me correctly, 512gb card gets you around 42mins or so shooting raw. 

Yep! Especially inspiring was finding out that Cobra Kai was shot on the F55 4K RAW. It's too bad there's no way to use SD cards with an adapter, though. 

[Giray Izcan]

You buy the cards and a reader once and use it for a long time. I think it's very good investment. Especially if you get the new kind of axsm cards, you could use that with the R7 recorder if you choose to upgrade it to that which of course can be used with Venice cameras.

[Giray Izcan]

Samuel,

I think you should check out these 3 videos, especially the abelcine part 2 of the video to get a better idea of the menu,

 

 

 

Edited September 26, 2024 by Giray Izcan

[Samuel Berger]

7 hours ago, Giray Izcan said:

I think you should check out these 3 videos, especially the abelcine part 2 of the video to get a better idea of the menu,

I've seen the first two, thanks for the recommendation on that last one, interesting rabbit hole. I wonder what the firmware updates have brought on. I haven't done any testing because my AXS-R5 and cards have been delayed in delivery. I'm also waiting on an EF adapter. I'd like to know the camera is working as expected before I buy that Fujinon zoom I've been dying to get on it. 

[Hannes Famira]

On 9/20/2024 at 9:48 PM, Samuel Berger said:

I just found out that the F55 can record X-OCN as long as you have the AXS-R7 recorder. Which, again, sells for $3000 used, then requires a $380 card. Unlike the stuff you record onto SxS cards, you can't just plug a USB cable into the camera and offload stuff from AXSM cards. You have to spend $1000 on a card reader.

I know the F55 is a beloved camera many people are nostalgic for. But it really seems like I should have saved my money and just bought a FX6, especially with the new firmware that was just announced. Because even though the camera plus viewfinder was $2000, when all is said and done I would need to spend almost $4000 extra to get a proper workflow out of it.

I just bought the R7 in extremely good condition (62 operating hours) for $1.500. Keep your eyes peeled.

[Samuel Berger]

On 10/24/2024 at 6:46 PM, Hannes Famira said:

I just bought the R7 in extremely good condition (62 operating hours) for $1.500. Keep your eyes peeled.

I sure will, was this on eBay?

[Hannes Famira]

59 minutes ago, Samuel Berger said:

I sure will, was this on eBay?

Yes it was. Seller in Japan. Super fast shipping and excellent communication.

[Hannes Famira]

On 9/20/2024 at 9:48 PM, Samuel Berger said:

I just found out that the F55 can record X-OCN as long as you have the AXS-R7 recorder. Which, again, sells for $3000 used, then requires a $380 card. Unlike the stuff you record onto SxS cards, you can't just plug a USB cable into the camera and offload stuff from AXSM cards. You have to spend $1000 on a card reader.

I know the F55 is a beloved camera many people are nostalgic for. But it really seems like I should have saved my money and just bought a FX6, especially with the new firmware that was just announced. Because even though the camera plus viewfinder was $2000, when all is said and done I would need to spend almost $4000 extra to get a proper workflow out of it.

The FX6 has chroma subsampling 4:2:2 while I believe the F55 has 4:4:4:4. The FX6 and no global shutter, right? I am also excited about X-OCN. In September 2024 I purchased the R7 for $1,800. if you have a card adapter you can use the same card reader you used for the R5 and those are insultingly cheap on eBay right now. I do prefer a S35 imager so old cine lenses work. With full frame I'd either be filming with stills lenses or in crop mode. Full frame cine glass is just prohibitively expensive for me. Honestly I am not so sure the FX6 can compete. Am I wrong?

 

Edited February 3 by Hannes Famira