getting the right camera for video?
Discussion
Hi Im not a camera person but trying to help my OH, she is a dentist and wants to shoot videos of patients for education/social media (her stills are great with a Canon slr, ring flash and sigma macro).
My plan was to get a Gopro, shoot in 4k then crop out "other stuff" down to 1080p. However im now not sure it can do what we want successfully - it looks like a specific use case as there are some cameras that have been specifically developed like this one for $3500 ouch! https://oxotechnology.com/
We dont have a gopro so did a few 4k tests videos from my phone. The phone app has no video exposure ISO, shutter speed etc settings. As you can see the overhead lights means its way overexposed. Also with cropping/digital zoom the image detail is being lost
If anyone has any thoughts on setup/suitability of a gopro or similar, does a decent optical zoom exist , and whether the manual settings could cope??
The settings needs to be fire and forget for 4 hr treatments (and run on a usb battery)
The focal length head to patient is 45cm. It needs to be lightweight for head mount (or the examination light mount above approx 60 cm)
(**dental content below**)
Here is a random dentist using a hero 8 with a 3x lens - is this the best we can hope to get?
https://youtu.be/7jrZOynIwyQ
This would be great (they may use a microscope + splitter/camera)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqsbt9qtNx0&ab...
My plan was to get a Gopro, shoot in 4k then crop out "other stuff" down to 1080p. However im now not sure it can do what we want successfully - it looks like a specific use case as there are some cameras that have been specifically developed like this one for $3500 ouch! https://oxotechnology.com/
We dont have a gopro so did a few 4k tests videos from my phone. The phone app has no video exposure ISO, shutter speed etc settings. As you can see the overhead lights means its way overexposed. Also with cropping/digital zoom the image detail is being lost
If anyone has any thoughts on setup/suitability of a gopro or similar, does a decent optical zoom exist , and whether the manual settings could cope??
The settings needs to be fire and forget for 4 hr treatments (and run on a usb battery)
The focal length head to patient is 45cm. It needs to be lightweight for head mount (or the examination light mount above approx 60 cm)
(**dental content below**)
Here is a random dentist using a hero 8 with a 3x lens - is this the best we can hope to get?
https://youtu.be/7jrZOynIwyQ
This would be great (they may use a microscope + splitter/camera)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqsbt9qtNx0&ab...
cheeky_chops said:
Hi Im not a camera person but trying to help my OH, she is a dentist and wants to shoot videos of patients for education/social media (her stills are great with a Canon slr, ring flash and sigma macro).
What Canon SLR is she using, and does it do video?If not, another Canon DSLR/mirrorless body that does decent video, coupled with the sigma macro lens might be an option?
Honest answer here is that an iPhone will be the best bet here. You can lock out the settings quite easily by holding down on where you want it exposed and dragging with your finger.
It’s a lot simpler to use and will produce great results.
A DSLR/ Mirrorless or pro video camera may get a slightly better image. But you’ll need to know how to work it all whilst also doing dentist stuff and it isn’t that quick to pickup.
(I’m a corporate film maker who shoots on fancy cameras)
It’s a lot simpler to use and will produce great results.
A DSLR/ Mirrorless or pro video camera may get a slightly better image. But you’ll need to know how to work it all whilst also doing dentist stuff and it isn’t that quick to pickup.
(I’m a corporate film maker who shoots on fancy cameras)
C n C said:
What Canon SLR is she using, and does it do video?
If not, another Canon DSLR/mirrorless body that does decent video, coupled with the sigma macro lens might be an option?
I tend to agree. A GoPro is a very limited action camera IMHO. What you need here is precision and manual control.If not, another Canon DSLR/mirrorless body that does decent video, coupled with the sigma macro lens might be an option?
A couple of other things to consider.
Four hours of 4k will suck up around 180gb - 200gb of space. Assuming your wife doesn't want to be swapping out cards mid-procedure, you need to get meaty memory cards or record to an external SSD drive.
Look to record in RAW or ProRes or similar. As evidenced in the photo you posted, you're going to have to deal with a lot of highlight and a lot of shadow. Having clips with a wide dynamic range will give you greater opportunity to adjust this in the edit.
Whilst I tend to agree with the comments made about GoPro, there are a few advantages that you may want to think about:
The first is grips. There's a plethora of arms, attachments, mounts and suckers that make it possible to position a GoPro pretty much wherever you want at whatever angle and keep it there. Whilst some options exist for smart phones, in my experience they're more limited and less effective.
(And just a side note, I'd advise against attaching the camera to your wife. Even the tiniest movement will be amplified on screen which is not ideal given the purpose of the films).
They're relatively cheap, so you could buy two to set up different angles.
HTH
Four hours of 4k will suck up around 180gb - 200gb of space. Assuming your wife doesn't want to be swapping out cards mid-procedure, you need to get meaty memory cards or record to an external SSD drive.
Look to record in RAW or ProRes or similar. As evidenced in the photo you posted, you're going to have to deal with a lot of highlight and a lot of shadow. Having clips with a wide dynamic range will give you greater opportunity to adjust this in the edit.
Whilst I tend to agree with the comments made about GoPro, there are a few advantages that you may want to think about:
The first is grips. There's a plethora of arms, attachments, mounts and suckers that make it possible to position a GoPro pretty much wherever you want at whatever angle and keep it there. Whilst some options exist for smart phones, in my experience they're more limited and less effective.
(And just a side note, I'd advise against attaching the camera to your wife. Even the tiniest movement will be amplified on screen which is not ideal given the purpose of the films).
They're relatively cheap, so you could buy two to set up different angles.
HTH
I did consider a DLSR but the size/weight is the immediate problem - it cant go on the overhead exam light as its designed to moves/stay with minimal effort (and like everything in dentistry is bloody expensive if the weight caused it to fail). I balanced my 200g phone on the exam light and any more than that would cause it to move. Sticking a dslr on her forehead would be a no too!
The other issue i see is constant lens angle into the mouth - the patients mouth stays relatively still, but hands/drill/suction are moving - the exam light and the eyes/light on her head/loups similar to these are the only constants pointing in right direction
So all in all its a challenging env with space, weight, lens direction/angle all limited and thats before we even get to camera lens, performance, battery and settings!
Interesting idea on the iphone - great camera, lots of apps, remote control, mounts and add on lenses are available so will give it some more google time
The other issue i see is constant lens angle into the mouth - the patients mouth stays relatively still, but hands/drill/suction are moving - the exam light and the eyes/light on her head/loups similar to these are the only constants pointing in right direction
So all in all its a challenging env with space, weight, lens direction/angle all limited and thats before we even get to camera lens, performance, battery and settings!
Interesting idea on the iphone - great camera, lots of apps, remote control, mounts and add on lenses are available so will give it some more google time
cheeky_chops said:
I did consider a DLSR but the size/weight is the immediate problem - it cant go on the overhead exam light as its designed to moves/stay with minimal effort (and like everything in dentistry is bloody expensive if the weight caused it to fail). I balanced my 200g phone on the exam light and any more than that would cause it to move. Sticking a dslr on her forehead would be a no too!
The other issue i see is constant lens angle into the mouth - the patients mouth stays relatively still, but hands/drill/suction are moving - the exam light and the eyes/light on her head/loups similar to these are the only constants pointing in right direction
So all in all its a challenging env with space, weight, lens direction/angle all limited and thats before we even get to camera lens, performance, battery and settings
Wanted 4k so i can crop the image removing patients face, centralise video, removing any movement up/down/sideways and still retain 1080p post production etc
All good thoughts, but am in right in thinking that you want the dentist to be the cameraman?The other issue i see is constant lens angle into the mouth - the patients mouth stays relatively still, but hands/drill/suction are moving - the exam light and the eyes/light on her head/loups similar to these are the only constants pointing in right direction
So all in all its a challenging env with space, weight, lens direction/angle all limited and thats before we even get to camera lens, performance, battery and settings
Wanted 4k so i can crop the image removing patients face, centralise video, removing any movement up/down/sideways and still retain 1080p post production etc
If so why not let the dentist do the dentistry and find somebody competent with a video camera to look after the filming? Then they can zoom in (so no need to crop), centralising happens naturally and IS would mitigate camera movement. Or as suggested, to operate the DSLR which gives results you like, but shoot video with it.
I see it as a video job first, with the patient as the subject. The dentist is largely immaterial...!
Having had a bit of a google, there are pretty small cameras that can be head mounted.
This one has a 130 degree view angle that can be reduced to 90 degrees, so not as wide as the typical GoPro at 170 degrees.
Having said that, surgeons have been known to use GoPros to film operations, apparently with some degree of success, although I suspect the wider view angle would not be that great for dentistry.
Finally, depending on budget, this place does specialised wearable cameras designed for dentistry videography.
Their UK distributor also supplies some other camera kit.
This one has a 130 degree view angle that can be reduced to 90 degrees, so not as wide as the typical GoPro at 170 degrees.
Having said that, surgeons have been known to use GoPros to film operations, apparently with some degree of success, although I suspect the wider view angle would not be that great for dentistry.
Finally, depending on budget, this place does specialised wearable cameras designed for dentistry videography.
Their UK distributor also supplies some other camera kit.
C n C said:
Having had a bit of a google, there are pretty small cameras that can be head mounted.
I actually passed this question to my former (and excellent) dentist. He said 'There are 4k cameras that can be clipped onto the glasses frame. Problem is the image is way too shaky to use for long periods. Dentist's necks and heads are always on the move it seems'.Gassing Station | Photography & Video | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff