C300: Worth the wait?

Okay. We waited for it and now it’s here: the Canon C300. Problem is, it didn’t blow the doors off our expectations. Or did it?

The C300 has some stiff competition out there. RED is creeping up quickly in becoming the choice for major Hollywood productions. Small time film directors James Cameron and Peter Jackson (I’ve never heard of them either) have ordered a boat load so they (RED) must be doing something right. Right? Right.

But lets forget about comparing the Scarlet & the C300. Lets have a look at another camera that is working against the future sales of the C300. Chances are you’ve already heard of it. Hell, you might even own it.

The 5D Mark II.

Yes. The 5D Mark II. Because when you look at what the two have to offer, they’re not that different.

So Canon changed the game with this little number. The DSLR hasn’t and never will be the same, bringing incredible 1080p HD quality with interchangeable lenses put quality film making in the grasp of a lot of film makers (basically creating a whole new industry) who before had to settle for some horrible clunky adapter system on average video cameras to achieve the same look. I’ll cut past some of the incredible under the hood features the C300 has going for it (such as internal 4:4:4 processing) and straight to the price. $20,000 vs $2000. That's a whole decimal point.

I’d expect some major, not minor, improvements when that’s the difference. Has Canon finished before they’ve even started? If I was looking to run a small indie production and faced with the choice of these two cameras I (and I think a lot of others) would quickly go with several 5D Mark II bodies and STILL have $10,000 towards my production instead of one C300 body.

All this goes with the fact that there’s a supposed “concept” cinema DSLR which has yet to be officially announced. Apparently 4K too. I’m scared to think of the price since it’d be absolutely ludicrous to release a camera under the price point of the C300 that shoots a HIGHER resolution.

I’ll admit, I’m a little confused as to Canon’s strategy here, but I guess we’ll have to see what happens in the next year. All I can imagine is that we should be looking at the C300 as a broadcast camera, not cinema, which a lot of us are... and maybe that’s our fault.

Rumor has it that the price point has also dropped from $20K to $16K, but that might not be enough. Once this body is around the $10K-$12K I see it being an actual possibility. Till then, it just doesn’t make sense to choose the C300, whether you're going Canon or RED.

Welcome Olaf!

It's been a busy summer here at Trilogy... and now it's fall! How time flies. (And how behind I am in blogging!)

We have not been idle, however, and it's our pleasure to announce the addition of Olaf Blomerus to our staff.

Olaf has taken the role of 'Digital Production Manager' here at our studio which allows both Grant and I to focus on photography as well as building relationships with our customers. (And have more time to blog... as evidenced here.)

Olaf's role represents an important step for us in quality and customer service.

You can contact Olaf at olaf@trilogystudios.ca (should you wish to compliment him on his hat)

Shooting for a start-up: Introducing Jelly Modern Doughnuts!

When we were asked by TAG Advertising's Todd Sloane if we'd be interested in shooting some doughnuts for a new company here in Calgary we couldn't have anticipated just how fun, challenging and rewarding it would be. The new upstart Jelly Modern Doughnuts was in it's infancy and needed strong photographs to show the world what they're made of... literally!

Valrhona Chocolate... the best!

Jelly Modern Doughnuts uses the highest quality, natural, organic ingredients to create a quality doughnut like no other. They really must be tried to fully appreciate the difference these better ingredients make.

I love their super-cool location on 8th St in Calgary.

It sure has been fun to be part of a new venture... now go try them!

Applied Arts selects Trilogy Studios!

Trilogy Studios photographer and digital artist Grant Waddell will be featured in the upcoming Applied Arts photography annual. Grant's image of a steam train, which has been posted on our blog previously (Train Part One and Train Part Two) was selected to be featured along with some of the top photographers, illustrators and digital artists in Canada.

Congratulations Grant!

Great article, great photographs.

"It was Eli’s idea to see if a very large manila envelope would fit over his head; Eli’s idea to blow into one end of a vacuum cleaner hose and hold the other end to his ear to hear the whoosh."

An Amazing Talk... very powerful.

I usually like to sit and watch a TED lecture when I have lunch here at the studio. I swear something guided my mouse to exactly this video to exactly this day. Elizabeth really tapped into what I have believed for a very long time. If your a creative individual at all, you have to watch this. Especially if you feel stuck.
Please leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Spare Change #3

A Bad Day for Ice Cream and Birds.

I saw the ice cream first on a concrete storm water sewer access and about 5 minutes later down a path I saw this pile of feathers. The parallel struck me.