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Epic X 2029 " Lilau" Arrived! First video and impressions

Sergio Perez

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To be honest, my camera actually arrived 3 weeks ago, but I didn't want to post here without having some proper footage to show of it :)

First, I would like to thank the Red Team for making this unbelievable camera. Its expensive, its way beyond what I thought I could afford but this truly is it: the ultimate guerrilla cinema camera. Jim, Jarred, Ted, Graeme, Rob, Brent, everyone from the team, a big, big congratulations and a bow for pushing boundaries in this field. A very big thank you for the excellent service my rep Nick has done throughout the whole ordering process, as well as my former rep Kris, who was also excellent.

Going into such a big purchase I had to think a lot about the pros and the cons about the camera. Being a reduser for the past 3 years has allowed me to learn a lot about the workflow and experiences both with the Red One and the Epic. I was initialy intended of going Scarlet, but decided to go big or go home and went Red Epic. (I have to thank fellow member Kaku Ito for the incentive to go Epic- Thanks Kaku!)

I was called crazy by many over here by doing this investment. But it is what I love to do. Probably I'm not going to get my money back with this, since the local market is too small for this type of gear or productions, but, then again, isn't the place you love, the stories you want to tell worth a commitment and sacrifice of this sort?

Anyway, fellow production friends familiar with the Epic (I had never seen one in person since its arrival) where saying it was impossible to operate solo, it was a camera that was overwhelming, I needed a very big team to do anything worthwhile. Also read and followed with some concern the Phillip Bloom Saga and the film he worked on about both PAL 25p shooting (I'm in a PAL town) as well as low light performance. However, I was confident with going red, because of this wonderful community, the inspiring words and enthusiasm from the red team over here, and because every day I was seeing more and more beautiful content produced by red productions.

Well, enough talk. I placed an order for the Epic as early as I could, and the camera arrived 3 weeks ago. Bellow is the first test shoot I did with X2029 " Lilau" to formally introduce it to you all. Shot this solo, traveling around town with a lowepro shoulder bag with a lightweight manfrotto tripod with a 503 head and a couple of Canon Lenses. Some shots were taken handheld. Camera setup: side-handle, Canon Ti Mount, 5" Touch LCD.

http://vimeo.com/38020250



(EDIT- Thanks, Evin!)

Small Color correction in redcine X and a small touch of Magic Bullet looks for certain shots. No noise reduction used. The weather has been absolutely terrible these last 3 weeks, with no sunshine and very foggy. But it made for some nice low light and night shots.

Thank you again, red team!

Sergio Perez, proud owner of Epic X2029 "Lilau"
 
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Congrats on the camera. Looks like it's in good hands. Wonderful footage.

Thanks Bob! Always admired your work. Your HVX videos where one of the main reasons back in 2005 that made me get that camera. The HVX and the work done with it has made this Red purchase possible :)
 
Wow thanks Sergio. I'm humbled. I will follow your footsteps one day when I get an epic!

Thanks Bob! Always admired your work. Your HVX videos where one of the main reasons back in 2005 that made me get that camera. The HVX and the work done with it has made this Red purchase possible :)
 
Loverly video Sergio. Some great imagery. Would love to shoot round there.

Congratulations my friend!

:))
 
Thanks Steve! It was a long wait but well worth it :) I'm still getting the grips on the post workflow, I feel like a stock car driver with an F1 in my hands right now. What are all these post buttons for? :) Alchemy, FLUT, I'm a bit clueless with all these options, so I'm going to my good old trusty "curves" for some basic grading... Haven't got Adobe Premiere Pro CS 5.5 yet. Over here they didn't do the "switch" promotion, which I felt was a bit unfair to us in Hong-Kong/Macau...

What I'm really loving is the highlight gradients. They are just absolutely stunning. And, of course, the 100fps 5K shooting. Its being overused, I know, but its a tool I really need for my type of visual language.

All in all, though, this is really it. The ultimate cinema camera! :)
 
Is it necessary a portuguese to show one of the simplest but also best EPIC test footage ever seen (David Fincher non test footage included) ? ;-)
 
Is it necessary a portuguese to show one of the simplest but also best EPIC test footage ever seen (David Fincher non test footage included) ? ;-)

Thanks for the flattering words, Emanuel, but this is nowhere near the greatness of David Fincher's Epic footage! :)
 
Thanks for the flattering words, Emanuel, but this is nowhere near the greatness of David Fincher's Epic footage! :)
There's some soul there I didn't see on that one of Fincher's! ;)
 
Sergio, congrats on your Epic! You made the right choice with the Red company, and great tools . Loved your short. Awesome!
 
Sergio, congrats on your Epic! You made the right choice with the Red company, and great tools . Loved your short. Awesome!
 
Bob, well worth the price, trust me. It hurts badly first but it also compels you to push further!

You got that right.

Very impressive. There are some incredible shots in there. I love guys like you who really go all out to test your cameras. I'm inspired to hit the town now and see what I can do with mine.
 
Parabéns Sergio, alegria ver uma Red nas mãos de um Portugues!! Boas imagens, que venham mais no futuro...
 
Wow! Sergio.

A very nice use of available light, if in fact you only used that. Not sure how many cameras could handle that without a lot of kit and people. To me, you pulled off the "Village within a city" story very well. With the right feature length story to shoot, I suspect you will find an eager audience.

The only disappointment for me was the music choice. Nothing wrong with the music except for me personally, something with on oriental reference would have enhanced the footage. Not Oriental for Orientals sake, but a slight undertone to put the audience into the streets and shops.

Great job.
 
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Nice textures, mood, pacing, composition. Did you edit in Premiere?
 
Thank you all for such nice words !

I shot this as a test, went around the old part of town with the Epic and started filming. As I started filming I noticed that the old part of town is "aging"- lots of elderly, working in traditional crafts, traditional commerce. It somehow made me think about "progress", about what we leave behind in the middle of economical development. That's why, Elsie, I went with that song selection. If I went with an oriental tune, in my view, it would distract from the "human" element of this piece... We are all people, and I really wanted the viewer to look at the "human" side of this. Of course, this was done in a few days and without much thinking- it was me testing the camera, after all- but as I was shooting I felt that the footage would best work with that "feeling" :) The Chinese opera part I have to admit it feels a bit out of place of the whole video- its part of what I want to submit to the Portrait competition!- but its nice eye candy and I just wanted to put it in to share since I absolutely love the way the Red Epic worked in that scenario!

João, sou em primeiro lugar Macaense. Mas não nego a minha forte costela portuguesa! Obrigado pelo elogio!

Rob, this was edited in Final Cut Pro 7. Color graded in Redcine X and a bit of Magic BUllet looks for some shots (not all). I really, really need Premiere but Adobe didn't do the switch promotion over here so I'm struggling to find the budget at the moment (after the heavy red investment) to get it!

Thank you all again for the compliments, buying this camera was really a big, big deal for me. Love this community, love the Company, and, above all, love this cinema camera! :)
 
Congratulations on your recent acquisition! Gorgeous piece Sergio, I found it mesmerizing. I visited Macau a few months ago and was drawn in by the vivid colors and intricate textures of the town and the people. I can't wait to return!

I too was on the fence over Epic/Scarlet, even considered the Red One's that are being sold for such low prices. In the end, I went with my heart, made the sacrifices and took the hit. I have NO REGRETS! Plus I still have another kidney left! lol J/K

I look forward to seeing more of your work!
 
Congratulations on your recent acquisition! Gorgeous piece Sergio, I found it mesmerizing. I visited Macau a few months ago and was drawn in by the vivid colors and intricate textures of the town and the people. I can't wait to return!

I too was on the fence over Epic/Scarlet, even considered the Red One's that are being sold for such low prices. In the end, I went with my heart, made the sacrifices and took the hit. I have NO REGRETS! Plus I still have another kidney left! lol J/K

I look forward to seeing more of your work!

Went through exactly the same dilema, Michael: Used Red One, Scarlet, or Epic X. The moment the Scarlet was announced I took the Red One out of the equation. In the end, I wanted no compromises. My type of storytelling requires a lot of variable frame rates. Everything was hanging on a personal loan's numbers. The loan went through and here it is.

Will try to post something else this coming week. There's something I would really like to try with the Epic before getting into the serious stuff!
 
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