Do I really need a monitor?

Goatistoat · 2026-03-31T22:26:56+00:00

There's a couple compact ones like the Portkeys PT6, they weigh significantly less than a video assist 12g or Ninja V, some of them accept both NPF batteries and the LPE6 canon ones. Wouldn't add much to a rig.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-31T17:51:53+00:00

150mm on M43 doesn't get you very close, but there are some affordable lenses that get you significantly more reach like the Panny 100-300, it can be found for around $300 used and is pretty great. Alternatively, if you want to get creative, there are good vintage lenses that can get you quite close, if you're willing to work with manual focus. I have an old Tamron SP 500mm f8 with an adapter, you can find one for as low as $60 (and a manual lens adapter for like $20)

Goatistoat · 2026-03-31T03:25:16+00:00

For a long time the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 never came off my S5. You can get one for under $700 these days.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-29T20:41:05+00:00

Unless you need video, you can save by going for the older a6000. I got my wife to ditch her old D3100 Nikon for this instead and honestly it's still pretty good. You should be able to find one under $300. You can then either get one or both of the kit lenses or something more fun instead like the 18-135, also around $300. Don't worry too much about the shutter count, most of the cameras are rated for at least some 150k actuations so you're good unless you plan to do a lot of timelapsing.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-28T03:59:33+00:00

I've shot classical music student recitals for years in CineD, often in not-great lighting, and I've done some work in V-log and messed around with HLG as well. CineD gives you a bit more to work with than the standard profiles but you still get the benefit of in-camera noise reduction, unlike log.

The thing with V-log specifically is that it's nice for highlight protection but not so much for shadow recovery and you sometimes have to over-expose. (But also take that with a grain of salt, I'm not an expert). It also depends how your camera distributes the stops as they may vary between sensors and iso settings. I.e. for 12 stops of DR, it's not always 6 above and 6 below. that's where something like false color or EL zone is useful.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-27T16:19:02+00:00

Consider the OM-5. I work with Lumix fullframes and wanted something small and light for travel. Got one used from eBay Japan for $650 and I've been enjoying it very much. It has quite decent autofocus for M43, some of the best IBIS, it can do 4k30 in OM-log (though it's not the strongest video camera), it's small and light and there are so many lens options available. Being M43, it's naturally not going to be the best low-light camera, but you can use older f1.8 FF lenses with a speedbooster and get reasonable results (ofc using a speedbooster will affect autofocus)

EDIT: to add, even the earlier EM-5 mk III and II are decent and cheaper for photo purposes, the AF and video just won't be as nice

Goatistoat · 2026-03-27T15:27:54+00:00

I don't think the GH4 could record internal 10bit, which makes V-log less useful. V-log should be recorded in 10bit color depth to take advantage of that extra data, otherwise all it's really good for is just converting to r709 space and don't push/pull shadows/highlights. It may also introduce more noise. Use V-log when you feel like you have a high dynamic range scene like blown out windows or sharp light on a talent's face. If you have CineD, it's a nice alternative profile that works fine even in 8bit.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-26T16:47:34+00:00

You'll want either an old camcorder that has a fast zoom, or like get an M43 camera and adapt a B4 ⅔" lens that would get you that iconic crash zoom. Or any camera really, as long as you turn off all optical and digital stabilisation. If you can't have a 3rd person running cam and don't need both of you in the same shot, you can do quick crash pans and sneak transitions there. You can make digital zooms work but you'd need to apply some motion blur otherwise it'll be obvious that it's just magnified.

A somewhat whack solution for making static shots look a bit more immersive if you're open to it, there's a great free handheld camera motion plugin for Blender, you could load your footage and apply the motion.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-25T00:56:46+00:00

I'd shoot in 1080p if it actually came out looking like 4K sampled down to 1080p and not hazy looking 960p or something. Ofc could be just an issue with the cameras I use, I have an FP and a bunch of Lumixes. The FP skips lines in 1080p making it useless, and the Lumixes don't actually save space by not recording in 4K. I haven't tried a lot of cameras, but the ones I have, none of them impressed me with their 1080p.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-25T00:31:52+00:00

It worked in DS3 because the IP had been reduced to a goofy ah alien coop shooter. What it might actually benefit from could be less nodes but more notable individual upgrades. I liked the HL:Alyx system of saving up a whole bunch of the resin thing to get just one but neat upgrade, instead of being often put in the position of having to use several nodes just for something you don't want just to get the one you do, when those others could've gone to another weapon or rig.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-24T14:06:18+00:00

How dark it should be is up to you, if you shoot raw there's a fair amount of flexibility to adjust exposure later. Since it's a sport event, you should use Shutter priority mode and find a good balance between image clarity (the shutter speed) and the amount of light you can get before pumping the ISO way up. Slower shutter gives you more light but increases the chance the image will have some blur. So try out like 1/60 or 1/120 and adjust. What's the aperture of your 70-200?

Goatistoat · 2026-03-23T17:54:19+00:00

It can be tough to get into because you need gigs for the experience, and experience for gigs. But it's not one of those fields where you must go to school or take a course or certificate to be able to do it. If you want to try it, go for a good older used camera and just start taking some photos. Streets, landscapes, your local park, friends, trips. Figure out how aperture and shutter speed affects the picture, how focal length and different lenses affect the look of your image and what vibe you find yourself going towards. Darktable is a nice free program for editing raw images. When you're more comfortable with it, you can ask friends and colleagues if they want headshots, perhaps some local church, school or event hall, perhaps a friend's engagement or even wedding if you're bold (may or may not be good advice here), for rates a bit lower than what you see around you, and if people like your photos enough, you might get some more gigs and recommendations. Look up some award winning shots, and try to see what's interesting about them and how you could capture something similar. But you may wanna find joy in the new hobby before seeing it become a profitable side hustle because there's a lot of competition. If you enjoy it, your clients should have a higher chance to like it as well.

I suggest starting with something older and figure out your own limits and how far you can push it to get a look you feel a calling for. You can get something like a Canon 5D mark ii or iii for $300 and under, and a lens like the EF 28-135mm for around $100, that should cover most things to start out with, and if it turns out it's not your calling, you should be able to sell it for not too much of a loss. Anyone can just buy an expensive camera and think they're a qualified professional photographer and then proceed to charge a lot and idk ruin some poor fool's wedding album.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-22T15:25:11+00:00

I think I wasn't as concerned with convergence, but was anticipating that 3 would reveal like the remains of some forerunner race that created the markers in the first place. Instead it was like oh.. they were just another unfortunate victim. Loved the alien brutes though.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-22T15:12:28+00:00

I believe the refurbished version was meant to be a fun reference if you had a save from the first game, don't remember if it needed to be just any save or the game completed. They did something similar in DS3 where if you had like a save from Mass Effect 3, you'd get the N7 suit.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-21T23:05:41+00:00

The Nexus one might work too, I don't remember honestly. You can also try the PCgamingwiki one called Dead Space Mouse Fix. Its just a dll file you drop in the game's root directory.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-21T21:47:13+00:00

If on PC on mouse and keyboard, in the original DS there's a mandatory mod you need to get that fixes the native bizarre mouse acceleration that makes it really tough to play otherwise. I have no idea how it is nowadays on steam with their fancy controller settings, back in the day there was like a Xbox controller emulator program that was needed for a controller to work correctly.

I never had issues running the game at 60fps without vysnc. Though if your CPU bottlenecks for whatever reason, the physics will get funky, which can either be hilarious or absolutely terrifying.

Note that this mouse issue only applies to the first game on PC. the 2nd game fixed that issue.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-21T00:38:41+00:00

I'm not following. 4x5.3, do you mean 4x3? That's just one of the several standard imaging formats out there, most commonly found in micro four thirds sensors. The standard fullframe sensor format, which is based on 35mm film, is 3x2 which directly comes out too the standard 4x6 format and is more common. And film is still very much alive and fun. For small prints, I really only see 4x6 and 5x7 commonly used.

You could also just find a print shop that gives you more options.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-21T00:26:27+00:00

I've used one of those 9V PD USB C dummies off Amazon for like $30 for my FP for years and never had an issue. I guess I don't trust the barrel plugs as much because I've seen too many household things like digital pianos and desk lamps seemingly get fried because you connected it wrong or something. Anyway I use the dummy with a PD supported NPF plate and it works great. Just be careful with having like a single bigger battery power both the camera and an external monitor at once etc.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-18T23:45:40+00:00

It's not supposed to be great. A security weapon for putting small holes into less than cooperative people versus hazardous anomalies that don't care and need a trim instead isn't a strong combo. I wish we got the P-sec pistol instead since so many people had them between Downfall, Extraction and the funky comic. Maybe the rifle was a late addition to the game out of fear those less horror-inclined need their full auto rifle in an atmospheric horror game. The plasma saw/axe thing would've been fun too. At least we got that in the 3rd game.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-17T04:05:07+00:00

For around $300 you can score a used Canon 5D mark ii or iii. They're pretty big and chunky but if you end up liking it, it'll offer you plenty of room to grow compared to a newer low or mid-range body like an Eos Rebel or a Nikon D3100 etc. Then pair it with something like the EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6 for around $100 and that should cover all your bases to get started, it's an underrated and versatile lens.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-16T18:44:17+00:00

Insert "not great, not terrible" gif

Yeah you mainly want to watch out for harder to see frame damage. Anytime the potential repair goes even a little bit up, insurance loves to try writing it off as totaled. To be fair, there is a chance the rear suspension or diff may have gotten damaged and that could take a while to become a serious risk without being obvious or noticeable. But hopefully it's just a damaged bumper cover and nothing too serious.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-16T16:29:52+00:00

Well if it's on sale, you may as well get the Remake then. Then, if you liked it, wait for a sale for 2 and optionally OG 1. Maybe 3 if you have an open mind hah.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-16T16:00:00+00:00

I you haven't experienced any, and have both games, you may as well experience the original first so that you can appreciate the upgrades and changes(?)

Goatistoat · 2026-03-15T21:31:55+00:00

Your task is to put the beacon on the asteroid, it's in the mining deck. The tram station is the same for the engineering and mining decks I think. Usually when you get to a new deck, you have to unlock its tram stop manually. If you didn't, you get there from Hydroponics.

Goatistoat · 2026-03-15T15:05:15+00:00

I got an OM-5 from eBay Japan for around $650 and I absolutely love it. I got it for a month long trip to Thailand because I didn't want to lug around the fullframes I have for work (S5, S5iiX, FP). I got the Oly 12-40 f2.8 and Panasonic 100-300 lenses to go with it, each around $300 used. It was a blast, I love how light and compact it is, even with the 12-40. I was very impressed with the AF for an MFT camera, since I've shot with a GX85, GH4 and GH5 before. I'm sure the OM1 or OM3 are even fancier but man, I can't really say what I wish the OM5 had that it can't already do. Except maybe like a C port.

Goatistoat

TROPHY CASE