If you weren't aware already, there's been a bit of a revolution occurring in the world of videography. Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR) cameras, which until recently could only shoot still photographs, have been given the ability to shoot video clips. And the concept has taken the videography world by storm, with many videographers starting to shoot exclusively with DSLRs. But are these cameras really suitable for all videography needs, and what place might they have in church media ministries?
In this review we're taking a look at one of Canon's latest video-enabled DSLR cam- eras, the EOS 60D. It boasts an 18-mega-pixel sensor capable of shooting photos at 5184x3456 pixels, or 17.28-inches by 11.52-inches when printed at 300 DPI. For video, the camera shoots full HD at 1920x1080 pixels, 29.97 (30) fps or 23.976 (24) fps. It will also shoot 720P (1280x720) at 59.94 (60) fps.
The camera records to class 6 or higher SDHC cards, which are very inexpensive and easy to find. In fact, my laptop has an SDHC reader built in to it. For video, the H.264 codec is used to create QuickTime movie files.
Getting to know the EOS 60D
The EOS 60D has the little APC-S sensor, which is smaller than a normal 35mm cam- era frame. Some DSLRs are available with full-frame sensors—the EOS 5D Mark II, for example, has a full-frame sensor, but at a steeper price.
The EOS 60D has some nice features beyond the typical camera settings. A histogram can be brought up to help you set exposure, and an electronic level display enables you to get your camera positioned perfectly level. I really appreciate this perk—I rarely manage to get the camera perfectly level on the tripod, and end up having to rotate the photo in post to fix it.
As with most DSLR cameras, the EOS 60D has interchangeable lenses, allowing the entire line of Canon EF and EF-S lenses (as well as compatible lenses from other manufacturers) to be used with it. And this is one of the intriguing aspects of using a DSLR for video—the wide range of lens selection, at a fraction of the cost of cinematic lenses for regular video cam- eras, enables you to obtain some amazing shots that just aren't feasible in the typical video camera a church can afford.
For this review, I used the EOS 60D with a Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens; a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens; a Canon EF 18-35mm f2.8L lens; and a Tamron 60mm f2.0 1:1 macro lens.
For photography, the EOS 60D is excellent. The photos I've shot are gorgeous, and even higher ISO settings were reasonably noise-free. Of course, the lens has a lot to do with image quality—the better the glass, the better the image. If you want the best images, opt for buying just the EOS 60D camera body and put a prime lens on it.
Image quality and other impressions
So, how does EOS 60D's video image quality look? In a word: fantastic. The clarity and crispness that you expect from DSLR still photos are all present in the video it produces. And with the ability to go down to f/2.8 on most of my lenses, getting a cinematic shallow depth of field was easy, shallower than the depth of field that I can get with my Canon XF300 video camera. With the Tamron macro lens, I can actually get a depth of field as little as a couple of millimeters—not generally useful for church ministry videography, but it enables you to get some amazing specialty close-ups. Imagine creating some video clips in support of a sermon series on creation, capturing intricate details of plants and insects.
For more typical video work, with the 70-200mm lens, a shallow depth of field enables some awesome rack-focus shots of a husband and wife praying—starting first with the wife in focus, and then racking over to bring the husband into focus. It could have been accomplished with my video camera, but the bokeh (artistic blur- ring of the background and/or foreground) would not have been nearly as strong.
The 60 frames per second of the 720p footage are also nice to have. Being able to shoot some faster action scenes (like a youth group engaged in a game, or the church softball team in action), and then run it at 30 fps in editing, provides for perfectly smooth slow-motion footage.
I also like the articulating LCD display. This enables you to swing the LCD panel out away from the camera body. I've had some shoots where space was very tight, and the ability to place my super-wide zoom on the EOS 60D and back it completely into a corner, yet still see the LCD display from the front, enabled me to get shots that would have been impossible otherwise.
What are the disadvantages?
For one, the EOS 60D (and all other DSLRs that I'm aware of) do not have professional audio inputs—it only has an input jack for an unbalanced audio signal. Another is that the camera will not continuously auto-focus while shooting video. Once the camera is recording, you must either manual focus using the focus ring on the lens, or press the AF-ON button to cause the camera to re-focus. However, the auto-focus is not the smooth autofocus you expect from a video camera—it's the autofocus you get from a DSLR, meaning it's jumpy until it gets the focus right. Your footage during the auto-focus procedure will not likely be very usable. And audio adjustment controls are via the menu system; there are no physical controls that let you make quick audio level adjustments.
The biggest restriction of this DSLR's video capability is that you can only shoot for about 12 minutes before the camera automatically stops the video recording. And depending on shooting conditions, you can experience overheating, which requires the camera to be allowed to cool before continuing to shoot. This happened several times in one of my corporate video shoots. This overheating attribute isn't a defect— the manual for the camera states that this may occur during prolonged video shoots. This DSLR just isn't built for the heat dissipation needed for extended shooting.
Final take
What good is this camera for ministry, you may be asking?
Well, you're not going to use this as your IMAG camera, nor for long interviews or recording your Sunday sermon. You can, however, use it to great advantage in shooting promotional videos or B-roll shots. It's light, easy to transport, and if you don't need the audio from the shots you're getting, it could be great for short clips to augment your main video. Taking it on a church missions trip would let you capture both photos and video with one device—a very nice feature.
Interfaces are available to let you use professional microphones with the consumer- grade audio inputs, so if you're shooting a few quick lines for a promo video, this can do it quite effectively. Or, you can invest in a portable audio recorder with XLR inputs and use it with your video shotgun mic, and sync up that audio with the camera's footage in post.
For photographic samples, take a look at the TobyMac concert article in this is- sue of CPM. I shot all the photos for that article on the EOS 60D. Photos and video samples are also available for at www.churchproduction.com/canon_60d_ photos, and www.churchproduction.com/canon_60d_video respectively.
My recommendation? Once a church has invested in a good video camera, the EOS 60D would be an excellent investment for capturing additional footage to augment their video ministry with specialty video clips and photos. In fact—I bought one myself for exactly that purpose.
