New to the URSA Broadcast G2

New to the community, new to the URSA Broadcast G2 (and all BMD cameras), not new to BMD's converters and hardware, have used them for years.

The G2 is the latest broadcast camera I've used on the shoulder since a Canon XL1-S from way back. For most video projects, I've been using a Canon 5D, but now have upgraded (sometimes you just need a real video camera).

I have a handful of questions, but wasn't sure if this forum has a dedicated category for the G2, or if there is a good "getting started page", etc.. (I've never had to set a back focus before, and I think I got it but definitely not positive).

I guess my main question would be, if I were to put on the EF adapter and use some of my Canon EOS lenses, would I then get tap-to-focus on the flip-out monitor? I bought the G2 with a Fujinon broadcast lens, which looks great, but has no focus servo. I don't mind setting focus manually, but fast motion can be problematic!

Thanks!

A few things to note here:

Yes, tap to focus works with EF as long as your lens has a focus servo. Keep in mind that EF lenses hit a larger part of the sensor so it's not a 1:1 swap with a B4 lens.

What Fujinon lens do you have? Assuming you're referring to the LA16x8BRM-XB1A, it does have servo focus but it's not obvious how it works. If you put the focus ring into macro mode by sliding it forward or back (don't remember which direction) it'll activate the servo. Note that this also turns to focus ring into an electronic input for the focus rather than mechanical focus.

The UBG2 has been my main camera for 18 months now so ask any other questions you may have. Another user, Xtreemtec, is also very experienced with the nuances of this camera and may have useful things to share of he sees this thread.

Thanks, and the lens I have is the Fujinon XA20sX8.5BRM-K.

I guess I'm not understanding when you say to put the focus ring in macro mode by sliding it forward or back. The focus ring doesn't go forward or back, only left and right. There's also the macro ring near the rear of the lens, but I don't know what this does, as it just seems to make everything blurry.

Any clarification is much appreciated!

Edit to say, I can assume what the macro ring does, but when i tried it on close objects, i could never get it to focus. Maybe my back focus sucks?

Ah okay, that lens doesn't have a focus servo.

Source: https://www.fujifilm.com/sg/en/business ... indication

That being said- if you want electronic focus you'd need a different lens.

A few other things that may be helpful to know: (I don't know what you already know so I'm casting a wide net here.)

As for back focus- that's a B4 specific thing. My understanding is that in the early days of lens interchangeability not every manufacturer set their prism/sensor the same distance from the lens so there's a secondary focus in the back of the lens.

You can tell when your back focus is set properly when you're able to zoom in and out on an object without losing focus. This is known as a 'parfocal' lens (which is standard for B4 lenses). EF lenses generally aren't parfocal so if you're coming from the DSLR world this'll be new to you.

Canon does make an EF lens series with a zoom rocker handle that's parfocal called Compact Servo. They're unusual in that it's a unique combination.

Since the UBG2 is meant to operate as a hybrid camera there are a few assumptions that BMD made-
1. If you're doing broadcast you'll probably want a B4 parfocal lens. As such, their B4 adapter's optical piece aligns the lens area with the 4k area of the sensor. This allows you to get up to 60fps.
2. If you're doing cinema work you're probably using PL or EF lenses. These hit the full sensor (super 35 sized) but the full sensor caps out at 50fps. This is okay though as you're probably only shooting 24 or 48fps. You can crop down to 4k with a cinema lens attached.

Bonus- since this is a hybrid camera you get some of the benefits of broadcast world that you wouldn't necessarily get in the cinema world. Notably, hot pixel detection. Inevitably, individual pixels go bad over time on a sensor (called hot pixels). In the cinema / post production world you can fix this after you shoot. In the broadcast world you're often sending from the camera straight to a mixer so you have to be able to fix that in the camera. BMD has a process for this that's fully automated. After having the camera a few months you may see a few initial hot pixels. Run the process and then after that it maye be hundreds of hours before you see any more. The better you are at keeping the sensor cool the better. The temperature of your sensor is very important! If you don't choke your camera, don't leave it on over the weekend, and keep it free of excessive dust you'll be fine.

One last thing to note- Autofocus isn't really a thing in the broadcast and cinema world which is why no BMD cameras have it aside from to focus. Generally, a broadcast camera OP is so familiar with their camera and lens that they can almost instantly focus manually faster and more accurately than autofocus. I highly, highly recommend turning on the focus assist for highlighting edges. It's immensely helpful for manual focus.

Awesome, thanks for the thorough response! I have a lot to learn still, but your responses and this forum are helping me a lot. I might eventually post a few more questions on this thread just to keep it in one place.

Thanks again!

Ho da poco comprato la Ursa broadcast G2 e mi trovo benissimo. Provengo dal mondo broadcast e mi trovo bene con le mie ottiche B4. Poichè utilizzo anche una Canon 5d Mark2 con varie ottiche EF volevo provarle sulla Ursa. Volevo sapere se c'è molta differenza qualitativa tra un ottica B4 e un ottica EF (ad esempio il Canon 24-105L), oppure se la qualità visiva è simile. Cioè l'ottica EF produrrà immagini più contrastate e cine oppure saranno simili ad un ottica B4 ? Perchè se non vi è molta differenza resterei con l'ottica B4 potendo contare sullo zoom elettrico. Di sicuro un ottica EF ha uno sfocato migliore più gradevole, ma questo già lo so......

The lens I have is the Fujinon XA20sX8.5BRM-K.

I purchased this same lens before realising that there was no in-built focus servo, so promptly got shot of it. To remote control the focus on your Fuji XA20sX8 you'd have to buy the FSM-30B bolt-on servo module and control it from a Fujinon focus demand such as the FSD-11. Which all adds up quite to quite a bit and you're still left with an HD lens. You also wouldn't be able to control the focus from a Blackmagic mixer or the Camera Control Panel should you at a later date invest further into the Blackmagic environment.

We purchased the Fujinon LA16x8BRM 4K lenses, which you can tap focus from the G2s flip-out screen and works with the Blackmagic USB focus demand. If you need that bit extra zoom, the sensor cropping on the G2 works perfectly well for most applications.

We purchased the Fujinon LA16x8BRM 4K lenses, which you can tap focus from the G2s flip-out screen and works with the Blackmagic USB focus demand.

That lens is listed by Fujinon as having Servo Zoom but only manual focus ("RM" designation). How would this work without a focus motor?

There seems to be a lot of confusion about this even among distributors, see this promotional video:

They link to this exact lens, claiming in the video that its focus is servo controllable from the camera while the Fujinon specs clearly say that it isn't. Photos from other dealers also confirm this - there is only one of the typical "manual/servo" rockers on the underside of the hand grip, and that's for the zoom...

Or maybe that lens has been redesigned in the meantime...?

This lens is an anomaly as the model number designation does not accurately reflect the presence of a focus servo. My understanding is that it was designed and built specifically for the UBG2 and is only available when purchased in the bundle.

That lens is listed by Fujinon as having Servo Zoom but only manual focus ("RM" designation). How would this work without a focus motor?

There is an identical-looking Fujinon lens without the focus servo called the LA16sx 8BRAM-XA1, maybe this is causing the confusion?

Given the lens with the focus servo is LA16x8BRM-XB1A, and can be purchased in the UK separately for less money than the non-focus servo, I'm not surprised it can promote a bit of head scratching.

No focus servo
https://cvp.com/product/fujinon-fuji-la16xbbrm-4k-lens

With focus servo
https://www.3dbroadcastsales.com/fujino ... t-in-stock

Normally any Fujinon lens with servo focus has the BERD suffix, rather than the BERM one. I would never use autofocus on an event, instead trusting my camera operators to focus. Ef lenses are still much cheaper than B4’s. Even the HD B4’s fetch decent money and the Fujinon zoom and focus controllers are eyewateringly expensive. It’s a question of what works for you. I’ve used EF mount Ursa minis as a locked off shot to good effect

A lot of good insight here, thanks.

I realize the importance of manual focusing, and feel I was pretty good at it for a while. Now at 47 with readers, it's questionable.

With the Fujinon lens, I would totally feel I had the speaker or subject in complete focus, only to get back to edit and blow it up on screen to see that the focus feels...really soft. Maybe crappy office lightning, maybe my crappy eyes, a combo of many things. I use the manual ring/gear/cable contraption for focusing on a tripod, it surprisingly works great.

I just put on the EF adapter today, tried the auto-focus from my Canon lenses. Looks promising for my crappy eyes, but will need to experiment a bit.

I've been really happy with the UBG2's focus assist edge detection. I almost never turn it off when shooting live events.

I'd second the focus assist, especially with the studio viewfinders. It can be hard to determine sharpened without it