Re:Why can’t you buy a good webcam?
by kylecordes on Tuesday December 22, 2020 @03:36PM
(#25510921)
As I understand these are all awful in their own way, typically with quality problems and extra latency as well as the extra complexity of the software.
The obvious solution is a camera mode in which it presents itself over USB as a webcam… As far as I know no "real" camera at any price does this.
I solve the problem with a Camlink, but it really should not be necessary.
Re:Why can’t you buy a good webcam?
by rossjudson on Tuesday December 22, 2020 @05:05PM
(#25511857)
I use a camlink 4k/nikon d610 and a Movo UM700. Great color and low-light performance, with natural bokeh, far superior to software background blur solutions.
Now, I'm not sure it's a great idea to actually present myself in such find detail ;). But it was fun to set up.
My Sony a6500 has been perfectly fine with my macbook since Sony released the new drivers. I haven't noticed any latency and love getting compliments from zoom peeps on the non-AI blur I get with my 16mm f1.4 lens.
Re:Why can’t you buy a good webcam?
by FeistySkink on Tuesday December 22, 2020 @08:35PM
(#25513464)
What are the max supported resolution and framerate in this mode?
> The obvious solution is a camera mode in which it presents itself over USB as a webcam… As far as I know no "real" camera at any price does this.
There are! Fujifilm X-A7, Fujifilm X-T200, and Sigma fp are three mirrorless cameras that support UVC. And if you classify action cameras as "real" cameras too, the Insta360 ONE R also supports this.
Note that you may have to update the firmware and put the camera in webcam mode to get this to work.
From what I had read at the time (may be better now) that software was bad and the low quality output from it negated most of the benefits of going with the mirrorless setup in the first place.
Re:Why can’t you buy a good webcam?
by iamatworknow on Tuesday December 22, 2020 @02:53PM
(#25510392)
That's possible, but as others in the comments have mentioned it may be more people with bad lighting/positioning who just decided it was the camera/USB software that was faulty. Still, maybe it does suck. I never tried any of these programs myself because all of my cameras are just slightly too old to work with them.
Early on in the pandemic the major mirrorless camera providers (I believe at least Sony[1], Fujifilm[2], Canon[3], and Nikon[4]) all released software that lets you use any of their relatively recent cameras as webcams with the regular USB transfer/charging cable. A separate capture card is no longer a necessity.
[1] https://imagingedge.sony.net/en-us/ie-webcam.html
[2] https://fujifilm-x.com/global/products/software/x-webcam/
[3] https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/support/se...
[4] https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/products/548/Webca...