LH5 HDR rated at 1,500nits while the more expensive (also
$499) BM5 monitor is rated at 2,000nits.
One of my buying criteria was weight. Since I planned on
using this monitor mounted to the Zhiyun Crane 2 extension
handle, every additional ounce was a concern. It’s one thing to
try to operate a small mirrorless camera on a gimbal smoothly.
But it’s another to consider a small mirrorless camera, the
gimbal, extension-mounting arm, a monitor, monitor battery,
sunshade, an external microphone, cables and filters.
All of this extra weight really can add up, and it affects how
long you can actually hold the camera and gimbal steady for
long periods of time. That’s important since I mostly shoot
documentaries, and I generally follow my subjects through
their day-to-day experiences.
Comparing Three Monitors
To get a better sense of how the Atomos Shinobi SDI com-
pared to the competition, I first considered price, weight and
build materials between the three monitors before buying:
- Atomos Shinobi SDI ($499): 7.97 ounces, polycarbonate.
- PortKeys LH5 HDR ($289): 7.05 ounces, polycarbonate.
- PortKeys BM5 ($499): 12.3 ounces, aluminum.
All three monitors are powered by Sony NP-F batteries or
DC, and all three have the ability to load custom LUTS.
But I wanted to compare other features, as well.
Atomos Shinobi SDI:
- HDMI and SDI i/o; 1,000nits; Atomos user interface has
a wide array of measuring and monitoring tools; good
experience with brand and customer service.
PortKeys LH5 HDR: - HDMI only i/o; 1,500nits; PortKeys user interface is not
as intuitive as Atomos, although it’s equipped with most
video measurement tools. But Atomos has more.
The LH5 HDR is lighter than the Atomos. Also,
use the Long Arm Control Box to control certain
camera functions from the monitor but only for spe-
cific cameras.
PortKeys BM5 :- HDMI and SDI i/o; 2000nits; PortKeys user
interface; it’s heavier than the Atomos. Also, use
the Long Arm Control Box to control certain
camera functions from the monitor but only
for specific cameras. (At the time of this review,
I wasn’t able to get this unit in to compare it on
other features.)
The fact that the PortKeys BM5 wasn’t shipping
in time for a big out-of-state shoot I had coming up
really ruled it out.
And even though having high brightness was appealing to
me, since I’ve been shooting outdoors so much lately on our
docuseries, I didn’t like that I’d have to deal with a potentially
clunky and unintuitive menu system on the PortKeys moni-
tors. I also wasn’t looking forward to the additional weight of
the PortKeys BM5 model for use on our gimbal.
In the end, though, I needed a monitor for an upcoming
production that would largely be shot on the road, shooting
an ultramarathon in the Florida Keys.
I ordered the Atomos Shinobi SDI for $499, along with $90
AtomX Sunshade. I really wanted a higher brightness moni-
tor, but I had hoped that the sunshade would allow me to
use the 1,000nit screen under bright sunlight. And so far, it’s
worked: I’ve been shooting with the Shinobi SDI for a cou-
ple of months now, and my overall impression has been very
favorable. Overall, it’s a very handy tool.
The Pros And Cons Of Aluminum Vs. Polycarbonate
The Atomos Shinobi is basically just a Ninja V without the
recorder. But let me qualify that: One major structural dif-
ference is that the Ninja V recorder has an aluminum body,
while the Shinobi SDI uses polycarbonate.
The downside is that aluminum construction has a more
robust and tactile feel than polycarbonate. Aluminum is also
a better passive heat conductor.
But the Blade is a recorder, while the Shinobi is merely a
monitor. So I didn’t anticipate that heat buildup would be an
issue with a monitor.
The upside is that polycarbonate is lighter, significantly
so over the PortKeys BM5. For my use, primarily on a one-
handed gimbal with a small mirrorless camera, secondarily
on our Canon C200 and rented cameras mostly on tripod,
occasionally shoulder-mounted, the minuscule weight of just
under 8 ounces was a definite selling point.Toolset, Accessory Mount And Color Accuracy
The Shinobi toolset is deep, and the monitor includes many
features with useful functions that help you make sure yourThe Shinobi SDI offers some handy tools that neither of our cameras
provide, like False Color, which assigns different colors to areas of
different exposure in the image. Instead of just showing what parts of
the image are overexposed, it gives a more complete picture of what's
going on in the image by using a range of exposure values.
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